Sunday, January 21, 2007

DANIEL PRAISES GOD

Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.
Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his:
And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:
He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.
I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee: for thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter.
Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon: he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation. --------------------Daniel 2: 19-24.

(Bold type added)

Saturday, January 20, 2007

HISTORY REPEATS




HISTORY REPEATS

In 1606, many Pilgrims were driven out of England because they illegally separated from the Church of England. Many were betrayed or lost personal property and dignity. Others were imprisoned, forcibly separated from their families, or driven into exile in Holland.
In the 1630's, the Puritans were persecuted for their efforts to reform and purify the Church of England from within. Unauthorized assemblies for religious worship were prohibited under penalty of imprisonment, exile, torture and death.
Quakers were also persecuted in England because of their refusal to conform to the Church of England. They believed each person could experience God directly, without benefit of church building, clergy or liturgy. Thus, these Quakers were burdened with excessive taxes and charged with blasphemy, disturbing the peace, disorderly behavior, and contempt of court. Many were sentenced to a whipping. Their goods and property were confiscated, and some meeting houses were destroyed. By 1680, 10,000 Quakers had been imprisoned in England, and 243 had died of torture and mistreatment in the King's jails.
In 1685, the Huguenots (Protestants living in Roman Catholic France) were denied their free exercise of religion. Their options were death, imprisonment, or emigration.
The plain, moral lives of the Swiss Brethren, nicknamed Anabaptists, attracted many converts from the state church in Germany. However, around 1700, they were persecuted when they insisted that only believers should be baptized.
October 31, 1731 (on the 214th Anniversary of Martin Luther's Reformation) a Roman Catholic Archbishop in Salzburg, Austria, demanded that all Protestants recant their non-Catholic beliefs or be banished. All Protestant Bibles, books and hymnals were burned. Over 21,475 Protestants were forced into exile. Many fled through snowstorms and icy winds. Their money was soon spent to pay for excessive taxes, tolls, and protection by soldiers from robbers. Despite this adversity, they sang inspirational hymns: "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" and "Now Thank We All Our God."
By establishing a rich heritage of religious freedom, America became a refuge from religious persecution for thousands of these Pilgrims, Puritans, Quakers, Huguenots, Anabaptists, and Protestants from Salzburg. In 1620, Pilgrims came to America on the Mayflower. In the 1630's, as many as 20,000 Puritans immigrated to New England. Quakers and Anabaptists escaped to Pennsylvania. By 1685 as many as 8,000 Quakers had come to William Penn's haven for religious tolerance. In the hundred years before 1725, about 5,000-7,000 Huguenot religious refugees came to New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and South Carolina.
On January 19, 1734, 78 Salzburg exiles sailed for Georgia. Upon their arrival, they named their new home Ebenezer (stone of help or monument to God's protection) according to the sermon they had just heard from I Samuel 7:12.
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees freedom of religion to all those who live in this country. Yet despite our reputation, rich heritage, and the guarantees of the Constitution, many American Christians are today being denied freedom of religion.
Quoted from: The Legal AlertDavid C. Gibbs, Jr., Attorney Email: DavidGibbs@ChristianLaw.orgWebsite: http://ChristianLaw.org
------------------------------------------

Seventh-day Adventists have long predicted the repeat of history with respect to religious intolerance, even in this "haven of religious liberty" -- the United States of America. With "worldly policy" governing the actions and reactions of "the church" of today, we see on the horizon -- a "civilized inquisition" unfolding. The "overwhelming surprise" comes as this "inquisition" now originates with the Seventh-day Adventist Church itself.


CHRISTIAN ADMONITION



The Desire of Ages by Ellen G. White

Page 353

"Behold," said Jesus, "I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." Christ Himself did not suppress one word of truth, but He spoke it always in love. He exercised the greatest tact, and thoughtful, kind attention in His intercourse with the people. He was never rude, never needlessly spoke a severe word, never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul. He did not censure human weakness. He fearlessly denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity, but tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes. He wept over Jerusalem, the city He loved, that refused to receive Him, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. They rejected Him, the Saviour, but He regarded them with pitying tenderness, and sorrow so deep that it broke His heart. Every soul was precious in His eyes. While He always bore Himself with divine dignity, He bowed with tenderest regard to every member of the family of God. In all men He saw fallen souls whom it was His mission to save.

The servants of Christ are not to act out the dictates of the natural heart. They need to have close communion with God, lest, under provocation, self rise up, and they pour forth a torrent of words that are unbefitting, that are not as dew or the still showers that refresh the withering plants. This is what Satan wants them to do; for these are his methods. It is the dragon that is wroth; it is the spirit of Satan that is revealed in anger and accusing. But God's servants are to be representatives of Him. He desires them to deal only in the currency of heaven, the truth that bears His own image and superscription. The power by which they are to overcome evil is the power of Christ. The glory of Christ is their strength. They are to fix their eyes upon His loveliness. Then they can present the gospel with divine tact and gentleness. And the spirit that is kept gentle under provocation will speak more effectively in favor of the truth than will any argument, however forcible.

Those who are brought in controversy with the enemies of truth have to meet, not only men, but Satan and his agents. Let them remember the Saviour's words, "Behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves." Luke 10:3. Let them rest in the love of God, and the spirit will be kept calm, even under personal abuse. The Lord will clothe them with a divine panoply. His Holy Spirit will influence the mind and heart, so that their voices shall not catch the notes of the baying of the wolves.

Page 354
Continuing His instruction to His disciples, Jesus said, "Beware of men." They were not to put implicit confidence in those who knew not God, and open to them their counsels; for this would give Satan's agents an advantage. Man's inventions often counterwork God's plans. Those who build the temple of the Lord are to build according to the pattern shown in the mount,--the divine similitude. God is dishonored and the gospel is betrayed when His servants depend on the counsel of men who are not under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Worldly wisdom is foolishness with God. Those who rely upon it will surely err.

"They will deliver you up to councils, . . . yea and before governors and kings shall ye be brought for My sake, for a testimony to them and to the Gentiles." Matt. 10:17, 18, R. V. Persecution will spread the light. The servants of Christ will be brought before the great men of the world, who, but for this, might never hear the gospel. The truth has been misrepresented to these men. They have listened to false charges concerning the faith of Christ's disciples. Often their only means of learning its real character is the testimony of those who are brought to trial for their faith. Under examination these are required to answer, and their judges to listen to the testimony borne. God's grace will be dispensed to His servants to meet the emergency. "It shall be given you," says Jesus, "in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you." As the Spirit of God illuminates the minds of His servants, the truth will be presented in its divine power and preciousness. Those who reject the truth will stand to accuse and oppress the disciples. But under loss and suffering, even unto death, the Lord's children are to reveal the meekness of their divine Example. Thus will be seen the contrast between Satan's agents and the representatives of Christ. The Saviour will be lifted up before the rulers and the people.

The disciples were not endowed with the courage and fortitude of the martyrs until such grace was needed. Then the Saviour's promise was fulfilled. When Peter and John testified before the Sanhedrin council, men "marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus." Acts 4:13. Of Stephen it is written that "all that sat in the council, looking steadfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel." Men "were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake." Acts 6:15, 10. And Paul, writing of his own trial at the court of the Caesars, says, "At my first defense no one took my
Page 355
part, but all forsook me. . . . But the Lord stood by me, and strengthened me; that through me the message might be fully proclaimed, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion." 2 Tim. 4:16, 17, R. V.

The servants of Christ were to prepare no set speech to present when brought to trial. Their preparation was to be made day by day in treasuring up the precious truths of God's word, and through prayer strengthening their faith. When they were brought into trial, the Holy Spirit would bring to their remembrance the very truths that would be needed.

A daily, earnest striving to know God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent, would bring power and efficiency to the soul. The knowledge obtained by diligent searching of the Scriptures would be flashed into the memory at the right time. But if any had neglected to acquaint themselves with the words of Christ, if they had never tested the power of His grace in trial, they could not expect that the Holy Spirit would bring His words to their remembrance. They were to serve God daily with undivided affection, and then trust Him.

So bitter would be the enmity to the gospel that even the tenderest earthly ties would be disregarded. The disciples of Christ would be betrayed to death by the members of their own households. "Ye shall be hated of all men for My name's sake," He added; "but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Mark 13:13. But He bade them not to expose themselves unnecessarily to persecution. He Himself often left one field of labor for another, in order to escape from those who were seeking His life. When He was rejected at Nazareth, and His own townsmen tried to kill Him, He went down to Capernaum, and there the people were astonished at His teaching; "for His word was with power." Luke 4:32. So His servants were not to be discouraged by persecution, but to seek a place where they could still labor for the salvation of souls.

The servant is not above his master. The Prince of heaven was called Beelzebub, and His disciples will be misrepresented in like manner. But whatever the danger, Christ's followers must avow their principles. They should scorn concealment. They cannot remain uncommitted until assured of safety in confessing the truth. They are set as watchmen, to warn men of their peril. The truth received from Christ must be imparted to all, freely and openly. Jesus said, "What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops."

