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ZZZZZ ffff,0000,0000ZENDA is a
Weekly Assyrian Online Magazine ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ Vol III, Issue 31 ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ I Tishreen 6, 6747 October 6, 1997 ZZZZZ=20
ZZZZZ ZZZZZ =20
ZZZZZ =20
zenda@ix.netcom.com ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ P.O. Box 20278 San Jose, California 95160 U.S.A. =20
ZZZZZ
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Dear Readers:
Are you having trouble receiving the entire ZENDA issue? This week we
include an attached textfile entitled "zend1006" composed of the complete
text of this week's magazine. We suggest opening this file using your
favorite wordprocessing program.
The Staff
=20
0000,0000,ffff T H I S W E E K =20
I N Z E N D A=20
The Lighthouse............. The Lunar Landscape of Time =09
Good Morning Bet-Nahrain... Saddam Executes Iraqi Officers,Tribal
Leaders
Turkey Says It Has Killed 400 PKK Rebels
Iraq & Syria Blast Turkey Over Dam Projects
Surfs Up................... "these momentous steps toward unification"
Surfers Corner............. Who are the Assyrians?
News Digest................ Assyrians Attend 1997 Symposium on=20
Gilgamesh
Assyrian Shopkeepers Arrested in Arizona
Tamraz Investigated Over French Bank Collapse
Oshana Defeats Mayberry in Round Six
Turkey Invites The Pope For Celebration 2000
Calendar of Events......... Conference in Lieden, The Netherlands
Khudra..................... October-December 1997=09
Entracte................... No New Entries=09
Intelligentsia............. Meetings & Classes
Abzu....................... Assyrian Radio & TV Programs
Assyrian Surfing Posts..... The Syriac Computing Institute=09
Pump up the Volume......... Arms and Armed =09
Back to the Future......... Sennacherib's Siege of Palastine
Assyrian National Congress =09
Literatus.................. The Destruction of Sennacherib =09
This Week in History....... Assyrian Thesbians of Tiflis=09
Bravo...................... The Rolling Stones=09
The Directory.............. ZENDA News Sources =20
Bshena..................... Sydney, France, Chicago, & Hawaii=09
Salute..................... Alina, Arbella, Firas, Heleen, Lena, =20
=20
Lawrance, Paul, Sarman, & Tony=20
=20
ffff,0000,0000-------------THE L I G H T=20
H O U S E----------------- =20
=20
THE LUNAR LANDSCAPE OF TIME =20
Through the regular movement of the planets and stars, the seasons of the
year, the cycles of the moon and the cycles of the sun Mesopotamians of
millennia ago were able to discover a new dimension of existence- that of
time. Yet to these ancient inhabitants of Bet-Nahrain the cyclical
events of nature could be quite monotonous. Only by inventing the
concepts of year, month, and days were they able to free themselves from
the monotony of their lives and successfully predict future events.=20
Hence they invented the first calendars.
The purpose of a calendar is to reckon time in advance, to show how=20
many days must elapse until a certain event takes place in the future,
such as the corn harvest in Iowa or the release of Microsoft's Windows
98. The earliest calendars, naturally, were crude and tended to be based
upon the seasons or the lunar cycle.
The "lunacy" of time-keeping began with the calendar of the Assyrians
which was based upon the phases of the moon (lunar calendar). Assyrians
knew that a lunation (the time from one full moon to the next) was 29 1/2
days long, so their lunar year had a duration of 354 days. This fell
short of the solar year by about 11 days. The exact time for the solar
year is approximately 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds.
After 3 years, such a lunar calendar would be off by a whole month, so
the Assyrians added an extra month from time to time to keep their
calendar in synchronization with the seasons.
The best approximation that was possible in antiquity was the so-called
Metonic Cycle of 19-year period, invented by the Babylonians around 432
B.C. Seven of these 19 years had 13 leap months. This scheme was adopted
as the basis for the religious calendar used by the Jews. The Arabs also
used this calendar until Prophet Mohammed forbade shifting from 12 months
to 13 months.
When Rome emerged as a world power, the difficulties of making a calendar
were well known, but the Romans complicated their lives because of their
superstition that even numbers were unlucky. Hence their months were 29
or 31 days long, with the exception of February, which had 28 days.=20
Every second year, the Roman calendar included an extra month called=20
Mercedonius of 22 or 23 days to keep up with the solar year.
Even this algorithm was very poor, so that in 45 BC, Julius Caesar,=20
advised by the astronomer Sosigenes, ordered a sweeping reform. By
imperial decree, one year was made 445 days long to bring the calendar
back in step with the seasons. The new calendar was called the Julian
calendar named after Julius Caesar. Its months were 30 or 31 days in
length and every fourth year was made a leap year- having 366 days.=20
Caesar also decreed that the year would start with the first of January,
not the vernal equinox in late March.=20
The birth of Jesus of Nazareth was later adopted as the initial epoch of
the Christian calendar. This epoch was established by the sixth-century
scholar Dionysius Exiguus, who was compiling a table of dates of Easter.
Caesar's year was 11 1/2 minutes short of the calculations recommended by
Sosigenes and eventually the date of the vernal equinox began to drift.=20
Roger Bacon (1214-1294), the greatest European scientist of his time,
became alarmed and sent a note to Pope Clement IV, who apparently was not
impressed. Pope Sixtus IV became convinced of another reform and called
the German astronomer, Regiomontanus, to Rome to advise him.=20
Unfortunately, Regiomontanus died of the plague shortly thereafter and
the plans died as well.
In 1545, the Council of Trent authorized Pope Gregory XIII to reform=20
the calendar once more. Most of the mathematical work was done by=20
Father Christopher Clavius, S.J. The immediate correction that was
adopted was that Thursday, October 4, 1582 was to be the last day of=20
the Julian calendar. The next day was Friday, with the date of October=20
15. For long range accuracy, a formula suggested by the Vatican
librarian Aloysius Giglio was adopted. It said that every fourth year=20
is a leap year except for century years that are not divisible by 400.=20
Thus 1700, 1800 and 1900 would not be leap years, but 2000 would be a
leap year since 2000 is divisible by 400. This rule eliminates 3 leap
years every 4 centuries, making the calendar sufficiently correct for=20
most ordinary purposes. =20
This calendar is known as the Gregorian calendar. The Gregorian calendar
today serves as an international standard for civil use. In addition, it
regulates the ceremonial cycle of the Roman Catholic and Protestant
churches. In the Gregorian calendar, the date of Easter is defined to
occur on the Sunday following the ecclesiastical Full Moon that falls=20
on
or next after March 21. England and its dominions did not accept the
Gregorian Calendar or the new method of determining Easter until 1752;
thus, Easter in England prior to 1753 was determined using the same
algorithm as that of the Orthodox Churches. It is interesting to note
that in 1582, all the Protestant princes ignored the papal decree and so
many European countries continued to use the Julian calendar until either
1698 or 1752. In Russia, it needed the revolution to introduce the
Gregorian calendar in 1918. Despite the great accuracy of the Gregorian
calendar, it still falls behind very slightly every few years.=20
The Orthodox Christians in the Middle East and Russia continue to use one
of the two versions of the Julian Calendar. The Orthodox New Calendar is
the same as the Western Calendar for all fixed feasts but uses the old or
Julian calendar for moveable feasts such as Easter and is used primarily
by the Greek and Cypriot churches. The Orthodox Old Calendar is the
Julian Calendar, 13 days behind the New Calendar (at ZENDA presstime) and
is used by most other Orthodox churches including the Coptic church and
the Ancient Assyrian Church of the East. For instance, based on the Old
Calendar, Christmas Day occurs on January 7 whereas the Assyrian
Chaldean-Catholics and members of the Church of the East celebrate the
Birth of Christ on December 25.
Hence, the Christian world has not been able to agree on the date of
Christ's birth and resurrection. Despite the dispute between the
"ancient" and the "new" Assyrian and other Orthodox churches of the
Middle East, much of the secular (and ecclesiastical) world shares a
solar calendar closely resembling that invented many many moons ago in
Bet-Nahrain. The Mesopotamian invention of the calendar liberated mankind
from the cyclical monotony of nature but its historical revisions based
on religious doctrines have only enslaved us further upon our human
dispositions.=20
Staff of ZENDA
References: =20
Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Almanac, P. Kenneth
Seidelmann
The Discoverers, Daniel J. Boorstin
http://www.goarch.org/access/Companion_to_Orthodox_Church/calendar
=20
ffff,0000,0000---G O O D M O R N I N G=20
B E T - N A H R A I N---
SADDAM ORDERS EXECUTION OF IRAQI OFFICERS AND TRIBAL LEADERS
(ZNAF: Dubai) According to the London-based Iraqi National Congress, 14
people including military officers were executed last week in Iraq for
plotting to kill Saddam Hussein while he was visiting one of his palaces
at Uja, south of his home town Takrit. The bodies of four of the officers
were given to their families. The 14 include four generals, three
colonels, a lieutenant colonel, a commander and two former officials of
the ruling Baath Party. Ten young members of an influential Iraqi Shitte
tribe, Bani Hjeim, were also executed last month for attacking security
forces in the town of Samawa in southern Iraq and many others are in
jail, according to a statement from the tribe. Their bodies were
returned to their parents.
