BPR Mailing List Digest: 09/16/00

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
September 16, 2000

Digest Home | 2000 | September, 2000

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Remember Your Roots
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 06:42:29 -0500

--- Forwarded Message ---

To: UMJCWeeklytorah@egroups.com
From: "Sam Richardson" <samr@umjc.org>
Subject: [UMJCWeeklytorah] Parashat Ki Tavo Deuteronomy
26:1-29:8 9/16/00

Remember Your Roots

Parashat Ki Tavo Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8

Now it shall be:
when you enter the land
that HaShem your God is giving you as an inheritance,
and you possess it and settle in it,
you are to take the premier-part of all the fruit of the soil
that you produce from your land that HaShem your God is giving you;
you are to put it in a basket and are to go to the place that HaShem your
God chooses to have his name dwell...

Then the priest is to take the basket from your hand and is to
deposit it before the slaughter-site of HaShem your God. And you
are to speak up and say, before the presence of HaShem your God:
"An Aramean betrayed my ancestor..." (Deut. 26:1-5, Schocken Bible).

The closing chapters of Torah look ahead to Israel's future. Soon the
children of Israel will cross the Jordan into the Land of Promise.
Moshe describes a ceremony that they are to follow when they harvest
their first crops in the new land. They are to bring an offering of
the firstfruits to the priest and recount the story of their
deliverance from Egypt, beginning with the Hebrew words arami oved
avi. The ring of these three words in the original is memorable; the
Schocken Bible seeks to capture their tone with, "An Aramean Astray
my Ancestor." This phrase is clearly meant to be memorized as a
lasting reminder to that generation, and the following generations,
of their origin.

Once the children of Israel cease their wanderings, they are to
remember their humble beginnings. The command to remember is a common
enough strain throughout Deuteronomy. What is striking here, at this
moment of great national triumph, is the reminder that our forefather
Ya'akov was not only a wanderer, but a foreigner by descent. His land
of origin was addan-Aram, to which he returned when it was time to
seek a wife. He was not to marry a woman of Canaan, the land where,
his father Yitzhak reminded him, "you are a sojourner" (Gen. 28:4).
Instead he went to the house of his mother's brother, Laban the
Aramean, and there sought a wife of his own lineage.

Thus, after offering their firstfruits, Ya'akov's descendants are to
remember, "my Ancestor was an Aramean Astray." Then they continue to
tell the story: "And he went down into Egypt and sojourned there, few
in number; and he became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous.
"Only in Egypt did we cease wandering and become a nation. And in
Egypt we experienced oppression, bondage, and finally deliverance by
the hand of the Lord.

Israel is not a just a racial entity; being a child of Israel is not
a matter of bloodline alone. Torah does not share the preoccupation
with race that is one of the curses of modern history. Instead, the
farmer tells the priest, "I stand before you today not because of the
purity of my pedigree, but because I have partaken of the story of
the deliverance from Egypt. Today we have reached the climax of the
deliverance, as I offer the firstfruits of the Promised Land." When
Israel took possession of its inheritance in a moment of national
triumph, it was not to speak the language of national pride, but to
recount the story of its simple beginnings.

The story recounted in the ritual of the offering of the firstfruits
became the heart of the Passover Haggadah. In the Haggadah, however,
the opening words are interpreted differently, as, "An Aramean sought
to destroy my father..." This is an ancient reading of the text that
was favored by Rashi, even though it is less literal than "my father
was a wandering Aramean." Perhaps it won favor over the more literal
reading because it is difficult for us to think of our father as an
Aramean instead of as a Hebrew, especially at Passover, our great
national festival. Furthermore, this reading introduces the divine
deliverance that is the heart of the Passover story. It reminds us
that there have always been those who sought to destroy us: "Pharaoh
decreed only against the males, but Laban sought to destroy all, as
it is written, "An Aramean sought to destroy my father ... arami oved
avi..."

