Home » December 2001

There’s just no substitute for victory. — Zola

Early on November 9, the Taliban regime ruled almost 95 percent of Afghanistan. Ten days later, it controlled just 15% of the country. Key to this quick disintegration was the fact that, awed by American air power, many Taliban soldiers switched sides to the US-backed Northern Alliance. According to one analyst, “Defections, even in mid-battle, are proving key to the rapid collapse across Afghanistan of the formerly ruling Taliban militia.”

Northern Alliance soldiers rest and watch US warplanes drop bombs on Taliban positions near the city of Kunduz, Afghanistan.

This development fits into a larger pattern; thanks to American muscle, Afghans now look at militant Islam as a losing proposition. Nor are they alone; Muslims around the world sense the same shift. If militant Islam achieved its greatest victory ever on September 11, by November 9 (when the Taliban lost their first major city) the demise of this murderous movement may have begun.

“The Arabic-speaking countries show a similar trend. Martin Indyk, former US ambassador to Israel, notes that in the first week after the US airstrikes began on October 7, nine anti-American demonstrations took place. The second week saw three of them, the third week one, the fourth week, two. “Then — nothing,” observes Indyk. “The Arab street is quiet.”

And so, too, in the further reaches of the Muslim world — Indonesia, India, Nigeria — where the supercharged protests of September are distant memories.

American military success has also encouraged the authorities to crack down. In China, the government prohibited the selling of badges celebrating Osama bin Laden (“I am bin Laden. Who should I fear?”) only after the US victories began. Similarly, the effective ruler of Saudi Arabia admonished religious leaders to be careful and responsible in their statements (“weigh each word before saying it”) after he saw that Washington meant business. Likewise, the Egyptian government has moved more aggressively against its militant Islamic elements.

This change in mood results from the change in American behavior. For two decades — since Ayatollah Khomeini reached power in Iran in 1979 spouting “Death to America” — US embassies, planes, ships, and barracks have been assaulted, leading to hundreds of American deaths.

In the face of this, Washington hardly responded. And, as Muslims watched militant Islam inflict one defeat after another on the far more powerful US, they increasingly concluded that America, for all its resources, was tired and soft. They watched with awe as the audacity of militant Islam increased, culminating with Osama bin Laden’s declaration of jihad against the entire Western world and the Taliban leader calling for nothing less than the “extinction of America.”

The attacks of September 11 were expected to take a major step toward extinguishing America by demoralizing the population and leading to civil unrest, perhaps starting a sequence of events that would lead to the US government’s collapse.

Instead, the more than 5,000 deaths served as a rousing call to arms. Just two months later, the deployment of American might has reduced the prospects of militant Islam.

The pattern is clear: So long as Americans submitted passively to murderous attacks by militant Islam, this movement gained support among Muslims. When Americans finally fought militant Islam, its appeal quickly diminished.

Victory on the battlefield, in other words, has not only the obvious advantage of protecting the U.S. but also the important side-effect of lancing the anti-American boil that spawned those attacks in the first place.

The implication is clear: There is no substitute for victory. The US government must continue the war on terror by weakening militant Islam everywhere it exists, from Afghanistan to Atlanta.

While President Bush continues to paint a rosy picture of the American-Arab Islamic community, this picture is not entirely accurate. Moderate Muslims are not represented in the Islamic leadership that President Bush and the media have recently courted and presented to America. Instead, they are frozen out by the American Muslim mainstream.

Take Imam Hassan Qazwini, cleric of the Islamic Center of America, the largest mosque in America, based in Detroit. Like many U.S. Islamic leaders, he openly promoted terrorism and hatred, but now preaches a saccharine love of America.

Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, right, with Iman W. Deen Mohammed.

Saturday, Qazwini held an open house for non-Muslims at his mosque, at which he professed love for America. But, on Nov. 15, 1998, I attended a religious service at Qazwini’s mosque that was anything but pro-American and peaceful. Dressed undercover as a Muslim woman, I watched invited speaker Louis Farrakhan preach hate and violence to a very receptive audience of over 1,000 primarily Arab Muslim-Americans.

It was chilling to watch their and Qazwini’s frenzied applause and wild cheering as Farrakhan preached about how our government was occupied by “forces of evil” and “people in positions of power with a Satanic mentality” and urged, “We should perform a jihad (holy war). [They are] frightened, and we must frighten them even more.” Qazwini and a man whom I believe to be Osama Siblani, publisher of the Arab-American News, called Farrakhan “our dear brother,” “a freedom fighter” and “a man of courage and sacrifice.”

Ironically, the week before, Qazwini and Arab-American leaders protested the movie The Siege, in which Arab terrorists blow-up hijacked buses and buildings in New York. Imagine that.

When campaigning in Michigan, Bush met repeatedly with Qazwini, and introduced him as “my friend from Michigan.” Qazwini’s mosque, which cheered for Farrakhan’s jihad against America, will certainly be a major recipient of our “faith-based” tax-money.

In 1998, Mothers Against Teaching Children to Kill and Hate was founded to combat Palestinian Authority official textbooks’ “portrayal of Western society as the enemy of Islam and the Arab World.” Why have Arab American leaders who now claim to be against terrorism defended these schoolbooks?

Then there is Muqtedar Khan. A political science professor at Michigan’s Adrian College, he is supposed to be a moderate Muslim American. Khan is upset that the Dalai Lama is respected and “legitimized…by bestowing upon him a Nobel Peace Prize.” The Dalai Lama’s crime (according to Khan)? He actually opposes forcible conversions to Islam. What nerve.

Spencer Abraham, now Bush’s Energy Secretary, unfortunately caved to the pressure of Arab-American Muslim leaders on national security and funding matters. According to the Detroit News, Abraham is to blame for delaying systems that would improve tracking of foreign visitors, something that Arab American groups actively opposed. These systems also might have prevented the Sept. 11 attacks.

Abraham sought over $268 million in tax-funded USAID grants for Hezbollah terrorist-controlled Southern Lebanon, also at Zogby’s request. Hezbollah, which means “Party of Allah” in Arabic, has targeted and murdered many Americans. Reports show that millions in USAID grants to Afghanistan were misspent on terrorist activities of the Taliban.

It’s time for President Bush and the media to stop promoting phony liberalism of radical Islamists. Instead, Bush has surrounded himself with leaders of the most extremist Islamic groups — the American Muslim Council (AMC), the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC).

All of these groups have and continue to voice support for Hamas, Hezbollah, and Islamic Jihad terrorist groups.

The present war is not a war between a secular nation and a Muslim nation. We are the single-most religious of all the advanced nations, and the third or fourth-most religious of all nations anywhere on Earth.

Our Founders’ religion, in case you want to know, is predominantly Christian and Jewish. And a good thing, too. I have yet to see journalists point out the political implications of the prevailing Christian view of eternal union with God, and its Hebrew analogue. These implications are many and profound.

First there is the dignity of the individual. A sense of our individual and inalienable responsibility in the face of God gives Jews and Christians our bedrock conviction in the immortal value of every single woman and man. Our Creator made us so, gave us such responsibility, holds us alone accountable for it. No other person, agency or institution dares to interfere with that responsibility.

“The God who gave us life gave us liberty at the same time,” Jefferson instructed. There is a second political point. Whereas, for the Greeks and Romans — and for virtually all other peoples — it is the inequality of humans that is the natural law, for Hebrews and Christians every man and woman is made in the image of God, is of incommensurable value and is in God’s eyes equally needy and equally precious. This very idea of equality owes its origins to belief in human immortality before the judgment seat of God.

In God’s eyes, every boast of humans, insofar as it is true, owes its reality to Him. No human being huffed and puffed his own way into existence.

We are dust, and unto dust we all return. The third political point is that eternity is to be imagined as a communion with those we love, with all who have extended friendship to us, and we to them.

It no doubt seems odd to other people that we Americans, when danger looms, do regard one another as friends. We freely form one will.

As Cicero wrote, the essence of a republic is friendship.

To think of Americans as materialists is to get things all wrong, upside-down, crazy. There are a few materialists among us, very few. Mostly, we believe.

To think of us as secular is to mistake the most vocal 8 percent for the religious whole. “The first political institution of the American Republic is their religion,” De Tocqueville wrote.

All of us know in our ancestral memory — often not further back than two or three generations — what it was like to have lived in other lands. We know we would have been scarcely half as free. We would have had less than half the opportunity.

Here, we know we have no excuses. Here in America is the fairest place that ever was. We each have our chances. If we don’t use them, blame us. Don’t blame America.

Don’t call us secular, bin Laden. Don’t call us unbelievers. Don’t call us infidels. God shed His grace on us and crowned our good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea.

New Year’s Eve National TV Special

Zola’s new, one-hour special, Upon This Rock, gives the profound Biblical perspective of the Temple Mount, the present-day contention for this site and why it is the most valuable real estate on planet Earth. Please ask your family and friends to tune into FAM (CBN) on Monday, December 31 at:

• 11:00 PM, Central Time
• Midnight on both coasts (Eastern Time and Pacific Time)
• Either 10:00 PM or 1:00 AM, Mountain Time
• [Click here to view online]

What a terrific way to usher in the New Year!

“Little Israel” Tour in Dallas

On Saturday, February 23, Zola will host a virtual Israel tour at the Biblical Arts Center. Travel to first-century Israel, sit in the Garden Tomb and see the famous Miracle at Pentecost painting, an oil-on-canvas masterpiece, 124 feet long and 20 feet high, portraying the coming of the Holy Spirit. “Visit” Bethlehem, the Sea of Galilee and the Upper Room and witness the events of Pentecost via exhibits, etc. Only $49, including lunch. Please call Tony at (214) 696-9760 or write, “Attn: Tony” on your envelope.

Zola’s Spring Tour — March 2002

We plan to offer a New Testament tour of Thessalonica, Philippi, Berea and many other Biblical sites, in northern Greece. The luxurious Mediterranean cruise and Greek land tour will make this a perfect 10-day study tour for those who have been on Zola’s Israel tour. Please see the schedule chart on page 25. For a color brochure, please contact Tony at (214) 696-9760 during office hours or our answering service at (800) 966-3377 (1-800-WONDERS) anytime.

Zola in Your Church

Zola plans to remain in Florida through January, leading groups to the Holy Land Experience in Orlando. If you know a church that would like to host him when he’s going to be “in the neighborhood,” they would save considerably on travel expenses. Please contact Cynthia in our office at (214) 696-8844.

Happy Birthday, Zola Levitt Presents

It was in December 1978 that we broadcast our first television program — 23 years ago. Please send up a prayer of thanks as we begin our 24th year of blessing viewers over the airwaves.

For ’01 Tax Deductions

By donating to this ministry before the end of the year, you will not only help us at a critical time but will also realize the most advantageous possible deduction on your 2001 taxes. If your envelope is postmarked before January 1, 2002, then we are able to credit your tax-deductible contribution to 2001. You can also make donations with your Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express by calling our 24-hour answering service at (800) 966-3377, emailing us at or faxing us at (214) 696-5885. As you may know, Zola Levitt Ministries is a 501(c)(3) 3, tax-exempt organization. Our independently audited financial statements are free for the asking.

