FORMER immigration minister Kevin Andrews instructed his department to lift the intake of Christian refugees from the Middle East in response to what he saw as a pro-Muslim bias created by corrupt local case officers.
The Weekend Australian says Mr Andrews was so concerned about the extent of corruption in Middle Eastern posts - despite the allegations being investigated and dismissed by his own department - that he wrote to then prime minister John Howard advocating a $200 million plan to replace local employees with Australian staff in 10 "sensitive" countries, including Jordan, Iran and Egypt.
Opposition immigration spokesman Chris Ellison said yesterday this remains Coalition policy.
The Australian, July 19, 2008
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FEATURES \ Jul 24, 2008
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Few months ago an important essay was circulated among Christians in the Holy Land. "Come and See" re-publishes this essay due to its important and unique contribution in helping us to better understand Hebrew-Speaking Catholics.
For a Hebrew-speaking Catholic living in Israel, fostering Jewish-Catholic relations isn't simply a part of the faith, it's a way of life, according to an Israeli priest.
Jesuit Father David Mark Neuhaus, who comes from a Jewish family, is the secretary-general of the Hebrew-speaking Catholic Vicariate in Israel, known also as the the Association of St. James, and serves as the priest in charge of the Hebrew-speaking Catholic community in Haifa.
By Karna Swanson, Zenit, June 8, 2008 -
BOOK REVIEWS \ Jul 24, 2008 5329
A new book in Arabic entitled “Who Are the People of God, Scriptural Studies on the New Testament and the Kingdom of God,” authored by Shukri Habibi, has recently been published by the Clarion Publication House in Beirut, Lebanon.
The author, Shukri Habibi, was born in Haifa, Palestine; the late, well known communist leader Emile Habibi is his uncle. He holds Bachelors Degree in Literature and Masters Degree in Divinity. He worked with his wife, Adma, in Lebanon and Monte Carlo in the field of broadcasting ministry and they presently live in the Unite States. He wrote and published several broadcasting series.
by Bas
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OTHER \ Jul 14, 2008 6055
THE GOSPEL AND THE JEWISH PEOPLE is a statement endorsed by the World Evangelical Alliance.
"We recognize that it is good and right for those with specialized knowledge, history and skills to use these gifts to introduce individuals to the Messiah, and that includes those ministries specifically directed to the Jewish people.... We do not wish to offend our Jewish friends by the above statements; but we are compelled by our faith and commitment to the Scriptures to stand by these principles.
World Evangelical Alliance, July 2008 -
ISRAEL \ Jul 09, 2008 2628
Nazareth Baptist school delegation to the 58th annual gathering of holders of Nobel Prize in Physics in Lindau in Germany returned to the country early this week. The delegation consisted of Dr. Ousama Moalem, NBS principal and Physics teacher and two 12 graders Amin Asfour and Jeries Nashashibi.
The invitation to this conference was sent to Dr. Moalem as a token of appreciation to NBS for the outstanding achievements in Scientific research in Physics and especially in the international contest “First Step in Nobel prize in Physics” where Students from NBS won 9 prizes in the last 12 years-a large number relatively to other schools and countries that participated in the contest.
Special for "Come and See", July 8, 2008
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ARCHEOLOGY \ Jul 07, 2008 6310
The premise that the Messiah died and was resurrected after three days is considered the foundation of the Christian faith, one which differentiates it from Judaism. Through the generations, this belief stood at the center of the debate between Christians and Jews. But now, a mysterious tablet from the time of the second temple has led researchers to believe that this premise of messianic resurrection is not unique to Christianity, but rather existed in Judaism years before Jesus was born.
The tablet, which has been dubbed "Gabriel's vision" because much of its text deals with a vision of the apocalypse transmitted by the angel Gabriel, was discovered eight years ago, but a large part of it is illegible and researchers have had difficulty interpreting its meaning.
By Ofri Ilani, Haaretz, July 7, 2008
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FEATURES \ Jul 02, 2008 6184
In an attempt to inspire and empower the local church in Israel and the Palestinian Authority to reach out to their people, a conference was held last weakened in Jerusalem under the title “Back to Jerusalem”. The conference was organized and sponsored by Life Agape, the local ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC).
The conference is the first stage in the "Back to Jerusalem" Campaign. According to Rajai Samawi, the project leader: "the goal of the project is to empower the participants to be ready for the outreach week that will follow the conference, where the locals and the International guests will have the opportunity to minister to people in different parts of Israel, using Sports, Music and Drama - together with personal visits".
Special For "Come and See", July 1, 2008
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PALESTINE \ Jul 01, 2008 4507
Jericho Mayor Hassan Saleh handed over a certificate of ownership for three plots in the Holy Land to Russian Audit Chamber Chairman Sergey Stepashin on Monday.
"The Palestinian National Authority chairman ruled that all lands related to the Russian Orthodox Church and Russia should be returned to their legal owners," Saleh told Stepashin in the Russian Audit Chamber.
One of the land plots covering 12,000 square meters was handed over to the Russian government. This piece of land has a sanctuary for all Christians in the world, as well as a fig-tree of tax collector Zacchaeus.
Interfax, June 9, 2008 -
FEATURES \ Jul 01, 2008 4391
For the members of First Baptist Church in Palestine (Texas), sharing names with a Middle Eastern territory of Palestine has led to a connection with Christians on the West Bank.
Pastor Jay Abernathy said a BBC news team taking a Sunday detour from President Bush’s ranch in Crawford gave him the idea to capitalize on the shared name.
By Carrie Joynton, The Baptist Standard, June 24, 2008
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