Monday, February 26, 2007

'ALL OPTIONS ARE ON THE TABLE'


Cheney: 'All Options' Available for Iran


By ROHAN SULLIVAN
SYDNEY, Australia Feb 24, 2007 (AP)— Vice President Dick Cheney on Saturday renewed Washington's warning to Iran that "all options" are on the table if the country continues to defy U.N.-led efforts to end Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
At a joint news conference with Prime Minister John Howard during a visit to Australia, Cheney also said Washington was "comfortable" with Britain's decision to withdraw troops from Iraq and that it was up to Australia to decide if it would do the same.
Cheney said the United States was "deeply concerned" about Iran's activities, including the "aggressive" sponsoring of terrorist group Hezbollah and inflammatory statements by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
He said top U.S. officials would meet soon with European allies to decide the next step toward planned tough sanctions against Iran if it continues enriching uranium.
"We worked with the European community and the United Nations to put together a set of policies to persuade the Iranians to give up their aspirations and resolve the matter peacefully, and that is still our preference," Cheney said.
"But I've also made the point, and the president has made the point, that all options are on the table," he said, leaving open the possibility of military action.
The International Atomic Energy Agency reported on Thursday that Iran had not only ignored a U.N. Security Council ultimatum to freeze its enrichment program, but had expanded the program by setting up hundreds of centrifuges. Enriched uranium fuels nuclear reactors but, enriched further, is used in nuclear bombs.
The IAEA report came after the expiration Wednesday of a 60-day grace period for Iran to halt uranium enrichment.
Ahmadinejad said on Thursday it was of no importance if countries did not believe Iran's nuclear activities were peaceful, and said the country would resist "all bullies."
Howard said efforts to keep Iran in check would be hampered if the United States and its allies lose the Iraq war.
"I can't think of a country whose influence and potential clout would be more enhanced in that part of the world than Iran's could be if there were to be a coalition defeat in Iraq," Howard said.
On Iraq, Cheney sidestepped a question about whether the White House had asked the British government to redeploy troops into another part of Iraq rather than withdraw them.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair has outlined a plan to withdraw about 1,600 troops from southern Iraq in the coming months, and to reduce Britain's 7,100-strong contingent further by late summer.
"They are going to continue to have a major presence there. They are also … beefing up their operations in Afghanistan," Cheney said. "So we are very comfortable with that decision."
Britain said Friday it will increase its troop strength in Afghanistan to bolster NATO forces battling Taliban militants, with media reports saying 1,000 soldiers will join the more than 5,000 troops already there.
Cheney declined to say if he had asked Howard during talks held Saturday to add to the 1,400 troops Australian has in and around Iraq.
"It's not for us to stress to our allies what their appropriate response might be," Cheney said, adding there would be no damage to the U.S.-Australian military alliance if Australia did withdraw its troops.
Cheney due to leave Australia on Sunday promised that an Australian who has been detained without trial at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for more than five years was "near the head of the queue" of possible military trials.
Howard said he had expressed Australia's concern at the length of time it was taking to bring David Hicks, a former kangaroo skinner who was captured in Afghanistan in 2001 on the Taliban side, to trial.
"I can assure you we will be doing everything we can to deal with these matters in as expeditious manner as possible," Cheney said.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Source: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2900804

CON-AIR


U.S. sent pallets of cash to Baghdad

By Jeremy Pelofsky
Reuters
Feb 6, 2007 — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve sent record payouts of more than $4 billion in cash to Baghdad on giant pallets aboard military planes shortly before the United States gave control back to Iraqis, lawmakers said on Tuesday.
The money, which had been held by the United States, came from Iraqi oil exports, surplus dollars from the U.N.-run oil-for-food program and frozen assets belonging to the ousted Saddam Hussein regime.
Bills weighing a total of 363 tons were loaded onto military aircraft in the largest cash shipments ever made by the Federal Reserve, said Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
"Who in their right mind would send 363 tons of cash into a war zone? But that's exactly what our government did," the California Democrat said during a hearing reviewing possible waste, fraud and abuse of funds in Iraq.
On December 12, 2003, $1.5 billion was shipped to Iraq, initially "the largest pay out of U.S. currency in Fed history," according to an e-mail cited by committee members.
It was followed by more than $2.4 billion on June 22, 2004, and $1.6 billion three days later. The CPA turned over sovereignty on June 28.
Paul Bremer, who as the administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority ran Iraq after initial combat operations ended, said the enormous shipments were done at the request of the Iraqi minister of finance.
"He said, 'I am concerned that I will not have the money to support the Iraqi government expenses for the first couple of months after we are sovereign. We won't have the mechanisms in place, I won't know how to get the money here,"' Bremer said.
"So these shipments were made at the explicit request of the Iraqi minister of finance to forward fund government expenses, a perfectly, seems to me, legitimate use of his money," Bremer told lawmakers.
WHERE'S THE MONEY?
Democrats led by Waxman also questioned whether the lack of oversight of $12 billion in Iraqi money that was disbursed by Bremer and the CPA somehow enabled insurgents to get their hands on the funds, possibly through falsifying names on the government payroll.
"I have no knowledge of monies being diverted. I would certainly be concerned if I thought they were," Bremer said. He pointed out that the problem of fake names on the payroll existed before the U.S.-led invasion.
The special inspector general for Iraqi reconstruction, Stuart Bowen, said in a January 2005 report that $8.8 billion was unaccounted for after being given to the Iraqi ministries.
"We were in the middle of a war, working in very difficult conditions, and we had to move quickly to get this Iraqi money working for the Iraqi people," Bremer told lawmakers. He said there was no banking system and it would have been impossible to apply modern accounting standards in the midst of a war.
"I acknowledge that I made mistakes and that, with the benefit of hindsight, I would have made some decisions differently," Bremer said.
Republicans argued that Bremer and the CPA staff did the best they could under the circumstances and accused Democrats of trying to score political points over the increasingly unpopular Iraq war.
"We are in a war against terrorists, to have a blame meeting isn't, in my opinion, constructive," said Rep. Dan Burton, an Indiana Republican.
Copyright 2007 Reuters News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Source: http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2854955

WAR AGAINST THE PEOPLE




N. B.: American President George W. Bush has issued Executive Orders allowing the National Security Agency to read this message and all other e-mail you receiveor send---without warning, warrant or notice. Bush has ordered this to be done without any legislative or judicial oversight.In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.

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Article:

February 26, 2007

A Political War against the American People and its Institutions

by Rodrigue Tremblay [http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/author.html]

Second sorrow: "A loss of democracy and Constitutional rights as the presidency eclipses Congress and is itself transformed from a co-equal 'executive branch'of government into a military junta".Chalmers Johnson (Sorrows of Empire).
"Now those who seek absolute power, even though they seek it to do what they regard as good, are simply demanding the right to enforce their own version of heaven on earth, and let me remind you they are the very ones who always create the most hellish tyranny." Barry Goldwater, former Republican senator from Arizona.

"Kings had always been involving and impoverishing their people in wars, pretending generally, if not always, that the good of the people was the object. This, our (U.S.) Convention understood to be the most oppressive of all Kingly oppressions; and they resolved to so frame the Constitution that no one man should hold the power of bringing this oppression upon us." Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), 16th U.S. president.

“There are no hereditary kings in America.” Judge Anna Diggs Taylor.

