All participants arrived safe and sound. Felt the sweet spring air of Israel at the Tel Aviv airport. Boarded the bus, drove to the Sea of Galilee and are currently in the Sheraton Tiberius. (Had a great Shabbat dinner tonight- it is Saturday here after all- with many people.)
Ok, so who said this while on his first trip to Israel: "Have we of the West lost our faith in everything but dollars and military might? Have we forgotten that the most powerful weapons are ideas? Why do we not preach the gospel of freedom and justice in the villages of Asia (Middle East)?"
You'll never guess...he loved God, fought U.S. Presidents, knew the Gospel, and traveled the world. I bet you think, I think that it's George W. Bush...wrong.Most conservatives hated his guts. I'm reading one of his books written in 1951 called "Strange Lands and Friendly People".
Give up? One more hint: he was a U.S. Supreme Court Justice--Justice William O. Douglas.
Just as this man walked Israel with his son, Bill, in 1950 (and wrote this book about it), I get to enjoy my fifth trip to Israel with my son Colin and bride Susan.
Here's some long-held thoughts by me:
- May of 1948 brought about a miracle: Israel again became a nation after 1900 years in "exile."
- God used the U.N. to do this- partly because the horror of the Holocaust. Six million Jews died that today seven million Jews have a home land.
- The U.N. approved two States to exist within the new nation it was forming: one state chose the name Israel while leaders of the other (Arabic) state walked away from their agreement.
- No one knew what the full nation's name would be, even U.S. President Harry Truman signed an executive acknowledgement of the new country, and guess what? It didn't have a name when he approved it.
- When the Arabs walked the Jews stood fast. The name for the new nation was finally settled: Israel.
Israel is a Bible land, the birthplace of monotheism, a political land, a geographical land (no bigger than New Jersey), and it is the front porch of God's residence.
I'll keep ya posted on more things to come,
Dennis
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