Wednesday, December 07, 2016
Tuesday, December 06, 2016
Adventist Review Online | 'Religious Freedom Is a High Priority for Church,' Adventist Representative Tells U.N. Envoy
'Religious Freedom Is a High Priority for Church,' Adventist Representative Tells U.N. Envoy
“As he begins his work, Dr. Shaheed will build on a foundation that has been strengthened by the dedicated work of Professor Bielefeldt,” said Dr. Ganoune Diop, director of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty for the world church. Dr. Diop, who formerly served as the church’s U.N. Liaison, has worked closely with Bielefeldt through the years. He called him an “eloquent, effective and compassionate advocate for religious freedom—someone who doesn’t hesitate to speak against the powerful on behalf of religious minorities, or those struggling under repressive laws or in hostile environments. We wish Dr. Shaheed well as he continues to expand Professor Bielefeldt’s legacy.”
Seventh-day Adventist United Nations Liaison, Dr. Nelu Burcea (left) met with newly appointed U.N. Special Rapporteur for freedom of religion or belief, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed (right) to share the Adventist Church’s vision for defending freedom of religion. Photo credit: United Nations
Monday, December 05, 2016
Pope Francis: We Must Listen to the Voices of the Poor
DECEMBER 3, 2016, 7:34 AM EST
Photo by Vatican TV
“Transform our institutions and economic structures” to do so, he said Saturday in Vatican City.
Attendees of our Fortune-Time Global Forum, held Friday and Saturday this week in Rome and the Vatican, were treated to an audience with His Holiness Pope Francis this morning.
Here is what he said, translated to English. (His original Italian remarks follow.)
Dear Friends,
I am very pleased to welcome all of you who are participating in the Fortune-Time Global Forum, and I express my appreciation for your work these past two days. I thank Mrs. Nancy Gibbs and Mr. Alan Murray for their kind words. The theme you have chosen, “The 21st-Century Challenge: Forging a New Social Compact”, is very opportune and points to the urgent need for more inclusive and equitable economic models. Your time together has allowed for a substantive exchange of ideas and sharing of information. Important as this is, what is required now is not a new social compact in the abstract, but concrete ideas and decisive action which will benefit all people and which will begin to respond to the pressing issues of our day.
I would like to offer a particular word of thanks for all that you are doing to promote the centrality and dignity of the human person within our institutions and economic models, and to draw attention to the plight of the poor and refugees, who are so often forgotten by society. When we ignore the cries of so many of our brothers and sisters throughout the world, we not only deny them their God-given rights and worth, but we also reject their wisdom and prevent them from offering their talents, traditions and cultures to the world. In so doing, the poor and marginalized are made to suffer even more, and we ourselves grow impoverished, not only materially, but morally and spiritually.
Our world today is marked by great unrest. Inequality between peoples continues to rise, and many communities are impacted directly by war and poverty, or the migration and displacement which flow from them. People want to make their voices heard and express their concerns and fears. They want to make their rightful contribution to their local communities and broader society, and to benefit from the resources and development too often reserved for the few. While this may create conflict and lay bare the many sorrows of our world, it also makes us realize that we are living in a moment of hope. For when we finally recognize the evil in our midst, we can seek healing by applying the remedy. Your very presence here today is a sign of such hope, because it shows that you recognize the issues before us and the imperative to act decisively. This strategy of renewal and hope calls for institutional and personal conversion; a change of heart that attaches primacy to the deepest expressions of our common humanity, our cultures, our religious beliefs and our traditions.
This fundamental renewal does not have to do simply with market economics, figures to be balanced, the development of raw materials and improvements made to infrastructures. No, what we are speaking about is the common good of humanity, of the right of each person to share in the resources of this world and to have the same opportunities to realize his or her potential, a potential that is ultimately based on the dignity of the children of God, created in his image and likeness.
Our great challenge is to respond to global levels of injustice by promoting a local and even personal sense of responsibility so that no one is excluded from participating in society. Thus, the question before us is how best to encourage one another and our respective communities to respond to the suffering and needs we see, both from afar and in our midst. The renewal, purification and strengthening of solid economic models depends on our own personal conversion and generosity to those in need.
I encourage you to continue the work you have begun at this Forum, and to seek ever more creative ways to transform our institutions and economic structures so that they may be able to respond to the needs of our day and be in service of the human person, especially those marginalized and discarded. I pray too that you may involve in your efforts those whom you seek to help; give them a voice, listen to their stories, learn from their experiences and understand their needs. See in them a brother and a sister, a son and a daughter, a mother and a father. Amid the challenges of our day, see the human face of those you earnestly seek to help.