The Iraq war is turning into a war against theAmerican people and its institutions. According to the latest poll, an overwhelming majority of Americans (63%) want U.S. troops to be out of Iraq by the end of next year. This is the clear message[http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-02-12-troops-poll_x.htm]the American electorate is sending to President GeorgeW. Bush. On February 16 (2007), 56 percent of themembers of the U.S. House of Representativeessentially said the same thing when they adoptedResolution 63, by a vote of 246 against 182, in whichthey stated that "... Congress disapproves of thedecision of President George W. Bush announced onJanuary 10, 2007, to deploy more than 20,000additional United States combat troops to Iraq." And,to make it complete, 56 percent of U.S. Senatorssignified their opposition to the war on February 17(2007). These clear democratic signals of the people'swishes came after the November 7 (2006) election, inwhich pro-war Republican candidates took a thumping.They also came after a blue ribbon study group,[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Study_Group] theBaker-Hamilton Commission, unanimously concluded thatthe solution in Iraq is political and not military,and unanimously recommended that the U.S. terminateits open-ended presence in Iraq and begin itsdisengagement and “redeployment” from that country.You would think that politicians who respect democracyand the people's right to govern themselves would payattention and listen to what the sovereign electorateis saying. —But to no avail. The Bush-Cheney regime,initially placed into power by one Supreme judge[http://www.Democrats.com/node/11798] in 2000, afterpresidential candidate Al Gore[http://elandslide.org/display.cfm?id=181] won thepopular vote, went the other way and ordered amilitary build-up in the Persian Gulf, and, againstthe advice of the generals on the ground, ordered amilitary 'surge' in Iraq.[http://fairuse.100webcustomers.com/sf/salon_1_06_07.htm]It is a strange spectacle in a democracy when theinfluence of a few people trumps the will of themajority. The Bush-Cheney regime seems to be inclinedto follow the narrow advice of powerful lobbies ratherthan listen to what the electorate and electedofficials are saying. In Washington D.C., under GeorgeW. Bush and Dick Cheney, the American EnterpriseInstitute (AEI)[http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2007/01/06/aei/print.htmlhas more clout than the U.S. Congress. On January 14(2007), U.S. President George W. Bush[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/01/14/national/w100915S46.DTL]expressed his personal conception of democracy when hesaid: "... they [the Congress] could try to stop mefrom doing it. But I’ve made my decision. And we’regoing forward." —And two weeks later, on January 25(2007), oil-man Dick Cheney[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/25/politics/main2397224.shtml]reinforced this cynical point of view by saying, aftera Senate Committee adopted a resolution in oppositionto Bush's plan for a military escalation in Iraq: "Itwon't stop us"..."We are moving forward." ... "We needto get the job done." And Cheney added defiantly it's"hogwash to say Bush's credibility is at stake inIraq." It does not matter that the Bush-Cheney team has madecolossal errors of judgment,[http://www.antiwar.com/orig/odom.php?articleid=10396]they feel they have absolute powers in their hands andthey intend to use them for whatever project they havein mind, and damn the American public, damn theelected Congress, and damn world opinion. Indeed, thisregime has resurrected President Richard Nixon's oldand infamous philosophy of 'executive supremacy' andhas even gone further in adopting the anti-democratictheory of an "imperial presidency."[http://www.Democrats.com/Cheneys-Dead-Enders].According to this dangerous theory, there are nolimits to presidential wartime powers, even when nosuch war has been declared by Congress. In suchcircumstances of his own choosing, a president couldthen stop recognizing the authority of the electedCongress and refuse to accept the courts as finalarbiters of constitutional rights, each time heconsiders this role to be at odds with his vision ofnational security. Of course, such an outright grasp for power smacksdictatorship and represents a direct attack on theU.S. Constitution, with its Checks and Balances andthe Rule of Law at its center, provisions which havebeen precisely designed to avoid the pitfalls ofdictatorship. Maybe people should have paid moreattention when George W. Bush joked aloud that "Ifthis were a dictatorship, it'd be a heck of a loteasier, just so long as I'm the dictator." (December18, 2000), or when he proclaimed that "I'm thedecider, and I decide what's best.“ (April 14, 2006)As President and Father of the U.S. Constitution JamesMadison (1751-1836) put it: "There are more instancesof the abridgement of freedom of the people by gradualand silent encroachments of those in power than byviolent and sudden usurpations." In fact, mostconstitutional experts believe that Bush's claim foran imperial presidency is prima facie unconstitutionaland is not supported by anything in the U.S.Constitution.[http://www.fff.org/comment/com0604b.asp]. Inparticular, it has been pointed out that theBush-Cheney administration cannot invoke the October 22002 Iraq resolution[http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/10/20021002-2.html]as a blank check to claim absolute powers, becausethis resolution explicitly invoked the War PowersResolution (1976 War Powers Act),[http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?no=340251&rel_no=1]Section 2(b), which requires the President of theUnited States to gain congressional approval beforeany troop deployment abroad.Therefore, it remains to be seen if the Bush-Cheneyregime can go on challenging the American people,Congress and the courts for two more years, not evenconsidering international law and world publicopinion._______________________________________Rodrigue Tremblay[http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/author.htm] isprofessor emeritus of economics at the University ofMontreal and can be reached atrodrigue.tremblay@yahoo.com. He is the author of thebook 'The New AmericanEmpire'.[http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0741418878/qid=1088897483/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_5/104-6665916-6565553?s=books&v=glance&n=283155]Visit his blog siteathttp://www.thenewamericanempire.com/blog. Author's Website: http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/ Check Dr. Tremblay's coming book 'The Code for GlobalEthics' at: http://www.moralitywithoutreligion.com_____________________________________Posted, February 26, 2007, at 5:30 amEmail to a friend:http://www.TheNewAmericanEmpire.com/tremblay=1059Send contact, comments or commercial reproductionrequests (in English or in French) to:bigpictureworld@yahoo.comN.B.: Messages may be published in our weblog, unlessyou request otherwise.Please register to receive free emails on new postingsof articles.Send an email with the word "subscribe" to:bigpictureworld@yahoo.com(Home: TheNewAmericanEmpire.com)© 2007- Big Picture World Syndicate, Inc

Source: http://www.TheNewAmericanEmpire.com/tremblay=1059

Saturday, February 24, 2007

PREACH THE WORD


2 Timothy 4



1I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
2Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.
3For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
5But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
6For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
7I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
8Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
9Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me:
10For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.
11Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry.
12And Tychicus have I sent to Ephesus.
13The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.
14Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works:
15Of whom be thou ware also; for he hath greatly withstood our words.
16At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.
17Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
18And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
19Salute Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus.
20Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick.
21Do thy diligence to come before winter. Eubulus greeteth thee, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia, and all the brethren.
22The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.

NEW ROMAN EMPEROR?





Power Grab of the Pope - New Roman Emperor?