To the Jew First Fund

If you know of someone who has graduated our correspondence course, The Institute of Jewish-Christian Studies, plus has been on one of Zola’s Israel tours, then we are considering recruiting additional missionaries for this important work. Please contact Lawrence in our office at (214) 696-8844 or write to our P.O. Box. Thank you for your gifts to this eternal cause.

The Holy Land Experience

Zola is hosting periodic tours to The Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Florida, a smash hit with our viewers and readers. Please let us know ASAP if you would like to come during the weekend of December 28–30. We can provide you with a list of other sites and attractions in the area. For more information, please call Tony at (214) 696-9760 during office hours. You may also call 1-800-WONDERS (966-3377) anytime.

We Accept Gifts in Kind

Sometimes it is more convenient to contribute cars, stock, land and fine jewelry to tax exempt organizations than it is to sell them. When required, we are happy to furnish an appraisal to go with the IRS Form 8283. Please direct any questions in this regard to Mark’s attention at our P.O. Box. Thanks.

Fourteen Syrian men entered the U.S. through Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on student visas to attend flight schools at Fort Worth Meacham International Airport, WorldNetDaily has learned…

The State Department lists Syria as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The Syrian men, whose M-1 visas expire April 2002, flew in…the day before the Federal Aviation Administration lifted its post-attack ban on novice pilots flying private planes solo in airspace around major metropolitan areas.

“Seems that they knew the private plane ban was going to be lifted…,” said an Immigration and Naturalization Service inspector at DFW.

The men, all clean-shaven and in their mid-20s, were not detained, however, and the FBI did not interview them. Delta-Qualiflight Aeronautics is one of four Meacham field schools run by Middle Eastern men…[to] train students to fly primarily single and twin-engine aircraft….

Meanwhile, the Justice department has not told the INS to turn back or detain Middle Easterners entering the U.S. with flight-school visas — not even those from countries that sponsor terrorism, such as Syria….

Osama bin Laden’s lieutenant warned that another “storm of airplanes” will hit America. “Thousands of young Muslims want to die (as martyrs)….”

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says that “Purchasing an Israel bond shows your solidarity and helps finance the future of the Jewish State. More than just a good investment, it allows us to invest in critical infrastructure projects.” By purchasing a bond, you become a partner in building what is truly God’s country. Sharon adds, “It is not just a financial transaction, but a pledge of devotion. I call upon you, at this critical hour, to buy an Israel bond and come here to visit and see the wonderful fruits of your investment.”

For more info on rates of approximately 7.1%, please contact:

State of Israel Bonds
9660 Hillcroft, Suite #316
Houston, TX 77096
(800) 676-3101
www.israelbonds.com

“Where your treasure lies…”

President Bush told Congress on Sept. 20, “We will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.” Israel, like America, is now doing exactly as Bush said: pursuing terrorists and those who support and harbor them. Yet Bush is now demanding that Israel “restrain” its similar anti-terrorist actions.

If the United States can go halfway across the world invade a sovereign country, Afghanistan, in order eliminate terrorists, surely Israel is justified in entering non-sovereign area directly adjacent to its major cities to eliminate terrorists.

In fact, the terrorists Israel is fighting wish to harm Americans as well: Arafat’s media are filled with anti-U.S. incitement; Palestinian Authority (PA) schoolbooks teach that Western civilization will be reduced to “a pile rubble”; a poll finds 73% of Palestinian Arabs support terrorist attacks against “American targets”; and the top PA-appointed clergyman, Sheik Ikrama Sabri, has repeatedly urged Arabs to “destroy America” and “paint the White House black.”

Arafat’s regime clearly meets Bush’s definition of sponsoring and harboring terrorists. His Fatah, Force 17 and PA security forces are carrying out most of the terrorism against Israel (murdering nearly 200 Israelis in the past year), and he harbors killers from other terror groups, such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

If the U.S. fights only Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan but does nothing against regimes that harbor and finance terrorists, such as Arafat’s PA, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Libya, then terrorism will continue, and Americans and Israelis will continue to die. For bin Laden is just the tip of the terrorist iceberg.

National security adviser Condoleezza Rice said Sept. 23, “We are not going to declare that there are good terrorists and bad terrorists. If you sponsor terrorism, you are hostile to the United States.”

It’s time to put those words into action. The administration should stop treating Arafat’s forces as if they are “good terrorists” and start treating them like the killers they are.

By, in effect, protecting Arafat’s terrorists from Israeli pursuit, the president is inadvertently encouraging more terrorism and thereby undermining the international war against terrorists.

At California State University a professor was quoted as saying, “We should try to understand why there are people in the world that hate the United States.”

Who cares why some people hate America? It is simply not important. Am I supposed to waste my time trying to ascertain the motives of monsters? That would be a colossal mistake. We owe the terrorists nothing but death and destruction.

Our government must act aggressively to punish those who attacked us and discourage the maniacs who would do it again. Understanding the terrorists is only necessary in order to catch them. You can’t persuade evil. You can’t reason with fanatics.

I get frustrated with Americans who see the world through their own selfish prism. The Holocaust would not have happened if the nations of Europe had recognized the evil dripping from Hitler’s every pore. But they wanted to understand the Third Reich, to negotiate with it in the hope of attaining peace.

In the wake of 9-11, a new dynamic came into play in the discourse about hate groups and terrorist organizations. Osama’s al-Qaida redefined terrorist organizations. And the administration’s perceived need to maintain an international coalition against terror redefined what constitutes a “hate group.”

Now, terrorists are al-Qaida members who kill Americans on American soil. Terrorist states are defined as Afghanistan. And sometimes Iraq. States like Syria and Iran are “supportive of the American effort” in direct proportion to the degree they say they are. What they do is irrelevant. So when Syria arms, trains and funds Hezbollah, they are not really supporting terrorism, they are just aiding freedom fighters. The same can be said for Hamas, al Fatah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

A Palestinian state is supported by the White House, despite the fact that a dozen terrorist organizations (I mean, freedom fighters) openly maintain offices in areas under the control of the Palestinian Authority. Israeli retaliatory strikes are “terrorist.”

The administration has gone out of its way to make the point that Islam is a religion of peace and love. But a propaganda campaign underway to promote Islam is faltering as examples of the peace and love of Islam so far consist of Islamists who aren’t in the process of either calling for, or actively participating in, efforts to bring about death to America or death to Israel.

One can look long and hard for an example of an Islamic charity on the level of a Salvation Army. There are Islamic charities that exist, but what they actually do in terms of charitable work is a mystery.

What is not difficult to find are Islamic hate groups. Not groups that hate Islam, but Islamic groups that hate us. And Islamic groups that hate Jews. Hate groups are hate groups in America unless they are speaking under the banner of Islam. Then they are “fringe” or “extremist” elements. Where are the “mainstream” that they are the fringe elements of? There are lots of Islamic “moderates” on television saying they don’t represent Islam’s views, but very few saying what Islam’s views to the contrary actually are. I’m waiting to hear from one who says he has no axe to grind against the Jews. I’m waiting to hear a positive message from an Islamic group, but instead all I hear are “moderates” who make apologies for the “extremists” by pointing out the tragedy of the Palestinians.

The poor, dispossessed and oppressed Palestinians who turned to their Islamic brethren in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon were put into refugee camps until the oppressor Jews are defeated. Islamic charities donate much to fight against the “oppressors,” but the victims get nothing now.

This all goes on in plain sight. The president says we are not at war with Islam, but rather with terror, and he is correct. But saying we are not at war with Islam is not the same as Islam not being at war with us.

We hear words of peace and inclusion, but we see deeds of war and exclusion. In America, there are plenty of hate groups that claim peace and brotherhood, but when their actions are responsible for death and destruction, they are identified for what they really are.

WASHINGTON — Defense Department strategists are building a case for a massive bombing of Iraq as a new phase of President Bush’s war against terrorism, congressional and Pentagon sources say.

Pentagon officials contend that Iraq should be hit because it supports terrorism, is trying to build nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, and has refused to admit U.N. weapons inspectors for nearly 3 years.

National security adviser Condolezza Rice said Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, “We didn’t need Sept. 11 to tell us that Saddam Hussein is a very dangerous man.”

Besides Iraq, Pentagon officials are eyeing al-Qa’eda operations in Somalia, Sudan, and South America. The president will decide the next target.

The State Department has adamantly opposed broadening the war to Iraq out of concern that it would infuriate Arab public opinion and fracture the U.S.-led alliance against al-Qa’eda.

Dear Friends,

As you know, I travel a lot with our tours and to many speaking engagements around the country. When I do, I carry along a small pocket recorder to remind myself of tasks, but also to record quotes and thoughts about what I feel is important for our viewers and readers. This month I thought it would be good to hit the play button and let you hear some highlights from my recorder:

Airport Security

Airports have become difficult, of course, but they’re certainly not foolproof as far as protecting us. A captain with a major airline, a believer, said recently that it was really all cosmetic. Nobody’s really trying to protect anybody. Sandra had to surrender a nail clipper because it had a 1-inch nail file on it. My wife can really commandeer an airplane with a 1-inch nail file! And this at a time when they let someone by who has 9 knives!

The PR War

I was watching a survey of media coverage of the war and noted that ABC was cited as the worst case in America of broadcasting collateral casualties in Afghanistan, thus lending itself to Arab propaganda. “That network reported a recent terrorist attack without using the term “terrorist” once from beginning to end. The term “Palestinian” was also studiously avoided. Hats off to Peter Jennings for his skill in obfuscating the truth. By the way, has he received his anthrax letter yet? Don’t hold your breath!”

The United States and Israel lose the PR war every time because we’re not liars with the skill of the Arabs, who can tell the tallest tales with a straight face, including Arafat and Osama bin Laden. We’re just not willing to talk that way. Thus, we lose the battle for the Arab street, for what that’s worth.

The Bush Doctrine

It seems all Ari Fleischer, the president’s press secretary, ever says is that the president is delighted with the progress of the war, everything’s perfect, check with General so and so about that. He seldom answers questions directly. He begins to look like Clinton’s men with all their obfuscations. He repeats something he calls the “Bush Doctrine,” which proclaims that nations that sponsor terrorism won’t get away with it. So far they are (like Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, and, of course, the Palestinian Authority).

I mentioned to my son Mark the credibility gap I’m feeling with President Bush and his press secretary. I quoted Lincoln: “You can fool all of the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time.” Mark suggested a corollary: “Unfortunately, they are trying to fool more of the people more of the time these days.”

Israel and War

Whenever Israel has had to defend itself from Arab invaders in modern times, it responded swiftly and decisively. Often the campaigns lasted only days or weeks, because 1) they were not trying to win a PR award with the world, 2) they knew their nation’s survival depended on their actions, and 3) God was on their side. Yes, that’s true. Think of the Yom Kippur war or the Six-Day War or the Sinai Campaign. They were outnumbered by as much as 20 to one, and yet God gave them victory. God is surely at work in Israel today, whether this is known at our seminaries or not.