I assure you of my prayer that your efforts will bear fruit, and of the Catholic Church’s commitment to be a voice for those who otherwise are silenced. Upon you, your families and all your colleagues, I invoke the divine blessings of wisdom, strength and peace. Thank you.
And here is what he said in the original Italian:
Cari amici,
Sono lieto di accogliere tutti voi, partecipanti al Fortune-Time Global Forum, ed esprimo il mio apprezzamento per il vostro lavoro in questi due giorni. Ringrazio la Signora Nancy Gibbs e il Signor Alan Murray per le loro cortesi parole. Il tema da voi scelto, “La sfida del 21º secolo: creare un nuovo patto sociale”, è davvero opportuno e ha di mira il bisogno urgente di più inclusivi e giusti modelli economici. Il tempo trascorso insieme vi ha permesso un consistente scambio di idee e la condivisione di informazioni. E ciò è tanto importante, che quanto ora si richiede non è un nuovo accordo sociale in astratto, ma sono idee concrete e un’azione efficace che andrà a vantaggio di tutti e inizierà a rispondere alle pressanti questioni dei nostri giorni.
Vorrei dire un grazie speciale per quanto state facendo per promuovere la centralità e la dignità della persona umana all’interno delle istituzioni e dei modelli economici, e per attirare l’attenzione sulla piaga dei poveri e dei rifugiati, che sono così spesso dimenticati dalla società. Quando ignoriamo il grido di tanti nostri fratelli e sorelle in ogni parte del mondo, non solo neghiamo loro i diritti e i valori che hanno ricevuto da Dio, ma anche rifiutiamo la loro saggezza e impediamo ad essi di offrire al mondo i loro talenti, le loro tradizioni e le loro culture. Questi comportamenti accrescono la sofferenza dei poveri e degli emarginati, e noi stessi diventiamo più poveri, non solo materialmente, ma moralmente e spiritualmente.
Il nostro mondo oggi è segnato da grande inquietudine. La disuguaglianza tra i popoli continua a crescere e molte comunità sono direttamente colpite dalla guerra e dalla povertà o dalla partenza forzata di migranti e profughi. La gente vuole far sentire la propria voce ed esprimere le proprie preoccupazioni e paure. Vuole dare il proprio legittimo contributo alle comunità locali e alla più vasta società, e beneficiare delle risorse e dello sviluppo troppo spesso riservati a pochi. E ciò, mentre può creare conflitti e mettere a nudo le molte sofferenze del nostro mondo, ci permette anche di capire che stiamo vivendo un momento di speranza. Perché quando riconosciamo finalmente il male in mezzo a noi, possiamo cercare di sanarlo applicando la giusta cura. Proprio la vostra presenza qui oggi è un segno di tale speranza, perché dimostra che voi riconoscete i problemi che ci stanno di fronte e la necessità di agire con decisione. Questa strategia di rinnovamento e speranza richiede una conversione istituzionale e personale; un cambiamento del cuore che conferisce il primato alle più profonde espressioni della nostra comune umanità, delle nostre culture, delle nostre convinzioni religiose e delle nostre tradizioni.
Questo rinnovamento fondamentale non deve avere a che fare semplicemente con l’economia di mercato, con numeri da far quadrare, con lo sviluppo di materie prime e miglioramenti alle infrastrutture. No, ciò di cui stiamo parlando è il bene comune dell’umanità, il diritto di ogni persona di aver parte alle risorse di questo mondo e di avere le medesime opportunità di realizzare le proprie potenzialità, potenzialità che in ultima analisi si basano sulla dignità di figli di Dio, creati a sua immagine e somiglianza.
La nostra grande sfida è di rispondere ai livelli globali di ingiustizia promuovendo un senso di responsabilità locale, anzi personale, in modo che nessuno venga escluso dalla partecipazione sociale. Pertanto, la domanda da porci è come meglio incoraggiarci l’un l’altro e incoraggiare le nostre rispettive comunità a rispondere alle sofferenze e ai bisogni che vediamo, sia lontani sia in mezzo a noi. Il rinnovamento, la purificazione e il rafforzamento di solidi modelli economici dipende dalla nostra personale conversione e generosità verso i bisognosi.
