February 2, 2015 SnyderTalk: Paradise lost—is Christianity doomed in the Middle East?

1--Intro Covering Israel and ME

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: may they prosper who love you.” Psalm 122: 6

________________________________________

2--SnyderTalk Lead Headline for use

#####

Gerard Russell—Paradise lost: is Christianity doomed in the Middle East?:

The stark cliffs of the Zagros Mountains on the Iran-Iraq border, and the dusty hills and plains that lie between those mountains and the city of Mosul, might seem an unlikely location for paradise. Yet Christians living here in past centuries believed that a local river called the Great Zab had once flowed from Adam and Eve’s garden. Patriarchs of the Christian Assyrian Church of the East living on its banks once signed off their letters with the salutation, “From my cell by the river of Eden”.

These days the Patriarch’s letters are sent from a less romantic spot: 7201 North Ashland Boulevard, Chicago. Successive waves of persecution have driven out the leaders of this ancient, prestigious and little-known church – including Mar Dinkha IV, the present and 120th Patriarch of Babylon, who was consecrated in Ealing, west London, and is based in the United States. As for the Great Zab, this summer it ended up as the de facto border between Kurdish forces on its southern side and the so-called Islamic State (IS) to its north. From being the garden of Adam and Eve, Iraq has become the land of Cain and Abel. Yet even its melancholy recent history can remind us that the religious conflict that scars the modern Middle East is far from inevitable.

In 1987, Christians in Iraq numbered 1.4 million. Since then, the country’s population has doubled but its Christian community has declined to 400,000. Many of these people are now internally displaced because of IS, a Sunni Muslim militant movement that drove them from their homes in August 2014 in its effort to establish an Islamic “caliphate”. The former Christian inhabitants of Mosul and the surrounding towns are now refugees in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region nearby, protected from the summer heat and winter snow only by UN-provided tents erected in local churchyards.

[…]

To continue reading, click here.

SnyderTalk Comment: This may sound like I’m picking on Obama, but I’m not.  It’s impossible to tell the truth about him and have it sound any other way.

Barack Obama is responsible for igniting the catastrophe in the Middle East, and because of him Christians in the Middle East have been devastated.  That’s not an opinion or a political talking point.  It’s an empirical fact that is supported by mountains of hard evidence.

That’s why I believe that Christians who support Obama must be ignorant about what is taking place or they have consciously decided that political party affiliation and race are more important than Yahweh.

For a clear picture of what is taking place right in front of us, see these articles:

Christianity isn’t “doomed in the Middle East” or any other place on the planet, but with friends like Obama, Christianity doesn’t need enemies.  Jewish people should learn that lesson, too.

#####

________________________________________

#####

Life in Israel During the Ottoman Period

#####

________________________________________

13--Perspectives 2

#####

Aaron David Miller: Why Even Our Friends in the Middle East Don’t Like Us— President Barack Obama‘s visit to Saudi Arabia this week with a heavy-duty delegation was a smart move. But nobody should have any illusions that this quick stop will fix what’s troubling U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia or other key allies in the region. These days, the United States’ two oldest and most important friends in the Middle East–Israel and Saudi Arabia–seem to have more in common with one another than they do with Washington. Throw Egypt into the mix and you have an unusual threesome–a Jewish state, a monarchy, and a military-controlled phony republic–that have, as a practical matter, aligned in opposition to U.S. policies that they neither understand nor approve of. None of this would matter if U.S. allies in that turbulent region were plentiful and reliable. But they aren’t, and the Middle East is in meltdown. That latter alone is reason to be careful in handling friends. It’s no easy matter for an administration to have alienated its traditional allies all at once and in a relatively short time.

SnyderTalk Comment: Barack Obama wanted to change the way America is perceived.  Well, he succeeded.