“Little Israel”

In November I hosted our “Little Israel” tour here in Dallas. A good time was had by all and everybody got in all of their questions. The Biblical Arts Center was delightful and the staff decked it out nicely for us. Some of the many highlights of the weekend included the magnificent Christian paintings, statues, demonstrations such as the crown of thorns, the Miracle of Pentecost painting (124 feet long, 20 feet high), a stunning experience with its half-hour sound and light show, the Garden Tomb and the Damascus Gate. While it’s certainly not a trip to Israel, it was good fun, good fellowship, and we’re already planning on the next one in mid-February. It will be simplified to a full day on Saturday, with an optional Friday evening for those wishing to attend our Messianic congregation’s service. This one-day version will lower the cost of the tour.

By the time you read this newsletter, I will already have hosted two more tours in Orlando at the Holy Land Experience. This is a wonderful place for the entire family and I would urge you not to miss out on our last tour of the year to this Biblical theme park. December 28-30 are the dates and we encourage you not to leave out the kids, who are welcome in the hotel suites we provide. Make it a memorable holiday trip for your family!

March 3–24 will be the dates of our popular spring tours to Israel and Greece. As announced, we’re expanding our tour of mainland Greece to take you on a Biblical journey of ancient cities like Corinth, Thessalonica, Philippi, and others. Our Greek land and sea excursion has been expanded to 10 days and can be taken on its own for those of you who have already been to Israel. Choose from a variety of tour packages. We will be flying El Al Airline on the entire journey to provide our passengers with the safest air transportation in the world (see our article about El Al). Sign up by the end of the year and receive $100 in ministry materials when you journey with us in March! Call Tony at 214-696-9760 for more details.

As I remarked in last month’s letter, I don’t have to spend much space for fund raising in this ministry and I’m very thankful for that. Our television programs seldom have more than the last 60 seconds devoted to offering our materials and asking for donations, but, of course, that is how we survive. Obviously, with the year-end coming, I need to appeal to you to remember our ministry in your prayers and in your giving. Those with the gift of giving or helps or intercessory prayer are the ones who really operate this ministry. That fact never escapes me. Those who pray for the sick have kept me alive much longer than previously expected and I’ll probably make it to the Rapture (in any case, I’ll see you “here or there or in the air,” as they say).

We have taken on quite a lot with this new terrorism because we’re in a position to comment on it and to chronicle Israel’s affairs especially. We have been doing that in this double-size Levitt Letter, which obviously costs us more time and money, but we’ve had very good reaction to it. If the programs we have done this year and this letter and all of our other good works have pleased you and encouraged you in your faith, then read Romans 15:25-27 and respond accordingly. As Paul taught, “Since the Gentiles received the wonderful spiritual blessings of the Good News from the Jewish Christians, they feel the least they can do in return is help them financially” (vs. 27 NLT).

We’ll go to Israel for you. We’ll witness there for you. And will tape the place and show it to you. Stay with us, please. I know that I don’t have to ask any more than that you consult the Lord for what He would have you do on our behalf. Thanks.

If someone had told me thirteen years ago that our 8-page, black-on-white Levitt Letter was going to transform into 32-page, 2-color special editions with full-color front and back covers, I would have thought he was dreaming. Now God has empowered us to send more teaching to all of our readers for free than that which is offered in each of our $3 study booklets.

The fact is this ministry’s staff loves our work. Since you have enabled us to do more, we have done so — more new TV programs with fewer reruns, plus higher caliber newsletters. Our nation’s unfortunate turn of events will continue as the End Times draw closer. This ministry will respond with Biblical commentary and help to keep readers both informed and inspired. Thank you for your part in such a vital calling.

On page 28 of the November Levitt Letter, I noted that our ministry is being upheld and blessed by God. This month I would like explain why: we bless Israel. With that said, let me review what we have been able to accomplish, with your support, on television, through the mail and on the Internet.

As in years past, we have created new television series — Friends of the Rabbi, Thy Kingdom Come (with a music cassette by the same title) and Signs of the End 2001. This year, however, we have made more contemporary, standalone programs than ever before, such as The General Takes Command and For Zion’s Sake, I Will Not Keep Silent. TV programs that cannot be rerun put an extra burden on our production budget, but their cutting-edge teaching shares the Bible’s relevance and accuracy right now, here, today.

Restrictions imposed on its overseas stations has necessitated that TBN rerun our Love Stories of the Bible TV series instead of the hard-hitting Signs of the End 2001 programs. We created a one-program synopsis for TBN, a “worldwide edition,” that allowed us to teach as much as we could without jeopardizing TBN’s international efforts. To order the complete series, please see page 31.

At www.levitt.com, Internet TV is expanding our horizons, as are our web site’s chat room and discussion board. Anyone in the world, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week can:

• watch our free TV programs
• listen to our study cassettes
• see an Israeli slide show
• fellowship with believers
• post articles
• read and comment on other people’s posts

Regarding our Levitt Letters, you can probably tell that we and our research analysts have tripled our consideration of what to squeeze into them. We will continue with full-color front and back covers whenever we have photographs that justify the extra expense. Both of our monthly publications travel overseas, reach into retirement homes and pass between prisoners. The free mailings continue so long as we receive periodic affirmation that they are being read. If we haven’t heard from you for more than a year, then please drop us a line so that your subscription will continue without interruption.

How do we spend your tithes and offerings? Our television production and airing costs account for about 65% of our expenses. We spend 14% on printing and mailing newsletters and 8% on general overhead. Less than 13% goes to employees, who devote roughly half of their time to administration and half to ministry by producing, assembling and shipping teaching materials, including courses from our Institute of Jewish Christian Studies.

It is important to consider the impact of each dollar spent. For example, we hear from only 3% of our TV viewers, despite blessing the other 97%. Donors share our newsletters with friends. Our web site, www.levitt.com, is inexpensive to maintain, but we have thousands of online newsletter subscribers plus thousands of visitors per day to our newsletter archives, discussion forum and chat room.

If God wants you to support this marvelous outreach, then please do so. Obviously a dollar sent here does several dollars work for the Kingdom to come. We do not build buildings, pay fancy salaries, found banks or otherwise waste money in ungodly pursuits. Thanks for your prayers.

The editor of Al-Risala, a weekly newspaper published by a leading Mideast terror organization, has called for the introduction of anthrax into all U.S. drinking water supplies.

Atallah Abu Al-Subh, who writes open letters to prominent figures, ideologies and events, titled his most recent letter, No. 163, “To Anthrax.”

Hamas — also known as the “Islamic Resistance Movement” — is a Palestinian-based terrorist group that has received financing and assistance from Iran, Syria, Iraq, the Palestinians and other Middle Eastern governments in the past.

Al-Subh wrote:

The truth is that I wondered how to begin! Should I greet you (i.e., anthrax), or should I curse you? Should I hold my tongue? …I will begin by saying, Oh, anthrax, despite your wretchedness, you have sown horror in the heart of the lady of arrogance, of tyranny, of boastfulness! Your gentle touch has made the United States’ life rough and pointless. You have filled the lady who horrifies and terrorizes the world with fear, and her feet almost fail to bear [her weight] in horror and fear of you. Because of you, she has lost confidence in the moment in which she lives, or in which she will live.

You have entered the most fortified of places; [you have entered] the White House, and they left it like horrified mice. Up until a short time ago, this place was the address of the power of brutality, or of the brutality of power! Verily, the owner of that house said, ‘Woe to any who dare even to glance at it with a hint of rage.’ But you have turned all this into vanity, weakness, and wretchedness.

By Allah, are you really so deadly?! Do you not fear America’s intercontinental missiles? Do you not fear the torpedo missiles with nuclear warheads, and cluster bombs? Do you not fear the Swift Sword (Omani-British war games) that Britain drew forth from its scabbard to stab into the heart of our honor in Muscat (Oman’s capital), with the agreement of the great sultan, who had no shame in carrying out such a deed? Do you not fear the lady of terror’s destroyers that cross the Suez Canal…?

The Pentagon was a monster before you entered its corridors…. And behold, it now transpires that its men are of paper and its commanders are of cardboard, and they hasten to flee as soon as they see — only see — chalk dust! There are those who think that I exaggerate, but I do not think so. This horror that you have sown — you, the delicate, the uncomplicated, the miserable — in the heart of the bloodsucker (the U.S.)…makes me think as I do. You do not come like a storm, but they see you as one — a terrible storm that destroys everything. They run from you in all directions, and their tongues mumble, ‘My life, my life.’ Our hearts, repressed, exiled and oppressed, were filled with belief that Allah is capable of defeating America by means of the weakest of his earthly soldiers, after he used you to sow horror in their hearts….

I swear that your story is peculiar. The Americans see you as an imminent attack that is about to shake the lady with the proboscises that suck the blood of the peoples…. All [the rulers of Arab and Islamic countries] tell [the U.S.] every time she farts, ‘Allah bless you.’ Nevertheless, you have found your way to only eight American breasts so far….

You make the U.S. appease us and hint to us at a rosy future and a life of ease…through a [new] Marshall Plan. Why? Because of our beautiful eyes? Or out of fear that we will turn into anthrax and harm the apple of [the U.S.’s] eye and heart, Tel Aviv…? Without permission, you enter the halls of their courthouses as if you intended to push the symbols of their sovereignty into the mud of worry and fear….

In sound mind, I thank you and confess that I like you; I like you very much. May you continue to advance, to permeate and to spread. If I may give you a word of advice: Enter the air of those ‘symbols,’ the water faucets from which they drink and the pens with which they draft their traps and conspiracies against the wretched peoples…. Turn the bodies of the tyrants into matches burning slowly and gradually so that they understand that the truth belongs to Allah and that they should give those entitled to rights their rights.

Then, and only then, will you return to your place…. I hope that we only hear about you when you enter the body of every base man among the arrogant and their agents. Do not enter the bodies of the wretched, like that aging nurse. Peace be upon the oppressed.

As of Nov. 2, the Hamas organization was added to the list of other such groups outlined in Executive Order 13224, which authorizes U.S. action against certain terrorist groups.

Jihad in the West, by Paul Fregosi, is a bright and brisk 450-page narrative that is very eye-opening. Jihad, or Islamic attacks against other countries, is nothing new and certainly predates any animosity to America, Israel, or even the European nations. While the Muslims have understandably tried to suppress the history, the information is devastating. — Zola

“Jihad,” the Muslim holy war against Christians and others, has raged for 1,300 years with bloody conquests in Europe dating from campaigns to convert the infidels in the 7th century to today’s random acts of terrorism in the name of Allah.

Yet this huge unrecorded “hole” in European history has been censored and stifled by political and literary authorities who have feared reprisals from angry Muslims trying to hide a legacy of brutality vastly more bloody and six times longer in duration than the atrocities of the Crusades.

