Home » August 1995

Zola Levitt

People have always said that those who cry out the End is near! are crazy. How many cartoons have we seen of the nut with the sign board trying to preach repentance to the mocking crowd? Certain prophets (Ezekiel and Jeremiah, to name two) were regarded as crazy in their times when they warned of impending disaster. Well, I have the honor of receiving much the same criticism when I try to discuss events of the world we live in. Whenever I cover items in the news, selecting out craziness that seems to herald the End Times, I get a lot of criticism. Some believers have been taught all their lives that Christians must be meek and humble and try to get along with everybody, good or bad. We are supposed to be uncomplaining sheep just waiting around for our Lord to take us to a better place. Frankly, I didn't grow up like that. In the Jewish community, people make their feelings known and there are few pretenses. Israel is a refreshing place to our pilgrims because they discover people who say what they mean.

At any rate, I am not just trying to please an audience but to teach Scripture and the plan of God as I understand it. For example, the constant maligning of Israel and the ridiculous respect shown for Arab dictators, including Arafat, is the sort of upside-down thinking one would expect as a sign of the End Times. The Lord Himself warned us, “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matt. 24:10,11). His point was that we should not be misled. We are not the children of darkness, but “are all the children of light, and the children of the day … Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober” (I Thess. 5:5,6).

That being so, let us consider what is happening in the world. France has been in the news lately. President Jacques Chirac has taken a step that has been long-awaited by Holocaust survivors and Jewish leaders: admitting France's guilt in sending 76,000 Jews to their deaths in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. French leaders have long maintained that France wasn't truly responsible for this since it was done by the Vichy regime, the provisional World War II French government that collaborated with Germany. But President Chirac, in office only a few months, has finally exposed this whitewash. A recent New York Times column, using a report from Paris dated July 16, stated:

Mr. Chirac said today that on July 16, 1942, French police helped to round up some 13,000 Jewish men, women and children. They were crammed into the Vel d'Hiv, an indoor cycling stadium, before being interned in the Paris suburb of Drancy and then deported to death camps.

Speaking at a memorial to these victims before a small crowd that included Jewish leaders as well as some Jewish death camp survivors, Mr. Chirac admitted France's collective error.

As welcome as this 50-years-late admission is, France has still not completely removed the stain of its involvement with Nazi Germany. As further stated in the article mentioned above:

Serge Klarsfeld, a French lawyer and renowned Nazi-hunter, said . . . [that] the French state confiscated money, property and valuables from Jews being deported from France and then failed to return these assets or pay reparations to surviving children of deportees.

The families of the deported never got anything back, he said in an interview with the newspaper Libération. The Fourth Republic simply took their property, jewelry and objects. They stole money from parents and then did not pay it back to the children.

And not repaying the children was perhaps the least crime that France committed against the young. A New York Times article dated July 19, writing about the roundup of the 13,000 Jews mentioned above, reports:

The Nazis had specifically excluded young children from the deportation order, yet the French separated them from their parents and transferred them to a camp near Paris. There, 4,000 babies, toddlers and older children were pushed, dragged or carried by French officials into dark cattle cars for shipment to Auschwitz. Not one of them survived.

Perhaps it is easy to understand why France would not want to admit to such horrendous crimes. The article continues:

Vichy was dismissed as the work of a few senile Fascists. No one looked closely at what had happened during the Occupation, perhaps because very few intellectuals of any political stripe could claim to have had a good war . . . No one stood up to cry J'accuse! at high functionaires, as Emile Zola did during the Dreyfus affair.

The lessons of history escaped the French. Emile Zola, for whom I am named, a century ago published a treatise that shamed French officials into admitting their anti-Semitism. Only decades later, they were again using their power to betray the Jews.

France still leans toward a police state. One example of this is their insistence on conducting nuclear tests which endanger the South Pacific area (and possibly endanger us all). When an outcry was made in the new European Parliament, President Chirac stated that the resolution could not be changed. And when the nuclear tests were opposed by the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior, France sent its Navy against this unarmed vessel and boarded it, shooting tear gas at civilians.

I have had personal experience with French anti-Semitism and their police state mentality. Two years ago, a young French policeman, with whom I had a few words, accused me of spitting on him and I was detained by the Orly airport police for some two hours while my Israel tour group waited. After making a lengthy statement through an interpreter to deny that ludicrous accusation, I was released but ordered to appear in court in the small town where the airport is located. I had to retain a lawyer to represent me there! I was exonerated, of course, and the charge was dismissed. On the face of it, a minister with a grey beard accosting a six-foot-tall young policeman in such a manner was unbelievable to the judges. Amazingly, my accuser appealed the case! I was served at my front door in Dallas with papers from this small town near Paris to reappear! I thought about sending them a psychiatrist instead of a lawyer. After more legal fees, I was pronounced innocent a second time.