Sunday, 03 September 2006

Render unto the Pope...
Adrian Hilton says that the EU is a means of undoing the Reformation and extending Vatican sovereignty over Britain.
"Render Unto The Pope..." - The Spectator - UK
This realm of England is an Empire ...governed by one Supreme Head and King.' So proclaimed Thomas Cromwell in his most critical piece of legislation, the Act in Restraint of Appeals in 1533. By calling England an empire, he designated it a sovereign state, with a king who owed no submission to any other human ruler and who was invested with plenary power to give his people justice in all causes. Interestingly, the Act's critics in Parliament were not so much concerned by its doctrinal corollaries, as by the fear that the Pope might retaliate by organising a European trade embargo against England. The Pope, of course, laid claim to the ultimate divine right. He was, after all, the Vice-Christ, appointed to establish one unified empire under one emperor, belonging to one Church under one God.England finally rid itself of papal interference in the Bill of Rights of 1689, which declared that 'no foreign prince, person, prelate, state or potentate hath or ought to have any jurisdiction, power, superiority, pre-eminence or authority, ecclesiastical or spiritual, within this realm.' It may have taken 440 years from Cromwell's foundational declaration, but entry in 1973 to the 'European Economic Community' brought England back into the Catholic fold, and exactly 460 years after the English monarch was declared sovereign, the present Queen was reduced to vassal status under the terms of the Maastricht Treaty, which rendered her a European citizen and thereby subject to 'foreign princes and potentates'.The issue of European religious union is one that has been concealed even deeper than the plans for political union, but the ratchet towards a Catholic Europe is just as real. The Pope's recent demand that 'God' be featured in the emerging European constitution has been echoed by many leading Catholic politicians and bishops. While on the surface such a reference may offend only Europe's atheist and humanist contingent, it must be observed that when the Vatican refers to God, she sees herself as God's infallible vice-regent upon earth, the leading organ of divine expression; indeed, according to its publication Dominus Iesus (5 September 2000), as the only mediator in the salvation of God's elect, insisting that all other Churches, including the Church of England, 'are not Churches in the proper sense'.The Roman Church is founded on a political dogma claiming that the Pope is 'supreme ruler of the world'; superior to all kings, prime ministers and presidents. These spiritual and temporal claims remain very much fundamental dogmas of Catholic teaching, permitting the Pope, through Cardinal Ratzinger, the Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, to issue clear directives to Catholic politicians on how they should vote. Since their obedience is considered a 'moral duty', devolve everything to the overwhelmingly Catholic European Council of Ministers, Commission and Parliament, and the ultimate Caesar is the Pope.Such would be the fulfilment of a Sunday Telegraph article (21 July 1991) which stated: 'Karol Wojtyla is calmly preparing to assume the mantle which he solemnly believes to be his Divine Right - that of new Holy Roman Emperor, reigning from the Urals to the Atlantic.' The Catholic Church is achieving this through its political wings - the Christian Democrat and Christian Socialist parties - with the EU's 'Founding Fathers' now reaping the ultimate reward: sainthood. The Pope has beatified Alcide De Gasperi, Robert Schuman and Konrad Adenauer for founding the Union 'on Roman Catholic principles'. A supporter of their canonisation said it shows that Europe 'was built upon a rock', adding, 'I think that the European Union is a design not only of human beings but of God.' The very act of bestowing sainthoods on politicians is purposely designed to inculcate that European unification is God's will, and that those who lead it govern by divine right.During the 1975 referendum campaign, Shirley Williams unambiguously associated the vision of Europe with Rome's goal of assuming political and religious authority over the lives of all Europeans. She observed, 'We will be joined to Europe, in which the Catholic religion will be the dominant faith and in which the application of the Catholic Social Doctrine will be a major factor in everyday political and economic life.' While the EU has adopted many symbols of nationhood (a passport, flag, anthem and currency) and is now moving towards the attributes of government (a president, foreign secretary, global ambassadors at the UN and G8), it follows that, since Europe has no unified demos, a 'deeper' cohesive force is necessary to hold the whole project together. When Cardinal Maria Martini of Milan addressed the European Parliament in 1997 in a symposium on Remembering the Origins of the Process of Integration, he identified this 'deeper' something - effectively a common state religion - reminding the Parliament that its true foundation was a religious one. He outlined the importance of a single faith (Catholicism), and emphasised that religions must not support nationalisms (i.e., the Church of England must not defend the English constitution), and Europe must recognise the 'primacy of the divine' (i.e., the primacy of the Pope). His address included demands for a new welfare state, in accordance with Roman Catholic social doctrine, and his contention that European integration was never about economic and monetary issues alone. He said, 'The Europe we must build is a Europe of the spirit.'When divinity rules, it is, of course, infallible. According to canon law, the Pope claims immunity from all moral and civil authority: 'The First See is judged by no one.' This is precisely the spirit in which the EU governs, with the Court of Justice deeming that political criticism of its leaders is akin to the most extreme forms of blasphemy. It is therefore possible to suppress it without violating freedom of speech, affording the EU an undefined and seemingly unlimited power to restrict political criticism. Like the Papacy, the Court is supreme, accountable to no one, and the sole arbiter of citizens' 'rights'. Lord Shore, in his book Separate Ways, observed that the Commission acts precisely 'like a priestly caste - similar to what it must have been in pre-Reformation days, when the Bible was in Latin, not English; the Pope, his cardinals and bishops decided the content of canon law'.Accordingly, any decision of the people which does not accord with the divine will has to be corrected. The very notion of 'destiny' is simply a euphemism for government by divine right, and this is the teleological explanation for three referendums in Denmark on the Treaty of Maastricht, two referendums in Ireland on the Treaty of Nice, and the suspension of democracy altogether in Belgium and Italy in order to ratify treaties or force through budgets. In each referendum, there is a 'wrong' and a 'right' outcome. It also accords with the EU's sanctioning and funding of 'acceptable' political parties, i.e., those who ultimately accord with its own aims. When the United Kingdom votes no to the euro, the wrath of God will be poured out again and again until the people repent and accept their predestined fate.Such a destiny can be foisted upon recalcitrant nations only when they are weakened. The Roman principle of divide and rule is resurrected in the 'Europe of Regions' strategy, which encourages each 'region' of Europe to look directly to Brussels for policy and funding, bypassing national parliaments in the process. This is a recreation of a mediaeval Europe of small, ineffectual states which can be easily dominated. The ecumenically minded Church of England has been complicit in the fracturing of England, with its bishops chairing regional conventions, but the Ecumenical Movement is in reality a parallel front to Rome's divide-and-rule strategy. When Cardinal Bea stated that 'no concessions in dogma can be made by the Church for the sake of Christian Unity', he was simply reiterating Rome's belief about itself. Any movement or concession is only ever on the part of the subsidiaries, since the centre is infallible.There are significant structural parallels between the Roman religious system and the political subsidiarity principle, which is itself a concept of papal origin. In the theory of ecclesial authority, an important part is played by the concept of the representation of One Christ, who combined in himself all the offices for the dispensation of salvation (prophet, priest and king). If the Church is ruled by God, then God must necessarily flow down from above, step by step, so at the apex of human order there must be a single channel, directed by God himself, and only at the lower levels could the streams of God's will begin to branch into subsidiary levels. Subsidiarity was designed not to permit the tributaries to 'claw back' what may best be performed at a lower level, but to permit the infallible centre to decide what freedoms to grant the subsidiary levels. Whether it be termed federalism or centralism, 'subsidiarity' denotes the downward devolvement of certain powers for the practical outworking of the Supreme Power's objectives.There is much debate about whether the EU is a democracy, a theocracy, an oligarchy or a collective dictatorship, but at root it is none of these. It is an amphictyony - a confederation of states established around a religious centre. A Catholic EU will inevitably result in the subjugation of Britain's Protestant ethos to Roman Catholic social, political and religious teachings. The Queen's coronation oath 'to govern the peoples of the United Kingdom according to their laws and customs' and 'to maintain the Protestant Reformed religion established by law' is negated by the process of deeper European integration. It is almost a symbolic confirmation of the Queen's vassal status that a 20p coin of Gibraltar bears an engraving of Mary crowned 'Our Lady of Europa' - the suzerain spiritual authority - while the Queen is stripped of her usual titles DG, REG., FD - Queen by the Grace of God, Defender of the Faith.Under the constitution for Europe, the EU will have a Catholic Caesar presiding over the Protestant monarch. The former Belgian prime minister Paul-Henri Spaak once made a plea for 'a man of sufficient stature to hold the allegiance of all people' and added, 'Be he God or the Devil we will receive him.' The allegiance of the Queen's subjects is usurped by the demand for allegiance to the suzerain power; a spiritually unifying allegiance which is primary, for without the unity of the demos, the European vision will die. Accession to the constitution for Europe would finally confirm that the United Kingdom yields to the suzerain European Ecumenical Community - an empire in which everything belongs to Caesar, and where Caesar is God. Rendering the euro unto him would be all that remains for this vassal state to perform.Adrian Hilton is a former parliamentary candidate and author of The Principality and Power of Europe. He teaches Philosophy and Religious Studies. He is an approved candidate for the Conservative party.
Pope on Good Terms with Leaders in Syria
Source:
http://www.spectator.co.uk/article.php3?table=old§ion=current&issue=2003-08-30&id=3450


