JERUSALEM: ONE NATION’S CAPITAL THROUGHOUT HISTORY: For more than 3,000 years, Jerusalem has played a central role in the history of the Jews, culturally, politically, and spiritually, a role first documented in the Scriptures. All through the 2,000 years of the diaspora, Jews have called Jerusalem their ancestral home. Jews in prayer always turn toward Jerusalem. When Muslims pray, they face Mecca. The Old Testament mentions "Jerusalem" 349 times. "Zion," another name for Jerusalem, is mentioned 108 times. The Quran never mentions Jerusalem even once. Jews end Passover Seders and Yom Kippur prayers each year with the words: "Next year in Jerusalem." The Arab rulers who controlled eastern Jerusalem through the 1950s and 1960s demonstrated no religious tolerance. That changed after the Six-Day War in 1967 when Israel regained control of the whole city. One of Israel's first steps was to officially recognize and respect all religious interests in Jerusalem. (Myths and Facts) In spite of God’s word, and thousands of years of Jewish history connected to Jerusalem, in a blasphemous move Thurs. 13 Oct. 2016 in Paris, UNESCO passed a Palestinian-backed measure that denies a Jewish connection to the Old City of Jerusalem.

A second resolution by the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) denying any and all connections between the city of Jerusalem and the Jewish religion or people passed on Wednesday morning, though not by a large majority.

With ten votes in favor, two against, and eight abstentions, the 21-member World Heritage Committee did not produce a consensus vote, which would have had the appearance of a unanimous decision, as the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Jordan had hoped, but a secret ballot, allowing each member state to vote individually.

The PA partnered with Jordan to send threatening letters to each member-state on Tuesday, essentially saying that if the resolution did not pass, the Arab contingency would submit even harsher anti-Israel texts.

Read more at http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/77561/second-unesco-resolution-proclaims-jerusalem-muslim-city-temple-mount-islamic-site/#gVC7hzVLC1MLqZ8F.99

 The Executive Board of UNESCO has approved an irresponsible measure that denies Jerusalem's historical record and diminishes Jewish and Christian ties to the holy city. This approach is both flawed and dangerous; a peaceful resolution and the future of Jerusalem cannot be dictated, it must be mutually agreed upon by both the Palestinians and Israelis. Nowhere in the UNESCO document will you see any culpability for the Palestinian Authority's incitement to violence and terror that has gripped Jerusalem over the past year. UNESCO and the UN wish to recognize the Palestinians as a legitimate and self-governing state, but when it comes to accountability, it absolves their leaders of any responsibility for the actions of their people. That is why it is incumbent upon the USA to vehemently oppose measures like this and stand in support of Israel to defeat efforts aimed at delegitimizing the Jewish state's right to exist. When the agency tasked with preserving history and culture is erasing it, the system is obviously broken.(Ha’aretz) 
Pray for your government’s support of Israel, and reap benefits for your nation. Measures being taken against the Jewish State - according to scripture - are going to backfire in a very unpleasant way: 
“I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you.” Genesis 12:3

UNESCO SAYS JEWS HAVE NO CONNECTION TO TEMPLE MOUNT: The UN passed a resolution Thurs. 13 Oct. 2016, denying the Jewish connection to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. The resolution was supported by 24 states, including Russia and China. Six countries opposed and 26 abstained. The resolution maintains that the Western Wall and Temple Mount will be referred to by their Arabic names and the Hebrew terms for the sites will only appear in quotation marks in UN references. Earlier Israel had tried to prevent the decision, even asking the Vatican to help prevent the resolution. Though the Vatican only holds observer status at UNESCO, meaning it cannot vote, it still plays a role in the behind-the-scenes dynamics of the organization. Israel's Ambassador to the Vatican, Oren David, contacted the Vatican's Under-Secretary for Relations with States to ask that the Vatican work to convince UNESCO's member states to vote against the Palestinian initiative. Israel has tried to make the point that such a resolution would harm Christian interests in Jerusalem as well as Jewish interests. Much like other UN organizations, UNESCO has an automatic anti-Israel majority. Israel and the USA both worked against the resolution. Days ago, a group of USA Congressmen signed a letter to UNESCO urging the organization not to attempt to rewrite history. (Arutz-7) “Surely the idolatrous commotion on the hills and mountains is a deception; surely in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.” Jeremiah 3:23 

YOUTUBE PUTS PRO-ISRAEL VIDEOS ON ‘RESTRICTED MODE: Youtube, owned by Google, has placed 21 videos of non-profit educational organization “Prager University,” run by conservative talk-show host Dennis Prager, on “restricted mode.” Among these are three pro-Israel videos relating to the founding of Israel, the IDF, and Palestinian refugees. Restricted mode allows guardians to protect children from objectionable content by filtering out “restricted” videos in Youtube searches. “PragerU” videos are designed to be viewed by all ages. One of the restricted PragerU Israel-related videos, entitled “Why are There Still Palestinian Refugees?” explains that while Jewish refugees from Arab countries were quickly absorbed into Israel, Arab countries have intentionally refrained from absorbing Palestinian refugees so as to continue to use the Palestinians as a political tool. The second video, entitled “The World’s Most Moral Army,” features retired British general Richard Kemp explaining the uniqueness of the Israeli army in its intense care not to injure innocent civilians on the battlefield. The third video, entitled “Israel’s Legal Founding,” features world-renowned attorney Alan Dershowitz relating how Israel was founded “step by legal step.” (Arutz-7)