In our Parasha, on the other hand, the literal sense prevails because
here we are speaking of God's choice of Israel. What sets Israel
apart is not any sort of racial superiority; indeed, our ancestor was
an Aramean astray. Instead it is the uniqueness of our story that
sets us apart. God has chosen Israel as his segullah, his sealed and
personal treasure, a treasured nation that he will set high above all
the nations (Deut. 26:18-19). We are of the humblest origin, raised
up only because God has drawn us into his story, but we have the most
exalted calling of any nation.

Like the reminders of our humble origins, so the reminders of our
great destiny are interwoven through the whole account of Torah. At
Mount Sinai, the Lord tells us, "Now therefore, if you will obey my
voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then you shall be a segullah to
me above all people. For all the earth is mine and you shall be to me
a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:5-6). All peoples
belong to the Lord and fall under his care. Israel, who shares its
origin with all the peoples, he has separated as his own treasure to
be a source of blessing to all the rest. Israel is the treasure, but
it is a treasure assembled out of the common stuff of mankind.

Here we have one of the great tensions of Torah, and indeed of the
whole life of the spirit. If we know the God of Israel, we are
chosen, unique. But we are not chosen for ourselves. In the modern
world,this idea of chosenness is considered a scandal. How can any
religion or ethnic group seriously claim to be chosen above others?
Has this not been the source of misunderstanding, oppression, and
endless warfare down to our own day? Religious folk, Jews and
Christians as well, have at times brought this accusation down upon
themselves.

How often do we exalt the group instincts of pride and bigotry into
some kind of divine calling? We know that we are chosen to be a
blessing to the rest of humankind, but how often do we actually
impart that blessing, especially to those who differ or disagree the
most?

The ancient ceremony provides a lesson here. After bringing the
basket of firstfruits and recounting the story, the Israelite is to
"set it down before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord
your God." The basket of firstfruits is the tangible sign of being
chosen by God, but it is to be set down before him. The real
privilege, and the point of our story, is that those who began as
wandering strangers now may draw near to worship the Lord God of
Israel.

_________________________
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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Did the Jews Crucify Christ?
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 10:16:24 -0500

Did the Jews Crucify Christ?
by Shira Sorko-Ram

http://www.baruchhashem.com/resources/ibjcruc.html

From "I Became As a Jew"
Published by Maoz, Inc., Box 763100, Dallas, Texas 75376-3100

This is one of the most sensitive issues of all between Jew and
Christian. Satan, knowing that only Yeshua, the Son of God, can
redeem the Jewish people, concentrated his efforts on making Yeshua a
name that is an anathema to the Jewish people. How did he accomplish
this?

While Yeshua was on earth, He was adored and worshipped by large
crowds of Jewish people. The New Testament plainly says this. For
instance, when Yeshua came into Jerusalem a week before His death,
all of Jerusalem was stirred towards Him (Jn. 12:12-13).

But the religious leaders, jealous of His popularity and power and
enraged because Yeshua was calling these self-righteous leaders to
repentance, decided to kill Him.

But the chief priests took counsel that they might put Lazarus to
death also; because on account of him many of the Jews were going
away, and were believing in Yeshua (Jn. 12:10,11).

If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him... (Jn.
11:48).

The religious leaders were afraid to arrest Yeshua during Passover.
Thousands of Jewish people who believed in--or at least were
sympathetic to--Yeshua were gathered in Jerusalem. The leaders knew
they must seize Him secretly.

But they were saying, "Not during the festival, lest a riot occur
among the people" (Matt. 26:5).

And so they came by night, imprisoned Him and sentenced Him to death.
The Jews condemned Him, the Gentiles crucified Him. So who should be
blamed? To that, Yeshua gave the most incredible answer:

I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the
sheep...No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own
initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to
take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father (Jn.
10:11,18).

Why did He do it? We all know the answer to that:

But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for
our iniquities... (Isa. 53:5).

He didn't have to do it. He could have let us all die in our sins!
But He chose to die for the sins of the world. He died for sinners.
Each and every sinner was the cause of His death. That means me!

Yes, it is true that the Jewish people from whom Yeshua came were
tested and found an evil and unregenerate people. What does that
indicate about the rest of the world?

