CENTENNIAL OF THE BALFOUR DECLARATION
Republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
(Friday Church News Notes, November 3, 2017, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org,
866-295-4143)
- This week the British government recognized the centennial of the
1917 Balfour Declaration with a series of events that culminated in a
dinner featuring UK Prime Minister Theresa May and Israel's Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In the face of Palestinian protests, May
remained steadfast in her commitment to the celebration, saying, "It
is one of the most important letters in history. It
demonstrates Britain's vital role in creating a homeland for the Jewish
people. And it is an anniversary we will be marking with pride"
("Theresa May vows to mark Balfour centennial 'with pride,'" The Times of Israel, Oct. 25, 2017). The
Balfour Declaration pledged the British government's support for a
Jewish homeland. Issued in November 2, 1917, by Arthur James Balfour,
the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom, it said, "His Majesty's
government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national
home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to
facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood
that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious
rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights
and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country." In less than
a year, the British had driven the Ottomans out of "Palestine,"
sounding the
death knell of 700 years of Muslim control of the land and paving the
way for the Jews' return. The British remained in Palestine as an
occupational force and in 1922 were given a Mandate by the League of
Nations to rule "Palestine." Britain became increasingly pro-Arab and
anti-Israel over the next quarter century, backtracking on the promise
of the Balfour Declaration, and when Israel established her state in May
1948 it was in spite of England and not with her help.
CHURCH OF ENGLAND'S APOSTATE ARCHBISHOPS
Republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
(Friday Church News Notes, November 3, 2017, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)
- The Church of
England has never been scripturally sound, and it has moved ever farther
away from God's Word. Consider some statements over the last 65 years
from the Archbishop of Canterbury, the highest position in the Anglican
Church. In 1953, William Temple, in his book Nature and God,
said, "... there is no such thing as revealed truth." In 1961, Michael
Ramsey said, "... heaven is not a place for Christians only. ... I
expect to see many present day atheists there" (London Daily Mail,
Oct. 2, 1961). In 1982, Robert Runcie said he was an agnostic as to why Jesus suffered on the cross (Sunday Times Weekly Review,
London, April 11, 1982). I read this interview over breakfast in London
that morning, and nearly spilled my coffee. In 1996, George Carey
lashed out at fundamentalists who place the Bible "above and beyond
human inquiry" (Christian News, Dec. 9, 1996). In 2008, Rowan
Williams led the Church of England in issuing the following statement:
"Charles
Darwin, 200 years from your birth, the Church of England owes you an
apology for misunderstanding you and, by getting our first reaction
wrong, encouraging others to misunderstand you still" ("Church Makes
'Ludicrous' Apology," The Daily Mail, Sept. 13, 2008). In a
2014 interview, Williams said that he practices a combination of
Buddhist/Catholic/Orthodox meditation practices ("Rowan Williams: How
Buddhism Helps Me Pray," The Telegraph, London, July 2, 2014). Last month, Justin
Welby told a reporter for GQ magazine that he cannot answer the question as to whether or not gay sex is sinful.
