US abstains for first time in UN vote against Cuba embargo

Yahoo – AFP, Carole Landry, October 26, 2016

Cuban students listen to Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez delivering his
 speech at the United Nations in New York calling for an end to the US embargo
against Cuba on October 26, 2016 at the University of Havana, in the Cuban
capital (AFP Photo/Adalberto Roque)

United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The United States on Wednesday abstained for the first time in 25 years from a vote at the United Nations calling for an end to the US embargo against Cuba.

The UN General Assembly adopted the annual resolution by an overwhelming vote of 191 votes in favor -- with only the United States and Israel abstaining in the 193-nation forum.

Washington's abstention was in line with calls from President Barack Obama for the opposition-controlled Congress to lift the decades-old embargo as part of a historic normalization of relations.

"The United States has always voted against this resolution. Today the United States will abstain," US Ambassador Samantha Power told the assembly, drawing loud applause.

"After 55-plus years of pursuing the path of isolation, we are choosing to take the path of engagement."

The United States restored diplomatic ties with Cuba in July 2015 and a month later re-opened its embassy in Havana. Obama made a landmark visit to the communist-ruled island in March.

But restoring full trade and financial ties with Cuba would require legislative action by Congress, where the Republican majority has said human rights concerns must first be addressed.

Power recalled that the US policy aimed at isolating Cuba "was not working" 

and had instead isolated the United States (AFP Photo/Don Emmert)

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez welcomed the US shift as positive, but said that Washington must take concrete steps that go beyond the "vote of one delegation in this forum."

"The blockade continues to be a massive, flagrant and systematic violation of the human rights of all Cuban men and women and qualifies as an act of genocide," Rodriguez said.

Economic damage suffered by Cuba from the US embargo between April 2015 and March 2016 -- coinciding with the time of Obama's first meeting with President Raul Castro to his historic Havana visit -- is estimated at more than $4.68 billion, Rodriguez said.

Over the past six decades, the damage from "this genocidal policy" amounts to $753.688 billion, he added.

Cuba still suffering

Embargo restrictions have prevented the sale of US medical equipment to treat Cubans suffering from Parkinson's disease and blocked a deal by a Cuban pharmaceutical company that would have allowed it to produce drugs locally, said the foreign minister.

"There isn't any Cuban family or sector in our country that has not suffered from its effects," he said.

This year's resolution takes note of steps taken by the Democratic Obama administration to ease the embargo, describing them as positive but "still limited in scope."

Students of the University of Havana in the Cuban capital on October 26, 2016 

celebrate after the the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling for an 

end to the US embargo against Cuba (AFP Photo/Adalberto Rpque)

The measure calls on all UN member states to refrain from applying the embargo and to "reaffirm the freedom of trade and navigation."

Last year, the United States and Israel were the only two countries that voted against the non-binding resolution, but 191 voted in favor -- the highest level of support yet for the measure at the United Nations.

Power recalled that the US policy aimed at isolating Cuba "was not working" and had instead isolated the United States.

"Abstaining on this resolution does not mean that the United States agrees with all of the policies and practices of the Cuban government. We do not," said Power.

After praising Cuba for sending hundreds of doctors to West Africa to fight the Ebola virus outbreak, Power said the United States and Cuba must continue to find ways to engage, despite differences.

"Today, we have taken another small step to be able to do that. May there be many more -- including, we hope, finally ending the US embargo," she said.

The assembly has voted each year since 1992 to approve the resolution criticizing the embargo that was imposed in 1960, at the height of the Cold War.

The United States broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1961 after Fidel Castro rose to power and aligned himself with the then-Soviet Union.

Argentine prosecutor found dead after linking alleged Iran plot to president

A prosecutor who accused the Argentinian president of a cover-up to avoid investigating Iranians suspected of a 1994 terrorist attack has been found shot dead. Alberto Nisman was due at a closed hearing on Monday.

Deutsche Welle, 19 Jan 2015

Special prosecutor Alberto Nisman was found shot dead in the bathroom of his Buenos Aires apartment late on Sunday, authorities said.

