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February 1, 2003 During his recent visit to Italy, the President of Israel, Moshe Katzav, asked the Prime Minister of the Vatican, Cardinal Angelo Sudano, to prepare a list of all the Temple treasures, vessels and Judaica that are being held by the Vatican. The President asked for the Vatican's co-operation on this issue which is sensitive to Israel. The major importance of this request is the fact that the Vatican holds the Temple Menorah of pure gold which, together with other holy vessels from the temple, was stolen by the Romans and taken to Rome in 70 CE. After the destruction of the Temple and the Israeli kingdom, the Roman emperor, Titus, who destroyed the temple, built a triumphal arch in Rome which portrayed the menorah and other vessels from the Temple in Jerusalem. The arch shows Israeli captives carrying the Menorah and the vessels in Rome. The fact that the Menorah and the holy vessels were taken to Rome and later, when the Roman Empire became Christian, the Menorah and vessels wereæ placed in the basement of the Vatican, has passed down from generation to generation of the Jewish people. During the exile the holy Menorah and vessels remained at the focus of the memory of the Jewish people. Their dream was that one day soon they would recover them from the Vatican and return them to Jerusalem which would indicate the beginning of the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem and the redemption of the people and land of Israel. The fact that the Vatican holds these holy Temple vessels has been very well know since 70 CE and many Jews travelled to the Vatican when they could do so to look for them and to see them. Some of the travellers testified that they had personally seen the golden Menorah and the vessels in the basements of the Vatican. Some priests have even confirmed the fact that the Menorah and holy vessels are in the Vatican. On more than one occasion over the past years, The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement have demanded of the Vatican and the Pope that they immediately return the golden Menorah and the other Temple vessels as well as any other Judaica that they hold. The Vatican and the Pope have never responded to these demands. The Temple Mount Faithful Movement advised them to do it immediately and to no longer hold them in captivity and that, if they would not do so, the GÐd of Israel would "help" them to do so. The Temple Mount Faithful Movement and all the Jewish People and Israel were very happy that President Katzav had requested this now and had given official status to the request. He did so in the name of all the Jewish People as well as the State of Israel. This was the first time it has been done by an Israeli president since the destruction of the Temple and was a very important event. It signified in a very exciting way that Israel is now living in the prophetic end-times of redemption, that the Temple of the GÐd of Israel is soon to be rebuilt in Jerusalem and that the golden Menorah from the Second Temple and the other vessels should be returned to Jerusalem to be used in the Third, end-time Temple. Many people in the world did not pay attention to this exciting, end-time event which should move the heart of everyone in the world and they missed this major event. It should be noted that a previous Israeli Minister of Religion, Shimon Shitreet, had requested the Vatican to return the holy golden Menorah from the Temple as well as the other vessels. He presented that Vatican with the results of historical research which showed that the Menorah and vessels were taken to Rome together with the Israeli captives and then to the Vatican after the destruction of the Second Temple. The research was also based on theæ ornamentation on the Titus' triumphal arch in Rome which confirms it in a very clear manner. This request was ignored and even raised opposition and disapproval in the Vatican. Despite the fact that the Prime Minister of the Vatican did not disapprove of the request of President Katsav, he did not show any readiness to accept it and no progress was made with regard to the matter. Sources in the Vatican denied that the Pope is holding the holy Menorah from the Temple in Jerusalem. They stated that the current Pope is sensitive to the life of the Jews and that he would act to return an item which has such a religious and symbolic value as has the Menorah. The sources said nothing about the request of the Israeli president to prepare a list of all the other holy vessels from the Temple. The reaction of these sources raised great disappointment and anger in Israel and among the Jewish people. Historians and researchers and everyone in Israelæ again stressed what has been very well known since 70 CE - that the temple Menorah and the other Temple vessels are, indeed, held by the Vatican in its hidden basements and, as in the past, they do not want to return them to the Jewish People, to Jerusalem, to be used in the Third Temple which is soon to be rebuilt. Israel has very clear evidence which makes this an undeniable fact. It is very well known that the Vatican also holds ancient Torah Scrolls, Jewish manuscripts and other holy vessels in its basements. The Office of the President of Israel confirmed the president's request and stated that it is "a meaningful break-through and the first major request of this kind from an Israeli president". The fact that the Vatican and the Pope are not ready to return the Temple Menorah and the vessels to Israel and Jerusalem will not deter The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement in their struggle and campaign to bring about the return of these major vessels from the Temple to Israel and Jerusalem. Israel is now living in GÐd's time of redemption and the Temple Mount Faithful Movement is the vessel of the GÐd of Israel to immediately rebuild His holy Temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The demand of the Faithful Movement is the demand of GÐd Himself and we are His messengers to present it with no delay. It will not help the Vatican and the Pope to try in this way to stop the march of the prophetic history of Israel and even all the world. They have no chance to fight against the GÐd of Israel and His clear intention to redeem Israel and all the world and to rebuild His house in Jerusalem. Israel is now in the midst of a major, prophetic, end-time struggle and campaign to rebuild the kingdom of GÐd in the land of Israel and all over the world and to again locate the GÐd of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in His rebuilt house in Jerusalem on Mt. Moriah. It is the desire of GÐd Himself to see the original Menorah and theæ holy vessels from the temple liberated from captivity in the Vatican and used in the worship in the end-time temple which is soon to be rebuilt. We advise the Pope and the Vatican to give up trying to stop the march of G-d and history to Jerusalem. We demand of them that they immediately return the Menorah, the holy vessels and other holy items to Israel and Jerusalem before the anger and judgement of G-d forces them to do so. However, as we see, we are living in very special, exciting and prophetic end-times. We are witnesses of the fulfilment of end-time prophecies by the prophets of Israel thousands of years ago. The time of the destruction, exile and captivity of Israel is over, thanks to G-d, and we are living in the midst of a very exciting time of redemption that for so many years was a dream, a desire and a prayer of the people of Israel and is now becoming a reality. We are witnesses of major end-time events and many more will occur in the near future. The significance of all this for all mankind is even greater than people can imagine. We are at the beginning of a major godly time and everything will come from Jerusalem, from the Temple Mount, the holy hill of G-d and our lives are completely dedicated to this end. Everyone is called on to lift their eyes to Israel and Jerusalem and mainly to the Temple Mount and to see what the G-d of Israel is doing now in the holy land with His people, Israel, and what He will do in the near future.
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