The Temple Mount and Other News

Introduction
The Temple Mount in Jerusalem is in the news again as there is agitation over rights to the site holy to the world's three major monotheistic religions. It is said that alliances in the Middle East shift like the desert sands. The article about Iran and Kuwait may be pointing to a very important shift both historically and prophetically. Then there are other articles including some on the economy and the last one about the increasingly complex issue of gender identity. Finally, there is a video worth watching that highlights some events in the religious world that are worthy of attention.

Note that I am simply sharing items of interest. That does not imply that I agree with everything presented.

"And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars ... nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes ..." (Matt 24:6-7)

Temple Mount Faithful Lay Claim to Lost Ark

Jewish men pray in front of the Western Wall in
Jerusalem's Old City

It happens relatively frequently. Every once in a while, some daring biblical researcher or pretentious archaeologist emerges to claim that he found a clue that will lead him to the Ark of the Covenant. According to Jewish tradition, the Tables of the Covenant, on which the Ten Commandments are inscribed, were kept in the ark within the temple. On June 4, the Jews celebrate Shavuot, which is identified with the Mount Sinai revelation.

But those who continue to search for the ark are not only Jews. The rest of the world has not yet abandoned the dream of finding the Holy Ark.

In July 2013, in an archaeological dig in ancient Shiloh, traces were found linking the place to the site of the Tabernacle, which housed the Ark of the Covenant until the construction of the temple. Two years earlier, in 2011, it had been argued that a church in Ethiopia was the secret repository of the ark.

If you ask the Temple Mount faithful, the answer is fairly straightforward: The ark is intact and well, securely protected within the Temple Mount itself. When we talked about the timing of the founding of the Third Temple, Rabbi Yehoshua Friedman of the Temple Institute told me, "There are 10 studies about the location of the Ark of the Covenant. We read them and studied all of them, and reached the conclusion that it's buried in the tunnels under the Temple Mount. When the day comes, we will get to it."

Friedman is not the only one who believes this. Numerous other Jews have reached the same conclusion, and in 1981 attempts were made to hasten the longed-for day and excavate under the Temple Mount to reveal the ark. This was no underground activity by the obsessed. It was an initiative involving the chief rabbis of the time, including Rabbi Shlomo Goren, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef and Gedalia Schreiber, the director-general of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The effort ultimately failed amid claims of a Muslim plot to thwart the discovery.

But Friedman errs in at least one way. There are many more than 10 theories regarding the whereabouts of the Ark of the Covenant. Some of them seem totally delusional, but among them are some serious theories by erudite researchers determined to solve the ark riddle in our day.

Ray's note: I have also included (below) the last two paragraphs of the article above as it shows the important link between the Ark of the Covenant and the State of Israel's claim to legitimacy. The question that is often not even considered but that needs to be investigated from scripture is whether the nation of Israel actually has the status it claims.

Everyone is wondering where the ark is. I would like to refer you to the Wyatt Archaeological Research website and the work of the late Ron Wyatt. There are many interesting things on that site including a page with some very interesting information regarding a possible location of the ark."

Many hold that it is only a matter of time until the whereabouts of the ark will be revealed. The Temple Mount faithful certainly believe that its discovery will be accompanied by the coming of the Messiah and the building of the Third Temple. Others think that its detection will connect Moses and the contemporary Jewish nation once and for all. They believe that it will forge a permanent, indissoluble bond between the State of Israel and the Temple Mount, in other words affirming the right to settle in the land of Israel. Thus, we see that the Ark of the Covenant is not only a religious symbol, but a political tool as well.

"All we have are legends," summarized Levin. "So long as no new testimonies emerge regarding the whereabouts of the ark, we have, in effect, no way at all of knowing where it is."

Jordan Plans Limited Muslim Access to Temple Mount

Amman warns Israel's restrictive actions at Jerusalem holy site could lead to religious conflict
By Times of Israel staff June 4, 2014

The Western Wall and Dome of the Rock in
Jerusalem's Old City. (photo credit: Nati
Shohat/Flash90)

Jordan has once again condemned Israeli actions in the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israel Radio reported Wednesday, after police limited Muslim access to the holy site on Tuesday.

In response a Jordanian government spokesman said Amman condemned the decision to clear the al-Aqsa Mosque of Muslim worshippers in order to enable what he called Jewish extremists to enter the compound.

He warned that Israel's actions in the Temple Mount were "a blatant violation of international law" and said Jerusalem's conduct could drag the region into a dangerous religious conflict.

Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces at the Temple Mount - and subsequent Jordanian condemnations of Israel - have become commonplace in recent months.

In April Jordan's foreign ministry summoned Israeli ambassador Daniel Nevo to protest Israel's actions at the compound. Jordanian officials protested what they called a "gross breach of international law and of the peace agreement between the two nations."

