(charismamag). Christians from around the world are gathering in Israel this week to show support for an undivided Jerusalem during the annual Feast of Tabernacles, which began Thursday.
The weeklong celebration hosted by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) also marks the organization's 30th anniversary, which is to be commemorated Friday with a reception at the Zionist organization's international headquarters.
Some 6,000 Christians from nearly 100 nations are expected to convene in Jerusalem throughout the week, generating roughly $15 million for the local economy.
"The Christian embassy has established a remarkable record of standing in support of Israel and a united Jerusalem over the past three decades, whether through our many humanitarian projects across the land, our advocacy efforts worldwide or our annual feast gathering in Jerusalem," said Rev. Malcolm Hedding, ICEJ executive director. "We look forward to celebrating our 30th anniversary with our Israeli friends and guests."
In opening remarks Thursday, Netanyahu thanked the Christian tourists for their consistent support, in a video greeting:
Orthodox Rabbi Shlomo Rifkin and Benny Begin, a member of the Knesset and the son of former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, participated in the ICEJ's anniversary event Friday.
ICEJ leaders say this year's feast is dedicated to reaffirming Christian support for a united Jerusalem under Israel's sovereignty-an issue that led to the organization's founding in 1980. In that year the last 13 embassies left Jerusalem for Tel Aviv in protest of the Knesset's passage of the Jerusalem Law, which named Jerusalem the capital of Israel.
This year's feast is "in part to reinforce the founding principle of the embassy to stand with the 3,000-year-old Jewish claim and connection to the city," said ICEJ spokesman David Parsons. "We're expressing our commitment to that original mandate that we were given by the Lord."
The weeklong celebration hosted by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) also marks the organization's 30th anniversary, which is to be commemorated Friday with a reception at the Zionist organization's international headquarters.
Some 6,000 Christians from nearly 100 nations are expected to convene in Jerusalem throughout the week, generating roughly $15 million for the local economy.
"The Christian embassy has established a remarkable record of standing in support of Israel and a united Jerusalem over the past three decades, whether through our many humanitarian projects across the land, our advocacy efforts worldwide or our annual feast gathering in Jerusalem," said Rev. Malcolm Hedding, ICEJ executive director. "We look forward to celebrating our 30th anniversary with our Israeli friends and guests."
In opening remarks Thursday, Netanyahu thanked the Christian tourists for their consistent support, in a video greeting:
"Year after year you come from over a hundred countries to march through the streets of Jerusalem; and in doing so, you remind the people of Israel that we are not alone, You remind us that there are people across the world who recognize that in returning to Zion, the Jewish people have returned home."
PM Netanyahu Addressing the Feast of Tabernacles 2010 from ICEJ on Vimeo.
Orthodox Rabbi Shlomo Rifkin and Benny Begin, a member of the Knesset and the son of former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, participated in the ICEJ's anniversary event Friday.
ICEJ leaders say this year's feast is dedicated to reaffirming Christian support for a united Jerusalem under Israel's sovereignty-an issue that led to the organization's founding in 1980. In that year the last 13 embassies left Jerusalem for Tel Aviv in protest of the Knesset's passage of the Jerusalem Law, which named Jerusalem the capital of Israel.
This year's feast is "in part to reinforce the founding principle of the embassy to stand with the 3,000-year-old Jewish claim and connection to the city," said ICEJ spokesman David Parsons. "We're expressing our commitment to that original mandate that we were given by the Lord."
Below is the Transcript of PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU’S remarks to the FEAST OF TABERNACLES 2010:
Good Evening. Welcome to Jerusalem. Welcome to the eternal undivided capital of the State of Israel and of the Jewish people.
I want to congratulate all of you on celebrating 30 years of standing firmly by Israel’s side. Three decades ago when some countries decided to move their embassies out of Jerusalem, you decided to come to Jerusalem.
At first you came by the dozens, then you came by the hundreds; now you come by the thousands.Year after year you come from over a hundred countries to march through the streets of Jerusalem; and in doing so, you remind the people of Israel that we are not alone. You remind us that there are people across the world who recognize that in returning to Zion, the Jewish people have returned home.
This land is our homeland. It’s the same land where the Jewish patriarchs prayed, where our prophets preached, and where our kings ruled. It’s the same land from which 2000 years ago spanned forth a message of universal peace and love that would spread across the world.
There are those who still deny the history of the Jewish people in this land. There are those who still refuse to recognize that Israel is the Jewish State – the nation state of the Jewish people. What these people refuse to say, you declare with pride. You declare it with pride, without hesitation, without reservation. You celebrate the right of the Jewish people to be sovereign in its homeland, to ingather its exiles, and to rebuild Jerusalem.
So on behalf of my country, and on behalf of my people, I say thank you. Thank you for your moral clarity. Thank you for your solidarity. Thank you for supporting the one and only Jewish State. Thank you.
