Antisemitism and the Presbyterian Church

A one-sided, anti-Israel presentation by representatives of the Presbyterian Church of Canada occurred at St. Andrews Church in Toronto on Thursday December 15, 2011. It was the report of a few Presbyterian representatives who responded to the anti-Semitic KAIROS Palestine document (http://www.oikoumene.org/gr/resources/documents/other-ecumenical-bodies/kairos-palestine-document.html)  that includes terminology such as “The West sought to make amends for what Jews had endured in the countries of Europe, but it made amends on our account and in our land. They tried to correct an injustice and the result was a new injustice.”

The KAIROS Palestine document seeks to delegitimize any biblical attachment between Jews and the land of Israel and explicitly calls for “resistance” against Israel while ignoring the causes of the middle east conflict, Israel’s need for security of the many and ongoing acts of terror by Palestinians and Arabs against Israelis.

The document is a disgrace, which wrong-headedly attempts to lend the ideology of Christianity to support for Palestinian renunciation of the peace process.  One speaker, Rick Horst, the Minster of the Barrie, Ontario`s St. Andrews`s Church, in a common anti-Semitic canard, attributed ``injustices`` perpetrated against the Palestinians to ``Zionist and Jewish Lobbies in the west`.  http://youtu.be/SOpvsddWLmg?t=8m1s

The Presbyterian Church of Canada’s allowing itself to be a vehicle of anti-Semitism and the enabling of terrorism is something to be condemned in the strongest terms.

http://www.presbyterian.ca/pcconnect/daily/6110

http://www.standrewstoronto.org/

Canada's State-Sponsored Fight Against State-Sponsored Anti-Semitism

By Christine Williams in Hudson New York

A year ago Parliamentarians and Experts From 50 countries, and six continents assembled together for a conference on Combating Antisemitism in Ottawa, Canada, where the Ottawa Protocol was released. In it was the groundbreaking alarm against state-sanctioned anti-Semitism and the resurgence of anti-Jewish libels, including Holocaust denial. The conference was hosted by the Inter-Parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism (ICCA) and was the largest of its kind. Delegates explored data to learn about and discuss strategies to combat Antisemitism globally. Less than three months ago, these efforts culminated in the historic step of signing "The Ottawa Protocol to Combat Anti-Semitism," described in the Huffington Post article: Canada Gets Tough on anti-Semitism. Canada's Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, affirmed that "those who would hate and destroy the Jewish people would ultimately hate and destroy the rest of us as well."


READ MORE. . . 

Happy Hanukkah Wishes from the Canadian & Ontario Governments

Prime Minister Stephen Harper today issued the following statement to mark Chanukah

Ottawa, December 20, 2011 — “More than two thousand years ago, a small group of Jewish believers overcame the odds and courageously defeated and repelled their oppressors, liberating Jerusalem and reclaiming the Holy Temple as their own. As they rededicated the Temple, a second miracle occurred: a small amount of oil that should have lasted one night instead burned for eight. Since that time, Jewish people around the world celebrate the holy tradition of Chanukah, the yearly eight-day Festival of Light, in commemoration of those miracles.

“Born out of the triumph of light over darkness, of freedom over oppression and of tolerance over persecution, this celebration reminds us that miracles can occur even in the darkest of moments, and that justice must always overcome tyranny. Chanukah also reminds us that, here in Canada, we are truly blessed to live in a free, just and tolerant society, one which has been enriched by the innumerable contributions and achievements of the Jewish-Canadian community.

“On this first night of Chanukah, Laureen and I extend our most heartfelt greetings and wishes of hope and peace to families and friends in communities across Canada and around the world who tonight light their Chanukah menorahs.”

Minister Kenney issues statement celebrating Chanukah

Ottawa, December 20, 2011 — The Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, issued the following statement in celebration of Chanukah:

“In homes across the country, friends and families will gather together today at sundown to light candles in celebration of the first night of Chanukah, the Jewish Festival of Lights.

“The eight-day holiday commemorates the triumph of the Maccabees in their revolt against the oppressive Seleucid Empire of Antiochus IV Epiphanes more than two thousand years ago. The Maccabees’ victory resonates today as a great triumph of religious freedom over subjugation, and – as signified by the lighting of the Menorah – of light over darkness.

“Chanukah is a joyous time of family gatherings, gift giving, traditional ceremonies, and the enjoyment of holiday songs, food and children’s games. For all Canadians, the holiday represents an opportunity to reflect on the exceptional contribution of the Jewish community to our country.