Vi incoraggio a continuare il lavoro che avete iniziato in questo Forum e a cercare vie sempre più creative per trasformare le istituzioni e le strutture economiche in modo che sappiano rispondere ai bisogni di oggi e siano al servizio della persona umana, specialmente di quanti sono emarginati ed esclusi. Prego anche perché possiate coinvolgere nei vostri sforzi coloro che cercate di aiutare; date loro voce, ascoltate le loro storie, imparate dalle loro esperienze e comprendete i loro bisogni. Vedete in loro un fratello e una sorella, un figlio e una figlia, una madre e un padre. Tra le sfide di oggi, guardate il volto umano di coloro che sinceramente cercate di aiutare.
Vi assicuro la mia preghiera perché i vostri sforzi portino frutto e l’impegno della Chiesa Cattolica di farsi voce di quanti altrimenti sono messi a tacere. Su di voi, sulle vostre famiglie e su tutti i vostri colleghi, invoco le divine benedizioni di sapienza, fortezza e pace. Grazie.
Read the rest of our coverage of the Fortune-Time Global Forum.
Source
Photo by Vatican TV
“Transform our institutions and economic structures” to do so, he said Saturday in Vatican City.
Attendees of our Fortune-Time Global Forum, held Friday and Saturday this week in Rome and the Vatican, were treated to an audience with His Holiness Pope Francis this morning.
Here is what he said, translated to English. (His original Italian remarks follow.)
Dear Friends,
I am very pleased to welcome all of you who are participating in the Fortune-Time Global Forum, and I express my appreciation for your work these past two days. I thank Mrs. Nancy Gibbs and Mr. Alan Murray for their kind words. The theme you have chosen, “The 21st-Century Challenge: Forging a New Social Compact”, is very opportune and points to the urgent need for more inclusive and equitable economic models. Your time together has allowed for a substantive exchange of ideas and sharing of information. Important as this is, what is required now is not a new social compact in the abstract, but concrete ideas and decisive action which will benefit all people and which will begin to respond to the pressing issues of our day.
I would like to offer a particular word of thanks for all that you are doing to promote the centrality and dignity of the human person within our institutions and economic models, and to draw attention to the plight of the poor and refugees, who are so often forgotten by society. When we ignore the cries of so many of our brothers and sisters throughout the world, we not only deny them their God-given rights and worth, but we also reject their wisdom and prevent them from offering their talents, traditions and cultures to the world. In so doing, the poor and marginalized are made to suffer even more, and we ourselves grow impoverished, not only materially, but morally and spiritually.
Our world today is marked by great unrest. Inequality between peoples continues to rise, and many communities are impacted directly by war and poverty, or the migration and displacement which flow from them. People want to make their voices heard and express their concerns and fears. They want to make their rightful contribution to their local communities and broader society, and to benefit from the resources and development too often reserved for the few. While this may create conflict and lay bare the many sorrows of our world, it also makes us realize that we are living in a moment of hope. For when we finally recognize the evil in our midst, we can seek healing by applying the remedy. Your very presence here today is a sign of such hope, because it shows that you recognize the issues before us and the imperative to act decisively. This strategy of renewal and hope calls for institutional and personal conversion; a change of heart that attaches primacy to the deepest expressions of our common humanity, our cultures, our religious beliefs and our traditions.
This fundamental renewal does not have to do simply with market economics, figures to be balanced, the development of raw materials and improvements made to infrastructures. No, what we are speaking about is the common good of humanity, of the right of each person to share in the resources of this world and to have the same opportunities to realize his or her potential, a potential that is ultimately based on the dignity of the children of God, created in his image and likeness.
Our great challenge is to respond to global levels of injustice by promoting a local and even personal sense of responsibility so that no one is excluded from participating in society. Thus, the question before us is how best to encourage one another and our respective communities to respond to the suffering and needs we see, both from afar and in our midst. The renewal, purification and strengthening of solid economic models depends on our own personal conversion and generosity to those in need.
I encourage you to continue the work you have begun at this Forum, and to seek ever more creative ways to transform our institutions and economic structures so that they may be able to respond to the needs of our day and be in service of the human person, especially those marginalized and discarded. I pray too that you may involve in your efforts those whom you seek to help; give them a voice, listen to their stories, learn from their experiences and understand their needs. See in them a brother and a sister, a son and a daughter, a mother and a father. Amid the challenges of our day, see the human face of those you earnestly seek to help.