Friday, February 23, 2007

PETER VISITS CORNELIUS




Acts 10





1There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
2A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.
3He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
4And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.
5And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
6He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.
7And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;
8And when he had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa.
9On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:
10And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
11And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending upon him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
12Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
13And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
14But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
15And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
16This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.
17Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made enquiry for Simon's house, and stood before the gate,
18And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there.
19While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.
20Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.
21Then Peter went down to the men which were sent unto him from Cornelius; and said, Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye are come?
22And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee.
23Then called he them in, and lodged them. And on the morrow Peter went away with them, and certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him.
24And the morrow after they entered into Caesarea. And Cornelius waited for them, and he had called together his kinsmen and near friends.
25And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.
26But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man.
27And as he talked with him, he went in, and found many that were come together.
28And he said unto them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.
29Therefore came I unto you without gainsaying, as soon as I was sent for: I ask therefore for what intent ye have sent for me?
30And Cornelius said, Four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and, behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing,
31And said, Cornelius, thy prayer is heard, and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God.
32Send therefore to Joppa, and call hither Simon, whose surname is Peter; he is lodged in the house of one Simon a tanner by the sea side: who, when he cometh, shall speak unto thee.
33Immediately therefore I sent to thee; and thou hast well done that thou art come. Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.
34Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:
35But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
36The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
37That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
38How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
39And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
40Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
41Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.
42And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.
43To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
44While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
45And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
46For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
47Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
48And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

DANGEROUS HARRY POTTER



Hidden Dangers in Harry Potter


Note: Below is only a portion of Steve Wohlberg's popular little sharing book, Hidden Dangers in Harry Potter. The entire booklet may be purchased on this web site (it's only 95 cents!), or by calling (866) 862-6334. All rights reserved. No part of this manuscript may be duplicated without the Author's permission.

An Amazing Fact: The Japanese word for it is, "tsunami." Phonetic breakdown: "Tsu," meaning, "harbor or port," and "nami," meaning, "wave." Often translated: "Ocean wave," but most commonly, tidal wave.

One of the largest tsunamis swept into history May 22, 1960. Off the coast of Chile - on the western edge of South America - a 9.5 earthquake jolted earth's crust far below unsuspecting fishing boats. That deadly seismic shift resulted in a massive tsunami, with waves rising up to 100 feet, which within 15 minutes caused devastation for miles along the South American coast. That wasn't all. A gigantic, swirling ripple began rolling its way across the entire Pacific Ocean. Fifteen hours later it smashed into Hawaii. Within 22 hours, the tsunami struck Japan. The whole Pacific basin was affected, resulting in over 2,000 fatalities, half a billion dollars in damage, and over two million homeless.

Like A Rolling Tidal WaveWithin the realm of books, another tsunami of gigantic proportions is now rolling like an unstoppable tidal wave across the entire surface of Planet Earth. The name of this incredibly powerful current is composed of two simple words, Harry Potter. The facts are unbelievable.
Written by Scottish author, Joanne Kathleen Rowling - now the richest woman in England (1) - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone first splashed into bookstores in September of 1998 with an impressive first print run of 50,000 copies. The next volume (number two in a seven-part series), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, broke out in June of '99 with an initial printing of 250,000. A mere three months later (September, 1999), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban swept across Earth's surface with 500,000 copies. Yet the tsunami had just begun.

The fourth title, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (July, 2000), became "the fastest selling book in history" (2). Its initial run was 3.8 million copies, with the majority entering eager hands in only one weekend, an all-time publishing record. Believe it or not, this was easily topped by the fifth installment, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (June, 2003), which the publisher cranked out to the profitable tune of 8.5 million books. At the date of this writing, over 200 million copies have been sold worldwide (with translations in over 55 languages), with two more books still looming on the horizon. How big will this tidal wave get? Only God knows.

PottermaniaHere's a few more fast facts:

· The legendary Warner Brothers, Inc. has committed to producing seven full-length Harry Potter movies to coincide with each book. Two have been released so far, grossing about $3.8 billion (including DVD and video sales), with the next film slated to air June 2004.

· Amazon.com sold over one million DVDs of the second movie in only one day. Before the release of the fifth book, it received advance payments for 1.3 million copies. The world's largest online
bookseller, Amazon has made more money from Potter products than from any other line, ever.

· In June of 1999, Sorcerer's Stone became #1 on The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestsellers lists - at the same time. By September, book three was not only #1 on The Wall Street Journal list, but books one and two carried the #2 and #3 slots, a first in U.S. publishing history.

· Harry Potter books have not only been incorporated into the U.S. public school curriculum (with teachers manuals and discussion guides), but they have also spawned a vast, multi-million dollar line of Potter merchandise, which includes games, puzzles, posters, toys, clocks, shirts, hats, costumes, eye-glasses, towels, blankets, playing cards, markers, pens, lunch boxes, bookmarks, jelly beans, etc. etc. etc.

Get the picture? Potter Power - as a retail phenomenon and cultural force in the 21st century - is staggering.

What's it all about anyway? Why has Harry Potter become "as addicting as chocolate" (The Denver Post), especially to kids? Is it all harmless fun, or is there legitimate cause for concern among parents and educators? Beyond this, from a spiritual perspective, can humanity's all-time bestselling volume - not Harry Potter, but the Holy Bible - provide any penetrating insights into Pottermania? Let's find out.

The Harry Potter StoryIt all began on an apparently uneventful day as Rowling was traveling by train. Suddenly - like a revelation out of nowhere - she saw "very, very clearly" the crystal clear image of Harry as it popped into her mind. "The character of Harry just strolled into my head… I really did feel he was someone who walked up and introduced himself in my mind's eye" (3). She saw an odd-looking black-haired boy, on the homely side, with big spectacles. Somehow she understood he was a wizard who didn't know he was wizard. After pondering the idea, Rowling soon began writing what was destined to become "the most popular children's series ever written" (4).

Harry Potter books are a highly imaginative, can't-put-them-down sequence of fantasy novels chronicling the adventures of an orphan boy named Harry whose parents (a wizard and a witch) were brutally murdered by "the greatest Dark sorcerer of all time, Lord Voldemort" (5), when Harry was one year old. The King of the Dark Arts tried to kill baby Harry, too, but somehow the toddler survived - as a result of his mother's love - his only wound being a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. The death-curse Voldemort cast upon Harry unexplainably rebounded back on himself, stripping him of his powers, before he vanished into thin air.

Shortly after the horrible death of Harry's parents (who were much-loved in the wizard world), Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of the prestigious 1000-year-old Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, leaves baby Harry inside a basket on the doorstep of his non-magical relatives - the Dursley family - with a note in the child's hand explaining what happened. Reluctantly, the Dursleys raise the boy but withhold the contents of the letter.

On Harry's eleventh birthday (after an awful childhood during which he was forced to sleep in a cupboard under the stairs), the Dursley family is unexpectedly visited by Hagrid, the Keeper of the Keys at Hogwarts, who is sent by Headmaster Dumbledore to prepare the boy for his first semester at wizard school. To Harry's utter amazement, Hagrid tells him he is a wizard and is even famous throughout the world of witches and sorcerers because he is the only one to have ever survived an assault from "He-Who-Cannot-Be-Named." Happily packing his bags, Harry heads to Hogwarts.

Thus the plot is laid, and it intensifies with each sequential book and high-budget film. Around the globe, on every continent, millions of young readers can hardly wait for the next book as the captivating drama not only follows the development of Harry's magical abilities but moves steadily toward some sort of on-the-edge-of-your-seat, blood-curdling showdown between Harry Potter and Mr. Blackness himself who is determined to regain his power, finish Harry off, and rule over the entire wizard world.

