Israeli Ambassador visits Armstrong College

Israeli Ambassador visits Armstrong College

April 22, 2009
EDMOND–Ambassador Yoram Ettinger of the State of Israel (ret.) addressed students and faculty of Herbert W. Armstrong College during a forum April 22. The ambassador was visiting Oklahoma as the guest of the Jewish Federation of Greater Oklahoma, which contacted college officials after learning of AC’s involvement in the City of David excavations in Jerusalem through recent press about the dig.

Yoram Ettinger is a consultant to members of Israel’s Cabinet and Knesset, and regularly briefs United States legislators and their staff on Israel’s contribution to vital U.S. interests, on the root causes of Islamic terrorism and other issues of bilateral concern.

He formerly served as minister for congressional affairs at Israel's embassy in Washington (with a rank of an ambassador), Israel's consul general in Houston and director of Israel's Government Press Office.

He is the editor of two newsletters, Straight From The Jerusalem Cloakroom and Boardroom, which focus on national security issues and overseas investments in Israel's high-tech sector. He is also the chairman of special projects at the Ariel Center for Policy Research.

Ambassador Ettinger spoke to AC students and faculty about the unique relationship between the United States and Israel, highlighting the many Old Testament influences in early American history. He spoke of how the early settlers compared themselves to the Israelites when they left Egypt, with Pharaoh being King George, Egypt being England, the Atlantic being the Red Sea and the new world being the Promised Land.

He pointed out that many early colleges in America had Hebrew phrases inscribed on their walls, and how Moses was pictured facing the Speaker of the House in the U.S. Capitol and with the ten commandments at the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ambassador Ettinger went on to discuss what he called the "immoral" land-for-peace concessions Israel has been pressured to make by the international community in recent years. “Peace is a fundamental right and should not be paid for,” he said. “There is no precedent for land for peace in all of history, except for Nazi Germany during World War II.” In that case, he explained, Germany had been the aggressor, taking land from Poland and other countries. “Rewarding aggression is morally wrong,” he said.

He went on to say that a nation can survive by ignoring its history no more than a tree can survive without its roots. “Israel’s cradle of history is the chief axis of our security,” he said, referring to the regions of Judea and Samaria. “Giving that up would be the death of the nation.”

After his address, the ambassador spoke with Chancellor Gerald Flurry for a few minutes. Before leaving he complimented the students' level of respect and their attentiveness. “The climate in there was very nice. I wish we had a climate like that in the other places and schools where I’ve spoken,” the ambassador said.

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It's great Mr. Ettinger recognizes Judea and Samaria (Yehudah and Shomeron) as Israel's "cradle of history" and vital to the security of the nation. Such comments were apparently well-received by those gathered at the Herbert W. Armstrong College. Strangely, the Philadelphia Church of God (Messrs. Gerald and Stephen Flurry) had the chutzpah to condemn many of the strong politico-religious views he espoused as "radical" and "extremist" when they were expressed by the Temple Mount Faithful and little ol' me. (See I'm not a terrorist) . Sadly, it appears they're still looking to men of stature.

Does Mr. Ettinger recognize that Jerusalem is the crown of Israel and the Temple Mount is the crown jewel? For Jews and Israelis to woefully neglect to appreciate its precious history and restore its splendor reflects a deadly spiritual condition in the nation and people of Israel! To permit sworn enemies to trample Judaism's holiest site and Nazi Muslims to discriminate against Jews and Christians daily, illegally forbidding them to pray or read the Bible upon the Temple Mount, exposes how far removed from their Hebrew roots Jews have become. Too many Jews have become Gentilized, just like the other nations rather than a light to them. Let's hope and pray this deplorable situation changes soon.

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Jewish guards prevent Christians and Jews from exercising their religious right to pray on the Temple Mount? That's right! Only Muslims have unlimited access to Judaism's most holy site. Only the Koran is permitted within. The Tanach (Jewish Scripture, known to much of the world as the "Old Testament") and Christian Scriptures (the New Testament) are forbidden. Yet Israel claims to respect the religious rights of all people.

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During a 1995 Root and Branch lecture in Jerusalem, Professor Nahum Rakover, author and then Deputy Attorney General of Israel, publicly agreed with me that it isn't illegal for Christians or Jews to pray upon the Temple Mount, even though it is forcibly prevented by the police.

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