Source: http://www.whiteestate.org/books/da/da37.html

FALSE PROPHETS (PROFITS) CONDEMNED



Ezekiel 13






1And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the LORD;
3Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!
4O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.
5Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD.
6They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.
7Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken?
8Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD.
9And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
10Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter:
11Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it.
12Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it?
13Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it.
14So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
15Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered morter, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it;
16To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.
17Likewise, thou son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, which prophesy out of their own heart; and prophesy thou against them,
18And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
19And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
20Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly.
21Your kerchiefs also will I tear, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
22Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life:
23Therefore ye shall see no more vanity, nor divine divinations: for I will deliver my people out of your hand: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.


(EMPHASIS ADDED).

NOTE: CONDEMNATION CONTINUES IN CHAPTER 14.

Friday, January 19, 2007

JOHN THE BAPTIST'S TESTIMONY OF JESUS




John 3:25-36




25Then there arose a question between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying.
26And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.
27John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.
28Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him.
29He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.
30He must increase, but I must decrease.
31He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.
32And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony.
33He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true.
34For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
35The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
36He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.


(Emphasis added)

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

CHALLENGE FROM THE CHAIR


Challenge from the Chair

By Mark J. Wolff, KM
Jan 18, 2006

View all articles by Mark J. Wolff, KM


It is with a deep sense of humility and sincere gratitude that I compose this column for the inaugural issue of The Malta Messenger. Alice M. Carney, DM had always taken the responsibility for our quarterly newsletter and she performed the task, as always, with her usual graceful efficiency. Her leaving us here on earth for Heavenly rewards with Our Lord and Savior remind us of how hard she worked and how much she accomplished without a whisper. In this issue Thomas F. Carney, Jr., KMOb writes a touching salute to his mother, A Dame For All Seasons.
Our 7th Annual Gala will be held this year at the Surf Club on March 11th 2006. This year’s Gala will celebrate and honor the life, works and legacy of The Mother of Malta in Florida, Alice M. Carney, DM. The Board of Directors of the Order of Malta South Florida, and in particular Loraine Kayal and Frank and Dottie Crippen, has been working closely with the Carney family to insure The 7th Annual Gala will be an evening that every knight and dame should attend and will never forget; a fine tribute to A Dame For All Seasons!
Since I had the pleasure of being with so many of our members at The Crippen’s in North Carolina for our Annual Summer Retreat, I do not have to describe the growth and increasing success of this spiritual and social event. I thank Frank and Dottie for their hospitality and financial generosity in hosting this spiritually invigorating event each summer in an idyllic mountain setting. Special thanks are also due to Rev. Dr. Dave G. Caron, OP, our Deputy Chaplin, who always develops the spiritual dimension and thereby our depth of faith.
The Annual Christmas Mass at the home of Jim and Grace Colross in Coral Gables had just the right touch for the Holy Season. Many gifts were collected for Saint Ann’s Mission and, as always, Grace and Jim were the perfect hosts. I have asked that they open their home again next year as their Christmas Mass has become a great tradition for The Order of Malta in South Florida. I would like to thank Jim and Grace for their graciousness and largesse.
In November in New York, The Order of Malta South Florida had nine new members invested. In the next issue of The Malta Messenger we will feature a short story on each of our new knights and dames, with pictures so you will recognize them at our upcoming 7th Annual Gala in March. Next November, 2006 I would like to reinstate the Florida Dinner that was historically organized by Allie Carney. I have asked Board member and Treasurer, Hershel F. Smith, Jr., to coordinate this event. With Hershel and Cynthia’s fine epicurean taste, I feel confident that this will be an event to remember!
In the last several years, under the leadership of Frank Crippen as our Area Chair & President of The Order of Malta South Florida, Inc., we have raised and contributed in excess of 1 million dollars to projects in Florida. These projects include, but are not limited to: Saint Ann’s Mission; The Marian Center; New Hope Charities; Nazareth Homes; BirthLine; Beyond Abortion: Healing and Understanding; Safe Haven for the Newborns; Women’s Circle; Camillus House; Providence Place; and Genesis House, among others. Perhaps of equal or greater importance, Knights and Dames of Malta have contributed untold hours of service to the sick, poor, economically, mentally and physically challenged, as well as to teenage mothers and newborns.
We must continue this good work even as dollars from the American Association have and will continue to diminish. Our work at, for example, Saint Ann’s Mission is in dire need of an infusion of both financial and human capital in order to further assist and rebuild. We are attempting to reopen the medical clinic at the Mission, obtain a new van for transporting patients to and from the medical clinic, and establish a legal clinic to assist undocumented workers. Please read the The Malta Messenger article, Our Mission at St. Ann’s: Serving the Least, the Lost and the Last.
The new incarnation of our Area newsletter entitled The Malta Messenger is my way of paying a personal tribute to Allie Carney, who for so many years worked virtually alone to produce the newsletter. Allie, who I know is listening, let me thank you for your incredible work on behalf of the Order. After just one edition and much more help than you ever had, I truly appreciate this one aspect of your many contributions to the Order.
I would also like to express my heartfelt gratitude to H.L. Alberola “Bert” for his dedication and hard work in accepting my challenge to and taking the lead on the development and completion of this project. The inauguration of The Malta Messenger is coupled with the launching of a website by the South Florida Area. We are the first Area in the American Association to establish its presence on the Worldwide Web. The Area Website will publish The Malta Messenger on-line, along with other information on the Order of Malta regionally, nationally and internationally with great links and contacts around the Americas. Special thanks to Philippa Leslie of the Grand Magistry and to John Bycraft and Jack Shine, from the American Association Board of Councillors, for their prompt and critically important assistance in providing guidance and graphics in connection with the development for our Area’s new Website.
The Malta Messenger welcomes your comments and article submissions. Please visit the Readers’ Forum.
Both The Messenger and our new Website are fully funded by private sponsors. Let me extend to all of our Charter Sponsors my sincere appreciation and gratitude, this publication would not be possible without their support. If you want to be a sponsor or know of a business that would be interested in becoming a sponsor, please give me a call, drop me a line, or send me an e-mail.
Finally, on the occasion of the 7th Annual Order of Malta South Florida Gala, the Board of Directors has voted to bestow The Honorable Jeb Bush, Governor of the State of Florida with its Ethic of Life Award for Outstanding Service towards the defense of life and human dignity of the unborn. Congratulations Governor!
Professor Mark J. Wolff, KM is Area Chair & President, The Order of Malta South Florida, Inc., and serves as Editor-In-Chief and Publisher of The Malta Messenger©.


U CAN'T BE BOTH


Recently while driving home from work, I spotted a peculiar "bumper sticker", and its content stuck on my mind. It states that "you can't both be Catholic and pro-choice". Bravo, but then I thought; What are the fundamental Catholic "doctrines and dogmas"? Are they not a celibate priesthood? Are they not idol worship? Are they not considering that the pope is in-fallible, and represents Christ to all mankind? Is Mary worship a prominent part of this religion, when The New Testament gave no "exalted" status to the mother of Jesus? Do they re-crucify Jesus Christ during every Mass? Do they baptize infants? Do they recite and manipulate The Rosary (borrowed from The Muslims, after the Battle of Lepanto)? Do they confess their sins to priests? When there's only one mediator between man and God, Jesus.

I was really troubled that such a bumper sticker could pass for a conservative value manifestation. Here you have a tyrannycal religio-political government that "dictates" to its followers, what it considers to be right or wrong. This is contrary to the Holy Scriptures that I have read. Then, I remembered that the Catholic faith, considers of equal value the traditions of the Church and The Bible. Case in point: The Catholic Catecism; In it there are considerable traditions and practices that are "extra-scriptural", or not suggested by a THUS SAITH THE LORD.

If you simply look up The Ten Commandments in this Catechism (book), you'll see a discrepancy so obvious that 10 is always 10: Not 10, minus 1, plus 1 equal 10. The Catechism has omitted the second command which forbids fashioning and worshiping idols. It is removed (for obvious reasons), yet the 10th Commandment is dissected to complete (the 10th becomes two), The 10 Commandments. How crafty? I happen to own a Catholic: The New American Bible (1970). In it, in Exodus 20, it shows the Ten Commandments similar to the King James Version (except for its modern English verbiage). How then can their be two separate versions of the Ten Commandments according to this observation? The current Catholic Catechism (1992) bears the IMPRIMATUR of Joseph Ratzinger, the current Pope.

At that said, back to the "bumper sticker". It's ironic that the Catholics are the only religion that voices opposition to the barbaric pratice of Abortion; However, its clergy (priests and nuns), are not free to marry and pro-create? Getting back to the subject without straying from the issue. What will they do to those that are Catholics and pro-Abortion, forbid them from taking their Eucharist? Or will they put them in Dungeons; Like in the good olde "Mid- evil" days? Or put them on the rack? Or Flog them?

