EXTREME HEAT IN LOS ANGELES

1-7 killed in massive US floods. 2-Floods in Indonesia force 40,000 to flee. 3-The Temple Mount,Rock of Israels existence.4-Extreme heat in Los Angeles.

LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Seven killed in massive US floods
Published on: Friday, 30th June, 2006

Flooding killed at least seven people and forced hundreds of thousands across northeastern United States to evacuate yesterday in what the New York governor called the area’s worst natural disaster of a lifetime. Emergency officials from across the coast said the toll could climb to 11 or higher as other deaths recorded during the flooding are evaluated to see whether they had been caused by the storms.In one of the hardest hit areas in eastern Pennsylvania, county officials ordered the evacuation of up to 200,000 people from low-lying areas around the Susquehanna River amid fears that the river would spill over the dykes as waters crest.

Evacuation efforts stretched from Virginia - which declared a state-wide emergency to New York as up to a foot (40 centimetres) of rain fell through parts of the region and forced residents to rooftops in scenes reminiscent of last year’s Katrina disaster. We were afraid of a New Orleans-type situation where we just couldn’t get people out, said Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell said. A state of emergency was declared in 46 Pennsylvania counties and Rendell said helicopters had already been brought in to fly search and rescue missions, plucking stranded residents from their rooftops.

Floods in Indonesia's Borneo kill two, force 40,000 to flee

JAKARTA (AFP) - Floods triggered by heavy rains in the Indonesian portion of Borneo island have forced at least 40,000 people to flee their homes and killed at least two people, an official said. Some 40,000 people... in Banjar district have left their homes for safer ground after the waters of the Martapura and Riam Kiwa rivers began flooding,Hadi Susilo, from South Kalimantan's disaster control office, told AFP.Downpours to the north of South Kalimantan province had swollen the rivers drastically from Wednesday morning and flooded most of the district, with some areas under more than two metres (yards) of water, he said.

About 3,000 of the evacuees feared that a local dam would burst its banks, Susilo said.Besides the number of people who left their homes, what is making it more difficult to handle is that this is happening at the same time in so many places across the district, Susilo said.Floods had also hit some areas in Tanah Bumbu district but as the waters were not too deep, mass evacuations had not occurred, he said.Two people swept away by floods in the district's Setui area however were found dead, he said.Widespread floods and landslides hit the Kotabaru district of South Kalimantan earlier in the week, cutting off roads and bridges.

Heavy tropical rains have also lashed regions on the island of Sulawesi this month. In South Sulawesi, flash floods and landslides killed more than 200 people and left some 13,000 people homeless.

ZECHARIAH 14:1-4
1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

Rock of our existence, at a scale of 1:50
By Esther Zandberg

The model of Jerusalem during the Second Temple period, built during the 1960s at the capital's Holyland Hotel, was never just another nice, innocent tourist attraction, as it should have been. The Second Temple model presents Jerusalem in its glory days, during the rule of King Herod in 66 C.E., and the Herodian architecture in all its imaginary splendor. Despite - or perhaps because of the lack of scientific credibility, it has become fraught with political and national significance.

Some have viewed the model, which depicts the Second Temple on the site where the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock now stand, as proof of the Jews claim to exclusivity over Jerusalem. To others, it served as a pilgrimage site, an alternative to the Old City and the Western Wall before the 1967 war. A poster for an organization working to build the third temple features a photograph of the miniature shrine superimposed on a contemporary image of the city. On the other hand, the model is also fertile ground for learned critical theories.

The model's move to the Israel Museum the dedication is next Wednesday, July 5 signifies an additional rise in status for the model. After decades of being displayed in a commercial, tourist environment, it is now being installed in an artistic, museum environment, very close to the Shrine of the Book, where finds of a much higher archaeological quality are displayed. The Second Temple model will undoubtedly gain importance as a result. The signs point to an elevation to holy status, the rock of our existence at a scale of 1:50.

The model's new site is at the southern edge of the sculpture garden. If one can believe museum director James Snyder, It was as if the hand of God wanted the site to remain empty for the model. The museum did not settle for a neutral installation, but rather created an authentic background for the model, using archaeological and landscaping techniques to enhance its believability.

