O’Brien gave no clue as to what exactly his sexual misbehaviour consisted of but O’Brien’s time as cardinal ended as it began in controversy. In 2003, as a condition of being made a cardinal, he was forced to issue a public pledge to defend church teaching on homosexuality, celibacy and contraception. He was pressured to make the pledge after he had called for a “full and open discussion” on such matters. At the time, O’Brien stated he had been misunderstood and wanted to clarify his position. However previous statements made before the scandal over his behaviour broke, O’Brien stated celibacy should be reconsidered because it’s not based on doctrine but rather church tradition and “is not of divine origin.

By Evelyn Gordon
JINSA Fellow

January 24, 2013: When the Palestinian Authority (PA) obtained UN recognition as a nonmember observer state in November, many Israelis feared the consequences for Israel: After all, PA President Mahmoud Abbas stated openly that he sought recognition primarily “to pursue claims against Israel” in international forums. Those fears may yet prove justified. But so far, the biggest victim of Abbas’s UN bid has been the PA itself.

The PA currently faces the worst financial crisis of its crisis-filled history. According to PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, it’s in “extreme jeopardy,” and on the “verge of being completely incapacitated.” Its 150,000 employees have received only half their November salaries and nothing for December. It “owes local banks more than $1.3 billion and can’t get more loans,” the Associated Press reported. It “also owes hundreds of millions of dollars to private businesses, including suppliers to hospitals, some of whom have stopped doing business with the government.” And it expects the poverty rate to double, to a whopping 50 percent of the total Palestinian population in the territories, if the crisis isn’t resolved soon.

So dire is the situation that a mere month after the vote, Abbas was already threatening to dissolve the PA and return full control of the territory to Israel if things didn’t improve quickly. If the PA can’t even pay salaries, he said, “What’s left for us to do?”

In short, far from augmenting Palestinians’ independence, the UN vote has endangered even the limited autonomy they currently have. For the financial crisis is a direct consequence of that vote – and, even worse, a totally predictable one.

The first source of the crisis is that Israel stopped transferring roughly $100 million a month in taxes it collects on the PA’s behalf. Contrary to Fayyad’s disingenuous charge of Israeli “piracy,” this merely ended an ongoing Palestinian piracy: For years, the PA hadn’t paid its bills to the Israel Electric Corporation, but Israel swallowed the loss, at considerable sacrifice: The IEC’s finances are so precarious that it can’t raise money without government guarantees. Last year, it sought a 30% rate hike from Israeli consumers to stabilize them. Yet Israel’s agreements with the Palestinians entitle the state to cover such debts by withholding money from the monthly transfers. The Israeli government repeatedly warned both the PA and UN member states that if the UN bid went forward, in violation of all Israeli-Palestinian agreements, it would withhold the full NIS 800 million (about $214 million) it was owed to it.

Second, Congress has been withholding some $450 million in U.S. aid – and though the Obama administration wants this money released, Congress hasn’t yet agreed. This, too, was known in advance: Washington repeatedly warned that the UN bid “would have significant negative consequences” for America’s “ability to maintain our significant financial support for the Palestinian Authority.”

Third, though Arab states promised to cover the shortfall emergency donation (which hasn’t yet arrived), but no money is even in the pipeline for the following months. And despite Fayyad’s professed bewilderment at this lapse (“I have no explanation,” he said), it was completely predictable: Arab states have serially defaulted on previous pledges to the PA, so why would they behave differently this time?

Finally, there’s the PA’s own fiscal mismanagement – from the billions of dollars it pours into Hamas-run Gaza, including paying 60,000 former PA employees full-time salaries to sit at home and do nothing, to such grandiose money-wasters as allocating more than $1 million to commemorate the 48th anniversary of Fatah’s first terrorist attack on Israel (even as its own employees go unpaid) or booking first-class tickets and five-star hotels for 22 Arab foreign ministers to attend its UN triumph (though most never showed). This, too, was well-known.