“As Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, I wish a happy Chanukah – Chanukah Sameach – to all those celebrating in Canada and around the world.”

Jason Kenney wishes Jewish Community a Chag Sameach!

Pro-Palestinian Canadian journalist lecturing at UBC acknowledges that Palestinian solidarity activism buys time for and supports terrorists

People will say all sorts of revealing things among friends and fellow travellers that they would never dream of uttering to an audience where they know they would face some scrutiny. That’s why it is important to hear what anti-Israel activists say among themselves at what they refer to as Palestinian solidarity events. Within their own coterie, sometimes the veil slips and they discuss the actual agenda of the movement to vilify Israel with the label, “apartheid state.” The purpose of the movement is not justice for Palestinians within Israel, something that they already have in a country that has universal enfranchisement and equality before the law. The purpose is to buy time for terrorists opposed to Israel’s existence to regroup and launch more violent attacks against the Jewish state, which they hope not to make fairer, but to eliminate altogether.

That agenda was made clear by Palestinian solidarity activist and journalist Jon Elmer at the University of British Columbia sponsored by that school’s Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights and Boycott Israeli Apartheid groups on December 2. It was one of many such talks that Elmer has given on Canadian campuses under the billing of “Ghetto Palestine: a talk with Jon Elmer.”

In his talk, Elmer made it tacitly clear that apartheid is not something that Israel practices, but is trying to avoid. Israeli leaders are cognisant of the fact that their country cannot remain democratic if Palestinians in the West Bank are absorbed into Israel without having voting rights. That is why Israel had not annexed the territory and is working towards a two state solution with the Palestinians. Elmer overtly acknowledged that Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza was to avoid having a demographic conflict with the Palestinians.

Though Elmer’s talk was filled with typical anti-Israel propaganda, such as referring to the Israeli “occupation” of Gaza although Israel evacuated all troops and left it to self-government in 2006, much of what he said was startlingly frank and shocking.

He was explicit in his support for violence as a tactic that the Palestinians should use to achieve their goals, saying, “There is a problem with sanctifying non-violence and privileging it above all other elements of the national liberation struggle.”

After discussing how Israel had effectively wiped out most of the terrorists or, as Elmer terms it, “resistance” leadership, he recognized that the Palestinian terror infrastructure was weakened and unable to launch effective armed struggle against Israel.

“The political context right now in the Palestinian milieu is not strong enough at this point for there to be an Intifada,” he reported. Then in a remarkable confirmation of what supporters of Israel have alleged about the real motives of western Palestinian activists, he admitted that the main purpose of their political activism was to support the violent attacks on Israel.

Said Elmer, “It’s important to understand that the solidarity actions, the solidarity activism that happens during this period of time is in effect buying political time and political space for the indigenous movement to rebuild. So it’s possible, like with South Africa, for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement to work effectively hand in hand with the indigenous struggle and at times do some of the heavy lifting in the international arena while the local struggle takes time to redevelop.”

He also made a facile comparison between the Syrian dictatorship of Assad and Gaddafi’s dictatorship in Libya to the situation between Israel and the Palestinians, saying that it was hypocritical to support the armed struggle against undemocratic dictatorship to while not supporting Palestinian violence. Elmer’s apparent moral relativism and anti-Israel bias may account for his inability to differentiate between brutal, undemocratic dictators bent on preserving their own power at all costs and a democratic country that respects the rule-of-law, whose government’s main concern is the protection and safety of its citizens. But the honesty of the Palestinian solidarity movement’s promotion of violence, their not-so hidden agenda to eliminate Israel, and the acquiescence of The University of British Columbia and other universities of events that lend support to terrorism is a reality that Canadians need to recognize when understanding the discourse of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict in our public institutions and media. 

For more Information on this story go to:

http://rabble.ca/podcasts/shows/peoples-health-radio/2011/12/ghetto-palestine-challenges-and-possibilities-resistance

http://www.boycottisraeliapartheid.org/2011/ghetto-palestine-jon-elmer-brings-strategic-analysis-of-palestinian-resistance-to-ubc/

Top Ten Anti-Israel/Antisemitic Slurs of 2011

SWC’s 2011 Top Ten Anti-Israel/Antisemitic Slurs documents bigotry from Mahmoud Abbas (#1) to US Rev. Jeremiah Wright (#10). Read it at http://tinyurl.com/c8zdut2

Palestine House Hides Immigration Frauds

Canadian crackdown on immigration fraud finds Palestine House in Toronto shielding 300 people scamming the gov’t- CLICK HERE to watch the story on CTV