They accused Israel of allowing extremist Israeli Jews to enter the compound and of attacking Muslim worshippers at the al-Aqsa mosque.

The Jordanians said they placed full responsibility on Israel for maintaining security and peace in the Temple Mount.

The Temple Mount compound, which holds the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque, is considered the third holiest site in Islam and the holiest site to Jews as the site of the two ancient Jewish temples.

The site's profile as a point of contention between Israelis and Arabs has risen in recent months, as right-wing politicians and activists have been vying in Israel's Knesset to pass legislation that would allow Jewish prayer at the compound.

Palestinian officials have attacked the bill as an attempt to change the status quo inside the al-Aqsa Mosque and warned of grave repercussions if such a law were to pass.

Shifting Alliances? Iran and Kuwait Sign Historic Agreements

In first visit by Kuwaiti emir to Iran since 1979 Islamic revolution, six agreements signed, including one on security.
By Ari Yashar

Ali Khamenei

In an historic meeting that has led to speculation about shifting regional alliances, the emir of Kuwait on Monday met Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who called for better relations between the Islamic state and its neighbor Arab Gulf states.

Kuwaiti emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah began his two-day trip to Iran on Sunday. The visit is the first by a leader of Kuwait, which is an ally of the US, to Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Khamenei told the emir that regional security "depends on good relations among all countries of the region," ABC News reports citing Iranian state TV. The Iranian leader called for "a new chapter" in bilateral economic relations between the two countries.

According to Iranian state TV, Iran and Kuwait signed six agreements, one of them a security agreement, during the emir's visit.

A divide has traditionally existed between Iran and the largely American-aligned Gulf states.

Kuwait may be following a similar strategic route in the shifting regional power structure as Saudi Arabia, given that Iran can maintain a sudden breakout capability of six to seven weeks to a nuclear weapon if its 19,000 centrifuges are not removed in the nuclear talks.

Shi'ite Muslim Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia have been deeply divided for years over a raft of regional issues, particularly the conflict in Syria, in which Tehran has backed the Damascus government and Riyadh has been a leading supporter of the rebels.

Saudi Arabia was particularly critical of the interim deal between Iran and six world powers over Tehran's nuclear program, that are now advancing in largely fruitless negotiations. A senior adviser to the Saudi royal family said after the deal that his country was deceived by the US in the agreements, and will pursue an independent foreign policy in response.

That independent policy has apparently included a shift towards Iran, as Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal announced in mid-May that it is ready to negotiate better relations with Iran.

Ray's note:
This trend of changes in alliances may be key in setting things up for the fulfillment of the coming war in the Middle East spoken of in Daniel chapter 8. This verse from Daniel 11 is also connected to this prophecy:

"And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia." (Daniel 11:2)

Do you recognize Saudi Arabia as a possible candidate for the fourth king?

The Pentagon is Building a $44-Million EMP Bunker in Alaska

The military wants to protect its missile defenses against electromagnetic pulses.
Robert Beckhusen on May 22

Fort Greely, Alaska is home to one of America's two domestic missile defense bases. Now it's getting armored against high-altitude electromagnetic energy attacks - like the kind emitted from nuclear blasts.

It's a far-fetched scenario, but the Pentagon is spending millions on a bunker designed to protect against exactly that. According to contract documents from the Army Corps of Engineers, the military plans to spend $44 million on an "HEMP-protected" bunker housing the base's missile launch control systems.

By HEMP, the contract is referring to high-altitude electromagnetic pulses. The base at Fort Greely houses anti-ballistic missile interceptors stored in silos, and can also control and direct interceptors fired from a similar site at Vandenberg Air Force base in California.

It's worth noting the money is pocket change compared to the $41 billion the Pentagon is spending on its ground-based mid-course defense program through 2017. The plan calls for installing dozens of missile interceptors in Alaska and California.

These interceptors carry kinetic kill vehicles designed to impact and destroy ballistic missiles during their mid-course phase. Mid-course defense refers to the flight pattern of ballistic missiles as they travel through space - and before they reenter the atmosphere traveling at extremely high speeds.

But a missile defense site wouldn't count for much if it could be knocked out by EMP - essentially waves of highly-charged energy that can override electronic circuits.

Missile defense boosters in Congress have for years warned about the threat of a rogue state exploding a nuke high above North America, unleashing waves of energy that fry critical infrastructure, electronics and collectively throwing us back into the 19th century.

British Scientist Says Human Microchipping Will Be Mandatory

By: Jason Wert / The Jim Bakker Show.com / April 28, 2014

"A British scientist says that the implanting of microchips in humans will be something that won't be seen as optional in the near future.