This is the factual account of the immense and little known Islamic military invasions of Europe, and the major players who led them, beginning around 650 c.e. [AD]. The Islamic Arabs (and later the Moors) occupied a number of the Mediterranean islands, and invaded Spain and Portugal in 711 c.e., and ruled over much of the Iberian peninsula for the next 800 years.

France was attacked and invaded, as was Italy, and the European coasts all the way to Ireland and Iceland. The Muslims swept over the Balkans, besieged Vienna, and were intermittent masters of Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary into the 19th century, destroying the Byzantines, taking Constantinople (turning it into Istanbul). Ambitious and unrelenting, the Muslims also sought to conquer Austria and Russia.

Fregosi faced a wall of opposition as he tried to publish this controversial book. A publisher in Britain abruptly canceled because of what some believe to be fear of Muslim reprisals. “There’s an intention to censor what’s going on about Islam, more so than for any other religion,” Fregosi recently told the London press.

Mohammad Junaid’s mother was led to safety from the blazing World Trade Centre by New York’s brave firefighters and policemen. But 26-year-old Junaid’s thank you has shocked New York.

In return for saving his mum’s life, the Islamic-American has bought a one-way ticket to Pakistan to sign up for the Taliban and kill Americans. Junaid left on what could be a suicide mission, one week after his mother — an office worker on the ninth floor of the north tower — was among the survivors.

“My mother was in the north tower of the World Trade Center, but I still feel absolutely no remorse about what happened on September 11,” Junaid said. “I saw the towers collapse but felt nothing for the Americans inside. I may hold an American passport, but I am not an American — I am a Muslim.”

Junaid offered his own personal jihad against his own country, when in Islamabad, Pakistan, he waited to cross the border into Afghanistan to join the Taliban. “I did not feel any remorse for the Americans who died,” Junaid told Britain’s ITN television network. “I’m willing to kill the Americans. I will kill every American that I see in Afghanistan. And I’ll kill every American soldier that I see in Pakistan.”

Junaid’s parents migrated from Pakistan.

WASHINGTON — Foreign nationals from countries that support terrorist activity will still be allowed to enter the U.S. with student and vocational visas under President Bush’s plan to tighten immigration laws.

Bush’s proposal, outlined in more detail yesterday, calls for no changes in the existing visa policies other than to step up efforts to track foreign students to make sure they actually attend the schools they name on visa applications.

Between 1999 and 2000, the State Department issued 3,370 visas to students from the seven terrorist-supporting countries. Over the past 10 years, more than 16,000 students came from those countries.

On Oct. 14 and Oct. 15, the INS let in 14 Syrian men, all clean-shaven and in their mid-20s, like the hijackers, to train at Fort Worth, Texas, flight schools.

Bush recently vowed to do “whatever it takes” to protect Americans. “We will do whatever it takes to protect our country, to protect the good American families.”

Here’s a primer on anti-Americanism. Anti-Americanism is the conviction that our history is one long chronicle of crimes against humanity. It is blind to America’s greatness.

Anti-Americanism invariably attributes sinister motives to our government. It assumes that in any international conflict, America is always wrong. Anti-Americanism sneers at our heritage. It perceives patriotism as the province of demagogues and dupes. It thinks the pledge of allegiance is passé and the national anthem militaristic. Anti-Americanism exalts hyphens and disparages unity. It holds that those who live here have no obligation to learn our language and history.

Postal officials say the EID stamp recognizes 7 million Muslims in America. According to the USPS website, the EID “commemorates the two most important festivals in the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.”

The stamp was designed by Mohamed Zakariya of Arlington, Virginia. According to the website, the “Eid mubarak” phrase featured in Islamic calligraphy can be paraphrased as “May your religious holiday be blessed.”

“It’s a very popular stamp,” remarks Cathy Yarosky, spokesperson for the Postal Service. Yarosky dismisses any suggestion of bad timing for the stamp’s release, stating her office hasn’t received any complaints about it.

“It’s a part of our commemorative stamp program. It’s on sale now. We’re aware of the events that took place, but we have no plans to take it off the series. We don’t understand why we would,” Yarosky tells WorldNetDaily. The EID can be purchased at local post offices across the country.

A charity fund established to help victims of the Sept. 11th attacks made a grant of $171,000 to a group defending eight individuals being held in connection with the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, D.C.

The grant from the September 11th Fund, which is affiliated with the United Way, was given to the Legal Aid Society, a group that is aiding in the legal defense of eight suspects detained in Brooklyn, N.Y. as a result of the government’s investigation into the terrorist attacks.

“Instead of helping out the victims, they’re actually helping out potentially suspected terrorists,” said Dan Rene of the legal watchdog group National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC). “With all the questions about the fund-raising on behalf of victims, this is a very shocking development,” said Rene. “I think a lot of people will be very outraged.”

One official with the September 11th Fund refused to comment, and other officials did not respond to repeated inquiries. Representatives from the Legal Aid Society were also unavailable for comment.

According to Rene, the September 11th fund announced on October 3 the $171,000 grant to the Legal Aid Society was ostensibly to “provide emergency civil legal assistance to low-income attack victims.”

Ken Boehm and Peter Flaherty of the NLPC wrote in a letter to the September 11th Fund, “We believe the public will be outraged, and justifiably so, to learn that funds from the September 11th Fund are going to support a group which is apparently providing civil legal help to those jailed on violations of immigration law in the wake of September 11 terrorist attacks.”

SACRAMENTO — A demand by the American Civil Liberties Union that Breen Elementary School in Rocklin remove a “God Bless America” sign prompted angry parents, students and administrators to rally at the school Friday evening.

The ACLU contends the words broadcast “a hurtful, divisive message.” The organization’s Wednesday letter to Breen Elementary calls the message a “clear violation of the California and United States constitutions, as well as the California Education Code.”

“It must be replaced immediately,” said the letter from Margaret Crosby, staff counsel for the ACLU of Northern California, based in San Francisco.

“School officials are hurting and isolating their schoolchildren of minority faiths when they should be supporting them and the values of pluralism and tolerance.” Displaying such a message is not only unconstitutional “but implies only students who share the faith are truly patriotic,” she said.

Dear Mrs. Levitt,

I appreciate your writing. Obviously, I hope you will reconsider your decision to cancel the paper. As a life-long reader, I’m certain you did not make this decision lightly.

These are very complex and emotional times. Feelings are running at very high levels throughout the world, throughout the U.S. and in our neighborhoods.

As the media company with by far the largest resources and largest staff in the South and Southwest, The Dallas Morning News takes its responsibilities very seriously. Providing perspective in difficult times is part of our mandate. I can assure you that this paper is not anti-Israel. We have frequent meetings with leaders in the Jewish community, and while some take issue with our editorial page positions from time to time (sometimes strongly), we have a strong and mutual respect. Our editorial page has strongly backed Israel for as long as I can remember. But as a newspaper should, we sometimes take issue with certain policies. This is as it should be.

The article you refer to in Saturday’s Religion section was not intended to be about how wonderful Islam is. I found it rather chilling, actually; especially references to how parents are dealing with their children’s decision to join that faith. We have been trying to help our readers better understand Islam for several months. It is, after all, now larger in the United States than Presbyterians and Episcopalians combined; and growing incredibly rapidly. We recently infuriated many members of Islam with our editorial column pointing out the dangers of moderate Muslims remaining silent while the extremist Muslims chart the political agenda; just as the moderate Germans were mute when Hitler was on the ascension.

Thank you once again for signaling to me your intentions. I respect your opinions very much, but I hope you will reconsider. We need readers like you.

Sincerely, Bob Mong
President and Editor

Replacement theologies never look kindly on those they replace. The Jews are not favored by liberal churches that support the Palestinian side of that argument. Mormons, who call themselves latter day saints, view all “former day” saints with suspicion. Catholics, likewise, do not favorably view Biblical Christianity, which predated their church. All three replacement faiths have their own holy writ: The books of Common Prayer, the Book of Mormon, and the Papal Decrees. The following article demonstrates how much one of these theologies has drifted from Scripture. — Zola

A recent Zogby poll published in USA Today concluded that “American Catholics look more favorably on Muslims and Mormons than they do on fundamentalist Christians.”

The survey noted that the majority of Roman Catholics had a “favorable impression” of Islam, Mormons, Buddhists, and Hindus. In contrast, only 46% of Catholics had a favorable view of fundamentalist Christians.

Some 58% of the Catholics surveyed said “fundamentalist Christians tend to be religious fanatics.” Amazingly, they stated that they view Muslims as more tolerant than fundamentalist Christians. And this poll was conducted after the Muslim fanatics killed nearly 7,000 men, women, and children on September 11.

Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, objected to the findings because the pollsters used the word “fundamentalist,” which skewed the results. “If they had asked about Catholic views of evangelical Christians, they would have gotten measurably different results,” he stated. Land also commented that Catholic theologians speak against a literal interpretation of the Bible, as evangelical Christians practice.

Finally, despite 96% of these Catholics saying that it is important to “stand up and live your Catholic values,” the majority disagrees with the Church on birth control, the celibacy of priests, and the ordination of women. Half supported the death penalty. Almost half do not support the church’s position on banning stem cell research, opposing abortion, or condemning homosexual behavior as wrong.

Exactly which values of the Catholic Church do these 96% feel is important to stand up for?

Politically, Zogby found that 43% identified themselves as Democrats, 31% as Republicans, and 18% as independents.

Recently, my good friend Moishe Rosen, founder of Jews for Jesus, came to Dallas for a visit and to speak at a Jewish evangelism conference with David Brickner, president of Jews for Jesus. Not long after getting them back to my home, we realized that Moishe’s briefcase and another bag had been left on the sidewalk at the United Airlines terminal. The bags contained cash, credit cards, and a laptop computer, among other important items. Efforts to call and have United Airlines or airport security locate the bags proved fruitless. After many attempts, we finally hopped back in the car and rushed back to the terminal, only to find the two bags still sitting on the sidewalk in front of the United Airlines terminal…after 3 hours! Now tell me about airport security. You can no longer park in front of the terminal for security reasons, but leaving untended bags in front of the terminal seems to be no security concern at all in Dallas!

The conference Moishe and David had been invited to speak at was hosted jointly by Dallas Theological Seminary and The Criswell College (neighboring schools). I was able to attend part of the meetings and, just like this lapse in security recently at D/FW airport, I think this conference demonstrated a lapse in interest not only from the public, but more importantly from the students and staff of these institutions. This is no different than the lapses we’ve alerted you to at Moody Bible Institute.

Moody seems to have put out some interesting window dressing with their book Storm Clouds on the Horizon, reviewed by Dr. Tom McCall in this newsletter last month. We cannot help but be suspicious about this pristinely accurate doctrinal treatment of the subject of Israel coming out of a seminary which abandoned the Promised Land and the Chosen People a long time ago.

