Vatican sources said Pope Benedict XVI was preparing to convene a Synod of Bishops for the Middle East to be held in October of 2010, to address the trials and tribulations of the Christian population in the region.

Patriarchs and other representatives from Eastern churches arrived in Rome Sept. 18, and the pope was to meet with them the next day to discuss the initiative, the sources said. An announcement of the synod was expected in coming days.

By John Thavis, Catholic News Service, Sep 18, 2009

One of the most senior Catholic churchman in the Middle East has predicted that Jerusalem's already diminished Christian population will shrink within seven years unless urgent steps are taken to reverse their exodus.

Patriarch Fouad Twal, who was invited to Britain by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), the charity that helps suffering Christians, said the population in the holiest city for Christians would fall from 10,000 today to little more than 5,000 in 2016.

By Ed West, Catholic Herlad (UK), Sep 18, 2009

A 4th or 5th century church in eastern Saudi Arabia has been fenced off ever since its accidental discovery 20 years ago and its exact whereabouts kept secret.

By DONNA ABU-NASR, AP, Sep 1, 2009

It’s one thing to be an Eric Cantor and make vague murmurings about Obama’s Israel policy being insufficiently supportive of Israel. That at least presents a vaguely legitimate political argument.

But Huckabee is off in wingnut land. He’ll probably be holding hands with Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein and John Hagee and praying for the End Times over the fields of Armageddon. Scary stuff folks. Republicans, if there are any of you out there, do something to avoid making your Party the laughingstock of the democratic world.

Richard Silverman writes about Huckabee's visit to Israel

The largest Protestant denomination in Canada is putting on hold their proposal to boycot Israel. This denomination was established in 1925 as a result of a unity between Methodist, Congregational, and Presbyterian streams. Now some of its active members are considering economic and academic punitive measures against Israel.

By Brian Hutchinson, National Post, August 14, 2009

For the second year in a row, a delegation from NBS participated in the 59th annual meeting for Nobel prize winners that was held in Lindau in Germany in late June 2009.

Special For "Come and See", August 3, 2009

The word "nigger" features prominently in the videos taken by Eddie Beckford and his wife Lura, a Messianic Christian couple living in the desert town of Arad.

The videos, going back to 2005, show anywhere from a handful to a mob of local Gur Hassidim harassing them and other Messianics in town. Eddie Beckford, 61, is a black American, hence the racial slur.

By Larry Derfner, The Jerusalem Post, July 2, 2009

For thirty years Bethlehem Bible College (BBC), an Evangelical interdenominational Bible college in the West Bank, has been a living testimony that God is alive among Palestinians and a witness to the blessings of God in the Middle East.

Now the College will host an International Conference, which will be held March 13 - 17, 2010 in Bethlehem.

The theme of the conference is "Christ at the Checkpoint: Theology in Service of Peace and Justice."

By Michael Ireland, ASSIST News Service, July 10, 2009

Every month evangelical pastors and ministers in Israel meet to have a breakfast meal together in a different church every time. These ministers come from Baptist, Pentecostal, Nazarene and Brethren churches. They eat, sing, and discuss important issues that are relevant to their ministries. They represent 5000 people in Israel. This month’s meeting was held on the 11th of July in a small Brethren church in Ibillin, a small town in Galilee. Twenty three representatives from different evangelical churches and parachurch organizations met. Pastors, Evangelists, Professors, Administrators and other ministers met to pray together.

Special For "Come and See", July 11, 2009