By Stan Goodenough
Sep 06, 2005
A North Carolina pastor has expressed his concern for the future of the United States should the Bush Administration insist on the implementation of the ?Road Map.?
In comments made after witnessing the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina last week, Jesse Stines of the Blue Ridge Mountain Church in Elk Park, NC warned that America?s insistence on the implementation of its land-for-peace plan could see worse disasters hit the US.
Stines, a staunch supporter of Israel who has visited the Jewish state almost every year since 1981, said since the institution of the Road Map and the announcement of the planned ?disengagement? he had been ?preaching everywhere ? warning the people? that this policy would see ?the wrath of God released upon our nation.?
?We have watched this for years and every time America makes decisions against Israel we suffer the consequences through disasters,? Stines said.
Referring to last month?s expulsion of thousands of Jews from their homes in Gaza and northern Samaria, Stines said there was ?no doubt in my mind that Hurricane Katrina is a result of the decisions we made to remove God?s people from their land.?
Like millions of Bible-believing Christians, Stines rejects as false the internationally-held position that the Jews of Gaza had stolen land which was not theirs. This lie has just been refuted by PLO chairman Mahmoud Abbas himself. (See separate story on this site)
?The Jewish people were guilty of only one thing in Gaza. They were guilty of being obedient to the God of Heaven [Who] said through the prophets that they should rebuild the ancient cities.?
The Bible left no doubt that the disputed land belongs to Israel.
Removing the people from Gaza had also been ?the worst violation on humanity,? Stines added. He and his wife had ?prayed and fasted and believed to the very end that God would not let this happen,? and had then ?cried uncontrollably at what we were witnessing on TV? as the events unfolded in Gaza.
The North Carolinian described last week?s mammoth disaster as ?the worst storm in the history of America.?
?If we continue on with this Road Map ? not to peace, but to hell ? Hurricane Katrina is only the beginning of disasters that will hit this nation.?
According to recent reports, President George W. Bush remains committed to his ?two state vision? which sees the creation of a new Arab state on Israel?s ancient land.
Last Friday the International Herald Tribune Friday published an article by Aaron Miller ? a former US advisor to six secretaries of state on the Arab-Israeli conflict ? in which he said that Bush was pursuing a ?no lose? initiative which the American leader hoped would ensure the creation of a Palestinian state by the end of his second and final term in office.
?In the administration's strategy ? Gaza is by no means the end of the story. The administration is committed to achieving one overriding goal: the creation of a Palestinian state with provisional borders.?
If realized, this aim will see Israel reduced to an indefensible and segmented state with its main population and industry centers crammed into a narrow strip of land along the Mediterranean coast, and facing an increasingly well-armed and belligerent Arab foe.
As millions of Americans have been reeling in shock at the devastation wrought on their country by Katrina, with both anger and praise directed at the Bush administration?s handling of the crisis, debate has been raging on the Internet and elsewhere over who or what is to blame for the unprecedented disaster.
Unsurprisingly, the majority of commentators reject out of hand any link between the hurricane which has driven hundreds of thousands of people from their homes and the August 15 to 21 forced evacuation of Gaza under the ?disengagement plan? of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
Journalists and bloggers fired off too ? mostly scoffing at the suggestion.
People who thought this way were ?superstitious? and ?imbecilic.? ?It is this kind of mentality that causes so much pain and suffering in the world,? said Aaron Kinney from Los Angeles.
Others assumed that holding such a view demonstrated a ?judgmental? spirit and a lack of compassion.
Still, Stines is by no means alone in his assessment of the root cause of the catastrophe.
There are many Christians in America who have this understanding. A number of Jerusalem Newswire readers have sent emails in recent days to express their deep concern and ask for prayer for their country.
?My husband and I have been opposed to our country?s interference in Israel?s affairs and now we see the consequences,? wrote Sue D. from New Hampshire.
Laura G. described herself as ?one American who did the little that I could writing to elected officials, and praying fervently that Gush Katif would be spared in the last hour.?
As the ?disengagement? progressed she had wept, ?sick to my heart to see the terrible tragedy unfolding, helpless to make it stop!
?And I knew that there would be terrible consequences for our country as a result of us thinking that we can trade God's land for peace with those who know not peace.?
Writing from Pennsylvania, Nancy K. said she believed ?Katrina was/is God's judgment for our current administration's pressure on Israel to give up land to the Palestinians.?
?I have been telling whoever will listen to me that this catastrophe has to do with Israel. Sadly, most Christians are ignorant of God's blessings and curses on those who deal with His people and their land,? she said.