This really has me thinking about the possiblities that are inferred in that "bumper sticker". Actually it is just as intimidating as the front-end novelty plate of the car behind me, who was riding my bumper. As he got closer and closer to my rear-end, I read: "TAIL GATOR".



RED, WHITE, AND BLUE, EVEN HERE THEY'LL TELL YOU WHAT TO DO!

FORGET OSAMA, WE FOUND OBAMA




PERVERTED AMERICA


Perverted America

John LeBoutillier
Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2007

Last week's miraculous recovery of two missing teenage boys near St. Louis is a tiny window into a nether world of perversion, abduction, pedophilia, drugs, rape, sex slavery, pornography, and other unimaginable horrors.
Indeed, we live in a bifurcated country: While many yearn for the wholesome days of good values and clean memories, we are also surrounded by so much sickness that we don't always recognize it.
Abducting innocent children, terrorizing them, and plunging their families into permanent despair is about the worst imaginable crime.
Sadly, this is quite common today in this "free" society. We are indeed free — and that freedom is often exploited by these deranged sickos who live among us and often are even known to their victims and/or the police investigating the crime.
The number of convicted sex offenders is on the rise — yet the law allows these people to live among us after they have completed their time in prison.
Communities resist but are forced to accept these criminals, many of whom repeat their crimes when given the opportunity. Yes, there are Web sites available to find these people in your community, but the information provided is not as good or accurate as we have been led to believe.
Our children are not only the victims of the crimes — but they are also victims of a system that targets them through violent video games and violent movies. The result is de-sensitized kids who do not value life the right way; certainly some of these people grow into the monsters who commit these horrific crimes.

We are surrounded today by sex.
Everywhere you go, it is sex, sex and more sex.
The ads, the movies and television shows, the magazines, the billboards all trumpet raw sex. True, sex sells.
Clothes, lingerie, beer — all use sex and sexy-looking models and stars to see these products. But the effect on the young is to cheapen sex and the result is a relatively new phenomenon: kids having sex in their early teens, often with multiple partners.
What effect does this have on some people as they become adults?

Does it somehow damage them?
Does it do something to their still-developing brains to launch them into a world of perversion? Or would these child-abductors have been that way anyway?
Dateline NBC's wonderful ongoing series of reports into pedophilia and sex offenders is an eye opener. NBC should be congratulated for helping to catch so many of these people. But it is just the tip of the iceberg; sex scams and online perversions are a national phenomenon.
The Internet is the best example of all that is great — and much that is bad — about the freedoms we enjoy.
While the Internet has revolutionized so many lives for the better, there is also a dark side: Grotesque and perverted material predominates many sites. It is the flip side of our freedom: We are free to choose — and many choose the wrong and sometimes-evil path.
America is in trouble.
Not just in Iraq and in our war against radical Islam. We are in trouble in our national soul. We are often undisciplined in the use of our endless freedoms.
Those who think a new or better government can change this are mistaken; reforming our morals and our behavior is up to individuals, families, parents, and people in positions of authority such as teachers, coaches, mentors, and role models.
We, as a country, need to look in the collective mirror and see the truth: We are becoming what we detest.

Source: http://newsmax.com/archives/articles/2007/1/16/131120.shtml

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

TOP FAITH IN CONGRESS


By the NewsMax.com Staff
For the story behind the story...

Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2007 4:51 p.m. EST

Catholicism Top Faith in U.S. Congress

Roman Catholics are the largest single U.S. religious denomination among members of the new U.S. Congress which also includes two Buddhists and a Muslim.
A survey published by Americans for Religious Liberty finds Baptists the second most common faith, followed by Methodists, Presbyterians and Jews.
The breakdown for the 535 members of the 110th Congress being sworn in Thursday:
Catholic 155; Baptist 67; Methodist 61; Presbyterian 44; Jewish 43; Episcopal 37; Protestant nondenominational 26; Christian nondenominational 18; Lutheran 17; Mormon 15; United Church of Christ 7.
Eastern Orthodox 5; Christian Science 5; Assemblies of God 4; Unitarian Universalist 2; African Methodist Episcopal 2; Buddhists 2; Evangelical 2; Seventh Day Adventists 2; Christian Reformed 2; Disciples of Christ 2; Church of Christ 2; Congregational Baptist 1; Anglican 1.
Reorganized Mormon 1; Quaker 1; Church of God 1; Muslim 1; Evangelical Lutheran 1; Church of the Nazarene 1; Evangelical Methodist 1.
No affiliation 6.

© Reuters 2007.

Source: http://www.newsmax.com

Monday, January 15, 2007

HILLARY AND HAMID'S FIRESIDE CHAT

HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON STOPPED IN TO SEE AFGHAN PRESIDENT HAMID KARZAI.

YESTERDAY (JAN.14, 2007), WHILE STROLLING "THE GLOBAL VILLAGE" IN THE AFGHAN SECTOR, HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON DECIDED TO STOP IN AND CHAT WITH THE PRESIDENT OF THAT BELEAGUERED NATION, HAMID KARZAI. WHO KNEW? WAS SHE USING UP FREE-QUENT FLYER MILES?

I WONDER WHAT PROMPTED HER INTO FLYING HALF-WAY AROUND THE WORLD, TO A WAR TORN NATION TO CALL ON ITS PRESIDENT? COULD SHE BE LOOKING FOR THE PHOTO OPPORTUNITY TO KICK-OFF HER CANDIDACY? OR PERHAPS, TO LOOK DIPLOMATIC? MAYBE, MR. KARZAI INVITED HER OVER TO GIVE SOME CREDENCE TO THE ADVANCES FEMALES HAVE MADE IN THE "POST TALIBAN" AFGHANISTAN? SHE SHOWED UP FOR THE PHOTO SHOOT IN PANTS AND NO "BERKA".
NOW THAT'S SHOWING THE WORLD HOW FAR THAT MUSLIM NATION HAS PROGRESSED; AND ALSO SHOWING THEM HILLARY "WEARS THE PANTS". HILLARY HAS COME ACCROSS LIKE JESSE JACKSON; WHEN HE DECIDES TO GO CALLING ON IMPORTANT PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD FOR NO APPARENT REASON AT ALL. COULD THAT BE CLASSIFIED AS AN INTERLOPER COMPLEX?

HILLARY SHAMELESSLY SEEKS FOR THE LIMELIGHT. SHE IS THE EPITOME OF THE TYPE "A" FEMALE. I BELIEVE THERE AREN'T ENOUGH HURDLES FOR HER TO LEAP OVER, THAT WOULD MAKE HER FINALLY GIVE IT A REST. SHE STARTED IN CHICAGO, THEN WENT TO YALE AT NEW HAVEN, CT., THEN ON TO LITTLE ROCK (ARKANSAS), THEN TO THE WHITE HOUSE, NOW CHAPPAQUA, NY. TO REPRESENT THE STATE OF NEW YORK?.
SHE'S A REAL GLOBE-TROTTER, GO-GETTER, AMBICIOUS POLITICAL ANIMAL. YOU WOULD THINK THAT HAVING BEEN THE "FIRST LADY", WOULD QUENCH HER LUST FOR PROMINENSE AND POWER ? NO WAY JOSE, SHE WANTS TO BE THE NEXT BIG THING SINCE SLICE BREAD.
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT WAS VERY ACTIVE IN CIVIC MATTERS, AND SHOWED THE WORLD THAT "FIRST LADIES" CAN ALSO MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY BEING ACTIVE IN SOCIAL CAUSES. JACKIE KENNEDY WAS ALSO AN EXCELLENT AMBASSADOR FOR HER HUSBAND, AND COUNTRY. BUT, HILLARY, JUST CAN'T GET ENOUGH. WHAT DOES SHE WANT A MEDAL FOR TENACITY? OH, I GOT IT! SHE WANTS TO HAVE A LIBRARY ON 161 STREET AND JEROME AVENUE, IN THE BRONX, WITH A FREE MEDICAL CLINIC ATTACHED, NAMED: THE HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (THE YANKEE FAN) GLOBAL- PRESIDENT COMPLEX. WHAT A PHILANTROPIC AND UN-PRECEDENT WOMAN? NOW, ISN'T THAT PRESIDENTIAL ENOUGH?
SHE'S REALLY COME A LONG WAY SINCE THOSE "HOT" WATERGATE DAYS IN WASHINGTON DC.

P.S. SHE BECAME THE JUNIOR SENATOR (WHILE SHE WAS OFFICIALLY FIRST LADY) FOR NEW YOR STATE, ON JANUARY 3, 2001. THAT WAS 17 DAYS PRIOR TO GEORGE "DUBYA" BUSH, REPLACING HER HUBBY AS PRESIDENT OF THE USA.