I literally lost thousands of dollars defending myself for being Jewish. My attorney pronounced the matter a case of genuine anti-Semitism, since the tour badge I had been wearing bore Hebrew characters and it seemed to be my Jewishness that offended the policeman. We will never again visit or spend one more penny on this nation, where the police have power over everyone: the courts, their own government, and even visitors doing business with their country. If you want a travel advisory, avoid this hostile country at all costs. I have traveled through Russia, a number of Moslem nations, and Germany on numerous occasions, but in my experience, France is the worst country to visit.

Speaking of malevolent countries, Iraq is at or near the top of the list. Iraq, like all other Arab nations, is basically owned by one lunatic. While Arab governments put on various shows of democracy rubber stamp parliaments, very dangerous elections they are dictatorships all, certainly including the new Palestine. Like the French police, Saddam Hussein has total power over his courts and can dictate set them free (as he did in the recent case of the two American trespassers) just as easily as he dictates life or death over his own citizens. (Hussein has largely slaughtered the Kurds with poison gas and the like.) Israel has 17,000 policeman for its 4.5 million people. You, American taxpayer, have contributed to a force of 20,000 Palestinian police for 1.6 million people. In other words, Americans have been duped into creating a new Arab police force for a new Arab police state.

The newspapers are full of our objections to human rights abuses in China, while we benignly ignore the 200 million people trapped behind the Arab Curtain. While China utilizes slave labor and certainly mistreats many people, they cannot begin to match President Assad of Syria, who slaughtered 20,000 of his own citizens at Hamah when they objected to his leadership. Our Secretary of State has recently been bowing in the throne room of this killer in order to give him part of Israel (the Golan Heights). The Middle Eastern Moslems in turn benignly ignore some 250,000 Moslem deaths in Bosnia because they are too busy with their Israel bashing.

Meanwhile, the Arabs enjoy suspiciously good press. Geraldine Harris recently said on CNN's World Report, The West Bank has been weakened by 28 years of Israeli occupation. In reality, what the Israelis brought to the West Bank (a backward territory that was primitive even by Arab standards) was clean water, public health, public schools, universities, safety, and an average life span extension from 42 to 67.

Notice, too, the total blackout of the trial of Sheik Rahman and the gang that bombed the World Trade Center. While you are being informed about Susan Smith (two dead, zero injured) and totally educated on O.J. Simpson (two dead, zero injured), you hear hardly a breath about the largest foreign terrorist event in American history (six dead, one thousand injured). Our Arab masters must be served. Arabs produce oil. Oil makes gasoline, plastics, paint, and a thousand other popular products used daily in America. The folks who make those buy lots of TV time and lots of newspaper advertising space. Get the picture?

And so the newspapers, television stations, and even our own leaders kowtow to the desires of these dictators and call for Israeli compliance to the peace process, which is ultimately designed to bring about the annihilation of the State of Israel. Satan seeks to establish the conditions that will usher in the Antichrist, who will lead the ultimate police state, where people cannot buy or sell or even live unless they deny God. The End Times are coming. We can read about them every day, if we have the discernment that God provides.

Forgive me if I tell the truth as I see it. Sometimes the truth about our world and about ourselves hurts, but as our Lord also observed, the truth shall make you free (John 8:32). Let us continue in His Word so that we can be free of the world's (and the media's) deception.

Thomas McCall

THE JEWS SURVIVE THE SATANIC NAZI HOLOCAUST AND CREATE ISRAEL

By 1947, we believe God had organized the restoration of the Jewish nation through Zionism, and its allies in dispensational Christianity and the British Mandate of Palestine. In full and desperate opposition, Satan attempted to thwart the divine plan of the restoration of Israel. He used the enormous disruptions of World War II, and the Nazi Holocaust, which singled out the Jewish people as the greatest enemy, destined for total extermination. However, the Chosen People miraculously survived all of this, were streaming into British Palestine by the thousands from Europe, and had come to the dramatic moment of declaring their independence before the world. Once again Israel would become a living nation among the family of nations after a Diaspora of nineteen centuries.

ARABIC ISLAM IS THE NEW SATANIC ENEMY OF REVIVED ISRAEL

The infant nation's immediate attention first had to be given to the Arab neighbors, and Arabic Islam became the next tool in the hands of Satan to keep Israel from prospering, now that it had survived the Holocaust to become a nation. The Arab nations did not recognize or accept the U.N. partitioning of Palestine into Jewish and Arab sections. As soon as Israel declared independence, the surrounding Arab neighbors declared war on Israel, and in the first months of its existence, the Jewish people had to defend themselves with the meager weapons they had against an onslaught of the combined armies arrayed against them.