Nisman, 51, was appointed 10 years ago by late Argentinian President Nestor Kirchner to investigate the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in the capital that killed 85 people.

Last week, Nisman accused current President Cristina Fernandez, Kirchner's widow, of back channel deals with Iran so as to avoid investigating the attack. A legal suit he filed accused Fernandez of working to absolve the Iranian officials accused of orchestrating the attack.

Nisman was due to testify on Monday in a closed-door hearing with Congress over his claim.

"The president and her foreign minister took the criminal decision to fabricate Iran's innocence to sate Argentina's commercial, political and geopolitical interests," Nisman said last week. He said the deal was meant to foster trade between the two countries - providing oil to Argentina in exchange for grain exports.

Alberto Nisman

Argentina and Iran agreed in 2013 to establish a "truth commission" that would create a legal report about those implicated in the 1994 attack, and then interview them in Tehran. The deal limited questioning to five suspects namedin Interpol alerts, including former Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi.

The attack remains unsolved.

Apartment door locked from the inside

Nisman's body was found after his security detail, unable to reach him by phone or at his front door, alerted his family. Nisman's mother called a locksmith after the door was found locked with a key inserted into the deadlock on the inside of the apartment.

"Alberto Nisman was found dead on Sunday night in his flat on the 13th floor of the tower Le Parc, in the Buenos Aires district of Puerto Madero," the Argentine Security Ministry said in a statement.

"Next to Nisman's body ... a 22-calibre handgun was found, together with a bullet casing."

An autopsy will be carried out in the coming days.

Israel's foreign ministry expressed "deep sorrow" over Nisman's death.

jr/bw (Reuters, AP, dpa)

Related Article:

Service door to Argentinian prosecutor’s home not fully locked

Guatemala Mayans: from victims of discrimination to perpetrators?

Yahoo – AFP, Edgar Calderon, 31 Aug 2014

Urias Goldman, a member of the Orthodox Jewish community, speaks during a
 meeting with leaders of San Juan La Laguna at the headquarters of the Human
Rights Office in Guatemala City on August 27, 2014 (AFP Photo/Johan Ordonez)

Urias Goldman, a member of the Orthodox Jewish community, speaks during a meeting with leaders of San Juan La Laguna at the headquarters of the Human Rights Office in Guatemala City on August 27, 2014

Guatemala City (AFP) - Fearful of losing their culture and land, ethnic Maya people in Guatemala -- who have faced centuries of discrimination themselves -- drove out a group of 230 ultra-Orthodox Jews, experts say.

The Jewish group's departure from San Juan La Laguna, on the banks of Lake Atitlan some 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the capital Guatemala City, followed failed efforts reach a deal Wednesday.

"We are very pleased with the decision made by that group to avoid conflicts with (local) people," Miguel Vasquez, spokesman for the San Juan Council of Elders, told AFP by phone.

Most members of the small Jewish community are from the United States, Israel, Britain and Russia, and around 40 are Guatemalan. Approximately half are children.

Since October, the local indigenous population has accused the Orthodox Jews of discriminating against them and of violating Mayan customs. Maya elders also said the Jewish community sought to impose their religion and was undermining the Catholic faith predominant in the village.

Pedro Vasquez, leader of San Juan La Laguna community, speaks during a

 meeting with members of the Orthodox Jewish community at the headquarters of the

 Humang Rights Office in Guatemala City on August 27, 2014 (AFP Photo/

Johan Ordonez)

Rabbi Uriel Goldman, a representative of the Jewish group, told Prensa Libre newspaper his community had taken up residence temporarily in a Guatemala City hotel until it can find a place to relocate to in an outlying part of the capital area.

History repeats itself

Guatemala, a mountainous and scenic nation in Central America, cannot quite agree on how indigenous it is.

The government insists 42 percent of citizens belong to ethnic Maya tribes, traditional farmers who mainly speak Maya languages; indigenous leaders insist they represent 60 percent of the 15 million Guatemalans.

If the indigenous are right, they are starkly underrepresented in what is supposed to be a federal democracy.

