DC Vigil Denied, Temple Mount, Hagee & Resort Ministry
- Court Rules Against Christian Group's Prayer Vigil
- Hagee Booted From Pro-Israel Rally
- Temple Mount Bulge an Explosive Problem
- A "Mountaintop" Experience
Court Rules Against Christian Group's Prayer Vigil
From CNS News -- A federal court Thursday said the National Park Service does not have to allow a Christian group's planned Sept. 11 prayer vigil in Lafayette Park, near the White House. Judge Gladys Kessler agreed that the Secret Service's duty to protect the White House complex trumps the First Amendment rights of Rev. Patrick Mahoney and the supporters of his Christian Defense Coalition. "Certainly the government interest in security and protection is compelling in this case and justifies the imposition of the restrictions," she said.
Kessler said the proximity of the park - which is just north of the White House, across Pennsylvania Avenue - influenced her decision to deny the request. "We're dealing with a unique situation. Lafayette Park is probably a strong stone's throw from the White House, probably not much more," she explained.
Mahoney told reporters after the hearing that he was disappointed and discouraged. "I think the First Amendment has taken a serious beating here," he said. Mahoney noted the irony that buses freely drop off tour groups of 60 to 80 people in the park several times an hour, while the Park Service requires a permit for groups of only 25 or more to hold any type of organized event there.
Mahoney said he understands the security concerns raised by the proximity of the park to the White House, and that he would be willing to be restricted to the area of the park farthest away from the executive mansion, as long as the same restrictions applied to tourists and other visitors.
Hagee Booted From Pro-Israel Rally
According to Charisma News Service, Pentecostal preacher John Hagee has been "terminated" from an upcoming rally for Israel because of a disagreement with the Christian Coalition. In early August, said Charisma, coalition president Roberta Combs asked Hagee to give up his involvement with the "Christian Support for Israel Rally," which is scheduled for Oct. 11 in Washington, D.C., as part of the Christian Coalition's 12th annual Road to Victory Conference.
Hagee no longer promotes the rally, but plans to have a similar event in the future that will not "conflict or compete" with the Christian Coalition effort. He told Charisma News Service that Combs had agreed months ago to his offer to organize and pay for the rally, which will be held near the White House. Combs disagreed, noting that her organization, which has experienced a sharp decline in membership, "had already had this lined up." "It was never discussed that he would organize and pay for the event until I got the letter on Aug. 5," she told Charisma News. "The rally was planned before I ever spoke to John. He did not recommend the rally to us." To read the rest of the story, visit: http://www.charismanews.com/online/articledisplay.pl?ArticleID=6550
Temple Mount Bulge an Explosive Problem
"A bulge in the wall of Jerusalem's Temple Mount, a site holy to both Jews and Muslims, has introduced a new and potentially explosive element into the Israeli-Palestinian confrontation," reports The Washington Times. Jerusalem's mayor and Israeli conservationists warn that some of the huge stone blocks lining the southern wall of the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as Haram al Sharif, are shifting. They blocks could even crash down on worshippers, says the Times, unless the affected section is dismantled and rebuilt.
"Muslim religious authorities deny that there is any danger of collapse and reject the Israeli warnings as a politically motivated attempt to establish Israel's authority over the Mount," according to the Washington Times. Israel has maintained overall sovereignty over the site since reuniting the city under its control in 1967 but the Temple Mount is under the effective control of the WAKF, the Muslim religious authorities that administer holy sites.
If the wall collapses on Jewish people, the Muslims will celebrate and say it is Allah's judgment on them, Islamic expert Prof. Rafael Israeli of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem told CNS News. "The real problem would begin when Israel moves in to rebuild it," Israeli said. The Muslims would oppose it and it would become a "point of world contention," he said.
It was this temple and plaza that Jesus visited, according to the Washington Times. Within a century, the temple was destroyed by the Romans. Six centuries later, the Arabs conquered Jerusalem and built on the Mount the Al Aqsa Mosque, which became the third-holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina. Muslims believe the Prophet Muhammad rose to heaven from the Dome of the Rock on the Mount.
A "Mountaintop" Experience
Cox News Service reports that for 21 years, the Rev. Bill Black and his wife, Cindy, have served as missionaries to the far-flung lands of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville, Tenn. They are among the dozens of resort ministries, from Lake Tahoe to Hilton Head, conducted under the sponsorship of the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.
According to Cox News, the Rev. Jeff Wagner, manager of the board's special ministries unit, says a resort is "a unique community. You've got to do things differently. You have a lot of young people come in, and a lot of retired people. You have a lot of people come in to do low-paying jobs in a community where everything costs a lot of money. Ministry in that setting is a challenge." As for the comparison to international missionaries who travel to the farthest reaches of the planet, he said, "My congregation is 10 million people a year from all over the world. The world comes to us."
The college students come and go each year, says Cox. About 600 church volunteers spend even less time each year -- usually only a week at a time. But the Blacks stay on their mountain watching seasons and generations come and go. The fancy theological term is 'incarnational,' " said Wagner of the North American Mission Board. "They're doing ministry where people are."
Originally published September 03, 2002.