The primary motivation behind the Arab objection to the fledgling Israel was religious. This was not just a political matter, it was, in fact, a holy war or jihad. The Jewish state was an offense to the sanctity of the holy sites in Jerusalem and throughout the land, according to their viewpoint. The only way this could be rectified was by forcibly removing the Jews from the land and pushing them out into the Mediterranean Sea. This was the battle cry in the Arab nations, and a recurring theme for over forty years of discord.

The fanatical Muslims could not tolerate the idea of an official Jewish presence in Palestine, especially in Jerusalem. Islam considers the Temple Mount with its famous Dome of the Rock and Al Aksa Mosque as one of the most sacred holy sites in the world, ranking behind only the central sites of Mecca and Medina.

ISLAM ATTACKS ISRAEL & THE GOSPEL

The Arabs are the physical descendants of Ishmael, the first son of Abraham, and the vast majority of Arabs have adopted Islam as their official religion and have spread their religion to much of the world's population throughout the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Islam expresses tolerance for Judaism and Christianity, but essentially it attempts to refute the cardinal doctrines of both. It transfers to Ishmael the blessings that came through Isaac and Jacob, and disputes the deity and redemptive work of Christ. While the Muslims have generally neglected the development of Palestine throughout the centuries, with the exception of a few cities, they have jealously guarded their rights over the land from the time of the Crusades. It was one thing to dislodge the European Crusaders from the land, but the Moslems have discovered it is entirely another matter to dislodge the Jewish people who consider Israel as their religious and ancestral homeland.

To understand the hostility between these descendants of the patriarchal brothers, Isaac and Ishmael, it is necessary for the Jewish and Christian readers to understand something about the nature and history of Islam from our perspective. In some ways, the development of the religion of Islam in the seventh century was one of the great master strokes of Satan in the world. Before Islam, the vast Arab population, and much of Africa and Asia, was essentially neutral toward passive Judaism and evangelistic Christianity, although these areas had some bias toward various forms of polytheism. But with the religion of Mohammed came a conscious rejection of and negative attitude toward the unvarnished truths of the Old and New Testaments.

While giving lip service to the various biblical prophets, including Moses and Jesus, and claiming vehemently to be a religion of pure monotheism, Islam challenged most of the history and doctrine of the Scriptures. The Koran deliberately removes Israel from its historical and theological position as the Chosen Nation, and replaces it with the Arab peoples, the descendants of Ishmael. One of the major annual feasts of Islam, called ISHMAEL, demonstrates this. They actually twist the Scriptures and celebrate this feast as a commemoration of the willingness of Abraham to offer Ishmael (not Isaac). Thus, according to Islam, Ishmael (and the Arabs) displaces Isaac (and the Jews) as the Promised Seed. From that point on, Islam continues to denigrate the position of Israel, its historical possession of the Promised Land, the glory of the worship in the Jerusalem Temple, and the Messianic destiny of the Davidic dynasty.

At the same time, Islam undercuts the truths of the Gospel. The Koran considers Jesus to be a prophet, but denies the deity of Christ. Furthermore, it rejects the substitutionary atonement of the death of the Lord, as well as the validity of His resurrection. On the contrary, the Koran invents the theory that Jesus did not actually die on the Cross, but rather only swooned, or fell unconscious, and then later recovered and pretended to have risen from the dead.

ISRAEL, CHRISTIANITY ISLAM COMPETE OVER JERUSALEM

Islam thus attempts to undermine most of the essentials of the Scriptures, and, when it became widely accepted through proclama- tion and conquest, the religion of Mohammed became a major problem for biblically based Judaism and Christianity. This difficulty was exacerbated when Islam occupied Jerusalem and made it one of its main holy places. Now there were three religions competing over the territorial rights to Jerusalem. Throughout fourteen hundred years, this has resulted in the Moslems wresting Jerusalem from the Byzantine Christians, the short Crusade period of European domination of Jerusalem for about 100 years, and the twentieth century phenomenon of the return of the Jewish people to the Land. Most of this time, Islam (in one form or another) has been in control of Jerusalem. Until recently, the Arabs have persuaded themselves that the Jews were no more permanent in Jerusalem than the European Crusaders. Some aspects of the current peace movement indicate that Moslem leaders, however reluctantly, may be coming to the conclusion that they will have to come to terms with a permanent State of Israel, at least for the time being.

In the next article, we will see how Satan used International Communism, led by the Soviet Union, to supply arms during the Cold War period to the Islamic Arabs. Thus, the father of lies appears never to give up in his determined effort to frustrate God's plan for the restoration of Israel.

Dear Friends,

I want to tell you about a wonderful opportunity that has become available to our ministry. Our regular readers are very familiar with our efforts to correct the entrenched bias in media coverage of Israel. Whenever I take a tour to the Holy Land, I find new evidence that the reports getting back to America are distorted or even altogether wrong. I learn so much when I am there and can talk with people and see what is happening in person.