I assure you of my prayer that your efforts will bear fruit, and of the Catholic Church’s commitment to be a voice for those who otherwise are silenced. Upon you, your families and all your colleagues, I invoke the divine blessings of wisdom, strength and peace. Thank you.
And here is what he said in the original Italian:
Cari amici,
Sono lieto di accogliere tutti voi, partecipanti al Fortune-Time Global Forum, ed esprimo il mio apprezzamento per il vostro lavoro in questi due giorni. Ringrazio la Signora Nancy Gibbs e il Signor Alan Murray per le loro cortesi parole. Il tema da voi scelto, “La sfida del 21º secolo: creare un nuovo patto sociale”, è davvero opportuno e ha di mira il bisogno urgente di più inclusivi e giusti modelli economici. Il tempo trascorso insieme vi ha permesso un consistente scambio di idee e la condivisione di informazioni. E ciò è tanto importante, che quanto ora si richiede non è un nuovo accordo sociale in astratto, ma sono idee concrete e un’azione efficace che andrà a vantaggio di tutti e inizierà a rispondere alle pressanti questioni dei nostri giorni.
Vorrei dire un grazie speciale per quanto state facendo per promuovere la centralità e la dignità della persona umana all’interno delle istituzioni e dei modelli economici, e per attirare l’attenzione sulla piaga dei poveri e dei rifugiati, che sono così spesso dimenticati dalla società. Quando ignoriamo il grido di tanti nostri fratelli e sorelle in ogni parte del mondo, non solo neghiamo loro i diritti e i valori che hanno ricevuto da Dio, ma anche rifiutiamo la loro saggezza e impediamo ad essi di offrire al mondo i loro talenti, le loro tradizioni e le loro culture. Questi comportamenti accrescono la sofferenza dei poveri e degli emarginati, e noi stessi diventiamo più poveri, non solo materialmente, ma moralmente e spiritualmente.
Il nostro mondo oggi è segnato da grande inquietudine. La disuguaglianza tra i popoli continua a crescere e molte comunità sono direttamente colpite dalla guerra e dalla povertà o dalla partenza forzata di migranti e profughi. La gente vuole far sentire la propria voce ed esprimere le proprie preoccupazioni e paure. Vuole dare il proprio legittimo contributo alle comunità locali e alla più vasta società, e beneficiare delle risorse e dello sviluppo troppo spesso riservati a pochi. E ciò, mentre può creare conflitti e mettere a nudo le molte sofferenze del nostro mondo, ci permette anche di capire che stiamo vivendo un momento di speranza. Perché quando riconosciamo finalmente il male in mezzo a noi, possiamo cercare di sanarlo applicando la giusta cura. Proprio la vostra presenza qui oggi è un segno di tale speranza, perché dimostra che voi riconoscete i problemi che ci stanno di fronte e la necessità di agire con decisione. Questa strategia di rinnovamento e speranza richiede una conversione istituzionale e personale; un cambiamento del cuore che conferisce il primato alle più profonde espressioni della nostra comune umanità, delle nostre culture, delle nostre convinzioni religiose e delle nostre tradizioni.
Questo rinnovamento fondamentale non deve avere a che fare semplicemente con l’economia di mercato, con numeri da far quadrare, con lo sviluppo di materie prime e miglioramenti alle infrastrutture. No, ciò di cui stiamo parlando è il bene comune dell’umanità, il diritto di ogni persona di aver parte alle risorse di questo mondo e di avere le medesime opportunità di realizzare le proprie potenzialità, potenzialità che in ultima analisi si basano sulla dignità di figli di Dio, creati a sua immagine e somiglianza.
La nostra grande sfida è di rispondere ai livelli globali di ingiustizia promuovendo un senso di responsabilità locale, anzi personale, in modo che nessuno venga escluso dalla partecipazione sociale. Pertanto, la domanda da porci è come meglio incoraggiarci l’un l’altro e incoraggiare le nostre rispettive comunità a rispondere alle sofferenze e ai bisogni che vediamo, sia lontani sia in mezzo a noi. Il rinnovamento, la purificazione e il rafforzamento di solidi modelli economici dipende dalla nostra personale conversione e generosità verso i bisognosi.