Michael Singh: A Deal with the Devil? Why Washington Should Not Pin Its Hopes on Rouhani— The Iranian nuclear negotiations have proven divisive enough within the United States and among the United States and its allies. But the bigger story is the wedge they have exposed between factions in Iran. The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama and some of its partners in the P5+1 (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany) see Iranian President Hassan Rouhani as a critical partner, one with the potential to deliver a long-sought nuclear compromise and a broader rapprochement with the West. Skeptics in the United States and abroad, on the other hand, see Rouhani as little more than an Iranian hard-liner pretending to play nice. Both views, however, miss the larger drama. There is indeed a fundamental divide within the Iranian regime—with Rouhani leading one side—but it has less to do with Iran’s nuclear program or regional strategy than with the more basic question of how best to preserve the regime itself.

Emanuele Ottolenghi: Iran’s History of Nuclear Deceit Is Why There Hasn’t Been a Deal Yet—The Iranian nuclear file remains unresolved because of Iran’s consistent refusal to transparently and fully account for its illicit nuclear program. The current international standoff may be traced to 2002, when Iranian dissidents exposed extensive clandestine nuclear activities at the Natanz uranium-enrichment facility and the Arak heavy water reactor. Tehran’s subsequent maneuvers eventually led the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in September 2005, to declare it in non-compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The following year, the IAEA referred the Iran file to the UN Security Council, whose six subsequent resolutions have underscored the country’s unwavering defiance of the international community. A third clandestine enrichment facility, Fordow, built deep underground, was revealed after Western intelligence services detected it in 2009. Only permanent limitations on the scope and size of Iran’s nuclear program – and a lengthy period of verifiable compliance – can restore the international confidence that Iran has so assiduously betrayed.

Rachel Ehrenfeld: The Myth of Islamist “Lone Wolf”— So much for the Islamist “Lone Wolf” nonsense. ISIS propaganda is finally getting some attention. Even the New York Times published an op-ed asking  “Why Tolerate Terrorist Publications?” citing “Patrick Henry’s famous liberty-or-death choice “in the short run, one cannot enjoy freedom of speech, freedom to worship, freedom of the press unless one first enjoys the freedom to live.”  Yet, we let the Islamist abuse Americans right to free expression to incite their followers to shut us up for good. Congress should not wait until/if ever the president identifies (radical) Islam as the enemy. For whatever reason he considers their virulent propaganda as free speech. But Jihadist attempts to incite, and their instructive propaganda to commit crimes and intimidate, are criminal acts that are not protected under our right to free expression. To endure that we live to enjoy our freedoms, Congress should re-visit the legal provisions to stop incitement and review their enforcement.  Jihadist incitement on the Internet, social media and elsewhere should be outlawed and servers allowing it should be severely penalized.

Warren Marshall: Dispersed But Not Degraded: Iranian Universities And The Regime’s Nuclear Weaponization Activities—Iran has mastered the technology necessary to produce weapons-grade uranium and currently has enough centrifuges operating to produce fuel for several weapons each year, if its leaders choose to do so.  The U.S. is currently negotiating with Iran in hopes of reducing its stockpiles of enriched uranium and centrifuge capability, but the Obama administration has already conceded that Iran will retain some indigenous enrichment capacity.  It has also apparently conceded that Iran will not have to come clean about the history or even current state of its efforts to perfect a workable nuclear warhead.  Iran’s progress toward weaponization as opposed to enrichment has thus largely dropped from policy discussions.  The trouble is that careful review of Iranian published scientific papers and advertised industrial capabilities indicates that Iran may be much closer to being able to build a nuclear weapon than many people think.  In the worst case, Iran may already have the technical capability to complete every part of the weaponization process, including testing a nuclear device.

SnyderTalk Comment: See “Watchdog Slams Use of American Taxpayer Funds to Finance Anti-Netanyahu Campaign” by Ben Cohen.  Netanyahu knows Iran and the Middle East.  Obama knows neither, but he thinks he knows everything.  Obama reminds me of the Peanuts character Pigpen.  Everything that he touches turns into a mess.  Also see “Nuclear Iran would threaten Israel’s existence” by Charles Krauthammer.  We know that Krauthammer is correct because that’s what Iranian leaders have been saying for years.