Nevertheless, the PA opted to proceed with the UN bid. In short, it walked into a full-blown fiscal crisis with eyes wide open. And only nine countries opposed this decision.

Or, to put it another way, the PA deliberately chose to subject its own people to severe financial hardship – tens of thousands of breadwinners with unpaid salaries, a skyrocketing poverty rate – for the sake of scoring points against Israel in the international arena. And virtually the entire world knowingly abetted this choice rather than insisting that the PA put its people’s welfare first.

The sorriest part of this story, however, is that it isn’t unusual. The PA has consistently put harming Israel ahead of helping its own people – most notably, as I explained in a previous JINSA column, by refusing repeated Israeli offers of statehood, thereby leaving millions of Palestinian refugees vulnerable to repression and expulsion from other Mideast countries. And Western countries have consistently supported this self-destructive behavior, out of a misguided notion that by supporting the PA’s positions, they “bolster” the PA and thereby help the Palestinian people.

The UN bid was a prime example: Several European countries said they voted yes or abstained because Hamas’s popularity was boosted by its conflict with Israel in November, so they needed to bolster Abbas by giving him a “victory” too – even if, as some European ambassadors admitted, this “victory” might actually “lead to further hardening of positions instead of improving chances of a two-state solution.”

Similarly, the European Union repeatedly and explicitly backs PA demands on final-status issues like borders and Jerusalem while not explicitly demanding any Palestinian concessions. Yet this effort to bolster the PA’s negotiating position merely reinforces the Palestinian delusion that no reciprocal concessions are required, even on obvious deal-breakers like the “right of return.” President Obama sought to bolster the PA by backing its demand for an Israeli settlement freeze, only to have Palestinians dismiss the “unprecedented” freeze he secured as “worse than useless” and refuse even to begin negotiations.

Indeed, after 20 years of Western efforts to “bolster” the PA, not only is there still no Palestinian state, but the PA itself is on the brink of financial collapse. So instead of clinging to the same failed tactics, perhaps Western governments should try something different.

Rather than “bolstering” the PA by acceding to its every whim, however self-destructive, while constantly seeking more Israeli concessions, they should try pressing Palestinians to finally make the concessions needed to seal a deal. It couldn’t possibly fail more miserably. And it just might work better.

Evelyn Gordon, JINSA Fellow, is a journalist and commentator writing in The Jerusalem Post and Commentary.

The book, which is being published in multiple languages in time for Christmas 2012, is the third in a series by the pontiff. The 176-page volume, which comprises a brief foreword, four chapters and an epilogue, traces Jesus’ life up to the age of 12, when, according to the Gospels, he was presented by his parents in the Temple in Jerusalem, the Vatican stated. The previous two volumes dealt with Jesus’ adult life and his public ministry. The initial worldwide print run with the book released across 50 countries in Italian, German, Croatian, French, English, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish. In the coming months, the book will be translated into 12 more languages for publication in 72 countries in total,

Alessandro Speciale, Vatican correspondent for the Religion News Service, stated the pope was not so much aiming to debunk myths as trying to show that the Jesus depicted in the Gospels is a real historical figure, who walked on earth and talked to people like anyone else.The pope also looks at scholarly studies of the Bible, some of which have indicated for decades that the traditionally accepted birth date for Jesus is wrong. While the book points out that the Gospels do not support the presence of animals at Jesus’ birth, this detail was apparently added in later centuries. Speciale stated the pope is a traditional man and does not suggest they should be thrown out of the Nativity scene and he doesn’t want people to change their traditions.

The Vatican quotes Anthony Valle, a professor of theology, as stating the pope has been open to scientific inquiry in his own study of Jesus’ life. “The pope is not against the historical critical method at all, in fact, he uses it, he appreciates it,” Valle stated. He sees the pope as using “both faith and reason” in his efforts to bring the life of Jesus closer. Monsignor Philip Whitmore, who translated the book into English, stated the pontiff used his writing to explore “the inner meaning of the infancy narratives, showing how they pick up on Old Testament themes and develop them in new and unexpected ways.” “The pope helps us to understand the world where Jesus was born. Caesar brought peace to the Roman Empire, but this tiny child brought something much more wonderful, God’s peace, eternal life, an end to sin and death,” Whitmore added. “Anyone who’s wondering why Christmas came to be such a great celebration in the West can find the answer right here. The pope explains how the birth of Jesus changed history forever.”