Vi incoraggio a continuare il lavoro che avete iniziato in questo Forum e a cercare vie sempre più creative per trasformare le istituzioni e le strutture economiche in modo che sappiano rispondere ai bisogni di oggi e siano al servizio della persona umana, specialmente di quanti sono emarginati ed esclusi. Prego anche perché possiate coinvolgere nei vostri sforzi coloro che cercate di aiutare; date loro voce, ascoltate le loro storie, imparate dalle loro esperienze e comprendete i loro bisogni. Vedete in loro un fratello e una sorella, un figlio e una figlia, una madre e un padre. Tra le sfide di oggi, guardate il volto umano di coloro che sinceramente cercate di aiutare.
Vi assicuro la mia preghiera perché i vostri sforzi portino frutto e l’impegno della Chiesa Cattolica di farsi voce di quanti altrimenti sono messi a tacere. Su di voi, sulle vostre famiglie e su tutti i vostri colleghi, invoco le divine benedizioni di sapienza, fortezza e pace. Grazie.
Read the rest of our coverage of the Fortune-Time Global Forum.
Source
Read TIME and Fortune’s Global Forum Report on Ending Poverty
Vatican Global Forum
Full List
VATICAN GLOBAL FORUMMAGAZINEVIDEOS
WORLD GLOBAL FORUM
Dec. 3, 2016
Osservatore Romano—ANSA/APPope Francis during his audience with entrepreneurs attending at the "Fortune-Time Global Forum" in Vatican City, on Dec. 3, 2016.
Editors from Time and Fortune presented Pope Francis with the report of their Global Forum in Rome, attended by select Fortune 500 CEOs, scholars, labor and church leaders and philanthropists. The report, “The 21st century Challenge: Forging a New Social Compact,” was inspired by the Pope’s plea for broader prosperity and lasting ways to lift the poor. Through a series of working groups on Dec. 2, Forum delegates focused on creating jobs and fair wages, reducing environmental degradation, improving education and health access, and becoming more financial inclusive. Among those present were CEOs from Dow Chemical, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Monsanto, McKinsey, Siemens, Virgin Group and WPP as well as leaders from non-profit organizations including the Rockefeller, Ford and Mo Ibrahim Foundations.
“Our world today is marked by great unrest,” Pope Francis told the delegates upon receiving the report. “Inequality between peoples continues to rise, and many communities are impacted directly by war and poverty, or the migration and displacement which flow from them…. Your very presence here today is a sign of such hope, because it shows that you recognize the issues before us and the imperative to act decisively.”
The report includes more than twenty solutions that focus on way the private sector can be a driving force in ending poverty. See the full report:
Read more
Editors from Time and Fortune presented Pope Francis with the report of their Global Forum in Rome, attended by select Fortune 500 CEOs, scholars, labor and church leaders and philanthropists. The report, “The 21st century Challenge: Forging a New Social Compact,” was inspired by the Pope’s plea for broader prosperity and lasting ways to lift the poor. Through a series of working groups on Dec. 2, Forum delegates focused on creating jobs and fair wages, reducing environmental degradation, improving education and health access, and becoming more financial inclusive. Among those present were CEOs from Dow Chemical, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Monsanto, McKinsey, Siemens, Virgin Group and WPP as well as leaders from non-profit organizations including the Rockefeller, Ford and Mo Ibrahim Foundations.
“Our world today is marked by great unrest,” Pope Francis told the delegates upon receiving the report. “Inequality between peoples continues to rise, and many communities are impacted directly by war and poverty, or the migration and displacement which flow from them…. Your very presence here today is a sign of such hope, because it shows that you recognize the issues before us and the imperative to act decisively.”
The report includes more than twenty solutions that focus on way the private sector can be a driving force in ending poverty. See the full report:
Read more
The 21st Century Challenge: Forging A New Social Compact
2-3 DECEMBER, 2016: ROME AND VATICAN CITY
THE 21ST CENTURY CHALLENGE: FORGING A NEW SOCIAL COMPACT
In an age of disruption and turmoil, Pope Francis calls on the “noble vocation” of business to help create a more inclusive and humane economy. Even as free markets have lifted billions out of poverty—with business “stimulating and developing the immense resources of human intelligence”—too many have been left behind. This Forum offers an historic opportunity for Fortune 500 and Time 100 leaders to engage with the Pope to forge a new social compact for the 21st century. The Forum is at capacity, click here to be added to the wait list.
Click here to read recently published coverage Time editorial coverage in connection to the Forum. Select Forum sessions on December 2 will be live streamed on Fortune.com.