Many Parents are ConcernedHarry Potter supporters praise the series for its ability to get a generation of twenty-first century, MTV kids to actually read books, and for its supposedly timeless insights into the classic struggle between "good and evil." The fact that witchcraft and wizardry form the framework for the entire drama is simply seen as a benign teaching device used to capture the active imaginations of children, leading to moral lessons. This is why the novels are being introduced into the U.S. public school system and why some teachers are even decorating their classrooms Hogwarts-style. Beyond this, the series is touted as good ol', harmless fun.

But is it all really harmless? If so, then why has the American Library Association ranked Harry Potter books as "the most challenged in the country," and why is it that "more parents have requested that Harry be banished from bookshelves" than any other book in U.S. history? (6). Here's the reason: Many parents are concerned about a Dark Side behind the craze. The purpose of this little book is not only to explore those concerns, but also to uncover a hidden menace behind the magic.

Problems and Muggle MessagesFirst of all, the very beginning of the Potter drama blurs the line between fantasy and reality when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone opens with the Dursley family living in England and refers to actual places like Kent, Yorkshire, the Isle of Wight and the famous Kings Cross subway station in London (from which Harry later catches a train to Hogwarts). The Dursleys are also portrayed as real people who fight traffic jams, watch the nightly news, own computers and VCRs and are incorrigibly prejudiced against anyone who practices magic.

In contrast to the stick-in-the-mud Dursley family is Albus Dumbledore, "the greatest wizard in the world" (7), whose "blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles" (8). Albus first appears out of nowhere - by using supernatural power - as a representative of a vast and adventuresome underworld filled with hidden knowledge. Harry's life also blazes with adventure and intrigue, except when he returns from a semester at Hogwarts to spend the summer with the unimaginative Dursleys.

Here's a key point: Throughout the Potter drama there is a definite contrast made between friendly, exciting and intelligent wizards who have access to supernatural power - like Dumbledore, Harry and his friends - and stuffy, boring, unintelligent "members of the non-magical community" (9) whom all wizards refer to as Muggles. The idea being communicated to kids is: Being a wizard like Albus Dumbledore or Harry Potter is fun, cool and exciting, while being part of "the dark Muggle world" (10) and seeing through "Muggle eyes" (11) is the pits.

Are children being confused by this mingling of facts with fiction? Yes they are. Rowling herself confessed to Newsweek:
.
I get letters from children addressed to Professor Dumbledore, and it's not a joke, begging to be let into Hogwarts, and some of them are really sad. Because they want it to be true so badly they've convinced themselves its true. (12)
.
How about Harry Potter's Wizards vs. Muggles message?

The ordinary person is typified as being bad because they have no (magic) powers, and heroes are the people who are using the occult. [This] is an inversion of morality… (13)

Thus children are not only being confused by Harry Potter, but they are also reading books that turn moral standards upside down by portraying witches as wise and all non-wizards (Muggles) as stupid.

Real WitchcraftNext point: Witchcraft. It's true, Rowling's series is filled with fantastic things kids know don't exist, like fire-breathing dragons, goblins, elves and even a sporting event called Quidditch where wizard teams compete on flying broomsticks. Yet beyond the obvious fantasy, Potter books are also jam-packed with mysterious information about witches, warlocks, sorcerers, crystal balls, spells, curses, potions, charms, numerology, divination, astrology, palmistry, out-of-body travel, and communication with spirits - all of which reflect actual beliefs and practices in the real world of both ancient and modern occultism.

In fact, much of the occult information inside the Potter novels is so real that during one call-in radio interview Rowling was asked by an eager inquirer if she herself was a member of the "Craft." When she said no, the caller replied, "…you've done your homework quite well." This man then expressed his deep love for Harry Potter because it not only portrayed his own beliefs positively but also made his daughter more comfortable with his involvement in real witchcraft (14).

This cannot be overemphasized: Many of the occult practices so tantalizingly depicted in Harry Potter are actually performed by living members of the Black Arts throughout the world. Potter books are also speckled with the names of real historical people, like Nicholas Flamel (15), a French alchemist who lived in the 1300s (16), and Adalbert Waffling, whose book, Magical Theory, is on Harry's list of required reading at Hogwarts (17). Adalbert Waffling was a real person convicted of practicing real sorcery in 744-745 A.D. and was imprisoned in the monastery of Fulda (18). Thus Rowling, a graduate of mythology studies from Exeter University in England, is not only an imaginative writer, but a thorough researcher, with "an extremely well-developed and sophisticated knowledge of the occult world, its legends, history and nuances" (19). In another interview on The Diane Rehm Show, Rowling admitted that fully one-third of her material is based on actual occultism (20).

The most popular form of real occultism now spreading rapidly around the globe is Wicca witchcraft, or simply, The Craft. Its adherents literally call themselves "wiccans," "witches," or "wizards." Countless books such as The Wicca Source Book: A Complete Guide for the Modern Witch by well-known witch Gerina Dunwich (1988), or Witchcraft: Exploring the World of Wicca by Craig Hawkins (1996), explain this mysterious, real-life, growing movement. In the U.S. alone, the sale of occult books (in bookstores or online) has become a multi-million dollar industry.

What makes real witchcraft so appealing today - especially to young people from broken homes who are searching for guidance - is its claim to offer a degree of personal power, strength-to-cope, adventure and inner fulfillment not accessible to the average Joe (the uninitiated). Wicca says all of these perks come through access - via occult techniques - to supernatural powers which trained witches can "tap into." Such power supposedly comes from three primary sources: From within oneself, from nature, or from contact with the spirits of dead people. That's what Harry Potter's life is all about. He's a young wizard-in-training studying occult techniques at Hogwarts who becomes increasingly powerful through learning the arts of the "Craft."

Fiction Affects Children I know, Harry Potter is mostly fiction, but does this mean it has no effect on its readers? The truth is: Fiction is a powerful communicator of ideas which can affect human behavior. One need only think of John Bunyan's immortal classic, The Pilgrim's Progress (1684). Bunyan's book is an imaginative allegory about a young man named Christian who, upon leaving the City of Destruction, embarks on a dangerous journey toward the Celestial City (representing Heaven). En route, he encounters friends - like Prudence, Piety, Hopeful and Faithful - and subtle foes - such as Worldly Wise Man, Ignorance, Flatterer, Vain Confidence, and Giant Despair who lives in Doubting Castle.

As Christian meanders along the Narrow Way, he eventually meets a hideous, scaly fiend named Apollyon (who represents the Devil), and after a fierce fight, finally pierce its heart with his Sword (representing the Bible) delivering the death blow. Of course, The Pilgrim's Progress is also entirely fiction, yet for over 300 years it has inspired young people to turn from sin and to live upright, righteous lives by the grace of God.

Potter Fans Turning to WitchcraftHow does Harry Potter affect young people? Obviously, its impact is varied, and it's true, there are positive lessons within its pages about the struggle between good and evil, yet Robert Night of The Family Research Council warns that in the midst of the fun and magic, Harry Potter also "gives children an appetite for the occult" (21).

Here's proof: The Pagan Federation, a well-organized promoter of Wicca in England (22), finally decided to appoint a special youth officer to deal with the "flood of inquiries following the success of the Harry Potter books" (23). A British publication, This is London, reported the phenomenon in an article titled, "Potter Fans Turning to Witchcraft," in which the Federation's official media officer, Andy Norfolk, explained:
.
In response to increased inquiries coming from youngsters we established a youth officer… It is quite probably linked to things like Harry Potter, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Every time an article on witchcraft or paganism appears, we have a huge surge in calls, mostly from young girls (24).
.
Kids themselves have testified how Harry Potter has drawn them toward witchcraft.
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I thought the story really made you feel like you could be a witch or a wizard. - Lily, eleven years old (25)
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I like what they learned there [at Hogwarts] and I want to be a witch. - Gioia Bishop, ten years old (26)
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From Fantasy to Dangerous RealityHere's one way a young person can transition from Harry's world into real witchcraft: Joe Teenager loves Sorcerer's Stone, Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban, and all the other Potter books. As Joe is increasingly hooked by Rowling's intensely dramatic story-telling abilities, the magical world of Harry Potter seems awesome compared to his unhappy, boring life in a single-parent home with an alcoholic mother and mean brother. One dark night (after another bout with Math and English), Joe quietly sits down before his refurbished Sony computer, boots up, logs onto the Net through an inexpensive dial-up connection, and types in, www.yahoo.com. In the blank field he pecks, HARRY POTTER, and clicks, "Find." As Yahoo's search engine instantaneously scours the vast world of internet cyber space, it quickly registers 4,240,000 (I just did it) Potter-related web sites to surf around in.

