Page 93 - Signs of the End

THE SIGNS OF THE END 57

Mount because the Moslem guards assert that there never was a
Temple there in Jerusalem.

Israel has its capital in Jerusalem, with the Knesset meeting
there, but almost no countries recognize Jerusalem as the capital,
and no countries have their embassies there, with a few minor
exceptions. Rather, they have their embassies in Tel Aviv, includ­
ing the United States. The reason given is that having the embassy
in Jerusalem would be offensive to the Arab nations. Congress has
voted to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, but the
Administration refuses to do so.

No other country in the world has its capital so snubbed by
other nations.

The Christian world also has a stake in Jerusalem. The historic
city was controlled by the Byzantine Roman Empire from about
300 to 600 AD, and the European Crusaders possessed Jerusalem
for about 200 years. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the tradi­
tional site of the resurrection of Christ, and the Church of the
Nativity in nearby Bethlehem, are two of the most sacred shrines
of Christendom. The papacy has asserted its interest in Jerusalem
and has proposed the internationalization of the city, an idea that
has currency in the UN. The Pope has promised to visit Jerusalem
in the critical year 2000, when vast multitudes of Christians are
planning to visit the Holy City. Most of the plans are being made
with Arafat rather than with Israel.

A great concern is access to the holy sites if the Moslems regain
control of them. Bethlehem is becoming more hostile to Christians
since Arafat's takeover, and the Arab Christians in Bethlehem face
increasing persecution from the new Moslem majority. When Old
Jerusalem was under Arab control from 1947-1967, Jews were not
permitted to visit the Western Wall. Fifty-eight synagogues were
destroyed in the Jewish quarter of the old city.

One of the most important aspects of Jewish control of
Jerusalem has been open accessibility of all the holy sites to wor­
shipers of all religions. Evangelical Christians have concerns also
if Roman Catholicism gains control over the sites. Capernaum on
the shore of the Sea of Galilee is an example of what happens when
the Roman Catholics control a sacred site. Non-Catholics are not
permitted in the chapel with the glass floor that overlooks the