Sunday, January 14, 2007

HOUSING BUBBLE


Housing Bubble Bloodbath
By Mike Whitney

“The crash of the housing bubble will not be pretty. Millions of people stand to lose their homes and life savings. However, it was inevitable. The bubble created a fantasy world that could not continue. At the peak of the bubble, 160,000 people a week were buying a home, most at bubble inflated prices. The longer the bubble persists, the larger the group of people who paid way too much for their home. While it is not good that so many dreams had to be ruined, the number will be even larger if the bubble deflates slowly. So I make no apologies about hoping for the hasty demise of the bubble.” Dean Baker, “Slow Motion Train Wreck” The American Prospect, Aug 2, 2006
“No question about it, the housing downturn is here now, and it’s big.” Jim Hamilton “New Home Sales continue to Fall”, Econbrowser Aug 25, 2006
01/13/06 "Information Clearing House" -- - I wonder if Alan Greenspan takes a copy of the business page along with him on the chair-lift at the Aspen, so he can read about the plummeting housing market before swooshing down the well-groomed bunny-slopes at his favorite ski resort. After all, no one played a larger role in inflating (what the “Economist” called) the “biggest equity bubble in history” than the retired Fed-master. His low interest-rate bonanza triggered a stampede of speculation in the real estate market sending prices through the stratosphere and setting the stage for the biggest economic bust in American history. The whole catastrophe was cooked up Sir Alan and his coterie of brandy-drooling elites at the Federal Reserve. Thanks, guys. Greenspan has undoubtedly taken note of the sudden spike in foreclosures which have set off alarm bells from Wall Street to the American heartland. The effects of his “cheap money” policies are finally sending tremors through America’s fragile economic landscape. In September, 2006 the US Foreclosure Market Report released a statement that over 112,000 homes had entered some stage of foreclosure “a 63% increase from September 2005!?! September was the second straight month in which more than 110,000 new foreclosure filings were reported nationwide, evidence that the spike in August was not just a one-month anomaly.” No, it is not a “one-month anomaly” and it is bound to get considerably worse as $1 trillion of ARMs (Adjustable Rate Mortgages) reset in 2007. The rising foreclosure numbers are the result of rising monthly payments on the new-fangled loans which have low introductory interest rates, but can unexpectedly double after a two or three year period. Imagine mortgage payments that suddenly jump from $1,300 per month to more than $2,000 on a $129,000 house. That’s what many people will be facing in 2007 when their loans reset and they are suddenly forced out of their homes and onto the streets. The housing bubble is actually an extension of the stock market bubble; Greenspan’s earlier swindle which cost American investors $7 trillion in retirement and life-savings. Both equity balloons can be attributed to the shabby and exploitative monetary policies of the Federal Reserve. By expanding credit and money supply via low interest rates, the Fed has kept the economy whirring along creating the impression of prosperity when it’s all just smoke and mirrors. America’s opulence is built on a mountain of debt that’s piled a mile high. Regrettably, that mountain is about to cascade-down on the American people sometime in 2007-2008. There’ll be no escaping the fallout from the $4.5 trillion dollars of new mortgage debt that’s built up in the last 7 years. By the end of 2007 we should be able to identify many of the painful trends that accompany a deep recession; prices of homes will steeply decline, GDP will fall, and Greenspan’s mighty Temple of Debt will crash to earth. Don’t believe me? The New York Times reported last week that “about 2.2 million borrowers that took out sub-prime loans from 1998 to 2006 are likely to lose their homes”. That translates into about 10 million people! But that, of course, is just the beginning of the bloodbath. The real fun begins when the whole, ugly ball-o-corruption starts to unwind and we get an insider’s-view of a system that is rotten to the marrow. The housing industry is saturated with fraud; the banks, the mortgage lenders, the Fed and the homeowners themselves have all played a major role in this sordid confidence game. Consider this, for example: In 2006 the Mortgage Brokers Association for Responsible Lending (MBARL) said that “Liar’s Loans” (those based on what you TELL the bank you are earning, rather than what you are REALLY earning) “shot up to an estimated 62% of mortgage originations…A recent sampling of 100 stated income loans by an auditing firm in Virginia (based on IRS records) found that 90% of the income statements were exaggerated by 5% or more, WHILE ALMOST 60% OF THE STATED AMOUNTS WERE EXAGGERATED BY MORE THAN 50%”!?! (Dan Dorfman New York Sun) Are you kidding me? A majority of loan applicants are grossly exaggerating their income and the banks are handing out hundreds of thousands of dollars WITHOUT EVEN CROSS-CHECKING IRS STATEMENTS? It’s mind-boggling! The question is, how many of these “liars” will be unable to meet their mortgage obligations when the bill comes due in 2007-2008? And, how will their (myriad) defaults affect housing prices for everyone else? Another indication of hanky-panky appeared in the back-pages of the New York Times last week under the appropriate title “A Phantom Rebound in the Housing Market” by Daniel Gross. The article points out that while the Commerce Dept was celebrating the latest rise in new home sales (in Nov) the reality was quite different. In fact, the government is overstating sales “by up to 20%”. The Commerce Dept failed to subtract the thousands of people who signed contracts but “simply walked away from their deposits when they realized they couldn’t flip the houses for a quick profit.” Ooops! So the government is falsifying the figures to make things look better than they really are? You bet. And, most of the high-end home builders like Toll Bros are reporting cancellations in the neighborhood of 37%! The Times adds that, “Mr. Zandi of Economy.com estimates that the differential is even greater. ‘Given the rise in cancellation rates, it suggests that between 150,000 and 200,000 home sales are being counted that actually did not occur.’” “Did not occur”! So, the government is beefing up their stats with an extra 200,000 homes a month!?! Gadzooks! Okay, so the homeowners are lying on their loans, and the government is lying about the sales (and inventory) figures; is that it? No. In an earlier article (The Fed’s role in the Housing Crash of ’07) we already covered how the banks are loaning out as much money as possible through all kinds of “untested” Mickey Mouse mortgages so that unqualified borrowers can get-on-board the housing gold rush. These are the ARMs; the “no-down payment, “interest-only” loans which Business Week magazine called “the riskiest and most complicated home loan product ever created”. Many of these ARMs are timed to explode sometime in the next 2 years and the aftershocks from the defaults are expected to be felt throughout the economy. Of course, the banks never would have exposed themselves to such extraordinary risk if they weren’t able to bundle-up these dubious loans and ship them off to Wall Street. Fund managers have been more than eager to take this “collateralized debt” and use it in the booming hedge fund industry. No one really knows what will happen to the stock market when foreclosures begin to skyrocket and the banks and hedge funds are unable to recoup their losses. But a major “correction” (meltdown) is certainly not out of the question. Once again, all of these problems originated at the Federal Reserve where interest rate manipulation and the loosey-goosey approach to money supply have created the potential for an economic firestorm. Bubble, bubble; toil and trouble So, what can we expect when interest rates tighten up and the market begins to slump. Well, first off, according to the Wall Street Journal, lenders will get “more cautious in initiating new loans and have been setting aside more reserves for potential loan losses.” The banks are battening down the hatches and preparing for the worst. This just confirms that the real hurricane hasn’t even touched down yet and that America’s over-leveraged consumers should try to straighten out their financial affairs as swiftly as possible. (Get out of debt, pronto!) A USB study indicates that a “high percentage of borrowers with delinquent, defaulted and foreclosed loans have second mortgages. These borrowers are so overburdened by the added debt that THEY HAVE TROUBLE MAKING THE PAYMENTS ON THEIR FIRST MORTGAGES. This is an ominous development since 34% of all mortgages in 2006 were second mortgages.” In other words, it’s not simply people in the sub-prime market who are feeling the pinch. Millions of Americans either have loans that will reset at significantly higher monthly rates (which they won’t be able to pay) or they are completely maxxed-out financially after draining every last farthing out of their home equity. In fact, falling prices have decreased the amount of money that homeowners are able to take out of their home equity. (Equity withdrawals decreased by 70% in the last year alone!) That means that there is $525 billion less fueling the overall economy (GDP). As housing prices steadily decline, we can expect that America’s growth will shrink accordingly. The American consumer is hobbled by debt and has no way to increase his revenue as long as wages remain stagnant. Additionally, US households are now showing negative savings. (minus .2%) When the home equity “punch bowl” dries up, it’ll be hard times for the average over-leveraged American consumer. He’ll have nothing left for his buying sprees but the plastic in his wallet. (Credit card debt is soaring) It’ll be tough on the banks and Wall Street, too. After all, over 50% of all mortgages since 2003 have been these shaky, non-conventional loans which have ignored the standard criteria for loaning money (20% down payment, fixed interest rate, sufficient collateral and earnings) Now they’ll have to “pay the piper” and accept the dismal aftereffects of their profligate lending. The banks should have spotted this disaster a mile away. Instead, they decided to improvise on mortgages so they could keep the money flowing and maximize profits. Now, there’s not a life boat big enough on Planet Earth to bail us out. Glub, glub. Once again, we need to remind ourselves that the housing boom was not created by market forces, but by cheap money pumped into the system (via the “creative financing” rip-off) by our friends at the Federal Reserve. They are responsible for this whole bloody boondoggle. When the Fed cut short-term interest rates from 6.5% to 1% in 2001, they knew that they were simply leaping from one equity-bubble to another. In the next 5 years, total mortgage debt increased by a whopping 82% and total real estate value nearly doubled to $21 trillion dollars. These are huge numbers and, of course, the Fed knew exactly where the money was going, just as they knew what the outcome would be in the long term. The effects of low interest rates and increases to the money supply are like the immutable laws of science. In this case, they act like gravity pulling the whole battered US economy into a bottomless black hole. It was entirely predictable. So, what happens now? What can we expect from the architects of this colossal rip-off in the next year or two? Well, the Fed, the US Treasury and the Bush administration--the real axis of evil--would like to forestall the inevitable recession-depression until they carry out their forthcoming attack on Iran. That’s why Bush is sending another carrier group to the Gulf as well as a squadron of F-16s to Turkey. (It also explains why the US forces seized 5 Iranian hostages in Irbil, Iraq yesterday) The US is clamping down on transactions with Iran’s main banks (“unilateral sanctions”) and has coerced the Saudis into “discounting their top-line sweet crude by $1.75 to US customers” (Jim Willie “Golden Jackass.com”) to put additional pressure on Iranian oil exports. As Willie says, “This is the real story behind the falling (Gas) prices, not the silly (East Coast) weather”. Uncle Sam is gearing up for another Middle East dust-up in Iran and the lower gas prices are (temporarily) averting a US recession. The longer term prospects, however, are not so rosy. The “sunny Jim” reports in the media about a “soft landing” will have no affect on the impending housing collapse or on America’s downward economic spiral; the numbers are simply too enormous. By spring 2007, the Fed will have to lower rates to stop the hemorrhaging and to avoid a full-blown depression. When that happens, the last wobbly bit of scaffolding that’s propping up the greenback will be kicked-out and the dollar will slip into oblivion. As long as the Fed keeps rates fixed, the pressure on housing will continue to intensify; pushing prices lower and inventories higher. GDP and home equity will continue to shrivel. It’s all bleak, bleak, bleak. I’ll leave you with a final comment from Michael Hudson’s “The New Road to Serfdom: an Illustrated Guide to the Coming Real Estate Collapse” (Harpers May 2006) Hudson, who may well be the foremost authority on the housing bubble says: “Although home ownership may be a wise choice for many people, this particular real estate bubble has been carefully engineered to lure homebuyers into circumstances detrimental to their own best interests. The bait is easy money. The trap is a modern equivalent to peonage; a lifetime spent working to pay off debt on an asset of rapidly dwindling value. Most everyone involved in the real estate bubble thus far has made at least a few dollars. But that is about to change. The bubble will burst, and when it does, the people who thought they’d be living the easy life of a landlord will soon find that what they really signed up for was the hard servitude of debt serfdom…America holds record mortgage debt in a declining housing market. Even that might first seem okay—we can just whether the storm in our nice new houses. And in fact things will be okay for homeowners who bought long ago and have seen the price of their homes double and then double again. But for more recent homeowners, who bought at the top and now face decades of payments on houses that soon will be worth less than they paid for them, serious trouble is brewing. And they are not an insignificant bunch. The problem for recent homeowners is not just that prices are falling; it’s that prices are falling even as the buyer’s total mortgage remains the same or even increases. Eventually, the price of the house will fall below what the homeowners owe, a state that economists call negative equity. They can’t sell—the declining market price won’t cover what they owe the bank—but they still have to make those (often growing) monthly payments. Their only “choice” is to cut back spending in other areas or lose the house—and everything they paid for in it—in foreclosure. Free markets are based on choice. But more and more homeowners are discovering that what they got for their money is fewer and fewer choices. A real estate boom that began with the promise of “economic freedom” will almost certainly end with a growing number of workers locked into a lifetime of debt servitude that absorbs every spare penny.” It can't be stated more succinctly than that. Thanks, Michael Hudson, for your insightful analysis, but it may be too late.