In a small poor mountain town in the southern part of the United
States, the entire population became ill with a stomach disorder.
State authorities came to investigate the cause. They took back with
them a test tube full of the town's well water. In their
laboratories, they found the water heavily polluted. Returning to the
well, they discovered a sow and her baby pigs had drowned at the
bottom.

The government authorities did not have to take all the water from
the well to test for water pollution; they had only to take a sample.
The Jewish people were the sample for God's test tube. Testing a
small percentage of humanity, God found mankind utterly polluted. The
Holy Spirit, through Paul, stated it thus:

Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those (the Jews)
who are under the Law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the
world (all the Gentiles and Jews) may become accountable to God (Rom.
3:19).

Whatever guilt the Jewish leaders who condemned Him bore, Yeshua took
care of it.

..Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do... (Lk.
23:34, KJV).

Does God, or does God not answer Yeshua's prayers?

Yeshua said if we do not forgive, God will not forgive us! We must
forgive the Jews for initiating Yeshua's death--just as we must
forgive the Gentiles for executing Him. If He had not died, we could
not be saved!

For many hundreds of years, Satan has used so-called Christians to
taunt and terrorize the Jews with, "You Christ killers! You are
cursed because you killed Christ!"

Often this was a Jew's first introduction to Yeshua. Many times these
insults have been thrown at Jewish children who did not even know the
meaning of the venomous insult. The devil, knowing that Yeshua is the
only Hope for the nation of Israel, was determined that His Name
would be associated with horror and repugnance.

Yeshua came, not to condemn the world, but that the world through Him
might be saved (Jn. 3:17). The Spirit of Messiah will comfort the
Jewish people. The spirit of the devil will crush.

For further information or to receive "I Became as a Jew", you may
call 1.800.856.7060. Or, email your request to maoz@onramp.net.

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (resend) Gay Blood Donation Limits Must Stay, Panel Votes
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 13:04:56 -0400

Thursday September 14 9:17 PM ET

Gay Blood Donation Limits Must Stay, Panel Votes

By Lisa Richwine

GAITHERSBURG, Md. (Reuters) - A federal advisory panel, in a close
vote, declined Thursday to support easing restrictions on blood donations
from gay men, a policy criticized as discriminatory and outdated.

Many members of the Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites)
panel said they would like to see a change in the policy, which was adopted
to minimize risks of spreading the HIV virus (news - web sites) that causes
AIDS (news - web sites). But the majority voted that they did not have
enough scientific evidence to back the FDA's proposed revisions.

Under FDA rules, men cannot give blood if they have had sex with another
man at least once since 1977. The panel voted 7-6 against allowing men to
donate if they had not had sex with another man in the past five years.

FDA officials said they were revisiting the policy because new blood tests
are
more reliable and track HIV infection much quicker than previous ones.

Also, gay rights groups and others have complained that the policy differs
from the treatment of other high-risk donors. Men who have had sex with a
prostitute, for instance, are ''deferred'' from giving blood for only one year
after their last encounter.

Further, critics say asking people whether they have had multiple partners or
unprotected sex is a better way to tell who is most at risk for carrying HIV
and would not exclude gay men who practice safe sex or abstinence, or
others who may have experimented with gay sex years ago.

The restriction for gay men ``seems very discriminatory and it seems very
arbitrary,'' said panel member Dr. Mark Mitchell. ''I feel very strongly it
needs to be changed.''

But most members said the FDA did not present enough scientific data to
convince them the change would not lead to more HIV-positive units slipping
through the extensive blood testing and screening. The FDA usually follows
its panels' advice.

``It's all an assumption. There is no evidence,'' said panel chairman F. Blaine
Hollinger of Baylor College of Medicine.

Safety measures have made exposure to HIV from blood donations
extremely rare.

Calculating the impact of a five-year deferral for gay men was difficult, said
FDA medical officer Andrew Dayton. He estimated that 62,300 men would
go to blood centers to give blood if the policy changed. Highly accurate
testing likely would catch any HIV-positive, but risks would come from
workers who might accidentally release units that were positive, Dayton said.

Still, fewer than two HIV-positive blood units per year would slip out,
Dayton estimated, but admitted his numbers ``are very iffy, and unfortunately
it's all we have to go on.''

