Special Edition:Bethlehem To Have Successful Season

The Palestinian Authority is predicting a successful Christmas-New Year season for the town so revered by Christians as the site of Jesus' birth.Minister of Tourism Khulud Deibes said she is looking for more than 100,000 tourists during the period,with some 50,000 from December 24-25.
Ms.Deibes participated in a kickoff event with Bethlehem Mayor Victor Batarseh,a children's march through the town to Nativity Square.More than 1,000 children marched along with camels,costumed characters and clergy in the colourful event.Some of the children wore their scout uniforms.
Mayor Batarseh has commented that the wall surrounding Bethlehem has a negative impact on every aspect of daily life in the sacred town,which has one of the highest densities of population in the Palestinian Authority.Even with that,we insist on celebrating Christmas-both Christians and Muslims.We ask for a right to self-determination and our own Palestinian State.
We are staying put on this land.The pilgrims are actually breaking down the walls of separation.That is why we insist on doing Christmas better each year.This is defying this wall,Mayor Batarseh declared.
This year,a very special concert is being held at the Bethlehem Convention Palace on Christmas Day:Christmas in Bethlehem,A Concert for Humanity at the Bethlehem Convention Palace from 7-9 PM(12-2 PM Eastern).
The concert may be viewed free of charge on Facebook.Visit "Project-Peace on Earth" from 12-2 PM Eastern U.S. time.Featured artists in the mystical songs of peace and healing include Grammy winners Joanne Shenandoah and Gary Nicholson,The Magnetic Zeros,Hani Naser,Enigma, and Zarah,the much-admired host of the teen music program B InTune TV,which reaches 200 million homes worldwide.Zarah will perform in the Global Musical Prayer for Peace and original songs from her upcoming album.
Update:The Christmas in Bethlehem concert was a complete success,concluding with some songs composed by the late John Lennon:"Imagine" and "Give Peace a Chance,"performed by all the musicians together and with the audience singing along.It benefited the UNWRA,a UN agency that helps Palestinian refugees in Jordan,Gaza,the West Bank,Syria and Lebanon.For more information and to contribute,visit www.unwra.org

Bethlehem In Carol Fashion

The West Bank town of Bethlehem,homeland of all Christians,is truly peaceful this year.Palestinian choirs are able to travel there again,as Israel has lifted the roadblocks that troubled them previously.Boy Scouts paraded with bagpipes and kilts to the delight of the 90,000 pilgrims-up from 70,000 last year.Hotels are sold out,aiding the Palestinian economy greatly.The weather was spectacular Christmas Eve at 70 degrees F and sunny.It is a postcard Christmas,thanks be to God.
A very different postcard depicts Bishop Pass,California in the Sierra Nevada range.The alpine area is currently under 16.5 feet of snow.At 11,960 feet altitude-or 3645.4 meters-Bishop Pass is a popular hiking destination on Inyo National Forest,for those who don't mind the rocky conditions.
The NBA is gearing up for a smooth Christmas Day of many games,which ESPN and ABC will broadcast.
The stock market is resting at an S&P futures mark of -1.50,while the 10-year Treasury futures are flat.

Business Booming In Bethlehem

Christmas was a great success in Bethlehem this year,thanks to a peaceful atmosphere.Large numbers of tourists arrived,filling hotels and frequenting Palestinian shops.Palestinian boy scouts were able to march proudly,beating their drums.All too often in the past,the town of about 30,000 residents was an armed camp,discouraging all but a few visitors and wrecking the economy.Even from afar,Christians this year could contemplate their spiritual homeland in tranquility,focusing on its meaning rather than disturbing media reports.We pray for continued quiet there for the benefit of all.