During three centuries of Spanish colonialism, Mayans were marginalized. After independence in the early 1800s, they spent almost another two centuries living in relative isolation, with a Spanish-speaking ruling class in Guatemala City who long referred to Mayans as dolts for not speaking Spanish.

Yet many rural Guatemalans -- most indigenous live in rural areas on their traditional land -- have never been to school in any language.

Instead of embracing equal rights, including to education, in a democratic era, as recently as the 1990s, the traditional elite opted not to embrace bilingualism; not to push to guarantee rural educational equality; and not to have a strategy for integrating indigenous people into national life.

In Guatemala's 36-year civil war that ended in 1996, some 200,000 people were killed -- 93 percent of them at the hands of the government's armed forces, according to a United Nations report.

The report also found that 83 percent of victims were ethnic Mayans.

"Having gone through history losing land to expropriation, which has contributed to their poverty, ... and the state having been dysfunctional where they are concerned, really exacerbated" indigenous people's reaction in this culture clash, Guatemalan Mental Health League chief Marco Garabito, a sociologist, told AFP.

A member of a folk group holds a Mayan mask at the Tikal archaeological site

 in Peten departament, north of Guatemala city on December 20, 2012 (AFP

Photo/Hector Retamal)

The likelihood that more members of the Jewish community would keep coming triggered the Mayans' intense fears they could lose more of their lands.

But on Friday, the Human Rights Prosecutor's office said it regretted the "forced departure" of the Jewish group.

"There can be no justification for ... anyone claiming to have the right to threaten or expel foreigners from Guatemalan territory, or make them relocate," it said in a statement.

"The Jews are being attacked because of their ethnicity," said anthropologist Estuardo Zapeta. "That's discrimination, plain and simple."

Unfamiliar orthodoxy

The Lev Tahor community was founded in 1980 by Israeli Shlomo Helbrans, seeking to practice an austere interpretation of Judaism.

The community faced legal problems in the United States and Canada before running up against indigenous opposition in Guatemala.

Canadian media reports also said red flags had been raised by the group's treatment of children. But the group maintains its way of operating is nothing new.

Maya leaders were confounded by the group's customs and practices, offended that they did not respond when they were greeted by locals.

"They don't believe in Jesus Christ or the Virgin Mary. They do not work. They dress all in black. And they scare off tourists. They don't sleep at night, and they are out walking around on the streets when we were asleep," said the indigenous council's Vasquez.

The Jews said they were targeted by an "aggressive" subgroup of the Maya leadership.

"We are peaceful people. And to avoid anything more regrettable, we decided to leave that town," said Misael Santos, another representative of the Jewish group.

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"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“.   New Tolerance

Look for a softening of finger pointing and an awakening of new tolerance. There will remain many systems for different cultures, as traditions and history are important to sustaining the integrity of culture. So there are many in the Middle East who would follow the prophet and they will continue, but with an increase of awareness. It will be the increase of awareness of what the prophet really wanted all along - unity and tolerance. The angel in the cave instructed him to "unify the tribes and give them the God of Israel." You're going to start seeing a softening of intolerance and the beginning of a new way of being.

Eventually, this will create an acknowledgement that says, "You may not believe the way we believe, but we honor you and your God. We honor our prophet and we will love you according to his teachings. We don't have to agree in order to love." How would you like that? The earth is not going to turn into one belief system. It never will, for Humans don't do that. There must be variety, and there must be the beauty of cultural differences. But the systems will slowly update themselves with increased awareness of the truth of a new kind of balance. So that's the first thing. Watch for these changes, dear ones. ...."

Israel apologizes for calling Brazil 'diplomatic dwarf'

Yahoo – AFP, 12 Aug 2014

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin gestures during a ceremony at the Knesset,

Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem on July 24, 2014. (Photo by Ronen Zyulun)

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin apologized to his Brazilian counterpart for a remark by a foreign ministry spokesman calling the Latin American powerhouse a "diplomatic dwarf."

The comment in July was made by spokesman Yigal Palmor after Brazil criticized Israel's military campaign in Gaza as excessive and recalled its envoy in Tel Aviv.

