This issue looks at the Israeli election, an exciting archeological find in Israel, more charges against Obama regarding Benghazi, the latest sham trial in Iran, some perspective on the gun control debate, America’s new godless coin, and a frightening new “litmus test” for military leaders.
OUR ISRAELI CONNECTION

News from The Israel Project
The broad contours of Israel’s January 22 election were in line with months of polling

Yesh Atid Election Night Party

predictions, even as the specifics of the race were shaken by the surprising late surge of the centrist party Yesh Atid. As polls projected, the voting was divided roughly evenly between a center-right bloc anchored by a dominant Likud-Beitenu slate and a fractured center-left. Incumbent Likud Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will almost certainly be asked to form Israel’s next coalition government, and the third place Labor party is likely to lead the opposition. The surprise of the evening was the success of the new, centrist Yesh Atid party, which found itself with enough votes to become Israel’s second-largest party.

Founded and led by Israeli TV personality Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid embodies a kind of post-ideological pragmatism. It couples an emphasis on tough national security with an explicit endorsement of a two-state solution. Though it is avowedly secular, the Yesh Atid agenda is expressed in terms of the need to integrate Israel’s ultra-orthodox and Arab minorities into the state’s civil and military institutions. Watch video in which Top Yesh Atid official Yaakov Peri outlines Yesh Atid stance on a two-state solution.

First Messianic Jewish Synagogue Found?

Messianic Cross

Breaking Christian News reports: A team of archaeologists from
Israel’s Antiquities Authority have unearthed an ancient synagogue with some very unique characteristics in a small Galilee village frequented by Jesus and His disciples. The synagogue was found in Migdal (known in the New Testament as Magdala), which sits just north of Tiberias on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. The synagogue likely belonged to a small “outsider” sect that placed great value in its spiritual community life. While Gorni and other Israeli archaeologists have focused on the fact that the synagogue was almost certainly in operation at the same time as the Second Temple in Jerusalem, the above details, combined with its location in Magdala, make this synagogue a likely candidate for one of, if not the first established Messianic Jewish place of worship.

During Jesus’ time, Magdala was a thriving fishing village, and home to many of His followers, most notably Mary Magdalene (literally: Mary of Magdala). Jesus is recorded as having spent a considerable amount of time in the village. The unearthed synagogue is amazing well preserved, and substantially more ornate than many of the other synagogues from the first century found in the area. Archaeologist Dina Gorni told the Global Mail that the find was “a kind of a miracle. . . . We were only digging here as a precautionary measure before a building project began.” When the synagogue was first discovered in 2009, Gorni and her team found a large stone table or altar with intricate carvings. They have since exposed the entirety of the synagogue.

IT’S NEWS TO ME

Rand Paul: Obama in Guns-to-Jihadists Cover-up?
WorldNetDaily reports: Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., raised questions during a radio interview today about whether the Obama administration was smuggling guns to jihadist rebels in a possible “international Fast and Furious” that the White House has tried to cover up. Speaking on “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio” on New York’s WABC Radio, Paul said the guns scheme could help explain the reason for the coordinated attacks against the U.S. special mission and CIA annex in Benghazi last September. Read more.

Sham Trial in Iran
Jordan Sekulow reports: American Pastor Saeed’s sham trial in Iran has begun. Iran claims that his conversion to Christianity and work in house churches politically undermines the Islamic Republic. His Iranian attorney, who had less than 24 hours to prepare, strongly argued that Pastor Saeed’s faith did not threaten Iran’s national security. Now, Iran has violated American Pastor Saeed’s most basic human rights by barring him and his attorney from a trial that could lead to his death. Iran forced fellow Christians to testify against Pastor Saeed and told one witness to prepare to testify again in a month. Pastor Saeed’s wife pleaded, “We have exposed Iran’s lie. . . . We need to continue exposing Iran’s violations of Saeed’s human rights until my husband is safely back in my arms.” Demand Pastor Saeed’s immediate release. Take action. Sign the petition for Saeed’s freedom today.

Want a great perspective on the gun rights debate? Watch this video.

New $1 Coin to be Released
“IN GOD WE TRUST” is not there. Refuse to accept this coin and force it from circulation.

Obama Tailoring Military Leadership to Only Those Who Will Shoot Fellow Americans
Dr. Jim Garrow: “I have just been informed by a former senior military leader that Obama is using a new ‘litmus test’ in determining who will stay and who must go in his military leaders. Get ready to explode folks. ‘The new litmus test of leadership in the military is if they will fire on US citizens or not.’ Those who will not are being removed.” Read more.

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