USA SLAMS ISRAELI PLANS TO BUILD 98 NEW HOMES IN JUDEA & SAMARIA: The USA has sharply criticized an Israeli plan to build 98 homes in the Judea & Samaria community of Shiloh. The homes were approved as a possible site to relocate 40 families from the outpost of Amona, which the Supreme Court has ruled is built on private Palestinian land and must be moved by the end of the year. “We strongly condemn the Israeli government’s recent decision to advance a plan that would create a significant new settlement deep in the West Bank, [Judea & Samaria]” State Department spokesman Mark Toner said. He added that the location of the new housing would be far closer to Jordan than to Israel, linking a string of outposts” making the possibility of an independent Palestinian state more remote. Israel hit back with a statement from the Foreign Ministry denying that the planned homes constitute a new settlement. “This housing will be built on state land in the existing settlement of Shilo and will not change its municipal boundary or geographic footprint. The units are intended to provide a housing solution for the residents of Amona who must leave their homes in accordance with the demolition order issued by Israel’s High Court of Justice.” Likewise the European Union (EU) on Friday 7 Oct. 2016, issued a statement condemning Israel for approving the construction of 98 homes on Israel’s government-owned land in Shilo. (Media Line/INN)

 The situation of Jews in Europe today is like a person standing on train tracks while two trains approach on a collision path. Chief Rabbi of Moscow, Panchas Goldschmidt, explained that "one train is radical Islam and Islamic terrorism, the other train is the antisemitism of old Europe, the extreme right." He told the EU Parliament that both are existential threats and are the cause of "tens of thousands of Jews leaving France, Belgium and other European countries. This has resulted in a high percentage of people afraid to go to Jewish events and synagogue on holidays, he added. Goldschmidt stated that anti-Semitism in Europe is so rampant that "40% of 1,200 Jews surveyed in France said they avoided wearing symbols that identified them as Jews for fear of anti-Semitic attacks." The Chief Rabbi called on Parliament to create an anti-terrorist task force to combat Islamic terror. Martin Schultz, president of the European Parliament, stated that "when we see that the Jewish population in Europe has decreased from almost four million in 1945 to barely more than one million today, then we know that it is time not only to make a clear political statement, but to take effective action as soon as possible. Europe has to be a better home for its Jewish citizens." (J.Post)

SHIMON PERES’ SECRET: Former President Shimon Peres confidentially revealed to Israel’s daily, the Jerusalem Post, two years ago that he had intervened to stop PM Binyamin Netanyahu from bombing Iran. Steve Linde, formerly the editor-in-chief of the newspaper, revealed Peres’ comments in an article on 29 Sept. 2016. Linde said that Peres had dropped the bombshell in a meeting with Linde and Jerusalem Post Managing Editor David Brinn at the Peres Center for Peace on 24 August 2014. “I have thought long and hard about whether to publish it, and reached the conclusion that he wouldn’t have told us if he didn’t want us to,” wrote Linde. “During the course of the conversation (in which just the three of us sat and chatted over coffee), Brinn asked Peres what he considered the greatest achievement of his presidency. He responded by saying that he had personally intervened to stop Netanyahu from ordering a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear sites,” he added. Peres reportedly told the two, “I don’t want to go into details, but I can tell you that he was ready to launch an attack and I stopped him. I told him the consequences would be catastrophic.” Then, asked by Linde whether they can report this, Peres replied with a smile, “When I’m dead.” (J.Post/Arutz-7)

WHITE HOUSE CORRECTS OBAMA SPEECH TRANSCRIPT LISTING JERUSALEM IN ISRAEL: USA President Barack Obama offered heartfelt condolences at the funeral of his late friend, Shimon Peres, on Friday 30 Sept. 2016, traveling for 22 hours to spend just six on the ground in a show of support. But whether he was on Israeli ground to pay respects to one of the founding fathers of the Jewish state is a question that now risks eclipsing his gesture, after the White House issued an embarrassing correction indicating that Jerusalem is, in fact, disputed territory. The transcript of Obama's eulogy of Peres, who was buried on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, originally listed the ceremony was held in Jerusalem, Israel. Six hours later, the White House sent out a corrected version of the transcript with Israel explicitly crossed out of the header.

While the Democratic Party Platform recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the State Department has long demurred from doing so– and does not refer to the city, unified since 1967, as Israeli territory. House Speaker Paul Ryan's office weighed in immediately upon hearing of the correction. "Speaker Ryan was proud to visit Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, earlier this year," his spokesperson, AshLee Strong, told media sources. Israeli officials privately expressed frustration at the White House's move, but declined to immediately comment. The Israeli government has long maintained that Jerusalem is its "undivided and eternal capital," and will remain so under any peace agreement resulting in the establishment of a Palestinian state. (J.Post) “The moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed; for the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and before His elders, gloriously.” Isa 24:23

ROSH HASHANAH 2016: Rosh Hashanah - the Jewish New Year also known as the Feast of Trumpets begins in the evening of Sunday 2 October, and ends in the evening of Tuesday 4 October. The first of the Biblical autumn festivals, Rosh Hashanah celebrates the birth of the world and humanity. Symbolic foods such as apples and honey are central to the holiday, symbolizing the sweetness, health, success and good deeds which we hope the coming year will bring. In the midst of the troubled Middle East, we will pause in Israel to thank God for His sovereign goodness to us and to others throughout the exiting year. May His blessing be showered upon all of you who love Israel. A sweet and a good year from your friends at Vision for Israel. Please remember to intercede for the safety of all of those visiting in Israel, as well as those travelling abroad during the High Holidays. Pray against terrorist attacks, rocket fire and for the protection of all of the nation’s residents, borders and communities during this season.