Worthy Brief - 4/18/2023
Friend, remember!
Romans 11:11 I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.
Today marks Holocaust Memorial day here in Israel. At ten o'clock in the morning on this day, war sirens sound calling the entire Land to remembrance of the 6,000,000 Jews who died and many more who suffered under the Nazi regime during WW2. People in their homes and workplaces rise in silence; cars come to a halt, even on the highways; pedestrians stop where they are and pause... for one minute as the sirens wail, we remember.
You may know that these atrocities and many more through the centuries were done in the name of Christianity. Hitler claimed to be a Christian while his actions demonstrated he was hardly a believer. However, he deeply sympathized with Martin Luther's antisemitism, as he murdered millions of Jews. Systematic torture, abuse, and murder have taken a toll on the Jewish people. The few remaining survivors of the Holocaust carry the scars of history's most recent attempt to annihilate them. The "DNA" of hatred and persecution has passed to children and grandchildren, such that the nation of Israel, partly restored to the Land, partly yet in dispersion, is deeply traumatized and constantly recovering. Yet the Lord's love and His faithfulness to Israel remains sure, as Paul said, "for the sake of the Fathers"; and their suffering also, in some way, points to the suffering Messiah of Isaiah 53.
Friend, we need to be praying for the Jewish people. We need to be pouring out much love upon them as we await the complete restoration which God has foreordained. As the Scriptures say, salvation is of the Jews [John 4:22]. They were set aside because of unbelief, bringing God's grace to the Gentiles. But..."if their rejection brought reconciliation to the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?" [Romans 11:15].
Your family in the Lord with much agape love,
George, Baht Rivka, Obadiah and Elianna (Going to Christian College in Dallas, Texas)
Arad, Israel
Editor's Note: Worthy Wrap-Up Episode recorded from Israel: Convergence of Events ... Is this a water breaking moment?
Russian Opposition Activist Jailed For 25 Years
A Russian court sentenced opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza to 25 years imprisonment on charges linked to his criticism of the war in Ukraine, prompting international condemnation.
US kills 3 Islamic State leaders in 2 Syria operations
U.S. forces killed three senior Islamic State leaders in two separate military operations in Syria Thursday, including a rare ground raid in a portion of the northeast that is controlled by the Syrian regime, U.S. officials said.
China Forces on ‘High Alert’ After U.S. Warship Transits Taiwan Strait
The Chinese military on Monday said the United States had "publicly hyped up" an American warship's presence in the Taiwan Strait after the U.S. Navy sent a destroyer through the sensitive waters for only the second time this year.
Mexico Gunmen Storm Water Park, 7 Killed
Questions remained Sunday after armed men attacked the central Mexican resort of La Palma in the Cortazar municipality of Guanajuato state, killing six adults and a 7-year-old child, authorities said.
Leaked documents show China could quickly establish air superiority over Taiwan during an invasion
Recently leaked classified US intelligence documents show that China is expected to quickly establish air superiority over Taiwan in any future Chinese invasion of the small island nation, the Guardian UK reports. The documents were found to have been among those leaked by US air national guardsman Jack Teixeira, who has since been arrested and taken into custody by the FBI.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Crown Prince of Iran making ‘brave,’ first-of-its-kind visit to Israel
Crown Prince of Iran Reza Pahlavi on Monday became the most senior Iranian figure to ever make a public visit to Israel. Pahlavi is the oldest son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, who was overthrown during the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Israel: Polls show far-right governing coalition would lose to centrist National Unity alliance in a new election
Two new polls by Israel’s Channel 12 and Channel 13, respectively, show that the centrist National Unity alliance led by former Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz would easily defeat the current far-right governing coalition in a new election, the Times of Israel (TOI) reports. The polls were taken amid massive nationwide protests over the government’s plans for judicial reform, which many see as a power grab that would weaken judicial authority to review and override bad laws created by politicians.
Inside the United States
Supreme Court Expected to Rule on Abortion Pill This Week
The Supreme Court is expected to decide this week whether or not the abortion pill mifepristone can still be used in certain states.
Abortion Pill Access May Continue Even If FDA Loses In Court
The U.S. Justice Department is racing this week to convince a federal appeals court, or possibly the U.S. Supreme Court, to put on hold a judge's order suspending the government's approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, which is used in more than half of all abortions in the country.
Feds charge 40 Chinese police officials for repression efforts against U.S. residents
The Department of Justice on Monday announced that it had charged more than 40 individuals, many of whom are members of the Chinese national police, in connection with transnational repression schemes to stifle the activities of Chinese citizens abroad.
Two Arrested for Operating Secret Chinese Police Station in New York
Two residents of New York City were arrested on Monday morning on federal charges related to allegations that they operated a "secret police station" in the city on behalf of the Chinese government.
Christian News
Myanmar: Former head of Kachin Baptist Convention sentenced to six years imprisonment, “outrageous travesty of justice”
A Myanmar/Burma court has sentenced the former President of the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC), Reverend Dr. Hkalam Samson, to six years in prison for speaking out against human rights abuses perpetrated against the Kachin people by the ruling Burmese military junta Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reports.
Iran: Christian couple granted a retrial following prison sentence for house church membership
A court in Iran has accepted an application for a retrial by an Iranian Christian couple sentenced to a combined 10 years in prison for being members of a house church, Article 18 reports.