In that whole book, as Dr. McCall pointed out, each professor understood the party line perfectly (except President Joseph Stowell, not a theologian, who still couldn’t cough up the fact that God is working in Israel today and every day). Apparently, you will receive a copy of this little public relations booklet if you complain about Progressive Dispensationalism, ask why there are no prophecy books in the campus bookstore anymore, or if you want to know what happened to teachings about End Times prophecy altogether at Moody Bible Institute.

Likewise, at Dallas Theological Seminary, should a major donor inquire as to whether the seminary has gone off into anti-Israel doctrines or is still witnessing to the Jews, their answer will be, “Nonsense! We held the Chosen People conference. Even the founder and president of Jews for Jesus came all the way from San Francisco to speak to us.” That much was true, and I verified it myself when I attended their program on Thursday, November 1.

The audience consisted of seven people to hear these masters of Jewish evangelism! In fact, the whole conference was so badly attended that the most to be counted in any session was forty (in contrast, I’ve spoken in the last few years to conferences on Israel and prophecy with audiences in excess of 5,000).

Is there really so little interest in bringing the Gospel “to the Jew first”? Is there really such overlooking of Jesus Christ’s own mission to witness “to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” that only a handful are available on a campus having nearly 2,000 students and staff?

No, I think it’s window dressing again. As Moody can now say, “Did you see our latest book on Israel? It’s authored by five sterling professors,” Dallas Seminary can now say, “Look at the conference that we hosted,” and they don’t have to mention the low-grade of interest on campus.

And yet, Moishe Rosen had quite a bit to say, and he said it to the seven of us in the room as we sat spellbound. Indeed, he clarified that there are Arab members in the parliament of Israel who cause a real uproar, but their views are tolerated in that democracy. He then asked us pointedly, “What Jew would be allowed in an Arab parliament?”

A woman in the audience wanted to know what she should do about appeals to help “Arab Christians” and Moishe picked me out of the audience to answer the question since I was more familiar with the scene in Israel. I clarified that what are called “Arab Christians” would be known as sacramentalists in this country and not born again believers. Because an individual born in Nazareth has Greek Orthodox parents really doesn’t testify of his born again relationship with Jesus Christ. Some Arab Christians in name are really very good Christians, but others are untrustworthy in that area. The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Michael Sabbah, is a political troublemaker who assists Arafat and condemns Israel at every turn and does so in the role of a superior Catholic priest.

And yet, some American Christians are completely fooled. The United Methodist Church gives generously to the PLO, as do several of the other Protestant denominations. The Roman Catholics can always be counted on to side against Israel, and so there is a large constituency of “believers” in an Israeli Messiah who despise Israel and want it thrown into the sea.

I have observed that Arafat himself is not above crying out, “Jesus, help us!” when the lights are on and the cameras are rolling. I’m not sure how much difference there is between Arabs faking Christianity in Israel just to impress some larger Christian community and Dallas Seminary and Moody Bible Institute characters faking another kind of Christianity to impress another kind of Christian crowd. It was significant to me that the building we were seated in for this conference was brand new with very modern furniture and up-to-date computer connections at every desk. That must have cost money, and money these days costs us doctrine, in the sense that one must change one’s End Times doctrine to get donations. As with Dallas Seminary’s on-going building program, you cannot convince donors to fund very large projects if you teach at the same time that the Lord’s coming is very near. Likewise, with Moody’s bank, you’re not going to sell very many long-term notes or investments with lengthy maturities if you convince investors that we’re at the end of the world.

But, after all, what’s a seminary for? Is it to build buildings, found banks, make money?

One DTS staff member there challenged me about my criticism of the seminary and I owned up to it. I said that I was simply angry that they had departed so far from the doctrines of Ryrie, Scofield, Chafer, Pentecost, and Walvoord, and that it was difficult for me to stomach the new look of Progressive Dispensationalism, etc. She accused me of having “animosity” toward the seminary, but I feel that it was only correctly placed anger, as with Jesus and the moneychangers at the temple. In retrospect, I suppose anger can be a Christian virtue.

I am very perturbed…that once again the U.S. administration lambastes Israel for its recent incursions into Palestinian-controlled territories.

This is a double standard. Israel has endured constant terrorist attacks against its civilians, plus the recent assassination of a cabinet member. All Israel is doing is defending itself, which it has every right to do.

Did the whole world not hear President Bush speak so eloquently about routing out terrorism…? The U.S. needs to get tough with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat…a terrorist…. If that does not work, he needs to be pursued as aggressively as Osama bin Laden.

— Michael Adler

Taken from one perspective, it’s not really Islam that is to blame in this war, specifically, because 1,500 years before the birth of Mohammed nomads rode out of Arabia and conquered the Egyptian dynasty, which had become weak and ultimately fell to Arabs, who later became Muslims. Egypt has long fallen from prominence. It was once a world dominating empire with advanced science and much enlightenment, ranging from medical experiments to architecture, magnificent palaces and, of course, the peerless architecture of the pyramids. This vast empire fell to the basest kind of desert Bedouin who rode in and, through infiltration, frontal attack, and many other methods, finally toppled the Egyptian empire. Remember the classic movie Lawrence of Arabia? Lawrence finally succeeded in leading Feisal’s desert fighters to rout the Turks and oust them from Damascus. Three days into their new Arab “government,” the council of nomads could agree on little and the water system, electrical plants, telephones, and infirmaries went to pot. Finally, one invader stood up and shouted, “Allah does not want these things. These are evil things!”

And so Arabs attacked the cities. Primitives can’t get it together so they occupy other people’s lands and cities. A microcosm of this whole idea is the Palestinians vs. Israel. Here you have a sundry group of Arabs who make up a lie — and lying is big part of this — that it was their land. They did not actually exist as an ethnic group in the world, of course, so it was not their land. They ride in and they want the cities, they want the Israeli conveniences, they want the Israeli women, they have desires, so they ride in and take over. It amounts to just the poor falling on the rich.

I recently substituted for Hal Lindsey on his popular radio talk show in Los Angeles during his November tour of Greece (our tour of Greece and Israel will be in March and you’re cordially invited!). In preparing for that assignment I did a little extra reading and came upon a very interesting point by Karen Armstrong, an ex-Catholic nun, who is a staunch defender of Islam and critic of Israel. She pointed out in her best Arabist tradition that the Muslims had no real background in hating Jews. I gave that some thought and, in fact, there’s some truth to it.

The Muslims through the ages were not as anti-Semitic as, say, the Europeans or the Russians. They tended to simply live with the Jews, in the Middle East primarily. When the time came to make an excuse for hating modern Israel, they had to search through lore from elsewhere. They came up with the old conspiracy theories and other time-honored anti-Jewish sentiments, which really were outside their culture. Nevertheless, they have certainly done their part in the worldwide “bash Israel” campaign.

And that gave me an idea. It seems that no one is really born hating Jews or Israel. They have to come up with some philosophy along the way to get that going in their lives. The U.S. government is an example of Arabist thinking. The State Department invariably denigrates the Chosen People and the Promised Land. The government’s excuse is oil, I suppose, over which we cultivate the Saudi Arabians (among our worst enemies in the world) and pretend to make coalitions of nations utterly obnoxious to our country and to democracy in general (Iran, Syria, Egypt, etc.).

The media’s reasons for opposing Israel are a bit odd. They claim the Israelis are making illegal “settlements” when it’s clear that the Jews have a legacy of thousands of years in the land. Even if one doesn’t believe Scripture, then the archaeology coming out of the ground is convincing enough, if not the military conquests of lands. (If one doesn’t get the land one occupies in a battle, then we American immigrants had better start packing!) They call Israelis “occupiers” when they know that it is the other side that is occupying. They call Sharon brutal and Arafat a statesman, although anyone can see that in real life those characterizations ought to be reversed.

How about other religions? Most of them criticize Israel. The Catholics want Jerusalem to be an international city and side with what they think are Arab “Christians.” The Pope cannot get enough of embracing Arafat. Roman Catholic anti-Semitism is a tradition of almost 2,000 years and beggars any Muslim hatred of the Jews, except the fabricated, present-day anti-Semitism.

And then there are the liberal Protestants, the earnest United Methodist bishops who put out grand resolutions condemning the family of our Lord and the land He never left during His entire ministry. The liberal Presbyterians, Episcopalians, etc., all have their problems with Israel and ignorantly think that some Palestinians are really Christians and Jews are alien to Christianity. Their anti-Semitism might be excused on grounds of bald-faced ignorance, but concocting theologies like Progressive Dispensationalism and Replacement Theology sure doesn’t help.

Progressive Dispensationalism has infected Moody Bible Institute, Dallas Theological Seminary, and any number of other evangelical organizations, turning those against Israel as well. Dallas Seminary recently issued a fundraising letter by its new president, Mark Bailey, that had a wonderful sentence about “the center of prophecy,” which I thought was at last going to cough up “Israel,” but it stated that Jesus Himself was the center of prophecy. Naturally, no one can disagree with that sentiment, but, more to the point, God is working in Israel everyday while the seminary sleeps. (I didn’t send a gift other than my constructive criticism.)

Finally, I get letters from our own viewers and readers, believers all, with snide comments about Israel’s policies, the Jewish “despising of Christ,” or resentment of what they suppose is Israel’s superiority to America. All of those ideas are pipe dreams, of course, but people imagine they see them in our letters and betray their anti-Jewish sentiment by writing to me about them. You are free to write what you like to me and I’m free to answer you as I please, but there is an imperative here which is Biblical, and that is Genesis 12:3, “I will bless them that bless thee….”

In conclusion, I might ask what reason you have for not supporting Israel, if you don’t? Why do you dislike the Jews, if you do? And finally, do you realize that you are soon to have a face-to-face interview in heaven with the King of the Jews?

Miki Diamant of the Tel Aviv suburb of Givatayim is the proud owner of Vulcan, chosen as the “prettiest cat in Europe!” The prize was given at an international competition in Germany, sponsored by the Global Federation of Cats. As a top specimen of the Ragdoll breed, Vulcan won for her “beauty, well shaped body, and the special, attractive color of her eyes.”

Though tourists have been frightened off by the tense security situation in Israel, the olim (immigrants) have not been deterred! In fact, a new weekly record was set with the arrival of 1,225 new immigrants. In the 13 months since the intifada began, more than 42,000 Jews have made aliyah (return to the Jewish homeland from the diaspora), a truly Zionist response to the Palestinian war against Israel!

Meirav Schwarz, 33, debuted as [Israeli airline] El Al’s first woman pilot, making her maiden flight in a Boeing 737 to Nairobi, Kenya. The only female among 393 pilots, Meirav started her flight training while in the army, accumulating enough flying hours to apply for a job at El Al. She enrolled in the airline pilot course and finished with flying colors.

Here’s a new experience for those of you who can’t visit the Kotel (Western Wall) in person. Any time day or night, in the comfort of your own home, you can click on www.aish.com/wallcam and see live pictures of the Wall, the holiest site in Judaism. The website is run by Aish HaTorah, a yeshiva (seminary) in Jerusalem’s Old City.

