Time for Jewish Minchah afternoon prayers, here in Jerusalem.

I'll go up to the Temple Mount and ask the Moslem Wakf authority if they'd mind if I pray there.

Wish me luck!

SG:

Wish you luck??? Rather, I'll send my condolences to your soon-to-be widow! LOL

I visited the beautiful ancient synagague in Toledo that is now a church...many Spaniards are now returning to their Jewish heritage, yet they have not asked for a minyon there. If they did, they would be refused in a New York minute.
Many more Spaniards seem to think embracing their Moorish heritage will return glory to Spain. They told me the decline of Spain began with the expulsion of the Moors. In short, Spain has a real problem, Andalucia may yet return to Moorsish domination, and not by physical conquest.

Well, pushy Islamists.....the answer is NO.....maybe that's a word they should get used to hearing.......Respect for Islam is at an all time low.

Anyone for a trip to Constantinople and a prayer session in the Aya Sophia?

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU HEARD OF A MOSQUE LETTING A MASS BE CELEBRATED THERE...MAYBE NEVER. LET'S HOPE THAT ISLAM IS AT A ALL TIME LOW, BUT IT SURE DOESN'T SEEM LIKE IT. COULD BE THAT PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO WAKE UP AND SEE WHAT THIS ISLAM IS ALL ABOUT AND IT'S NOT PEACE AND BROTHERHOOD.

At last, we hear from the Pope. Will the spanish listen? I'm a protestant, but I have no problem saying: "Thank you, PJPII"

Let's see how long it takes for the Muslims to exert "physical" pressure to reclaim the mosque. They are very possessive when it comes to land and buildings that were once theirs, even if they took them by force centuries ago.
In a muslim's mind, the entire world belongs to Allah and therefore to them, so it's just a matter of convincing naive "Crusaders" to return it, or to take it forcibly. I smell a miasma of Islamic indignation wafting from the Spanish mosques. The Vatican's power is bound to infuriate the Islamic clerics, who consider Christianity an "inferior" religion. In my humble opinion, Islam is more inimical than Satanism, and the Vatican is to be applauded for not caving in to Muslim demands.

Give the muslims a candy from your fingers and they'll chew your arm off at the elbow if you let them.

Susan, "...the Vatican is to be applauded for not caving in to Muslim demands".
The Vatican has more than caved in to the Muslims since a very long time. The Vatican and the Catholic Church have abandoned Lebanon and the Christians there (which was created by France in 1925 from the Syrian Mandate with the specific purpose of sparing death and suffering to the Christians in that area at the hands of the racist Muslims) without any qualms or protest to be slaughtered or forced to emigrate by their cruel Muslim enemies. Christian Lebanon, once the "Switzerland of the Middle East is now a muslim desolated and impoverished Syrian fiefdom. The Vatican and the Catholic Church have stood and still stand silent in the face of the slaughter, annihilation and literally enslavement of millions of black southern Christian Sudanese at the hands of the northern Islamonazis. The Vatican has been and still is silent in the face of the massacres of Christians and the burning of Catholic Churches in Indonesia. Etc. Etc. The Vatican, just like the U.N. is always silent when Muslims are involved and commit crimes against humanity and other religions. The Vatican speaks and protests very loud only to reproach and scold the Israelis even when they defend themselves from the bloodthirsty palestinian terrorists. Yasser Arafat has been received twice in the Vatican and kissed (it appears only on the cheeks) by Pope John Paul. So was Saddam Hussein's deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz. If you expect protection from the Vatican or only confort in the face of the second Islamic invasion don't hold your breath: the Vatican will always survive by selling even their churches and their souls.

faviz--My final statement commending the Vatican was made for the very reasons you pointed out! I was amazed that somebody in the Vatican had the backbone to stand up to the muslims. I am well aware of the Vatican's "neutrality" on muslim atrocities against Christians. I think some at the Vatican are beginning to speak out, since the jihad is at their back door. I have questioned the Vatican's silence about Islamic brutality towards Christians on many occasions. While not a satisfactory excuse in my opinion, they feared Vatican interference or condemnation would exacerbate the brutality and make things even worse for Christians. I expect nothing from the Vatican but more convoluted reasoning and Islamic appeasement. They are the quintessential "peace at any cost" crusaders. Oh my God, I used the C word. Please curse my insensitivity.

I can sum it up: muslims are like children. Like when a child doesn't get his way he will give his mother a sad look, when muslims don't get their way they innocently say "but, but, but, it's just my religion, I don't want to hurt anyone."
And like children who think they have fooled their parents into getting their way, so too do muslims think they have fooled the world when they get their way.
The child-parent analogy can be carried further--like children look to their parents for guidance, muslims too must look to the West for innovation, leadership and morality- for both child and muslim when left to their own rules certainly make foolish ones.
And finally, like children who have sufficiently irritated their parents get punished, so too will muslims be punished when the world has had enough. The world is not dumb, it's just tolerant to children.

There is a saying in these parts, "What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander."

I make a motion that a campaign be launched to demand that non-Muslims be allowed to pray in Mecca.

Susan- you're prob'ly right about physical force next. After Spain caved in to terrorism after 3/11, there's been a steady stream of islamic nibbling going on, have you noticed? Its the sharks circling the prey....they saw weakness & smell blood, so now they'll bite.

I´m catholic and spanish and I have to say that I´m happy with these news. Respect Lebanon or Sudan, The Vatican has protested a lot of times and now Sudan has a cardinal that speaks a lot of times about his country. But what is the problem? The mass-media, the mass-media only want that The Pope criticise to USA for this war in Iraq, the other things like the acussations against the Sharia, The reform of ONU, the reciprocity of freedom religion don´t go out in TV, newspapers or radios. And this is very sad.
Greetings

Hey Franze,

Don't bullshit about the Vatican clearly and loudly speaking up to condemn crimes against humanity. It is not in their tradition. Do you remember Pope Pio XII and his defening silence to save the Jews during World War II? What has the Vatican done to save the thousands and thousands of Catholics slaughtered in Indonesia and the burning of churches? You might be catholic and spanish but you seem blinded by Vatican propaganda.

Fayiz,
I don't know if Franze is blinded by Vatican propaganda, but you're certainly blinded by anti-Catholic propaganda. The Vatican spoke out against Hitler before he was ever elected. I'm not making this up...it is documented. Many prominent Jews thanked the Pope for hiding Jews from the German. Nothing the Vatican does is ever good enough for some people.

Can you name any other religious organization that did more?

for the first time in this whole mess, i can say i am proud of the catholic church standing up against the muslims. we should have more of this type of communica from the vatican more often. fitsgerald should be made pope. bravo for the church.