TURKEY SAYS IT KILLED OVER 400 KURDISH REBELS IN NORTHERN IRAQ
(ZNFP: Ankara) Turkish army troops and their Iraqi Kurdish allies have
killed 415 separatist Turkish Kurds in 10 days of fighting following an
army incursion into neighbouring northern Iraq, a military official said
Friday. In a related development, Syria and Iran are deploying
additional armoured forces near their borders with Turkey and Iraq amid
Ankara's ongoing military incursion into northern Iraq, a Turkish
intelligence source told Anatolia. Turkish troops have been pouring into
northern Iraq since September 23 and they are allied with Iraq's
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Massud Barzani. The intelligence
sources accused Iran of arming the PKK with short-range Katyusha rockets
and Syria of harbouring the PKK's leadership and extending logistical aid
to the group. The Iraqi National Congress (INC) said that Syria had sent
an armoured division of nearly 5,000 troops to the triangle of Syrian,
Turkish and Iraqi borders. The Turkish army said its troops on Tuesday
captured the PKK's main northern Iraq base of Zab, located 20 kilometres
(12 miles) south of the Turkish border and 80 kilometres (48 miles) west
of the Iranian frontier. UN secretary-general Kofi Annan on Wednesday
called on Turkey to withdraw its troops from northern Iraq. The
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Saturday accused Turkey of arming a
rival Iraqi Kurdish group and harming the balance of power in northern
Iraq. A senior envoy from Talabani's PUK, Adnan Mufti, said last week
that "If Baghdad accepts the implementation of UN Resolution 688 we can
accept dialogue with them. This resolution asks for a dialogue between
all groups with Baghdad, and new elections. If Iraq enters into a
dialogue with the PUK, Assyrians, Turkmens and other groups we can talk
about the future of the region with Baghdad." But their partnership
collapsed in 1994 due to rifts on power-sharing and tax revenue, and the
two groups have fought several times since then. The PUK of Jalal
Talabani and the KDP of Massud Barzani have controlled northern Iraq in
defiance of Baghdad since the end of the 1991 Gulf war.
IRAQ BLASTS TURKEY OVER EUPHRATES & TIGRIS DAM PROJECT
(ZNAF: Istanbul) Iraq on Tuesday condemned Turkey for a series of dams
it is building on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, saying they would have
a devastating effect on the Iraqi population. Ankara has begun building
22 dams and 19 hydro-electric power plants, as well as irrigation canals,
along the rivers to revitalize a huge plain in southern Turkey. Iraq and
Syria have complained bitterly over the 30 billion-dollar project. Both
rivers originate in Turkey but also flow through Iraq, and the Euphrates
through Syria as well. Low levels of water for human consumption are
already threatening the lives of the Assyrians of the Khabour region in
Syria. Turkey began the scheme in the 1970s and is nearly halfway
through. In the past, it has rejected the concept of dividing the waters
of the two rivers and has instead offered "joint usage" by the
three countries.
ffff,0000,0000------------------S U R F S =20
U P !------------------------
"I am writing regarding the featured 'Lighthouse' article dated 9/29/97.=20
I was very happy to hear that the goal of unification of the Chaldean
Church and the Church of the East is progressing steadily. It is
inspiring to see that our church elders see the importance of bridging
the divisions which exist among Assyrians of different churches and I
commend them for their great efforts. But I have one question to the
leadership of the Church of the East and that is "When will the Ancient
Church of the East be invited to partake in these momentus steps toward
unification?" From what I understand, the Ancient Church of the East has
been "left in the cold" during these critical milestones and has not been
invited to play any part in the unification process. Perhaps, His
Holiness Mar Dinkha and His Holiness Mar Adai should take steps towards
unification, if not before then simultaneous to the Church of the East's
unification with the Chaldean Catholic Church. Any unification efforts
that are to have any impact must come forth from all common sides. Not
doing so will most definitely alienate a whole cross-section of our
beloved people. For if there is enough commonality between the Church of
the East and the Chaldean Church to allow for unity, surely the
commonality between the two factions of the Church of the East (which are
exactly identical in every way, except for their calendars) will be the
easiest to overcome. I hope that elders of the Church of the East may
look beyond their past resignation and heartedly work for the unity of
all its Assyrian faithful. May the Lord guide them in all their
efforts."
Vivian M. Hermiz
Berkeley, California
***********************
"In regards to the comments made relating to AANF and the 65th annual
convention, both the pros and cons stated have merit. The extreme tone
the pros and cons are presented in nead to toner to a middle ground in
order to reach a concensus on how to improve the AANF and its annual
social/political/cultural/educational function. Yes there were hard drugs
(youth and some adults), sex (between married people, and amongst single
people), hanging around the lobby (Adults and youth), youths having
parties in rooms, Educational programs, bazaar that was at least 60%
nationalistic educational articles, youth pageant, different gatherings
of different groups such as the interneters meeting, meeting of the
different activits from all over the world, fire alarms (some by the
employess of Hyatt), three arrests (very low considering the number of
people attending and our miserable situation as a persecuted nation),
One
fight (not bad considering our Eastern temper), future marriages between
the Assyrian men and women that met at the convention, exposure to
different business ideas, sports competitions, parties, banquests, kubba
sold by the hotel restaurants, Assyrian Radio Programs broadcasting live,
Assyrians from all different Churches interacting, baathees trying to
undermine the success of the function, respect for the badge holders, No
couches stuffed in elevators and No plants flying down from third floor
balconies, Art shop for Assyrian Children (forgive me if I forgot
anything). I have been attending these conventions for over 15 years, and
I can honestly say this was amongst the more successful and fruitful
conventions. Every function will have positives and negatives, the
success of which depends on the ratio of the two. To expect perfection is
looking for excuses to dwell on the negatives. BTW, Aprim Rayyis
definately deserves the recognition he received. Looking forward to the
66th annual convention of AANF. We can all contribute to increase the
positives that will undoubtedly eliminate more negatives, and perhaps by
the year 2005 we can achieve a well balanced convention acceptable to all
of us. Untill the day we have the Assyrian Universal National Convention
in Nineveh join me in prayer for ASSYRIA FOR ASSYRIANS."
Ninos Younan
Ontario, Canada
[As a rule ZENDA publishes commentaries received until three weeks after
the initial publication of an article. All future comments on the
"Detroit Convention" will thus be routed to the ZENDA reader(s) for whom
the response was intended.]
ffff,0000,0000---------------S U R F E R S =20
C O R N E R----------------
WHO ARE THE ASSYRIANS?
The Assyrians of today have been mistaken for Arabs and Syrians mainly
because of the confusion caused between the names "Assyria" and "Syria."=20
Assyrians are not Arab nor are they Syrian; they are Assyrians from
"Assyria". Their language is Aramaic, the language our Lord Jesus spoke.
The Assyrians of today are descendants of the ancient Assyrian people
who built the mighty empires of Assyria and Babylonia.
The geographical location of Assyria encompasses Lebanon, Syria, Iraq,
northern Iran, and south-east Turkey. Some evidences indicate that the
Assyrian civilization began in 12,000 BC. The last known Assyrian empire
ended in 612 BC. From this civilization, language, writing, science,
religion and national economics were initially developed and=20
flourished.
The Assyrian language used today is the same as one used by ancient
Assyrians. Following the decline of the Assyrian Empire, the Assyrians
were the first followers of our Lord Jesus.
As early as 100 AD, Assyrian missionaries spread Christian teachings as
far as India and China. Since the time of Christ, the Assyrians have
maintained their language, culture, and Christian religion despite a
decline in their population. Millions of Assyrians have been killed or
vanished for refusing to be assimilated into Arab, Turkish, Kurdish, or
Muslim identities.
The Assyrian population in the Middle East is in a severe decline
because
of discrimination, persecution and death by Arab and Turkish
governments, Islamic institutions and the Kurdish activities in the
Middle-East. Arab and Turkish governments, as well as, Islamic
institutions and Kurds have continued their assimilation process of
non-Arab inhabitants. The Assyrian people feel their human rights are
being abused constantly. Arab governments, especially in Syria and
Iraq, regard Assyrians as Arabs. The Arab governments have been
enforcing their assimilation process by deadly, inhumane, and savage
activities without being accountable for their criminal activities.=20
Their actions have brought death upon the peace-loving Assyrian people.=20
Since the past seven years the Arabs, Muslims, and Kurds have caused
atrocious cruelty and yet no one in the United Nations has stopped them.=20
The Assyrian population in the Middle-East is less than one million
compared to almost seven million in the beginning of the Twentieth
Century.
Assyrians have suffered these destructive blows because of their religion
and ethnic origin. The struggle of Assyrians is to preserve their
national identity and to live in peace. The Assyrians want to enjoy the
same rights and privileges as the people in the countries where they
live. The Assyrian National Congress, based in California, and Assyrian
political parties such as The Bet- Nahrian Democratic Party, Assyrian
Universal Alliance, Takasta, and many others have been working toward
obtaining an Assyrian homeland similar to Israel, the homeland of the
Jewish people. It is a fact that in year 630 AD, there were no
Arab-Muslims living in the Middle East, Africa or Europe. The Arab or
Islamic culture came to the Middle East from Saudi Arabia after the birth
of Islam in 630 AD. At the end of World War Two, Assyrians were promised
of their own homeland, by the British. However, British politics took=20
a
different turn and established an unfounded Arab national identity in
lands confiscated by Arabs in the Middle East. Now, the Assyrians look
at international government bodies to defend their rights and to
re-establish the Assyrian homeland of "Assyria".
"We have been known by many names: Summerians, Akkadians, Babylonians,
Assyrians, but for all practical purposes we are one people, almost
identical in language, customs and traditions. Under the name of
Assyria, we reached our greatest height. There is no doubt that the
ancient Assyrians are the ancestors of the Assyrian remnants of today. =20
Even the Phoenicians (Lebanese), the greatest exploring and seafaring
people, were a branch of Assyrians...." -Bet Nahrain Democratic Party
The Late Dr. David Perley wrote: "Being an Assyrian is a synthesis of
heritage, religion, culture and emotional consciousness that would
transcend all diversities, theological, demographic and otherwise. To
be an Assyrian is to feel: The past in my heritage, I shall not forget
it: The present, my responsibility: The future, my challenge..."
Ashur Simon Malek
Ontario, Canada
Source: Assyrian Women's Info Brochure (www.nineveh.com) =20
=20
=20
ffff,0000,0000---------------N E W S D =20
I G E S T-----------------
ASSYRIANS ATTEND 1997 SYMPOSIUM ON GILGAMESH IN CANADA
(ZNDA: Chicago) On 20 September a group of Assyrians attended the 1997
Annual Symposium of The Canadian Society for Mesopotamian Studies in
Toronto. This year's topic of interest was Gilgamesh, the Sumerian king
of Uruk. The full-day conference entitled "Gilgamesh: The Hero Who Saw
Everything" included the following discussions:
=20
R.F.G. Sweet, University of Toronto "The Myth of the Heroic
Past"
D.R. Frayne, University of Toronto "Gilgamesh in Ancient
Art"
P. Michalowski, University of Michigan "The Many Lives of Gilgamesh:
=20
The Gilgamesh Narratives in Cultural Context"
A.R. George, University of London "What's New in the Gilgamesh
Epic?"
