During the week covered by this review, we received 5 articles on the following subjects:
Archeology
Christian Zionism
Anti-Missionary Activity
Archeology
Kore Bakineret, July 27, 2019
This was another article about the archeological dig in “Beit Habek” in the northern part of Israel, which claims to have uncovered the “Church of the Apostles”. Two southern rooms of a Byzantine church with ornate mosaic flooring have been excavated. The church likely stood at the center of a monastery. It is thought that the church was built on the spot which would have then been identified as the house of the brothers Peter and Andrew.
Christian Zionism
Shavua Israeli, July 24, 2019
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin participated in an event dedicated to Israel hosted in a Protestant church in Seoul, South Korea. Rivlin was welcomed by a children’s choir, which sang a well-known Hebrew song to loud applause from the audience. Rivlin informed the crowd that he was there on behalf of Jerusalem, Jerusalemites, and the people of Israel, to thank the church for its prayers for the “peace of Jerusalem, and for our peace”. Rivlin also told the audience about the recent evacuation of mines in Qasr al-Yahud, the traditional baptismal site of Jesus, known also as “the land of monasteries” because of the many monasteries which surround the site. Rivlin said the rehabilitation project was an example of inter-religious cooperation between Jews, Christians, and Muslims.
Anti-Missionary Activity
HaMevasser, July 31, 2019; Merkaz Ha’Inyanim, July 31, 2019; Ha’Eda, July 26, 2019
These three articles all reported that an “innocent looking” ad was distributed in central Israel inviting Jews to participate in a free tour of tourist sites in Israel. Yad L’Achim discovered that the free trip was a “dangerous missionary scam”. One Yad L’Achim worker came disguised as a participant, while another group of Yad L’Achim volunteers arrived at the meeting point to warn “innocent Jews” who were about the board the bus. The participants were angry to learn of the true purpose of the trip and yelled at the missionaries. In in the end, only five people participated in the tour, three of whom were not Jewish. Yad L’Achim later learned that the tour did indeed stop at Christian holy sites, and also stopped at a prayer center in Jerusalem, which is known as a place that promotes conversion. Yad L’Achim said the police need to get involved, as it is illegal to proselytize in exchange for goods.