Victor Davis Hanson: Can Israel Survive?— Israel is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East and North Africa. Eight million Israelis are surrounded by some 400 million Muslims in more than 20 states. Almost all of Israel’s neighbors are anti-Israeli dictatorships, monarchies, or theocracies — a number of them reduced to a state of terrorist chaos. Given the rise of radical Islam, the huge petrodollar wealth of the Middle East, and lopsided demography, how has Israel so far survived?

SnyderTalk Comment: The answer to the question is “yes”, but in the end, Yahweh is Israel’s only hope for survival.  He is enough.

Aryeh Sav: Israel is ‘Easily Conquerable’— “Certainly, freedom of Haifa and Tel Aviv is much easier for us than the 33-day [First Lebanon War in 1982] and 22-day wars [Second Lebanon War in 2006], since the Zionist army’s doctrine is based on an offensive strategy and it has spent 60 years of its despicable and evil life with this doctrine,” Naqdi said on Tuesday evening, on the sidelines of the commemorate ceremony. “The Zionist army is familiar with this doctrine and knows well that it is much weaker in defense than offence; the Zionist army has so far failed 4 times in its invasions, and it will certainly have more humiliating defeats and failures in defense,” he claimed. Naqdi somehow neglected the fact that the majority of the IDF’s and Israel’s wars have been the warding off of invading Arab armies.

Steve Forbes: Why Netanyahu, The Churchill Of Our Time, Must Speak Before Congress— It is fitting and proper–indeed essential for our very security–that Speaker John Boehner has extended an invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu to address Congress on Iran and its efforts to develop nuclear weapons and the missiles to deliver them anywhere in the world. The invitation has bipartisan support because many members on both sides of the aisle recognize the fundamental threat to world peace that a nuclear-armed Iran would pose. Like Winston Churchill in the 1930s with Nazi Germany, Netanyahu has been sounding the alarm about Iran’s ominous nuclear and terrorist activities. It’s a message much of Europe and even segments of the US, particularly in the Obama administration, don’t want to hear. The President has made clear his intense dislike of Israel’s prime minister and his refusal to keep quiet about Obama’s desire to conclude a Neville Chamberlain-like deal with Teheran. In a flagrant interference in another country’s election, Obama operatives are working hard in Israel to help bring down the courageous Prime Minister.

Jim Michaels: Islamic State seeks legitimacy in prisoner swap— Islamic State militants holding two hostages are pursuing a prisoner swap with Jordan because they believe such negotiations with a country will bring them international standing and also demonstrate that recruits won’t be forgotten if captured. “This suggests they are operating on the same plane as a state,” said Daniel Benjamin, a former State Department counterterrorism official who is now director of Dartmouth’s Dickey Center for International Understanding. To meet the Islamic State’s demands, Jordan said it was willing to release Sajida al-Rishawi, an Iraqi woman arrested after her suicide vest failed to detonate during a 2005 Amman hotel attack. In exchange, the militants would free a Jordanian pilot being held hostage.

SnyderTalk Comment: See “Islamic State militants attack Kirkuk, bombs kill 18 in Baghdad” and “Battle with IS kills senior Kurdish general, 8 of his troops”.

Paul Berman: Why Is the Islamist Death Cult So Appealing?— Why do people who are not clinically crazy throw themselves into campaigns of murder and suicide? The sociological answer to this question assumes a pettiness in human nature, such that even the slightest of humiliations and misfortunes may be regarded as sufficiently devastating, under certain conditions, as to sweep aside the gravest of moral considerations. I prefer to invoke the history of ideas. People throw themselves into campaigns of murder and suicide because they have come under the influence of malign doctrinal systems, which appear to address the most profound and pressing of human problems—and do so by openly rebelling against the gravest of moral considerations. Doctrines of this sort render their adepts mad, not in a clinical sense but in an everyday sense. And the power to drive people mad comes precisely from the profundity, or the seeming profundity—which is what everyone else fails to see. The Islamist movement—the case at hand—got its start in Egypt circa in 1930 in the form of the Muslim Brotherhood, as a puritanical religious campaign devoted to the encouragement of rectitude; and rectitude is all that some people notice about Islamists today.