"Dr. Mark Gasson of the University of Reading in Britain says that RFID tags will become so commonplace that everyone will be expected to have one for business and healthcare.

"'It's not possible to interact in society today in a meaningful way without having a mobile phone,' Dr. Gasson told the Sydney Morning Herald. 'I think human implants will go along a similar route. It will be such a disadvantage not to have the implant that it will essentially not be optional.'"

"And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." Revelation 13:16, 17. KJV.

GMO Producers Should be Punished as Terrorists, Russian MPs Say

Russia Today.com / May 15, 2014

"A draft law submitted to the Russian parliament seeks to impose punishment up to criminal prosecution to producers of genetically-modified organisms harmful to health or the environment.

"The draft legislation submitted on Wednesday amends Russia's law regulating GMOs and some other laws and provides for disciplinary action against individuals and firms, which produce or distribute harmful biotech products and government officials who fail to properly control them.

"At worst, a criminal case may be launched against a company involved in introducing unsafe GMOs into Russia. Sponsors of the bill say that the punishment for such deeds should be comparable to the punishment allotted to terrorists, if the perpetrators act knowingly and hurt many people.

"Russian criminal code allows for a punishment starting with 15 years in jail and up to a life sentence for terrorism."

Exactly Like 7 Years Ago? 2014 Is Turning Out To Be Eerily Similar To 2007

By: Michael Snyder / The Economic Collapse Blog / April 23rd, 2014

"The similarities between 2007 and 2014 continue to pile up. As you are about to see, U.S. home sales fell dramatically throughout 2007 even as the mainstream media, our politicians and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke promised us that everything was going to be just fine and that we definitely were not going to experience a recession. Of course we remember precisely what followed.

"It was the worst economic crisis since the days of the Great Depression. And you know what they say -- if we do not learn from history we are doomed to repeat it. Just like seven years ago, the stock market has soared to all-time high after all-time high. Just like seven years ago, the authorities are telling us that there is nothing to worry about. Unfortunately, just like seven years ago, a housing bubble is imploding and another great economic crisis is rapidly approaching.

"If history does repeat, then what we are witnessing right now is a very troubling sign for the months to come... new home sales usually start going down before a recession begins.

"Right now, 2014 is turning out to be eerily similar to 2007.

"Will 2015 turn out to be a repeat of 2008?"

Catastrophic Meltdown Coming to America -- Doug Casey

By: Greg Hunter / USAWatchdog.com / May 5, 2014

"Investor/author Doug Casey says most Americans are ill-prepared for what is coming. Casey explains, 'This huge recession that started in 2007, and the bottom was 2009 and 2010, has cyclically recovered. So, people think it's going to be happy days again, but it's not.

"'The way the government engineered this recovery is by creating trillions in currency units, and as we speak, they are creating $55 billion a month more by buying government bonds and mortgage securities. All of this paper money which is currently sitting in banks, at some point, is going to wash over the U.S. You'll see very high levels of inflation. It's going to be quite catastrophic. The prognosis is extremely grim. There's no way out.'"

"What does Casey mean when he says, 'There's no way out'? Casey explains, 'It means, in the real world, there is cause and effect. Actions have consequences . . . . What could happen? You could have lots of bank failures. You could have a stock market crash. All this money that the government has created has bulled up the stock market to new highs. So, the next step is likely to be down. when interest rates inevitably go up from these artificially suppressed levels where they are now, the bond market is going to collapse, the stock market is going to collapse, and with it, the real estate market is going to collapse. These pension funds are going to be wiped out. Then what's going to happen? This is a very bad situation.'

"So, could the U.S. one day just default on its enormous debt? Casey says, 'There is really no pleasant solution to this problem, but actually, for years, I have advocated the U.S. doing exactly that. Right now, the U.S. has official government debt of $17 trillion. This is not repayable. In addition to that, there is another $65 trillion in obligations that it has to make good on, like Social security, for instance. It's an insoluble problem at this point. I think the U.S. should default. I think it would also serve as a good thing to punish the people who loaned the U.S. the money and enabled it to do all the stupid things it has done with the money. The U.S. is going to default one way or another. I'm just saying they ought to do it overtly and honestly as opposed to catastrophically by destroying the dollar, which is the way they are actually going to default on all that debt.'

"What will happen to your retirement funds that are not wiped out by a crash? Will the government simply take what it needs to survive? Casey thinks, 'The U.S government is not "We the People." The U.S. government is an entity unto itself. It's as separate from U.S. society as General Motors or Apple Computer. So, its first interest is to look out for itself, and its only source of revenue is confiscating wealth from the American people. Of course, it will. Governments are always doing this type of thing. Here in Argentina, they confiscated everybody's pension account three years ago. . . . Of course, it's going to happen in the U.S.'"

