Christian supporters of Israel ready to fill philanthropic void

[bemildred]

The international Christian community, under the auspices of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), is ready to step in and partially fill the void that could be left if American funding is cut for Jewish social welfare organizations and programs in Israel and the Former Soviet Union (FSU), The Jerusalem Post has learned.

"We are in what I believe is a unique situation," IFCJ founder and president Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein told the Post this week. "Not only have our donations not been hurt , we are actually up by 39.8 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to last year. The bottom line is that we are one of the few organizations where our giving has increased."

Last year the IFCJ raised a total of $90 million, which it in turn donated to a wide range of social welfare programs for young children, needy families and the elderly both here and in the FSU.

Officials with the American arms of both the Jewish Agency for Israel and the Joint Distribution Committee told the Post last week they were concerned about possible cuts in funding from federations across North America under budget proposals being considered by the United Jewish Communities, the umbrella organization that channels donations to both JAFI and JDC.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1238562941427&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[Howardx]

1. because there are no needy families in america

:eyes:

[Neo Atheist]

2. Yes, how dare this group look beyond our borders

And fuck Hollywood celebs who want the genocide in Darfur to stop, people are hungry here!

[Howardx]

3. charity begins at home

jerkoff.

[Neo Atheist]

11. any other buchananite nonsense?

[shaayecanaan]

4. Pigs might fly...

Israel receives $5 bn in private largesse per year. Much of that is pissed up against the wall on executives and personalised mugs but a lot of it still helps prop up social services in Israel. $90 million is not a piss in a pot in the grand scheme of things.

Current financial difficulties aside, the largesse will drop off anyway, as disinterest in Israel grows and Jewish assimilation in the US proceeds apace. Israel is not alone in that regard, many countries with expatriate populations in the US - Filipinos for example - are sending less money back to those countries, as their bond with their origins waxes and wanes with time.

[bemildred]

5. Well, that's true.

I mean it's not much as these things go. And there a lot of places that have relied on remittances from the empire that are going to have to adjust.

But I thought it was nice to see that the connection between antisemitism and Christianity is not mandatory.

[bemildred]

6. I also thought it was worth noticing that there is a "philanthropic void". nt

[shaayecanaan]

7. Something else I noticed

Swearing in the Guardian blogs. Its quite interesting in that there still seems to be a powerful stigma against saying "c***". I even bleeped out "c***"; I never bleep out "fuck". Society's only remaining unutterable, it seems. A pity wank is not used more often - blame it on the Americans I guess.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/pda/2009/apr/03/research-digital-media

[bemildred]

8. The British have come a long way.

Must be the internet. Insults have to be un-bigoted. I do what I can for "wank", but it's a lonely battle.

[bemildred]

9. And consider this:

Iowa Gay Marriage Opponent Says “Suck” a Lot

http://allspinzone.com/wp/2009/04/07/iowa-gay-marriage-opponent-says-suck-a-lot/

[IndianaGreen]

10. These Xtians are not supporting Israel. They are supporting a rightwing government

that disavows having any peace process that leads to a Palestinian state. They are doing Israel no favours.

[oberliner]

12. Social welfare programs for the hungry and the elderly = Right Wing?

Not sure what providing food, shelter, housing, and clothing to poor Israelis has to do with supporting the RW government in Israel.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

13. In principle, nothing.

In practice, I would be willing to bet all Lombard Street to a china orange that a large majority of those American Christians choosing to direct a significant part of their charitable giving to Israeli charities are doing so because of their support for right-wing Israeli government policies more than out of humanitarian motives.

Which is not to say that giving support to the hungry is not a creditable act, but I can't help but think that a) the motivation tarnishes it somewhat, and b) there are many, many other better charitable causes.

[oberliner]

14. I would respectfully disagree

In fact, if I were to assign an ulterior motive here I would argue that it may be an attempt to spread the word of the Gospel to non-believers. I know that some Christian charities have included some such sharing along with their food and clothing.

In any case, one of the most admirable features of many religions is the extensive charitable giving, in my opinion.

[azurnoir]

16. Are claiming that is all IFCJ does sounds so

noble and all but would you consider things such as funding bomb shelters in Sderot something that a charitable organization does? This is the ad they have been running on Fox News

http://www.ifcj.org/site/PageNavigator/eng/news/rocket_attacks

[IndianaGreen]

17. Have you read AJ Cronin's The Keys of the Kingdom?

Have you read A.J. Cronin's The Keys of the Kingdom? If you haven't, I highly recommend it. I particularly recommend the part about "rice bowl" Christians in China.

[azurnoir]

15. A report on IFCJ

makes for quite an interesting read

http://israelity.com/2009/01/19/ifcjs-tv-ad-campaign/

[Jefferson23]

18. That TV ad, all I could think was, poor Obama.

[Ken Burch]

19. Because "pro-Israel" Christians want to keep the settlements expanding

and expanding, so that eventually they can start the chain of events that leads to the End Times(and the ultimate dream of "pro-Israel" Christians:making the Jews choose between conversion and death).