Quran? Torah? Churches 'will have to choose'

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           It barely qualifies as news in the U.S. when Islam and Islamic causes get prominent support from outside the Muslim community. At this week's White House dinner celebrating the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, President Obama used the occasion to reiterate his endorsement of a proposed mosque at Ground Zero, site of the 9/11 attacks in Lower Manhattan.


And just weeks ago, in a "Shared Faith" project, 66 U.S. churches in 32 states read from the Muslim Quran during Sunday services.

But a grassroots Christian movement is going in another direction. This weekend churches on six continents will join Jewish congregations reading certain passages from the Torah. The "Shema heard around the world," which will consist of reading the "greatest commandment" found in Deuteronomy 6:4-9, is being organized by El Shaddai Ministries of Tacoma, Wash.

Rabbi Jeremy Gimpel, co-host of the Jerusalem-based "Tuesday Night Live" television program, sees the initiative as a positive development because the West is faced with a choice "very soon":

"To either side with Israel, history, facts and the Bible – or to try to appease the Arab world in its quest for world domination. The Christian world will have to choose between a God of love and life that our Scriptures speak of, and a God of submission and death that is being promoted by the Muslim Brotherhood," he commented.

El Shaddai's Pastor Mark Biltz says this weekend was chosen for the sign of solidarity because it is the time for the annual Shema reading in synagogues around the world.

Biltz believes this is a critical time in which "unity" is of utmost importance for Christians and Jews as the fall feast days approach, beginning with Rosh Hashana on Sept. 28:

"I think this fall will be a very prophetic time as we see history unfold. Fasten your seatbelts as it will be a wild ride. All of creation is crying out for the coming of the Messiah ... We want people in every time zone around the world proclaiming Yeshua as King of Kings! We really need to be as united as possible if we want the glory to fall. Every time it took the unity of everyone for the glory to fall. In Moses Tabernacle, in Solomon's Temple, and in the book of Acts, only when they were in unity did the glory fall."

Biltz, a Christian teacher of Hebraic roots, believes the biblical feasts as outlined in Leviticus by Moses are not just Jewish holidays but have prophetic significance for all believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They were observed by Jesus and His apostles – and continued to be observed by Jesus' followers in the first century even after His death and Resurrection.

2011 fall feasts:

• September 28: Rosh Hashana

• October 7: Yom Kippur

• October 12-20: Feast of Tabernacles

The "Feasts of the Lord" revelations have been of particular interest relative to the question of the time of the Lord's return, he explains.

The spring feasts – or appointed times – were fulfilled by the first coming of Yeshua, the Hebrew name of Jesus, which means "Salvation," explains Biltz. The fall feasts will be fulfilled by His Second Coming – in the very near future.

Is it true the Bible says we cannot know the day or the hour of Jesus' return?

On the contrary, says Biltz. The Bible is quite specific about the day of His return – it's just the year that remains a mystery. This misunderstanding of what the Lord said about His return is due to a simple misreading of the Scriptures – partly a result of not understanding the cultural context of the message.

Biltz says much of the church is asleep – unaware of the significance of the feasts in God's holy time clock. The feasts were not intended to be abandoned by believers after the coming of Jesus. His followers observed them in the first century. It's time to rediscover them again as the hour of His return approaches.