Finally, Pat Robertson's ugly comments have had some negative repercussions for him. I'd like to think that my LJ entry on the topic played a role in this, but i'll just settle for the knowledge of being right.
Edit. In one of the early lectures in Prof. Koester's class, he mentioned that the Gospel of Mark originally ended with the empty tomb, with no mention at all of interactions with the risen Jesus. The meaning of this, Prof. Koester asserted, was not that Jesus had risen from the grave and was walking around and talking to people, but rather, that Jesus did not have a grave at which to worship him, the way heroes were typically worshipped in that day. Pilgrimmage to the "grave of Jesus" was thus precluded.
I do understand that experiencing firsthand the place where Jesus walked and talked might be a spiritual experience for many people, but it comes threateningly close to idolatry: it contributes to the overshadowing of his message with focus on him as an icon.
Israel has suspended contact with evangelist Pat Robertson for suggesting Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's stroke was divine punishment for withdrawing from the Gaza Strip.
The controversy has cast doubt on plans for a Christian tourism center that would showcase the growing flow of money and influence from U.S. church groups.
... Tourism Minister Abraham Hirchson said he gave instructions to "stop all contact" with groups associated with Robertson. Last week, Robertson implied Sharon's massive stroke was a blow for "dividing God's land" with the withdrawal from Gaza and four West Bank settlements. But Hirchson said the order did not apply to "all the evangelical community, God forbid."
Robertson is leading a group of evangelicals who have pledged to raise $50 million to build the Christian Heritage Center in Israel's northern Galilee region, where tradition says Jesus lived and taught. Under a tentative agreement, Robertson's group was to put up the funding, while Israel would provide land and infrastructure. Hirchson had predicted it would draw up to 1 million pilgrims a year, generate $1.5 billion in spending and support about 40,000 jobs.
But the fate of the project is now in question, said Ido Hartuv, spokesman for the tourism ministry.
from Israel stops contact with Robertson: Move follows Robertson's comments about Sharon
Edit. In one of the early lectures in Prof. Koester's class, he mentioned that the Gospel of Mark originally ended with the empty tomb, with no mention at all of interactions with the risen Jesus. The meaning of this, Prof. Koester asserted, was not that Jesus had risen from the grave and was walking around and talking to people, but rather, that Jesus did not have a grave at which to worship him, the way heroes were typically worshipped in that day. Pilgrimmage to the "grave of Jesus" was thus precluded.
I do understand that experiencing firsthand the place where Jesus walked and talked might be a spiritual experience for many people, but it comes threateningly close to idolatry: it contributes to the overshadowing of his message with focus on him as an icon.