Inspired by the Pope’s pleas for more and better jobs, broader prosperity, and lasting ways to lift the poor, the Forum will be a solutions-based conversation aimed at encouraging transformative actions and an economic system that both promotes growth and spreads its benefits more broadly.
Forum attendees will engage with subjects including technology and jobs, global health, food and water, commitment to communities, energy and the environment, and financial inclusion—each representing critical elements related to poverty alleviation and in need of urgent attention. By bringing together global business and NGO leaders to address these challenges the Forum will focus on ways the private sector can be a driving force in ending poverty and creating a more sustainable world for all.
Attendance is by invitation only, and subject to approval. The 2016 Global Forum will gather business leaders from the world’s largest companies, members of the Time 100 list of the world’s most influential people, and a cross section of leaders from NGOs, non-profits, organized labor and religion.
“If we want security, let us give security. If we want life, let us give life. If we want opportunities, let us provide opportunities. The yardstick we use for others will be the yardstick which time will use for us.”
–Pope Francis to U.S. Congress, September 2015
Sunday, December 04, 2016
The Impending Conflict
jorgeramosnewsMy 10 seconds with Pope Francis at the Vatican. "Don't forget about the immigrants that Trump wants to deport", I asked him. The meeting was part of the Fortune + Time Global Forum. Mis 10 segundos con el Papa Francisco en el Vaticano. "No se olvide de los inmigrantes que quiere deportar Trump", le pedí. El encuentro fue parte del Foro Global de Fortune + Time
(Instagram post on December, 3,2016 by Jorge Ramos)
Chapter 85 --The Impending Conflict
A great crisis awaits the people of God. A crisis awaits the world. The most momentous struggle of all the ages is just before us. Events which for more than forty years we have upon the authority of the prophetic word declared to be impending are now taking place before our eyes. Already the question of an amendment to the Constitution restricting liberty of conscience has been urged upon the legislators of the nation. The question of enforcing Sunday observance has become one of national interest and importance. We well know what the result of this movement will be. But are we ready for the issue? Have we faithfully discharged the duty which God has committed to us of giving the people warning of the danger before them?
There are many, even of those engaged in this movement for Sunday enforcement, who are blinded to the results which will follow this action. They do not see that they are striking directly against religious liberty. There are many who have never understood the claims of the Bible Sabbath and the false foundation upon which the Sunday institution rests. Any movement in favor of religious legislation is really an act of concession to the papacy, which for so many ages has steadily warred against liberty of conscience. Sunday observance owes its existence as a so-called Christian institution to “the mystery of iniquity;” and its enforcement will be a virtual recognition of the principles which are the very cornerstone of Romanism. When our nation shall so abjure the principles of its government as to enact a Sunday law, Protestantism will in this act join hands with popery; it will be nothing else than giving life to the tyranny which has long been eagerly watching its opportunity to spring again into active despotism.
The National Reform movement, exercising the power of religious legislation, will, when fully developed, manifest the same intolerance and oppression that have prevailed in past ages. Human councils then assumed the prerogatives of Deity, crushing under their despotic power liberty of conscience; and imprisonment, exile, and death followed for those who opposed their dictates. If popery or its principles shall again be legislated into power, the fires of persecution will be rekindled against those who will not sacrifice conscience and the truth in deference to popular errors. This evil is on the point of realization.
When God has given us light showing the dangers before us, how can we stand clear in His sight if we neglect to put forth every effort in our power to bring it before the people? Can we be content to leave them to meet this momentous issue unwarned?
There is a prospect before us of a continued struggle, at the risk of imprisonment, loss of property, and even of life itself, to defend the law of God, which is made void by the laws of men. In this situation worldly policy will urge an outward compliance with the laws of the land, for the sake of peace and harmony. And there are some who will even urge such a course from the Scripture: “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.... The powers that be are ordained of God.”5T 712.3
But what has been the course of God's servants in ages past? When the disciples preached Christ and Him crucified, after His resurrection, the authorities commanded them not to speak any more nor to teach in the name of Jesus. “But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.” They continued to preach the good news of salvation through Christ, and the power of God witnessed to the message. The sick were healed, and thousands were added to the church. “Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation, and laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.”
But the God of heaven, the mighty Ruler of the universe, took this matter into His own hands; for men were warring against His work. He showed them plainly that there is a ruler above man, whose authority must be respected. The Lord sent His angel by night to open the prison doors, and he brought forth these men whom God had commissioned to do His work. The rulers said, Speak not “at all nor teach in the name of Jesus;” but the heavenly messenger sent by God said, “Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.”