Bassam Tawil: Europe’s Real “Resistance”— Europeans, both civilians and law enforcement personnel, may well be on tenterhooks, wondering what thousands of young Muslim men and women, who left their countries of origin to join the Islamist terrorist organizations in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Africa, will do when they return. Europeans have reason to be concerned: many of the returning jihadists were trained to murder civilians. When they come back to the countries to which their parents fled to escape the political and economic distress of the Arab and Muslim world, many of these mujahideen plan to kill their hosts in the name of extremist Islam. They will call their hosts “infidels,” and kill them for the “crime” of not being Muslims.

#####

________________________________________

#####

The History of the Muslim Brotherhood in 3 Minutes

#####

________________________________________

9--Jerusalem Post

#####

Netanyahu: No immunity for anyone planning attacks on Israel

Security forces arrest Arab-Israeli from Nazareth for fighting with ISIS

Amos Oz: We can reduce Israeli-Palestinian conflict to Israel-Gaza conflict

SnyderTalk Comment: That’s a pipe dream.  There will always be another Yasser Arafat or Mahmoud Abbas waiting in the wings to take over, and Iran and ISIS are building strength in the West Bank.  I hope and pray that the Israeli people see through the deception in their upcoming election.

Analysis: Egypt and the new terror onslaught

White House: Settlement building isolates Israel in world, undermines chance for 2-state solution

SnyderTalk Comment: If the White House is right about the connection between “settlement building” and the suicidal 2-state solution, and they probably are, then Israel should put the pedal to the metal with “settlement building”.  If Iran can build missiles and nukes and target Israel with impunity, then Israel can build homes for its growing population with impunity or something like it.

Hamas no longer accepts Egypt as Israel mediator, source close to group says

‘Israel knew about the Gaza tunnel threat but did nothing about it’

Report: Joint Mossad-CIA operation killed key Hezbollah leader Mughniyeh in 2008

Islamic State seizes oil facility in north Iraq, 15 workers missing

Report: Egyptian warplanes bomb Islamist terror bases in Sinai after deadly attacks

#####

________________________________________

10--Arutz Sheva

#####

IDF Chief of Staff Gantz: Do Not Underestimate Our Enemies

Israel’s US Envoy Says Bibi US Protocol Flap Republicans’ Fault

SnyderTalk Comment: “Fault” is the wrong word.  “Responsibility” is correct.

Stated another way, House Republicans are acting responsibly by inviting Netanyahu to address Congress.  Democrats in the House, Senate, and White House are not behaving responsibly.

That’s not a political statement.  It’s a factual statement. Democrats won’t see it that way.  Too bad.

Keep in mind that Democrats booed God during the 2012 Democratic National Convention.  If you connect the dots, that fact speaks volumes.

Wary of Intel Leaks, Jihadists Scaling Back Social Media Use

Talks to Free Japanese, Jordanian ISIS Hostages ‘Deadlocked’

Temple Mount Ban Fails, Chetboun’s Rabbi Distances

‘The Settlement Floodgates Have Opened’

Netanyahu Vows Vengeance on Terrorists in Cabinet Meeting

Neo-Nazis Plan Rally in London Jewish Neighborhood

Liberman: We Will Not Join a Left-Wing Government

Report: Police Brutally Beat Three Minors, Ages 9, 12, and 14

#####

________________________________________

#####

#####

________________________________________

11--THE TIMES OF ISRAEL

#####

Egyptian court rules Hamas armed wing a terror group

A long war ahead of Egypt in Sinai

Britons loathe Israel more than Iran, survey finds

Pelosi unsure if Democrats will attend Netanyahu’s speech

SnyderTalk Comment: If House Democrat leaders don’t attend Netanyahu’s address, the Democrats who do show up are demonstrating political courage and an instinct for political survival.

