ONE of the ancient world’s most important cities was Megiddo, dating from at least the 5th century B. C. Its location on a hill overlooking the Valley of Jezreel in modern day Israel gave it strategic importance in history. In former days, it controlled the passage between two military and trade routes. One connected Egypt to the lands of modern day Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria. The other connected Jerusalem to modern day Lebanon that opened the way by sea, in ancient times, to Italy and Spain. Throughout history, battles were fought and blood shed for control of Megiddo. In fact, the New Testament speaks of Megiddo as the place of the final battle at the end of the world (Rev 16:16). The name “Armageddon” simply means Har Megiddo or the hill of Megiddo. Today, ancient Megiddo is a peaceful archaeological site.
POPE Francis’ recent trip to the Holy Land, with visits to sites both in Palestine and Israel, precipitated extraordinary security preparations. By all standards, the security was even greater than the precautions surrounding the visit of President Obama. Certainly, this was not unexpected in a territory marked by violence and terrorism. But, this did not deter the Pope from traveling in an open popemobile. A great symbolic gesture of trust and respect for the inherent goodness of all people! Nor did the security measures inhibit the pope from departing from his planned itinerary.
New Jersey?s adoption law has changed with regard to adoptees? access to full birth record information. In the future, the names of all birth parents who placed a child for adoption in New Jersey will be made available to adoptees upon request unless the birth parents file a form with the State indicating that they do not want contact with the child.
In recent times, there have been two very dramatic examples of a distorted understanding of tolerance. The first is the media's response to a statement by Pope Francis. On his July 29, 2013 flight back to Rome from World Youth Day in Brazil, the Holy Father answered questions from 21 journalists for almost an hour and a half. His response to their questioning about a gay lobby within the Vatican has become a modern day proverb. He is reported to have said, "Who am I to judge." Some have been repeating the pope's words as an approbation of the gay lifestyle and same-sex marriage. They have misread the Holy Father's authentic tolerance of individuals as a general absolution of all homosexual behavior. Pope Francis prefaced his remark "Who am I to judge,' by saying, "lf they accept the Lord and have goodwill." T
TODAY, every country embraces within its borders people of diverse religions, races, history and cultures. As a result, each individual needs to honor the personal freedom of others to hold to their own beliefs and convictions. Without tolerance of others, no peace is possible. Since 1995, the United Nations has designated Nov. 16. as “The International Day for Tolerance.” The day is a reminder for people everywhere to respect the rights and beliefs of others. In its 1995 Declaration of Principles of Tolerance, the United Nations defined tolerance as the “respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world’s cultures, forms of expression and ways of being human.” At first sight, this definition sounds noble. However, it actually enshrines a deeply flawed understanding of what tolerance is. The key word in the declaration’s definition is the word “acceptance.” Tolerance, as so defined, requires that we accept the convictions of others as true as our own. However, a right understanding of tolerance does not mean this at all.