Panel member Jeanne Linden said she ``did not have the evidence'' to back
changing restrictions on gay donations now, but she ``very much
encouraged''
the FDA to continue reviewing the matter and consider changes.

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000914/ts/health_blood_dc_2.html

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Art gallery to display human body parts
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 13:14:06 -0400

September 15, 2000

Art gallery to display human body
parts

BY DALYA ALBERGE, ARTS CORRESPONDENT
THE Hayward Gallery was
criticised yesterday for its
"macabre" decision to display
human remains in its latest
exhibition.

Christian and anti-abortion groups
expressed dismay that a foetus
and a child's foot - preserved in
balsamic fluid since the 18th
century - were being sent to
London from an anatomical
museum in The Netherlands.
Another exhibit will be an arterial
system from a person who lived
300 years ago.

Colin Hart, director of the Christian Institute, said: "It sounds
ghastly and macabre. If that can be justified, anything can
be." A spokesman for the charity Life said: "There is
something distasteful about this."

Paul Tully, general secretary of the Society for the Protection
of Unborn Children, was horrified: "We are deeply disturbed
by this sort of activity. There are ethical considerations.
These are being overstepped here. We would object to this
in the strongest terms."

Susan Ferleger Brades, director of the Hayward, defended
the display, saying: "We don't shy from challenges. It's
sometimes shocking and disturbing and possibly
controversial. A lot of the material is quite graphic. It will
raise questions. There might be people who have certain
sensitivities. We are aware that a lot is explicit."

She dismissed the suggestion that they were setting out to
shock visitors or imitating the Royal Academy's
shock-horror Sensation show.

A scalped head is part of the Hayward exhibition

The Hayward show yesterday prompted critics to recall
Anthony-Noel Kelly, who was jailed in 1998 for stealing
human body parts, which he used to make moulds for his
sculptures, and the Young Unknowns Gallery in
Bermondsey, South London, whose directors were
convicted in 1989 for showing an earring made out of a
freeze-dried human foetus.

Ms Ferleger Brades argued that the difference lay in this
being an exhibition about art and science: "I want to stress it
is a deeply historical and academic undertaking. None of it is
designed to shock or sensationalise."

However, Margot Heller, the Hayward's curator, said: "The
idea of squeamishness and trying to define that is fascinating.
There are people who faint at the sight of blood and others
who are totally addicted to ER and Casualty [the television
dramas]."

The foetus was decorated in the 17th century with beads
around its wrists, ankles and waist. Any details about its
origins have long since disappeared. The child's foot,
showing the arterial system, is from the same collection in
Leiden.

They will be featured in Spectacular Bodies: the Art and
Science of the Human Body from Leonardo to Now, which
opens at the Hayward in South London on October 19.
Other exhibits will include anatomical drawings by Leonardo,
Michelangelo and Durer and installations by contemporary
artists such as Marc Quinn, who made his self-portrait out of
his own blood, and Tony Ousler, who will show bull's
testicles preserved in jars with images of mouths projected
on to them so that they appear to talk about "unsettling
disturbing personal things" and "modern angst".

A section exploring pregnancy and childbirth will feature
18th-century ceramics of pregnant women peeling back their
abdominal skin. One of the show's curators, Martin Kemp,
Professor of the History of Art at the University of Oxford,
said that many of the works that come from medical
museums were made by artists - images exploring "the
miracles of God's creations".

http://www.the-
times.co.uk/news/pages/tim/2000/09/15/timnwsnws03009.html

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - ENS items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 13:24:55 -0400

FRIENDS OF THE EARTH CONSIDERS LEGAL ACTION TO CURB
GLOBAL WARMING

By Brian Hansen

WASHINGTON, DC, September 15, 2000 (ENS) - Parallel to the landmark
lawsuits that have forced change upon the tobacco industry, one of the
world's largest environmental groups today announced it may take legal
action against industrialized countries and private industries that attempt to
block the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/sep2000/2000L-09-15-16.html

