-Caveat Lector-
If you can find the books, see also Edward Whittemore's "Jerusalem Quartet":
*Jerusalem Poker*, *Sinai Tapestry*, *Jericho Mosaic*, *Quin's Shanghai
Circus*.
==========================================
The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 31, 1999
http://www.phillynews.com/inquirer/99/Dec/31/front_page/JERU31.htm
Eccentricity turns scary to Israelis
Characters once regarded as harmless are seen as a security risk as 2000
nears.
By Barbara Demick
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
JERUSALEM - Bobby Engel was fresh off the airplane from Los Angeles when he
first aroused suspicion. The 60-year-old Los Angeles preacher cut a striking
figure, wandering around with a Bible in one hand and a crucifix in the
other, a CD player strapped to his waist belting out Christmas carols.
"I was a one-man church," says Engel, who also goes by the nickname of
"Bobby Bible."
Palestinian police first arrested Engel in Bethlehem on Dec. 22. They
searched his hotel room so thoroughly that his talcum powder was sniffed for
explosives, and then they deported him into Israeli territory. He has since
been picked up twice by Israeli police for questioning, most recently
yesterday on the Mount of Olives - his third arrest in less than two weeks
of touring the Holy Land.
In ordinary times, Engel might have been ignored as just another harmless
eccentric treading a fine line between the devotional and the delusional.
But these are no ordinary times. The approach of 2000 has tightened nerves,
and security forces here are tolerating few eccentrics.
"I never thought that lunacy is a crime, especially in the holy land," said
Shlomo Ben-Ami, Israel's public security minister. "But one cannot deny that
people have become more sensitive because of the date."
Israeli authorities have deported about 60 Christian pilgrims since the
beginning of this year, fearing that they might set off millennial violence
or even kill themselves.
Some of the people deported had lived in Israel for many years. For example,
on Christmas Eve, the Interior Ministry started proceedings to deport a
family from Detroit with five children that had been living in caves and
abandoned farmhouses in the West Bank.
Many more Christians have been denied entry to Israel, and still others,
like Engel, are followed by police and picked up for questioning.
Jerusalem's main psychiatric hospital, Kfar Shaul, meanwhile, is bracing for
an influx of arrivals suffering from the so-called Jerusalem syndrome - the
religious delusions that sometimes afflict tourists here, causing them to
believe that they are biblical figures.
Gregory Katz, a psychiatrist specializing in the syndrome, says the hospital
has treated about 50 patients this year, up more than 40 percent from
previous years.
"They are found in the desert, dehydrated with no money, or they are out
talking about prophecy and people get into an argument with them," Katz
said.
In a study of 151 cases to be published next month in a British psychiatric
journal, the hospital's doctors found that most of those afflicted were
American tourists. Jews, as well as Christians, come down with the Jerusalem
syndrome - with one key difference.
"It is more popular for the Christians to think they are a prophet," Katz
said. "The Jews often think they are the Messiah."
Jerusalem always has been a magnet for religious oddballs. No less an
authority on lunacy than Sigmund Freud called the city a "tragically mad
land . . . that has never produced anything but religions, sacred frenzies
and presumptuous attempts to overcome the outer world of appearances by
means of the inner world of wishful thinking."
Never has it been more true than on the eve of 2000, which some evangelical
Christians believe is a likely date for Jesus' return to earth or the onset
of an apocalyptic war. Authorities' fear is that some madman might try to
hasten the apocalypse by an act of terrorism.
The arrest this month in nearby Jordan of 13 suspected terrorists linked to
Saudi militant Osama bin Laden exacerbated the fears.
"If somebody wanted to create a drama, this is a fairly good date," said
Ben-Ami. ". . . All kinds of groups could be interested in a disruption at
this highly sensitive moment."
Security is tightest in Jerusalem's Old City, especially at the Temple
Mount, the plateau that once held the Second Jewish Temple and that is now
the site of the gold-topped Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa mosques. The Temple
Mount is a frequent target for Christian and Jewish zealots, who believe
that the destruction of the Islamic holy places will augur the coming of the
Messiah.
Today, concerns will be heightened because it is also the busiest day of the
year at Al-Aqsa - more than 400,000 worshipers are expected at the mosque
for the last Friday of Ramadan, the month-long Muslim holy period.
All of this is perplexing to many religious Christian tourists.
Robert Seales, a 42-year-old tour guide who moved to Jerusalem from New
Zealand recently, says that Israeli police are constantly monitoring what he
says during his nightly tours around the Old City.
"I believe there are many signs of His [Jesus'] coming, and I hope it will
happen in my lifetime," he said. "But I consider myself to be sane,
sensible, responsible and calm. I'm not preaching death and destruction."
Tom, a 58-year-old engineer from Chicago who declined to give his last name,
said he was thoroughly grilled by airport security when he arrived in
Israeli this week. He described himself simply as a tourist and slipped by.
In fact, Tom says he came because he believes that there might be an
earthquake on New Year's, foreshadowing the second coming of Jesus.
"I've read about Jerusalem syndrome. My family thinks I have it, especially
my wife. She's not even talking to me now," said Tom. "But this was the
place to be. This is where Christ left, and this is where He is coming
back."
The Mount of Olives will be a popular gathering point for pilgrims tonight,
featuring not only a dramatic view over the Old City, but also a starring
role in biblical prophecy for both Jews and Christians.
The Old Testament (Zechariah 14:4) says, "On that day, his feet will stand
on the Mount of Olives . . . and the Mount of Olives will split into two."
The passage is often interpreted as presaging the coming of the Messiah.
The Israeli police and military have a strong presence on the Mount of
Olives, with full-time patrols in front of the Mount of Olives Hotel, where
many pilgrims, including Bobby Engel, are staying.
"There is a reason why the Year 2000 is significant, and that is the reason
behind the millennial madness and the reason I am here," Engel said in an
interview this week, before his most recent arrest.
The way Engel figures things, "there is a 35 percent chance that He returns
on New Year's, Las Vegas odds." But in fact, if there is no second coming,
Engel says he will not be disappointed.
"It ain't no big deal. If the second coming has to be postponed, I'll have
more time. And I need it. I play golf and I want to bring my handicap down."
© 1999 Philadelphia Newspapers Inc.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Nurev Ind Research [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
> Sent: Friday, December 31, 1993 8:29 AM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: [CTRL] Post Millenial Bonkers.
>
> -Caveat Lector-
>
> 12-31-99
>
> Religious Millennialists are like boxers. Most people think that boxers
> get
> brain damage after some time in the ring. This is not the case at all.
> Boxers
> are brain damaged BEFORE they even get into the ring. How do we know?
> Because
> who else would choose to become a boxer?
>
<snip>
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