Of course, Joe finds Warner Brother's official site filled with fantastic images of Hogwarts and the magical world of the homely, dark-haired, orphaned wizard-boy with big spectacles (whom he can relate to). Yet in the midst of apparently harmless fun, Joe becomes curious to learn about real witches and the actual things his spell-casting hero is into. Returning to Yahoo, he types in, WITCH, which quickly registers 2,310,000 web site options. The very first site reads, "We are the right place for all your Witchcraft, Wiccan, Pagan, Occult, and ritual supplies … receive our free catalog." With a click he enters an online store with 4,000 fascinating occult products easily shipped UPS Ground Services and paid for by Visa, MasterCard or Pay Pal.

After a bit more surfing, Joe discovers other witchcraft books specifically targeting his age group, such as Teen Witch: Wicca for a New Generation by Silver Ravenwolf (Llewellyn Publications, 1998), or Spellbound: The Teenage Witch's Wiccan Handbook (Ulysses Press, 2002). One reviewer commented, "Spellbound is a great book for teens who are still unsure of the religious path they want to follow. It gives a good background of where Wicca originated, tells of ancient traditions and then gives suggestions on how teens can incorporate these ideas into their lives in the 21st century."

Hmm, Joe ponders, After thinking a few moments, he logs onto one of many online booksellers and orders a copy of Teen Witch which he can informatively read along side of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. After finishing Teen Witch, Joe surfs a bit more. Soon he discovers one of many online "Simple Steps to Becoming a Witch" study courses claiming to offer him supernatural power to cope with his unahppy life, deal with his mother's alcoholism, cast a spell on his nasty brother, and even entice a girl he may like. He chooses one, zips through it, and soon becomes a real initiate, thus joining thousands of other curious and unhappy teenagers intrigued by the idea of becoming powerful wizards-in-training, just like their hero, Harry Potter.

Richard Abanes, author of Harry Potter and the Bible: The Menace behind the Magick, warns:
.
Ultimately, only a short distance needs to be covered in order to cross over from Harry's world into the realm of real occultism (27).
.
Linda Beam with Focus on the Family echoes a similar concern:
.
Any time the dark side of the supernatural world is presented as harmless or even imaginary, there is the danger that children will become curious and find out too late that witchcraft is neither harmless nor imaginary (28).
.
What Does the Bible Say?It's time to shift into the sobering reality of what the Bible literally says about "wizards," "witchcraft," and "sorcery." Unlike the Potter series, it describes no battle between good and bad wizards; between practitioners of "white magic" (Albus Dumbledore or Harry Potter) and those who have yielded to the "dark side" (Lord Voldemort). And all "non-magical folks" are certainly not classified as Muggles. Yet there is a real Dark Side created by a non-fictitious Sinister One - a being vastly more wicked than "He-Who-Cannot-Be-Named."

The exact word, "Wicca," is not in the Bible, but there are many references to "witches," "wizards," "witchcraft," and "sorcery." It seems the "Craft" has been around for centuries, and even in Bible days there were witches and wizards living near the Israelites. Are any of these occult practitioners presented as wise, insightful adventurers like Albus Dumbledore whose "blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles"? Far from it!

Here's a brief survey of just a few Old Testament passages:
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You shall not permit a sorcerer to live (Exodus 22:18).
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Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God (Leviticus 19:31, KJV).
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A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them (Leviticus 20:27, KJV).
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Now for the New Testament:
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Now the works of the flesh are evident … sorcery … those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21).
..
These are from "Revelation," God's last book at the end of the Bible:
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But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death (Revelation 21:8).
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But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie (Revelation 22:15)
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There's no getting around it, God's Word categorically condemns sorcery and witchcraft in the strongest language possible. In the Old Testament, all witches were to suffer the death penalty. The New Testament says they will "not inherit the kingdom of God." In Revelation, sorcery does not lead to an exciting life of fantastic adventures through accessing supernatural powers unavailable to Muggles, but to an infernal place in "the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." And again, the Bible doesn't differentiate between white and dark magic. In Scripture, even Hogwarts itself leads to hell.

Why are sorcery and witchcraft so bad anyway? Is God the ultimate Muggle-in-the-Sky who enjoys preventing us from learning the secrets of the universe and from having fun? Not at all! Rather, He is the Supreme Lover of our souls who sees hidden dangers beneath the magic. The Bible condemns sorcery because God wants to protect us from real Dark Forces led by a very real - yet invisible - being whose power, cunning and expertise in deception make Lord Voldemort look like a mini-action figure on a Toys "R" Us shelf (which is all he is anyway).

You may order the complete book, Hidden Dangers in Harry Potter, on this web site, or by calling (866) 862-6334.

Endnotes:

(1) Time Magazine, June 23, 2003, p. 67
(2) Newsweek, June 30, 2003, p. 52.
(3) Harry Potter and the Bible: The Menace Behind the Magick, by Richard Abanes. Horizon Books (2001), p. 21. J.K. Rowling, quoted in Reuters, "Harry Potter 'Strolled into My Head,'" July 17, 2000.
(4) Time Magazine, June 23, 2003, p. 63
(5) Chamber of Secrets, p. 4
(6) Time Magazine, June 23, 2003, p. 63
(7) Chamber of Secrets, p. 314
(8) Sorcerer's Stone, p. 8
(9) Chamber of Secrets, p. 341
(10) Prisoner of Azkaban, p. 31.
(11) Chamber of Secrets, p. 150
(12) Malcolm Jones, "The Return of Harry Potter!," Newsweek (Online), July 1, 2000, 4. Quoted by Abanes, p. 124.
(13) Robert Frisken of Christian Community Schools Ltd in Australia, quoted in the Sydney Morning Herald, March 27, 2001.
(14) WMUR interview J.K. Rowling, Oct. 12, 1999, available at www.wbur.org. Quoted by Abanes, p. 24.
(15) Sorcerer's Stone, p. 193
(16) Maurice Magree, Magicians, Seers, and Mystics, (Kessinger Publications, 1997; transl. Reginald Merton, available at www.alchemylab.com).
(17) Sorcerer's Stone, p. 66.
(18) Leslie A. Shepard's, Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology, Detroit: Gale Research, 1991, Ch. 1, pp. 6-7.
(19) Abanes, p. 24
(20) Rowling interview on The Diane Rehm Show, WAMU, National Public Radio, October 20, 1999, available at www.wamu.org.
(21) Robert Night, quoted in Deidre Donahue, "Are Parents Pushing 'Potter' on the Young," Tulsa World, June 20, 2000; cf. USA Today article of the same title, available at www.northernlight.com.
(22) See www.paganfed.demon.co.uk
(23) Reported in This is London, in an article entitled, "Potter Fans Turning to Witchcraft," August 4, 2000, available at www.thisislondon.co.uk. Referenced from Abanes, p. 66.
(24) Andy Norfolk, quoted in This is London (ibid).
(25) Lily, "Reader Comments," http://hosted.ukoln.ac.uk/stories/gallery/reviews/rowling/rowling-stone.htm.
(26) Letters to the Editor, "What Readers Think about 'Goblet," San Francisco Chronicle, July 26, 2000, available at sfgate.com.
(27) Abanes, p. 173.
(28) Linda Beam, in an article entitled, "Exploring Harry Potter's World," Teachers in Focus, Dec. 1999, available at www.focusonthefamily.org

Other fascinating books by Steve Wohlberg
The Left Behind Deception
Exploding the Israel Deception
The Antichrist Chronicles
End Time Delusions
Will my pet go to Heaven?
Source: http/www.endtimeinsights.com/site/v2_3/content/view/46/63/

CHATHAM HOUSE


Chatham House


BACKGROUND Founded in 1920, Chatham House, officially known as The Royal Institute of International Affairs, is based in the heart of London. As a measure of its importance in the world of international relations, the name 'Chatham House' - the building - is now commonly used to refer to the organization.



