Ronald Reagan was a beloved president, deservedly, but he made one huge mistake.
"That place, Mr. President, is not your place," warned Elie Wiesel.
But Reagan would not listen. On May 5, 1985, to appease West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, Reagan visited Bitburg's Kolmeshohe Cemetery, where some 2,000 German servicemen were buried - among them, 49 members of Hitler's Waffen SS. The President of the United States spent eight haunting minutes there in Bitburg, and laid a wreath on that place.
Those eight minutes were costly.
According to the Wisdom of Our Fathers: "Do not fraternize with the wicked, and do not abandon belief in divine retribution."
Wiesel, a spiritual man, was not idling when he voiced poetic emphasis on the word "place." We do not know the "place" where holiness resides, but we should know where evil dwells.
Reagan's tragic mistake is coming around again with a new president and a new Bitburg, now called the Road Map, the main sponsors of which are the Europeans (the movers within the Quartet) and the main purpose of which is to destroy the Land of Israel. This current president seems as motivated to appease Tony Blair as Reagan was motivated to appease Helmut Kohl. Just the other day, George W. Bush said, "America will work without tiring" for the creation of a Palestinian state.
We can only hope this is temporary blindness. Once again a European booby-trap has been set to ensnare an American president. The Road Map is to Bush what Bitburg was to Reagan. Reagan had to choose, and he chose, and now Bush must choose. The blood of Six Million cry out again for an understanding heart.
A vibrant Israel waits. Will Bush extend his arm to that company of scorners, or will he seek the Bible that he professes to embrace? As a man of faith, he knows what is above him ?? "an eye sees, an ear hears, and all our deeds are recorded in a Book." Whichever way he chooses, it will be remembered, it will be recorded.
Only George W. Bush, President of the United States of America, has the power to hold off the European and Arab stampede to wipe Israel off the map. Only Bush can say ?§yes?¨ to Israel, ?§no?¨ to Powell, Blair, Kofi and Abu. To Bush we can only say, echoing Wiesel, "This Road Map, Mr. President, is not your Road Map." Sharon's spokesman Ranaan Gissin said: "Don't mess with us." A Higher Voice said it differently: "Do not touch My anointed ones."
This can only be a warning. Let the Europeans trifle with it, and learn divine retribution, but not our president, whose mighty prestige should not be up for sale in the marketplace of treachery. There's still time to turn this around, away, far from "the gathering of evil-doers."
To date, this president has been a success, and the prayers of Christians and Jews are with him. We may even guess that the prayers of God are with him, for we have it from tradition that God Himself dons holy garments and "prays." Surely, then, He prays that our president will serve as His surrogate and "break the yoke of the nations from our neck, and speedily lead us upright to our land."
As Harry S. Truman, of loving memory, held Israel in the palm of his hand, so does Bush. This is his chance to prosper or wither.
There are questions for Bush to answer. But let him not answer for the sake of America, nor even for the sake of Israel. A Higher Power sits in judgment, even above the Oval Office.
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Jack Engelhard is the author of the international bestseller Indecent Proposal and is a former radio and newspaper editor covering the Mideast, as well as a former American volunteer in the Israeli Defense Forces. His columns can be read online at http://www.comteqcom.com/jackcolumn.php and he can be reached at JackEngelhard@ComteQcom.com.
"That place, Mr. President, is not your place," warned Elie Wiesel.
But Reagan would not listen. On May 5, 1985, to appease West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, Reagan visited Bitburg's Kolmeshohe Cemetery, where some 2,000 German servicemen were buried - among them, 49 members of Hitler's Waffen SS. The President of the United States spent eight haunting minutes there in Bitburg, and laid a wreath on that place.
Those eight minutes were costly.
According to the Wisdom of Our Fathers: "Do not fraternize with the wicked, and do not abandon belief in divine retribution."
Wiesel, a spiritual man, was not idling when he voiced poetic emphasis on the word "place." We do not know the "place" where holiness resides, but we should know where evil dwells.
Reagan's tragic mistake is coming around again with a new president and a new Bitburg, now called the Road Map, the main sponsors of which are the Europeans (the movers within the Quartet) and the main purpose of which is to destroy the Land of Israel. This current president seems as motivated to appease Tony Blair as Reagan was motivated to appease Helmut Kohl. Just the other day, George W. Bush said, "America will work without tiring" for the creation of a Palestinian state.
We can only hope this is temporary blindness. Once again a European booby-trap has been set to ensnare an American president. The Road Map is to Bush what Bitburg was to Reagan. Reagan had to choose, and he chose, and now Bush must choose. The blood of Six Million cry out again for an understanding heart.
A vibrant Israel waits. Will Bush extend his arm to that company of scorners, or will he seek the Bible that he professes to embrace? As a man of faith, he knows what is above him ?? "an eye sees, an ear hears, and all our deeds are recorded in a Book." Whichever way he chooses, it will be remembered, it will be recorded.
Only George W. Bush, President of the United States of America, has the power to hold off the European and Arab stampede to wipe Israel off the map. Only Bush can say ?§yes?¨ to Israel, ?§no?¨ to Powell, Blair, Kofi and Abu. To Bush we can only say, echoing Wiesel, "This Road Map, Mr. President, is not your Road Map." Sharon's spokesman Ranaan Gissin said: "Don't mess with us." A Higher Voice said it differently: "Do not touch My anointed ones."
This can only be a warning. Let the Europeans trifle with it, and learn divine retribution, but not our president, whose mighty prestige should not be up for sale in the marketplace of treachery. There's still time to turn this around, away, far from "the gathering of evil-doers."
To date, this president has been a success, and the prayers of Christians and Jews are with him. We may even guess that the prayers of God are with him, for we have it from tradition that God Himself dons holy garments and "prays." Surely, then, He prays that our president will serve as His surrogate and "break the yoke of the nations from our neck, and speedily lead us upright to our land."
As Harry S. Truman, of loving memory, held Israel in the palm of his hand, so does Bush. This is his chance to prosper or wither.
There are questions for Bush to answer. But let him not answer for the sake of America, nor even for the sake of Israel. A Higher Power sits in judgment, even above the Oval Office.
--------------------------------------------------------
Jack Engelhard is the author of the international bestseller Indecent Proposal and is a former radio and newspaper editor covering the Mideast, as well as a former American volunteer in the Israeli Defense Forces. His columns can be read online at http://www.comteqcom.com/jackcolumn.php and he can be reached at JackEngelhard@ComteQcom.com.