=20
Dr. Sweet commenced the Symposium with a general talk on the Epic of
Gilgamesh. He emphasized the difference between the historical and the
mythological Gilgamesh. Dr. Frayne provided a detailed account of a very
specific portion of the Epic, namely the encoutner between Gilgamesh and
Ishtar, the goddess of love, war, and fertility. He highlighted the
similarities in several versions of the Epic and concluded that Gilgamesh
is a multicultural epic which after leaving Mesopotamia has become an
integral part of various cultures' ethnic and religious identity. An
example given included the hero saved by a bird mentioned in the Iranian
literature from the 13th century A.D. He then presented some interesting
new material demonstrating the level of unity between Mesopotamia and
other parts of present Syria. The Eblite version of the Epic gives an
account of two foreign heroes who received royal crowns from the people
of Ebla.
=20
Professor Michalowski stressed the importance of interpreting the Epic in
its time frame. He went as far as expressing his dislike of the use of
the word 'Epic' due to its Hellenistic interpretation. Professor
Michalowski noted that it was from the ancient Assyrians whom we obtained
thirty two of the thirty five tablets on the Epic of Gilgamesh. Very
little material has survived from the UR III period (2100 b.c. - 2000
B.C.) of which most were magic incantations and exercises of school
children. The Assyrian tablets were found in the Ashurbanipal Library of
Nineveh.
=20
The final speaker spoke of the great advances in uncovering the Epic.=20
Dr. George noted that the last published translation was based on 108
pieces of the tablets. Scholars today have read and translated 178
pieces of the Epic. Dr. George pointed out that the field of Assyriology
is the most understaffed field in the Humanities. There still remains
thousands of tablets in the British Museum's storage rooms that have not
been read, let alone cataloged!
The Assyrian who attended the symposium included:
Rabbie Hurmiz Abbona Author.
Rabbie Alfred Duman Activist and political analyst
Andrius Daniel Shutas Binyat Class (Canada)
Isaac Shimun Shutas Binyat Class (Canada)
Peter Jasim Assyrian Academic Society (Chicago)
Susan Nessan Assyrian Academic Society (Chicago)
Firas Jatou Assyrian Academic Society (Chicago)
=20
For more information contact the Assyrian Acedemic Society at
staff@aas.net .
ASSYRIAN SHOPKEEPERS ARRESTED IN AN ARIZONA DRUG BUST
=20
(ZNDA: Pheonix) Last Monday undercover detectives and more than 100
state and federal law officers in Phoenix, Arizona arrested 31
shopkeepers for selling legal drugs containing ephedrine or synthetic
ephedrine, prime ingredients in illegal methamphetamines. A few shop
owners were identified as Assyrian. Drug Enforcement Administration
agents in the undercover operation went from store to store buying drugs
by the case. Five of the warrants were served at stores in Glendale, one
for a store on county land and the rest for Phoenix stores. John
Youkhanna, the owner of Reddys Corner Drive-in-Liquor on 2613 West
Glendale Avenue, was among the small business owners arrested. When
asked about the ethnic identity of the shopkeepers, William Hermann of
the Arizona Republic responded to a ZENDA inquiry that "many of those
arrested in that sting were, in fact, of Middle Eastern descent. I did
not write as much because I was unable to discern or say what that fact
had to do with anything. It may have been significant and it may have
only been a coincidence..." The Phoenix Police was unable to provide any
pertinent information and the State Attorney General office could not be
reached for further comments. Based on research project by a Washington
think tank, one in six Arizona high-school seniors have tried meth.
The Arizona Republic article: www.azcentral.com/news/0930methbust.shtml
[Note the Assyrian flag tattooed on the shopkeeper's right arm pictured
in this article.]
TAMRAZ TO BE INVESTIGATED OVER FRENCH BANK COLLAPSE
(ZNSM: Beirut) A French investigative magistrate last week charged
fugitive Lebanese-American businessman, Roger Tamraz, with issuing a fake
budget for France's Banque de Participations et de Placements (BPP) and
embezzling more than 6 million francs from its coffers. BPP was a
subsidiary of Lebanon's Intra-Financial company, which was headed by Mr.
Tamraz in the 1980s.
OSHANA STOPS MAYBERRY IN THE 6TH ROUND
(ZNDA: Chicago) Last month Anwar Oshana, the Assyrian boxing champion
from Chicago, stopped Porter Mayberry in the sixth round. In his past 18
games Oshana has had 11 knock-outs and is currently ranked as number 10
in the International Boxing Organization's SuperMiddle Weight group and
number 1 in the National Association of Boxing Organizations.
TURKEY INVITES POPE FOR 2000 CELEBRATIONS
(ZNRU: Ankara) Last week Turkey invited Pope John Paul II to visit this
predominantly Moslem country for planned celebrations to mark the 2000th
anniversary of the birth of Christ. "We would like to see the pope with
us in 2000 when we will have special celebrations for Christ," Gurdal
said at a meeting with the Vatican's apostolic nuncio in Ankara, Pier
Luigi Celata, according to the Anatolia news agency. "Although Turkey is
a mainly Moslem country, we highly respect the other religions. Turkey
has a special place in the growth of Christianity," the minister said.
Turkish terrorist Mehmet Ali Agca shot and injured the pontiff in Rome in
1981 and is serving a life sentence in Italy.
ffff,0000,0000------C A L E N D A R =20
OF E V E N T S----
Oct 17-18 Lieden University Symposium
A History of Assyro-Chaldean Christians
Contact Dr. Heleen Murre-van den Berg
hlmurre@rullet.leidenuniv.nl
Topic include:
"The Church of the East in the 17th and 18th Centuries: Bet Israel
Alqoshaya and the Periodization of History"
"Israel Alqoshaya and Yausip Tilkipnaya and the Beginnings of
Sureth Literature"
"Neo-Aramaic and Persian Glosses in the Syriac Translation of the
Pseudo-Callisthenes and the Literary Traditions around the School of
Alqosh"
"Early Neo-Aramaic and Present-day Dialectal Diversity"
"The Patriarchate of the Church of the East in the 17th Century"
"A Chaldean aksa d-kahna in an East-Syrian Ms. from the University
Library of Groningen"
"The Ascetic Florilegium in Ms. Charfeh 86 and its Connections
with East-Syriac Ascetic Literature"
"The Transmission of the Syriac Pseudo-Callisthenes"
"Founding a New Patriarchate: Eliya X, Joseph I, and the Muslim
Authorities"
"Pour une =82tude de l'=82change culturel entre chr=82 tiens orientau=
x
et catholicisme latin: probl=8Ames et m=82thodes"
"Ottoman Administration and its Christian Subjects:
Changes in the Millet System under Influence of Western
Missions"
"Alqosh as a Channel of Transmission of Syriac Literary Culture"
Oct 25 A Discussion on "The Assyrians": The Second of Joan Grande's
Series of Gallery Talks on the Development of Civilization.
British Museum, London
Coffee Bar (inside the museum)
11:00 AM
=A31.50
=09
Nov 22-24 Middle East Studies Association's 31st Annual Meeting
San Francisco, California
Hyatt Regency San Francisco
=
=
0000,0000,fefehttp://www.mesa.arizona.edu/=
mesa97.htm
Selected Topics:
-Christian Persian Notables: Patrons and Leaders in East Syrian
Christian Society
-Iraq and the Assyrians, 1925-1933
-Dawn at Tell Tamir: The Assyrian Christian Survival on the Khabur
River
-The Future of Iraq=09
-Recognized Religious Minorities in Iran=09
-An Ethnic Perspective on State Formation in Iraq
-Lebanon's Culture and National Identity
-Sons of Noah in Eastern Christian Tradition
Dec 11-13 British Association for Near Eastern Archaeology
1997 Annual Conference
University of Durham
United Kingdom
=
=
0000,0000,fefehttp://www.dur.ac.uk/Archaeo=
logy/confs/BANEA.html
Dec 20 Maestro Nebu Issabey's Nineveh Choir=20
San Jose State University Music Hall
8:00 PM
Through In the Presence of the Gods: Art from Ancient Sumer
Mar 8,1998 The Smart Museum of Art
5550 South Greenwood Avenue
Chicago
Free Admission
A presentation of 43 4,500-year-old Sumerian temple offerings,
including statues from Tell Asmar, tablets, carved stone vessels, and
relief panels showing banquet scenes.
=20
=20
ffff,0000,0000--------------------------K H U D=20
R A------------------------------
Oct 10 Dokhrana 'd Mar Elia (Elijah the Prophet) =20
Oct 12 First Sunday of Moses =20
Oct 17 Anniversary of Mar Dinkha IV's Consecration (1976) =20
Patriarch of the Church of the East
Oct 19 Second Sunday of Moses
Oct 26 Third Sunday of Moses
Oct 31 Dokhrana 'd Mar Elia (of Hirta or Khirata)=20
Nov 1 Dokhrana 'd Mar Mikha d'Alqosh
Nov 3 Dokhrana 'd Mar Gewargis, Sahda (The Martyr)
Nov 19 Commemoration of Mar Yacoub m' Pasqa
Nov 22 Dokhrana 'd Mar Odisho d'Urmi =20
Dec 7 Annunciation of the Virgin Mary (Soobara)
Dec 8 Immaculate Conception
Dec 13 Mar Yacub d'Nsiven (St. James of Nisibin)
Dec 20 King Abgar V
Dec 22 Mar Yousip (St. Joseph)
Dec 25 Christmas (Julian Calendar)
For the Church Liturgy of the Assyrian Church of the East visit:
http://www.cired.org/liturgy.html
=20
ffff,0000,0000-------------------------E N T R=20
A C T E-------------------------
Dec 31 New Year's Eve Party
Assyrian American Association of San Jose
Entertainers: Black Cats & Franco
Marriott Hotel
Santa Clara, California
ffff,0000,0000----------------------I N T E L L I G
E N T S I A-----------------------
CHICAGO Introductory & Advanced Modern Assyrian
Room Numbers C13 & C33
Instructor: Rabbie Zaia Kanoon
Wednesdays, Thursdays, & Saturdays
7:00-9:00 PM
Location: North Park University, Carlson Tower
language@aas.net or 1-800-454-6979.