This Live-Camera operates 24 hours a day, and the picture is updated every minute. The web site also provides information on the history of the site, a photo gallery and other interesting resources and information. Your window to the Western Wall awaits you.

The following article details the security precautions taken at El Al, by all measurements the world’s safest airline. Please know that our March tour to Greece and Israel will be flown entirely on El Al to add an extra measure of security to what we think of as an already safe tour. — Zola

The terrorist attacks on the U.S. with hijacked airliners have aroused enormous international interest in the tough security methods of Israel’s national carrier, El Al. Israeli experts say that had these methods been used in America, the airborne attacks on New York and Washington might have been prevented.

Security on El Al begins long before takeoff. Every passenger is checked through Interpol (the international police network) for a criminal record before the flight. At Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, cars are examined as they enter the airport compound by uniformed guards armed with Uzi submachine guns. Plainclothes security guards, wearing loose-fitting jackets that cover their hidden weapons, patrol the airport building and entrances.

El Al terminals overseas are also guarded by armed Israeli security personnel, and security checks are just as strict as in Israel.

All passengers undergo some form of questioning during check-in. This enables security guards to quickly spot people who appear nervous. Most are questioned briefly and continue. Others, who arouse suspicion, might have all the contents of their luggage examined. Some passengers have found these checks to be so annoying that they decided not to fly El Al again. But nowadays, it’s a selling point!

Then there is profiling, a controversial policy that critics say is a violation of human rights. In Israel, profiling means Arabs and certain foreigners are singled out for questioning, while most Israeli Jews quickly proceed to checkin.
Israeli officials say profiling is both effective and practical. If everyone was questioned in depth, it’s obvious that planes would never get off the ground because it would take too much time. While profiling is prohibited under the U.S. constitution, it might have helped apprehend the hijackers of the American planes before the deed. “If you detect one, you can start to ask questions” that might lead to the other members of the group, said Leo Gleser, a former El Al security officer.

During check-in, high-tech explosives detection equipment is used to examine all luggage.

Then there’s an additional test. El Al is probably the only airline that places all its cargo in decompression chambers before takeoff. That prevents the plane from being blown up with explosives set off by a barometric fuse, which is sensitive to altitude. Experts say at least 10 planes have been blown up that way.

The last lines of defense are armed, undercover guards seated on the plane. In 1970, a Palestinian hijacker was killed and another captured when an armed guard foiled their hijacking attempt during an El Al flight.

Even if all the measures fail, a hijacker still could not get into the cockpit of an Israeli plane. The cockpit door is locked as soon as the pilot enters, an anti-hijack procedure that has been used for decades.

Neri Yarkoni, the former head of Israel’s Civil Aviation Administration and a pilot himself, says the security situation in airports outside Israel is “very bad.” “It’s a pity it takes a lesson like this to happen to teach them to boost security,” Yarkoni said. “We live in a different reality. Here, this is routine.”

Avraham Deviri, the 56-year-old father of an Israeli soldier killed in the Lebanon War, honors his son’s memory by doing his miluim (reserve duty) in Israel’s Biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria (i.e., the “West Bank”). His latest duty was 25 days in Hebron, the site of frequent clashes between Jewish and Arab residents, and Israeli troops and Palestinian gunmen.

Deviri strongly encourages other Israelis to follow suit, and he puts his money where his mouth is — he donates his reservist pay to families of terrorist victims. By working side by side with other young soldiers helping to protect Israelis, this father honors the memory of his beloved son.

Last spring, Palestinian police arrested Israeli Arab journalist Youssef Samir, 63, in the town of Beit Jala near Bethlehem. Held captive in a secret location for 64 days, the Egyptianborn writer was tortured and interrogated by Yasser Arafat’s secret police, who accused him of spying for Israel.

Appeals by Samir’s family to the Palestinian Authority were ignored, with officials claiming they did not know his whereabouts. Finally, Samir escaped. Bruised and exhausted, he made it to the Israeli checkpoint on Bethlehem’s border with Jerusalem. Free at last, he bowed low and kissed the ground.

Israel Today: Mr. Samir, why did the Palestinian police kidnap you?

Samir: I have no idea. During my detention, I was told repeatedly that I had to sign something. When I asked what it was, they told me I knew what they meant. Finally, they said I was to sign a confession that I spied for Israel.

Israel Today: Where were you held?

Samir: I was in the former headquarters of the Israeli army in Bethlehem, which today is the seat of the Palestinian security forces. I was questioned and tortured by the Tanzim [gunmen from Arafat’s Fatah group] and other security men.

Israel Today: Did you believe you’d be released?

Samir: I cried from the pain. I didn’t think I’d survive their brutality. For the first time in my life, I actually feared death.

Israel Today: Do you believe Israel did enough to secure your freedom?

Samir: I would like to say unequivocally that Israel represents the chosen people. I place all my confidence in this small country, which I love from the bottom of my heart.

Israel Today: Did your kidnappers show any compassion because of your age?

Samir: I only saw in their eyes how much they hate Israel. But I love the simple Palestinians, the families who want to live in peace. The Palestinian population is suffering from Arafat’s regime. Many Palestinians wish they were back under Israeli rule.

Israel Today: As a writer closely connected to the Palestinians, tell us, what do the Palestinian people feel?

Samir: I would be happy to introduce you to Palestinian families any time so you can hear directly what they think of Arafat. They hate him, but they are defenseless.

Israel Today: But the world is pushing Israel to negotiate with Arafat.

Samir: Israel played a role in making Arafat what he is today. Who is Arafat, anyway? He’s a nobody, and he can be easily defeated. Israel should take back the Palestinian areas. Believe me, I’m not the only one who thinks this way. After what I went through, it’s my obligation to tell the truth about Arafat and his gang.

Israel Today: In other words, you would adopt a hard line against Arafat’s regime?

Samir: Absolutely. Arafat always has been and still is a terrorist. But Israel is constantly mindful of protecting the innocent civilian population, the churches and mosques. And that’s what will finally endanger Israel. Here speaks the Jewish heart! Israel wants to be the good guy in the fight but doesn’t see how senseless this is because Arafat is going to continue the killing regardless.

Israel Today: But Arafat promised to prevent terrorist attacks when he signed the Oslo Agreements. He even got weapons for that very purpose from Yitzhak Rabin.

Samir: That was one of Israel’s biggest errors. How could Israel have believed that he would fight terror with those weapons instead of fighting Israel?

Israel Today: In the areas under the Palestinian Authority, criticism of Arafat is increasing. Why does no one oust him?

Samir: Their fear of Arafat makes them think they have to throw stones at Jews, but they dare not overthrow him.

Israel Today: At the Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa, Zionism was equated with racism. As a Moslem, how do you see this?

Samir: That’s absolute nonsense. Arafat is a murderer and a dictator, yet he preaches to the whole world about human rights — and the world buys it. It’s simply unbelievable.

Israel Today: Nevertheless, the international community seems to show more understanding for Arafat than for Israel.

Samir: They are simply blind. But it’s partly Israel’s fault. Shimon Peres thinks he can change the Arabs, and so he pulls Israel into a political trap. If I could trust anyone, it would only be Ariel Sharon.

U.S. media reports say the new American peace initiative, expected to be made public soon, affirms the Palestinians’ right to a state with East Jerusalem as its capital. Palestinian officials say they’ve been told that under the proposal, Islamic and Christian holy places in the Old City would come under Palestinian control.

From the U.S. point of view, resolution of the Palestinian issue is the key to a stable Middle East. It would ensure the free flow of oil and ostensibly take away the principal cause for terrorism aimed at America. “If we want to avoid creating more terrorists, we must end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict quickly,” wrote Caryl Murphy in the Washington Post. Indeed, a recent U.S. poll showed that a majority of Americans believe that U.S. support for Israel was the main cause of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.

This, however, is erroneous. Moslem extremists like bin Laden don’t support the two-state solution America proposes. They support a one state solution — without Israel. Moreover, a 1998 fatwa (religious ruling) issued by bin Laden calls on every Moslem “to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find them.” Why? Because of the U.S. presence in Saudi Arabia. “For over seven years the United States has been occupying the lands of Islam in the holiest of places, the Arabian Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers, humiliating its people, [and] terrorizing its neighbors,” the fatwa said. A second bin Laden grievance against the U.S. was “the continuing aggression against the Iraqi people.” The existence of Israel was listed third.

If Islam is such a peace-loving and gentle religion, how come the most virulent anti-American demonstrations come after their Friday religious services?

— Tanya Murray

While I applaud the U.S. action in Afghanistan as necessary, I cannot help but frown when I hear U.S. State Department officials and other members of the U.S. government criticize Israel for fighting terrorism in its midst (“Sharon says assault will end when Arafat stops terrorism,” News, Monday).

I understand that our fragile Arab coalition partners don’t like what they see — but to give in to their objections is to give in to terrorist tendencies.

It is time for the United States to speak with a clear, moral voice — no quarter for terrorists, whether they kill Americans or Israelis.

— Mark Alan

It disturbs me that we as a nation seem unwilling to examine our attitudes and past mistakes concerning the Arab and Muslim world. I would have taken the Saudi prince’s check [rejected by New York Mayor Rudy Guiliani], thanked him for his generosity, and listened intently for some insight into why seemingly millions of people in the Islamic world hate us.

Yes, I believe we as a nation have the best of intentions. However, we fail to examine ourselves from their standpoint, and refuse charity from anyone who suggests we do. Wake up, America!

— Paul Crittendon

I would encourage Mr. Crittendon to take his wife and children to Saudi Arabia to live. Perhaps he will come to his senses about the Arab Islamic world when they force his wife to wear a chador, restrict his family from freely worshiping as they please and live in fear everyday because he, a non-Islamic, refuses to bow to Allah. Why take money from those who blame you for the murderers they sired? Wake up, Paul! — Zola

In preparing my thoughts for this issue of the Levitt Letter, I recently came across some verses in the Psalms which immediately made me think of Moody Bible Institute. Much of their theological drifting into Progressive Dispensationalism, etc., I feel, is related to their financial aims. As we’ve mentioned before, they’ve even established their own bank. Read these verses for yourself:

So don’t be dismayed when the wicked grow rich, and their homes become ever more splendid.

For when they die, they carry nothing with them. Their wealth will not follow them into the grave.

In this life they consider themselves fortunate, and the world loudly applauds their success.

But they will die like all others before them and never again see the light of day.

People who boast of their wealth don’t understand that they will die like the animals.

PSALM 49:16–20

The only answer to our criticism is that Moody change its bad doctrine. They have never defended it, never even tried to tell me they’re teaching the right thing, simply adopted it evidently for financial reasons, and if they don’t change it back, they will have our criticism for a lifetime. Progressive Dispensationalism is a side road leading to other side roads called Amillennialism and Replacement Theology. If the seminaries don’t stop and get back on the expressway to the Kingdom, they’ll be lost out in the countryside like Harvard, Yale, and Princeton.

