Watchman Newsletter for December 21, 2007This newsletter is printer-friendly! It will change format automatically when you print it.
NATO Backs Turkey's Alliance of Civilizations Initiative Todays
Zaman (December 20, 2007) -
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has announced that it
supports the Alliance of Civilizations initiative, co-chaired by Turkey
and Spain. The NATO summit started on Tuesday with the
participation of 26 heads of state and government in Riga, Latvia. In a
joint declaration, NATO leaders expressed their support for the Alliance
of Civilizations initiative. "We support
the collective value and dialogue between cultures and people. Therefore
the Alliance of Civilizations initiative under the aegis of United
Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan is of great importance to us,"
was the announcement made at the end of the summit. Meanwhile, NATO
leaders also invited Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina on
Wednesday to begin negotiations for eventual membership in the
military alliance, but urged Serbia and Bosnia to fully
cooperate with the UN war crimes tribunal. NATO leaders resumed their
summit Wednesday with a pledge to stay the course in Afghanistan despite
mounting casualties and the continual refusal of some governments to
send their troops into combat in the most dangerous regions of the
country. "We will stand with the
Afghan people for the long term," NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop
Scheffer told reporters at the press conference held after the
gathering. Well it appears that NATO likes the goal of the Alliance of Civilizations. This means that all member nations of NATO will go along with European military forces to enforce wherever this ends up going. I don't think it looks good for those who refuse to go along with the global governance plans. Israeli ministry drops plans for Jerusalem homes Reuters (December 20, 2007) - Israel's Housing Ministry backed away on Thursday from a preliminary proposal to build homes on occupied land near Jerusalem that had been criticized by Palestinian and Israeli officials. "The construction is no longer being discussed," a ministry official said. The issue of Israeli settlement building in the Jerusalem area has clouded renewed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians launched at a U.S.-sponsored conference last month. Disputes over settlements and Jerusalem are central to the negotiations President George W. Bush hopes can be concluded before he steps down in January 2009. The ministry said on Wednesday it had been discussing the possibility of building homes near what Israel refers to as Atarot and the Palestinians call Qalandia in the occupied West Bank. Israel annexed Arab East Jerusalem after the 1967 Middle East war in a move that has not won international recognition. It regards all of Jerusalem as its capital. The Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of the state they hope to create in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.| Israel | Islam | Dividing the Land | Michael Collins: Thought Control on the Internet Scoop Independent News (December 19, 2007) - Cracking the Code – Who's to Blame for "Violent Radicalization"? The Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a 404 to 6 vote on Oct. 23. Not since the Iraq War Resolution have Democrats and Republicans found such a unifying cause. We're told that House Resolution 1955 (H.R. 1955) will be an essential tool enabling law enforcement to peg the sources of "homegrown terrorism" on the Internet. The overwhelming bipartisan support makes it no surprise that the legislation presents a significant danger to citizens and the nation. This sentence is the new heart of darkness for free speech. (2) VIOLENT RADICALIZATION - The term `violent radicalization' means the process of adopting or promoting an extremist belief system for the purpose of facilitating ideologically based violence to advance political, religious, or social change. (Author's emphasis) (House Resolution 1955) That one word, "facilitating," takes the bill beyond aiding the hunt for terrorists on the Internet. It creates an emerging standard for wrongdoing that can be applied to everyone who exercises net-based free speech. Senate 1959, the equivalent of H.R. 1955, is up for consideration now. Here are some scenarios under the bill that could easily be called "thought crimes", i.e., "facilitating violent radicalization." You post one of these statements on the Internet …
… and a terrorist reads it. That terrorist subsequently commits a violent act. You don't know the person. You're not affiliated with him or her in any way. You don't advocate violence in your post nor do you approve of violence to achieve political goals. None of that matters. You can be accused of facilitating "violent radicalization," which this bill specifically implies can be an outcome of flagrant opposition to the administration, even though you really just oppose the current or any future office holders. You're busted! The scenario just mentioned is an outcome of H.R. 1955 and the yet-to-be-passed equivalent Senate Resolution 1959...
What disturbs me most about this
legislation is that it leaves the door wide open for the
broadest definition of what constitutes
"radicalization." Could otherwise nonviolent anti-tax,
anti-war, or anti-abortion groups fall under the
watchful eye of this new government commission?
Assurances otherwise in this legislation are
unconvincing.
Ron
Paul (R-TX)
| NewWorldOrder | America |
Collapse of the Modern Day Banking System - Staring into the Abyss The
Market Oracle (December 19, 2007) -
“In past financial crises... the Fed has been able to wave
its magic wand and make market turmoil disappear. But this time the
magic isn't working. Why not? Because the problem with the markets isn't
just a lack of liquidity — there's also a fundamental problem of
solvency.” Paul Krugman Stocks fell sharply last week on
news of accelerating inflation which will limit the Federal Reserves
ability to continue cutting interest rates. On Tuesday the Dow Jones
Industrials tumbled 294 points following the Fed's announcement of a
quarter point cut to the Fed Funds rate. On Friday, the Dow dipped
another 178 points when government figures showed consumer prices had
risen 0.8% last month after a 0.3% gain in October. The stock market is
now lurching downward into a “primary bear market”. There has been a
steady deterioration in retail sales, commercial real estate, and the
transports. The financial industry is going through a major retrenchment
losing more than 25% in aggregate capitalization since July. The real
estate market is collapsing. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
announced on Friday that he will declare a "fiscal emergency" in January
and ask for more power to deal with the $14 billion budget shortfall
from the meltdown in subprime lending. Economists are beginning to
publicly acknowledge what many market analysts have suspected for
months; the nation's economy is going into a tailspin which will
inevitably end in a hard landing. Morgan Stanley's Asia Chairman,
Stephen Roach, made this observation in a New York Times op-ed on
Sunday: “This recession will be deeper than the shallow contraction
earlier in this decade. The dot-com-led downturn was set off by a
collapse in business capital spending, which at its peak in 2000
accounted for only 13 percent of the country's gross domestic product.
The current recession is all about the coming capitulation of the
American consumer — whose spending now accounts for a record 72 percent
of G.D.P.” Most people have no idea how grave the present situation is
or the disaster the country will face if trillions of dollars of
over-leveraged bonds and equities begin to unwind. There's a widespread
belief that the stewards of the system—Bernanke and Paulson—can somehow
steer the economy through this “rough patch” into calm waters. But they
cannot, and the presumption shows a basic misunderstanding of how
markets work. The Fed has no magical powers and will it allow itself to
be crushed by standing in the path of a market-avalanche. As
foreclosures and bankruptcies increase; stocks will crash and the fed
will step aside to safety. That much is certain.
more... My guess of what this will lead to is a transition to a global electronic financial system rising from the ashes of the collapsing one. There would be a single currency not printed on paper, but tattooed through RFID ink under the skin so that one cannot buy or sell without this mark. The fear of terrorism and the demand for peace and safety from it and the guidance of powerful people trying to guide society will eventually lead us there. A collapsing world financial situation would help that along and those who still have the money and run the financial systems already have much of the infrastructure in place today. Time will tell, keep watching!
Morgan Stanley sells stake to China fund Reuters (December
19, 2007) - Morgan Stanley (MS.N) on Wednesday posted a stunning
fourth-quarter loss after recording a bigger-than-expected $9.4 billion
of write-downs and said it sold a $5 billion stake to China Investment
Corp to bolster its capital. The second-largest U.S. investment bank
posted a net loss from continuing operations of $3.59 billion, or $3.61
a share, in the quarter ended November 30. A year earlier Morgan had
income from continuing operations of $1.98 billion, or $1.87 a share.