Saturday, January 13, 2007

A JESUIT FOUNDATION









According To Catholic Educated Woman, If Truth Were Ever Taught About Rome It Would Be Exposed As A Complete Fraud
Rebecca Sexton says millions of children around the world have been brainwashed with rosaries, scapulars, candles, incense and image worship.


13 Jun 2006
By Greg Szymanski

Rebecca Sexton has written a powerful article about the false doctrines of Catholicism from the unique perspective of a child being "brainwashed" in Catholic schools.

Sexton pulls no punches and minces no words, saying if the unbiased history of Rome were ever truthfully told, it would be once and for all exposed as a complete fraud.

Further, Sexton claims the masters of deception and mysticism responsible for brainwashing millions of children around the world are none other that the Jesuits, calling them the diabolical masterminds behind Catholic education.

And in order to better understand how the Jesuits and the Vatican are undermining the liberties and freedom of Americans by totally making a mockery of the separation of church and state, what better way then to listen to a Catholic educated woman who says she has uncovered the hidden truths about the master manipulators - the Jesuits and Vatican hierarchy.

Here is as article, entitled a Jesuit Foundation, an article that will never make it into the pages of the controlled media, but one of utmost value and well worth reading:

A JESUIT FOUNDATION

Mary worship was one of the last false doctrines of Catholicism from which I had to be delivered. From the moment I entered St. Paul's grade school, I was indoctrinated into the cult of Mary. For the next eight years of Catholic schooling, I would be taught daily prayers to Mary (morning, twice at noon and at the end of the school day). I would be taught songs that glorified Mary and learn the use of rosaries, scapulars, candles, incense and image worship. I can honestly say that I was "saturated" with Mary worship.

At age six, I had no idea that the masters of mysticism were about to brainwash me or that the same methods used on me would be used on millions of other Catholic children around the world. These masters of mysticism are none other than the Jesuits, the master minds behind Catholic education.

The Jesuits, founded by Ignatius Loyola (himself a mystic given to visions of Mary, often flagellating and cutting himself ), are, in the words of Catholic theologian J.Huber (a professor in Munich) in his publication Les Jesuites (1875):

"A mixture of piety and diplomacy, asceticism and worldly wisdom, mysticism and cold calculation: as was Loyola's character, so is the trade-mark of this Order" (Secret History of the Jesuits, Edmund Paris, 19).

It is not my purpose to go into the history of the Jesuits, their moral depravity or their numerous crimes against humanity all done "to the glory of God", but more so their teachings, of whom I was a student.

"It is not a Jesuit of old, but a contemporary one who writes: 'He (the Jesuit) will not forget that the characteristic virtue of the Company is total obedience of the action, the will, and even the judgment...All the superiors will be bound in the same way to higher ones and the Father General to the Holy Father...It was so arranged as to render the Holy See's authority universally efficacious, and saint Ignatius was sure that teaching and education would henceforth bring back to Catholic unity a Europe torn apart.' It is with the hope of 'reforming the world', wrote Father Bonhours, 'that he particularly embraced this means: the instruction of youth...' The education of Paraguay's natives was done on the same principles the Fathers used to apply, now apply and will apply on everyone and everywhere; their aim, deplored by Mr. Boehmer, but which is ideal to the eyes of those fanatics: the renouncement of all personal judgment, all initiative, a blind submission to the superiors. Is it not that 'height of freedom', 'the liberation from one's own bondage' praised by R.P. Rouquette and which we mentioned earlier on? In fact, the good Guaranis [savages] had been 'liberated' so well by the Jesuitical method for more than one hundred and fifty years that, when their masters left during the 18th century, they went back into their forests and returned to their ancient customs as if nothing had happened" (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 58)(Emphasis mine).

The Jesuits believed that if they could teach the youth they would belong to them forever. They regarded the education of the young as the most important means of achieving this aim,

"...for thus could the mind, reason and imagination of innumerable young people, from their first inclination towards independent thought and emotion up to full maturity, be permanently and systematically influenced in the best and most effective manner" (The Power and Secret of the Jesuits, Rene Fulop-Miller, 404-405).

O.C. Lambert, who wrote Catholicism Against Itself, on page 278 of the second volume, recognizes the dangers:

"If they [Catholics] can ever get hold of the schools, soon everything else is ruled out. There is no more effective way to make America Catholic than to get control of the schools. THIS IS ALWAYS THEIR FIRST LINE OF EFFORT IN SUBJUGATING A COUNTRY." (Emphasis mine)

"Father" Charmot, in La Pedagogie des Jesuites, pages 413-17, says:

"The pedagogic method of the Company [Jesuits] consists first of all of surrounding the pupils with a great network of prayers...Let us not be anxious as to where and how mysticism is inserted into education!...It is not done through a system or artificial technique, but by infiltration, by 'endosmosis'. The children's souls are impregnated because of their being in close 'contact with masters who are literally saturated with it' " (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 59).

Just these few quotes tell us enough about the principle aim of the Jesuits...their desire to "insert" mysticism into education ...but what mysticism are they talking about?