Pope Benedict XVI also writes in his book “Jesus of Nazareth, that the Jewish people are not collectively responsible for the death of Jesus. Many Catholics and other Christians blamed Jews for Jesus’ death for hundreds of years, but the Catholic Church formally repudiated that assertion in the 1960s. Benedict underlines the new position; “Who has insisted on the condemnation of Jesus to death?” he asks in the book, referring to scenes in the Gospels where the people of Jerusalem demand that Roman governor Pontius Pilate have Jesus crucified. The Gospel of John says the people in question were “the Judeans,” but the pope says the term “does not refer to unlike the modern reader may tend to interpret, the people of Israel as such, and it doesn’t even have a ‘racist’ connotation.” Far from meaning all Jewish people, Benedict writes, “the circle of prosecutors pursuing the death of Jesus” is the “aristocracy of the Temple,” or the priesthood. “Even that is not without exception,” he adds in the book.

The question arises as to whether Muslim Waqf is attempting to destroy all traces of the Temple Mount Biblical documentation and including the presence of the Divine Authority [God] in this Holy Place?

A similar theft of government identity for use in dissemination of missionary materials took place recently in Israel. Yad L’Achim recently sent an urgent letter to Israel’s Water Authority after it learned that one of the authority’s employees was distributing missionary booklets in official government envelopes identifying the sender as “The State of Israel.” “Recently, booklets claiming to offer information on ‘A Better Life’ have been distributed around the country,” Yad L’Achim stated. “We are talking about a mystical missionary cult that originated in Turkey and draws from strange religions whose members seek to enlist more people into its ranks. The booklet was distributed by Mr. …, one of your employees, via the Water Authority. You are being used to distribute this material, with which you clearly have no connection, but which causes serious damage.”

The response from the Water Authority was quick in coming. “In light of your letter, the director of the authority ordered a hearing for the worker. It was made clear to him that he violated the rules of service in the public sector and that significant disciplinary measures would be considered against him. The Water Authority will do everything in its power to ensure that such events do not repeat themselves.” Yad L’Achim commented that “once again it has been proven that the missionaries won’t desist from any means to entrap innocent Jews and get them to leave their religion” and stated that it would continue to act to torpedo the deceptive actions of missionaries, using all the legitimate means at its disposal.

Dr. Hillel stated he is pleased to be receiving the award, the urgent work of providing water and food for humanity is by no means finished. His joy and gratitude at being granted the World Food Prize this year is tempered by the realization that the work this award recognizes is far from complete.

Hillel stated, the task of improving the sustainable management of the Earth’s finite and vulnerable soil, water, and energy resources for the benefit of humanity while sustaining the natural biotic community and its overall environmental integrity is an ongoing and increasingly urgent challenge for our generation and for future generations. Meeting this challenge will require enhanced global cooperation and integrated scientific research.

Dr. Hillel spent part of his childhood in the Jezreel and Jordan Valleys, where he acquired a lifelong interest in agriculture and ecology. In 1951, after earning a master’s degree in earth sciences at Rutgers University in New Jersey, he returned to Israel to help in the young state’s development. He took part in surveying the country’s land and water resources and was a founding member of Sde Boker in the Negev.

His research has led to a shift from what was then the prevailing method of irrigation. The new methods conceived and developed by Dr. Hillel applied water in small but continuous amounts directly to plant roots, cutting the amount of water needed to nourish crops, maintaining their consistent health and resulting in higher crop yields to feed more people.

Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, president of the World Food Prize Foundation, announced Dr. Daniel Hillel will be presented with the $250,000 award in October, 2012. Ambassador Quinn emphasized the importance not only of Dr. Hillel’s scientific achievement but also his dedication to working with people across borders, to help improve food security for all. Quinn stated, “confronting hunger can bring diverse people together across even the broadest political, ethnic, religious or diplomatic differences.

Ambassador Quinn stated, Dr. Hillel’s work and motivation has been to bridge such divisions and to promote peace and understanding in the Middle East by advancing a breakthrough achievement addressing a problem that so many countries share in common: water scarcity. It is significant that Dr. Hillel’s nomination for the World Food Prize contained letters of support from individuals and organizations in Jordan, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.”

In addition to the prison sentence, he was also fined $15 million and his properties were ordered confiscated. He and two associates were convicted of taking a total of $33.5 million from the foreign donor-financed Palestinian Investment Fund.
Rashid, left the Palestinian territories after Arafat’s death in November 2004 and has rarely been seen since. It is assumed he is holds business interests in four Middle Eastern countries and Montenegro. The Palestinian Authority has requested those countries to freeze his assets and extradite him. Rashid several months ago threatened to disclose purported secrets about the rise to power of Arafat’s successor, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Arafat put the shadowy Rashid, a former journalist with no business training, in charge of most of his finances. Arafat used large amounts of money to buy loyalty. The first decade of the Palestinian Authority, formed in 1994, was marked by rampant corruption and official mismanagement. In 2003, the international community, was concerned about millions in foreign aid going to waste.

The Society has opposed the Vatican’s decades-long outreach to Jews, Muslims and members of other faiths. More broadly, it opposes the liberalizing reforms the Vatican enacted in the 1960s. Pope Benedict XVI is striving for church unity.

The Vatican stated that Fellay’s group has been given until mid-April “to reflect and clarify” its position.

Williams also caused a political storm in 2008 by suggesting that Islamic Sharia law could have a role in Britain in settling some disputes. The ensuing frenzy ignored the fact that Islamic principles were already used to settle some disputes. The archbishop gained the support of Lord Phillips, then the senior judge in England, who felt there was no reason why Sharia principles, or any other religious code, should not be the basis for mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution.

Williams maintained warm relations with Roman Catholics even as Pope Benedict XVI created an ordinariate to receive traditionalist Anglicans who remain opposed to female priests and could not accept female bishops and other changes within the church.

Williams has a deep connection with Cambridge University, where he studied theology at Christ’s College and then served as a tutor at Westcott House, a Church of England theological college in the city. He lectured in the School of Divinity from 1980 to 1986, and was dean and chaplain of Clare College from 1984 to 1986.

Much of Williams’ time as archbishop was devoted to trying to hold the diverse churches within the Anglican Communion together despite an often bitter dispute over homosexuality, which put conservative and growing African churches at odds with liberal churches in the United States and Canada.

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O’Toole is mainly revered by Roman Catholics, however Christ Church Cathedral has been a centre of worship for the Anglican-affiliated Church of Ireland since the Reformation. O’Toole was Dublin’s archbishop from 1162 to 1180 and gained a reputation as a skilful mediator between rival Gaelic and Norman factions then fighting for power in Ireland. He died aged 58 while travelling in Normandy on a peace mission.

Pope Honorius III canonized O’Toole in 1225 on the weight of many claims of miracles at his original grave site. O’Toole’s heart had been the last surviving part of his remains. His bones were reinterred in an English church yard in 1442, but were dug up and disappeared during the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century.

Ireland’s churches have suffered several similar robberies of irreplaceable religious artifacts. Three relics believed to be fragments of the cross used to crucify Jesus were stolen from Holy Cross Abbey in County Tipperary. In a northside Dublin church a thief stole the ornate container housing the jawbone of Saint Brigid,one of Ireland’s earliest and most venerated saints. The container or reliquary was bolted down to the altar. However, it had just been cleaned and so the jawbone of Saint Brigid wasn’t inside.