I asked Vanunu, "When you were baptized in Sydney just a few months before you were abducted and tried, you took the name John Crossman. Was that because of St. John of the Cross and his The Dark Night of The Soul?"
Vanunu replied, "I haven't read him."
Not many have and he is not an easy read. John of the Cross was a Spanish poet and mystic who wrote about the contemplative life and Divine union of the soul with God in this life. He was an ardent disciple of Theresa of Avilla's reforms which greatly antagonized and agitated the church hierarchy during the time of the Spanish Inquisition. John of the Cross received a great deal of abuse for his thoughts and he spent much of his of time in prison writing.
.In my March 2006 interview with the whistleblower we discussed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and how Vanunu has been denied them.
Article 1 of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights upholds that:
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in the spirit of brotherhood.
Vanunu responded, "When I decided to expose Israel's nuclear weapons I acted out of conscience and to warn the world to prevent a nuclear holocaust...The Israeli media demonized me...they published many lies about me...and Israel kept me totally isolated in prison for most of the 18 years...I am also regarded as a traitor because I was baptized a Christian."
Article 18 of the UDHR affirms that: Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right includes freedom to change one's religion.
Vanunu has consistently affirmed, "My Christian conversion was also considered as treason and led to me receiving more time in jail than any murderer has ever served. The Israelis have this very beautiful article about freedom and liberty but they want to destroy anyone who criticizes them for revealing the truth to the world. The world must look and see what kind of democracy Israel is when one speaks out the truth."
Article 13 of the UDHR upholds that: Everyone has the right to freedom of movement.
Vanunu and millions of Palestinians have been denied this inalienable right under the draconian British Emergency Mandate Regulations and the concrete wall/electrified fence that has been repeatedly deemed illegal by the International Court of Justice for it does not follow the Green Line and divides Palestinians from their land, water and families.
Vanunu stated, "It's very sad that Hilary Clinton went to the Jewish Wailing Wall and forgot the real crying wall is the Palestinian wall...the apartheid wall... the wall is not for defense, but to keep this conflict permanent...the people who need the help are the Palestinian Christians. We need all Christians to come and see the true facts on the ground.
"The Dimona is 46 years old; reactors last 25 to 30 years. The Dimona has never been inspected and Israel has never signed the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty but all the Arab states have...Twenty years ago when I worked there they only produced when the air was blowing towards Jordan ten miles away. No one knows what is happening now.
"The Israelis have 200 atomic weapons and they accuse the Palestinians and Muslims of terrorism. The world needs to wake up and see the real terrorism is the occupation and the Palestinians have lived under that terror regime for 40 years.
"Israel propaganda portrays all Palestinians as Muslim extremists and Hamas terrorists and neglect that Palestinian Christians are following the true message of Jesus Christ with nonviolent resistance. We need all Christians to come and see the truth for themselves. Israel is only a democracy if you are a Jew."
This reporter returns to Jerusalem in November 2006 to be a member of Sabeel's 6th International Conference: The Forgotten Faithful/Palestinian Christians and Reality Tour through the West Bank.
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