What the Elites Are Secretly Doing Ahead of Coming Collapse

By: William Kaye / KingWorldBlog.com / May15, 2014

"Today an outspoken hedge fund manager out of Hong Kong warned King World News about what the elites are secretly doing with their own money ahead of the coming collapse. William Kaye, who 25 years ago worked for Goldman Sachs in mergers and acquisitions, also discussed how he sees the frightening endgame playing out as the world nears the end of this historic cycle.

"Kaye: 'We are still at a point in history where all major nations are intensely trying to devalue their currencies. This is a truly incredible situation, particularly with Western central banks having very little gold to continue their suppression scheme. This is going to lead to a moonshot scenario for the price of both gold and silver....

"'The coming collapse certainly appears scripted. Is it coincidence or is it by design that the IMF (International Monetary Fund) has been working on a substitute for the U.S. dollar as the world's reserve currency? Regardless, the U.S. dollar is going to collapse -- it's just a question of when.'"

Is Society Heading Toward Gender Neutrality and Trans-Humanism?

6/5/2014 Joseph Mattera

The implications of society increasingly supporting same-sex marriage means if someone feels like being another gender and/or a combination of both genders then society will celebrate them using medical science to physically alter the body they received at birth.

Recently Time magazine ran a cover story entitled "Transgender Tipping Point," which essentially says the next civil rights movement is going to involve the growing transgender movement. This is no surprise to those of us who have been on the front lines of opposing same-sex marriage, since one underlying premise of same-sex marriage is a belief that there are no absolute, necessary distinctions between the sexes that make heterosexual unions and/or marriage beneficial to society.

Hence, once same-sex marriage gained cultural acceptance, it broke down every traditional mindset related to sexuality and gender distinction and flung open the doors to "gender neutrality."

I mean, if the law of the land increasingly goes toward same-sex marriage, in essence our nation is saying a child does not need either a mother or a father, or the parental roles traditionally ascribed to a male or a female could be fulfilled by any gender.

The implications of this are vast. We will see more and more psychologists stating that the apparent male and female distinction is more a result of children being brought up in an environment immersed with (outdated and unnecessary) cultural norms and family upbringing than biology.

Thus, a person could have a male body but if he believes and feels he is a female, then, biology aside, he should be categorized as a female, and vice versa. If someone feels like being another gender and/or a combination of both genders then society will celebrate them using medical science to physically alter the body they received at birth.

Legally, this will lead to a movement attempting to abolish male/female distinctions by classifying birth certificates as discriminatory, and a growing number of public places will have gender neutral bathrooms

Presently, biblical passages regarding marriage and sexuality are considered antiquated and hate speech by radical liberals. But, in the future, one of the most controversial passages will be Genesis 1:27, which states that God made both male and female in His own image. (That it takes both a male and a female to reflect God's image is also a strong case for biblical ethics regarding human sexuality and the true framework for marriage, family and gender distinctions.)

Ray's note:
If the reference to "His own image" in this verse is referring to sexuality then consider this: if God is sexually male then females don't reflect His image and if God is sexually female then males don't reflect His image. Why do we have to take this verse as referring to gender at all? We are not like God in every respect - we cannot create. The image could be referring to any number of other attributes. We (both male and female) could be in His image - like Him - in that, for instance, we are free moral agents or even that we have two arm and two legs. The article misstates the verse also in that males, independently of females, reflect God's image and vice versa. In no way does the wording require that it takes both to reflect His image.

If technology and science continue to increase without biblical or ethical boundaries then it is likely we will also be dealing with a movement toward being a "trans-human," initially dealing with people being part machine/part human, human cloning and eventually leading to an attempt to integrate human and animal body parts and traits. (This future trend will make the current debates on sexuality and gender identity seem like small children playing patty-cake in the street.)

Unless and until thinking Christians with a biblical worldview begin to take the lead again in education, ethics, law, arts, science and politics, societal ethics will be led by scientists, ethicists and technology wizards with no god in their lives but the idolatrous need for "self-expression." With self-expression considered the highest good for individuals, human beings will continue to find creative ways to distinguish themselves from one another and debase, alter and deform their bodies so they can (in their minds) stand out from the rest of the crowd (and garner the attention they so desperately crave).

At the end of the day, since males and females were created in the image of God, a person will never discover their true identity and purpose until they embrace the One who formed them in the womb, assigned to them a specific gender and called them to fulfill a specific purpose.

Joseph Mattera is overseeing bishop of Resurrection Church, Christ Covenant Coalition, in Brooklyn, N.Y.

I would greatly encourage you to watch the following 22-minute video of some of the signs of the last days that happened around the world within the month of May 2014.

"And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." (Luke 21:28)

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