************************************************************

COUNTRIES STRUGGLE TOWARD GLOBAL CLIMATE DEAL

LYON, France, September 15, 2000 (ENS) - Two weeks of international talks
aimed at developing detailed rules for the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on climate
change ended today in Lyon, France, with no breakthroughs reported on the
key political issues that continue to divide countries.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/sep2000/2000L-09-15-03.html

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - World Affairs Report items (9/16/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 13:34:36 -0400

The Daily
WORLD AFFAIRS REPORT
ISSUE #305

THE HOLY ROMAN . . .
FATIMA STATUE TO COME TO VATICAN

Pope Will Consecrate Church and World of the 3rd Millennium to the Virgin

The original statue of the Virgin of Fatima will be in Rome for the Bishops'
Jubilee, which will be held from October 6-8. This is an initiative that has
endearing connotations for John Paul II, who earlier this year revealed the
"3rd secret" that Mary confided to the little Portuguese shepherds, and which
alludes to the attempt on the Pope's life. The statue is scheduled to arrive in
Rome on October 6. It will then be transported to the Pope's private chapel.

On Saturday morning, October 7, the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, the
statue will be taken in procession to St. Peter's Basilica, where it will be
exposed for veneration by the faithful. In the afternoon, the statue will go to
the atrium of St. Peter's, where the Pope will join the bishops celebrating
their special Jubilee, and pray the rosary, which will be followed by
thousands of communities around the world. On Saturday night, the statue
will be taken to the "Ecclesiae Mater" convent of cloistered nuns, in the
Vatican.

On Sunday morning, October 8, the Pope will offer Mass in St. Peter's
Square in the Vatican, together with the bishops celebrating their Jubilee,
and, in the presence of the Virgin of Fatima, he will proclaim the "Act of
Entrustment" to Mary, during which he will pray to the Mother of Christ to
protect the Church and the world at the beginning of the Third Millennium.
The statue will be taken later to the Pope's private chapel. (Zenit)

JUBILEE OF PONTIFICAL REPRESENTATIVES: HOLY SEE DIPLOMACY

The Jubilee of Pontifical Representatives starts late this afternoon in the
basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem where Cardinal Secretary of State
Angelo Sodano will preside at second vespers. Today is the feast of the
Exaltation of the Cross. The Jubilee of apostolic nuncios will culminate
tomorrow morning with Mass for the papal ambassadors in St. Peter's
Basilica, over which Cardinal Sodano will preside, followed by an audience
with Pope John Paul II.

The world's oldest diplomatic service is that of the Holy See, and it origins
can be traced to the very first centuries of the Catholic Church when papal
legates, "legati a latere," were sent by the Popes to represent them at
important councils or for other matters. In fact, a legate was present at the
Council of Nicea in 325. Though the mission of the early papal
representatives was primarily spiritual in nature, changes began to occur
between the 5th and 8th centuries when Popes sent temporary emissaries to
special civil ceremonies as well as to religious events.

In the mid-15th century, permanent papal representation began to appear
and by the 16th century, history records the establishment of apostolic
nunciatures in different countries, with an exchange of representatives
between those countries and the Holy See. The very first apostolic
nunciature was established in Venice in 1500.

As affirmed in the Vienna Diplomatic Convention of April 18, 1961, the Holy
See's ambassadors, or apostolic nuncios, are considered the deans of the
diplomatic corps of the country to which they are accredited. Where such a
precedence "de iure" does not exist, the Holy See nonetheless sets up a
nunciature, which is headed by a nuncio with the rank of ambassador. The
Holy See exercises both the "active" right of sending emissaries to other
nations and the "passive" right of receiving their emissaries.

Today the Holy See exchanges representatives with 184 nations. This
includes Missions of a special nature such as the Russian Federation, the
Office of the Organization for the Liberation of Palestine and the Sovereign
MIlitary Order of Malta, and relations established this year with Bahrain and
Djibouti. On June 24, 1969, Pope Paul VI, who during Vatican Council II had
expressed the wish that the functions of papal legates be more clearly
defined, issued the Motu Proprio "Sollicitudo omnium Ecclesiarum" (The
Care of All the Churches), which dealt with precisely such issues.