In a phone call Monday, Rivlin assured Brazil President Dilma Rousseff that Palmor's comments "do not correspond to the sentiments of the population" of Israel, Rousseff's office said in a statement.

Rousseff had criticized Palmor's remarks, saying "Words, including the spokesman's, sometimes create a very bad climate. In this case, we have to be very careful."

In the phone call, her office said, Rousseff "condemned the attacks on Israel" by Hamas, and "reiterated Brazil's historic position ... defending the co-existence between Israel and Palestine as sovereign, economically viable and, above all, safe states."

Israel and Hamas Monday started a new 72-hour ceasefire, as negotiators in Egypt worked to seek a permanent end to hostilities.

Rousseff "expressed hope for the continuation of the ceasefire and the current negotiations," the statement said.

More than a month of bloody fighting in and around Gaza has killed at least 1,940 Palestinians and 67 people on the Israeli side, most of them soldiers.

Related Article:

Latin America turns against Israel on Gaza

Latin America turns against Israel on Gaza

Throughout Latin America, criticism of Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip is on the rise. Nations with a colonial history of their own regard Israel as an occupying power.

Deutsche Welle, 7 Aug 2014

In Latin America, Brazil is on the forefront of politics critical of Israel.

After Brazil recalled its ambassador to Israel for consultations in July, several other countries in the region quickly followed suit: Chile, Peru, El Salvador, Ecuador and Nicaragua.

"Almost all countries in Latin America follow Brazil's position," says Salem Hikmat Nasser, an expert on international law at Brazil's:link:http://portal.fgv.br/en# Fundacao Getulio Vargas (FGV) University.# "They see the war in Gaza as the Palestinians' national struggle toward liberation in the face of a colonial occupying power."

Latin America's own colonial history is a common denominator in the region's critical attitude toward Israel. At the Mercosur summit last month in Caracas, the presidents of Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Bolivia, Uruguay and Paraguay urgently demanded an "investigation of all violations of international humanitarian law and crimes in the Gaza Strip, and the identification of those responsible."

Appeal to Security Council

Following the second bombing of UN quarters in Gaza, Argentina, too, reacted. "Buenos Aires regards the Israeli military attacks on a United Nations school to be a criminal act that must be investigated in order to bring those responsible to court," a Foreign Ministry statement said on August 3, adding that the Security Council must intervene.

Mercosur leaders condemned the Israeli offensive in Gaza

Brazil's increasingly critical position toward Israel is the result of a change of tack in foreign policy strategies during Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's presidency. Contrary to previous Israel-friendly Brazilian governments, Lula da Silva focused on closer political ties to the Arab world during his 2003- 2010 term.

On December 1, 2010 Brazil officially recognized Palestine as a state. Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Peru and Uruguay quickly followed suit, long after Cuba, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic had already taken similar steps.

"Brazil always signaled a special bond with Israel, and it didn't want to violate the country's interests," Nasser says, arguing that this position changed under President Lula. His successor Dilma Rousseff continued Lula's course. Last month, Brazil supported a resolution critical of Israel by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

"Diplomatic dwarf"

Brazil's Foreign Ministry also condemned "Israel's disproportionate use of violence in the Gaza Strip," and summoned the Israeli ambassador in the capital Brasilia. At the same time, Brazil's ambassador to Israel was recalled for consultations. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor subsequently referred to Brazil as a "diplomatic dwarf," and dismissed Brazilian diplomacy as simply "irrelevant."

Brazilian sociologist Demetrio Magnoli of Sao Paulo University is one of the few who agree with the critical voices from Israel. "Brazil turned into a diplomatic dwarf when Lula introduced his new foreign policies 11 years ago," the well-known critic and foreign policy expert told the national media.

For ex-President Lula, the ideological interests of Brazil's PT Workers' Party came first. As a result, Brazilian foreign policies were not consistent, Magnoli argues, pointing out that the government "remained silent in the face of human rights abuse in Cuba, Venezuela and Russia, but criticized the disproportionate use of violence in Gaza."

