I’m in Israel for seven days for the annual meeting of the Alliance for the Future of Israel, of which I am a board member.  AFFI is an organization which brings together Christians and Jews to support the development of Israel.

A close friend of mine who has been here many times told me that the most striking thing would be looking around and seeing that I was in the majority for the first time in my life.  She’s right – I toured the Western Wall of Jerusalem tonight and could tell by the Orthodox attire on the men and the prayer scarves on the women that this place was different from anywhere else in the world.

I’m excited about the week ahead, both as a Jew and a follower of Christ, to learn about the roots of my people and of my faith.

Boarding the train in Vienna, destined for the unknown, was the hardest thing Amelia Weiss thought she would face.

Born in Vienna in 1893, Amelia and her three sisters led privileged lives. When she married Samuel Mentzer in 1914, they decided to leave Vienna for America, hoping to escape the growing persecution of Jews. Though it was difficult leaving her sisters — Berta, Helene and Sara — she was excited to begin her new life and raise a family.

From England to Canada they travelled, finally settling in Cincinnati in 1919. They opened a diner in Price Hill and together raised three children: Carl, Philip and Clara.

And through the years, they watched the situation in their beloved Austria turn deadly.

Amelia never learned the fate of her sisters before her own death in 1977. She only knew that her letters went unanswered after 1940. Read the full story

Washington politics seems polarized and petty.

When the president spoke to Congress on health care reform last week, Republicans repeatedly waved white packets of paper which they said were alternate healthcare reform bills they had proposed but had gone ignored by Democratic leadership and the White House.

Rep. Joe Wilson of South Carolina shouted “you lie!” after Obama denied that health care legislation would provide coverage for illegal aliens.

During former President Bush’s State of the Union address in 2005, Democrats booed and hissed as Bush proclaimed that Social Security would be “exhausted and bankrupt” by 2042.

Proverbs 20:3 says that “It is to a man’s honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel.” Read the full story

Despite an average outstanding credit card debt of more than $10,000, the government is urging Americans to spend more to stimulate the economy.

With programs such as “Cash for Clunkers”, the stimulus package passed in February 2009 includes incentives for Americans to continue spending in the hopes that buying more big ticket items – such as automobiles – will fuel the US’s stagnate economy.

But the increased spending comes at a price.

According to the Federal Reserve, American credit card debt alone is $939.6 billion. The average outstanding credit card debt for households that have a credit card was $10,679 at the end of 2008. One year earlier, that average was $10,637. Read the full story