While I don’t agree with the following writer’s view that Palestinian statehood is a good thing, his point is clear: Arafat doesn’t want to co-exist with Israel; he wants all of Israel or nothing. Arafat is the obstacle to peace. — Zola

In their column, Hussein Ibish and Ali Abinimah claim that “the United States has clearly supported both Palestinian statehood and the end of Israeli occupation…in all its forms.” In fact, the United States has clearly supported both Palestinian statehood and an end to the occupation by its endorsement of the Oslo Process, the Mitchell Plan, the Tenet Plan, and President Clinton’s Camp David bridging proposals. That these efforts did not bring about the desired end was not due to the failure of efforts by the United States but by their rejection by Yasser Arafat.

Those of us who favored the United States’ goals were dismayed and disappointed by Mr. Arafat’s decision to return to “armed struggle” (i.e., the Al Aqsa intifada) and to unleash the terrorist activities of Hamas and Islamic Jihad. We can only conclude that Mr. Arafat’s goal is not only the establishment of a Palestinian state and the end of Israeli occupation but the end of Israel itself. It is only the latter that the United States opposes.

— Vincent Cirillo

…The present church age is not a time in which Bible prophecy is being fulfilled. Bible prophecy relates to a time after the Rapture…. However, this does not mean that God is not preparing the world for that future time during the present church age — in fact, He is. Dr. John Walvoord explains:

But if there are no signs for the Rapture itself, what are the legitimate grounds for believing that the Rapture could be especially near of this generation?

The answer is not found in any prophetic events predicted before the Rapture but in understanding the events that will follow the Rapture. Just as history was prepared for Christ’s first coming, in a similar way history is preparing for the events leading up to His Second Coming…. If this is the case, it leads to the inevitable conclusion that the Rapture may be excitingly near.

The Bible provides detailed prophecy about the seven-year tribulation. In fact, Revelation 4-19 gives a detailed, sequential outline of the major players and events. Using Revelation as a framework, a Bible student is able to harmonize the hundreds of other Biblical passages that speak of the seven-year tribulation into a clear model of the next time period for planet earth. With such a template to guide us, we can see that God is already preparing or setting the stage of the world in which the great drama of the tribulation will unfold. In this way this future time casts shadows of expectation in our own day so that current events provide discernible signs of the times.

What are some possible relations between recent events and Bible prophecy? First, the destruction of the World Trade Center and the ensuing chaos could be a foretaste of what it will be like after the Rapture. There will be some wreckage due to the fact that some planes will suddenly become pilotless. People will be grief-stricken, wondering where their loved ones have gone. The Rapture will be different in one aspect: it will be a global event affecting the entire earth in a single moment.

Second, this gives us a microcosm of what the global judgments of the tribulation will be like. During this time a majority of the earth’s remaining population will die. The earth, sun, moon, and stars will be affected. Every human being on earth will experience in some way these judgments for themselves. There will be no safe places to run to, the entire world will come under God’s judgment, and it will have a terrifying impact on those who are left behind.

The recent events are leading to another global coalition to fight against terrorism. This will further prepare the way for the one world government of the antichrist during the future tribulation.

More than likely Americans will have to give up more of our individual liberties so that the government can provide safety for its citizens. An increase in governmental oversight of the individual is also preparatory for the global economic control that antichrist will exert in the tribulation (Rev. 13).

Through these events it is more likely that Israel, more specifically Jerusalem, will increasingly be viewed as that “cup that causes reeling to all peoples” and “a heavy stone for all the peoples” (Zech. 12:2-3). Israel will be blamed in some way for these events. Even though many will turn against Israel, God will stand with her and guide her through the events that lay ahead during the tribulation.

Our Lord has given His church a wake-up call through these horrible events that have recently occurred in America. Because of these events, Christians have an unprecedented opportunity to turn conversations about this disaster towards the Lord. Believers need to give a Biblical perspective and take advantage of this opportunity to proclaim the gospel to those who need Jesus Christ as the solution to man’s sins. Evil can be taken care of individually by trusting Christ as our Savior to forgive our sins, and God will judge global evil during the tribulation. Are you ready? Maranatha!

Disillusioned with life on the front line, a British deserter from the Taliban is warning other young Muslims that if they go to Afghanistan seeking glory or martyrdom they will only find themselves at the mercy of “lunatics and liars.”

“It wasn’t the danger I minded because I expected shooting. It was the recklessness of the Taliban and their complete disregard for the lives of those fighting for them,” said Abu Mindar, 26, from London’s East End…who considers himself lucky to have survived his baptism of fire.

“I was a Muslim, I did pray regularly at mosque but I wasn’t some kind of zealot,” he said.

Abu Mindar said that he would like to return home to warn other young men against the recruiters, but he had decided to remain in hiding, fearful of retribution from the Taliban or Britain.

The cataclysmic events taking place in our world today remind us that our lives are vulnerable. Global terrorism, the rise of fanatic Islam, Israel’s struggle with the Palestinians, and even the decline of prophetic teaching in our best seminaries are factors that give us signs of the approaching fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. As believers, how do we make sense of it all? Is the end near? Is America’s destruction imminent? Will fanatic Muslims usher in a new global war resulting in a major attack on Israel?

Signs of the End 2001 is a video series that tackles these tough questions…and more. Join host Zola Levitt on location as he responds to terrorism in Israel and America, interviewing experts on Islam and counter-terrorism, theologians, and internationally-recognized journalists who offer insights into the events which may very well usher in the end to come.

The View from Jerusalem

Days after the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington, Zola speaks from the Mount of Olives in response to the tragedy and appraises the Israeli and Palestinian reaction to terrorism in America.

The Christian Embassy Speaks

Malcolm Hedding, Director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, describes the historical context of the attacks on the U.S. and gives Zola a Biblical perspective on these events.

The “Settlers”

Many viewers will remember Joni and Stu, “settlers” in the so-called West Bank. Citizens of both Israel and America, this couple offers a unique outlook on terrorism in both countries.

The Streets of Jerusalem

Learn from experts on Islam and counter-terrorism and listen to “on the street” interviews with residents of Jerusalem as we explore the motives and goals of the terrorist attacks.

Now a Christian

Raised as a Muslim, Dr. Ergun Caner later became a believer and now teaches theology at a Christian college. Zola discusses with him the philosophy and religious beliefs that influenced the suicide terrorists.

Fired!

David Dolan, until recently a high-profile journalist with one of the major American news networks, details for Zola how pressure from a Palestinian politician forced him out of his position.

Branson Prophecy Summit #1 of 2

Speaking at this large national conference, Zola vividly describes how God’s hand has been at work in Israel’s modern history and the way that many Christian seminaries have minimized Israel’s significance in prophecy.

Branson Prophecy Summit #2 of 2

In part two of this conference, Zola reminds us of God’s relationship to Israel, illustrated in the story of Hosea and Gomer, and challenges us to step up our witness to the Chosen People before the return of Christ.

Some letters have been edited for space.

Dear Zola:

I enjoy viewing your program very much; however, I respectfully request that you remove my name from your mailing list. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was to learn that you were a supporter of the “Rapture.” — BG

Dear Zola:

I’ve been watching Zola’s program sporadically for a few years now. I was watching the show with the couple in Israel [Joni and Stu]. It was a very good show…but I was wanting to tease Zola about his statement of the Palestinians being settlers because they didn’t own the land that they settled on. I think I would have called them squatters…because they were settling on land that belonged to the Jewish people. A settler, to me, settled on land that belonged to nobody. — K

Mr. Levitt:

I watched for the first time your program at 1 in the morning because I was bored and couldn’t sleep. By 1:30 I was sick to my stomach and disgusted beyond comprehension. Your interview of those two fanatic zealots, Joni and Stu was it, was the single most despicable piece of footage I have seen in months. You go around falsely claiming that there has never been a “Palestine” and that there has never been a Palestinian people. What a sick, sick lie…but then again, after looking thoroughly through your website, what else could be expected from such a sick, sick man. — NF

Dear Zola:

I thank you for your show and for your whole ministry. I have listened to Dr. J. Vernon McGee…and have read many of his books. He did not believe that Israel’s return to the Land in 1948 was what was spoken of in the Bible. I do not agree with him on that. I would remind other brothers and sisters in Christ that as long as we agree on salvation, we are brothers and sisters. — PJM

Dear Levitt Staff:

I am searching for something that church communities cannot answer me and leave me often unsettled. — KO

Dearest Zola:

I watched your show on 10-14-01 and was jubilant to see and hear you address your ministry. I loved it when you told who hijacked those planes, who is responsible for these acts of terrorism both in Israel and our United States.

I just finished reading the Levitt Letter and I loved the quote by Golda Meir, “There will be peace in Israel when Arab mothers love their children more than they hate the Jews.”

Although I’m in a wheelchair, if they can put hand controls in a tank, I’ll volunteer also to help Israel defend her land. — RF

Dear Zola:

As a Palestinian Christian, I was appalled to have happened upon your Zionist propaganda version of Christianity. You are rooted in the Old [Testament] and not in the ministry of Jesus and it is a shame that you speak while invoking the name of Christ. You claim that [Palestinian spokeswoman] Hanan Ashrawi is a liar; apparently that translates into “speaker of the truth of Israel’s brutal terrorism” which you so conveniently choose to deny. Then you make the ludicrous claim that Peter Jennings and Dr. Ashrawi were lovers in Lebanon. How preposterous. I would delve into the atrocities committed by the State of Israel, but I know that my words would fall on deaf ears.

I guess the freedom of speech that marks our country’s democracy also has its downfalls. People like you are allowed to spew their propagandist nonsense on television. — IEK

The providential timing of God and the sovereign way the Holy Spirit led us as we witnessed throughout Israel was powerfully evident every day. One example of an event in Galilee illustrates this. Kevin and I decided to walk among the shops in Tiberias. As we walked for some time in that area, there seemed to be no opportunities open for us to witness to the Jewish people. Frustrated over this seeming impasse, I began to silently pray that unbelieving Israel would come to faith in Jesus as the Jewish Messiah and that someone in that area would be open to our testimony. The Holy Spirit then led me to claim the promise of Joshua 1:3 so that the Gospel we proclaim would have a ruling influence in that place wherever the soles of our feet walked. The verse in Joshua in its historical context was given to Joshua and Israel as they were about to go into the hostile territory of Canaan to claim ownership over the land God promised them. Little did we know how quickly this would play out in a spiritual manner.

Shortly after this silent prayer, Kevin and I stopped at a restaurant called “Cherry’s.” When our waitress came to our table to take our order we started talking to her about the World Trade Center bombing. This tragic event, more than anything else, was a constant door opener to witness and share the Gospel with Israel. At some point in the conversation, we discussed the soon return of the Messiah and she became hostile and flat out said she did not believe in Him. She then left momentarily.

