Michael's Blog

Following is my August update/analysis of what is happening in Palestine/Israel. We are experiencing the violent culmination of the Zionist project after 130 years of colonizing and Judaizing Palestine. As usual, my “update” rapidly veers into analysis. This is important. Palestinian national rights will not be restored – indeed, the Palestinian people will not be restored to its land – and a just, inclusive post-colonial polity and society will not arise unless we have a strategy of decolonization. And

From ICMEP Social Media Director, Zach Heimach, to Rep. Stutzman, Senators Banks and Young Hello Rep. Stutzman,  As someone with a Master of Divinity degree, a Christian from northeast Indiana who is pastoring a church in our district, I must insist more be done to protect the human, civil and political rights of Christians and all citizens living in the West Bank. I returned from spending over two weeks in the Holy Land in June. The blatant disregard for

Michael Spath, August 15, 2026 In the last six months, the illegal Yatziv Settlement has doubled in size in Beit Sahour (adjacent village to Bethlehem, the place of “Shepherds Fields”).  Thirty more caravans, adding to the original thirty from last year, have expanded the settlement along with permanent infrastructure – water tanks, playgrounds, residential areas, utilities, roads, and more.  And of course, the Israeli military is there to “protect” the illegal settlers (read “intimidate”, read “ethnically cleanse” the Palestinian

     Last week, Thursday, August 6, was the 81st anniversary of the United States detonating an atomic bomb over the city of Hiroshima, the first and only use (so far) of a nuclear weapon in war.  It immediately killed 60,000-80,000 on the first day. By the end of 1945, an additional 140,000 had died, and in the decades that followed, many more died from cancer and other radiation-related illnesses.  Sunday, August 9, the US detonated an atomic bomb over

Trump, Iran, and Saudi Arabia        So let’s get this straight.      In 2015, President Barack Obama brokered a far-reaching and historic nuclear deal with Iran known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan for Action (JCPOA).  The JCPOA was a multilateral arms control agreement, reached between the European Union, the UK, France, Germany, Russia, China, and Iran.  Iran had removed 13,000 of its centrifuges (over two-thirds) and eliminated more than 95% of its enriched uranium stockpile, and placed it all

This past Sunday, July 19, like another 1.5 billion people around the globe (roughly ten times more than the average Super Bowl audience), I sat in my family room tuned attentively to the World Cup Final between Argentina and Spain, avidly rooting for Espana. For the previous 39 days, viewers from around the globe rooted for their favorite teams with a nationalistic fervor rivaling, some say, surpassing the Olympics. For those 39 days, the total amount of viewers reached