Technology "Made in Israel"

Despite the current political ice age between Israel and South America, trade ties are strong thanks to the Mercosur bloc's freed trade agreement with Israel. Trade between Brazil and Israel in particular is on the rise. From 2003 to 2013, exports to Israel increased from $187 million (139.9 million euros) to $454 million annually, the Brazilian Trade Ministry reports.

At the same time, imports from Israel increased from $318 million to $1.1 billion. Brazil mainly exports food to Israel, and mainly imports technology and military goods.

Be that as it may, Israel has lost the battle for the Latin American public's favorable opinion, Salem Nasser says. "It's time for Brazil to take a stronger stance, even if the Jewish community in the country is well-organized," he says. "Brazil is anything but a diplomatic dwarf." 

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Bolivia’s Evo Morales Calls Israel a “Terrorist State,” Israel Loses Support in Latin America

"The Evolution of Belief" - July 26, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - New (>26 Min - reference to the current conflicts in the Middle East)

Bolivia’s Evo Morales Calls Israel a “Terrorist State,” Israel Loses Support in Latin America

Latin Post, Rodrigo Ugarte, Aug 01, 2014

The Andean nation has terminated its visa agreement with Israel, requiring
Israelis to apply for visas to enter Bolivia. (Photo : telesurenglish/Twitter)

The conflict in Gaza between Hamas and Israel has crossed the ocean and reached Latin America, leading to countries in the region to pick sides. Bolivia is the latest in the Western Hemisphere to oppose Israeli violence in Gaza in a wave of opposition against Israel in the region.

Bolivia's Socialist president, Evo Morales, denounced Israel's violence against civilians in Gaza, enacting new travelling sanctions against Israelis, according to the Bolivian newspaper La Razon.

"Israel is not a guarantor of the principles of respect for life and of basic rights governing the peaceful and harmonious coexistence of our international community," Morales said in the city of Cochabamba, following a decision by his cabinet of ministers.

Morales also labeled Israel as a "terrorist state," depriving Israelis of the easy entry granted by a 1972 law. Morales, according to La Razon, argued that the law is invalid because it was implemented during the dictatorship of Hugo Banzer.

Aside from Bolivia, five other Latin American nations have criticized Israel's actions and have recalled their envoys, according to the Buenos Aires Herald. Along with these is also the economic trade bloc Mercosur, comprised of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Venezuela and Paraguay. All but Paraguay signed a communiqué decrying the "disproportionate use of force" by Israel and calling for a cease-fire.

Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and El Salvador have all recalled their ambassadors, according to the Wall Street Journal, which does not have much clout in the larger scheme of things. However, some of these countries do not have leftist governments that oppose U.S. policy but are centrist governments enjoying good relations with Washington, showing the extent of animosity against Israel.

Following the actions of Chile, Peru and El Salvador, Israel's Foreign Minister Yigal Palmor expressed his displeasure with the Latin American nations' decisions, saying they encourage Hamas, according to Haaretz.

"Israel expresses its deep disappointment with the hasty decision of the governments of El Salvador, Peru and Chile to recall their ambassadors for consultations," Palmor said. "This step constitutes encouragement for Hamas, a group recognized as a terror organization by many countries around the world."

Berlin prayer house unites Jews, Christians, Muslims

Yahoo - AFP, Frederic Happe, 8 June 2014

(From L) Pastor Gregor Hohberg, Rabbi Tovia Ben-Chorin and Imam Kadir

 Sanci hold three bricks as they pose for photographers in the vacant lot where

 they hope to build a multifaith prayer building, in Berlin June 3, 2014. (Photo:

John MacDougall)

Christians, Muslims and Jews, all praying under the same roof -- that's the groundbreaking project of a pastor, a rabbi and an imam in Berlin.

Still a sand-strewn vacant construction site, St Peter's Square in the centre of the German capital will -- God willing -- by 2018 host a building that's so unusual it doesn't have an official term.

Not a church, nor a synagogue, or a mosque as such, but a bit of all three, the centre known currently as a "House of Prayer and Learning" will be unlike any other religious venue in the world, its initiators say.

The aim of the 44-million-euro ($60-million) project, whose fundraising kicked off Tuesday but has been several years in the making, is not only to show the importance of multi-faith dialogue but to mirror multi-cultural Berlin.