Morgan Stanley's operating results reflect the spin-off of its Discover
Financial Services (DFS.N) in July. Last month Morgan warned that it
would write down its exposure to U.S. subprime mortgages and related
securities by $3.7 billion. But on Wednesday the bank revealed it was
taking an additional $5.7 billion write-down. Combined, the losses
slashed earnings by $5.80 a share. To bolster capital slashed by the
write-downs, Morgan agreed to sell abut $5 billion of equity units
convertible into common stock. The shares equate to a 9.9 percent stake
or less of Morgan Stanley's outstanding shares. CIC, a sovereign
investment fund controlled by China, will be a passive investor and have
no role on the board or in the bank's management. For the quarter net
revenue was a negative $450 million, compared with $7.85 billion last
year. Analysts on average had expected Morgan Stanley to post a loss of
39 cents a share on $4.1 billion of revenue, according to Reuters
Research. The losses are the first setback under Chief Executive John
Mack, who has been widely regarded as a savior since he took the helm in
2005. Mack directed the bank to take on more risk and expand several
businesses, including mortgages, as he tried to close in on archrival
Goldman Sachs Group (GS.N). Earlier this year those efforts were paying
off, and Morgan even reported a mortgage trading profit. Yet shares of
Morgan Stanley have tumbled 29 percent during the past two months as the
mortgage trade backfired and delivered losses.
World food stocks dwindling rapidly, UN warns International
Herald Tribune (December 18, 2007) -
In an "unforeseen and unprecedented" shift,
the world food supply is dwindling rapidly and food prices are soaring
to historic levels, the top food and agriculture official of the United
Nations warned Monday. The changes created "a very serious risk
that fewer people will be able to get food," particularly in the
developing world, said Jacques Diouf, head of the UN Food and
Agriculture Organization. The agency's food price index rose by more
than 40 percent this year, compared with 9 percent the year before - a
rate that was already unacceptable, he said. New figures show that the
total cost of foodstuffs imported by the neediest countries rose 25
percent, to $107 million, in the last year. At the same time, reserves
of cereals are severely depleted, FAO records show. World wheat stores
declined 11 percent this year, to the lowest level since 1980. That
corresponds to 12 weeks of the world's total consumption - much less
than the average of 18 weeks consumption in storage during the period
2000-2005. There are only 8 weeks of corn left, down from 11 weeks in
the earlier period. Prices of wheat and oilseeds are at record highs,
Diouf said Monday. Wheat prices have risen by $130 per ton, or 52
percent, since a year ago. U.S. wheat futures broke $10 a bushel for the
first time Monday, the agricultural equivalent of $100 a barrel oil.
(Page 16) Diouf blamed a confluence of recent supply and demand factors
for the crisis, and he predicted that those factors were here to stay.
On the supply side, these include the early effects of global warming,
which has decreased crop yields in some crucial places, and a shift away
from farming for human consumption toward crops for biofuels and cattle
feed. Demand for grain is increasing with the world population, and more
is diverted to feed cattle as the population of upwardly mobile
meat-eaters grows. "We're concerned that we are facing the perfect storm
for the world's hungry," said Josette Sheeran, executive director of the
World Food Program, in a telephone interview. She said that her agency's
food procurement costs had gone up 50 percent in the past 5 years and
that some poor people are being "priced out of the food market."
more...
Russian sect prays to Putin icons ; claims he is the ‘chosen one’
Journal Chretien (December
17, 2007) - Vladimir Putin may be popular in Russia for saving
the nation from the chaos of the 1990s, but a sect in the country has
taken its devotion a step further by praying to “presidential icons.”
According to the (RIA Novosti web site), the Bolshaya Elnya village in
the Nizhny Novgorod Region is home to the “Rus’ Resurrecting” sect, a
group of local residents who believe that President Putin was both the
Apostle Paul and King Solomon in previous lives. Rus’ is the term used
for the medieval East Slavic nation that gave its name to modern Russia.
“We didn’t choose Putin,” Mother Fontinya told the Moskovsky Komsomolets
paper, expounding on the first time she laid eyes on the “holy one.” “It
was when Yeltsin was naming him as his successor [during a live New
Year’s Eve TV broadcast in 1999]. My soul exploded with joy ! ‘An
ubermensch ! God himself has chosen him !’ I cried. “Yeltsin was the
destroyer, and God replaced him with his creation,” claimed Fontinya.
The sect possesses a President Putin icon that Fontinya claims
miraculously appeared one day. “He has given us everything,” she said,
pointing to the sky. A special newspaper published by the sect – “The
Temple of Light” - features interviews with long-dead religious figures,
including the Apostle Paul. The sect members are also convinced that
President Putin knows about and supports the actions of their ’Mother
Superior.’ Russian Christian sects have long been known for their
unusual choices of icons, some of them praying to portraits of such
well-known “holy men” as Stalin and Ivan the Terrible. “Another Russian
sect is currently holed up in an underground shelter in the country’s
central Penza Region and has threatened to commit mass suicide if any
attempt is made to bring them to the surface,” said the RIA Novosti
story. “Religion was tightly controlled in the U.S.S.R. and the collapse
of the Soviet Union saw an explosion in sects and cults, as well as
interest in New Age philosophies and beliefs. “The back pages of many
Russian tabloid newspapers are full of advertisements for ’healers’ and
’magicians’ who promise to bring happiness in love, success in business,
as well as a range of other services. “One of the most well-known sects
in Russia has its base near the southern Siberian town of Abakan, where
thousands of people, both Russian and foreign, worship a former
provincial traffic policeman, Sergei Torop, as the second coming of
Christ.” The RIA Novosti story concluded by saying that there
are currently believed to be around 500-700 such sects in Russia,
containing some 600,000-800,000 people.
Revealed: 'Gay' plans to target 2-year-olds
WorldNet Daily (December
17, 2007) - 5th-grade students could be handed 'Coping With
Sexual Orientation.' Children as young as two years of age are in the
bull's-eye of coming changes in California's school curriculum, which
"gay rights" advocates now admit will alter the very foundation of
information presented to public school classrooms. A list of school
resources, sponsored by a homosexual-advocacy group called Safe Schools
Coalition, suggests that for those who are only two years old, there's
"Felicia's Favorite Story," which tells how she was "adopted by her two
mothers." The list also promotes a book called "Are You a Girl or a
Boy?" by Karleen Jiminez, a resource for children ages 4-8 when
advocating homosexuality, bisexuality, transgenderism and other
alternative lifestyle choices. It's described as "A sweet book about a
gender-different kid." Other resources being promoted in light of
California's adoption of SB 777 as state law include books authored by
officials for Planned Parenthood and the Gay Lesbian Straight Education
Network. One book, called "Tackling Gay Issues in School," is for
kindergarten through grade 12, and offers a "rationale (for the
inclusion of les/bi/gay/trans issues in school)." It features
recommended "extracurricular" activities for classes. The promotion of
such materials has coincided with the recent admission by Equality
California, a homosexual advocacy group that worked to have SB 777
passed by lawmakers and signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, that the
bill really does edit all school curricula in California. For months
while California lawmakers discussed Senate Bill 777, opponents worried
about its usefulness in censoring public school curricula to include a
pro-homosexual bias. Supporters, however, steadfastly maintained that it
only clarified anti-discrimination laws already on the books. They still
hold that stance, with statements this week from both Schwarzenegger's
office and Equality California. Sabrina Lockhart,
a spokeswoman for the governor, insisted it is a "technical bill"
intended to clarify anti-discriminations laws. "It simply takes
anti-discrimination language used in other areas of [state law] such as
employment and puts that in the education code," she said. And Ali Bay
of Equality California told WND the new law "doesn't require that any
specific curriculum be included in California's classrooms." Technically
it is correct that the law doesn't "require inclusion." But opponents
say it does now ban anything that can be "perceived" as being
discriminatory, up to and including references to "mom" and "dad" or
"husband" and "wife." "The terms 'mom and dad' or 'husband and wife'
could promote discrimination against homosexuals if a same-sex couple is
not also featured," said Meredith Turney, the legislative liaison for
Capitol Resource Institute. "Parents want the assurance that when their
children go to school they will learn the fundamentals of reading,
writing and arithmetic – not social indoctrination regarding alternative
sexual lifestyles. Now that SB 777 is law, schools will in fact become
indoctrination centers for sexual experimentation," she said. The new
law demands, "No teacher shall give instruction nor shall any school
district sponsor any activity that promotes a discriminatory bias
because of a characteristic [including perceived gender.]" And Karen
England, a spokeswoman for Capital Resource who is a primary organizer
behind the
Save Our Kids plan to put the issue before voters and ask them to
reject it, noted that even Equality California's own materials are
assuring constituents the law will ban curriculum that fails to meet the
pro-homosexual standard cited. "All along, Capitol Resource Family
Impact has maintained that the true agenda behind SB 777 is to infuse
school curriculum with pro-homosexual, and other controversial
lifestyles, propaganda. The proponents of the bill countered that this
was not true and the law would merely 'streamline' anti-discrimination
laws for schools. Based on our 20-year experience with the homosexual
lobby, we know that a common tactic is to maintain innocence and then
utilize vague language to push a radical agenda. We expected the same of
SB 777 and we are already witnessing the same pattern," England said.
"Last week the sponsor of SB 777, homosexual rights group Equality
California, released their 2007 legislative scorecard. The scorecard
featured a description of the each of the bills the group sponsored or
considered homosexual-friendly," she said. "For the first time, the
group admitted that SB 777 'prohibits curriculum that is
discriminatorily biased against LGBT people.' Understand that the entire
time the group was pushing this bill through the legislature, they
vehemently denied that it would affect curriculum. After the bill had
passed, they now reveal their true agenda," England said. The report
card specifically said SB 777 "prohibits curriculum that is
discriminatorily biased against LGBT people and other protected groups."
more...
Brussels names first 'EU ambassador' Telegraph.co.uk (December
17, 2007) - Brussels has appointed the European Union's first
"ambassador" more than a year before the EU Reform Treaty comes into
force, The Sunday Telegraph has learned. The powerful dual role will
involve Belgium's Koen Vervaeke representing both the European
Commission and the EU's 27 member states in Africa. The position is part
of a diplomatic corps created under the treaty signed by Gordon Brown in
Lisbon last week amid claims by Eurosceptics of a betrayal of Britain's
national interests. Brussels chiefs have pressed ahead with Mr
Vervaeke's appointment before any countries have begun ratifying the
treaty, which is scheduled to come into effect in 2009. Critics
have accused the commission of riding roughshod over the ratification
process, which in Britain will see the treaty subject to parliamentary
scrutiny and votes over more than 20 days next year. Dr Charles Tannock,
a Conservative Euro-MP and the party's foreign affairs spokesman at the
European Parliament, said: "By appointing this man to Africa they are
obviously testing the waters. This is the way things will work in the
future. But until the treaty is ratified they have no mandate to set up
anything like an EU diplomatic corps." The official Brussels line is
that Mr Vervaeke's role is "an exception". Under the treaty, there
will be a powerful EU foreign minister, or "high representative",
who will also service member states and the commission, deriving his
power from what Brussels officials call a "double hat" arrangement. Javier
Solana, the Spaniard who heads the EU's fledgling foreign office, is
tipped for the job, which will involve taking on more than
100 existing commission delegations around the world and turning them
into a corps of diplomats. Mr Vervaeke, 47, who will be based in Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia, is essentially a regional foreign minister with a
mandate to talk on behalf of the entire EU.
The EU's Treaty Treachery Human
Events (December 17, 2007) - To
millions of Britons, December 13, 2007 is a date which will live in
infamy. In the Labor Party’s 2006 Election Manifesto, the British people
were given a devout promise that there would be a referendum on whether
to sign on to the proposed EU Constitution. Gordon Brown reaffirmed this
vow when he succeeded Tony Blair as Prime Minister in July of this year.
The promise was an empty one. The proposed EU Constitution --
meant to replace all previous treaties -- was already legally dead
thanks to ”no” votes by both the
French
and the Dutch in 2005. But behind the scenes, there has
been treachery afoot these past 30 months. Bureaucrats never
take your “no” for the answer to what they want. Slowly, the Euro forces
began cosmetic surgery. The Constitution underwent a political makeover
and re-emerged as the new EU Reform Treaty, a document which is not only
the same as the failed EU Constitution, but has added even more
bureaucracy to it. On Thursday morning, December 13 in Lisbon,
Portugal, the Presidents and Prime Ministers from the 27 member nations
were to gather to sign this new Treaty. All were present except for
Gordon Brown. He sent his Foreign Minister. David Milliband signed this
historical document on behalf of the UK when the cameras were flashing.
Brown explained his absence as a “conflict of scheduling.” Then
events took a turn toward treachery worthy of a Shakespearian play.
Three hours later, Brown surreptitiously arrived. Cowering in a back
room off the main hall - where he had hoped in vain to avoid the cameras
-- the pusillanimous Prime Minister signed the document. One
EU insider dryly remarked that Brown acted like someone who was trying
to keep a dirty little secret. Brown seems to have imagined that
this out-of-sight out-of-mind tactic would fool the British public.
Hardly. The Shadow (Conservative) Foreign Minister, William Hague, asked
what the members of the EU would think of a man who “dithers for a week
about whether or not he wants to be photographed putting pen to paper.”
To others it was more a case of Brown proving to be as handy with a
knife as Brutus. So just what are the most important points of
the so-called “Reform Treaty” as they impact minor details like, for
instance, British sovereignty? The EU is designed to be a
superstructure entity that creates a single foreign policy and one-stop
overarching decision-making powers which will be directed downwards to
all its member states. Until now, the heads of the 27 member nations
served six month rotations as nominal EU President. That egalitarian
practice is now dead. There is to be a
new all-powerful unelected President of Europe, appointed by the 27
heads of state - not elected by the 350 million people of new Europe.
(Frustrated Democrats who have never gotten over the US 2000 election,
please note). Tony Blair, former Prime Minister of the UK, has been
heavily tipped to take over this coveted post. Although the initial idea
of a single EU Foreign Minister was abandoned in this round of “ever
closer union”, the new Treaty calls for a Foreign Policy Chief
-- who will hold diplomatic status and head up the new EU Foreign
Service bureaucracy. What’s in a name? Perhaps
everything. Great Britain and Poland asked to opt out of signing on to
the 50-article Charter of Fundamental Rights -- for the time being. This
charter promises life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and religions
freedom. It then goes on to promise universal collective bargaining,
fair working conditions and shelter. Yes, shelter. No one in the New
Europe will be allowed to be homeless. The UK continues to demure on
joining the Euro. But this Treaty puts yet more pressure on Great
Britain to ditch the Pound in favor of New Europe’s collective currency.
The most sinister part of the Treaty is contained in another rule. This
one gives the EU rights to overturn decisions made by Britain’s
Immigration and Asylum Tribunal. Those who have sought -- and have been
rejected -- as asylum seekers in the UK now have the right to take their
cases over the head of Great Britain’s highest court and appeal to the
unelected European Court of Justice in Luxembourg whose EU bureaucrats
will have the final say. Giving the EU authorities power to trump
immigration and border issues inside the UK is seen as the end of their
democracy by many a Brit. When the EU Court of Justice can overrule any
member nation’s own judiciary, another piece of national sovereignty has
been signed away. The output of venom directed against the Prime
Minister since Wednesday’s dirty deed has been stunning. The most
vociferous critics of Brown’s stealth execution of the treaty are
calling for his severed head to be skewered on a pike and set above the
Thames. This was often the fate of traitors in earlier times. The
British have such colorful traditions. Others have suggested that the
Tower of London be re-commissioned to serve as a prison for Brown and
his minions. Calls have been raised for a million people to surround the
Houses of Parliament in a massive protest where this Treaty must be
ratified in the House of Commons. Two full weeks of debate have been
promised the public -- but then promises come cheap in politics. Brown
himself has been compared to Neville Chamberlain, who returned to
England from Germany in 1938 waving a paper which Adolph Hitler had
written promising that there would be no future war. British veterans
and their heirs must surely wonder why two world wars were fought and
millions of lives lost if the British sovereignty would eventually be
surrendered -- by their own government -- to their former continental
enemies. Brown is also now being parodied in cartoons and editorials
which compare him to that bumbling silent English loner, Mr. Bean. After
all, the wags point out, Brown doesn’t like to even mingle with his EU
counterparts. Brown bungles about like Mr. Bean, although Mr. Bean’s
awkwardness and its consequences are inadvertent. And like the bumbling
Mr. Bean, since Brown went slinking off to Portugal to sign away his
country’s autonomy, Brown has mumbled to the English press that the new
EU treaty "would provide a lasting framwork for the EU" yet at the same
time create "a circle of reflection" on the EU's long term future. Of
course, there is a technical flaw in that observation. Gordon Brown
isn’t English. He’s a sly and canny Scot. Come to that, so is Tony
Blair. Many a wary English eye is now being cast north of Hadrian’s
Wall. Just a few months ago, the ever more powerful Scottish Parliament
voted to give every one of its citizens free health care, the costs for
which will be taken out of English pockets. Is the new Europe Reform
Treaty part of the Great Scottish Plot? Is this Braveheart’s Revenge? nonymouse from FulfilledProphecy shared this USA Today story pointing out that the President of Europe "will have few formal powers but will chair leaders' summits and meetings and help the EU's foreign policy chief represent the bloc on the world stage." The initial story points out what I think may be the 3 horns from Daniel 7:7,8 that are plucked with the little horn (man of sin) arising from the 10 since the French, Dutch and British rejection of the Constitution has been circumvented in the Treaty of Lisbon.
What is Happening to Europe? Frontline
Fellowship (December 17, 2007) -
Europe is in danger of falling to Islam. The catastrophic
decline of Christianity in Europe and the sharp decline in the birth
rate, along with massive Islamic immigration, has made Europe vulnerable
to an Islamic takeover. Secular Humanism and Hedonism have
gutted Europe, morally, spiritually and ethically. Most Europeans have
replaced the pleasure of worship with the worship of pleasure.
Materialism and Occultism have, in too many areas, filled the spiritual
vacuum. Abortion, pornography and perversion have devastated the morals
of Europe. History is repeating itself . Europe today
is facing a similar Renaissance of paganism and aggressive Islamic
expansionism, which threatened faith and freedom back in the 15 th and
16 th Centuries. There is an urgent need for a new Reformation. Secular
Humanism and Hedonism are no match for Islamic Jihad. Only a vibrant
Biblical Christianity can enable Europe to resist, and defeat, radical
Islam. From the time of the Reformation in the 1500’s, through to the
beginning of the Second World War, Europe was the world’s dominant
trading and industrial region. However, Marxist economies and
dictatorships in Eastern Europe crippled development, eroded national
infrastructures, undermined the ecology and devastated the work ethic,
retarding economic development. In Western Europe, the ruinous World
Wars and costly welfare state with its restrictive practices in trade
and industry slowed down innovative development. By the second half of
the 20th Century, the North American and East Asian economies surged
ahead of those of Europe. After the Muslim invasions of the 7th and 8th
Centuries, Christianity was almost wiped out in its heartlands of North
Africa and the Middle East. For nearly 1,000 years the countries of
Western Europe became the last major refuge for Christianity. The
aggressively expanding and encircling Muslim forces occupied Spain,
overwhelmed the Byzantine Empire, and threatened the very heartland of
Europe, even seizing Budapest in 1527 and besieging Vienna as late as
the 17th Century. Hemmed in by Islam, Europe was effectively prevented
from having any meaningful missionary outreach to Africa or Asia. It was
not until the Reformation in the 16th Century that the church was
revitalized to eventually become a force for world evangelization. The
last 400 years have seen tremendous worldwide advance for the Gospel,
but recently it has witnessed a distressing decline in Europe itself.
The energies that were released by the Protestant Reformation and its
rediscovery of the Bible in the common tongue, led to the most
extraordinary spiritual Revival in history. The Reformation freed the
Christians of Northern Europe from the decadence of Renaissance paganism
and lead to the greatest birth of freedom and scientific discoveries in
history. The Reformation in Europe championed the principles of
religious freedom, liberty of conscience, the rule of law, separation of
powers and constitutionally limited republics. The Reformation forwarded
the explosion of scientific enquiry, the industrial revolution, and the
campaign to eradicate the slave trade worldwide. However, from the time
of the French Revolution in 1789, hostile, anti-Christian ideologies
began to compete with Christianity for worldwide dominance. Secular
Humanism, Evolutionism, Socialism and Marxism have led to terrible wars,
oppression and destruction. With the rise of Secular Humanism a
practical atheism or fuzzy new age spirituality have become the
predominant beliefs of most Europeans. Many Europeans have moved away
from the rock certainties of their Biblical Christian heritage to the
sands of situation ethics, relativism, reincarnation, the new age and
the occult. The popularity of the occultic Harry Potter books
and films are a symptom of this new fascination with witchcraft. Secular
societies in Europe now regard Christian absolutes with intolerance and
Bible believing Christians are frequently ridiculed, marginalised and
even legislated against, with secular governments no longer satisfied
with the deviant being declared normal, but demanding that the normal be
declared deviant. The popularity of fraudulent and fictional
anti-Christian books, such as The Da Vinci Code and The
Gospel of Judas, are symptomatic of the rise of anti-Christian
heathenism in Europe. Much of the blame for the defeat and retreat of
Christianity in Europe must be laid at the door of liberal theology
which rose to dominate theological institutions all over Western Europe
by the beginning of the 20th Century. Most mainline denominations were
spiritually crippled by the deliberate erosion of confidence in the
Scriptures and in the power of the Gospel. The primary results of these
liberal termites has been a massive exodus away from attending liberal
denominations. Large areas of Europe today are post-Christian with a
small, irrelevant, committed Christian remnant with little impact on the
broader society. Most of Europe needs to be evangelized again. Many
areas of Europe have not had meaningful exposure to Biblical
Christianity for several generations. William Booth, the founder of the
Salvation Army, over a century ago, warned that a time may come when
Europe would have: “A religion without the Holy Spirit, Christianity
without Christ, Forgiveness without Repentance, Salvation without
Regeneration, politics without God, a Heaven without a hell and a
Saviour without a cross.” That describes many churches today and
underlines the urgent need for a new Reformation. As Alexander
Solzenitzen declared of Russia in 1917: “We forgot God!”
Those who forget the lessons of the past are doomed to
repeat its failures. We need to rediscover our history if we are to
survive the present threats. more...
On 11/09/07 Herescope posted an article by former New Age follower Warren Smith entitled Oprah and Friends to Teach Course on New Age Christ. In that article Smith presented significant concerns about Oprah & Friends teaching this New Age Course in Miracles. Many years ago he was a devoted student of A Course in Miracles and he discovered that the teachings of the Course - supposedly "new revelation" channeled from "Jesus" - were diametrically opposed to the teachings of the true Jesus Christ of the Bible. He came to understand that the "Jesus" of A Course in Miracles was one of the false christs that the real Jesus warned His followers to watch out for:
Shortly after the posting of Smith's article and the two subsequent articles on Herescope, there was considerable concern - at least in Christian circles - that Oprah was using her radio program to teach this New Age Course. Many Internet sources cited what was happening. Amidst the uproar, Marianne Williamson's "Big News!" announcement suddenly disappeared from her website. All attempts to get information on why Williamson withdrew her announcement were to no avail. However, Marianne Williamson has just posted a new announcement on her website that seems to take the place of the "Big News!" announcement of several days ago:
According to this new announcement, Williamson is pulling back from "teaching" A Course in Miracles and is now offering her "daily reflections" on the Course. This subtle semantic change may indicate a change in strategy. However, this type of maneuvering around potentially controversial New Age agendas by Oprah and her staff has been noted previously. For example, bestselling author Neale Donald Walsch told colleagues at a New Age Humanity's Team conference in Portland, Oregon, in 2003, that Oprah had flown him to Chicago for a two-hour interview with him that never aired. Walsch explained what happened:
In an April 5, 2007 Oprah & Friends radio interview with Esther Hicks - a woman who channels out-of-body entities that singularly refer to themselves as "Abraham" - Oprah confessed that her television viewers weren't ready for her to be talking to channeled out-of-body entities. She said:
This
radio interview, posted on the
Spiritual Inspiration.info
website, is really difficult to listen to because it involves occult
channeling, so the listener should beware. Sadly, one quickly realizes
the depth of Oprah's New Age beliefs when listening to this interview.
And the reader of Herescope is reminded to pray for these two women who
are so deeply drawn into spiritual deception. The other issue here is
not Oprah's right to present her New Age views -- but to be honest with
her viewers and listeners about these beliefs. For over twenty years
Oprah has been taking her viewers and listeners step-by-step deeper into
the New Age teachings. It is time for her to stop pretending that her
New Age "Jesus" is the same as the Jesus of her Baptist youth. The
"Jesus" of A Course in Miracles and the "Jesus" of the New Age bear
absolutely no resemblance to the Jesus found in the Holy Bible. It seems
apparent that in early November someone calculated that the time was
right for Marianne Williamson to teach the year-long, 365 lessons of A
Course in Miracles on Oprah & Friends XM Satellite Radio. But one has to
wonder if this situation, like the one described by Neale Donald Walsch
above, was "just too soon" and too "way ahead of the curve" in teaching
the year-long Course at this time. What difference does it make whether
Marianne Williamson is "teaching" A Course in Miracles directly, or
"teaching" it indirectly by providing "reflections" on it? Whatever the
case, whether through "reflection" or "teaching," this year-long study
of the Course, designed for listener participation, will lead many
deeper into spiritual darkness.
Time Magazine Touts Rob Bell - Christians Should Be Warned
Lighthouse Trails (December
12, 2007) - In a December 6th article by
Time magazine titled "The
Pastor's No Square," emerging church guru
Rob Bell is described as "becoming a national brand." The article
reminds readers of a previous
Chicago Sun-Times article that suggests Rob Bell could be the
next Billy Graham. But in a rebuttal article by Lighthouse Trails titled
"Will
the Next Billy Graham be a Mystic?" it is brought out that Bell's
mystical proclivities would mark him more for a New Age Christian
than a Billy Graham type evangelist. Still, secular and Christian media
alike (like Time magazine this week) continue propagating the
message and the movements of Bell. And it is no secret that his Nooma
films and his book Velvet Elvis can be found on the bookshelves
of Christian bookstores, Christian high schools and on pastor's shelves
across North America in particular. While few could argue that Bell has
"an appeal to the young" as the Time article states, what is so
troubling is that it is being packaged as Christian appeal. Nothing
could be further from the truth. Rob Bell is a New Age evangelist as he
has so clearly shown on many occasions. For instance, and perhaps one of
the most indicting statements from him, in his book Velvet Elvis
he resonates with New Age Buddhist follower Ken Wilber. Bell tells
readers to spend three months studying Wilber and promises them it will
be a "mind-blowing introduction to emergence theory and divine
creativity" (p. 192). Wilber's "emergence theory" incorporates
everything from tantric sex (sexual experience mixed with mysticism),
Yoga, Reiki, Zen, Kundalini Yoga, centering prayer, and magic.1In fact,
studying Wilber for three months (as Bell suggests) in a favorable light
would easily turn the student into a Buddhist practitioner! And yet
Bell's book is being used by Christian high schools and churches as a
resource for spirituality. How incredible! For those who may not
understand what Bell and other emergents mean by "divine creativity," it
is another way of saying that we, as humans, are co-creators with God
(he clarifies this on page 157 of VE). That's quite a declaration by
these New Age evangelists given the fact that a human can't even create
a speck of dust. But that is what they believe - co-creators. Why?
Because like all New Agers, they believe that divinity resides in all
creation, including every human being - thus if we are divine we can
also create. And if this is the case, as the New Age teaches, there can
be no Hell, and of course no salvation needed by a Savior. New Ager
Neale Donald Walsch (a favorite of Oprah's) goes so far as to say that
even Hitler would be part of the kingdom of God. By the way, Walsch also
says Hitler did the Jewish people a favor by killing them (see p. 166
FMSCN). This is the culmination of where all New Age thought ends.
more...
Blair
ducks MK question about Jewish state
Jerusalem Newswire (December
12, 2007) -
Israeli parliamentarians were reportedly furious December
12 when former British Prime Minister Tony Blair refused to answer a
question directed at him about Palestinian Liberation Organization [PLO]
Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' [Abu Mazen’s] recently reiterated refusal to
recognize Israel as a JEWISH state. While the PLO has consistently held
to its refusal to acknowledge and agree to Israel being a Jewish state,
it began to more blatantly and vociferously express this position in the
week before last month's Annapolis conference. And it has repeated its
position since. Blair, who is in Israel in his new role as special envoy
on behalf of the so-called Quartet of world powers, was addressing the
Knesset [Parliament] Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee when one of
its members, Likud MK Limor Livnat, questioned him on the issue.
"Members of the committee were furious when Blair did not answer,"
reported the leftist daily, Haaretz. The international community is
widely understood to agree with the Arab point of view that there should
be no Jewish state per se, but that the Jews who live in the Middle East
should agree to being citizens of a one-man-one-vote state. By contrast,
the Jews who founded Israel believed, as does virtually the entire
nation as it exists today, that a Jewish state is essential if they are
to survive as a people in this almost universally anti-Jewish world.
US Officials To Meet With Arch Foes - Iran and Syria
Infolive.tv (December 11, 2007) - US
and Iranian officials are scheduled to hold talks in Baghdad on December
18, in a joint effort to quell the violence in Iraq. Iraqi Foreign
Minister Hoshiyar Zebari confirmed the meeting. According to reports the
ambassadors of both countries, while bitter enemies have met three times
in the past. Washington accuses Teheran of providing funds and arms for
Shi'te militias that operate in Iraq. Howvever Zehari told reporters the
meeting will be "technical and a follow up to the last meeting of
security experts, not at the level of ambassadors deputy chiefs of
missions and security experts." There are also unconfirmed reports that
US Administration officials intended to meet with Syrian officials in
the near future. Possibly in an attempt to coax Syrian President Bashar
Assad away from the Islamic Republic in order to isolate Syria from Iran
and possibly encourage the Syrian regime to engage in peace talks with
Israel. Joshua Landis, a leading Syria expert, who publishes "Syria
Comment" was quoted in a recent article saying, " Syria is key to the
peace process. If you keep the door closed on Syria, many people believe
the peace process can go nowhere.” Syrians he said are willing to do a
deal, despite Iran’s objections.
The Mystical Science of the Golden Compass
Berit Kjos (December
10, 2007) - The movie, "The Golden Compass," heralds a mysterious
"compass," but this is no ordinary navigational guide. Instead, it's a
divination device -- an alethiometer -- energized by tiny, conscious
"Dust" particles. Though usually invisible, these Dust particles can be
sensed by the story's more psychically attuned characters. So when
12-year-old heroine Lyra seeks guidance through her treasured "truth
measure," she invokes swirling masses of shimmering Dust that
communicate the "true" answers needed for the battles ahead. Naturally,
those answers affirm the occult worldview that author Philip Pullman
promotes. And unlike most of the mystical thrills that children learn to
crave these days, this complex tale incorporates an enticing form of
pseudo-science that is already being reinforced through public education
from elementary through graduate school. But why worry? Everyone knows
it's just fantasy, don't they? It doesn't matter. While they may know
the difference between fact and fantasy, they are likely to respond
to the message with feelings rather than intellect. Most viewers
simply let their minds flow with the story. Bypassing any discernment,
the movie then plants unforgettable images and suggestion in their
hearts and minds. The results are devastating to Christian faith.
Captivating glimpses of divination, magic, wise witches, and cute
talking daemons (pronounced demons) make the occult world seem
increasingly familiar and normal -- even acceptable and good. But God
warns us: "...do not be conformed to this
world.... Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good." Rom. 12:2,9
more...
Ron Paul fires back at Newsweek 'hit' piece
WorldNet Daily (December 6, 2007) -
Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul fired
back at Newsweek for an
article
labeling the NAFTA Superhighway a baseless conspiracy theory. "It's
the same old story," Paul said in an exclusive interview with WND. "If
Newsweek can't discredit the message, they have to discredit the
messenger." The Newsweek article, by Gretel C. Kovach, keyed off an
answer the Texas congressman gave during the Nov. 28 CNN presidential
debate. A YouTube.com question asked him about a "conspiracy theory
regarding the Council [on] Foreign Relations and some plan to merge the
United States with Canada and Mexico." Paul told WND the problem
Newsweek and CNN have is that "it's not just me" talking about it. "We
have some 14 states passing resolutions to oppose the North American
Union and NAFTA Superhighways, amendments passed in Congress have taken
away funds for North American integration projects and Virgil Goode has
some 50 sponsors for his bill in the House," Paul explained. "There are
millions of Americans who oppose this globalist agenda."
WND has reported the House and
Senate are in the final stages of sending to President Bush a Department
of Transportation funding bill with amendments removing the funds needed
to continue the Mexican truck demonstration project. Rep. Goode's office
confirmed to WND that House Concurrent Resolution 40, sponsored by the
Virginia Republican to oppose the North American Union and NAFTA
Superhighways, now has more than 40 co-sponsors in the House of
Representatives. "Millions of Americans know about these issues and are
concerned about them," Paul told WND. "What I was trying to say in the
CNN debate is that this is not so much secret debates behind closed
doors but real philosophical differences between those who believe in
globalism, including many at the top of the Democratic and Republican
parties, and those of us who believe in national sovereignty and
securing our borders." Paul emphasized he wants to "deal with the world
in a voluntary fashion, through trade, travel and friendship, rather
than through higher levels of government." "I've always been opposed to
more government to achieve integration throughout the world," he said.
"I reject the U.N., NAFTA-CAFTA, North American Union approach," he
continued, "because to me that's just more international government and
less emphasis on the U.S. Constitution." more...
Operation Grapes of Wrath Michael
Vail (December 6, 2007) -
"Who controls the food supply controls the people; who controls the
energy can control whole continents; who controls money can control the
world." -Heinz Alfred Kissinger
Would you trust your government with the
lives of your family? During a national emergency would you wait for
help or make efforts to safeguard your family? The government devours
roughly 40% from the average American family's budget through taxes and
what services do they get in return? The proper role of government
according to the constitution is to guard life, liberty and property. It
is sad to say but if America was the name of a ship sailing upon choppy
waters and our government officials knew we were headed for the ‘perfect
storm'[1]
they would be guarding the life rafts and jumping ship. I could cite[2]
so many different examples[3]
showing that the government does not concern itself with the safety of
Americans but if you are honest with yourself you know it as well as I
do. The stark reality is that the politicians and monopoly men view the
common man and woman like cattle. We are branded with names like ‘useful
idiots' and ‘useless eaters' and of course they must thin the herd to
ensure their own survival. This idea has been passed down from
gangrenous minded individuals like Giammaria Ortes[4]
and Thomas Malthus and many in this generation who want 80 percent of
the world to be culled. In 1961 Frederick S. Jaffe, then vice
president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), sent a
memorandum to Bernard Barelson, president of the Population Council, in
which he proposed various measures to reduce U.S. fertility. Social
constraints would include postponing or avoiding marriage, altering the
image of the ideal family size, compulsory sex education and
family limitation, encouraging increased homosexuality,
encouraging women to work and putting fertility control agents in the
water supply.[5] John
D. Rockefeller and other so-called elites have taken great care to
invest part of their fortunes into the eugenics and population control
movement. They are responsible for pushing abortion under the name of
‘Planned parenthood'. John D. Rockefeller is also responsible for
putting fluoride in the water supply which is causing spontaneous
miscarriages. Fluoride has a disastrous effect upon the mind and body. 1953:
In a joint speech, U.S. Surgeon-General Scheele and Health, Education &
Welfare Undersecretary Nelson Rockefeller announced hopeful plans to put
more medicine than just fluoride into the U.S. water supplies: "Dr.
Scheele, in discussing mass-application methods for preventing
non-infectious diseases, said a case in point was fluoridation of water
supplies to reduce tooth decay. Nearly 800 cities throughout the country
have adopted the technique during the past 10 years, he said. Such a
community-wide attack on "far more serious diseases than dental decay"
probably will be forthcoming after laboratory tests have paved the way,
he predicted." (Paterson Evening News, 11/6/53) Today some of
the richest Americans such as Bill Gates[6]
are actively participating in mass genocide[7].
They want to bring the one-child policy from China to America and they
don't mind spending millions to get it done. The important question is
what happens when the rat poison in our water supply, forced
sterilizations and other methods to mass murder the populace isn't
decreasing the population as fast as they had hoped? That is the
question that keeps me up at night but I think I know the answer. Over
the past six months I have seen a most disturbing trend. The American
economy is on its last leg as the dollar slides towards oblivion and the
prices of food[8]
have started to rise sharply. Farmers have been worried about Monsanto[9]
and DuPont, as they are trying to corner the seed market. Both companies
are producing ‘genetically modified crops' and you will be eating the
Frankenfoods[10]
regardless of what food you buy unless you buy your own seeds now and
produce your own vegetables. Food banks which supplies foods to our
nations poor have recently been reporting critical shortages and some
even closing down. Many of these food banks also provide food during
national emergencies. Now Americans may face stagflation, a situation
where prices rise but growth slows. Recently the Consultative Group on
International Agricultural Research(CGIAR)[11]
released a report about the world's food situation while at the same
time working in tandem with Bill Gates and the Rockefeller Foundation,
Monsanto and DuPont to create a ‘doomsday'[12]
seed vault in Norway. This seed vault will contain, "It will contain up
to three million different varieties of seeds from the entire world, ‘so
that crop diversity can be conserved for the future,' according to the
Norwegian government." We can only speculate as to the reasoning for
this seed vault but their agricultural Noah's ark will not be for public
consumption. Also these GMO frankenfoods may have catastrophic effects
on our bodies and the environment. Warn your friend and families about
GMO products and let's live off our own land like our forefathers.
Hundreds get sick from Gardasil cancer vaccine The Daily Telegraph (December 3, 2007) - MORE than 17 girls a week have been experiencing adverse reactions such as seizures and numbness after taking cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil since it became widely distributed in April. But the Department of Health and Ageing, while revealing the number of reactions, is refusing to release the details of them - despite growing controversy overseas, including links to at least seven deaths. There have been previous reports in Australia of young girls fainting, experiencing seizures, dizzy spells and paralysis, including 20 students at a Melbourne private school who reported being sick after having an injection in late May. The Daily Telegraph can reveal that as of November 30 there have been 496 adverse reaction reports filed to the Therapeutic Goods Association (TGA). Of those, 468 of the reported cases had the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine as the sole suspected cause. In the US there have been reports of up to 1700 women suffering adverse reactions after being vaccinated. Manufacturer CSL has dismissed allegations of associated deaths in the US, claiming the women died of unrelated thrombosis or heart attack. When Gardasil was released earlier this year its inventor, former Australian of the Year Ian Frazer, urged parents to vaccinate their daughters. "It would be a pity if that opportunity was lost because of fainting," Professor Frazer said. The national HPV program vaccinates 12 and 13 year olds in the first year of secondary school, along with a catch-up program for women up to 26. Teenager Stephanie Kemp, 17, was vaccinated with Gardasil before it was distributed free. "I thought it was important for her to have it," said her mother Sue. "To have these things available I think is fantastic . . . the pluses outweigh the minuses," she said. Dr Rohan Hammett, TGA acting national manager said the safety of Gardasil was being monitored by bodies in Australia and overseas with more than 10 million doses distributed worldwide to date. He added the rate of adverse reactions was consistent with those expected with any vaccine. CSL spokeswoman Rachel David said the majority of side effects were linked to people with severe allergies.
National debt grows $1 million a minute
Associated Press
(December 3, 2007) - Like a ticking time bomb, the national debt
is an explosion waiting to happen. It's expanding by about $1.4 billion
a day — or nearly $1 million a minute. What's that mean to you? It means
almost $30,000 in debt for each man, woman, child and infant in the
United States. Even if you've escaped the recent housing and credit
crunches and are coping with rising fuel prices, you may still be headed
for economic misery, along with the rest of the country. That's because
the government is fast straining resources needed to meet interest
payments on the national debt, which stands at a mind-numbing $9.13
trillion. And like homeowners who took out adjustable-rate mortgages,
the government faces the prospect of seeing this debt — now at
relatively low interest rates — rolling over to higher rates,
multiplying the financial pain. So long as somebody is willing to keep
loaning the U.S. government money, the debt is largely out of sight, out
of mind. But the interest payments keep compounding, and could in time
squeeze out most other government spending — leading to sharply higher
taxes or a cut in basic services like Social Security and other
government benefit programs. Or all of the above. A major economic
slowdown, as some economists suggest may be looming, could hasten the
day of reckoning. The national debt — the total accumulation of annual
budget deficits — is up from $5.7 trillion when President Bush took
office in January 2001 and it will top $10 trillion sometime right
before or right after he leaves in January 2009.
Ankara welcomes Pope's EU comments The
Irish Times (November 29, 2006) -
Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan reacted positively today to
comments made by Pope Benedict XVI on his visit to Turkey but there were
more difficulties over the country's bid to join the European Union. The
Pontiff began a 4-day visit yesterday with the aim of defusing Muslim
anger over his recent comments implying Islam was violent religion that
should not be allowed spread throughout the EU. Yesterday, the Pope made
comments which gave apparent support to Turkey's controversial bid to
join the EU and today he made conciliatory comments about Islam. Prime
Minister Tayyip Erdogan after a private meeting with the Pontiff that
the Pope was in favour Turkey's membership bid. "He said 'we are not
political but we wish for Turkey to join the EU'," Mr Erdogan told
journalists. At the Nato summit in Riga, today Italian Prime Minister
Romano Prodi said Mr Erdogan had declared himself "very satisfied" with
the start of the Pope's trip. Celebrating mass at a shrine in
southwestern Turkey today, where believers say the Virgin Mary lived her
last days, Pope Benedict stressed that Christians and Muslims share a
common devotion to the mother of Jesus. Benedict said in his sermon:
"From here in Ephesus, a city blessed by the presence of Mary Most Holy
- who we know is loved and venerated also by Muslims - let us lift up to
the Lord a special prayer for peace between peoples." The Koran
describes Mary as the virgin mother of Jesus, whom Muslims consider the
greatest prophet after Mohammed, and some Muslims - especially women -
visit shrines to her. Benedict's comments on his first official visit to
a Muslim country appeared to go a long way towards making up for a
speech in Germany, which led to several attacks on churches in the
Muslim world and the murder of an Italian nun in Somalia. A columnist in
the Milliyet daily newspaper today said the Pope's comments
were "a big warning for conservative politicians who think the EU is a
Christian club." The EU has criticised Turkey for its treatment of
non-Muslim religious minorities and today the European Commission put a
further barrier to accession when it recommend the suspension of some
strands of negotiations over Ankara's failure to open its ports to EU
member Cyprus. more... I'm learning a little more about the Vatican's place as the woman riding the beast of Revelation 17. I just read a good historic look at the Vatican and her history of "reigning over the kings of the earth." Revelation 17:18 It is by S.H. Venour and is called New World Order: The Counterfeit Kingdom. It was written in 1998 and so the more current news of Europe's rise to power and the 10 kingdoms is missing in the assessment, but the history of the Roman Catholic Church remains the same and as the Bible states is at the core of planning for a New World Order. But her judgment will come in one day and the 10 kings will maul her and burn her with fire according to God's judgment He has put in their heart to fulfill. Revelation 18"It is very important that the visit of Pope Benedict XVI coincides with a period in which the final declaration of Alliance of Civilizations Initiative Istanbul Summit was released," said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan who held a news conference regarding his meeting with Pope at Ankara's Esenboga Airport on Tuesday. LinkThis brings me to this article brought to attention by Bjorn on his blog regarding the Alliance of Civilizations. If you have been reading my comments in past issues, you know that the Alliance of Civilizations is heading for a war on those with fundamentalist religious beliefs that claim sole ownership to the Truth. At the core of the Catholic Church is still the Bible and although this Bible is changed from its original, it still states that Yeshua is the only way to salvation. I think therefore that this is why the woman who has controlled and guided world politics over the millennia (riding the beast), will be hated by the 10 horns. In order for the plans for a One World Religion to come to fruition, the foundation of belief must be destroyed. In the case of Christianity, that is the Bible. The Vatican is working toward that end of a One World Religion through the method of accepting all belief and mixing them to dilute the Truth, a trademark of Babylon. In this way, if nobody reads the Bible for themselves and rather trust in the interpretations of men like the Pope for direction, when the great deception is unleashed with power, signs and lying wonders, the world without a firm foundation will have signs and wonders to deceive them from the Truth that has been written in the Bible from the beginning. I believe we may see the Pope at the time act as the 12th Mahdi for Islam and redirect worship of traditional means to the antichrist. It this is the case, then those who listen to the Pope over the Bible will be deceived and lost.
That they may be One Catholic.net
(April 25, 2007) - The efforts of Pope
Benedict XVI to restore Church unity in his two years as Vicar of
Christ. From the first moments of his pontificate Pope Benedict XVI
perceived God’s plans clearly. “The current Successor (of Peter) assumes
as his primary commitment that of working tirelessly towards the
reconstitution of the full and visible unity of all Christ's followers.
This is his ambition, this is his compelling duty.” Now, on his second
anniversary as Pope, his track record shows us the seriousness of his
commitment. Few people expected Pope Benedict, now 80, to keep up the
pace of world travel that the young Pope John Paul II had set. The
consequent drop in worldwide media coverage of the Pope’s activities is
understandable. However, the quiet insistence of the current Vicar of
Christ merits more attention. His various apostolic visitations,
numerous ecumenical gatherings and even his weekly Wednesday audiences
demonstrate his focused goal of achieving unity. This mission takes
place on three levels. First, there is the difficult task of achieving
full Christian unity. Second, there is unity within and among
increasingly secular societies that needs to be considered. Third, and
this is something the Pope has particularly stressed, there is the issue
of the unity between faith and reason. On his first apostolic visit to
Germany for World Youth Day, Pope Benedict met with Christians of all
denominations to express with clarity his great hope. “What does it mean
to restore the unity of all Christians? … This unity subsists, we are
convinced, in the Catholic Church, without the possibility of ever being
lost. This does not, however, mean uniformity in all expressions of
theology and spirituality, in liturgical forms and in discipline.” For
some that may sound a bit too ambitious, but as Pope Benedict has
repeated on various occasions, “We can only obtain unity as a gift of
the Holy Spirit.” In that same World Youth Day address he stressed that
“spiritual ecumenism -- prayer, conversion and the sanctification of
life -- constitute the heart of the ecumenical movement. It could be
said that the best form of ecumenism consists in living in accordance
with the Gospel.” Given this firm interior preparation, the Pope
expressed his sincere hope in the fulfilment of this mission given to
him from on high. “I am convinced,” he said, “that if more and more
people unite themselves to the Lord’s prayer ‘that all may be one’, then
this prayer, made in the name of Jesus, will not go unheard.” The papal
visit to Valencia, Spain, gave the Pontiff an opportunity to expound his
deep concerns for the unity in secular society. He especially addressed
the secularist trend causing Europe’s demographic suicide. This ongoing
theme of the unity of faith and reason at the service of humanity also
motivated his speech at the University of Regensburg. There, in his
visit to Bavaria the Pope argued that reason without faith threatens the
unity of Christians as well as unity among societies. “Secularized
reason is unable to enter into a true dialogue with the religions. It
remains closed to the question of God, and this will end by leading to
the clash of cultures,” he recalled in his address to the Curia. Pope
Benedict does not suggest that the clash of civilizations is inevitable,
but sees a clear connection between this threat and Christian unity. He
stressed that “religions must encounter one another in the common task
of putting themselves at the service of the truth and thus, of the human
being.” Contrary to the misinterpretations of his speech in Regensburg,
the Pope’s visit to Turkey showed the world his respect for the Islamic
religion. In the Blue Mosque in Istanbul he prayed “that all believers
might recognize themselves as creatures and give witness of authentic
fraternity.” Amidst a crowd of 400,000 gathered in the celebration of
Pentecost, he called upon the various ecclesial movements present to
“accept the active directives of the Successor of Peter, but
also of the bishops of the various local Churches who, with the Pope,
are custodians of truth and charity in unity.” He encouraged
the enthusiasm and initiative of these new lay groups in the Church
reminding them that their various activities should converge in a common
end. “He wants your diversity and he wants you for the one
body.” more...
So my point is let those who accept the Bible as the infallible Word of God be united in that faith and in one accord, but one has to put aside what they hold as Truth to be accepted with those who reject Yeshua is not a place the true Church should be seeking acceptance, rather from God alone. People are welcome to believe what they want, God never takes away our free will and choice so neither would I, but I've seen too much proof sola scriptura to be deceived by those who wish to erase Christ from history. Just because the world does not like the Truth, doesn't mean that there is no longer only one Truth. Christ said we should be one, but He was speaking of those who accept Him, not of the world in general. When we compromise Truth to get along, we do everyone a disservice because reality will always catch up to us once we die. We are promised to be hated by the world for holding our faith in Christ alone that will lead to the war on the saints. My prayer is that Christians return to the Book of the origin of their beliefs for the answers and not men. In so doing myself, all has become clear and errors exposed in many places. God has not left us in darkness and will guide us personally through His Word if we only ask and do. Continued discussion here.
Catholic Church no longer swears by truth of the Bible Times
Online (October 5, 2005) - The
hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church has published a teaching document
instructing the faithful that some parts of the Bible are not actually
true. The Catholic bishops of England, Wales and Scotland are warning
their five million worshippers, as well as any others drawn to the study
of scripture, that they should not expect “total accuracy” from the
Bible. “We should not expect to find in Scripture full scientific
accuracy or complete historical precision,” they say in The Gift of
Scripture. The document is timely, coming as it does amid the rise
of the religious Right, in particular in the US. Some Christians want a
literal interpretation of the story of creation, as told in Genesis,
taught alongside Darwin’s theory of evolution in schools, believing
“intelligent design” to be an equally plausible theory of how the world
began. But the first 11 chapters of Genesis, in which two different and
at times conflicting stories of creation are told, are among those that
this country’s Catholic bishops insist cannot be “historical”. At most,
they say, they may contain “historical traces”. The document shows how
far the Catholic Church has come since the 17th century, when Galileo
was condemned as a heretic for flouting a near-universal belief in the
divine inspiration of the Bible by advocating the Copernican view of the
solar system. Only a century ago, Pope Pius X condemned Modernist
Catholic scholars who adapted historical-critical methods of analysing
ancient literature to the Bible. In the document, the bishops
acknowledge their debt to biblical scholars. They say the Bible must be
approached in the knowledge that it is “God’s word expressed in human
language” and that proper acknowledgement should be given both to the
word of God and its human dimensions. They say the Church must offer the
gospel in ways “appropriate to changing times, intelligible and
attractive to our contemporaries”. The Bible is true in passages
relating to human salvation, they say, but continue: “We should not
expect total accuracy from the Bible in other, secular matters.” They go
on to condemn fundamentalism for its “intransigent intolerance” and to
warn of “significant dangers” involved in a fundamentalist approach.
“Such an approach is dangerous, for example, when people of one nation
or group see in the Bible a mandate for their own superiority, and even
consider themselves permitted by the Bible to use violence against
others.” more... The neocons new strategy for Europe Voltairenet.org (October 3, 2005) - The European scene has been modified by the rejection of the European Constitutional Treaty in France and the Netherlands and the result of the recent legislative elections in Germany. Thierry Meyssan reveals the analyses of US neoconservatives and their new strategy for Europe. As a result of the lessons learned from the events that have shaken Europe over the past two years, the neoconservatives have decided to change their own agenda for this region of the world, which originally involved: 1) Redeploying the US military forces stationed in Europe, moving them to the East and the South to control Central and Eastern Europe, and establishing a “containment belt” around the Russian Federation;The redeployment of US troops has been taking place without any questioning. The European Union affectively participates – not complaining – in all destabilization operations carried out around Russia; with the pretext of carrying out programs of assistance and economic development, the EU facilitates US interference in the Caucasus; Javier Solana himself was in Ukraine supervising the “Orange” Revolution; and the Commission is financing a destabilization program against Belarus. The loyal Solana, who has not forgotten that he was the NATO General Secretary before he was appointed General Secretary of the European Union, managed to have the Council of Heads of State and Government adopt a strategic doctrine that copies very faithfully that of President Bush. This is why the EU’s defense is more than ever dependent on NATO. However, although Solana was successful in involving the European Union in Afghanistan and Sudan, he failed in the case of Iraq. Based on this incomplete result, the neoconservatives concluded that it was possible to manipulate the European Union within the European continent, but its members have so differing interests around the world that they are unable to perform the role the conservatives have given them. After interpreting these events as an illustration of the fears of expansion of the European Union and the immigration it is causing, or as a depressive crisis in the face of unemployment, equally translated into extremist votes, and even anti-Semitic ones, the neoconservatives understood that they would not be able to impose the Anglo-Saxon socio-economic model on recalcitrant populations through the political way. They have now changed their plans and have decided to look for the support of the world faction of national business owners. José Manuel Barroso, appointed president of the Commission thanks to George W. Bush after he organized the Summit of the Azores prior to the invasion of Iraq, was ordered to put the European Constitution aside and to readjust the mechanism. Thus, last week, Barroso announced the burial of the 70 legislative projects saying they are too complex and annoying for the public opinion. The truth is that the strategy has been changed: it is no longer about ruling under the authority of the Commission, but about dismantling what currently exists and transferring the making of the regulations to a transatlantic Regulation Forum controlled by the top chiefs of the Transatlantic Business Dialogue (TABD). In accordance with this new trend, the directives of Reach and Bolkenstein, which had been sacrificed so that the Constitution could be approved, have now resurfaced. The first one aims at eliminating regulations for chemical production. The second, obviously more important, aims at eliminating national social legislations so that the European Union may be compatible with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The principle is simple: taking free circulation as a pretext, the business owner has the possibility of choosing which social legislation he will put into practice for his employees and transferring the social headquarters of his companies to the country where the legislation best fits his interests. In addition, so as to convince the European people of what politicians have not been able to impose on them, the neoconservatives are now turning to Pope Benedict XVI and the Catholic Church. The leaders of the US Episcopal Conference and the Episcopate Commission of the European Union met in Brussels, from September 21st to the 23rd, to express their support of the “New Transatlantic Agenda”. In Washington, the neoconservatives decided to adapt their organizational mechanism to the new strategy. In the American Enterprise Institute, the group in charge of writing the presidential program of George W. Bush, the Project for a New American Century, was discreetly disbanded last week. It was replaced with the American Committee for a Strong Europe. “Strong Europe” actually means a Europe that can do the work that US troops currently do around the world and one that can defeat any anti-globalization efforts on its own continent. This Committee, which will try not to interfere too openly with the European Union policy, immediately asked the “friends of America” to do it for them. Thus, Saudi Arabia said “present” and will finance the next electoral campaign of Nicolas Sarkozy in France so that the neoconservatives can get rid of Dominique de Villepin. Similar measures were taken with respect to each and every big state of the European Union. | RCC | EU/UN / 4th Kingdom | Solana | NewWorldOrder | America | |
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