=09
Assyrian Athletic Club Soccer Development Program
Ages 7-14
7:45-9:45 PM
Mondays
Warren Park Gymnasium
Western Avenue & Devon Street
------------------------------------------------------
HARVARD 1997-98 Syriac Classes Taught by Dr. J.F. Coakley
UNIVERSITY Elementary Syriac
Instructor: J. F. Coakley
Basic Syriac grammar and syntax with selected readings from=20
the Syriac Bible and other early texts. =20
------------------------------------------------------
Readings in Syriac I
Historical and theological texts, and early poetry
------------------------------------------------------
Readings in Syriac II
Special attention to exegetical texts and to reading
manuscripts.=20
------------------------------------------------------
NORTH Assyrian Boy Scouts =20
HOLLYWOOD Assyrian American Association of Southern California
Assyrian Club
5901 Cahuenga Blvd
North Hollywood, California
9:30am to 12:30pm =20
Sundays =20
Contact Sargon Gewargis @ fishtale@juno.com
(818) 891-3705 after 7:30 PM
------------------------------------------------------
Assyrian Student Union
California State University, Northridge
Assyrian American Association of Southern California
Assyrian Club
5901 Cahuenga Blvd
North Hollywood, California
6:00pm
Contact Sargon Gewargis @ fishtale@juno.com
(818) 891-3705 after 7:30 PM
------------------------------------------------------
SAN JOSE English as a Second Language & Conversational English (Adults)
Instructor: Jacklin Bajan
Mondays
7:00-9:30 PM
AAA of San Jose BETA
------------------------------------------------------
Nisibin School for Children (Classes begin on 10/6/97)
Various Instructors
Saturdays
10:00-1:00 pm
AAA of San Jose BETA
------------------------------------------------------
Citizenship Classes
Instructor: Jacklin Bajan
Mondays & Tuesdays
7:00 PM
AAA of San Jose BETA
20000 Almaden Road
------------------------------------------------------
Maestro Nebu Issabey's Nineveh Choir Practice
AAA of San Jose BETA
8:00 PM
Thursdays
------------------------------------------------------
ONTARIO Nisibis School=20
10:30-1:30 =20
Saturdays
The Church of the East=20
Toronto, Canada
Assyrian Student Association
12:00 pm (noon)
MSA Room, Fennell Campus
Hamilton, Canada
ffff,0000,0000-----------------------------A B Z=20
U---------------------------------=20
RADIO PROGRAMS=09
Assyrian Voice of Canada Ontario-Canada
Saturdays=09
3:00 - 4:00 PM Cable 91.7 and 91.9
10:00 PM - 12:00 AM (midnight) AM 1430
Voice (905) 279-6206
Fax (905) 279-7347
-------------------------------------------------------------------
TELEVISION PROGRAMS
AssyriaVision KBSV-TV 23 Modesto/Turlock-California
Bet-Nahrain Inc.
Daily (Saturday-Friday)=09
7:00 AM - 2:00 AM PST=20
(209) 538-4130
0000,0000,fefehttp://www.betnahrain.org/kbs=
v-tv23.html
--------------------------------------------------------=
-----------
Assyrian National Magazine San Jose/Bay Area, California
(with George Maragolof)=09
Live Show (Every first and third Tuesday)
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM "live show"
Weekly Show (Fridays)=20
7:00-8:00 PM
Channel 15A (TCI Cablevision)
0000,0000,fefehttp://wwwdeanza.fhda.edu/26/=
shows/assyrian.html
--------------------------------------------------------=
-----------
Atour TV (Assyrian American Association) San Jose, California
Weekly (Mondays)
8:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Channel 15A (TCI Cablevision)
=20
ffff,0000,0000---A S S Y R I A N S U R
F I N G P O S T S-----=20
=20
The Syriac Computing Institute:
http://scholar.cc.emory.edu/scripts/syrcom/index.html
SyrCOM is an independent non-profit research institute which aims at
promoting Syriac culture by contributing to the academic field of Syriac
studies using computer technology.
ffff,0000,0000-------------------P U M P UP
THE V O L U M E-------------------=20
0000,0000,ffff English Modern Assyrian
Arms (as weapons) zey/ne [F]
=20
Armed zoo/ye/na [M]
zoo/yen/ta [F]
________________________________________________________________________
F =3D Feminine M =3D Masculine P =3D Plural =20
=20
=20
=20
ffff,0000,0000-------------B A C K TO THE =20
F U T U R E----------------
BC (701)
A rebellion against the Assyrian king took place in Palastine with
Hezekiah of Judah as its leader. The conspiracy was supported by the
Egyptians. Hezekiah had prepared for the possible seige of Jerusalem by
digging a tunnel to bring water into Jerusalam from the pool of Siloam.=20
King Sennacherib quickly moved towards Palastine, first defeating the
combined forces of Egypt and Ekron. Judah was rapidly isolated.=20
Sennacherib took 46 "walled cities" including Lachish. Initially,
Hezekiah, encouraged by the Jewish prophet Isiah, refused to surrender
but finally compromised and "grasping the feet" of Sennacherib once again
submitted to the Assyrian rule. Meanwhile, Babylon began a separate
rebellion against the Assyrian king and so the king once again mobilized
his army against the rebellion in Bet-Nahrain.=20
[For a different perspective on this historic event see this week's
LITERATUS.]
=20
<<<< The Ancient Assyrians, Healy & McBride >>
AD (1983) Dr. Sargon Dadesho's Bet-Nahrain Organization forms the
Assyrian National Congress and holds the first "Congress" in Modesto,
California in March 18-20. The purpose of this organization is to
"oversee the Assyrian affairs in the fields of politics, education,
culture, finance, religion, defense, and protection of the Assyrian human
rights all over the world...(and) to secure a homeland for Assyrians in
the province of Nineveh or in the province of Dohuk..."
<<<< The Assyrian National Question, Dadesho >>
=20
=20
ffff,0000,0000--------------L I T E R =20
A T U S-----------------
THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen;
Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.
For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and forever grew still!
And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,
But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride;
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.
And there lay the rider distorted and pale,
With the dew of his brow, and the rust on his mail;
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.
And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
<<<>
ffff,0000,0000--------T H I S W E E K =20
I N H I S T O R Y--------=20
October 10, 1910: Assyrians of Georgia form a professional theatrical
company in Tiflis (Tbilisi).
ffff,0000,0000-----------------------B R A =20
V O-------------------------
THE ROLLING STONES' BRIDGES TO BABYLON
When was the last time you heard the name "Babylon" affectionatally
uttered on TV or your favorite rock radio station? Perhaps last night.=20
First, it was the science-fiction TV "Babylon 5" which captured our
attention but for a very brief period. Now it is the long-awaited
Rolling Stones' concert tour entitled "Bridges to Babylon." This is Mick
Jagger, Keith Richards and Ron Woods at their best. With the help of the
roaring Lion of Babylon and the Tower of Babel in "shockwaves", the
Stones hit the ground running. As expected, most of us "can't get no
satisfaction" from the Holywood extravaganza of the multi-million dollar
staging deemed unfriendly to our cultural heritage. Yet the thought of
watching the giant posters of The Bearded Lion at tens of concert
stadiums under the caption "Bridges to Babylon" can move us "out of
control." =20
http://www.virginrecords.com/the-rolling-stones/menupage/indexdcr.html
ffff,0000,0000--------------------the D I R E=20
C T O R Y----------------------
ZNAA (Assyrian Academic Society-Chicago)
ZNAD (Assyrian Democratic Organization)
ZNAF (Agence France-Presse)
ZNAM (Archeology Magazine)
ZNAP (Associated Press International)
ZNBN (Bet-Nahrain Inc/ KBSV-TV "AssyriaVision")
ZNIF (Iraq Foundation)
ZNDA (Zenda: zenda@ix.netcom.com)
ZNIN (Iraqi National Congress)
ZNMN (San Jose Mercury News)
ZNNQ (Nabu Quarterly)
ZNNV (Nineveh Magazine)
ZNQA (Qala Atouraya- Moscow)
ZNRU (Reuters)
ZNSH (Shotapouta Newsletter)
ZNSJ (San Jose Mercury News)
ZNSM (Shufimafi Lebanese News)
ZNTM (Time Magazine)
ZNUP (United Press International)
ZNUS (US News & World Report)
ffff,0000,0000---------W E L C O M E =20
T O Z E N D A--------
CORPORATE ACCOUNTS=20
=09
UNIVERSITY ACCOUNTS
PERSONAL ACCOUNTS =20
Chicago
France
Honolulu, Hawaii=20
Sydney, Australia
=09
ffff,0000,0000-------------------S A L =20
U T E----------------------
This Week's Writers & Reporters:
Alina Sargis San Jose, California Feature Article
Arbella Issabey San Jose, California Literatus
Assyrian Church of the East Website Khudra=09
Firas Jatou Chicago, Illinois News Digest
Dr. Heleen Murre-van den Berg The Netherlands Calendar of Events
Lena Mushell San Jose, California Good Morning B-N
Shamasha Lawrance Namato Chicago, Illinois Khudra
& We Thank The Following Individuals For Referring Us to New Readers:
Paul Newey Chicago, Illinois
Sarman BASC Chicago, Illinois
Tony Khoshaba Chicago, Illinois
THANKS CHICAGO!
ffff,0000,0000----------------------------------------=
--------------------------------
0000,0000,ffffIn Our Upcoming Issues:
=09
October 13 Yusuf Malek
October 20 Babylonian Mathematics
October 27 ZENDA's Readers Survey
November 3 The Urmie Manifesto
November 10 The Assyrian American Association of Chicago
November 17 Of Dolma and Haseeda: Assyrian Chefs & Cookery
Would you like to know more about a particular topic on Assyrian culture,
arts, history, language, politics, etc. Drop us a note!