Those who seek to compel men to observe an institution of the papacy, and trample upon God's authority, are doing a work similar to that of the Jewish leaders in the days of the apostles. When the laws of earthly rulers are brought into opposition to the laws of the Supreme Ruler of the universe, then those who are God's loyal subjects will be true to Him.
We as a people have not accomplished the work which God has committed to us. We are not ready for the issue to which the enforcement of the Sunday law will bring us. It is our duty, as we see the signs of approaching peril, to arouse to action. Let none sit in calm expectation of the evil, comforting themselves with the belief that this work must go on because prophecy has foretold it, and that the Lord will shelter His people. We are not doing the will of God if we sit in quietude, doing nothing to preserve liberty of conscience. Fervent, effectual prayer should be ascending to heaven that this calamity may be deferred until we can accomplish the work which has so long been neglected. Let there be most earnest prayer, and then let us work in harmony with our prayers. It may appear that Satan is triumphant and that truth is overborne with falsehood and error; the people over whom God has spread His shield, and the country which has been an asylum for the conscience-oppressed servants of God and defenders of His truth, may be placed in jeopardy. But God would have us recall His dealings with His people in the past to save them from their enemies. He has always chosen extremities, when there seemed no possible chance for deliverance from Satan's workings, for the manifestation of His power. Man's necessity is God's opportunity. It may be that a respite may yet be granted for God's people to awake and let their light shine. If the presence of ten righteous persons would have saved the wicked cities of the plain, is it not possible that God will yet, in answer to the prayers of His people, hold in check the workings of those who are making void His law? Shall we not humble our hearts greatly before God, flee to the mercy seat, and plead with Him to reveal His mighty power?
If our people continue in the listless attitude in which they have been, God cannot pour upon them His Spirit. They are unprepared to co-operate with Him. They are not awake to the situation and do not realize the threatened danger. They should feel now, as never before, their need of vigilance and concerted action.
The peculiar work of the third angel has not been seen in its importance. God meant that His people should be far in advance of the position which they occupy today. But now, when the time has come for them to spring into action, they have the preparation to make. When the National Reformers began to urge measures to restrict religious liberty, our leading men should have been alive to the situation and should have labored earnestly to counteract these efforts. It is not in the order of God that light has been kept from our people—the very present truth which they needed for this time. Not all our ministers who are giving the third angel's message really understand what constitutes that message. The National Reform movement has been regarded by some as of so little importance that they have not thought it necessary to give much attention to it and have even felt that in so doing they would be giving time to questions distinct from the third angel's message. May the Lord forgive our brethren for thus interpreting the very message for this time.
The people need to be aroused in regard to the dangers of the present time. The watchmen are asleep. We are years behind. Let the chief watchmen feel the urgent necessity of taking heed to themselves, lest they lose the opportunities given them to see the dangers.
If the leading men in our conferences do not now accept the message sent them by God, and fall into line for action, the churches will suffer great loss. When the watchman, seeing the sword coming, gives the trumpet a certain sound, the people along the line will echo the warning, and all will have opportunity to make ready for the conflict. But too often the leader has stood hesitating, seeming to say: “Let us not be in too great haste. There may be a mistake. We must be careful not to raise a false alarm.” The very hesitancy and uncertainty on his part is crying: “‘Peace and safety.’ Do not get excited. Be not alarmed. There is a great deal more made of this religious amendment question than is demanded. This agitation will all die down.” Thus he virtually denies the message sent from God, and the warning which was designed to stir the churches fails to do its work. The trumpet of the watchman gives no certain sound, and the people do not prepare for the battle. Let the watchman beware lest, through his hesitancy and delay, souls shall be left to perish, and their blood shall be required at his hand.
We have been looking many years for a Sunday law to be enacted in our land; and, now that the movement is right upon us, we ask: Will our people do their duty in the matter? Can we not assist in lifting the standard and in calling to the front those who have a regard for their religious rights and privileges? The time is fast approaching when those who choose to obey God rather than man will be made to feel the hand of oppression. Shall we then dishonor God by keeping silent while His holy commandments are trodden underfoot?