"It seemed to us that there was a very strong desire for the peaceful coming together of the religions," said Roland Stolte, one of two Protestant representatives on the board of the association behind the project.

Not by coincidence, it will stand at a location with a strong and long religious significance.

In 2007 archaeological excavations unearthed the foundations of four previous St Peter's churches that had stood on the site at different periods since the Middle Ages, Stolte told AFP in an interview.

The last one, which had a striking 100-metre-tall (328-foot) steeple and dated from the mid-19th century, was damaged in World War II and later demolished by the former East German communist state in the early 1960s.

A car park then occupied the site which the city authorities later handed back to the local Protestant community.

"We wanted to revive this place, not by building a church again but by constructing a place that says something about the life of religions today in Berlin," Stolte said.

Nearly 19 percent of Berlin's 3.4 million residents described themselves as Protestant, according to 2010 official data.

Some 8.1 percent said they were Muslim and 0.9 percent Jewish, while more than 60 percent said they did not adhere to any religion.

'Be patient'

Pastor Gregor Hohberg said it had been crucial to also get the centre's Jewish and Muslim partners involved right from the start, well before work got underway on building it.

"From the beginning we wanted it to be an inter-religious project, not a place built by Christians in which Jews and Muslims would then be added," he said.

Imam Kadir Sanci, who's of Turkish origin, told AFP that a Catholic-Protestant church in western Germany had inspired him to dream that such a centre could be possible .

"When I was doing my Muslim theology studies in Frankfurt, I had seen in the neighbouring town of Darmstadt, a Catholic church and a Protestant church under the same roof," he said.

"I said to the priest it would be great to one day have a shared place with Muslims. But the priest told me 'be patient, it took us 600-plus years'," the imam said.

An illustration of German architect Wilfried Kuehn's design for the House of

 Prayer and Learning project, a multifaith prayer building in Berlin June 3, 2014.

(Photo: John MacDougall)

Architect Wilfried Kuehn, whose design for the new building was chosen in 2011 from around 200 entries in a competition, said it had posed many challenges that spanned architecture and theology.

"It was a challenge to try to combine the differences and the universal aspects. It was a question of not mixing the religions while ensuring mutual recognition," he said.

Each of the three religions will have its own equal-sized prayer space, all on the same floor, with each leading out to a common room where the congregations will be able to mix and chat.

Hohberg said that after much consideration, they had decided against a common prayer room "because that risked putting off more people than it would have attracted".

"And we want also to address the more conservative believers, to show that inter-religious dialogue is not only possible but important," he said.

However, financing must still be found, and organisers have sought to keep even that aspect of the ambitious project firmly at the grassroots level.

A crowdfunding campaign via the website www.house-of-one.org was launched Tuesday to raise the 43.5 million euros needed.

Donors are, among other things, invited to buy a "brick" for 10 euros.

"We wanted for this project to be base-driven," Stolte said, adding that they had sought out local partners such as Berlin's Jewish community or the Muslim group Forum for Inter-Cultural Dialogue rather than involving higher religious echelons.

For this reason, an upper limit has been set on individual donations -- at one percent of the total, or 435,000 euros.

Also in the garden of the Vatican embraced Peres and Abbas together. (NOS/AFP)

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"Soul Journeying" - Mar, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text version Part 1) - New

".... Will religion on the planet survive the new energy?

We have spoken in the past about the evolution of spiritual systems [religion] on the planet. We have discussed what to expect, and we have told you to look at how organized religion will shift. In fact, it's already happening - a very slow understanding that your systems simply reflect the concept of branches of the same tree, and they are not opposed to each other but simply different. We describe it again, for it shows how the collective soul plays a part in awareness.

The question has arisen, "Will religion survive?" and the answer is yes. We told you before that it doesn't matter how Humans find God. It really doesn't matter! There will be many levels of Human awareness represented by many ways to worship and grow. Cultures don't need to meld into one group to become enlightened. It's important that all of the various processes remain, so that Human Beings just starting out can go through whatever spiritual processes they wish and have enough time to honor their own timing of learning. The search for God is unique to each Human Being.