Do you have old books and magazines on topics related to the Assyrian
culture sitting around at home eating dust? How about sending them to
ZENDA so we may share their information with our readers. ZENDA will
cover your cost of postage and handling.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ZENDA is a weekly online magazine distributed on Mondays. Views expressed
in ZENDA do not necessarily represent those of the ZENDA editors, or any
of our associated staff. This publication reserves the right, at its sole
discretion, not to publish comments or articles previously printed in or
submitted to other journals. ZENDA also reserves the right to publish
and republish your submission in any form or medium. All letters and
messages require the name(s) of sender and/or author. All messages
published in the SURFS UP! section must bear the name of the author(s).=20
Distribution of material featured in ZENDA is not restricted, but
permission from ZENDA is required. This service is meant for the
exchange of information, analyses and news. To subscribe, send e-mail to:
zenda@ix.netcom.com with the message body "subscribe ZENDA Firstname
Lastname". To unsubscribe, send e-mail to the above address, with the
message body "unsubscribe ZENDA".
zenda@ix.netcom.com
P.O. Box 20278 San Jose, California 95160 U.S.A.
--=====================_876167312==_
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="zend1006.txt"
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZ ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZZZZZZZZZ ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
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ZZZZZZZZZ ZZZZZZZ ZZZZZ ZZZZZZZ ZZZZZ ZZZZZZZZZ ZZZZZZZZ
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ZZZZ ZZZZZZZZZZZZ ZZZZZZZZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZZZZ ZZZ
ZZZ ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ ZZZZZZZZZZ ZZZZ Z ZZZZZ ZZZ ZZZZZ ZZZZZZZZ ZZ
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ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZZZ ZENDA is a Weekly Assyrian Online Magazine ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ Vol III, Issue 31 ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ I Tishreen 6, 6747 October 6, 1997 ZZZZZ=20
ZZZZZ ZZZZZ =
ZZZZZ =
zenda@ix.netcom.com ZZZZZ
ZZZZZ P.O. Box 20278 San Jose, California 95160 U.S.A. ZZZZZ
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Dear Reader:
If you are among the group of subscribers unable to receive the full text of=
our magazine, we include an attached textfile entitled "zend1006." We=
suggest opening this file using your favorite wordprocessing program. =20
The Staff
=20
T H I S W E E K I N Z E N D A=20
The Lighthouse............. The Lunar Landscape of Time =09
Good Morning Bet-Nahrain... Saddam Executes Iraqi Officers,Tribal Leaders
Turkey Says It Has Killed 400 PKK Rebels
Iraq & Syria Blast Turkey Over Dam Projects
Surfs Up................... "these momentous steps toward unification"
Surfers Corner............. Who are the Assyrians?
News Digest................ Assyrians Attend 1997 Symposium on Gilgamesh
Assyrian Shopkeepers Arrested in Arizona
Tamraz Investigated Over French Bank Collapse
Oshana Defeats Mayberry in Round Six
Turkey Invites The Pope For Celebration 2000
Calendar of Events......... Conference in Lieden, The Netherlands
Khudra..................... October-December 1997=09
Entracte................... No New Entries=09
Intelligentsia............. Meetings & Classes
Abzu....................... Assyrian Radio & TV Programs
Assyrian Surfing Posts..... The Syriac Computing Institute=09
Pump up the Volume......... Arms and Armed =09
Back to the Future......... Sennacherib's Siege of Palastine
Assyrian National Congress =09
Literatus.................. The Destruction of Sennacherib =09
This Week in History....... Assyrian Thesbians of Tiflis=09
Bravo...................... The Rolling Stones=09
The Directory.............. ZENDA News Sources =20
Bshena..................... Sydney, France, Chicago, & Hawaii=09
Salute..................... Alina, Arbella, Firas, Heleen, Lena, =
=20
Lawrance, Paul, Sarman, & Tony=20
=20
-------------THE L I G H T H O U S E----------------- =
=20
=20
THE LUNAR LANDSCAPE OF TIME =20
Through the regular movement of the planets and stars, the seasons of the=
year, the cycles of the moon and the cycles of the sun Mesopotamians of=
millennia ago were able to discover a new dimension of existence- that of=
time. Yet to these ancient inhabitants of Bet-Nahrain the cyclical events=
of nature could be quite monotonous. Only by inventing the concepts of=
year, month, and days were they able to free themselves from the monotony=
of their lives and successfully predict future events. Hence they invented=
the first calendars.
The purpose of a calendar is to reckon time in advance, to show how=20
many days must elapse until a certain event takes place in the future, such=
as the corn harvest in Iowa or the release of Microsoft's Windows 98. The=
earliest calendars, naturally, were crude and tended to be based upon the=
seasons or the lunar cycle.
The "lunacy" of time-keeping began with the calendar of the Assyrians which=
was based upon the phases of the moon (lunar calendar). Assyrians knew that=
a lunation (the time from one full moon to the next) was 29 1/2 days long,=
so their lunar year had a duration of 354 days. This fell short of the=
solar year by about 11 days. The exact time for the solar year is=
approximately 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds. After 3=
years, such a lunar calendar would be off by a whole month, so the=
Assyrians added an extra month from time to time to keep their calendar in=
synchronization with the seasons.
The best approximation that was possible in antiquity was the so-called=
Metonic Cycle of 19-year period, invented by the Babylonians around 432=
B.C. Seven of these 19 years had 13 leap months. This scheme was adopted=
as the basis for the religious calendar used by the Jews. The Arabs also=
used this calendar until Prophet Mohammed forbade shifting from 12 months=
to 13 months.
When Rome emerged as a world power, the difficulties of making a calendar =
were well known, but the Romans complicated their lives because of their=
superstition that even numbers were unlucky. Hence their months were 29 or=
31 days long, with the exception of February, which had 28 days. Every=
second year, the Roman calendar included an extra month called Mercedonius=
of 22 or 23 days to keep up with the solar year.
Even this algorithm was very poor, so that in 45 BC, Julius Caesar, advised=
by the astronomer Sosigenes, ordered a sweeping reform. By imperial=
decree, one year was made 445 days long to bring the calendar back in step=
with the seasons. The new calendar was called the Julian calendar named=
after Julius Caesar. Its months were 30 or 31 days in length and every=
fourth year was made a leap year- having 366 days. Caesar also decreed=
that the year would start with the first of January, not the vernal equinox=
in late March.=20
The birth of Jesus of Nazareth was later adopted as the initial epoch of the=
Christian calendar. This epoch was established by the sixth-century scholar=
Dionysius Exiguus, who was compiling a table of dates of Easter. Caesar's=
year was 11 1/2 minutes short of the calculations recommended by Sosigenes=
and eventually the date of the vernal equinox began to drift. Roger Bacon=
(1214-1294), the greatest European scientist of his time, became alarmed=
and sent a note to Pope Clement IV, who apparently was not impressed. Pope=
Sixtus IV became convinced of another reform and called the German=
astronomer, Regiomontanus, to Rome to advise him. Unfortunately,=
Regiomontanus died of the plague shortly thereafter and the plans died as=
well.
In 1545, the Council of Trent authorized Pope Gregory XIII to reform=20
the calendar once more. Most of the mathematical work was done by=20
Father Christopher Clavius, S.J. The immediate correction that was adopted=
was that Thursday, October 4, 1582 was to be the last day of=20
the Julian calendar. The next day was Friday, with the date of October 15.=
For long range accuracy, a formula suggested by the Vatican librarian=
Aloysius Giglio was adopted. It said that every fourth year is a leap=
year except for century years that are not divisible by 400. Thus 1700,=
1800 and 1900 would not be leap years, but 2000 would be a leap year since=
2000 is divisible by 400. This rule eliminates 3 leap years every 4=
centuries, making the calendar sufficiently correct for most ordinary=
purposes. =20
This calendar is known as the Gregorian calendar. The Gregorian calendar=
today serves as an international standard for civil use. In addition, it=
regulates the ceremonial cycle of the Roman Catholic and Protestant=
churches. In the Gregorian calendar, the date of Easter is defined to occur=
on the Sunday following the ecclesiastical Full Moon that falls on
or next after March 21. England and its dominions did not accept the=
Gregorian Calendar or the new method of determining Easter until 1752;=
thus, Easter in England prior to 1753 was determined using the same=
algorithm as that of the Orthodox Churches. It is interesting to note that=
in 1582, all the Protestant princes ignored the papal decree and so many=
European countries continued to use the Julian calendar until either 1698=
or 1752. In Russia, it needed the revolution to introduce the Gregorian=
calendar in 1918. Despite the great accuracy of the Gregorian calendar, it=
still falls behind very slightly every few years.=20
The Orthodox Christians in the Middle East and Russia continue to use one of=
the two versions of the Julian Calendar. The Orthodox New Calendar is the=
same as the Western Calendar for all fixed feasts but uses the old or=
Julian calendar for moveable feasts such as Easter and is used primarily by=
the Greek and Cypriot churches. The Orthodox Old Calendar is the Julian=
Calendar, 13 days behind the New Calendar (at ZENDA presstime) and is used=
by most other Orthodox churches including the Coptic church and the Ancient=
Assyrian Church of the East. For instance, based on the Old Calendar,=
Christmas Day occurs on January 7 whereas the Assyrian Chaldean-Catholics=
and members of the Church of the East celebrate the Birth of Christ on=
December 25.
Hence, the Christian world has not been able to agree on the date of=
Christ's birth and resurrection. Despite the dispute between the "ancient"=
and the "new" Assyrian and other Orthodox churches of the Middle East, much=
of the secular world shares a solar calendar closely resembling that=
invented many many moons ago in Bet-Nahrain. The Mesopotamian invention of=
the calendar liberated mankind from the cyclical monotony of nature but its=
historical revisions based on religious doctrines have only enslaved us=
further upon our human dispositions.=20
Staff of ZENDA
References: =20
Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Almanac, P. Kenneth Seidelmann
The Discoverers, Daniel J. Boorstin
http://www.goarch.org/access/Companion_to_Orthodox_Church/calendar
=20
---G O O D M O R N I N G B E T - N A H R A I N---
SADDAM ORDERS EXECUTION OF IRAQI OFFICERS AND TRIBAL LEADERS
(ZNAF: Dubai) According to the London-based Iraqi National Congress, 14=
people including military officers were executed last week in Iraq for=
plotting to kill Saddam Hussein while he was visiting one of his palaces at=
Uja, south of his home town Takrit. The bodies of four of the officers were=
given to their families. The 14 include four generals, three colonels, a=
lieutenant colonel, a commander and two former officials of the ruling=
Baath Party. Ten young members of an influential Iraqi Shitte tribe, Bani=
Hjeim, were also executed last month for attacking security forces in the=
town of Samawa in southern Iraq and many others are in jail, according to a=
statement from the tribe. Their bodies were returned to their parents.