The listed building was home to three Prime Ministers (Pitt the Elder, Edward Stanley and William Gladstone) before being gifted to what was then the Institute of International Affairs in 1923. Download a brief history of Chatham House here.
The Chatham House Rule is invoked worldwide for the conducting of off-the-record discussions.

CHATHAM HOUSE Its History and InhabitantsRichly illustrated from the Chatham House archive and with a wealth of fascinating detail, both architectural and anecdotal, this is a story of an unique and historic building. For more information and details on how to order please click here.
Room Hire - Chatham House premises are available for rental. Find out more here.CONTACT DETAILS:The Royal Institute of International AffairsChatham House10 St James's SquareLondon SW1Y 4LETel: +44 (0)20 7957 5700Fax: +44 (0)20 7957 5710Email: contact@chathamhouse.org.uk
See MAP for location of Chatham House.


Wednesday, February 21, 2007

POLITICALLY CORRECT TREASON




Politically Correct Treason



- by Warren B. Appleton ©, April 24, 2003





The basis of our Government rests in the Federal and State Constitutions, in which all powers not designated to the Federal government reside with the State.
We Americans have always upheld Liberty and Freedom as the essence of our Land. Our Constitution assumed that we were a sovereign state, in control of our own destiny, under God.
But for many years, going back to before World War I, there have been those in High places who were attempting to subvert this concept by bringing about a transfer of our national sovereignty to a form of World Government, such as the League of Nations. However, this attempt failed to be adopted by the U.S. Senate in 1919.
The proponents of this scheme did not give up, and went on to create a private organization called The Council On Foreign Relations, or CFR, in 1921, whose goal has been to bring about a Socialist World Government. During World War II, it virtually took over control of the State Department, and has ever since been providing the policies and key personnel for the Federal Government. As we write, their goal appears to be ever nearer, as Globalism, in its many forms, is riding high, and the Police State is here, under the banner of "Patriotism".
There are 4075 members listed in the CFR 2002 Annual Report, and any politician would give his right arm to be selected into this private club of the elites. Likewise, no politician, that I have seen or heard of, says anything negative about the CFR; something about knowing where the power lies.
There have been many member/agents of this group in past administrations, including this one. Former President George H. Bush was one, as was Bill Clinton. Many recent Secretaries of State and Secretaries of Defense have been members. V.P. Richard Cheney and Secretary of State, Colin Powell are members, under George W. Bush. David Rockefeller, former Chairman of the Chase Manhattan Bank, typifies CFR leadership, having served as its President for fifteen years, and is now is its President Emeritus.
In 1941, just after Pearl Harbor, fourteen member/agents of the CFR were appointed by then Secretary of State Cordell Hull to create a constitution for their new baby; the United Nations, which held its first assembly in San Francisco in 1945, led by Alger Hiss, later convicted as a Communist spy.
So, we can see that being a part of this club that advocates and works toward the dissolution of the national interests of the USA in favor of a foreign entity, such as the UN which they created, is very "Politically Correct". In fact, the main determiners of our Political Correctness, the anchormen of nightly TV, are mostly all CFR agents, along with the heads of the Big Media, Banking, Education, Military, Congress, and on and on.
We may be sure that those directing our military escapades are highly involved with these same elites in high places. Pat Buchannan has fearlessly spelled out who many of these "Neocons" in the Defense Department are and why they are doing what they do. Again, this is not Politically Correct to mention, yet the future survival of our country is involved in it.
Now let us look to 9/11, and all that has evolved since that disaster. In spite of all the talk about who did it, which has led us into war with Afghanistan and Iraq, and a general "War Against Terrorism", we, the American people still do not know who or what group was really responsible, as our nation is being turned into a police state because of fear of "Terrorism".
Finally, in late 2002, the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks was commissioned and approved by President Bush, who appointed Henry Kissinger as Chairman, and George Mitchell as Vice Chairman. Coincidentally, both men are member/agents of the CFR.
Fortunately, enough Americans were aware of the nefarious record of Kissinger that created an uproar enough to cause his resignation. But the unfeigned gall that was revealed in their attempting to put him in charge of such a vital investigation, shows how brazen and confident they are that they could get away with it. Former Senator George Mitchell soon also resigned. Here is where it gets interesting. I suspected that the rest of the Commission would be made up of the same bunch of One-Worlders, and so set about to find out who they were.
I wrote to the CFR itself, whose web site is http://www.terrorismanswers.com/, and was told that they did not know! Lying? Yes, but why?
I then wrote to our two lovable Massachusetts Senators Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, a CFR member, as well as Representative Delahunt, without a response from any of them.
I then contacted the State Department, and wrote to the White House, but got no help.
Then I ran across a Washington outfit called the NARA OIG Hotline which advised me that "Effective immediately" they would no longer answer such questions!
Finally, a wrote to http://www.firstgov.gov/ which provided me with the membership list I wanted, and the address of the web site of the Commission; http://www.9-11commission.gov/.
The names are: Chairman Thomas H. Kean, CFR, Vice Chair, Lee H. Hamilton, CFR, Jamie S. Gorelick, CFR, John F. Lehman, CFR, Exec. Director, Philip D. Zelicow, CFR, as well as other members: Richard Ben-Veniste, Max Cleland, Fred Fielding, Slade Gordon, Timothy J. Roemer, and James R. Thompson. I suspect that some of these non-CFR members just might become members real soon.
The Commission telephone is: 202 331-4060, info([at]9-11 Commission.gov, Fax 202 296-5542. They held their first public hearing March 31 to April 1, 2003, and archived footage will be posted at http://www.9-11commission.gov/ .
So what, you might say. The names are not that important. But I think that the fact that, including the two first appointments that quit, 7 out of 11 represent the CFR, the most powerful private club in the world which is bent on destroying the national sovereignty of the United States of America. That should be enough to shake someone up, but political correctness holds a powerful grip which is most difficult to shake, after years of brainwashing, and lack of knowledge that the CFR even exists. Should you wish to obtain copies of their annual reports, which I have been doing, their telephone number is: 212 434-9400 in New York City. The Report for 2003 is now available.
The President is Leslie Gelb, and the Vice President has been Maurice R. Greenberg.
Incidentally, they advocate "a major new role for the U.S. Military to combat terrorism in America". May I suggest that when Americans catch on to their treasonous plans to submit the U.S. to World Government control (the UN?), they know that they will need the Army and all of their new Police State regulations such as the Patriot Act to keep their enemy, the American public, under control. Post-war Iraq should provide them excellent training for this.
Finally, I am suggesting that the appointment of the CFR crowd from Kissinger on down, is necessary to keep the lid on and cover up any facts that might be damaging to them, or their friends. They claim to have all the answers in their web site, but even lied about not knowing who is on the commission. Were they involved in 9/11 more than they want known? Quite probably.
Warren B. Appleton , Dennis, Massachusetts, April 24, 2003
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"Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people."Theodore Roosevelt
The curse of our time is the proliferation of so-called 'think tanks' that advise our public leaders. Their influence has increased tremendously during recent years.Alfred M. Lilienthal, September 20, 2003
"Permit me to issue and control the money of a nation, and I care not who makes its laws."Amschel Mayer Rothschild, 1773-1855
"If this were a dictatorship, it'd be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I'm the dictator."President-Elect George W. Bush
The Ascendancy of the Scientific Dictatorship, by Paul & Phillip Collins
Memoirs Illustrating the History of Jacobinism, by Abbe Barruel
Fire in the Minds of Men: Origins of the Revolutionary Faith, by James H. Billington
World Revolution: The Plot Against Civilization, by Nesta H. Webster (6th revised edition)
America's Secret Establishment: An Introduction to the Order of Skull & Bones, by Antony C. Sutton
Secret Societies and Subversive Movements, by Nesta H. Webster
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Tuesday, February 20, 2007