The Holy See is represented at international governmental organizations
including, among others, the United Nations; U.N. Offices and Specialized
Institutions in Geneva, Switzerland and in Vienna, Austria; International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, Austria; Organization for
Cooperation and Security in Europe (OCSE), Vienna; Council of Europe,
Strasbourg, France; Organization of American States (OAS), Washington,
D.C., U.S.A.; Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in Rome, Italy; U.N.
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Paris, France
and the World Trade Organization (WTO), Geneva. A lay person represents
the Holy See as delegate to the International Institute for the Unification of
Private Law.

It has permanent representation to 10 international NGOs (Non-Governmental
Organizations). Future Holy See diplomats receive training at the Pontifical
Ecclesiastical Academy, founded by Pope Clement XI in 1701. Pius XI, on
September 8, 1937, established the cardinal secretary of state as the
academy's protector "pro tempore." The current president is Archbishop
Giorgio Zur. Candidates to the academy must first have received an
academic degree, as well as one in canon law. Their studies, which include
languages, last between 3 and 4 years. On average there are 35 students
from at least 20 countries at the academy. (Vatican Info Service)

KEEP ISLAM OUT OF ITALY, SAYS ITALIAN CARDINAL

A senior Italian cardinal has provoked outrage by calling for Christian
immigrants to be given preference over Muslims. He said the policy would
"protect Italy's identity" against "Islam's ideological attack". Giacomo Biffi,
Archbishop of Bologna and a traditionalist sometimes seen as a possible
successor to the Pope, said that the Church faced "one of the most serious
and biggest assaults on Christianity that history remembers." He said
aspects of Islam were not compatible with the Italian way of life. "Europe will
either become Christian again or it will become Muslim." His remarks were
immediately attacked by politicians and priests. (The London Telegraph)

* A leading conservative contender to succeed the Pope yesterday triggered
an explosive row over immigration by giving warning that "Christian Europe"
was in danger of being overwhelmed by a "Muslim invasion" and by urging
the Italian Government to allow only Roman Catholic immigrants to enter the
country. With remarks that revived images of the Crusades and the Turks at
the gates of Vienna, Cardinal Giacomo Biffi said that there should be "no
more entry visas for Muslims".

He said that he had recently discussed the issue with an unnamed Italian
government minister. "I said to him, if you want to do the best thing for Italy
and save it a lot of suffering, you must stop letting all these immigrants in.
You must favour Catholic immigrants." Cardinal Biffi, 72, who is seen as the
standard bearer of the Catholic Right in the Vatican succession stakes,
made his remarks in a pastoral letter read out to 300 priests summoned to
his villa near Bologna and given widespread coverage in the Italian press

"The criteria for admitting immigrants cannot be solely economic or
charitable. We have to be concerned about saving the identity of the nation."
He added that some immigrants came from "foreign cultures" which did not
favour coexistence and assimilation. "Muslims do not integrate into Italian
society," he said. Asked if he was conducting "a new Crusade", he added
with a smile: "I have never had anything against the word 'Crusade'
personally."

The cardinal's remarks come at a particularly sensitive time in Italian politics,
with the centre-right opposition, led by Silvio Berlusconi, the media tycoon,
manoeuvring to bring down the centre-left Government of Giuliano Amato
ahead of scheduled elections next spring. Immigration is a key election
issue, especially in the wealthier North, where the Right accuses the
Government of allowing immigrants from North Africa and Eastern Europe to
enter Italy illegally via southern ports and then head northwards.

Italian reports highlighted Cardinal Biffi's warning that there was "a struggle
for the soul of Europe", which would either rediscover its Christian roots or
convert to Islam. He said that the Government had failed to "do its sums" on
immigrant numbers and would have to cope with Friday prayers, polygamy,
Muslim discrimination against women, and Muslim fundamentalists.
"Countries can choose to let in whoever they want. There is no such thing as
a right of invasion." Priests who failed to try to convert immigrants who turned
to church charities for help were failing in their duty. "Christ called us to
preach the faith to everybody."