Netanyahu blames Iran for recent Hezbollah attacks

Hizbullah Congratulates Itself on Deadly Strike, Threatens More 

Will an eye for an eye suffice?

Neither side wants war, but that was true last time around too

Lebanese rebuke Hezbollah for dragging country into clash

US: Israel has right to self-defense against Hezbollah

FM’s call for ‘disproportionate’ military action sensibly lost in translation

Why a war in the north could mean the fall of Netanyahu

After Hezbollah strike, polls put Likud in the lead

15,000 young Gazans complete Hamas terror training camps

Yazidi militia makes public request for Israeli help

‘IDF was warned of border strike ahead ofWednesday attack’

Human rights watchdog: Hamas, PA tortured hundreds in 2014

Austrian anti-Semitic attacks nearly doubled in 2014 — watchdog

#####

________________________________________

12a--Other News

#####

ISIS: Japanese hostage beheaded

Not Just ISIS: Syrian Islamists Execute Woman for Adultery

SnyderTalk Comment: In the Islamist world, there is no court of justice.  A woman is guilty of adultery if she is accused of adultery.  Women have been accused of adultery for simply wearing lipstick, being raped, not covering their faces, driving a car, etc., etc., etc.  This article includes a video of the execution.  You have been warned.

Hezbollah Leader Nasrallah Tells Israel, We No Longer Recognize ‘Rules of Engagement’

SnyderTalk Comment: That’s exactly what Iranian leaders said a few days ago.  Clearly, Iran is Hezbollah’s puppet-master.

Netanyahu’s Congress speech stirs growing backlash in Israel and the US

Benjamin Netanyahu Stuns Israel Backers by Embracing Republicans on Iran

SnyderTalk Comment: We live in a world where the concept of right and wrong is considered to be passé, old-fashioned, out-of-touch with the times.    Everything boils down to politics, perceptions, feelings, and opinions.  The truth doesn’t seem to matter.  For far too many people, it just gets in the way.

Netanyahu isn’t “embracing Republicans” at all.  He’s simply telling the truth.  Republicans are on the right side of the Iran issue.  Where Iran is concerned, Democrats have their heads so far up their derrieres that they can’t see the light of day.

People who believe in right and wrong are thought of as “conservative” or “backward”.  People who reject the notion of right and wrong are thought of as “liberal” or “progressive”.  When Judgment Day comes, what do you think Yahweh will say about right and wrong?

Harry Truman, a Democrat, was asked why people called him “give ‘em Hell, Harry”.  He said, “I just tell the truth about them and they think it’s Hell.”  Harry Truman was a good Democrat.  He would not be comfortable in the Democratic Party today.  Neither am I.

Hamas official: UN decision to halt aid in Gaza has led to widespread anger

SnyderTalk Comment: So what?  Hamas uses “aid” funds to built terror tunnels and buy weapons which they use to launch unprovoked attacks on Israel.  The way to stop that nonsense is to cut the flow of funds to Hamas to the bone.  If Iran kicks in to make up for the shortfall, punish Iran.  Hamas is a crybaby and a bully.  They should be treated that way.

Hezbollah Filmed Towing US Abrams Tank Into Battle

At least 26 killed, more than 100 wounded in North Sinai rocket attack

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi blames Muslim Brotherhood for role in Sinai attack

Boko Haram crisis: African Union backs regional force of 7500 troops

4 things to know about Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah

Argentine President Seeks To Dissolve Spy Agency

Iraqi libraries ransacked by Islamic State group in Mosul

Germany, ECB play hardball with Greece

Greek Bailout Plans Hit The Brick Wall Of Merkel And The ECB

Jihadist terrorism is our reality now: [Canada’s Prime Minister] Harper

#####

________________________________________

#####

#####

________________________________________

12b--TRIC

#####

Ukraine peace talks collapse, Kiev and separatists trade blame

Erdoğan: presidential Turkey would be like UK, where Queen’s in charge

SnyderTalk Comment: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is a megalomaniac.