TURKEY SAYS IT KILLED OVER 400 KURDISH REBELS IN NORTHERN IRAQ
(ZNFP: Ankara) Turkish army troops and their Iraqi Kurdish allies have=
killed 415 separatist Turkish Kurds in 10 days of fighting following an=
army incursion into neighbouring northern Iraq, a military official said=
Friday. In a related development, Syria and Iran are deploying additional=
armoured forces near their borders with Turkey and Iraq amid
Ankara's ongoing military incursion into northern Iraq, a Turkish=
intelligence source told Anatolia. Turkish troops have been pouring into=
northern Iraq since September 23 and they are allied with Iraq's Kurdistan=
Democratic Party (KDP) of Massud Barzani. The intelligence sources accused=
Iran of arming the PKK with short-range Katyusha rockets and Syria of=
harbouring the PKK's leadership and extending logistical aid to the group. =
The Iraqi National Congress (INC) said that Syria had sent an armoured=
division of nearly 5,000 troops to the triangle of Syrian, Turkish and=
Iraqi borders. The Turkish army said its troops on Tuesday captured the=
PKK's main northern Iraq base of Zab, located 20 kilometres (12 miles)=
south of the Turkish border and 80 kilometres (48 miles) west of the=
Iranian frontier. UN secretary-general Kofi Annan on Wednesday called on=
Turkey to withdraw its troops from northern Iraq. The Patriotic Union of=
Kurdistan (PUK) Saturday accused Turkey of arming a rival Iraqi Kurdish=
group and harming the balance of power in northern Iraq. A senior envoy=
from Talabani's PUK, Adnan Mufti, said last week that "If Baghdad accepts=
the implementation of UN Resolution 688 we can accept dialogue with them.=
This resolution asks for a dialogue between all groups with Baghdad, and=
new elections. If Iraq enters into a dialogue with the PUK, Assyrians,=
Turkmens and other groups we can talk about the future of the region with=
Baghdad." But their partnership collapsed in 1994 due to rifts on=
power-sharing and tax revenue, and the two groups have fought several times=
since then. The PUK of Jalal Talabani and the KDP of Massud Barzani have=
controlled northern Iraq in defiance of Baghdad since the end of the 1991=
Gulf war.
IRAQ BLASTS TURKEY OVER EUPHRATES & TIGRIS DAM PROJECT
(ZNAF: Istanbul) Iraq on Tuesday condemned Turkey for a series of dams it=
is building on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, saying they would have a=
devastating effect on the Iraqi population. Ankara has begun building 22=
dams and 19 hydro-electric power plants, as well as irrigation canals,=
along the rivers to revitalize a huge plain in southern Turkey. Iraq and=
Syria have complained bitterly over the 30 billion-dollar project. Both=
rivers originate in Turkey but also flow through Iraq, and the Euphrates=
through Syria as well. Low levels of water for human consumption are=
already threatening the lives of the Assyrians of the Khabour region in=
Syria. Turkey began the scheme in the 1970s and is nearly halfway through.=
In the past, it has rejected the concept of dividing the waters of the two=
rivers and has instead offered "joint usage" by the
three countries.
------------------S U R F S U P !------------------------
"I am writing regarding the featured 'Lighthouse' article dated 9/29/97. I=
was very happy to hear that the goal of unification of the Chaldean Church=
and the Church of the East is progressing steadily. It is inspiring to see=
that our church elders see the importance of bridging the divisions which=
exist among Assyrians of different churches and I commend them for their=
great efforts. But I have one question to the leadership of the Church of=
the East and that is "When will the Ancient Church of the East be invited=
to partake in these momentus steps toward unification?" From what I=
understand, the Ancient Church of the East has been "left in the cold"=
during these critical milestones and has not been invited to play any part=
in the unification process. Perhaps, His Holiness Mar Dinkha and His=
Holiness Mar Adai should take steps towards unification, if not before then=
simultaneous to the Church of the East's unification with the Chaldean=
Catholic Church. Any unification efforts that are to have any impact must=
come forth from all common sides. Not doing so will most definitely=
alienate a whole cross-section of our beloved people. For if there is=
enough commonality between the Church of the East and the Chaldean Church=
to allow for unity, surely the commonality between the two factions of the=
Church of the East (which are exactly identical in every way, except for=
their calendars) will be the easiest to overcome. I hope that elders of=
the Church of the East may look beyond their past resignation and heartedly=
work for the unity of all its Assyrian faithful. May the Lord guide them in=
all their efforts."
Vivian M. Hermiz
Berkeley, California
***********************
"In regards to the comments made relating to AANF and the 65th annual
convention, both the pros and cons stated have merit. The extreme tone the=
pros and cons are presented in nead to toner to a middle ground in order to=
reach a concensus on how to improve the AANF and its annual
social/political/cultural/educational function. Yes there were hard drugs=
(youth and some adults), sex (between married people, and amongst single=
people), hanging around the lobby (Adults and youth), youths having parties=
in rooms, Educational programs, bazaar that was at least 60% nationalistic=
educational articles, youth pageant, different gatherings of different=
groups such as the interneters meeting, meeting of the different activits=
from all over the world, fire alarms (some by the employess of Hyatt),=
three arrests (very low considering the number of people attending and our=
miserable situation as a persecuted nation), One
fight (not bad considering our Eastern temper), future marriages between the=
Assyrian men and women that met at the convention, exposure to different=
business ideas, sports competitions, parties, banquests, kubba sold by the=
hotel restaurants, Assyrian Radio Programs broadcasting live, Assyrians=
from all different Churches interacting, baathees trying to undermine the=
success of the function, respect for the badge holders, No couches stuffed=
in elevators and No plants flying down from third floor balconies, Art shop=
for Assyrian Children (forgive me if I forgot anything). I have been=
attending these conventions for over 15 years, and I can honestly say this=
was amongst the more successful and fruitful conventions. Every function=
will have positives and negatives, the success of which depends on the=
ratio of the two. To expect perfection is looking for excuses to dwell on=
the negatives. BTW, Aprim Rayyis definately deserves the recognition he=
received. Looking forward to the 66th annual convention of AANF. We can=
all contribute to increase the positives that will undoubtedly eliminate=
more negatives, and perhaps by the year 2005 we can achieve a well balanced=
convention acceptable to all of us. Untill the day we have the Assyrian=
Universal National Convention in Nineveh join me in prayer for ASSYRIA FOR=
ASSYRIANS."
Ninos Younan
Ontario, Canada
[As a rule ZENDA publishes commentaries received until three weeks after the=
initial publication of an article. All future comments on the "Detroit=
Convention" will thus be routed to the ZENDA reader(s) for whom the=
response was intended.]
---------------S U R F E R S C O R N E R----------------
WHO ARE THE ASSYRIANS?
The Assyrians of today have been mistaken for Arabs and Syrians mainly=
because of the confusion caused between the names "Assyria" and "Syria." =
Assyrians are not Arab nor are they Syrian; they are Assyrians from=
"Assyria". Their language is Aramaic, the language our Lord Jesus spoke. =
The Assyrians of today are descendants of the ancient Assyrian people who=
built the mighty empires of Assyria and Babylonia.
The geographical location of Assyria encompasses Lebanon, Syria, Iraq,
northern Iran, and south-east Turkey. Some evidences indicate that the
Assyrian civilization began in 12,000 BC. The last known Assyrian empire=
ended in 612 BC. From this civilization, language, writing, science,=
religion and national economics were initially developed and flourished.
The Assyrian language used today is the same as one used by ancient
Assyrians. Following the decline of the=20Assyrian Empire, the Assyrians=
were the first followers of our Lord Jesus.
As early as 100 AD, Assyrian missionaries spread Christian teachings as far=
as India and China. Since the time of Christ, the Assyrians have=
maintained their language, culture, and Christian religion despite a=
decline in their population. Millions of Assyrians have been killed or=
vanished for refusing to be assimilated into Arab, Turkish, Kurdish, or=
Muslim identities.
The Assyrian population in the Middle East is in a severe decline because
of discrimination, persecution and death by Arab and Turkish
governments, Islamic institutions and the Kurdish activities in the
Middle-East. Arab and Turkish governments, as well as, Islamic
institutions and Kurds have continued their assimilation process of
non-Arab inhabitants. The Assyrian people feel their human rights are
being abused constantly. Arab governments, especially in Syria and
Iraq, regard Assyrians as Arabs. The Arab governments have been enforcing=
their assimilation process by deadly, inhumane, and savage
activities without being accountable for their criminal activities. Their=
actions have brought death upon the peace-loving Assyrian people. Since=
the past seven years the Arabs, Muslims, and Kurds have caused atrocious=
cruelty and yet no one in the United Nations has stopped them. The=
Assyrian population in the Middle-East is less than one million compared to=
almost seven million in the beginning of the Twentieth Century.
Assyrians have suffered these destructive blows because of their religion=
and ethnic origin. The struggle of Assyrians is to preserve their national=
identity and to live in peace. The Assyrians want to enjoy the same rights=
and privileges as the people in the countries where they live. The=
Assyrian National Congress, based in California, and Assyrian political=
parties such as The Bet- Nahrian Democratic Party, Assyrian Universal=
Alliance, Takasta, and many others have been working toward obtaining an=
Assyrian homeland similar to Israel, the homeland of the Jewish people. It=
is a fact that in year 630 AD, there were no Arab-Muslims living in the=
Middle East, Africa or Europe. The Arab or Islamic culture came to the=
Middle East from Saudi Arabia after the birth of Islam in 630 AD. At the=
end of World War Two, Assyrians were promised of their own homeland, by the=
British. However, British politics took a
different turn and established an unfounded Arab national identity in
lands confiscated by Arabs in the Middle East. Now, the Assyrians look
at international government bodies to defend their rights and to=
re-establish the Assyrian homeland of "Assyria".