Scholars said that the European fear of Islam dated to the 1st Crusade,
instigated by Pope Urban II in 1095 to defeat the Seljuk Turks and to regain
Jerusalem for Christendom. Although the 2nd and 3rd Crusades in the 12th
century ended in defeat, as late as the 15th century the Pope was still trying
to secure European co-operation for another Crusade to contain the
expanding Ottoman Empire.

La Repubblica said that Cardinal Biffi's intervention was part of the struggle
for power in the Vatican. Cardinal Biffi has made clear he hopes that the next
Pope - perhaps himself - will be even more conservative than John Paul II,
and has dismissed the idea of women priests as "like having pizza and coke
at the Eucharist instead of bread and wine". In March he made headlines by
suggesting that the Antichrist was "already walking the earth". (The London
Times)

VATICAN VOICES: ECUMENISM IS AGAIN THE FOCUS OF HEATED
DEBATED

Cardinal Giacomo Biffi, whose outburst about a "struggle for the soul of
Europe" and demand that Italy should issue "no more entry visas for
Muslims" The Times reports today, is considered by many Roman Catholics
to be a wild card. But he is, for all that, a senior cardinal; and he puts in
highly provocative form the arch-conservative side of an unresolved Vatican
debate. Nearly 40 years after the Second Vatican Council, and, pertinently,
in the twilight of John Paul II's papacy, the Roman Catholic Church's stance
both on non-Catholics and towards those of other faiths is again under
examination.

A battle is on for the Pope's ear. On one side are those, such as the Belgian
Jesuit Jacques Dupuis, author of Towards a Christian Theology of Pluralism,
who believe that the Church should recognise that other world religions have
a place in the divine plan. Opponents maintain that pluralism comes
dangerously close to relativism, a willingness to surrender the Church's claim
to be the religion of revealed truth. For both camps, this debate on the
possibilities of pluralism is perhaps the greatest question for Vatican policy
of the 21st century. And the bridge-builders no longer appear to be in the
ascendant.

As recently as January this year, Pope John Paul II stood beside the
Archbishop of Canterbury at the Roman Basilica of St Paul Outside the
Walls to pray for Christian unity. Yet earlier this month, to the horror of Dr
Carey, Declaration Dominus Iesus, issued by the powerful Cardinal Ratzinger
but bearing the stamp of the Pope's "apostolic authority", dismissed the
Church of England and other Protestant denominations as "defective" and
"not Churches in the proper sense". The relentless supremacism of the
declaration's tone has offended greatly, unravelling much of the goodwill built
up over four decades of ecumenical dialogue.

In describing the situation of followers of non-Christian religions as "gravely
deficient", it harked back to the words of Pope Pius XII's encyclical letter,
Mystici corporis. This is language that is superficially hard to reconcile with
the Pope's reaching out to the Jews or with the tone of his Middle Eastern
pilgrimage in March. Yet it is congruent with his strong concern to fortify the
bastions of Roman Catholicism before he dies; and this Pope has always
mingled "high regard" for the religions of the Book with a conviction that
because the God of the Koran is never in the world as "God with us", there is
a fundamental gulf, "not only [in] the theology but the anthropology", between
Islam and Christianity.

The Vatican debate on the scope for ecumenical dialogue has been lent
added urgency, in Europe, by the rapid rise in its Muslim population, now
estimated by the UN at 14mn. As put by Cardinal Pauper, the head of the
Vatican's cultural council, at the second synod on Europe a year ago, there
is deep unease about the very possibility of dialogue with Islam because it is
"a religion, a culture, a society and a way of life, thought and behaviour"
rolled into one.

Some speakers at that synod spoke openly about an Islamic invasion of
Europe, words used again yesterday by Cardinal Biffi. Even those who would
not dream of using such terms are deeply anxious about the juxtaposition of
fervently Islamic communities and increasingly apathetic Christian ones. It is
sometimes said that there are as many Muslims in France today as there
are practising Catholics.