So what about organized religion? How is it going to change? It's going to start seeing connectivity, and this is what we teach. When the religions of this planet join together in dialogue and they eventually realize they are unique, but have much the same compassionate purpose, they will relax. When they see it's fine to worship the way they wish, yet at the same time acknowledge the others' right to worship the way they wish, wisdom will expand. You will see an expansion of this planet's spiritual awareness, with increased knowledge and understanding and compassion. But as long as they separate into groups, where each one claims to be "right" and they don't talk to each other, there can be no growth. But you knew that, didn't you?

Religion is not going to diminish or go away. In fact, it's going to get bigger! Look for better understanding between belief systems. When you see separation and radicalism, it will look alarming to you - yet it has been there all along. In the very new energy, it will start showing itself as being lower consciousness and not of God. Change is everywhere.

Isn't it interesting that on your planet, there is a full realization of a monotheistic God? There is one God, a theme expressed by most of the Humans on Earth. Most of the earth also believes there is an afterlife [something beyond death]. Yet you segment yourself into thousands of "doctrinal pieces", deciding who gets to worship the one God in the correct fashion. Those who do not somehow will be left behind. This attitude is what will change. It's about connectivity and compassion for another's process. .."

Foreign minister would have helped Vitesse over Mori's UAE ban

DutchNews.nl, Tuesday 07 January 2014

 Dan Mori (Nos/ANP)

Foreign minister Frans Timmermans would have gladly helped Arnhem football club Vitesse in its efforts to get an Israeli player permission to join the club’s winter training camp in Abu Dhabi, he said on Tuesday.

Speaking from Cuba, where he is on a three-day visit, Timmermans said: ‘if my help was asked for on time, I would have done what I could to make it possible for [Dan] Mori to travel.’

Vitesse was told the by the UAE on Saturday defender Mori was not welcome because of his Israeli passport. The club says it had been given earlier assurances Mori would be allowed in and decided not to call off the trip because it would interfere with the training.

Football association

The Dutch football association said on Monday that it wanted to keep out of politics, but on Tuesday issued a more strongly worded statement following criticism from politicians.

‘We are, of course, angry Mori was refused entry to the UAE because of his nationality,’ the statement said. ‘Football connects people from different lands, cultures and religions.’

The KNVB now plans to discuss further steps with Vitesse when the club returns to Arnhem, Nos televisions said. The club is unwilling to create too many waves while it remains in the UAE, the KNVB said.

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"THE BRIDGE OF SWORDS"– Sep  29, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… Let us talk about the swords: When you hear the word sword, the first thing that occurs to you is battle. The Bridge of Swords is a battle and we told you that as well. Swords are metaphoric and they mean many things, so let us describe the things we mean them to say to you.

Number one: They are indeed a weapon in a battle. There is a battle coming. "Kryon, does that mean there's going to be a war?" Potentially, yes. Right now we will tell you that the Middle East cooks itself. You've noticed, haven't you? What do you know about the Middle East, dear one? Let's start examining things for a moment. What energy did you grow up in? What was the energy of the Middle East? In the '40s, what was the energy? With the establishment of the state of Israel, you built a wall of hate, both sides. The wall was so thick that the children of both sides were taught to hate one another as soon as they were able to understand the language. They were told who their enemies were. Now, where were you then?

Some of you weren't here yet. By the time you arrived, in your youth, were you aware of the Middle East? Not particularly. "What's the hatred about?" you might ask. What if I told you it's about a family feud? Two sons of a Jewish master are involved. One founded the Arabs and one remained a Jew. They don't want to hear this, but they are all Jews. (Don't tell them this.)

If you look at the lineage, it's pretty obvious and yet it's a complete and total set-up for either solution or war. The set-up would have this world ending in a conflagration that would have been brought about by this hatred. That's in the prophecy of Nostradamus and your scripture, but it is no longer the prophecy of the planet. Yet the hatred still exists. The hatred is as great today as it was then, but where was all the terrorism 40 years ago? It was isolated.