"We have been known by many names: Summerians, Akkadians, Babylonians,
Assyrians, but for all practical purposes we are one people, almost
identical in language, customs and traditions. Under the name of
Assyria, we reached our greatest height. There is no doubt that the
ancient Assyrians are the ancestors of the Assyrian remnants of today. =20
Even the Phoenicians (Lebanese), the greatest exploring and seafaring
people, were a branch of Assyrians...." -Bet Nahrain Democratic Party
The Late Dr. David Perley wrote: "Being an Assyrian is a synthesis of
heritage, religion, culture and emotional consciousness that would
transcend all diversities, theological, demographic and otherwise. To
be an Assyrian is to feel: The past in my heritage, I shall not forget
it: The present, my responsibility: The future, my challenge..."
Ashur Simon Malek
Ontario, Canada
Source: Assyrian Women's Info Brochure (www.nineveh.com) =
=20
=20
---------------N E W S D I G E S T-----------------
ASSYRIANS ATTEND 1997 SYMPOSIUM ON GILGAMESH IN CANADA
(ZNDA: Chicago) On 20 September a group of Assyrians attended the 1997=
Annual Symposium of The Canadian Society for Mesopotamian Studies in=
Toronto. This year's topic of interest was Gilgamesh, the Sumerian king of=
Uruk. The full-day conference entitled "Gilgamesh: The Hero Who Saw=
Everything" included the following discussions:
=20
R.F.G. Sweet, University of Toronto "The Myth of the Heroic Past"
D.R. Frayne, University of Toronto "Gilgamesh in Ancient Art"
P. Michalowski, University of Michigan "The Many Lives of Gilgamesh: =
=
The Gilgamesh Narratives in Cultural Context"
A.R. George, University of London "What's New in the Gilgamesh Epic?"
=20
Dr. Sweet commenced the Symposium with a general talk on the Epic of=
Gilgamesh. He emphasized the difference between the historical and the=
mythological Gilgamesh. Dr. Frayne provided a detailed account of a very=
specific portion of the Epic, namely the encoutner between Gilgamesh and=
Ishtar, the goddess of love, war, and fertility. He highlighted the=
similarities in several versions of the Epic and concluded that Gilgamesh=
is a multicultural epic which after leaving Mesopotamia has become an=
integral part of various cultures' ethnic and religious identity. An=
example given included the hero saved by a bird mentioned in the Iranian=
literature from the 13th century A.D. He then presented some interesting=
new material demonstrating the level of unity between Mesopotamia and other=
parts of present Syria. The Eblite version of the Epic gives an account of=
two foreign heroes who received royal crowns from the people of Ebla.
=20
Professor Michalowski stressed the importance of interpreting the Epic in=
its time frame. He went as far as expressing his dislike of the use of the=
word 'Epic' due to its Hellenistic interpretation. Professor Michalowski=
noted that it was from the ancient Assyrians whom we obtained thirty two of=
the thirty five tablets on the Epic of Gilgamesh. Very little material has=
survived from the UR III period (2100 b.c. - 2000 B.C.) of which most were=
magic incantations and exercises of school children. The Assyrian tablets=
were found in the Ashurbanipal Library of Nineveh.
=20
The final speaker spoke of the great advances in uncovering the Epic. Dr.=
George noted that the last published translation was based on 108 pieces of=
the tablets. Scholars today have read and translated 178 pieces of the=
Epic. Dr. George pointed out that the field of Assyriology is the most=
understaffed field in the Humanities. There still remains thousands of=
tablets in the British Museum's storage rooms that have not been read, let=
alone cataloged!
The Assyrian who attended the symposium included:
Rabbie Hurmiz Abbona Author.
Rabbie Alfred Duman Activist and political analyst
Andrius Daniel Shutas Binyat Class (Canada)
Isaac Shimun Shutas Binyat Class (Canada)
Peter Jasim Assyrian Academic Society (Chicago)
Susan Nessan Assyrian Academic Society (Chicago)
Firas Jatou Assyrian Academic Society (Chicago)
=20
For more information contact the Assyrian Acedemic Society at staff@aas.net=
.
ASSYRIAN SHOPKEEPERS ARRESTED IN AN ARIZONA DRUG BUST
=20
(ZNDA: Pheonix) Last Monday undercover detectives and more than 100 state=
and federal law officers in Phoenix, Arizona arrested 31 shopkeepers for=
selling legal drugs containing ephedrine or synthetic ephedrine, prime=
ingredients in illegal methamphetamines. A few shop owners were identified=
as Assyrian. Drug Enforcement Administration agents in the undercover=
operation went from store to store buying drugs by the case. Five of the=
warrants were served at stores in Glendale, one for a store on county land=
and the rest for Phoenix stores. John Youkhanna, the owner of Reddys=
Corner Drive-in-Liquor on 2613 West Glendale Avenue, was among the small=
business owners arrested. When asked about the ethnic identity of the=
shopkeepers, William Hermann of the Arizona Republic responded to a ZENDA=
inquiry that "many of those arrested in that sting were, in fact, of Middle=
Eastern descent. I did not write as much because I was unable to discern or=
say what that fact had to do with anything. It may have been significant=
and it may have only been a coincidence..." The Phoenix Police was unable=
to provide any pertinent information and the State Attorney General office=
could not be reached for further comments. Based on research project by a=
Washington think tank, one in six Arizona high-school seniors have tried=
meth.
The Arizona Republic article: www.azcentral.com/news/0930methbust.shtml
[Note the Assyrian flag tattooed on the shopkeeper's right arm pictured in=
this article.]
TAMRAZ TO BE INVESTIGATED OVER FRENCH BANK COLLAPSE
(ZNSM: Beirut) A French investigative magistrate last week charged fugitive=
Lebanese-American businessman, Roger Tamraz, with issuing a fake budget for=
France's Banque de Participations et de Placements (BPP) and embezzling=
more than 6 million francs from its coffers. BPP was a subsidiary of=
Lebanon's Intra-Financial company, which was headed by Mr. Tamraz in the=
1980s.
OSHANA STOPS MAYBERRY IN THE 6TH ROUND
(ZNDA: Chicago) Last month Anwar Oshana, the Assyrian boxing champion from=
Chicago, stopped Porter Mayberry in the sixth round. In his past 18 games=
Oshana has had 11 knock-outs and is currently ranked as number 10 in the=
International Boxing Organization's SuperMiddle Weight group and number 1=
in the National Association of Boxing Organizations.
TURKEY INVITES POPE FOR 2000 CELEBRATIONS
(ZNRU: Ankara) Last week Turkey invited Pope John Paul II to visit this=
predominantly Moslem country for planned celebrations to mark the 2000th=
anniversary of the birth of Christ. "We would like to see the pope with us=
in 2000 when we will have special celebrations for Christ," Gurdal said at=
a meeting with the Vatican's apostolic nuncio in Ankara, Pier Luigi Celata,=
according to the Anatolia news agency. "Although Turkey is a mainly Moslem=
country, we highly respect the other religions. Turkey has a special place=
in the growth of Christianity," the minister said.
Turkish terrorist Mehmet Ali Agca shot and injured the pontiff in Rome in=
1981 and is serving a life sentence in Italy.
------C A L E N D A R OF E V E N T S----
Oct 17-18 Lieden University Symposium
A History of Assyro-Chaldean Christians
Contact Dr. Heleen Murre-van den Berg
hlmurre@rullet.leidenuniv.nl
Topic include:
"The Church of the East in the 17th and 18th Centuries: Bet Israel=
Alqoshaya and the Periodization of History"
"Israel Alqoshaya and Yausip Tilkipnaya and the Beginnings of Sureth=
Literature"
"Neo-Aramaic and Persian Glosses in the Syriac Translation of the=
Pseudo-Callisthenes and the Literary Traditions around the School of=
Alqosh"
"Early Neo-Aramaic and Present-day Dialectal Diversity"
"The Patriarchate of the Church of the East in the 17th Century"
"A Chaldean aksa d-kahna in an East-Syrian Ms. from the University=
Library of Groningen"
"The Ascetic Florilegium in Ms. Charfeh 86 and its Connections with=
East-Syriac Ascetic Literature"
"The Transmission of the Syriac Pseudo-Callisthenes"
"Founding a New Patriarchate: Eliya X, Joseph I, and the Muslim=
Authorities"
"Pour une =82tude de l'=82change culturel entre chr=82 tiens=
orientaux et catholicisme latin: probl=8Ames et m=82thodes"
"Ottoman Administration and its Christian Subjects:
Changes in the Millet System under Influence of Western Missions"
"Alqosh as a Channel of Transmission of Syriac Literary Culture"
Oct 25 A Discussion on "The Assyrians": The Second of Joan Grande's=
Series of Gallery Talks on the Development of Civilization.
British Museum, London
Coffee Bar (inside the museum)
11:00 AM
=A31.50
=09
Nov 22-24 Middle East Studies Association's 31st Annual Meeting
San Francisco, California
Hyatt Regency San Francisco
http://www.mesa.arizona.edu/mesa97.htm
Selected Topics:
-Christian Persian Notables: Patrons and Leaders in East Syrian=
Christian Society
-Iraq and the Assyrians, 1925-1933
-Dawn at Tell Tamir: The Assyrian Christian Survival on the Khabur=
River
-The Future of Iraq=09
-Recognized Religious Minorities in Iran=09
-An Ethnic Perspective on State Formation in Iraq
-Lebanon's Culture and National Identity
-Sons of Noah in Eastern Christian Tradition
Dec 11-13 British Association for Near Eastern Archaeology
1997 Annual Conference
University of Durham
United Kingdom
http://www.dur.ac.uk/Archaeology/confs/BANEA.html
Dec 20 Maestro Nebu Issabey's Nineveh Choir=20
San Jose State University Music Hall
8:00 PM
Through In the Presence of the Gods: Art from Ancient Sumer
Mar 8,1998 The Smart Museum of Art
5550 South Greenwood Avenue
Chicago
Free Admission
A presentation of 43 4,500-year-old Sumerian temple offerings, including=
statues from Tell Asmar, tablets, carved stone vessels, and relief panels=
showing banquet scenes.
