There is more to report on the Mt. Zion Affair.
Three days remain until President Katsav meets with Pope Benedict in the Vatican.
The following questions have arisen which should be framed in letters to President Katsav. The suggested letter is below;
LETTER TO PRESIDENT KATSAV URGING CLARIFICATIONS PRIOR TO HIS TRIP:
Please keep sending inquiries.
Dear President Katzav,
The Committee to Save Mt.Zion appreciates and takes note of the denial which was issued by your spokesperson, Mr. Avi Granot, regarding the rumors of a swap of properties with the Vatican.
But prior to your trip to Rome, could you please publicly clarify and address the following issues:
a) Do any properties on Mt. Zion fall under the the 1993 Fundamental Agreement?
b) Will you be signing any agreements with the Vatican which involve property or the future of property in Eretz Yisrael?
c) Are properties on Mt. Zion on the Israel – Vatican Agenda?
d) Could the public have open access to a list of properties that are being contested by the various Christian denominations in Israel?
e) Do you feel that an upgrade in Jewish – Catholic relations is contingent on and tied to property demands by the church?
It is of the utmost importance that the people of Israel receive assurances and clarification at this time. As the President of the State of Israel you are in a unique position to resolve any confusion and to alleviate the distress of those who are intent on working towards establishing and securing a whole, peaceful, and sanctified Eretz Yisrael for the Jewish People.
Sincerely,
Please keep questioning the other members of government. Email, faxes and phone #s can be found by clicking on this link: http://ISFSP.org/zion31.html
Other References:
Final details of a long-delayed accord on Catholic properties in the Holy Land are expected to be agreed during the visit, marking reconciliation between Christians and Jews after centuries of hostility.
http://www.cathnews.com/news/510/70.php
The Greek Orthodox Church is one of the largest landholders in Jerusalem. Among its land is the property where the Israeli Parliament now sits… (Editorial comment withheld) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0406861.htm
On property rights, the church is seeking the “full enjoyment” of properties that has been lost for various reasons. Most emblematic would be the Cenacle, or “upper room,” in which tradition holds that Jesus and his disciples celebrated the Last Supper. Restitution of the Cenacle “would make the climate a lot more favorable for the rest of the negotiations,” Jaeger said. The church also wants the legal capacity to seek relief in Israeli courts for property disputes.
http://nationalcatholicreporter.org/word/word0620.htm
In 1998, negotiations began between the state of Israel and Vatican representatives over control of several areas and buildings claimed by the Catholic Church to have fallen under its control in the past. Thus, it is asking to reassume control of these sites. The Foreign Ministry created a committee to examine the problem and determine Israel ‘s position. As is known, Minister Poraz told Vatican officials that he supports their stance.
http://ISFSP.org/zion34.html
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Part of What The Catholic Church Expects Katsav to Deliver:
That the church in Caesarea will be rebuilt. That the Convent of St. Anthony will finally be returned fully to the Franciscan Sisters. Most of all, that the present negotiations will be accelerated with a view to an early conclusion, in accordance with the Fundamental Agreement. Then I will know that the great hopes we had in 1993 were truly justified, and that the friendly relations that all of us, on both sides, worked so hard to achieve are finally secure.
Caesarea has a prominent place in the Acts of the Apostles and early Christian history. It was where the Gentiles first received the Holy Spirit. Yet the church there was confiscated in the 1950’s and was later completely destroyed. There is also the case of the convent of Franciscan sisters in Jerusalem that is still obstinately occupied in part by the Hebrew University, a major national institution. The good sisters gave hospitality to the University in 1948 when the University itself was a war refugee from its original campus. Now the University has several large, spacious campuses, but it is still refusing to leave the little convent. http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=4603
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NOW HOW COME WE JEWS CAN’T UNIFY AND COME UP WITH A STATEMENT LIKE THIS LAYING CLAIM TO OUR INHERTANCE?:
On 30 April, Patriarch Michel Sabbah, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem representing the Roman Catholic church, Bishop Riah Abu Al-Assal of the (Anglican) Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem and Bishop Munib Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land said
“We express our disagreement with the selling of any Christian property of any denomination to any side because the purpose of these properties is to serve the Church and its children,” they said. http://www.eni.ch/articles/display.shtml?05-0337
Editorial Commentary:
I wrote yesterday about the total absence of Truth, Candor, Oversight within the government of Israel. Therefore, it is the people who must micro-manage, assume nothing and raise questions on every issue. The Am Yehudi does not have the luxury of being “The Simple Son” who does not know that there is a problem and thus does not know the questions to ask. MB