"At the front - it is characteristic of this Order - we find the Virgin Mary. 'Loyola had made the Virgin the most important thing in his life. The Worship of Mary was the base of his religious devotions and was handed down by him to his Order. This worship developed so much that it was often said, and with good reason, that it was the Jesuits' real religion' " [the quote inside the quote is by "Father" Charmot, a Catholic, not a Protestant] (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 59).

Loyola himself was convinced that the "Virgin" had coached him through visions and audible voices to draw up "Exercises" which are still practiced today. These exercises of "exterior piety to Mary" were promised "to open heaven's doors". They consisted of

"...giving Mary morning and evening salutations, frequently charging the angels to greet her, expressing the desire to build her more churches that all those built by monarchs put together; carrying day and night a rosary as a bracelet, an image of Mary, etc...THESE PRACTICES ARE ENOUGH TO ASSURE OUR SALVATION and if the devil, when we are about to die, makes claims on our souls, we just have to remind him that Mary is responsible for us and he must sort things out with her" (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 61). (Emphasis mine)

These practices and the such were taught to all Catholic children. But the more extreme actions such as described by "Father" Pemble in the following quote were left to the "holy" men and women who supposedly had reached a perfection we could scarcely hope to attain.

"To beat or flagellate ourselves, and offer each blow as a sacrifice to God through Mary, to carve with a knife the holy name of Mary on our chest: to cover ourselves decently at night so as not to offend the chaste gaze of Mary; to tell the Virgin you would be willing to offer her your place in heaven if she didn't have her own; to wish you had never been born or go to hell if Mary had not been born; to never eat an apple, as Mary had been kept from the mistake of tasting of it" (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 61).

These degenerate "exercises" and forms of worship were cultivated into licentious and sensual expressions in many Jesuits, some of which are too obscene to mention. One hymn dedicated to the Virgin by Jesuit Jacques Pontanus stated:

"...He [Jacques] knew of nothing more beautiful than Mary's breasts, nothing sweeter than her milk and nothing more delightful than her abdomen" (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 60).

It's important to understand that the people behind the education were indeed "saturated" themselves with mysticism and so could more effectively pollute the children they were teaching. Many of the Jesuits experienced mystical visions such as Rodrigue de Gois, who:

"...was so enraptured with her [Mary's] inexpressible beauty that he was seen soaring into the air. A novice of this Order, who died in Rome in 1581, was sustained by the Virgin in his fight against the devil's temptations; to strengthen him, she gave him a taste of her Son's blood from time to time and 'the comfort of her breasts' " (The Secret History of the Jesuits, Paris, 60).

Not only are Catholic children taught Mary worship on a regular basis, but in every subject Catholic propaganda is used to better indoctrinate them, making it even more difficult to escape her bonds. The following paragraph was quoted in a concurring opinion by Justices Douglas, Black and Marshall as the Supreme court of the United States, in two cases, June 28, 1971, held by decisions of 8 to 0 and 8 to 1, that State aid to parochial and private schools was unconstitutional.

"In the parochial schools Roman Catholic indoctrination is included in every subject. History, literature, geography, civics, and science are given a Roman Catholic slant. The whole education of the child is filled with propaganda. That, of course, is the very purpose of such schools, the very reason for going to all the work and expense of maintaining a dual school system. Their purpose is not so much to educate, but indoctrinate and train, not to teach Scripture truths and Americanism, but to make loyal Roman Catholics. The children are regimented, and are told what to wear, what to do, and what to think."

As a quick example of this "Catholic slant" let me quote from Christianity in America, The Catholic Social Studies Series, by Rev. Charles J. Mahoney, Ph.D., on page 220, under the title "The Roots of Frontier Democracy":

"This [Democracy] was not a new doctrine; it had been developed in classic form in the Middle Ages by men like St. Thomas Aquinas...The true parents of democracy are the medieval Scholastic philosopher and the American farmer."

This is a blatant lie. Thomas Aquinas never taught democracy...quite the opposite. He believed that anyone who went against the teachings of Rome should be killed...that doesn't sound democratic to me. The Church of Rome is totalitarian and blatantly anti-democratic. Just re-read Pope Pius IX's Syllabus of Errors, which is still binding on all Catholics! One view held by our American government and condemned by Pope Pius IX is that:

"Every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true."

It is obvious that Catholic children are hearing a corrupt and twisted history. The struggle of Protestantism to be free from the chains of tyranny that Rome tried to enslave all humanity under is lost in the retelling in Catholic books. Why tell the truth as it would shed light on their abominations and atrocities? They were known as the "Home of Forgeries" for seven centuries by the Greeks.

"These forgeries made it seem that his [Pope Gregory VII] absolutist claims were based on ancient records zealously kept in the Rome archives. whenever they [Greeks] tried talking with Rome, the popes brought out forged documents, even papal additions to Council documents, which the Greeks, naturally, had never seen...Many earlier documents were touched up to make them say the opposite of what they said originally" (Vicars of Christ: The Dark Side of the Papacy, Peter De Rosa, 58-59).

If unbiased history were taught, Rome would be exposed as a fraud, therefore she continues to deceive her students with false information, and works zealously to get public funding for this deception.

A most interesting observation is made by Loraine Boettner in his book Roman Catholicism:

"Most of the teaching in the parochial schools is done by the nuns. They teach the children to revere and worship the Virgin Mary and to trust in images and rosaries whether they know anything about faith in Christ or not. All nuns are under solemn vows to promote their religion in every course they teach. They work year in and year out without receiving anything more than their board and keep, and without the personal freedom that every American has the right to enjoy. They are kept in abject poverty, while money flows freely to the priests, bishops, and especially to the Vatican in Rome" (360-361).

It is the heart of Jesuitism to cause all to come under subjection to the Pope, therefore it is to the hierarchy's advantage to have their servants teaching the children to become servants like themselves. I know...I wanted to be a nun throughout all my gradeschool years. Using this kind of mental seduction has caused many young men and women to enter the convent or priesthood only to find themselves ridden with guilt for daring to think for themselves and many end up committing suicide. A friend's sister came home from the convent during the holidays and shot herself. Few knew why.

Many fellow Christians will find it hard to witness to a Catholic because they were "saturated by mysticism" by the same techniques that Hitler used on his youth and on his SS. Yes, it was Jesuit techniques that Hitler so admired,

"...Ecclesiasticism without Christianity, the discipline of a monastic rule, not for God's sake or in order to achieve personal salvation but for the sake of the State and for the greater glory and power of the demagogue turned leader - this was the goal for which the systematic moving of the masses was to lead" (Brave New World Revisited, Huxley, 44-45).

As Hermann Rauschning in 1939 wrote:

"Hitler has a deep respect for the Catholic church and the Jesuit order; not because of their Christian doctrine, but because of the 'machinery' they have elaborated and controlled, their hierarchal system, their extremely clever tactics, their knowledge of human nature and their wise use of human weaknesses in ruling over believers."

These same techniques are used on Democratic children in America to this day! How well our early Founding Fathers of America discerned the dangers of the Jesuits. John Adams, as early as 1816 wrote to his successor Thomas Jefferson:

"I do not like the reappearance of the Jesuits...Shall we not have regular swarms of them here, in as many disguises as only a king of the gypsies can assume, dressed as printers, publishers, writers and schoolmasters? If ever there was a body of men who merited eternal damnation on earth and in hell, it is this Society of Loyola's. Nevertheless, we are compelled by our system of religious toleration to offer them an asylum...." (The Power and Secret of the Jesuits, Rene Fulop-Miller, 390)

Thomas Jefferson replied to his predecessor:

"Like you, I disapprove of the restoration of the Jesuits, for it means a step backwards from light into darkness...." (The Power and Secret of the Jesuits, Rene Fulop-Miller, 390)

And darkness it is. A Catholic parent is pressured to send his/her children to the Catholic school.

"Canon Law 1374 denies freedom of choice to Roman Catholic parents in regards to schools, and say that they must send their children to parochial school under pain of mortal sin unless excused from doing so by the bishop" (Roman Catholicism, Boettner, 358) (Emphasis mine).

In Roman Catholicism, pages 358-359, Boettner points out that parents have no choice, no rights at all as regards teachers, texts, or methods of instruction by Catholic Canon Law 1381:

1. "In all schools the religious training of the young is subject to the authority and inspection of the Catholic Church" (i.e., the priest or bishop) 2. "It is the right and duty of the Bishops to take care that nothing is taught or done against the Faith or sound morals in any school in their territory." 3. "The Bishops have also the right to approve the teachers of religion and the textbooks and further to require that texts be dropped or teachers removed, when the good of religion or morality demands this action."

We entered Catholic school at the request of the priest, who said it was bad enough that we were living in a God-forsaken town ( Greentown was primarily Protestant).

"The fact is that the parochial school has been promoted primarily by the priests and bishops as a means of keeping the children of their church separate from Protestant children and from public school influences during their formative years, the better to indoctrinate and control them" (Roman Catholicism, Boettner, 359).