New Greek nationalist defence minister resurrects old tensions with Turkey

Trench Warfare in Turkey

Background Basics: Islamic Republic of Iran

Iranian Expansionism and the Nuclear Talks

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards: Israel should expect reaction anywhere

EU foreign ministers extend sanctions against Russian officials, E. Ukraine rebels

Russia Unexpectedly Cuts Key Rate as Economy Eclipses Ruble

Israel Says Turkish Criticism Inappropriate at Holocaust Memorial Service

Deal with Iran at Root of Argentine Prosecutor’s Death Mystery

Israel Gets Iran on Its Border

The Rising Insurgency for Sanctions Against Iran

#####

________________________________________

Email Distribution List:

I have created an email distribution list that I use to notify people when I post a new SnyderTalk.  If you would like to be on that list, send your email address to nhsny@yahoo.com, and put “add me to your distribution list” in the subject line.  If you know others who are interested in SnyderTalk content, tell them to send me their email address, and I’ll put them on the list.

________________________________________

4--Scripture of the Day Yahweh

Genesis 47: 1-6

1 Then Joseph went in and told Pharaoh, and said, “My father and my brothers and their flocks and their herds and all that they have, have come out of the land of Canaan; and behold, they are in the land of Goshen.” 2 He took five men from among his brothers and presented them to Pharaoh. 3 Then Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?” So they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we and our fathers.” 4 They said to Pharaoh, “We have come to sojourn in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants’ flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. Now, therefore, please let your servants live in the land of Goshen.” 5 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 The land of Egypt is at your disposal; settle your father and your brothers in the best of the land, let them live in the land of Goshen; and if you know any capable men among them, then put them in charge of my livestock.”

SnyderTalk Comment: Read His Name is Yahweh.

________________________________________

5--HNIY Print form 3

His Name is Yahweh explains why the Name of God, Yahweh, is so important.  It’s available in eBook format and in paperback.  It’s also available for free in PDF format.

  • God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This [Yahweh] is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” (Exodus 3: 15)
  • “Therefore behold, I am going to make them know—this time I will make them know My power and My might; and they shall know that My name is Yahweh.” (Jeremiah 16: 21)
  • “Behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘Yahweh our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23: 5-6)
  • Yeshua said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” (John 8: 58)

________________________________________

6--His Name is Yahweh Audio Presentation 5

#####

Is it legalistic to pay too much attention to God’s Name?

Click here to download the entire audio presentation for free and with no strings attached.  Share it as often as you want.

#####

________________________________________

14--Blessings from Revelation 2

Blessings in the Book of Revelation is a book that you need to read, especially now.  There are blessings throughout the Scriptures but Revelation is the only book in the Bible actually containing a specific blessing for reading it. It’s repeated twice, once at the beginning and again at the end. This is the reason that I believe Revelation should be the first step toward studying biblical prophecy. Though not easy to do, Revelation can be broken down and understood by anyone, not just the academic elite. So, Revelation’s blessings are for everyone.  Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.

________________________________________

Other Books by Neil Snyder

  • Stand! is a suspense novel that exposes the lies, corruption, and greed underlying the theory that man-made CO2 emissions are responsible for global warming. Professor Wes Carlyle and Karen Sterling, his research collaborator, carefully scan the audience for their would-be attacker—a member of the enviro-gestapo who has been following them for days.  Wes spots his man in the back of the room leaning against the wall.  Suddenly, another man in the audience steps forward and moves toward Karen at a menacing pace.  With a vicious stroke, he swings a billy club at her head.  Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.
  • What Will You Do with the Rest of Your Life? deals with a question that every Christian has to consider: what should I do with my life? Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.
  • Falsely Accused is a true story about a young woman who was accused of committing a double homicide. It’s about a travesty of justice, and it reveals Yahweh intervening in the life of a believer to rescue her from danger in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.  Everyone will enjoy the book, but young people in particular need to read it because the mistakes made that led to the problem could have been avoided.  They were the kinds of mistakes that young people are prone to make.  As they say, forewarned is forearmed.  Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.

15--Concentric Circles 5

Back to the top

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *