On Saturday, January 8, 2005, J. Edwin Pope will give the sermon, concluding his series on “Your Relationship with God.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

The year 2004 was quite an interesting one in regard to pre-Tribulation events spoken of by Christ for the end-time. We experienced flooding in the Philippines, droughts in parts of the United States and Africa, starvation and genocide in the Sudan, hurricanes in Florida, earthquakes in diverse places, and — to top off the year — a huge earthquake and subsequent tsunamis causing over 150,000 fatalities in South-East Asia. We also heard of continual conflicts, terrorist attacks and bombings in Israel, Iraq, and other parts of the world.

What can we expect for 2005? Unfortunately, more of the same, according to what the Bible says, and possibly even in increasing and progressively worse proportions, as we approach the final stages of Satan’s rule over this earth.

We must always bear in mind the truth and reality that Satan is the present ruler over this world. As outlined in Matthew 4:8-9, Satan offered the kingdoms of this world to Christ, if He would bow down and worship him. He could not have offered them to Christ, if they were not his to give. You will notice that Christ did not challenge this issue. We also know that Satan deceives the whole world (Revelation 12:9) — that is the reason why most don’t recognize the fact about who really rules over this earth.

Unfortunately, all those curses which we experienced in 2004 are the result of disobedience to God and His laws. They are the direct result of sin.

The recent earthquake in Asia is nothing compared to what we will encounter going forward. Yet, man’s general attitude will continue to be one of defiance. Let us notice this prophecy in Revelation 6:12-14: “I looked when he opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake… Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.”

It is hard for us to imagine the magnitude of an earthquake that will move every mountain and island out of its place. Still, we don’t find that man will repent. Rather, they will try to hide themselves from God (verses 15-16), as Adam and Eve tried to do, after they had sinned.

Further events are described in Revelation 16:18-21, talking about another great earthquake; in fact, it will be such “a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth” (verse 18). We read that “the great city [modern Babylon or Rome] was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell” (verse 19). In addition, “every island fled away, and the mountains were not found” (verse 20). This unprecedented earthquake will be so powerful that islands will disappear and great mountains will become small hills. We cannot really imagine such an event. In addition, we are told that “great hail from heaven fell upon men” (verse 21). Still, man won’t repent. Rather, we read in the same verse that “Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, since the plague was exceedingly great.”

However, we do read, in Revelation 11:13, about another “great earthquake, and a tenth of the city [of Jerusalem] fell. In the earthquake seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.” While most people won’t repent, some will, as these terrible tragedies continue to strike.

Christ told us that these things, which we are experiencing right now, are just the “beginning of sorrows” (Matthew 24:8). It will get much worse. It is critical that we are maintaining a close relationship with God, so that we can be protected by Him in the years ahead.

Death Toll in Asian Catastrophe

Some American news programs, such as CNN, have consistently understated the official death toll of the terrible tragedy in Asia. When the German news already announced during the last week of December that the death toll was, at that time, over 100,000, CNN still stated that it was under 80,000. On December 30, 2004, CNN gave the official figure as 118,000, while the official toll was, at that time, at least 125,000, according to the Drudge Report. Quoting from “My Way,” it was stated: “Asia’s tsunami death toll soared above 125,000 on Thursday as millions scrambled for food and clean water and rumors of new giant waves sent many fleeing inland in panic. Aid agencies warned many more, from Indonesia to Sri Lanka, could die in epidemics.”

By now, the official death toll stands at 155,000. However, the real figures are, without any doubt, astronomically higher.

Bernama.com reported that the death toll “in Acheh, the region worst hit by last Sunday’s tsunami, may exceed 400,000 (!) as many affected areas could still not be reached for search and rescue operations, Indonesia’s Ambassador to Malaysia… said Thursday.”

The Times of India reported that “there are indications that the number of dead projected by authorities is way below the reality.”

The Los Angeles Times reported on December 31, 2004:

“As the toll from this week’s earthquake and tsunami in Asia continues to climb, the certainty about how many people have died is another casualty of the disaster. With entire villages swallowed by the sea and beach dwellers swept away along thousands of miles of coastline, hundreds or thousands of people have disappeared with no one left behind to report them missing. To prevent disease, bodies are being bulldozed into mass graves before they have been identified. Many of the corpses still unburied four days after the tsunami no longer are recognizable… In Sri Lanka, Muslim officials tried to bury the dead within a day in accordance with Islamic tradition, before the official count started. In Indonesia’s Aceh province, corpses were scooped into mass graves before pictures could be taken. Officials simply guessed how many could fit into each pit. In many places, there had never been a census, so without knowing how many people had lived there, authorities can only estimate how many may have died.”

AFP also just announced that “India’s last active volcano… has erupted in the aftermath of the huge earthquake,” and that people “have been evacuated from Barren Island since the eruption begun.”

Religious Beliefs and Superstitions

Regarding the religiously-motivated reactions to the terrible disaster in Asia, the differences could not be greater. As was reported by washingtonpost.com on December 31, 2004, “people of different faiths search for meaning.” The article was titled, “Seeking the hand of God in the waters.” It was pointed out:

“In a world of Muslims and Christians and Jews and Hindus and Buddhists, with the disaster in South Asia so far claiming more than 110,000 lives [by now in excess of 155,000] — many of them children — folks all over the world, in all places of worship, are pondering similar questions… Shlomo Amar, Israel’s Sephardi chief rabbi, has said, ‘This is an expression of God’s great ire with the world. The world is being punished for wrongdoing — be it people’s needless hatred of each other, lack of charity, moral turpitude.’ Some organizations in India say the tsunami is ‘divine retribution’ for the arrest of Jayendra Saraswati, a Hindu religious leader….

“On his Web site Watch.org, Bill Koenig writes: ‘The Biblical proportions of this disaster become clearly apparent upon reports of miraculous Christian survival. Christian persecution in these countries is some of the worst in the world.’ Eight of the 12 countries hit — Malaysia, Burma, Bangladesh, Somalia, Maldives, Sri Lanka, India and Indonesia, he says — ‘are among the top 50 nations who persecute Christians.’… Sutadhara Tapovanaye, a Buddhist monk for 38 of his 48 years, tries to explain it differently. This, he says, is a part of life, the dynamics of nature, an always-changing world… Martin E. Marty, professor emeritus of religious history at the University of Chicago, has… been an ordained Lutheran minister since 1952. ‘It’s only natural to repose yourself in the will of God,’ he says. ‘If you’re a believer, then you must believe that God, somehow, is a presence in all of this. But God didn’t tell anybody that you go through life without disasters.'”

None of these comments give comprehensive answers. Nor does the opinion of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who admitted, according to an article of the news.telegraph.com.uk of January 2, 2005: “This makes me doubt the existence of God.” The article stated: “The Asian tsunami disaster should make all Christians question the existence of God, Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, writes in The Telegraph today…. Dr Williams, who, as head of the Church of England, represents 70 million Anglicans around the world…, adds: ‘The question, “How can you believe in a God who permits suffering on this scale?” is therefore very much around at the moment, and it would be surprising if it weren’t – indeed it would be wrong if it weren’t.'”

For a full explanation as to the real REASONS for this terrible disaster, please read our previous Update (#174), and listen to Dave Harris’ sermon, “Not of This World,” as well as to our StandingWatch program on the topic.

Sadly, this world is in utter spiritual darkness! True UNDERSTANDING is needed as never before.

Ratzinger the Next Pope?

Time Magazine published a remarkable article on January 2, 2005, titled, “Rome’s Next Choice?” The article stated:

“Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, the chief architect of Pope John Paul II’s traditionalist moral policy, has long been a bugaboo for liberal Catholics. But they had stopped worrying that the German might one day ascend to St. Peter’s throne. His hard-line views and blunt approach had earned him the epithet of panzerkardinal and too many enemies. Well, their worrying may now resume. Sources in Rome tell TIME that Ratzinger has re-emerged as the top papal candidate within the Vatican hierarchy…

“There are no immediate signs that John Paul’s health has taken a turn for the worse, and he has publicly ruled out becoming the first Pope in eight centuries to retire voluntarily. But as his long papacy grows ever longer, some feel the next conclave will seek a shorter-term ‘transitional’ figure. Ratzinger, 77, may fill that bill. His doctrinaire ways have been tempered of late by a deft and more pragmatic approach to issues such as rising Western secularism and Islamic fundamentalism. During the recent U.S. controversy about giving Communion to pro-choice candidates, Ratzinger authored a careful letter to American bishops reasserting the Vatican’s antiabortion stance without dragging the Holy See into election-year theatrics. ‘There was a stigma,’ said the Vatican official of Ratzinger. ‘He rises above that now.'”

The New York Post added on January 3, 2005, that Ratzinger, a “hard-nosed German cardinal known as the ‘Panzerkardinal’ has re-emerged as a front-runner to become the next pope.”

Cardinal Ratzinger has already been, according to some commentators, the most influential personality in the Vatican. He is certainly a person to take note of. IF he should become the next pope, he might or might not turn out to be just a “transitional” figure.

The Catholic Church and the Jews

As the Associated Press reported on January 2, 2005, “A document that surfaced recently has revived debate about the Vatican’s attempt to keep control over some Jewish children protected from Nazis by Christian families. The 1946 circular apparently instructed French church authorities that Jewish children baptized as Roman Catholics, for safety or other reasons, should remain in the church — even if that meant not returning them to their own families once the Nazi occupation ended.”

The article continued: “The document, published last week in Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper, caused a stir for its tough, clear wording… One Jewish leader called the letter ‘horrible.’ ‘It’s a dry, bureaucratic document, which has no feeling for the Holocaust, I’m sorry to say,’ Amos Luzzatto, president of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities, told the Apcom news agency. The one-page document, dated Oct. 23, 1946, advised French church authorities on how to handle information requests from Jewish officials, asking them not to put anything in writing.’ Children who have been baptized must not be entrusted to institutions that cannot ensure their Christian education,’ says a copy of the French-language letter obtained by The Associated Press. One of the letter’s most jarring lines says that children whose families survived the Holocaust should be returned, ‘as long as they had not been baptized.’

“That stance on baptism predated the Holocaust by nearly a century. In 1858, papal guards took a 6-year-old Jewish boy named Edgardo Mortara from his family in Bologna, Italy, after hearing that he had been secretly baptized by a Catholic housemaid.”

Priest Apologized for Telling the Truth

As the Los Angeles Daily Journal reported on November 22, 2004, a Catholic priest from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles apologized in writing to parents “for telling kindergarten to third-grade students at a private Catholic school [during a morning Mass] there is no Santa Claus.” The Archdiocese hastened to add that “the priest didn’t have permission to tell children there is no Santa Claus.” According to the article, a parent felt that the priest took the “innocence” out of his daughter’s childhood, who does not believe anymore in Santa Claus.

What a mixed-up and confused world we are living in, where religious teachers are not allowed to tell children the truth!

U.S. Marine Corps Jails C.O.

A thought-provoking article was published on January 1, 2005, by bellagio.org, reporting about the jail sentence of a Conscientious Objector in the U.S. army because of his refusal to carry a weapon. The article stated:

“U.S. Marine Cpl. Joel D. Klimkewicz says he’s willing to clear land mines and risk his life for his country. He’s just not willing to pick up a gun. Because of his new-found religious faith, the Birch Run native is spending his holidays behind bars as a conscientious objector, convicted by military superiors who see him as a disobedient soldier. ‘I couldn’t see Jesus Christ taking human life,’ said Klimkewicz in a phone interview from the Camp LeJeune military prison. ‘In my faith, what I believe is that we’re all citizens of heaven. Citizens of heaven are of all nations, and I refuse to take a life of a fellow citizen of heaven.’

“This month, a Marine Corps court sentenced 24-year-old Klimkewicz — a combat engineer who is a member of a Seventh-day Adventist Church — to seven months behind bars for refusing an order to pick up a weapon for training. He received a reduction in rank to private and a bad conduct discharge. Since joining the church a year ago and becoming a conscientious objector to combat, he has taken some criticism from friends who have questioned his patriotism.”

The Marine Corps questioned Klimkewicz’s sincerity and charged that he refused to pick up a weapon, as he does not want to go to Iraq. The Marine Corps claims that he was sentenced for refusing to obey the order of a superior officer, not because he requested to be recognized as a conscientious objector.

In a related article by Der Spiegel Online, dated November 17, 2004, it is stated that currently 2,000 U.S. reserves have applied for C.O. status, or refuse to serve for other reasons, including age. The magazine claimed that on November 7, 2004, out of 2,500 reserves, 733 reserves did not show up in their barracks, and that out of 4,000 former soldiers, 1,800 applied for exemptions.

Otto von Habsburg

Der Stern Online published, on December 13, 2004, an interesting interview with Dr. Otto von Habsburg (92), the oldest son of the last emperor of Austria and Hungary. For 20 years, the Austrian Otto von Habsburg had been a member of the European Parliament, representing the Bavarian party, CSU. When asked about the beatification of his father in 2004, and a future role of the monarchy, he stated:

“A reference to God in the European Constitution is very important. We need a higher authority for our principles. And who — apart from God — could that be?… Theodore Roosevelt once asked Emperor Franz-Josef what the role of a monarchy would be in the modern world. His answer: ‘To protect the people from their government.’… The monarchy can establish continuity.”

Most Foreign Languages

AFP reported on December 23, 2004, that “Britons are the worst in Europe when it comes to speaking a foreign language… Britain comes bottom of the pile of 28 countries… behind Hungary… and neighbouring Ireland… Luxembourg performed best… followed by the Netherlands… and Denmark… The report also showed while English is the most common second language across Europe, German, Russian and French are more widely spoken in some countries… In Romania, as many people speak French as English. French is also strong in Italy and Portugal. German is widely spoken in central Europe and the Baltic countries, with more Czechs and Slovaks speaking German than English.”

Putin’s Imperial Dreams

A commentary by Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuania’s first president after independence from the Soviet Union, was published on December 19, 2004, by The San Diego Union Tribune. In the article it is pointed out:

“To divide a people in order to conquer them is an immoral strategy that has endured throughout recorded history. From Alexander the Great to Stalin the Cruel, variants of that strategy have been used to keep nations in thrall to the will of an emperor. We are now seeing the strategy at work again as President Vladimir Putin stealthily seeks to restore Kremlin supremacy over the lands treated as ‘lost’ when the Soviet Union imploded in 1991…

“Europe and the world are… being tested. Russia is passing from being the Russian Federation of Boris Yeltsin to a unitary authoritarian regime under Vladimir Putin and his former KGB colleagues. Europe, America, and the wider world must see Putin’s so-called ‘managed democracy’ in its true light, and must stand united against his neo-imperialist dreams. The first step is to make Russia honor its binding commitment to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, to remove its troops from Moldova and Georgia.”

Worst December in New Zealand

Surprise about this winter in New Zealand was raised by nzherald.co.nz of January 4, 2005, when stating: “Yes, it was a shocker… Snow, frost, hail and a tornado marked the first month of summer, with the coldest temperatures recorded in December since 1945. National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research figures for last month show it was the fifth coldest since records were established in 1853….The record-breaking low temperatures not only kept the summer clothes in the cupboard but slowed the growth and ripening of berries, stone fruit and crops…. Auckland recorded only 174 hours of sunshine – 83 per cent of the normal figure and the third lowest since records began in 1963.”

Let us read Daniel 9:24-27 in context, in the Authorized Version:

“(24) Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks [i.e., sixty-nine weeks]: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. (26) And after the threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. (27) And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

To properly understand this passage, let us note the following quote from Lesson 19 of the Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course, copyrighted 1961, 1965, and 1967. The publication pointed out that Jesus Christ is the minister of the New Covenant (Hebrews 8:6); that He was to CONFIRM the covenant for one “week” (Daniel 9:26-27); that His ministry was to be cut in HALF (verse 27); and that Christ will COMPLETE His work of confirming the New Covenant in the future (Same verse; also Hebrews 8:10 and Jeremiah 31:31-34).

The publication continued: “A ‘day’ in the prophecy of Daniel 9:27 represents a year in fulfillment (Num. 14:34; Ezek. 4:3-6). Christ ministered three-and-a-half years — ONE HALF of this prophetical ‘week.’ For three-and-one-half years He CONFIRMED — spelled out the TERMS of — THE NEW COVENANT with His disciples who recorded them for us today. By dying for our sins in the MIDST OF the ‘week,’ He put the final STAMP on the covenant and made it binding with His blood. Through Him, ALL PEOPLE can now enter into the New Covenant and become HEIRS ‘according to the promise’ which God made to Abraham (Gal. 3:29). But Daniel 9:26-27 reveals that there yet REMAINS three-and-one-half years of Christ’s ministry to be FULFILLED! Let’s understand. When Jesus returns to this earth He will FULFILL the covenant He made with Abraham. Abraham and his SPIRITUAL seed through Christ will then inherit the world and eternal life.”

A subsequent letter from the Letter Answering Department of the Worldwide Church of God, dated 1987, commented on the passage in Daniel 9:24-27 as follows:

“To explain this prophecy, I will quote from ‘Halley’s Bible Handbook’: ‘The Captivity, which was then drawing to a close, had lasted 70 years. Daniel is here told by the angel that it would yet be ’70 weeks’ till the coming of the Messiah [see verse 24]. The ’70 weeks’ is generally understood to mean 70 weeks of years, that is, 70 sevens of years, or seven times 70 years, that is 490 years. As if the angel were saying, The Captivity has been 70 years; the period between the Captivity and the Coming of the Messiah will be seven times that long. Seven, and cycles of seven, sometimes have symbolic meanings; yet the actual facts of this prophecy are most amazing, as follows:

“‘The date from which the 70 weeks was to be counted was the decree to re-build Jerusalem [see verse 25]. There were three decrees issued by Persian kings for this purpose … The principal one of these was 457 B C [the one given by Artaxerxes]. The 70 weeks is subdivided into 7 weeks, 62 weeks, and 1 week [see verses 25 and 27]. It is difficult to see the application of the ‘7 weeks’; but the 69 weeks (including the 7) equal 483 days, that is, on the year-day theory, Ezek 4:6, which is the commonly accepted interpretation, 483 years.

“‘This 483 years is the period between the decree to re-build Jerusalem and the coming of the ‘Anointed One,’ [see verse 25]. The decree to re-build Jerusalem, as noted above, was 457 B C. Adding 483 years to 457 B C brings us to 26 A D, the very year that Jesus was baptized and began his public ministry. A most remarkable fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy, even to the year. Further, within 3 1/2 years Jesus was crucified, that is, “in the midst of the one week” “the Anointed One” was “cut off,” “purged away sin and brought in everlasting righteousness,” [see verses 24, 26, and 27].’

“We must make one slight correction in Mr. Halley’s figures. His overall calculations are correct, but he did not account for the ONE YEAR which is gained in making the transition from B.C. to A.D. dates. Because there is no year 0, one year is gained and must be added to the A.D. date. It was A.D. 27 when Jesus was baptized and began His ministry — not A.D. 26… It is significant that in Daniel’s prophecy of the ‘seventy weeks’ (Dan. 9:24-27), Jesus was to be cut off ‘in the midst of the week.’ While this prophecy has the application of a day for a year, so that this 70th week became a literal seven years, Christ being ‘cut off’ after three-and-a-half years’ ministry, as He was, yet it is significant that He was also ‘cut off’ on the middle day [Wednesday] of a literal week (page 9).”

The understanding of the Church of God has been that Daniel 9:27 refers to the First Coming of Jesus Christ and His Sacrifice, as well as His confirmation of the New Covenant. Some commentaries claim, however, that the covenant mentioned in Daniel 9:27 refers to a future treaty between a European prince and the nation of Israel — the Jews — which is to last for 3 1/2 years.

Eerdman’s Handbook to the Bible explains: “Verse 26 seems to point to the death and rejection of Christ and the destruction of the temple which followed in AD 70 — with a wider reference at the end. But the subject of verse 27 is not at all clear. ‘He’ is taken by some to be the Messiah, by others to be the destroying prince of the previous verse.”

For instance, the Ryrie Study Bible claims: “The prince of verse 26, the antichrist… will make a pact with many (of the Jewish people) at the beginning of the Tribulation period. But in the midst of the week (i.e. 3 1/2 years later) Antichrist will break his covenant and desecrate the Temple by demanding worship of himself in it.”

The Nelson Study Bible concurs, stating in regard to Daniel 9:27: “‘He’ may be a reference to the antichrist, who will confirm a covenant with Israel. ‘In the middle of the week’–that is, three and one-half years later–he will break the covenant.”

Unger’s Bible Handbook claims something similar: “During the first half [of the final week of seven years] the ‘prince’ (world ruler, ‘little horn’ of 7:8, 24-25) will make a covenant with the Jews, who are restored in Palestine with a resumption of the temple worship. In the middle of the week the covenant is broken, worship for the Jews ceases (2 Thess 2:3-4), and the time of the Great Tribulation ensues.”

Apart from the fact that these commentaries, especially Unger, confuse the identity of the “little horn” (an end-time religious leader) with the beast (an end-time political leader), there is little reason to believe that the “covenant,” referred to in Daniel 9:27, refers to a future treaty between a political or religious leader and the Jews. In fact, the Bible shows that a treaty or confederation will be made between the beast (the end-time king of modern Assyria) and certain Arab nations AGAINST the Jews — not WITH them (compare Psalm 83:2-8).

The Commentary on the Whole Bible, by Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, states that Daniel 9:27 may contain an “allusion” to Antiochus Epiphanes, but that the passage clearly talks about “Christ the Prince,” His Sacrifice, and the New Covenant.

The “New Bible Commentary: Revised,” explains convincingly, on page 699:

“Who is the one that causes the covenant to prevail? Many find the subject in ‘the prince who is to come’ of v. 26, and refer this, either to Antiochus, or to the Roman ruler of a future, revived Roman Empire. However, the word prince is there in a subordinate position, and it is very unlikely that this word should be the subject in v. 27. It is better to regard the subject as the Messiah, since He has been the most prominent Person in this passage. The covenant which is to prevail is the covenant of grace wherein the Messiah, by His life and death, obtains salvation for His people. The seventieth seven… thus has reference to the time of our Lord’s earthly life. For half of this seven the Messiah, by means of his death, causes the Jewish sacrifices to cease (cf. Heb. 8:13).”

Based on the foregoing, the Church of the Eternal God and its corporate affiliates in Canada and Great Britain do not see a reason to deviate from the long-held teaching of the Church of God on this subject, and confirm the Church’s understanding that Daniel 9:27 refers to Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the “Prince of Peace,” and not to a future political or religious leader of a revived Roman Empire.

On Saturday, January 1, 2005, Dave Harris will give the sermon, titled, “Not of This World.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

Christmas has come and gone, but now the world will have its New Year celebrations. Here in the UK, as in many other parts around the world, parties will abound on December 31, 2004, and January 1, 2005. The Scots have a special long rich heritage associated with this event. They have their own name for it — “Hogmanay.”

One of the websites, which gives the background to Hogmanay, states the following: “And it is worth remembering that January 2nd is a holiday in Scotland as well as the first day of the year — to give us all time to recover from a week of merry-making and celebration, all part of Scotland’s fascinating cultural legacy of ancient customs and traditions surrounding the pagan festival of Hogmanay.”

Did you catch it? The pagan festival of Hogmanay! There was a time when the mention of paganism brought about a gasp of shock and horror, but no longer. Paganism, in all its many ways, is in its most simplistic form the antithesis of true reverence and acceptance of the one true God. It is now paraded as an acceptable form of worship, and, like so many other things, resistance to that which God clearly condemns in His Word, is seen as intolerance.

While Christmas is viewed by many people in today’s society as having a Christian connection, however loosely (although it really does not have one), New Year’s celebrations are a time when no church attendance is required in many “Christian” nations. It is just a time of unabashed personal indulgence.

But what is “New Year’s Day”? In simplistic terms, it is merely the passing of one day and the dawning of another. It is also based on the Roman calendar — a human invention — and not on God’s Calendar, as used in Scripture. But “New Year’s Day” seems to have “magical” qualities to many –“qualities” that will not be championed by those who know God’s Word. The Bible clearly reveals what days are to be kept holy. Neither December 25th nor January 1st fall into that category. If you are unsure about such matters, please read our booklet, “God’s Commanded Holy Days.” This booklet reveals God’s truth — unlike the pagan observances of this world.

It really does matter – to God – which days we keep holy. Christmas and New Year’s Day are not among them. God, who clearly reveals in His Word the days we are to keep (see Leviticus 23), is the source of all knowledge and the One whom we should obey. No other course of action is acceptable in His sight.

Historical Catastrophe in Southern Asia — WHY?

As many articles reported on Sunday, December 26, 2004, “the world’s most powerful earthquake in 40 years triggered massive tidal waves that slammed into villages and seaside resorts across Asia on Sunday.” The extent of the disaster was not immediately foreseen. The death toll has been rising daily and, as of Thursday, December 30, it has been verified as exceeding 120,000, with the fear that it may double, due to epidemics and diseases. Tens of thousands of people are still missing. About 5 million people are homeless. On Thursday, Bild Online called this disaster “the greatest natural catastrophe of all times.”

According to an article, published by Bild Online on December 26, this has been the WORST tsunami, in terms of lost human lives, in the recorded history of man. The second worst tsunami was recorded in August of 1883, when 36,000 died in the region of Indonesia, followed by the death of 26,000 in Japan on June of 1896.

As news programs pointed out, the earthquake in Asia hit exactly, TO THE DAY (referred to by some as the “Second Christmas Day”), one year after the devastating earthquake, which hit Iran in December of 2003.

As the BBC reported, “the sea surges produced by the earthquake off Indonesia have swept 6,000 km (3,700 miles) to hit east Africa and islands off its coast. Waves struck Kenya and Somalia after hitting Mauritius, Reunion and the Seychelles on the way.”

WorldNetDaily reported on December 26: “The largest earthquake in the past 40 years (with a magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale) and the resulting deaths of thousands from 33-foot tidal waves [some reported 40-foot tidal waves] are being compared by an American reporter (of the Washington Post) to descriptions of disaster from Holy Scripture.” The article continued that the quake was “the biggest since a 9.2 temblor hit Prince William Sound Alaska in 1964. “

On December 27, the Associated Press reported that the disaster caused by the quake and the tsunami, with a speed of 500 mph before crashing into the region’s shorelines, “may be the COSTLIEST disaster in history, reaching billions of dollars.” So far, “over 350 million dollars have been raised or pledged worldwide for relief in Asian countries swept by tidal waves,” according to AFP of December 30, 2004.

Yahoo-News explained in its article of December 28, 2004 the incredible power of that earthquake: “…it made the Earth wobble on its axis and permanently altered the regional map… The 9.0-magnitude temblor that struck 250 kilometers (155 miles) southeast of Sumatra island Sunday may have moved small islands as much as 20 meters (66 feet)…”

The Associated Press reported on December 28, 2004, that the quake might have been “equal to detonating a million atomic bombs.”

Tom Skilling, WGN-TV chief meteorologist, stated on December 28, 2004: “Incredibly, the magnitude 9.0 earthquake… caused a vertical displacement of so much material that the rotation period of the Earth has been permanently altered. By a tiny but measurable amount, the Earth is now rotating more quickly on its axis, and the 24-hour day is now one ten-thousandth second shorter.”

The Drudge Report, as well as The New York Times, warned its readership again of a dire scenario which was first published in August of 2004, stating that “The bad news is tens of millions of people along the eastern seaboard of the United States and Canada may drown if the slow slippage of a volcano off north Africa becomes a cataclysmic collapse… [A] giant tidal wave or tsunami triggered by such a collapse would hit the other islands of the Spanish-owned Canaries within an hour and reach the north African coast within two hours.”

People all over the world have asked the question: Why does “Nature” treat us that way? Locals wondered why “the god of the waters” wants to destroy them? Christians raised the question: “Why does God allow it?” On December 30, 2004, Der Spiegel Online initiated a discussion amongst its readership, to respond to the question whether God even exists.

These are critical and very important questions. We need to understand that this is NOT God’s world. This world is ruled by Satan (Luke 4:5-7). Satan has great wrath, because he knows that his time is short (Revelation 12:12). God the Father will send Christ back soon to bring peace and happiness to this world, while banishing Satan (Revelation 11:17-18; 20:1-3).

In the meantime, God has allowed man to go his own way and to follow Satan’s way of life. Man is called upon to repent, to turn to God and to give Him glory (Acts 17:30; Luke 24:47; Revelation 16:9). Most, however, have been refusing to do so. And so, Christ predicted that further devastating catastrophes and disasters will occur in the future, to wake us up. Notice these frightening prophecies:

“And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon and in the stars; and on earth distress of nations, with perplexity, THE SEA AND THE WAVES ROARING; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26). Of course, Christ also predicted that there will be “famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places” (Matthew 24:7).

It is true that God promised never to bring or allow a worldwide flood to destroy the earth and cut off ALL flesh, as had happened in the days of Noah (compare Genesis 9:11). Nowhere does the Bible contain a promise, however, that local floods would not destroy parts of the earth. God will allow these things to happen, as man has rebelled against his Maker. Many “willfully forget” or are “willfully ignorant” (2 Peter 3:5) that a time of reckoning and accounting is coming! God asks all of us to cease walking in the futility of our minds as many of the Gentiles of that day were walking, “having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart” (Ephesians 4:18).

God wants all of us to come to our senses. Future disasters, including an all-encompassing world war, IS prophesied! Many will perish during these terrible times, including many innocent people. It WILL happen, UNLESS we all, collectively, REPENT (compare Luke 13:1-5).

For more information, please read our free booklets: “Europe in Prophecy,” “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord,” and “And Lawlessness Will Abound…”

More on Christmas…

Professing Christians all over the world have celebrated Christmas this year with ever-increasing activities. Although some may feel that Christmas is somehow of Christian origin, most know better — or at least, they should, and they can know. After all, it is no secret that Christmas, and its customs, is pagan to the core.

Der Spiegel Online published an article on December 24, 2004, stating that Christmas trees are a “PAGAN custom.” The article continued: “It was customary in oldest cultures to surround oneself in the winter time with fir trees. The trees were to appease ghosts.”

Bild Online published an entire series on the “Jesus Miracle.” In the articles, the tabloid pointed out:

“The early Christian Church transferred the birth of Christ to December 25, according to Vatican researcher Dr. Barbaglio. In Rome, the feast of Sol Invictus [‘the invincible Sun god”] was celebrated (at that time)… Emperor Aurellian combined both feasts in 274 A.D… According to Dr. Percy A.H. Seymor, the gospel of Luke contradicts the idea that Christ was born on December 25, as shepherds kept the flocks by night. That would have been impossible in the winter, as it would have been far too cold. The sheep only stayed outside from spring to autumn.”

Muslims in Europe

In its article of December 25, 2004, the Chicago Tribune reported about the growing influence of Muslims in Europe. It was pointed out:

“What is happening in Europe may provide a partial preview of what lies ahead for the United States and its fast-growing Muslim population. For the first time in history, Muslims are building large and growing minorities across the secular Western world – nowhere more visibly than in Western Europe, where their numbers have more than doubled in the past two decades. The impact is unfolding from Amsterdam to Paris to Madrid, as Muslims struggle – with words, votes and sometimes violence – to stake out their place in adopted societies…

“By midcentury, at least one in five Europeans will be Muslim. That change is unlike other waves of immigration because it poses a more essential challenge: defining a modern Judeo-Christian-Islamic civilization. The West must decide how its laws and values will shape and be shaped by Islam… Thirteen hundred years after the Frankish King Charles Martel repelled Muslim armies from the central city of Tours, Islam is now the second religion of France; there are about 10 times as many Muslims as Jews… The effect is amplified by the decline of European Christianity. The number of people who call themselves Catholic, the continent’s largest denomination, has declined by more than a third in the past 25 years…

“The results are stark. Within six years, for instance, the three largest cities in the Netherlands will be majority Muslim. One-third of all German Muslims are younger than 18, nearly twice the proportion of the general population. With that growth, and the deepening strains between the U.S. and the Islamic world, radical Muslim clerics have found no shortage of adherents. A 2002 poll of British Muslims found that 44 percent believe attacks by al-Qaida are justified as long as ‘Muslims are being killed by America and its allies using American weapons.'”

Putin Shows His Muscles

As The New York Times reported on December 24, 2004, “President Vladimir Putin on Thursday strongly defended the takeover of the main subsidiary of the Yukos oil company by a state oil company and expressed deep irritation at what he described as Western double standards over elections and support for popular uprisings in post-Soviet states. As Russia moves toward greater centralization, Putin’s remarks amounted to a restatement of his existing positions. They were also an explanation of views that are driving the nation in an autocratic direction. And they were notable at moments for their defiant tone, and even for the president’s sharply personal lines of attack.”

The article continued: “Putin was personally dismissive of President Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland, who helped mediate the political crisis in Ukraine after the fraudulent election there on Nov. 21 and who recently said in an interview that a Russia without Ukraine is better for the world’s leading countries. Assuming a biting tone, Putin made a veiled reference to his own KGB service, and suggested that Kwasniewski was an opportunist. He noted, for example, that in his youth the president of Poland worked for Soviet interests as a member of the Communist Party’s youth wing.”

Regarding Putin’s future, the article pointed out: “By law, Putin is limited to two consecutive terms. He is serving the first year of his second term now. The possibility of his seeking a third term, either by a change to Russia’s constitution for the 2008 race or a return to politics in 2012, has been source of speculation.”

Subsequently, The Associated Press reported on December 27, 2004, that “Once-bitter rivals RUSSIA AND CHINA will hold a MASSIVE JOINT MILITARY EXERCISE on Chinese territory next year involving submarines and possibly strategic bombers… Many observers saw the announcement as Russia’s response to a spat with the United States and other Western nations over the disputed election in Ukraine.” The article pointed out that “Putin and other Russian officials allege that the United States improperly influenced Ukraine’s elections by funding democracy-building organizations.”

The article continued: “After decades of rivalry, Moscow and Beijing have developed what they call a strategic PARTNERSHIP since the Soviet collapse. China has become the No. 1 customer for Russia’s struggling defense industry, purchasing billions of dollars worth of fighters, missiles, submarines and destroyers.”

Iraq a Failure?

IPS reported on December 27, 2004, that “One of the oldest U.S. overseas relief organizations [American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)] has called for the United States to immediately withdraw from Iraq in light of the continuing carnage and Washington’s failure to restore basic services or revive the country’s economy.” The article also explained that “A majority of 56 percent of respondents in a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday concluded that, given the cost in military casualties, the conflict ‘was not worth the fight.'” According to the Board of AFSC, “‘it is now clear that the continuing U.S. military presence in Iraq is counterproductive and wrong. The occupation has lost the trust of the Iraqi people. We abhor the violence–each day Iraq becomes less safe for the occupied, the occupiers, and those who seek to relieve the suffering.'”

Godless Britain?

AFP reported on December 27, 2004, that “Less than half of all Britons [44 percent] now believe in God, a sharp drop from the more than three-quarters of the population who said they were believers in 1968.” The article continued: “A majority of people in Britain neither hopes nor fears for a life after death, with just about a third believing in heaven, and even fewer in hell and the devil… The proportion who do not believe in God has trebled from 11 percent in the late-1960s to 35 percent today.”

Britain’s “Dealings” With Homosexuality

The Daily Mail reported the following on December 24, 2004:

“Schools are being urged to advertise gay lifestyles to children in a Government drive to ‘challenge homophobia.’ In an attempt to clamp down on supposedly homophobic language, the guidelines say that teachers should be reported if they report boys as ‘sissies,’ accusing them of standing around ‘like a mothers’ meeting’ or call them a ‘bunch of girls.’ Staff are asked to put up flyers for Gay Pride marches and Mardi Gras festivals. They are told that promoting a ‘positive stance’ on homosexuals and lesbians can help tackle homophobic bullying. The guidance which applies to all ages from nurseries upwards, drew a furious response from Church leaders and family campaigners who say it went too far.

“The booklets which were sent to every local education authority this month, also urge schools to:
– invite in gay visitors and speakers to act as “sexual minority role models” where there are no homosexual members of staff
– keep written records of every homophobic phrase used, either by staff or pupils
– form a ‘homophobia working party’ to increase awareness of homophobic bullying
– teach pupils about homosexual public figures such as MP’s and entertainers
– avoid generic language that assumes parents and staff always have partners of the opposite sex.”

The article continued:

“Local education authorities are expected to make the guidance known to all schools in their area. Schools are urged to ‘normalise sexual minorities’ by putting up information on gay and lesbian issues in corridors and waiting areas. Staff are told never to leave unchallenged any homophobic language including the uses of ‘gay’ as a generic insult. The guidance was produced jointly by the Department for Education and Department of Health.”

Euro On The Rise!

Reuters reported on December 27, 2004, that “The dollar fell to new lows against the euro on Monday [the value of the euro exceeding 1.35 dollars]… The euro hit its highest level in almost a year against sterling at 70.64 pence. The euro also rose to its highest in 18 months against the yen at 140.80 yen as traders assessed the economic impact from the deadly tsunami that devastated parts of Asia over the weekend.”

Der Spiegel Online and Bild Online commented on December 27, 2004, that the euro’s climb appears to be unstoppable, and stated that some experts predict a rise to 1,50 or 1,60 dollars by the end of 2005.

The Scripture that some use to teach this concept is Matthew 24:22. Various translations use the terms “cut short” in quoting the words of Jesus Christ. For instance, the NIV states: “‘If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.'” Similarly, the NKJV renders this verse: “‘And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.'”

What days will be “cut short” or “shortened”?

In verse 3 of Matthew 24, some of the disciples asked Jesus: “‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?'” Jesus answered them by revealing events far into the future, and He concentrated His response on the events of the generation alive at the time that the Father would send Jesus back to the earth to forcefully intervene in world affairs.

Jesus stated: “‘Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things know that it is near–at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but MY WORDS WILL BY NO MEANS PASS AWAY'” (Matthew 24:32-35).

Jesus is very clear in stating that what He has spoken regarding prophecy will come to pass–all of it! This includes even everything written in the Old Testament regarding the end time, as Christ is the “Word of God” — the Father’s Spokesman –, inspiring those writings (compare Revelation 19:13; John 1:1, 14). In the parallel record of Luke, we find this statement by Jesus: “‘For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled'” (Luke 21:22). Time and again, Jesus spoke of fulfilling the things written about Himself, and there is no record of Him not completing all that was written about Him (Compare Matthew 21:4; John 13:18; Matthew 26:56; John 19:28). Jesus emphatically stated that He fulfilled ALL that was written about Him: “Then He said to them, ‘These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me'” (Luke 24:44).

In very plain language, Jesus taught about His role, and He further declared that the Word of God would be carried out: “‘Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled'” (Matthew 5:17-18).

This comprehensive statement from Jesus applies to specific prophecies about Him for the time of His physical lifetime, and they apply to yet future events involving not only Himself but the entire Word of God!

From this we can understand that all of what God’s Word has recorded concerning prophecy will be fulfilled!

Some refer to 1 Corinthians 13:8, claiming that this passage says that certain prophecies will not be fulfilled. However, this is not what that passage conveys. It reads: “Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail.” Later, in verse 13, Paul says: “And now abide faith, hope, love.” The contrast here is between something which will endure forever, and something which will only endure for a while and then vanish away.

Please note that Paul is using different words for “fail” in verse 8. In the Greek, the word associated with “love” is “ekpipto,” which means, according to Young’s Analytical Concordance to the Bible, “to fall off or away.” The Greek word associated with “prophecy” is, “katargeo.” It means, according to Young’s, “to make useless.” Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible gives, as one possible rendering, the expression, “vanish away.”

While love will always endure (as it is part of God’s character–in fact, God IS love), prophecies will cease. This could be a reference to inspired preaching by men (as there will come a time when all men will have been changed into spirit beings–or those who did not qualify for God’s Kingdom will have ceased to exist); or, it could refer to prophecies of the future. If the latter, then they will cease when the events prophesied will have come to pass.

Paul is not saying that some of God’s prophecies, if they are UNCONDITIONAL, will not come to pass. It is true, however, that God has given certain prophecies which are conditional; that is, they depend on whether or not man repents. Notice, for example, Jeremiah 18:7-11; or the entire book of Jonah.

What then is meant in Matthew 24:22? What will be “cut short” or “shortened”?

In the entire record of Matthew 24, Jesus presents an overview to His followers (that includes us in our own generation) of events in the world that will lead to His return. However, He specifically states that we will be only able to recognize the generation of His return (verse 34), but not the exact day (verse 36), nor the exact times or seasons (Acts 1:7), that is, the exact year or the season of that year. Horrific events of wars, earthquakes, persecutions and great tribulation will arise during the period leading to God’s intervention in human affairs. This time period will be unique for its misery and stark hopelessness, with the real certainty of life being eradicated from the earth (Compare Matthew 24:21-22)!

When Jesus does return to this earth, He will face the challenge of dealing with a planet that has been devastated! Isaiah 49:8 states that the coming Messiah would “‘…restore the earth.'” Great future damage will occur to the earth–much of it at the hand of mankind. We find this ominous statement in Revelation 11:18: “‘The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, And the time of the dead, that they should be judged, And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those WHO DESTROY THE EARTH.'”

We understand, then, that God will send Jesus Christ back to this earth to stop what mankind is doing. Through science, various nations have now gained access to the power of nuclear weapons, as well as biological agents, along with other unimaginably vile inventions capable of destroying life on the entire planet. Prophetic events yet to occur indicate that men will begin wars in which these devastating devices will be unleashed on such a scale that only the intervention of God through Jesus Christ will put an end to this coming suicidal madness! (Our writings consistently warn of these impending occurrences. “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord” deals with many of the specific prophecies in this regard; also, please see our internet video program at www.standingwatch.org.)

The answer to what will be “cut short” or “shortened” is exactly stated in Scripture: It is “the days” (Matthew 24:22), when all these terrible end-time events will take place. In other words, man’s time to completely destroy life will not be allowed to run its full course, as God will cut short the destructive actions of a world in rebellion against God–one that will even fight Jesus Christ at His return (Compare Revelation 19:11-21). None of God’s Word will be “cut short” or “shortened.” In fact ALL that God has prophesied unconditionally for the future will come to pass until the last jot and the last tittle are completely fulfilled!

The draft of our new booklet on Military Service and War has entered the first review cycle.

A new StandingWatch program was recorded Thursday and has been posted on the web. The program discusses the terrible tragedy in Asia and is titled, “Why the Catastrophe in Asia?”

On Saturday, December 25, 2004, Norbert Link will give the sermon, continuing the series on the life of David.

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

Most “Christians” would like to think that they are currently worshipping God in the right and true way. But the reality is quite the opposite.

Take, for example, the custom of Christmas. There are many resources, readily available, which attest to the fact that Christmas had its roots in paganism long before the birth of Christ. The Bible itself condemns these practices (ones still observed today) as they were extant in Old Testament times. Also, nowhere in the Bible will you find Christians celebrating Christmas. The fact that Christmas is not of Christian origins is not in dispute here.

In fact, many openly admit that Christ was not born on or near December 25th, and that it is indeed a day that originates in paganism. So, it really stands to reason that it is one of the highest forms of hypocrisy to say that we are worshipping God by taking on an irreligious observance such as Christmas. If we take a contrivance of ungodly inception and say that we are doing this in honor of God, can we not see how little this makes sense? (Compare Matthew 15:7-9)

In John 4:24 we are admonished to worship God in TRUTH. In the previous verse it states that the TRUE worshippers of God will worship Him this way. God has written down for us this way and TRUTH in the pages of our Bible. We will not find “THE TRUTH” in the teachings of man or, worse yet, of Satan. It is important to God that we study the Scriptures (2 Timothy 2:15) and give all diligence to them in order that we succeed (2 Peter 1:10) in doing God’s will, the right and TRUE way.

Christmas is not the way that God wants us to glorify and honor Him. He has set aside His own holy days for a special reason. For a more in-depth look at these subjects, please read our booklets, “Don’t Keep Christmas,” and “God’s Commanded Holy Days.” In addition to the articles on Christmas, published in this Update, you may also want to review our special Update #122 on Christmas, which was published on December 19, 2003.

Christmas 2004 … in “New Europe”

AFP reported on December 22, 2004: “Driven by Christmas shopping fever and growing hunger for material goods, Europeans in former communist states are putting aside a historic aversion to taking out loans as their spending habits change and a new generation of debtors takes root… At no time is the desire for material things more visible than during the Christmas season, when people cram malls while banks flood airwaves from Budapest to Riga with ‘Christmas credit’ promotions.

“As Christmas shopping nears climax, ‘New Europeans’ sink deeper in debt. ‘Our consumer loans and credit card demands soar some 40 percent above the monthly average during the holiday season,’ said [a spokesperson of] Hungary’s largest bank… In Poland, several banks promise Christmas loans at low interest rates, even zero percent, but in return they charge ‘hefty’ commissions… Among Romanians, considerably poorer than the new EU members but hopeful of joining the Union in 2007, the consumer culture is also taking hold. Instead of the Christmas credit schemes, so-called ‘personal credits’ of under 3,000 euros are proving a runaway hit with those short of money in the holiday season.”

The article continued to point out that many “New Europeans” have, throughout the year, adopted a philosophy of buying now and (perhaps) paying later. For instance, in “Hungary, household debt increased five-fold in the past four years, fuelled by state subsidized mortgage loans that increased 11-fold from 2000 to 2004… More than 200,000 Hungarians are registered on a ‘black list’ of debtors who have missed credit payments…”

… in the United States of America

On December 19, 2004, the British news service, news.telegraph.com, pointed out that there is a “growing campaign in America to remove any trace of Christmas from public life.”

However, this campaign has nothing to do with a realization that Christmas is of pagan origin and should not be celebrated in a Christian nation. Rather, it is motivated by a–wrongly understood and interpreted–concept of separation between Church and State.

The article explained: “Across the United States, celebrations for what many Americans now refer to as the ‘C word’ have been all but restricted to churches and private homes. In Wichita, Kansas, a local newspaper ran an apology after referring to a ‘Christmas tree’, rather than a ‘community tree’ at the city’s Winterfest celebration. In Denver, a Christian church float was barred from the city’s parade while Chinese lion dancers and German folk dancers were welcomed. In parts of Florida, fir trees have been banned this year from government-owned property. A mayor in Massachusetts issued a formal apology to anyone offended by a press release that mistakenly described the town of Somerville’s holiday party as a ‘Christmas party’. Schools in Florida and New Jersey have banned all carols and elsewhere in Washington state a school principal banned a production of A Christmas Carol mainly because Tiny Tim prays: ‘God bless us, every one.’ In one New Jersey school district, where the singing of Christmas carols has long been abandoned, officials have this year forbidden children’s orchestras to play songs such as Silent Night because that might remind people of their Christian content.”

Although a ban of Christmas for the RIGHT reasons would be desirable and pleasing in God’s sight, the present attempts are all motivated by WRONG reasons. And as can be expected, as the article pointed out, “The fightback, however, has begun. Showdowns are taking place across the country as individuals, and conservative and religious groups, come out against the zealous interpretation of the separation of Church and State… Organisations such as the Americans United (AU) for Separation of Church and State believe that the campaign to put Christ back into Christmas is being pushed by conservative Christian groups buoyed by the victory of President George W Bush and the religious Right in last month’s elections.”

The sad part is that Christ can’t be put back into Christmas, as Christ was NEVER IN CHRISTMAS to begin with. Christmas is not a Holy Day that a Christian nation should be keeping. But this is NOT because of POLITICAL correctness, but because of a deep and sincere respect for God and His Word.

Conservative Christians lament that, as the article explains, “President Bush’s holiday greetings card, posted to a record two million recipients this year, carries a line from Psalm 95 — ‘Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song’ — [but] there is no mention of Christmas on the White House website. Even Fox News, the conservative television network, cannot bring itself to wish a merry Christmas to its viewers. Instead, ‘Happy Holidays’ is flashed up to the tune.”

And so some have started to fight to bring “Christ back into Christmas.” THAT fight cannot be won. For more information on this all-important issue, please read our free booklet: “Don’t Keep Christmas.”

… in Europe and the USA

On December 21, 2004, the British webpage, news.telegraph.co.uk, reported: “The Christmas message of peace, love and goodwill appears to have been replaced by one of drink, shopping and crime… The holiday season is also accompanied by higher than normal rates of murder, burglaries and drunk-driving… The increase in alcohol consumption was highest in Britain… In terms of actual alcohol consumed per person, only Germans knock back more wine, beer and spirits in December than the British. The average German imbibes 1.2 litres of pure alcohol per person, compared to the typical Briton’s 1.02 litres…. December is one of the more popular months for murders and burglaries across Europe. In Britain, the Christmas period triggers a 4.2 per cent rise in murders (to 0.17 deaths per 100,000 people). Elsewhere the seasonal increase is higher — a 5.7 per cent rise in America, France and Italy, and 6.4 per cent in Germany. Britain has a lower murder rate than its [Christian European] rivals… In America there are 0.74 deaths per 100,000 people, while in France there are 0.41 deaths. But the UK’s burglary rate is the highest in the survey — nearly 120 burglaries per 100,000 people compared to 62 in America and 67 in Italy.”
A seeming paradox is the fact that, in spite of these terrible figures of doom and gloom, “British church attendances increase by 220 per cent around the holiday period — compared to a 240 per cent increase in Germany and a 112 per cent rise in America.”

At the same time, the article continued to point out:

“However, Britain has the lowest proportion of churchgoers among [Christian European] countries. Just 16 per cent of people go to church in December in the UK — compared to 55 per cent of Americans, 49 per cent of Italians and 20 per cent of French. The British also spend more than most at Christmas. According to the statistics, based on 2003 data, the UK spends an average $2,006 (£1,081) per person in the shops in December — less than America, but more than the other [Christian European] countries.”

We believe these figures speak for themselves…

… in Germany

The English press reported on December 5, 2004, about the efforts of a German Catholic priest to abolish Santa Claus and replace him with St. Nicholas. This rather bizarre article by Reuters pointed out:

“A German priest fed up with the growing commercialism of Christmas launched an anti-Santa Claus campaign on Thursday featuring bumper stickers that proclaim: ‘This is a Santa-free zone.’ Eckhard Bieger, a Roman Catholic priest in Frankfurt, said he is all for the holiday season, gift exchanges and family celebrations. But he believes the twinkly-eyed old man in a red costume is a commercial fraud. ‘Santa Claus is a creation of the advertising industry and Coca-Cola to further commercial interests,’ Bieger told Reuters. ‘I don’t have anything against Christmas presents and don’t want to disappoint children,’ he said. ‘My aim is to put St Nicholas back at the center of attention rather than this Santa Claus figure, which is just an empty shell.'”

The article continued: “Swedish-American Artist Haddon Sundblom created the rosy-cheeked Santa used in Coca-Cola’s Christmas advertisements in 1931, and Bieger complained that it has been imitated ever since. Christina Jacob, spokeswoman for Coke’s Germany subsidiary Coca-Cola GmbH, said the company was proud Sundblom had created the Santa Claus character the world knows today for the Coca-Cola ad campaigns used during the 1930s and 1940s. ‘Sundblom used a cheery-faced Coca-Cola truck driver as his model for the portrait,’ said Jacob… ‘We’re naturally all proud that Coca-Cola is so closely entwined with the Christmas season.'”

Reuters pointed out: “The modern Santa is a far cry from the severe St Nicholas who meted out punishment or gifts to children in continental Europe or the Old Christmas figure who aided drunken festivities of the English… Bieger said he wanted to revive a tradition in which St Nicholas went from house to house on the night of December 6 and put sweets into shoes of well-behaved children.”

However, as with so many Christmas traditions, the concept of St. Nicholas is also of pagan origin–and the story of a saint giving presents to obedient children on December 6 is a fabrication. For proof, please read our free booklet, “Don’t Keep Christmas.”

Arnold Schwarzenegger the Next U.S. President?

The Associated Press reported on December 18, 2004, that Gov. Schwarzenegger gave an interview to the German “Sueddeutsche Zeitung.” According to A.P., “Schwarzenegger was guarded on suggestions that he harbors presidential ambitions, saying only that a debate on whether the constitution should be amended to allow foreign-born citizens to run was ‘overdue.'” The article pointed out that “Schwarzenegger became an American citizen in 1983, 15 years after he immigrated from Austria. He has said he’d consider running for president if such an amendment passed but also [has] taken pains to say it shouldn’t be created specifically for him.”

In the same interview, Schwarzenegger “suggested… that the Republican Party should move ‘a little to the left,’ a shift that he said would allow it to pick up new voters.” According to A.P., he “said that ‘the Republican Party currently covers only the spectrum from the right wing to the middle, and the Democratic Party covers the spectrum from the left to the middle… I would like the Republican Party to cross this line, move a little further left and place more weight on the center,’ he was quoted as saying. ‘This would immediately give the party 5 percent more votes without it losing anything elsewhere.'”

Conservative speakers of the Republican Party subsequently criticized Schwarzenegger for his comments, according to press releases in the U.S.

In other news, according to the November 2004 issue of “California Lawyer,” the “passage of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s $105.4 billion state budget may have soothed the greatest of California’s fiscal woes, but for many of the state’s regulatory agencies the budget burn has only gotten worse. Ongoing cuts and the fiscal realities of recent years have been especially tough on consumer protection–and left some beleaguered agencies scrambling to perform even basic regulatory functions.” The article pointed out that the agencies most affected are: Adult Protection Services; California Highway Patrol; Fair Political Practices Commission; California Department of Real Estate; and Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education.

Worldwide Epidemic Coming?

On December 20, 2004, the Associated Press reported that “Health officials warned Monday that the world was close to its next pandemic — a powerful and highly contagious mix of avian influenza and flu virus that would likely be centered in Asia. Authorities also warned that humans, and not animals as initially thought, would probably be the carriers… WHO had warned previously that bird flu mixed with a human flu virus could spread rapidly and cause as many as 7 million deaths.”

U.S. Presidents

The November 2004 issue of ABA Journal (the Journal of the American Bar Association) pointed out: “Since George Washington’s first Inauguration in 1789, the United States has had 42 presidents. More than half of them — 25 to be exact — have been lawyers.” In quoting an expert, author and commentator, Paul Finkelman, the article stated: “Lincoln was not only the nation’s greatest president but the one most deeply influenced by his earlier career as a lawyer… An example of how Lincoln thought like a lawyer… is the Emancipation Proclamation, which Lincoln issued in 1863 amid the fury of the Civil War to free slaves only in the states that had seceded from the Union. While some historians have criticized the document as too limited and cautious…, it was ‘a deeply lawyerly’ endeavor for Lincoln, drafted so that it would not be overturned by a dubious Supreme Court.”

The article continued: “Only four of the first 16 presidents were not lawyers, and from the end of the Civil War to the end of World War I, only Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant and Theodore Roosevelt were not lawyers. But in the nearly 60 years since the end of World War II, only three men–Nixon, Clinton and Gerald Ford– have been lawyers.”

War Crime Defendants Representing Themselves…

ABA Journal published an interesting and thought-provoking article in its December 2004 edition, titled, “Foolish Like a Fox.” The article stated:

“He who represents himself has a fool for a client, goes the adage. But it’s also a truism that the courtroom can serve as a stage for a defendant–especially when that defendant is a deposed national leader intent on inflaming political unrest among his followers. That is just the kind of spectacle Slobodan Milosevic created by representing himself before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia [ICTY], according to some observers. And, they say, the same thing could happen if Saddam Hussein, the toppled leader of Iraq, asks to represent himself before a war crimes tribunal formed by that country’s provisional government.”

The article continued (emphasis added): “‘Milosevic started out as a villain,’ says [Michael P.] Scharf [a law professor and director of the International Law Center at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland]. ‘Now he’s the fourth most popular person [in Serbia] behind two sport stars and a rock star, and he got ELECTED TO PARLIAMENT IN A LANDSLIDE LAST DECEMBER. He campaigned during cross-examination. He used cross-examination as his presidential debate.’ The consequences of giving Saddam free rein in representing himself could even be greater, says Scharf. ‘I think if Saddam Hussein were to do the same things as Milosevic, you would fuel the insurgency and anti-U.S. sentiments throughout the Middle East, and it would lead TO CIVIL WAR,’ says Scharf.”

The article pointed out: “But in Saddam’s case, a decision on whether to allow him to conduct a pro se defense might depend partly on whether any lawyers are even available to represent him, says Douglas Stringer, an attorney in Portland, Ore., who served as a prosecutor with the ICTY in 1997-2002. ‘My understanding is that you have a defense team in Jordan that has been threatened with death should any of them come to Iraq… Very strict measures have to be created to even have them come to the ground in Iraq. He may be forced to defend himself because his lawyers can’t be present.'”

The Bible clearly reveals that Jesus Christ, when He was here on earth as a human being, did not wear long hair. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 11:14: “Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him?” It would therefore be inconceivable to assume that Jesus would have worn long hair.

Some have misunderstood a passage in the book of Matthew, erroneously claiming that Christ was a “Nazirite” (also spelled Nazarite in the Authorized Version) and that He therefore wore long hair. However, Christ was not a Nazirite, but a Nazarene. The passage in Matthew 2:23 reads:

“And he [Joseph] came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, ‘He [Christ] shall be called a Nazarene.'”

Jesus was called a Nazarene, because He lived and grew up in the city of Nazareth. He was not a “Nazirite.” The sixth chapter of the book of Numbers describes the law of the “Nazirites.” Those who took the vow of a Nazirite did not cut their hair, but they were also prohibited from drinking any wine or touching a dead body (Numbers 6:4-6). Christ, however, did drink wine (Luke 22:14-18; Matthew 11:19), and He did touch dead bodies (Luke 8:51-55).

If Christ had been a Nazirite, He would have broken His vow and thereby violated one of God’s laws. But He said that He had kept His Father’s commandments (John 15:10), including all ritual laws still in force and effect at His time, and we read that He never sinned. The Bible defines sin, however, as the transgression of the law (1 John 3:4, Authorized Version). Therefore, Christ could NOT have been a Nazirite.

Christ was a Jew, and He looked like an ordinary Jewish man, without special beauty in appearance (compare Isaiah 53:2). Judas had to identify Him to others with a kiss. He was able to escape on occasion, by mingling with the crowd and going “through the midst of them” (Luke 4:30; John 8:59). Apart from the Bible, archeology and history also confirm as well that the Jews at the time of Christ did not wear long hair. Christ, therefore, did not either–otherwise, He would have stood out in a crowd, and a special identification through Judas would not have been necessary.

Recently, Israeli and British forensic anthropologists and computer programmers got together to create Christ’s face featured in “Popular Mechanics,” a 1.2 million circulation magazine. They did not mean to imply that Christ actually looked the way the magazine cover portrayed Him, as they used the skull of a Jew from the first century — not, of course, the actual skull of Jesus. They nevertheless determined that Christ did not wear long hair. Other experts agree with that conclusion. On February 24, 2004, Reuters wrote:

“‘… Jesus didn’t have long hair, said physical anthropologist Joe Zias, who has studied hundreds of skeletons found in archeological digs in Jerusalem.’ [He also mentioned:] ‘Jewish men back in antiquity did not have long hair.’ ‘The Jewish texts ridiculed long hair as something Roman or Greek,’ said New York University’s Lawrence Schiffman. Along with extensive writings from the period, experts also point to a frieze on Rome’s Arch of Titus, erected after Jerusalem was captured in AD 70 to celebrate the victory, which shows Jewish men with short hair taken into captivity. Erroneous descriptions of Jesus in Western art have often misled film makers in their portrayal of Jesus, experts say.”

It is important to realize that virtually all depictions of Christ don’t accurately reflect His appearance as a human being on earth. He did not wear long flowing hair, and He did not look like a woman. He was a carpenter, a builder, and He was also the leader of former fishermen. Even His hair color was probably not blond — as depicted on most paintings — but black, as the Hebrew people at the time of Christ were recognized as having predominantly black hair.

In any event, Paul tells us that we are not to “know” Christ “according to the flesh.” We read in 2 Corinthians 5:16 (Phillips): “… even though we knew Christ as a man, we do not know him like that any longer.”

It is dangerous to focus on images and pictures of Christ, including portrayals of Christ by actors in movies, and think that in some way those portrayals may accurately represent how Christ might have looked. We are to focus on Christ as He is now — a powerful Spirit being! To get a correct portrayal of Christ’s present appearance, please read Revelation 1:14-16. Christ has white hair — as white as wool or snow — and His eyes are like flames of fire, while His face shines like the sun in full strength. THAT is the Jesus Christ of the Bible — God the Son, who is worthy of worship!

Our booklet, “Tithing–Today?” was sent out this week to our subscribers. The booklet is also posted on the Web.

On Saturday, December 18, 2004, J. Edwin Pope will give the sermon, titled, “Your Relationship with God,” Part 4.

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

If you want to understand what it means to be grateful, consider the aliens–both the illegal and legal–who immigrate to a wealthy country such as Great Britain, Germany, France, Spain and other EU countries along with Canada and the U.S.

These immigrants don’t take for granted the abundance and blessings of freedom to establish one’s family, to work or to live with true hope for the future!

By contrast, the citizens who were born into and have grown up with this unparalleled abundance are not always so attuned to what they have. If fact, so familiar are most of us with all these things, that we simply take them for granted.

In the scope of history, only the last several decades have witnessed a world and a time in which so many nations have flourished so remarkably!

There is a danger in times such as these. Jesus Christ clearly prophesied of a complacent, sleepy-eyed time when people would be so self-absorbed that they just wouldn’t see things realistically: “‘But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be'” (Matthew 24:37-39).

Paul strongly warns all of us who claim to be Christians against the ever-present danger of just taking things for granted: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12).

We can test ourselves in this regard. Do we take our calling for granted, or are we maintaining an attitude of “first love” (compare Revelation 2:4)? Do we remember the time when we met and then married our mates–and do we still reflect that incredibly special relationship (compare Malachi 2:13-16)? When our children were born, we cared for them at great personal sacrifice–do we, as parents, continue in that selfless love for our own (compare Luke 15:31)? Do we remember what a tremendous discovery it was to meet brethren who believed as we did (compare Luke 15:7)?

We must not take what we have for granted! Jesus Christ certainly did not! Rather, He established and maintained a constant relationship with God. He viewed everything through the will of God. We find His own testimony in this regard: “‘I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me'” (John 5:30).

For all of us who have been called to God’s way and who have been given the knowledge of the truth, there looms the peril of becoming lackadaisical and a bit too familiar–especially in times and circumstances of physical abundance. However, we must not allow this approach in our own lives. We must become fervent in seeking God’s will, and a first step in this process is to no longer take things for granted!

Christmas Deadliest Day for Americans

According to a study, published by Reuters on December 14, 2004, “Christmas is the deadliest day of the year for Americans with 12.4 percent more deaths than normal.” The report continued: “More Americans die from heart attacks and other natural causes on Christmas, the day after and on New Year’s Day than on any other days of the year, the researchers reported… In all, Phillips and colleagues counted more than 42,000 ‘extra’ deaths during the holidays over a 26-year period. Only two years did not see this phenomenon — 1973, when oil prices peaked and people tended not to travel, and 1981, when a severe recession also kept Americans at home…The report fits in with a study published in March that found heart attack patients sent to hospitals during the winter holidays are more likely to die than those admitted during the rest of the year. Clinics, emergency rooms and other health facilities do not operate at top efficiency over the holiday period, said Dr. Trip Meine, a cardiologist at Duke University in North Carolina, who led the study released at an American college of Cardiology meeting.”

Russia and China Form Power Bloc

On December 13, 2004, AP reported that “China and Russia will hold their first joint military exercise next year, the Chinese government said Monday, as President Hu Jintao called for an expansion of the rapidly growing alliance between the former Cold War rivals.The announcement came during a visit to Beijing by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, who was expected to discuss expanding the Kremlin’s multibillion-dollar annual arms sales to China… The announcement of military exercises comes two months after Beijing and Moscow settled the last of their decades-old border disputes that led to violent clashes in the 1960s and ’70s.

“The agreement was signed during an October trip to Beijing by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said relations had reached ‘unparalleled heights.’ That visit also produced a pact to jointly develop Russian energy resources… China has become the Russian arms industry’s No. 1 customer, and is expected to buy $2 billion in weapons this year. Russia is a key supplier for the Chinese military’s effort to modernize its arsenal and back up frequent threats to invade Taiwan, the self-ruled island that Beijing claims as its territory… The United States and the European Union have banned weapons sales to China since its bloody 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. But Moscow has supplied Beijing with high-performance Su-27 fighters and other top-of-the-line arms.”

The Financial Times reported on December 5, 2004, that “President Jacques Chirac has championed lifting the ban imposed after the Tiananmen Square massacre which the EU believes implies a near-pariah status China no longer deserves.” At the same time, according to the article, the United States is “fiercely opposed to lifting the ban.” Regardless, Biblical Prophecy shows that Russia and China will become a mighty military and economic power bloc, which will ultimately be at odds with the European Union. We are seeing now the beginnings of these developments.

The Wisdom of the World…

Associated Press reported on December 9, 2004, that “A British philosophy professor who has been a leading champion of atheism for more than a half-century has changed his mind. He now believes in God – more or less – based on scientific evidence, and says so on a video released Thursday.At age 81, after decades of insisting belief is a mistake, Antony Flew has concluded that some sort of intelligence or first cause must have created the universe. A super-intelligence is the only good explanation for the origin of life and the complexity of nature, Flew said in a telephone interview from England.

“Flew said he’s best labeled a deist like Thomas Jefferson, whose God was not actively involved in people’s lives… biologists’ investigation of DNA ‘has shown, by the almost unbelievable complexity of the arrangements which are needed to produce (life), that intelligence must have been involved,’ Flew says in the new video, ‘Has Science Discovered God?’… Flew told The Associated Press his current ideas have some similarity with American ‘intelligent design’ theorists, who see evidence for a guiding force in the construction of the universe. He accepts Darwinian evolution but doubts it can explain the ultimate origins of life.”

What a mixed-up world, where scientists — supposedly leaders in factual thinking — produce such nonsensical ideas. First atheists, some now believe in a god which is not actively involved in people’s lives. Although they may admit in a “first cause” for the existence of the universe, they also accept Darwinism, but may doubt that it can explain the ultimate origins of life! What incredible confusion and lack of true understanding. How relevant are the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:20-21: “Where is the wise?… Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?… the world through [its] wisdom did not know God.”

Intruders in Your Home

On December 2, 2004, a frightening article was published by www.usatoday.com, stating that “Unprotected PCs can be hijacked in minutes.” The article continued: “Simply connecting to the Internet– and doing nothing else–exposes your PC to non-stop, automated break-in attempts by intruders looking to take control of your machine surreptitiously. While most break-in tries fail, an unprotected PC can get hijacked within minutes of accessing the Internet. Once hijacked, it is likely to get grouped with other compromised PCs to dispense spam, conduct denial-of-service attacks or carry out identity-theft scams…

” [The] results vividly illustrate how automated cyberattacks have come to saturate the Internet with malicious programs designed to take the quickest route to break into your PC: through security weaknesses in the PC operating system… Test results underscored the value of keeping up to date with security patches and using a firewall. Computer security experts say firewalls, which restrict online access to the guts of the PC operating system, represent a crucial first line of defense against cyberintruders. Yet, an estimated 67% of consumers do not use a firewall, according to the National Cyber Security Alliance… Each PC was connected to the Internet via a broadband DSL connection and monitored for two weeks in September. Break-in attempts began immediately and continued at a constant and high level: an average of 341 per hour against the Windows XP machine with no firewall or recent security patches, 339 per hour against the Apple Macintosh and 61 per hour against the Windows Small Business Server. Each was sold without an activated firewall.”

These abominable crimes committed by Internet intruders only show the depths of depravity this world has reached. Nothing is sacred anymore. And it will get much worse!

Is the U.S. Draft Coming?

On December 12, 2004, www.suntimes.com resurrected the discussion about a possible draft in 2005. The article pointed out that although some experts dismiss the idea, others are not so sure.

“‘It boils down to one thing, and that is Iraq and how long can we sustain the military deployment there,’ says Charles V. Pena, director of defense policy studies at the Cato Institute…With the troop levels in Iraq about to be increased to 150,000 and another 30,000 in Kuwait, that might not be too long, Pena argues. The volunteer military operates under what it calls a 3-1 rotation schedule, which requires two stateside units for every one deployed overseas so that troops can be rotated in and out of harm’s way. That means the armed services need three times as many troops as are actually deployed — 540,000 in the case of Iraq and Kuwait. More than 1.4 million men and women are on active duty, but just 499,543 of them are in the Army, which is handling the bulk of the fighting in Iraq. ‘And that does not take into account the other deployments we have around the globe,’ Pena says. ‘The active Army is not large enough to maintain a 3-1 deployment ratio, which is why you see the National Guard and reserves being used. ‘We’re stretched, and so the question will not go away: Does that mean we might have to resort to a draft?'”

Pena is not convinced that this has to be the case. As the article continued:

“If the situation worsens in Iraq, he thinks politicians might move toward mandatory national service, in which all young people are required to either perform some sort of community work or enlist in the military. The military component could be made more attractive by making it a shorter term than, for instance, emptying bedpans at a nursing home. The military option would also carry the added benefit of providing job training.”

This proposal would only implement what has been in force and effect in Germany for many years. Germany has had a mandatory draft, but conscientious objectors are permitted to perform some sort of community work (for example, working in hospitals or nursing homes), which term is longer than the required military duty.

Doctors: Yushchenko Poisoned with Dioxin

The Associated Press reported on December 11, 2004: “Dioxin poisoning caused the mysterious illness of Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko, a doctor said Saturday, adding that the poison could have been put in his soup. ‘There is no doubt about the fact that Mr. Yushchenko’s disease has been caused by a case of poisoning by dioxin,’ said Dr. Michael Zimpfer, director of Vienna’s private Rudolfinerhaus clinic. Zimpfer said Yushchenko’s blood and tissue registered concentrations of dioxin–one of the most toxic chemicals–that were 1,000 times above normal levels. ‘It would be quite easy to administer this amount in a soup,’ Zimpfer said, adding that tests showed the dioxin was taken orally. ‘There is suspicion of third party involvement.'”

According to the Associated Pres of December 16, 2004, “Opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko said Thursday that he was sure he was poisoned by the Ukrainian government and believes it most likely happened at a dinner he had with the country’s top security service officials.” If proof for the source of this attempted murder can be established, the consequences in the Ukraine could be catastrophic.

“At the same time, he [Yushchenko] said Ukraine would move to integrate more closely into European structures and possibly aim at an associate membership in the European Union in three to five years,” according to AP.

Four Deadly Storms in the Philippines

AFP reported on December 11, 2004: “Four storms that struck the Philippines in one month left almost 1,800 dead and missing with 4.588 billion pesos (81.49 million dollars) in damage, the civil defense office said.The toll is expected to rise further as the search continues for victims of the last two weather disturbances, a tropical storm locally codenamed Winnie which hit on November 29 and typhoon Nanmadol which struck the country on December 2.”

45 Million Children to Die in Next Decade

OneWorld US pointed out on December 6, 2004 that, “Unless the world’s wealthiest countries comply with their past pledges, some 45 million children in the world’s poor countries will die needlessly over the next decade, according [to] a new report released Monday by British-based development group, Oxfam. Despite the fact that Group of Seven (G7) countries Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Britain, the United States, and Canada are richer than they have ever been, they are spending only half as much in real terms in development assistance as they did in 1960, according to the report, ‘Paying the Price.'”

The article continued: “And of the paltry assistance they do provide about US$50 billion a year only about 40 percent of the money is actually spent in poor countries; the rest of it is spent in the wealthy countries themselves. Even, then, much of the aid is late in arriving. … ‘The world has never been wealthier, yet rich nations are giving less and less,’ according to Jeremy Hobbs, Oxfams executive director. ‘Across the globe, millions of people are being denied the most basic human needs: clean water, food, health care and education. People are dying while leaders delay debt relief and aid.’… ‘Unless world leaders act now to deliver [an] historic breakthrough on poverty,’ said Hobbs, ‘next year will end in shameful failure.'”

Anglican Church Could ‘Self-destruct’ over Gay Clergy Issue

AFP reported on December 11, 2004: “The Anglican church is deeply divided and could ‘implode and self-destruct’ over gay clerics and other sensitive issues, a senior advisor to the Archbishop of Canterbury warned. Jayne Ozanne, in a private document to Archbishop Rowan Williams leaked to Saturday’s edition of The Times, predicted that the Anglican church would ‘fragment into various divisions over a range of internal issues’ and could wind up as an ‘underground movement’ comparable to World War II resistance groups.

“Williams late last month criticized conservatives within his worldwide church, with some 70 million followers, for their vocal hostility to homosexuals. … ‘I see a time of great persecution coming, which will drive Christianity all but underground in the West. I believe that this will primarily take the form of a social and economic persecution, where Christians will be ridiculed for their faith and pressurised into making it a purely private matter,’ she [Ozanne] wrote.”

Mixed Signals for Further EU Enlargement

EUOBSERVER stated on December 11, 2004: “As the EU looks set to open membership negotiations with Turkey at the end of next week, over a third of its citizens are opposed to further enlargement of the 25-nation bloc… Those against enlargement rises to 43% when citizens only from the 15 ‘old’ member states are considered, according to a eurobarometer poll published on Friday (10 December). Austrians and Germans have the highest percentages of citizens against enlargement (62% and 57% respectively) – both countries have common borders with new member states.

“In France, where President Jacques Chirac has been fighting rising sentiment against Turkish EU membership – fifty-one percent said they are against further enlargement…. The EU is expected to take on Romania and Bulgaria in 2007 while Turkey is not expected to join until at least 2015 – a decision on whether to open negotiations with Ankara will be taken at the EU summit on 16-17 December.”

Europe’s Far Right Consider Coalition

EUOBSERVER reported on December 10, 2004: “Europe’s far right parties are considering forming a pan-European movement together.Filip Dewinter, the leader of an extremist separatist party in Belgium, told the Vienna-based News on Thursday that they were considering creating an extreme right grouping in the European Parliament. This would encompass Austria’s Freedom Party, Italy’s Lega Nord, France’s National Front, the Dutch New Right Party and de Winter’s own Vlaams Belang – all strongly anti-immigrant. Mr Dewinter said he is considering Jörg Haider, leader of Austria’s Freedom Party, to be the head of the movement. ‘I’ve had several talks with Jörg Haider and have the feeling that he’s interested in this cooperation’, said Mr Dewinter. ‘I’m proposing to Jö;rg Haider that he be the top candidate of our movement’. Mr Haider became well known in Europe when, after doing so well in the 1999 elections in Austria, his party joined the centre-right government – resulting in sanctions by other member states against the country. If the talks come to fruition, the coalition would run on a single platform in the European elections in 2009.”

Romania Finishes EU Talks

EUOBSERVER reported on December 9, 2004: “Following a last minute diplomatic push, Romania managed on Wednesday evening (8 December) to close EU pre-accession talks. This is a technical achievement with the political closure of talks expected on 14 December, during a meeting of EU foreign ministers. Finishing negotiation on all parts of EU legislation was crucial ahead of the EU Summit next week, when Romania’s accession in 2007 is expected to be confirmed by leaders of the 25-nation bloc… Until 2007, Romania and Bulgaria will be under close observation following the introduction of a so-called safeguard clause that gives the EU the possibility of delaying entry for a year if commitments made by the countries during negotiations are not met… Romania has been lagging behind its neighbour Bulgaria, which already closed EU talks in June. Both countries are due to sign the Accession Treaty in spring 2005 paving the way to join the EU two years after that.”

Chirac and Schröder Push for Constitution “Yes” in Spain

EUOBERSERVER reported on December 9, 2004: “French President Jacques Chirac confirmed on Wednesday (8 December) that he and German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder will travel to Barcelona in the weeks before the Spanish referendum on the Constitution, to lend their support. The two leaders will attend a ‘teaching’ meeting to explain the Constitution on 11 February, according to Le Monde.

“The Spanish will be the first to put the Constitution to a popular vote — on 20 February. Mr Chirac said that the Spanish would be in the ‘first row’ of European integration and called on Spaniards to ‘show the way’ to other countries with a ‘massive yes’. Opinion polls consistently show that a majority of Spanish people are in favour of the Constitution. Confirming that he would ‘engage without holding back’ in the campaign, the French President also said the campaign should not be ‘ruined by internal politics’. Mr Chirac himself is set to have a difficult time persuading the French people to vote ‘yes’ to the Constitution as he tries to avoid the issue becoming entangled in the question of whether Turkey should become an EU member – a large section of the French population are against this.”

This is indeed the understanding and teaching of the Church of the Eternal God and its corporate affiliates in Canada and Great Britain.

First, let us realize that the message, that God gave to the ancient prophet Ezekiel, was in fact a modern prophecy for a modern “Ezekiel”:

It is critical to understand that under Solomon’s son Rehoboam, the nation of Israel became divided. Two separate nations developed, known as the “house of Israel,” with Samaria as its capital, and the “house of Judah,” with Jerusalem as its capital. We read in 1 Kings 12:19-20 (AV): “So Israel [being reigned by King Rehoboam, son of King Solomon] rebelled against the house of David unto this day. And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam [a prominent officer] was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.”

King Rehoboam of Judah tried to unite the two kingdoms (of the house of Israel and the house of Judah) by force, but God prevented him from doing so. We read in 1 Kings 12:21, 24 (AV): “And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon… Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD.”

The two houses or kingdoms did not unite again throughout their history. They remained separate as two kingdoms — the “house of Israel,” consisting of the ten northern tribes, and the “house of Judah,” consisting of the southern tribes of Judah (The house of Judah was later joined by the tribes of Benjamin and Levi, compare 1 Kings 12:21, 31). We even read in 1 Kings 16:5-8 about a war between Israel and Judah or the Jews. Later, the ten tribes, led by the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Joseph, became “lost” from public view. Unbeknownst to most, they are today to be found in English-speaking nations around the world. Many people believe that the Jews are identical with the modern house of Israel, but this is simply not true. Christ spoke of the “LOST tribes of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:6; 15:24). James referred to all of Israel and Judah as the “twelve tribes which are scattered abroad” (James 1:1; compare Revelation 7:4-8). We read that in the FUTURE, a unification of the houses of Israel and Judah will occur, under Christ’s rule, when they come out of a (future) captivity and return to the Promised Land (Jeremiah 30:3; 33:7).

In due time, the ancient house of Israel went into captivity, in 721-718 BC, by the hand of the Assyrians (2 Kings 17:5-6, 23). The house of Judah did not go into captivity until more than one hundred years later, by the hand of the Babylonians, under king Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 25:1-10).

This background is important to understand, if we want to comprehend the prophetic messages that God gave to the ancient prophet Ezekiel.

In a member letter, dated November 19, 1976, Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986) explained how he came to this vital understanding in the early years of his conversion and ministry:

“In those early days I was especially interested in the book of Ezekiel. A special reason was that I saw Ezekiel was first given God’s message in PROPHECY, while he was a Jewish slave, by the River Chebar in the land of Babylon. Now this was close to 120 years after the House of ISRAEL had been taken captive to ASSYRIA. My astonishment was aroused when I saw that his message was to be taken to the HOUSE OF ISRAEL. Now Ezekiel was a slave among the HOUSE OF JUDAH — not Israel. By this time many of the ‘lost sheep of the House of Israel’ had migrated north and west from Assyria. They were, by Ezekiel’s time, in Britain and Western Europe.

“… The first message, or instruction from God, comes, beginning the second chapter [of the book of Ezekiel]. ‘And He said unto me, son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation…[and they shall know] that there hath been a prophet among them’ (Ezek. 2:3,5…)… In chapter 3:1 God says, ‘… GO speak unto the House of Israel.’ Again in verse 4, ‘Son of man, GO, get thee unto the House of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.’ NOWHERE in the Bible are JEWS called ‘the House of Israel.’ This term applies ONLY to the TEN-tribe Kingdom of Israel taken into Assyrian captivity more than a hundred years before Ezekiel and the Jews of the House of JUDAH were taken to Babylon. Nowhere in the book does Ezekiel record his journey from where he was in Babylon to those of the House of Israel who were then in Britain and Western Europe. Nowhere does he record his giving of the message to them. He merely RECEIVED the message. He merely RECORDED IT IN WRITING. There is no reason to think his message was ever delivered to the House of Israel in Ezekiel’s time. The message in fact is for today — and contained a WARNING of things to happen to Britain, America and the Western European nations NOW in OUR DAY.”

What we should notice very carefully from the foregoing is that Ezekiel was in captivity, when he received messages to be delivered to the house of Israel and other nations, including the Ammonites (Ezekiel 25:2), Moab (Ezekiel 25:8), Edom (Ezekiel 25:12), the Philistines (Ezekiel 25:15), Tyre (Ezekiel 26:2-3) and Egypt (Ezekiel 29:2) — all a great distance from his location in Babylon. We need to note, too, that Ezekiel saw visions of impending destruction upon Israel “in the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin’s captivity” (Ezekiel 1:2-3). Jehoiachin went into captivity in 596 B.C. The fifth year brings us to about 592 B.C. — over 125 years AFTER the removal of the house of Israel in 718-721 B.C.! Ezekiel, a young captive Jew in Babylon, was given a future prophetic message for the house of ISRAEL, including a message about future punishment and slavery, over 120 years AFTER the ancient house of ISRAEL had already been punished and gone into captivity. Ancient Ezekiel never reached the ancient house of Israel with God’s prophetic message.

As we have explained in our booklet, “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord,” the modern house of Israel consists of English-speaking nations, including the United States of America, Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. And God has given His end-time Church the charge to proclaim the “Ezekiel warning message” to those peoples.

The Ezekiel warning message (Ezekiel 3:16-21) is something that we have to take seriously. It is part of the gospel message of the Kingdom of God, that has to be preached (Matthew 24:14). Before the wonderful world tomorrow can be ushered in, the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord have to be fulfilled, which will be a time of terrible trouble for the modern nations of the houses of Israel and Judah, as well as the entire world.

We find this commission from God to Ezekiel: “‘…Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. For they are impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them and you shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord God.” As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse–for they are a rebellious house–yet they will know that a prophet has been among them'” (Ezekiel 2:3-5).

Ezekiel’s message has become a part of God’s Word. This warning from God is for our day, and it MUST BE PROCLAIMED–along with many other prophecies preserved in the Bible for us! That responsibility has passed along to the Church of God!

In the book of Ezekiel, the prophet is compared with, and even called a “watchman.” But the book of Ezekiel is for our time today — and it is therefore God’s end-time Church, which is to function as “a watchman” or “watchmen.” Notice these Biblical examples:

“So you, son of man: I have made you a WATCHMAN for the HOUSE OF ISRAEL; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them of Me” (Ezekiel 33:7).

“I have set WATCHMEN on your walls, O Jerusalem; THEY shall never hold THEIR peace day or night. You [plural in the Hebrew] who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent” (Isaiah 62:6).

“Yes, proclaim against Jerusalem, That WATCHERS come from a far country And raise THEIR voice against the cities of Judah” (Jeremiah 4:16).

“Thus says the LORD: ‘Stand in the ways and see, And ask for the old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it; Then you will find rest for your souls. But they said, “We will not walk in it.” Also, I set WATCHMEN over you, saying, “Listen to the sound of the trumpet!” But they said, “We will not listen.” Therefore hear, you NATIONS, And know, O congregation, what is among them. Hear, O EARTH! Behold, I will certainly bring calamity on this people–The fruit of their thoughts, Because they have not heeded My words Nor My law, but rejected it'” (Jeremiah 6:16-19).

We are to WATCH the events around us (Matthew 24:42), discerning the times, so that we can be effective WATCHMEN in God’s service (compare Amos 3:7), warning others of what will surely come to pass. Notice Hosea 5:9: “Ephraim [modern Great Britain] shall be DESOLATE in the day of rebuke; among the TRIBES OF ISRAEL I make known what is sure. Hosea 7:12 adds: “I will CHASTISE THEM [Ephraim] According to what their congregation HAS HEARD.”

Ezekiel 33:2-6 explains to us WHY God’s Church is to proclaim God’s warning message:

“When I bring the sword upon the land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their WATCHMAN, when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet… [and] takes the warning will save his life. But if the WATCHMAN sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the WATCHMAN’S hands.”

God wants His Church to preach the establishment of God’s Kingdom here on earth. This includes, blowing the trumpet and warning of impending disaster. Some will listen and change their ways so that they, too, may enter the Kingdom. Many others, though, will not heed the message. Still, if His Church shrinks back from its God-given responsibility, He will have no pleasure in it (Hebrews 10:37-39).

A new member letter was sent out this week. In it, Edwin Pope discusses “peace on earth” and the erroneous concepts of the Christmas tradition. You can find the letter on the Web.

A new StandingWatch program was posted on the Web, titled, “Hope for the Future?”