Those in Israel and Palestine and surrounding areas took the brunt of it, but now it's seemingly everywhere - and you're worried. Why would this be? The answer is that the old energy was happy to have this hatred contained, for it would keep it going and never involve outsiders. Outsiders tend to bring unwanted light to the party. Suddenly, the whole earth is involved and can see the entire scenario before them. The old guard wants war, just like all the eons before them. The ones on the bridge are holding the light and showing the earth how to cross. Even many younger ones in Israel and Palestine and Iran are holding light! It's all around the old guard and they are furious, for they are losing the "battle of hatred." …”

"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“ … Spirituality (Religions)

Number one: Spirituality. The systems of spiritual design on your planet are starting to change. This is not telling you that certain ones are going to go away. They're simply going to change. Some of the largest spiritual systems, which you would call organized religion on the planet, are shifting. They're going to shift away from that which is authority on the outside to authority on the inside. It will eventually be a different way of worship, slowly changing the rules while keeping the basic doctrine the same.

The doctrine of the Christ has always been to find the God inside. The teachings were clear. The examples of the miracles were given as an example of what humans could do, not to set a man up for worship as a God. So when that has been absorbed, the teaching of the Christ can remain the teaching of the Christ. It simply changes the interpretation. 

The teachings of the great prophets of the Middle East (all related to each other) are about unity and love. So once the holy words are redefined with new wisdom, the Human changes, not the words of the prophets. In fact, the prophets become even more divinely inspired and their wisdom becomes even more profound.

You're going to lose a pope soon. I have no clock. Soon to us can mean anything to you. The one who replaces him may surprise you, for his particular organization will be in survival mode at that point in time. That is to say that fewer and fewer are interested in starting the priesthood. Fewer and fewer young people are interested in the organization, and the new pope must make changes to keep his church alive. That means that his organization will remain, but with a more modern look at what truly is before all of you in a new energy. It is not the fall of the church. It is instead the recalibration of the divinity inside that would match the worship that goes on. It's a win-win situation. The new pope will have a difficult time, since the old guard will still be there. There could even be an assassination attempt, such is the way the old energy dies hard. That is number one. Watch for it. It's a change in the way spiritual systems work. It's a realignment of spiritual systems that resound to a stronger truth that is Human driven, rather than prophet driven.…”

"The End of History" – Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll)

(Subjects: Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Muhammad, Jesus, God, Jews, Arabs, EU, US, Israel, Iran, Russia, Africa, South America, Global Unity,..... etc.) (Text version)

" ..... If an Arab and a Jew can look at one another and see the Akashic lineage and see the one family, there is hope. If they can see that their differences no longer require that they kill one another, then there is a beginning of a change in history. And that's what is happening now. All of humanity, no matter what the spiritual belief, has been guilty of falling into the historic trap of separating instead of unifying. Now it's starting to change. There's a shift happening. ....."

"... Taught to Hate From Birth

On this earth today, many who are born in Israel are taught from birth how to dislike and distrust all those around them. At this time in history on this earth, those around them from birth are taught how to hate the Jews. Carefully taught, they are. Against all odds, they are proud of this separation because it is the lineage of their ancestors that is at stake, and they want to follow historic protocol. They want to stay separate. Yet I want to tell you that's what is changing. Oh, it's really changing! It's changing in the places you don't expect. It's changing in Jerusalem. It's changing in Iran. And the children are waking up and saying, "Tell me again why I should hate them? They did what, when? That wasn't them. It was their ancestors. The ones here now are current and didn't participate in history. Tell me again, because I don't feel it."

The parents are shaking their heads, and saying, "Do as we say, for tradition and history tells us that they are our enemy and always will be." And the children are saying, "No. I am not going to do this, and neither are those around me." This is slowly making a difference on this planet and it is not being recorded. For your worldwide media has no idea what to do with this new energy and it doesn't seem to even be news to them. They are steeped in the old Human nature, where things that separate are news, and things that unify are not. Yet it is one of the greatest energies this planet is seeing today. I'm here to tell you it's real and it's happening under the hood, you might say. Oh, there are other things I'd like to report to you. ..."