Last week in Cairo the Anglican leaders of the Global South told the world that they “cannot condone same-sex unions as a form of behaviour acceptable to God. To do so would be tampering with the foundation of our faith once for all laid down by the apostles and the prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone (Ephesians 2: 20-22; 1 Corinthians 3:10-11; Jude 3).” But at the same time, they added, “we are not minimizing the sinfulness... Read more

We hear incessantly that if only the Israeli government would give up its West Bank settlements, peace would be at hand. Malcolm Lowe has written the best short explanation I have seen of why that is not so.  If you are involved in discussing Israel-Palestine and today’s Middle East, this is must reading. Here are some excerpts from Dr Lowe’s article: “First, the present Israeli occupation of lands acquired during the Six Day War of 1967 is not illegal per se,... Read more

It’s because Palestinian children are being brainwashed. I hate to put it so crudely, but listen to part of Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the United Nations last Thursday. “I want you to imagine a day in the life of a 13-year-old Palestinian boy, I’ll call him Ali. Ali wakes up before school, he goes to practice with a soccer team named after Dalal Mughrabi, a Palestinian terrorist responsible for the murder of a busload of 37 Israelis. At school, Ali attends an... Read more

The Wall Street Journal reports this morning that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas told the United Nations yesterday that he is going to present a Security Council resolution declaring Israel’s settlements on the West Bank illegal. This is part of a his larger claim that Israel’s continued occupation of the West Bank is a violation of international law—specifically UN Resolution 242. Is it? (more…) Read more

Friends, here is another profile in courage. Waleed Al-Husseini is a Palestinian blogger and essayist who was arrested and tortured by the Palestinian Authority.  he is now in France, where he writes with extraordinary clarity and boldness. Here are a few examples: “The only ones who create stigmatization are the Muslims themselves. This is a tested strategy which consists of turning oneself into a so-called ‘victim’ in order to tighten the links within the Muslim community and to claim that... Read more

We keep hearing that the settlements prevent peace between Jews and Arabs in Israel/Palestine.  But according to Robert Nicholson, this claim ignores realities on the ground. “It is hard to take seriously the claim that settlements prevent peace. And yet Palestinian Christians continue to raise that standard, and only that standard, using it to drive a wedge between their Western co-religionists and the State of Israel. Gatherings like those at the Carter Center and Christ at the Checkpoint, a biennial... Read more

The Philos Project, in collaboration with the Allen P. Kirby Center on Constitutional Studies and Citizenship invites you to an evening panel on the new Christian Zionism. Can a theological case be made from scripture that Israel still has a claim to the Promised Land? This question is the focus of the book The New Christian Zionism: Fresh Perspectives on Israel and the Land, by Beeson Divinity School professor Gerald R. McDermott. At this panel event, Dr. McDermott and contributors to... Read more

Many, perhaps even most, Palestinians distrust their Palestinian leaders.  Many reject their legitimacy as leaders, complaining that Mahmoud Abbas is in the 11th year of his four-year term as President of the Palestinian Authority (PA).  Last week he cancelled local elections, and this was not the first time. The West needs to know that some Palestinian leaders want to work with Israel to help the Palestinian people.  They want to stop boycotts of Israel, and stop demonizing Israel, but engage... Read more

This time the complaint comes from an Arab in Jordan, about the Palestinians in Jordan and Syria–and how BDS and the world are wrongly focusing on Israel. Take a look here. Read more

A new book with that title is something of a bombshell, for both Mormons and evangelicals.  Click here for my review at Christianity Today. Read more