Jerusalem syndrome

The site is designed to resemble an archaeological excavation quarried out of rock and surrounded by steep support walls of natural stone. The model seems to grow naturally out of the rough rock. The topography simulates that of the Old City and its genuine vantage points. Snyder relates that a religious man told him, with great emotion, that one could look directly at the miniaturized holy of holies, just like from the Mount of Olives.

The model is an important part of a plan for developing the area of the Shrine of the Book (Design: Nahum Meltzer-Guy Igra Architects and Avner Drori Architects), which will be dedicated along with the model. This is the most significant project to be built at the museum in recent years. This includes the study center, with materials relating to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Dead Sea sects in the Second Temple Period. A less ambitious plan, for a visitors' center, was modified to suit the site of the model.

An overpass and a tunnel connect the various levels of the site to the visitors' center and the Shrine of the Book to create a historical harmony among the exhibits, as Snyder points out. The new construction does not extend above the museum's horizon line, thanks to the topography and differences in the structures heights. But even the hand of God could not hide the disturbing architectural dissonance between the new project and the existing museum.

The new project suffers from the architectural version of the Jerusalem syndrome that has consumed significant portions of the city. Its most obvious symptoms are a heavy, complicated style that smacks of overdone archaism and vast expanses of chiseled stone that are completely divorced from the museum's modern, secular, elegant atmosphere. Even the model itself is almost lost in the crowd. This project would never have passed muster with Herod: Cruel as he was, he knew what architectural excellence was.

The Israel Museum is currently promoting a comprehensive renovation and expansion program for the campus, which was originally designed by Alfred Mansfeld and Dora Gad. The pair won the Israel Prize for architecture for their efforts. Great care and effort is being taken to bring their architectural creation safely into the 21st century while adapting it to current needs. The fact that the development program for the Shrine of the Book area was carried out in parallel to - but not in coordination with - the main expansion plan is disturbing and suspicious. It is also frustrating that the guardians at the gate have fallen asleep - or perhaps were put to sleep - on their watch.

A new myth

Construction of the Second Temple Model was commissioned in 1966 by the owner of the Holyland Hotel, Hans Kroch, in memory of his son, Yaakov, who was killed in the 1948 War of Independence. The historian Prof. Avi Yonah was in charge of its design. The recent construction of a luxury apartment complex - one of the most monstrous building projects in the country - where the hotel once stood, led Kroch's grandson Hillel Charney (one of the owners of the residential project) to search for a new home for the model. The hand of God, as has already been said, led him to the Israel Museum, which graciously agreed to adopt it.

The model is currently about 2,000 square meters, and there are plans to expand it beyond the Herodian city walls to include the valleys surrounding Jerusalem to the south: the Kidron and Ben-Hinnom valleys. The overall look of the model is reminiscent of a classic Roman city as depicted in the collective imagination from archaeological sites throughout the former Roman Empire, as well as from literature and films.

The model was based on literary and historical sources, not archaeological evidence, with additions from the archaeological and architectural imagination of Prof. Yonah. Archaeological digs in the Old City after the 1967 War turned up a few inaccuracies that were then corrected. Historical research has also shown that the red tiles on the roofs of the wealthy in the model's upper city had not been invented in Herod's time. Museum officials, however, prefer leaving the model as a finished work rather than making changes.

For the move to its new home, the model was sawn into 1,000 pieces, each about one square meter, and reassembled at the site. The "Temple" could not be cut up, and was the last piece to be put into place. The hand of God? Or perhaps the birth of a new myth. At its new location, the model has remained in Holyland hands: The current site is owned by the Holyland Hotel company, which spent $3.5 million to move the model. A visit to the model is included in the price of museum entry.

ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:

MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

Extreme Heat Advisory Issued For L.A. County

(CBS) LOS ANGELES Los Angeles County health officials Thursday issued an extreme heat advisory for Southern California due to the National Weather Service's forecast of high temperatures. While people don't need to be told it's hot outside, they do need to be reminded how to take care of themselves, children, elderly and even their pets when the weather gets this hot, county public health director Jonathan Fielding said.Triple-digit temperatures were expected in valley and desert areas, Fielding said.

When the temperature is this high, prolonged sun exposure may cause dehydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke,he said. Health officials advised people who will be outdoors to wear light or loose-fitting clothing; drink water often; avoid unnecessary exertion and wear a hat.