A mother and daughter sitting at the next table overheard our conversation. She expressed her appreciation about what we said. She was an Orthodox Jew. We talked to her about the restoration and central role Israel will play during end-time Bible prophecy that is a major sign of Messiah’s return. We attempted to give her a Messianic Jewish tract showing Jesus is the Messiah. She declined, at first, and said that they had to leave to catch the bus. But about a minute later she surprised us by coming back into the restaurant and said she would in fact take and read the tract we offered.

The waitress saw this and took offense. She came back to our table and said in a tone of obvious hostility, “Is there a problem here?” Instead of taking offense, we replied softly and tenderly what we had just told the lady and her daughter about God’s plan for Israel as revealed in Scripture and how it shows Jesus is the Messiah of Israel. To our great marvel her hostile demeanor toward the Gospel began changing to an openness and willingness to listen. The Holy Spirit through our witness and testimony was transforming her attitude right before our eyes! Such a change was especially indicated by the fact that we asked if she wanted a free copy of a Hebrew New Testament. The first time she outright refused. Later on, when we asked her again, she said she would think about it. After we finished our meal, we asked a third time. She not only took it but also took a Gospel tract and thanked us for them! May God continue the change in her heart and produce the new birth by faith in the Jewish Messiah as she reads the Brit Hadashah and receives the words of Jesus in the original language He spoke them in.

A few days later Kevin and I were in the Yardenit Gift Shop. Led by the Spirit we initiated a conversation with two young Jewish ladies — one was named Hagar. They were eagerly open to our witness and teaching about Jesus, the Gospel, and the divine role of Israel in history. They were simply amazed about what the God of Israel has done, is doing, and will do for the Chosen People. They were thrilled about us giving them free Hebrew New Testaments. As we left the gift shop, another young lady, one of Hagar’s friends, came up and wanted a Hebrew New Testament, too. They invited us to eat with them and other friends in the cafeteria. All together there were six young Israeli girls who joined us for lunch who were all working on the Kinneret Kibbutz.

Kevin and I spent over an hour with the group discussing the existence of God and Jesus being the true Messiah of Israel. They asked why we believed this about Jesus. Our clear answer was because He fulfilled all the prophecies made in the Tenach [Old Testament] that foretold events of His first coming centuries before He was born. Four of the girls were secular and two were nominally religious. When the hour had past and our conversation concluded with them, one of the secular girls exclaimed, “You have opened my eyes!” No doubt God’s Spirit is at work again in Israel. The veil and partial blindness of un-belief over Israelis toward their Messiah Jesus is beginning to lift as the coming of the Lord draws very near and the fullness of the Gentiles during the Church age is quickly coming to a close (see Romans 11:25-26; 2 Corinthians 3:13-16).

The work of taking the Gospel to the Jew first has just begun. Lord willing, Kevin and I plan to go back to Israel and continue this work in April 2002. Thank you for your continued prayers and support in this vitally important evangelistic enterprise. Kevin will share more of the experiences that we had speaking and witnessing to groups of Jews we met in Israel in a forthcoming article.

It’s really sad about Dr. Charles Dyer. However, he has problems that are becoming all too typical of the leadership of our formerly strong dispensational Bible schools and seminaries. He is, as he says, a “classical dispensationalist,” who is well known to Zola and me, has participated with us in years past in the Pre-Trib Research Group, has done good work in Bible prophecy and interpretation, and probably believes the Scriptures much the same way we do. But he has been brought from Dallas Seminary to Moody Bible Institute to serve as Senior Vice President of Education and Provost. In this position he is responsible to either remove the professors who are presenting deviant teaching or defend them and their teachings. It appears that he is defending them.

One of our many diligent readers wrote to Dr. Joseph Stowell, President of Moody Bible Institute, asking several astute questions about Progressive Dispensationalism, the teaching of Genesis as mythology, and the revision of doctrinal statements. He said he had been a supporter of Moody for 35 years, but if the reports made in our book Battles with Seminaries are accurate, he would have to stop his support. (By the way, we have recently received confirmation from a highly placed source at Moody that our observations through the years have indeed been accurate!) As is customary nowadays, when the presidents of the schools are sent doctrinal questions, they do not answer them themselves, but pass them on to others to answer. In this case, they were passed on to Dr. Charles Dyer.

Israel thought important in the future, but not in the present

In his response to our reader, Dr. Dyer says he is “a firm supporter of Israel…who believes in the literal interpretation of God’s Word, the pretribulational rapture of the church, the future millennial kingdom of Christ on earth with Christ seated on David’s throne ruling from Jerusalem, and the future fulfillment [emphasis mine] of all God’s promises to Israel.” In all of this we concur with Dr. Dyer. However, there is in this statement an element that causes us some concern. Something important is missing in his statement that is similar to what Progressive Dispensationalists teach. A common feature of the interpretation of the Progressive Dispensationalists is that they do not believe that the current modern nation of Israel is the fulfillment of Bible prophecy. Everything regarding God’ s promises to Israel are seen as being in the (distant) future. Thus, the current regathering of the nation is often viewed as something apart from the will of God, a mere human effort doomed to failure. Their main problem is that they cannot conceive of God forming and guiding Israel when it has not yet received Christ. Yet that is precisely what the Bible predicts for the End Times.

In all the prophecies, Israel does not receive Jesus as the Messiah and Savior until the very end of events, when Christ returns to the earth, after the Rapture, the Tribulation and Armageddon. Before the Second Coming, Israel is largely in unbelief. This means that all of the preceding developments, including the regathering of the Dry Bones (Ezek. 37), the treaty with the Antichrist, and the Tribulation, all occur before Israel comes to faith and is redeemed. The current nation of Israel, then, must be according to God’s great eschatological plan. The existence of Israel must be God’s prophesied will, although not everything the nation does is necessarily right. As believers, then, we must support the right of Israel to exist and defend itself against those who would destroy it. The Progressive Dispensationalists tend not to believe this, and rarely speak up in support of modern Israel. They ignore current developments, and, while they profess to believe in prophecy, they preach, teach and write less and less about it, and tend to choose classroom, sermon and book subjects that have little to do with Bible prophecy.

Admission and defense of Progressive Dispensationalism

Dr. Dyer continues his letter by saying, “Your first question focused on progressive dispensationalism…and whether it is taught at Moody. Yes, some professors would call themselves progressive dispensationalists. But Zola Levitt has painted an inaccurate picture of these individuals. Please let me explain.”

An important fact is that he admits that Progressive Dispensationalists are teaching at the school. For years, the schools were denying that these people even existed in their institutions. Now they are admitting it, but say that it doesn’t matter. Notice that he states that Zola Levitt is painting an inaccurate picture of “these individuals.” Really, in our articles and books, we have concentrated not on individual teachers, but on their strange doctrine. Nevertheless, Dr. Dyer continues by defending the strange doctrine of Progressive Dispensationalism, which he says he himself doesn’t believe: “However, the crucial issue that decides whether individuals are still within the boundaries of Dispensationalism is not how they define Christ’s rule today… but where they stand on the reality of Christ’s rule during the millennial kingdom and the future for the nation of Israel.”

The crucial issue: confusion between dispensations

But that confusing description is not the crucial issue. The Progressive Dispensationalists all affirm that Christ is reigning on the Throne of David now, throughout the Church Age, and that His inauguration was at His ascension to Heaven. This is a total confusion of the dispensations, mixing the Church Age and the Millennial Age, and constitutes the crucial issue with Progressive Dispensationalism.

The confusion the Progressive Dispensationalists have attempted to create between the Church Age and the Millennium has been well documented in works by leading Dispensational theologians, such as Drs. Walvoord, Ryrie, Couch and Ice. Progressive Dispensationalism is an untenable position for anyone who holds to sound hermeneutics [Bible interpretation] and normal interpretation of the Scriptures. The fact that Dr. Dyer finds himself constrained to defend such an indefensible position is a testimony to how widespread the peculiar teaching is among influential professors at Moody.

Distinction between Israel and the Church

Dr. Dyer then goes on to state that Moody requires the faculty to affirm the “Pretribulational Rapture, the Literal Second Coming and Millennium, and the Distinction between Israel and the Church.” All of this is very good, and we would wish that more schools promoted these truths, but there is something sadly lacking in all of this. When they define the distinction between Israel and the Church, they only give a rather good description of the purpose and destiny of the Church. There is no similar description of Israel. It is understood that there will be a prophetic future for Israel, but the whole issue of the present nation of Israel is left very fuzzy. In earlier days, when Moody unashamedly and unanimously held to un-hyphenated Dispensationalism, the professors all enthusiastically embraced current Israel as the miraculous beginning of the fulfillment of End-Times prophecy, but now, in accordance with pro- Palestinian political correctness, they are not at all sure. In fact, they either doubt that current Israel is part of God’s plan, or they tend to ignore the subject altogether. Even Dr. Dyer cannot bring himself to affirm that Israel today is the beginning of the Dry Bones prophecy.

It is not clear what manner of logic leads from the strange doctrines of Progressive Dispensationalism to a denial of the miraculous nature of the restoration of Israel today, even in unbelief. Perhaps because they confuse the Church and Millennial dispensations, they also tend to confuse the prophetic destinies of Israel and the Church. At any rate, there is a marked aversion by Progressive Dispensationalists from any acknowledgement of the significance of the current version of Israel. One could well think that old-fashioned anti-Semitism plays a role in this peculiar interpretive viewpoint.

Student requirements for graduation

In more orthodox days, Moody required students to sign the doctrinal statement in order to graduate. However, our very accurate sources have informed us that Moody dropped this requirement for students a few years ago, so someone could graduate from Moody without subscribing to the doctrinal statement.

Dr. Dyer defends the current practice by saying, “We have adopted a very specific statement that spells out in detail what a student must believe to be accepted — and to graduate — from Moody Bible Institute.” In other words, he says, we tell them in the catalog what we believe and expect them to believe in order to graduate. However, the students are not required to sign any statement of faith, they can (in effect) totally ignore the doctrinal statement, and get free tuition for four years of college. Having knowledge about the school’s doctrinal beliefs is not the same as the students holding those beliefs themselves. To equate the two concepts to supporters is patently less than honest.

He goes further to promise that, “I will send you a copy of the pages in the catalog where we clearly tell prospective students which beliefs are essential for entrance and for graduation. I believe it is in harmony with the 1928 doctrinal statement. You can decide for yourself whether or not Zola Levitt’s accusations have any basis in fact.” The doctrinal statement is then attached, but it states that only trustees, administrators and faculty must sign this statement, not the students. Furthermore, it allows in the addendum that some of the employees and students may differ, “While Trustees, education administrators and Faculty are expected to hold these positions, we recognize that we serve and minister with others whose traditions differ on these subjects.”

The doctrinal statement has much to commend itself to believers, but the students don’t have to believe it, and the implication is that many do not. So what is your decision in response to Dr. Dyer’s challenge? Do our accusations have any basis in fact? I think the verdict must be overwhelmingly “yes.” Moody, while remaining faithful, for the most part, to the Gospel, has departed from a strong support of Biblical Dispensationalism and from their earlier steadfast support for Israel as the modern fulfillment of Bible prophecy.