Paris, Vichy Complicity, Bishops, Chavez and Ukraine

Lot's of things going on in Europe, but first some Paris views: Top photo - small cars and small garages, then torch lit protest by those who don't want the Euro or the EU, then typical parking, and finally Jesus and Freud action dolls in a children's store. Hard to figure out a common denominator here except that Paris is full of daily surprises. On the anti-Semitism front, the top French judicial body just ruled that the French Vichy government was responsible for the deportation of approximately 110,000 French Jews during WWII, most of whom died in concentration camps. The court known as the Council of State also ruled that no compensation was available for the deportees or their families as "the deportation had been 'compensated for' since 1945." Right! It did leave open the possibility of damages for a "daughter of a deportee as to her material and moral damages for her own personal suffering during and after the occupation." (Herald Tribune, Feb. 17, 2009, p. 8). Almost 60 years after the fact and they still haven't gotten this right yet.

Haven't heard if the Bishop, who was reinstated by the Pope even though he doesn't believe the Holocaust happened, has recanted. Anyone have an update? And Chavez it seems is dictator for life. Keep following the story of how the Jews of Venezuela are being blamed for having their synagogue defaced.

Finally my time in Odessa and Nikolaiv, Ukraine has been set for April 29th through May 12th. We are going to have an awesome leadership retreat with some real heroes of Eastern Europe - They are pioneers in one of the most significant moves of God in the world amongst the Jewish people. Shalom from France. David Schneier

The evils of anti-Semitism and the death of European free speech

These photos tell an amazing and connected story between the rising tide of anti-Semitism and the death of freedom of speech in Europe. America beware! The top photo is of the Pope and my distant cousin, Arthur Schneier. ( by Voice of America) Can you believe the head of such a large Christian denomination reinstates a Bishop who denies the Holocaust? After such a world wide outcry, the Bishop now has to recant (nothing yet) or he'll be handling the diocese in Antarctica. The Pope met with a Jewish delegation at the Vatican and my cousin was there as one who addressed him. How this will end is anyone's guess right now but it seems impossible that anyone who knows anything about the Nazi records and photos could doubt the existence of the Holocaust, It's really about undermining the existence of Israel anyway. By the way, it's a crime in Germany to publicly air such doubts.

The middle photo (by Marcel Antonisse/EPA) is of a Dutch parliamentarian who was denied entry into the UK because he spoke out against Islam. When Muslims worldwide speak out daily against Jews, no one seems to care and no one is being charged with a crime for doing it. Double standard award goes to the UK. I strongly encourage all to read Londonistan by Melanie Philips and pray we don't slide into the death of free speech like in the UK.

Finally, up to the plate in the bottom photo is that easy target for satire, President Chavez. (Photo AP) He says he doesn't hate Jews but now the government is saying that the attack on the synagogue in the free country of Venezula was really the fault of the Jews. Here's what was written in the Washington Post (2/12/09) about the climate of hate that fostered this attack,

"After Israel's offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip last month, the caudillo expelled Israel's ambassador and described Israel's actions in Gaza as "genocide." Then Mr. Chávez turned on Venezuela's Jews. "Let's hope that the Venezuelan Jewish community will declare itself against this barbarity," Mr. Chávez bellowed on a government-controlled television channel. "Don't Jews repudiate the Holocaust? And this is precisely what we're witnessing." Government media quickly took up the chorus. One television host close to Mr. Chávez blamed opposition demonstrations on two students he said had Jewish last names. On a pro-government Web site, another commentator demanded that citizens "publicly challenge every Jew that you find in the street, shopping center or park" and called for a boycott of Jewish-owned businesses, seizures of Jewish-owned property and a demonstration at Caracas's largest synagogue.

So hold on to your hats as this world loses its mind with hateful words and deeds against the Jews while on the other side trying to jail those who speak the truth about the violent agenda of radical Islam.

To Odessa in May, 2009

Just made final arrangements to be in Odessa and Nikolaiv from April 29th through May 12th. During that time Ukraine has 10 days of holidays to celebrate workers and to remember those who lost their lives in WWII. The posters to the left depict these two holiday themes. Nothing gets done for 10 days except for one long party so its a good time to have a leadership retreat in nearby Nikolaiv, a city that used to be closed to anyone except those who lived there. I will be leading the retreat with Pastor Barry Boucher of The Life Centre in Ottawa, Canada. He's a great guy and a big fan of the God of Israel, the Jews and the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus). Please pray for our travel there and what the Lord has us to bring to these dear leaders. One of my favorite scriptures that should stir all those who have an opportunity to serve in the body of Messiah is, "But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So, affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us." (I Thess. 2:7-8).