In all the Jesuit's methods of control to form our minds in complete obedience to Rome, they have only one thing to fear... the Word of God. That's why they have worked overtime putting out "new and better" versions. They know from experience of history that the

"...word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." (Heb.4:12)

From the moment that Jesus circumcised my heart (Deut.30:6) to hear His Word, the control Catholicism had over me diminished, until it eventually lost all holds. I have escaped Rome, but left behind me are millions like me who were given a Jesuit foundation. If you wish to witness to a Catholic, be prepared for a struggle, for we are in a war, a spiritual war.

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." (Eph.6:12)

These high places are not only the Vatican and her Jesuit army, but also any denomination that has broken with her, yet still retains any of her blasphemous doctrines or practices. Yes, they have their army and use education and indoctrination against our youth, turning church and school into a battleground. Our strength lies in the knowledge that the "...battle is the Lord's...."(I Sam.17:47) and that it is "...not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts." (Zech.4:6)

"For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (2 Cor.4:6)

Greg Szymanski Greg also has his own daily show on the Republic Broadcast Network. Go to http://www.rbnlive.com/listen Greg Szymanski is an independent investigative journalist and his articles can been seen at www.LewisNews.com. He also writes for American Free Press and has his own site www.arcticbeacon.com
Listen to my Radio Broadcast live Monday night at 8pm Pacific time on LewisNews, returning Jan. 1 2006 Radio http://webs.lewisnews.com/radio/index.htm. Greg is also regular on Rense.com the first Thursday of every month at 9-10 pm pacific time.

Friday, January 12, 2007

THE ANTI-CHRIST AND THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION


The Antichrist and the Protestant Reformation

"Protestants there are,
but Protestantism is no more."
--Alexander Vinet (1797-1847)

The Protestant Reformation in the 1500s literally changed the course of history. It helped move Europe out of the Dark Ages and led to the rise of true religious freedom. It's original principles eventually found expression in the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America which teaches that when it comes to religion, the governments of earth have no right to control the conscience.

True Protestantism teaches salvation by grace through faith in Jesus (Eph. 2:8) and the supremacy of the Bible above the visible church (2 Tim. 3:16) - above traditions, pastors, priests, popes and kings (See D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation of the Sixteen Century, book xiii, chapter vi, pp. 520-524). It also teaches the priesthood of all believers (2 Pet. 2:9, 10) and that all people everywhere can be saved by coming directly to our loving heavenly Father through His only Son, Jesus Christ (John 14:6). "There is o­ne God, and o­ne mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus" (1 Tim. 2:5).

What did the major Protestant Reformers teach about the Antichrist? Whether you agree with them or not, it's important to realize what they taught. The following quotations are not intented to foster ill will toward any human being, for this would be contrary to teaching of Jesus Christ (John 13:34, 35), but rather to simply present what some of the most influential Christian leaders who have ever lived believed about "the little horn" (Daniel 7:8), "the beast" (Revelation 13:1), and "the man of sin" (2 Thessalonians 2:3) - about Antichrist.

Martin Luther (1483-1546) (Lutheran): "Luther ... proved, by the revelations of Daniel and St. John, by the epistles of St. Paul, St. Peter, and St. Jude, that the reign of Antichrist, predicted and described in the Bible, was the Papacy ... And all the people did say, Amen! A holy terror siezed their souls. It was Antichrist whom they beheld seated o­n the pontifical throne. This new idea, which derived greater strength from the prophetic descriptions launched forth by Luther into the midst of his contemporaries, inflicted the most terrible blow o­n Rome." Taken from J. H. Merle D'aubigne's History of the Reformation of the Sixteen Century, book vi, chapter xii, p. 215.

Based o­n prophetic studies, Martin Luther finally declared, "We here are of the conviction that the papacy is the seat of the true and real Antichrist." (Aug. 18, 1520). Taken from The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, by LeRoy Froom. Vol. 2., pg. 121.


John Calvin (1509-1564) (Presbyterian): "Some persons think us too severe and censorious when we call the Roman pontiff Antichrist. But those who are of this opinion do not consider that they bring the same charge of presumption against Paul himself, after whom we speak and whose language we adopt... I shall briefly show that (Paul's words in II Thess. 2) are not capable of any other interpretation than that which applies them to the Papacy." Taken from Institutes of the Christian Religion, by John Calvin.

John Knox (1505-1572) (Scotch Presbyterian): John Knox sought to counteract "that tyranny which the pope himself has for so many ages exercised over the church." As with Luther, he finally concluded that the Papacy was "the very antichrist, and son of perdition, of whom Paul speaks." The Zurich Letters, by John Knox, pg. 199.

Thomas Cranmer (1489-1556) (Anglican): "Whereof it followeth Rome to be the seat of antichrist, and the pope to be very antichrist himself. I could prove the same by many other scriptures, old writers, and strong reasons." (Referring to prophecies in Revelation and Daniel.) Works by Cranmer, Vol. 1, pp. 6-7.

Roger Williams (1603-1683) (First Baptist Pastor in America): Pastor Williams spoke of the Pope as "the pretended Vicar of Christ o­n earth, who sits as God over the Temple of God, exalting himself not o­nly above all that is called God, but over the souls and consciences of all his vassals, yea over the Spirit of Christ, over the Holy Spirit, yea, and God himself...speaking against the God of heaven, thinking to change times and laws; but he is the son of perdition (II Thess. 2)." The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, by Froom, Vol. 3, pg. 52.

The Westminster Confession of Faith (1647): "There is no other head of the church but the Lord Jesus Christ. Nor can the pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof; but is that Antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition that exalteth himself in the church against Christ and all that is called God." Taken from Philip Schaff's, The Creeds of Christendom, With a History and Critical Notes, III, p. 658, 659, ch. 25, sec. 6.

Cotton Mather (1663-1728) (Congregational Theologian): "The oracles of God foretold the rising of an Antichrist in the Christian Church: and in the Pope of Rome, all the characteristics of that Antichrist are so marvelously answered that if any who read the Scriptures do not see it, there is a marvelous blindness upon them." Taken from The Fall of Babylon by Cotton Mather in Froom's book, The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, Vol. 3, pg. 113.

John Wesley (1703-1791) (Methodist): Speaking of the Papacy, John Wesley wrote, "He is in an emphatical sense, the Man of Sin, as he increases all manner of sin above measure. And he is, too, properly styled the Son of Perdition, as he has caused the death of numberless multitudes, both of his opposers and followers... He it is...that exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped...claiming the highest power, and highest honour...claiming the prerogatives which belong to God alone." Antichrist and His Ten Kingdoms, by John Wesley, pg. 110.

A Great Cloud of Witnesses: "Wycliffe, Tyndale, Luther, Calvin, Cranmer; in the seventeenth century, Bunyan, the translators of the King James Bible and the men who published the Westminster and Baptist confessions of Faith; Sir Isaac Newton, Wesley, Whitfield, Jonathan Edwards; and more recently Spurgeon, Bishop J.C. Ryle and Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones; these men among countless others, all saw the office of the Papacy as the antichrist." Taken from All Roads Lead to Rome, by Michael de Semlyen. Dorchestor House Publications, p. 205. 1991.
Taken from Chapter 9 of Steve Wohlberg's small book: The Antichrist Chronicles: What Prophecy Teachers Aren't Telling You, and recorded in his larger book, End Time Delusions: The Rapture, the Antichrist, Israel, and the End of the World (published by Destiny Image).

Source: http://www.endtimeinsights.com

SDA CHURCH IS NOT BABYLON?


The Seventh-day Adventist Church IS NOT Babylon in 1893--WHY?

BACKGROUND INFORMATION


Most Seventh-day Adventist Church members, being loyal to their hierarchy of church leadership, quote a "famous" article, written by Ellen G. White in 1893, to "prove" that the SDA Church organization has not yet reached (and will never reach) the dreadful condition of spiritual declension called "Babylon." The familiar statement is found in Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers.
Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, Page 521:

APPENDIX NOTES


PAGE 23. PAMPHLETS DENOUNCING THE S.D.A. CHURCH AS BABYLON: REFERENCE IS MADE TO A PAMPHLET ENTITLED, "THE LOUD CRY OF THE THIRD ANGEL'S MESSAGE," PUBLISHED BY A SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST LAY MEMBER, MR. STANTON, IN THE YEAR 1893. THIS MAN, IN HIS STUDY OF THE BIBLE AND THE TESTIMONIES, FOCUSED HIS ATTENTION PRIMARILY ON THE MESSAGES OF REPROOF AND REBUKE, FORGETTING THAT GOD HAD SAID THAT "AS MANY AS I LOVE, I REBUKE AND CHASTEN." REVELATION 3:19. HE CONCLUDED THAT THE TESTIMONIES OF REPROOF CONSTITUTED A MESSAGE OF REJECTION, AND THAT THOSE WHO WOULD JOIN IN SOUNDING THE LOUD CRY MUST WITHDRAW FROM THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH. THE CHURCH, HE ASSERTED, HAD BECOME BABYLON, AND THOSE WHO WOULD FINISH GOD'S WORK IN THE EARTH AND MEET THEIR LORD IN PEACE MUST SEPARATE FROM THE BODY.