=
=20
--------------------------K H U D R A------------------------------
Oct 10 Dokhrana 'd Mar Elia (Elijah the Prophet) =20
Oct 12 First Sunday of Moses =20
Oct 17 Anniversary of Mar Dinkha IV's Consecration (1976) =20
Patriarch of the Church of the East
Oct 19 Second Sunday of Moses
Oct 26 Third Sunday of Moses
Oct 31 Dokhrana 'd Mar Elia (of Hirta or Khirata)=20
Nov 1 Dokhrana 'd Mar Mikha d'Alqosh
Nov 3 Dokhrana 'd Mar Gewargis, Sahda (The Martyr)
Nov 19 Commemoration of Mar Yacoub m' Pasqa
Nov 22 Dokhrana 'd Mar Odisho d'Urmi =20
Dec 7 Annunciation of the Virgin Mary (Soobara)
Dec 8 Immaculate Conception
Dec 13 Mar Yacub d'Nsiven (St. James of Nisibin)
Dec 20 King Abgar V
Dec 22 Mar Yousip (St. Joseph)
Dec 25 Christmas (Julian Calendar)
For the Church Liturgy of the Assyrian Church of the East visit:
http://www.cired.org/liturgy.html
=20
-------------------------E N T R A C T E-------------------------
Dec 31 New Year's Eve Party
Assyrian American Association of San Jose
Entertainers: Black Cats & Franco
Marriott Hotel
Santa Clara, California
----------------------I N T E L L I G E N T S I A-----------------------
CHICAGO Introductory & Advanced Modern Assyrian
Room Numbers C13 & C33
Instructor: Rabbie Zaia Kanoon
Wednesdays, Thursdays, & Saturdays
7:00-9:00 PM
Location: North Park University, Carlson Tower
language@aas.net or 1-800-454-6979.
=09
Assyrian Athletic Club Soccer Development Program
Ages 7-14
7:45-9:45 PM
Mondays
Warren Park Gymnasium
Western Avenue & Devon Street
------------------------------------------------------
HARVARD 1997-98 Syriac Classes Taught by Dr. J.F. Coakley
UNIVERSITY Elementary Syriac
Instructor: J. F. Coakley
Basic Syriac grammar and syntax with selected readings from=20
the Syriac Bible and other early texts. =20
------------------------------------------------------
Readings in Syriac I
Historical and theological texts, and early poetry
------------------------------------------------------
Readings in Syriac II
Special attention to exegetical texts and to reading
manuscripts.=20
------------------------------------------------------
NORTH Assyrian Boy Scouts =20
HOLLYWOOD Assyrian American Association of Southern California
Assyrian Club
5901 Cahuenga Blvd
North Hollywood, California
9:30am to 12:30pm =20
Sundays =20
Contact Sargon Gewargis @ fishtale@juno.com
(818) 891-3705 after 7:30 PM
------------------------------------------------------
Assyrian Student Union
California State University, Northridge
Assyrian American Association of Southern California
Assyrian Club
5901 Cahuenga Blvd
North Hollywood, California
6:00pm
Contact Sargon Gewargis @ fishtale@juno.com
(818) 891-3705 after 7:30 PM
------------------------------------------------------
SAN JOSE English as a Second Language & Conversational English (Adults)
Instructor: Jacklin Bajan
Mondays
7:00-9:30 PM
AAA of San Jose BETA
------------------------------------------------------
Nisibin School for Children (Classes begin on 10/6/97)
Various Instructors
Saturdays
10:00-1:00 pm
AAA of San Jose BETA
------------------------------------------------------
Citizenship Classes
Instructor: Jacklin Bajan
Mondays & Tuesdays
7:00 PM
AAA of San Jose BETA
20000 Almaden Road
------------------------------------------------------
Maestro Nebu Issabey's Nineveh Choir Practice
AAA of San Jose BETA
8:00 PM
Thursdays
------------------------------------------------------
ONTARIO Nisibis School=20
10:30-1:30 =20
Saturdays
The Church of the East=20
Toronto, Canada
Assyrian Student Association
12:00 pm (noon)
MSA Room, Fennell Campus
Hamilton, Canada
-----------------------------A B Z U---------------------------------=20
RADIO PROGRAMS=09
Assyrian Voice of Canada Ontario-Canada
Saturdays=09
3:00 - 4:00 PM Cable 91.7 and 91.9
10:00 PM - 12:00 AM (midnight) AM 1430
Voice (905) 279-6206
Fax (905) 279-7347
-------------------------------------------------------------------
TELEVISION PROGRAMS
AssyriaVision KBSV-TV 23 Modesto/Turlock-California
Bet-Nahrain Inc.
Daily (Saturday-Friday)=09
7:00 AM - 2:00 AM PST=20
(209) 538-4130
http://www.betnahrain.org/kbsv-tv23.html
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Assyrian National Magazine San Jose/Bay Area, California
(with George Maragolof)=09
Live Show (Every first and third Tuesday)
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM "live show"
Weekly Show (Fridays)=20
7:00-8:00 PM
Channel 15A (TCI Cablevision)
http://wwwdeanza.fhda.edu/26/shows/assyrian.html
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Atour TV (Assyrian American Association) San Jose, California
Weekly (Mondays)
8:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Channel 15A (TCI Cablevision)
=20
---A S S Y R I A N S U R F I N G P O S T S-----=20
=20
The Syriac Computing Institute:
http://scholar.cc.emory.edu/scripts/syrcom/index.html
SyrCOM is an independent non-profit research institute which aims at=
promoting Syriac culture by contributing to the academic field of Syriac=
studies using computer technology.
-------------------P U M P UP THE V O L U M E-------------------=20
English Modern Assyrian
Arms (as weapons) zey/ne [F]
=20
Armed zoo/ye/na [M]
zoo/yen/ta [F]
________________________________________________________________________
F =3D Feminine M =3D Masculine P =3D Plural =20
=20
=
=20
-------------B A C K TO THE F U T U R E----------------
BC (701)
A rebellion against the Assyrian king took place in Palastine with Hezekiah=
of Judah as its leader. The conspiracy was supported by the Egyptians. =
Hezekiah had prepared for the possible seige of Jerusalem by digging a=
tunnel to bring water into Jerusalam from the pool of Siloam. King=
Sennacherib quickly moved towards Palastine, first defeating the combined=
forces of Egypt and Ekron. Judah was rapidly isolated. Sennacherib took=
46 "walled cities" including Lachish. Initially, Hezekiah, encouraged by=
the Jewish prophet Isiah, refused to surrender but finally compromised and=
"grasping the feet" of Sennacherib once again submitted to the Assyrian=
rule. Meanwhile, Babylon began a separate rebellion against the Assyrian=
king and so the king once again mobilized his army against the rebellion in=
Bet-Nahrain.=20
[For a different perspective on this historic event see this week's=
LITERATUS.]
=20
<< The Ancient Assyrians, Healy & McBride >>
AD (1983) Dr. Sargon Dadesho's Bet-Nahrain Organization forms the Assyrian=
National Congress and holds the first "Congress" in Modesto, California in=
March 18-20. The purpose of this organization is to "oversee the Assyrian=
affairs in the fields of politics, education, culture, finance, religion,=
defense, and protection of the Assyrian human rights all over the=
world...(and) to secure a homeland for Assyrians in the province of Nineveh=
or in the province of Dohuk..."
<< The Assyrian National Question, Dadesho >>
=
=20
--------------L I T E R A T U S-----------------
THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen;
Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.
For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and forever grew still!
And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,
But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride;
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.
And there lay the rider distorted and pale,
With the dew of his brow, and the rust on his mail;
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.
And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
<>
--------T H I S W E E K I N H I S T O R Y--------=20
October 10, 1910: Assyrians of Georgia form a professional theatrical=
company in Tiflis (Tbilisi).
-----------------------B R A V O-------------------------
THE ROLLING STONES' BRIDGES TO BABYLON
When was the last time you heard the name "Babylon" affectionatally uttered=
on TV or your favorite rock radio station? Perhaps last night. First, it=
was the science-fiction TV "Babylon 5" which captured our attention but for=
a very brief period. Now it is the long-awaited Rolling Stones' concert=
tour entitled "Bridges to Babylon." This is Mick Jagger, Keith Richards=
and Ron Woods at their best. With the help of the roaring Lion of Babylon=
and the Tower of Babel in "shockwaves", the Stones hit the ground running. =
As expected, most of us "can't get no satisfaction" from the Holywood=
extravaganza of the multi-million dollar staging deemed unfriendly to our=
cultural heritage. Yet the thought of watching the giant posters of The=
Bearded Lion at tens of concert stadiums under the caption "Bridges to=
Babylon" can move us "out of control." =20
http://www.virginrecords.com/the-rolling-stones/menupage/indexdcr.html
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This Week's Writers & Reporters:
Alina Sargis San Jose, California Feature Article
Arbella Issabey San Jose, California Literatus
Assyrian Church of the East Website Khudra=09
Firas Jatou Chicago, Illinois News Digest
Dr. Heleen Murre-van den Berg The Netherlands Calendar of Events
Lena Mushell San Jose, California Good Morning B-N
Shamasha Lawrance Namato Chicago, Illinois Khudra
& We Thank The Following Individuals For Referring Us to New Readers:
Paul Newey Chicago, Illinois
Sarman BASC Chicago, Illinois
Tony Khoshaba Chicago, Illinois
THANKS CHICAGO!
------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Our Upcoming Issues:
=09
October 13 Yusuf Malek
October 20 Babylonian Mathematics
October 27 ZENDA's Readers Survey
November 3 The Urmie Manifesto
November 10 The Assyrian American Association of Chicago
November 17 Of Dolma and Haseeda: Assyrian Chefs & Cookery
Would you like to know more about a particular topic on Assyrian culture,=
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