Our hope is that these leaders will take seriously the admonition of Yeshua and not think like the nations, like the rest of the world, who want to lord themselves over their people and exercise great authority over them. Yeshua said, "Let it not be so among you, but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave - just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mat. 20: 25 -28). It's ok to want to be great in the body so that you can be a servant and a slave and give your life as a ransom for many. Yehsua said we should let them do that, to those who want such a way of greatness, and implied we should not hinder them. But at the end of it, those who want such greatness should realize they are just being made a payment for the rescue and freedom of others. It's not about titles, power and glory but about setting the captives free, binding up the broken hearted, proclaiming liberty to the captives and preaching good news to the poor. This was Yeshua's declared ministry and it doesn't get better than that. Shalom from Paris. David Schneier

Shabbat - Joy or Legalism

This coming Friday night I will be teaching on the Shabbat (Sabbath) at the American Church of Paris at 7:30pm on Friday, Feb. 13th (I am definitely not superstitious). Hopefully, it will be the first in a series of teachings/discussions of the Feasts of the Lord and what relevance they have to the Jewish and Gentile believers in the body of Messiah today. Are these feasts valuable roots to a tree of life or outdated legalisms that push out God's grace from our lives? Many Christians are sure that a Sabbath day of rest is not for them, but how and why have we gotten to that point? Anyway, the Sabbath can only be on Sunday, right? Is the Sabbath made for man as Yeshua, Jesus, said and what does that mean? What has western culture lost when rest and development of community that thrives on rest is removed from the picture? What are your thoughts on this? I can include them in my time of sharing this Friday. Shalom. David Schneier

From the streets of Paris

So I was minding my business at a cafe preparing for a teaching next week on Shabbat (Feb. 13th at 7:30pm at the American Church of Paris) and all of a sudden about 20 vans of riot police showed up and cordoned off the little traffic circle near where I was sitting. These guys look like a black and blue version of the all white Darth Vader troops, with full riot armor on. A few students tried to get by the wall of men with clear shields and they were simply pushed aside. Since we live at the Sorbonne we will need to get used to these types of police responses to scheduled demonstrations and protests that are always happening in our area. They even post signs in the buses and metro when service will be disrupted due to "manifestations," the French word for public, pre-planned disturbances. No one could say who were the demonstrators or what the massive police buildup was about. Most commented, "It's the students again." A still small voice said inside of me, "You were born for this." Love and Shalom. David Schneier

We are recovering from jet lag and getting back into the flow of life in Paris. Monday, we met with a local guy who has a lot of experience with organizing events in France. He told us something that gives a picture of life here: The French develop relationships before they organize anything and maintaining a real relationship is key to walking together. They can support events that Americans organize but that will not bring lasting fruit if we have our event and then just leave and not be heard from again. This was so important to know if we want to bring new flows of the Spirit into France that won't be just a flash in the pan. As one writer put it, the God of Israel is not the God of the show. This is especially important as we begin to lay the groundwork for Chuck Pierce of Glory of Zion to share here in the fall of 2009. We were told that many in France are skeptical or distrust the restoration of apostles and prophets to the body of Messiah yet without these gifted leaders the body is not complete and its destiny is hindered. We were also told of apostolic leaders weeping because of the rejection of their annointing and no avenue to fulfill their calling. Please pray for this important time for Chuck to speak into the body in France, this key country in Europe and the world. Shalom. David Schneier

Sat, January 31, 2009

We had a chance to view French life from the inside Saturday night by attending a building party near the Louvre. The residents of a six story building invited friends to come and spend an evening together. Each apartment opened its doors and people milled around the building enjoying seeing old and making new friends. You can't get into the building unless your name is on the list and you have ID. Each apartment provided food and drinks for the moving celebration and the conversations reverberated through the halls and stairwells. We have been invited to a small followup meeting of some people who were interested in what we are doing in France. This is what we shared about in the US in January, that living our destiny involves small daily steps to discover the great plan God has for us. Our faithfulness in responding to God's still small voice to "Lech Lecha," to get up and go, keeps us on our path to our daily destiny. It's a wild ride and worth every step we take.