In multicultural Europe, the Vatican is undecided how to position itself. There
are genuine obstacles to dialogue between religions that each lay claim to
truths that are at heart irreconcilable. The Pope's apostolic letter on this
subject, still awaited, is expected to signal a retreat from pluralism. It is easy
to interpret this debate as symptomatic of a vacuum in the Vatican; but it is
equally plausible that it is part of a process of clarifying the legacy of a highly
political, traditionalist and evangelical papacy, now drawing to its close. (The
London Times - Editorial)

SCHROEDER TO VISIT MOSCOW SEPT 25TH

Gerhard Schroeder will pay a working visit to Moscow on September 25, a
German government spokesman said Friday. Spokesman Uwe-Karsten Heye
said Schroeder would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin but did not say
what would be discussed. Germany is the largest holder of Russian debt,
which stands at some $26bn. (Agence France-Presse)

FISCHER REITERATES GERMAN INTEREST IN PERMANENT SEAT

In a speech to the UN General Assembly, Foreign Minister Joseph Fischer
on Thursday reiterated Germany's interest in permanent membership in the
UN Security Council. Germany was prepared to support the strengthening of
peace missions, Mr. Fischer told delegates of the 180 UN member countries
here. UN peace missions were in need of "a more robust mandate and better
equipment in personnel and materiel," Mr. Fischer said, also calling on all
UN members "to significantly increase their efforts to have well-trained
soldiers, police and civilian experts ready for quick deployment."
Furthermore, Germany was planning to set up a pool of qualified personnel
who could be deployed at short notice.

British Foreign Minister Robin Cook supported Germany's application for a
permanent seat on the Security Council. The number of permanent members
should be doubled to 10, he said, so that Germany, Japan and a country
from Asia, Africa and Latin America could join the Council. (Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung)

BERLIN OUTLAWS NEO-NAZI ROCK MUSIC COMPANY

The sinister Blood and Honour group, Europe's largest distributor of neo-Nazi
rock music, was outlawed by the German Government yesterday in its latest
attack on underground far-right culture. The move follows raids on more than
30 apartments in eastern Germany that have netted more than 6,400
compact discs and more than 60,000 videos and posters featuring the illegal
swastika symbol. Otto Schily, Interior Minister, said that Blood and Honour,
German Division and an associated group, White Youth, would be banned
with immediate effect because both were in breach of the law and abused
constitutional freedom. Although Blood and Honour numbers only 240 active
members, its influence stretches across Germany and continental Europe.
(The London Times)

* As part of the government's efforts to eliminate the group, police conducted
house searches in a number of states, seizing savings accounts with
deposits containing thousands of marks, computers and far-right propaganda
material. The government also asked Internet companies not to allow Web
sites put together by the banned organizations. According to the Ministry of
the Interior, the organization rejects Germany's constitutional order and the
idea of international understanding.

Officials said Blood & Honour had had numerous contacts with the German
National Party (NPD) in recent years. This party is the focus of a study
aimed at determining whether officials should seek a ban. Sources in Berlin
said on Thursday that they expected the working group examining the legal
requirements for the ban would make a recommendation next month. If the
working group finds a firm legal basis for banning the NPD that could be
upheld at the Constitutional Court, a political decision is expected to follow
quickly, sources said. (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)

MAFIA POISED TO MAKE MOST OF THE EURO

Leoluca Orlando, Palermo's mayor, has led a crusade against the Cosa
Nostra, with the number of Mafia-related killings in the city dropping from 350
in 1990 to just one so far this year. He says that the Mob has simply gone
back to doing what it does best - managing its sprawling business empire.
"We have cut off the military hand of the Mafia, but we are still trying to strike
out its financial heart," he says. "The Mafia is still alive in Sicily, but these
days it is a worldwide organisation. It is back to what it does best, which is
shifting money through big financial centres like New York and London."

For him, the Mob's new identity is emphasised by a new threat just around
the corner: the arrival of euro notes and coins in January 2002. "Money
laundering is already extremely difficult to prosecute because it is
complicated and you have to prove the money came from a criminal activity.
Imagine how much easier it will be for the Mob when there is a single
currency they can move about anywhere in the European Union. At the
moment, we talk about places like Switzerland and Luxembourg as
destinations for dirty money. But this is nothing compared to the whole of the
EU." (The London Times)

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From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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