LAFAYETTE'S PROPHECY



Lafayette's Prophecy

"A well-known writer speaks thus of the attitude of the papal hierarchy as regards freedom of conscience, and of the perils which especially threaten the United States from the success of her policy:"'There are many who are disposed to attribute any fear of Roman Catholicism in the United States to bigotry or childishness. Such see nothing in the character and attitude of Romanism that is hostile to our free institutions, or find nothing portentous in its growth. Let us, then, first compare some of the fundamental principles of our government with those of the Catholic Church.'" (The Great Controversy, p. 564)
"Pope Pius IX, in his Encyclical Letter of August 15, 1854, said: `The absurd and erroneous doctrines or ravings in defense of liberty of conscience are a most pestilential error--a pest, of all others, most to be dreaded in a state.' The same pope, in his Encyclical Letter of December 8, 1864, anathematized `those who assert the liberty of conscience and of religious worship,' also 'all such as maintain that the church may not employ force.'"The pacific tone of Rome in the United States does not imply a change of heart. She is tolerant where she is helpless. Says Bishop O'Connor: 'Religious liberty is merely endured until the opposite can be carried into effect without peril to the Catholic world.'. . . The archbishop of St. Louis once said: 'Heresy and unbelief are crimes; and in Christian countries, as in Italy and Spain, for instance, where all the people are Catholics, and where the Catholic religion is an essential part of the law of the land, they are punished as other crimes.'. . . "Every cardinal, archbishop, and bishop in the Catholic Church takes an oath of allegiance to the pope, in which occur the following words: 'Heretics, schismatics, and rebels to our said lord (the pope), or his aforesaid successors, I will to my utmost persecute and oppose.'" (A quote from Josiah Strong in The Great Controversy, pp. 564, 565)
From The Presbyterian - May 17, 1893by Julia W. De Witt
“If the liberties of the American people are ever destroyed they will fall by the hands of the Romish clergy.” These words were uttered by General Lafayette, who, although a Romanist by birth and education, proved his love for this country and her institutions by his deeds, and has left on record his admiration for, and faith in, its civil and religious freedom.
It is our boast, as a nation, that the Constitution of the United States guarantees liberty to each of its citizens, and yet we have recently witnessed the arrival of a Papal Delegate at our National Capital, not only invested with supreme authority, but the Pope has caused to be published, throughout the land, that this Pontiff has the power to inflict any sentence he may see fit on certain of our citizens, “notwithstanding constitutions, apostolic ordinances, or any other, to the contrary.”
We might lay the flattering unction to our souls that there is some ambiguity in the phraseology of this mandate, did we not recall the denunciations of a preceding Pope upon the “absurd doctrines in defense of liberty of conscience,” which he characterized as “pests of all others most to be dreaded,” and the still more pointed assertion of one of his bishops, that “religious liberty is merely endured until the opposite can be carried into effect without peril to the Catholic world.”
Page after page of similar utterances might be quoted, but a glance at Europe during the Dark Ages will prove how, realizing that knowledge was power, Rome kept that power within her grasp by preventing the diffusion of learning, and used the ignorance and superstition of the masses for the furtherance of her interests and increase of her wealth. These ages form too dark a page of history for Americans to close their eyes to the growth of principles of which they were the legitimate sequence; but with prosperity we have grown luxuriously indolent, and it is easier to float with the tide than to stem it.
The enthronement of Satolli at Washington with the pomp and insignia of power has added to, rather than detracted from the fascination of our capital; and the Pontiff and his attendants, radiant in purple and scarlet, and flashing with diamonds, are central figures at elegant dinners and gorgeous assemblies. The admiring crowds that gather around him think little of how his gems were purchased, or who supports his regal magnificence, and the glittering pageant goes on, while republican simplicity and liberty move toward the grave, as the French warrior predicted long years ago.
While hope was dying within us during the late Civil War our commander-in-chief was planning the most masterly strategy the world has ever known, and when the enemy was unitedly attacked at all points the end of our protracted struggle was at hand.
A single glance at the North, West, South and East of our land will give us some idea of the progress of the hierarchy, which is massing its forces of wealth and learning at Washington.
Last summer I saw how rapidly convents and Roman Catholic schools were springing up along our side of the St. Lawrence river; and receiving an invitation to join a party of six hundred pilgrims on their road to the shrine of St. Ann de Beaupre, my curiosity became excited; and upon inquiry, I learned that from fifty to sixty thousand devotees visit this church annually, and a large proportion are from our northern counties, and from New England.
Rome has been adding to her missions on our Western border to supply the spiritual wants of its rapidly-increasing population; and Miss Drexel’s millions, together with the labors of the self-sacrificing women she has gathered around her, are not now confined to the Indians, but are extending to the representatives of all nationalities, who are cordially welcomed into the Church of which she is so devoted a member.
Among the descendants of the French and creole families of the South there are women who are developing characteristics similar to those of Miss Drexel, and devoting both their time and talents to the work that Rome is so vigorously pushing among the Freedmen, as well as the whites, of the South.
Turning from these pictures to New England, we are not a little surprised to hear, from one of her sons, how, as if by magic, cathedrals and pro-cathedrals are springing up in close proximity to her mills and manufactories, and that the welcome that is extended to employers and employees is being responded to, even by those who once boasted their Puritan blood.
Patiently and persistently Rome and her children are working for the increase of Papal power; are we, who profess to be followers of Christ, working as faithfully to lead souls into the liberty wherewith He makes His children free? In the light of the Saviour’s example, our duty is a plain one, for He sent His disciples “into every city and place whither He Himself would come.” There was no spot so dark and degraded that He did not go into it, and no being so wretched and despised that He had not a share in the love and pity of the Master; and down through the ages His words come to us in tones of mingled command and compassion, “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields, for they are white already to harvest.”
* BOLDS AND ITALICS ADDED

COUNTRY LIVING SEMINARS

Country Living Seminars & Workshops

October 25-29, 2006 Bear Paw Camp - Newport, Washington

Recently Updated Seminar Schedule is now Posted

You have decided to make the move...or maybe you've already gone forward. Now you are ready for THE NEXT STEP.
There are many skills that are invaluable, if not essential, for a safe and successful country living experience--one that places as little dependence as possible on worldly systems.
How does one handle situations when the repair man...or the hospital...or the grocery store is many miles away? And how will we do without these services when the problem of buying and selling becomes a very serious one? THE NEXT STEP is your start to becoming less dependent on others and learning how to handle situations yourself, with the help of God.
Come and gain the rich blessings God has in store for you at the morning, evening, and Sabbath spiritual meetings by Elder Dave Westbrook and Elder Hector Torres. Come and learn many important practical skills from experienced instructors that will help you move wisely and become less dependent at the Thursday, Friday, and Sunday seminars. Come enjoy the fellowship of others who have made/are making the move. Come join us in the beautiful mountains of northeast Washington at Bear Paw Camp on the Pend Oreille River (50 miles north of Spokane).
Be sure to register ASAP while there is still lodging at the camp.

Source: http://www.mountainmediaministries.org/seminars/index.htm