While the Protestant world is by her attitude making concessions to Rome, let us arouse to comprehend the situation and view the contest before us in its true bearings. Let the watchmen now lift up their voice and give the message which is present truth for this time. Let us show the people where we are in prophetic history and seek to arouse the spirit of true Protestantism, awaking the world to a sense of the value of the privileges of religious liberty so long enjoyed.5T 716.2
God calls upon us to awake, for the end is near. Every passing hour is one of activity in the heavenly courts to make ready a people upon the earth to act a part in the great scenes that are soon to open upon us. These passing moments, that seem of so little value to us, are weighty with eternal interests. They are molding the destiny of souls for everlasting life or eternal death. The words we utter today in the ears of the people, the works we are doing, the spirit of the message we are bearing, will be a savor of life unto life or of death unto death.5T 716.3
My brethren, do you realize that your own salvation, as well as the destiny of other souls, depends upon the preparation you now make for the trial before us? Have you that intensity of zeal, that piety and devotion, which will enable you to stand when opposition shall be brought against you? If God has ever spoken by me, the time will come when you will be brought before councils, and every position of truth which you hold will be severely criticized. The time that so many are now allowing to go to waste should be devoted to the charge that God has given us of preparing for the approaching crisis.
The law of God should be loved and honored by His true people now more than ever before. There is the most imperative necessity of urging the injunction of Christ upon the minds and hearts of all believers, men and women, youth and children: “Search the Scriptures.” Study your Bible as you have never studied it before. Unless you arise to a higher, holier state in your religious life, you will not be ready for the appearing of our Lord. As great light has been given, God expects corresponding zeal, faithfulness, and devotion on the part of His people. There must be more spirituality, a deeper consecration to God, and a zeal in His work that has never yet been reached. Much time should be spent in prayer, that our garments of character may be washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb.
Especially should we, with unwavering faith, seek God for grace and power to be given to His people now. We do not believe that the time has fully come when He would have our liberties restricted. The prophet saw “four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.” Another angel, ascending from the east, cried to them, saying: “Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.” This points out the work we have now to do. A vast responsibility is devolving upon men and women of prayer throughout the land to petition that God will sweep back the cloud of evil and give a few more years of grace in which to work for the Master. Let us cry to God that the angels may hold the four winds until missionaries shall be sent to all parts of the world and shall proclaim the warning against disobeying the law of Jehovah.
Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, pp.711- 717.
Saturday, December 03, 2016
The Work for This Time
We are standing upon the threshold of great and solemn events. Prophecies are fulfilling. Strange, eventful history is being recorded in the books of heaven. Everything in our world is in agitation. There are wars and rumors of wars. The nations are angry, and the time of the dead has come, that they should be judged. Events are changing to bring about the day of God, which hasteth greatly. Only a moment of time, as it were, yet remains. But while already nation is rising against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, there is not now a general engagement. As yet the four winds are held until the servants of God shall be sealed in their foreheads. Then the powers of earth will marshal their forces for the last great battle.
Satan is busily laying his plans for the last mighty conflict, when all will take sides. After the gospel has been proclaimed in the world for nearly two thousand years, Satan still presents to men and women the same scene that he presented to Christ. In a wonderful manner he causes the kingdoms of the world in their glory to pass before them. These he promises to all who will fall down and worship him. Thus he seeks to bring men under his dominion.
Satan is working to the utmost to make himself as God and to destroy all who oppose his power. And today the world is bowing before him. His power is received as the power of God. The prophecy of the Revelation is being fulfilled, that "all the world wondered after the beast." Revelation 13:3.
Men in their blindness boast of wonderful progress and enlightenment; but to the eye of Omniscience are
revealed the inward guilt and depravity. The heavenly watchers see the earth filled with violence and crime. Wealth is obtained by every species of robbery, not robbery of men only, but of God. Men are using His means to gratify their selfishness. Everything they can grasp is made to minister to their greed. Avarice and sensuality prevail. Men cherish the attributes of the first great deceiver. They have accepted him as God, and have become imbued with his spirit.
Friday, December 02, 2016
If they speak not according to this word? It is because there is no light in them!
Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.
13 Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
14 And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.
16 Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.
17 And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.
18 Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion.
19 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
21 And they shall pass through it, hardly bestead and hungry: and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward.
22 And they shall look unto the earth; and behold trouble and darkness, dimness of anguish; and they shall be driven to darkness.
Isaiah 8: 12-22.
Thursday, December 01, 2016
Medieval Masterpieces in Modern Manhattan
Medieval Masterpieces in Modern Manhattan: The Cloisters Showcases Religious Art as Part of The Met
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