During the week covered by this review, we received 4 articles on the following subjects:
Anti-Missionary Attitudes
Jerusalem
Jerusalem / History
Anti-Missionary Attitudes
HaMevasser, August 11, 2021; Iton Shacharit, August 11, 2021
Yad L’Achim believes that Australian missionary, Andrew Lewis, who was forced to leave Moshav Otzem in Southern Israel one year ago, has relocated to a town in the North of Israel. Yad L’Achim has received reports of missionary materials associated with Lewis being found in Haifa, Afula, and other towns in the area, and is concerned that Lewis will use deceitful tactics to try and proselytize neighbors who are not aware of his past. One article included a picture of Lewis and of his car.
Jerusalem
Haaretz, August 5, 2021
In the ongoing controversy surrounding the fate of Jerusalem residents living on lands leased by the Greek Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, a number of apartment owners have decided to repurchase their homes in order to secure their assets. The controversy began five years ago, when it became evident that the private company Nayot Komemiyut had purchased lease rights from the Israeli government and Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael. If the lease, which is due to expire in thirty years, is not extended, residents living on the land will be forced to return their homes to the churches involved. Already the controversy has caused the value of these home to plummet. Certain residents have despaired of the Israeli government doing anything to protect their assets, and have thus come to an agreement with Nayot Komemiyut according to which they will repurchase their homes at 28% of the market value. About 1,000 families are affected by the crisis.
Jerusalem / History
Israel Hayom, August 13, 2021
This was a piece about a hidden winery discovered in the depths of the Monastery of Saint Saviour in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem. The Monastery was purchased from the Georgian Orthodox Church in the 16th century by the Franciscans. Today, it houses a music school, a library, a publishing house, and a university for the study of philosophy and theology. One of the monks, Father Alberto, stumbled upon an ancient winery, with very old wine in barrels in the belly of the monastery. The winery went into operation in the 16th century but has lain forgotten for about 200 years. An underground passageway leading directly to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre has also been discovered. Experts have not yet studied the wine, but in doing so may learn about how the wine industry functioned, and what types of grapes were grown in the Holy Land at the time the winery was servicing Christian communities from the region.