Therefore, I am considering remaining in Israel between our Fall and Winter Tours, which would be a period of about eight weeks. There are many things I can accomplish, but one of the most important would be to serve the American news agencies with information to counter the biased reporting they normally receive from their correspondents in Israel. It is possible that the news releases or TV footage that I can generate would be accepted by the wire services or the networks, and perhaps more eyes could be opened to the true situation in the Holy Land.

I have also received a special invitation from a hospital in Israel with a leading-edge cardiology department to visit them and see what new technologies are available for the treatment of heart disease. My doctor has encouraged me to investigate what they have to offer, and this would be an excellent opportunity to take advantage of this.

I also could chronicle what I see in a book meant to record the last days of a democracy. If indeed we are going to establish a Palestinian dictatorship in the middle of Israel, then someone needs to describe the Israel that was, because it will never be the same again. If you can contribute to my fact-finding pilgrimage in Israel, please know that I will very much appreciate it and that you will be supporting a very worthwhile endeavor.

We have now finished the first program of our upcoming fall series The First Christians, and I can tell you that you will enjoy this series very much. Almost everything you will see on the screen is first century and my new, primitive music that you will hear has been composed exclusively for these programs. You will see me playing a medieval instrument called a rauschfeife. (For the soundtrack, I actually played the solos on my oboe.) Even the bookcase behind me in the opening and closing segments of the programs has been redone with scrolls and ancient-looking books for this occasion. The programs will discuss the lifestyle of the first people to believe in Jesus, the Israelis who called the Messiah Yeshua. You are welcome to join us with your support for the completion of this marvelous project. Please see pages seven and eight and the Bulletin Board for still pictures from the production of this series.

There is still time to sign up for our Fall Festival Tour, but you'll have to hurry! Our Grand Tour leaves on September 27 to fly to Greece, where our pilgrims will be treated to Athens (including Mars Hill and the Acropolis) and a cruise of the Greek islands, as well as Ephesus and Corinth. The Deluxe Tour departs on October 1 and joins the Grand Tour in Athens before flying on to Israel, the land where Jesus celebrated the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles, as we will do while we are there. Both tours will then jet home on October 10. Ship cabins and hotel rooms are in short supply during this Fall Festival season. The remaining space on our tours is available on a first-come, first-served basis, so call now at (214) 690-1876 or 1-800-WONDERS.

Your messenger,

Dear Zola,

— A.M.

Dear Zola,

— J.M.

P.S. I love all God's people, and I do not agree with support of those who practice terror activities, or other criminal behavior!

In these twelve TV programs, Zola and Dr. Thomas McCall review God's dealings with Israel throughout history and share insights into what is happening right now! You'll enjoy the beautiful photography, outstanding music, map overlays and graphics.

To Your People, Forever. Zola and Dr. McCall introduce the series by discussing Abraham and God's everlasting covenant. We taped this segment at Mt. Gerizim.

Isaac, A Favorite Son. We answer several questions such as: Who are the Arabs … the Palestinians? Where did they come from? This segment was filmed inside a Bedouin tent near the Dead Sea.

Jacob Have I Loved. This program, filmed at Bethel, gives the familiar account of Jacob's encounters with the Lord as recorded in Genesis 28:11-22 and 35:9-14. Ambassador Moshe Erell discusses Israel's historic right to the land.

Exodus: Then and Now. From a rooftop in Jerusalem, Dr. McCall and Zola review Passover and discuss how God reminded the Children of Israel of the Land Covenant. You'll see the ship Exodus III arrive in Haifa harbor from Odessa, Russia.

The Battle For Jericho. Filmed in Jericho, this program deals with the time that the Children of Israel entered the promised land — Deut. 1:8, 3:27-28, and 9:3-5.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem. From the Mount of Olives and the Temple Mount, we review Scriptures that show Jerusalem's importance to the Lord while He was on earth and when He returns in triumph.

A Nation: Born In A Day. Israel's history is presented, showing how God has intervened in major wars, expanded borders and made the desert bloom. We interview Benjamin Begin of the Likud party and Avraham Burg of the Labor Party.

The Regathering. What is Zionism and why should Christians support Israel? Where should Palestinians live, if not on the West Bank? We address these questions from a West Bank settlement. Included are interviews with several Palestinians living on the West Bank.

Jesus … The Palestinian Prophet. In our interviews with the editor and the publisher of The Jerusalem Post, they voice their concern over growing Arab-Muslim influence in the Israeli Christian church matters.

The Reverend Speaks. Christian Embassy Director Pastor Jan van der Hoeven holds forth on God's gift of Israel to the Jewish people and the injustices presently occurring in the Promised Land.

The Reverend Speaks (cont.). Zola continues his interview with Christian Embassy Director Pastor Jan van der Hoeven.

Music from Israel: By Divine Right! From the powerful opening theme to the plaintive song of Abraham, Zola's music perfectly accompanies an inspiring series of programs.