AN ARDENT DISCIPLE, MR. W. F. CALDWELL, WAS DISPATCHED TO AUSTRALIA TO CARRY THE MESSAGE TO THAT LAND AND TO VISIT MRS. WHITE, WHO, IT WAS SUPPOSED, WOULD JOIN THEIR FORCES OF "REFORM." ARRIVING IN AUSTRALIA, HE DISCOVERED THAT WHILE HE HAD BEEN CROSSING THE PACIFIC TO AUSTRALIA, A TESTIMONY WAS ON ITS WAY FROM NEW ZEALAND TO AMERICA SPECIFYING THE MESSAGE OF THE "LOUD CRY" TRACT AS "ONE OF THE DELUSIONS DESIGNED TO CREATE CONFUSION AMONG THE CHURCHES," AND STATING IN THE CLEAREST LANGUAGE THAT "IF YOU ARE TEACHING THAT THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH IS BABYLON, YOU ARE WRONG." SEE THE FULL LETTER ON PAGES 58-62. MRS. WHITE MET THIS MISLEADING TEACHING IN A SERIES OF ARTICLES IN THE REVIEW AND HERALD ENTITLED "THE REMNANT CHURCH NOT BABYLON," NOW COMPRISING PAGES 32-62 OF THIS VOLUME. THIS OFFSHOOT MOVEMENT HAD BUT A VERY SHORT LIFE.

Ellen White's reasons for writing her testimony in opposition to these brethren are well understood by reading the following article penned by her hand. When the principles involved are rightly discerned and applied, it is clear that her 1893 assessment of the Seventh-day Adventist Church is not relevant to our modern times and the present state of the Seventh-day Adventist Church organization.

God's Rebuke to Laodicea--Ellen G. White

Those who have published the "Loud Cry" tract have not consulted me upon the subject. They have quoted largely from my writings and put their own construction upon them. They claim to have a special message from God to pronounce the Seventh-day Adventist Church Babylon, proclaim her fall, and call the people of God to come out of her, and try to make the testimonies substantiate their theory. These publications are misleading minds, and increasing the prejudice already existing, and tend to make it more difficult to get access to them to present the message God has given in warnings to the world of altogether a different character from the ideas presented in these pamphlets.

I arose at half-past two o'clock; I could not sleep; the burden was upon me. The history of the children of Israel urged itself upon my mind, and many points were so clearly pressed upon me that I dared not keep silent. I wrote twenty-three pages between three o'clock and half past twelve o'clock. My spirit was stirred within me. I felt a burden for the people of God, not only on account of this one production, but because of many such matters which are coming to the people, claiming to be messages from God. "By their fruits ye shall know them" (Matthew 7:20)

A number of these pamphlets came to the post office, with instruction to the postmaster to hand them to Seventh-day Adventists. The people of Wellington are full of prejudice. The circulation of D. M. Canright's falsehoods has created prejudice, making it next to impossible to reach the people, and everything of this character creates the suspicion that we are working under cover. These pamphlets and telegraph dispatches from Brother C[aldwell] are of a character to confirm these suspicions. All these things are closing the doors of the people against us. The way is being hedged up by just such things.

These men who think they are doing God service are working on the enemy's side, not on God's side. . . .
. . . No one can be safe now unless riveted to the eternal Rock. We have every reason to be grateful and trustful in God. The Lord Jesus knoweth them that are His. He died to save a lost world, and He is gathering out from it an army to serve under His banner. And He will present to Himself a glorious church without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.

I understood that both these men were at the General Conference [held in Battle Creek, February 17 - March 6, 1893], that is, S[tanton] and C[aldwell]. Could they not discern there the revealings of the Spirit of God? Could they not see that God was opening the windows of heaven and pouring out a blessing? Why was this? Testimonies had been given correcting and counseling the church and many had made a practical application of the message to the Laodicean Church, and were confessing their sins and repenting in contrition of soul. They were hearing the voice of Jesus, the heavenly Merchantman, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (Revelation 3:20).

These brethren who claimed to have this wonderful light had the very same work of repentance and confession to do, thus clearing the rubbish from the door of their own hearts, and opening the door of their hearts to welcome the heavenly guest. Had they placed themselves in the channel of light, they would have received the most precious blessings from heaven. They would have seen that the Lord was indeed gracious, manifesting Himself to His people, and that the Sun of Righteousness had risen upon them. This was precious merchandizing actively carried on. The counsel of Christ to the Laodicean Church was being acted upon, and all who were feeling their poverty were buying gold (faith and love), white raiment (the righteousness of Christ), and eye salve (true spiritual discernment).

Why did not these brethren fall into line, and place themselves in the channel of light? They were poverty stricken and knew it not. They were not working in Christ's lines, were not softened and subdued by His Holy Spirit, and were so blinded that they could not see the strong beams of light that were coming from the throne of God upon His people. They heard not the voice of the true Shepherd. They were listening to the voice of a stranger.

When I consider the infirmities of these misled brethren, I feel deep sorrow of heart that they did not plead with God, "Bless me, O God bless, now I see my error. Thou art communicating to Thy people the richest truths ever committed to mortals. These people are not Babylon; for Thou hast given to them righteousness and peace; and Thy joy, that their joy may be full." Oh why did they not open the door of their heart to Jesus? Why not have removed right there all that obstructs the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness that they might shine to the world? While God's blessing was penetrating everywhere, while His presence was consecrating and sanctifying souls unto Himself, why did they not place their souls in the channel of light? It was because Satan had cast his hellish shadow athwart their pathway to obstruct every ray of light.
How could they come from that meeting where the power of God was revealed in so marked a manner, and proclaim that the loud cry was that the commandment-keeping people were Babylon. Satan was saying that same thing to Christ when Joshua stood before the angel. Satan was declaring his sins to be so great that he should not be restrained from destroying him. The words of Christ are applicable to these brethren, and to all who advance similar sentiments. "The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel" (Zechariah 2:2,3). Who clothed him with filthy garments? "And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord stood by. And the angel of the Lord protested unto Joshua, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways,and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by" (Zechariah 2:4-7). The work of Satan is to cover the repentant, believing, commandment-keeping people of God with defiling garments; Jesus Christ commands them to be clothed with His righteousness, garments woven in the loom of heaven.
. . .
Beware of those who arise with a great burden to denounce the church. The chosen ones who are standing and breasting the storm of opposition from the world, and are uplifting the down-trodden commandments of God to exalt them as honorable and holy, are indeed the light of the world.

How dare mortal man pass his judgment upon them, and call the church a harlot, Babylon, a den of thieves, a cage of every unclean and hateful bird, the habitation of devils, making the nations drunk with the wine of her fornication, confederating with the kings and great men of the earth, waxing rich through the abundance of her delicacies, and proclaiming that her sins have reached unto heaven and God hath remembered her iniquities? Is this the message we have to bear to the Seventh-day Adventists [in 1893]? I tell you, No! God has given no man any such message. Let these men humble their hearts before God, and in true contrition repent that they have even for a time stood by the side of the accuser of the brethren who accused them before God day and night. . . .

It seems almost impossible that anyone who had a genuine experience in the faith should suggest such erroneous applications of Scripture as applicable to God's commandment-keeping people. Supposing this spurious message is the one everyone must hear for this time, "Come out of her My people," where shall we go to? Where shall we find the purity, goodness, and holiness where we shall be secure? Where is the fold where no wolves will enter?
. . .
The Lord has had a church from that day [Christ's lifetime], through all the changing scenes of time to the present period, 1893. The Bible sets before us a model church. They are to be in unity with each other, and with God. When believers are united to Christ the living vine, the result is that they are one with Christ, full of sympathy and tenderness and love. When anyone is drawing apart from the organized body of God's commandment-keeping people, when he begins to weigh the church in his human scales, and begins to pronounce judgment against them, then you may know that God is not leading him. He is on the wrong track.
. . . .
Ms 21, 1893 , pp. 1-10. (Untitled manuscript, June 12, 1893.)Manuscript Releases Volume One, Pages 348-357.

Babylon is said to be "the mother of harlots." By her daughters must be symbolized churches that cling to her doctrines and traditions, and follow her example of sacrificing the truth and the approval of God, in order to form an unlawful alliance with the world. (GC 382, 383)

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NOTE: Those who have had opportunities to hear and receive of the truth and who have united with the Seventh-day Adventist church, calling themselves the commandment-keeping people of God, and yet possess no more vitality and consecration to God than do the nominal churches, will receive the plagues of God just as verily as the churches who oppose the law of God. Ellen G. White: 19MR 176 (1898)