"Rome, Final Days" Is Fitting Epitaph For Our Culture

     If you haven't heard by now, Fox News host Neil Cavuto is being ridiculed across every liberal and progressive website for his blunt comments on the transgenderization (if there is such a word) of Bruce Jenner.  Because it is the "hot" story in the latest news cycle, Cavuto was forced to comment on it, and when he shouted "What the hell is going on?", I can imagine that there were millions of Americans who agreed with him.  When a guest on his show stated, "It's just the era that we're living  in," Cavuto acerbically remarked, "Rome, final days" and signed off.

     So, it is not surprising that he has been called everything from "transphobic" to "vile and hateful" to "disgusting and unprofessional".  But just because his opinion doesn't agree with the minority view of the loud and vocal transgender and Hollywood crowds, doesn't mean his comment doesn't have merit in its own right.

     In a fitting article titled, Top Ten Reasons Ancient Rome Was A Pervert's Paradise, we find out that the Roman Emperors were ... well ... a little preoccupied with aberrant sexual behavior.  Nero, for example, had his favorite boy castrated and attempted to turn him into a woman. Caligula made his horse a senator, converted the palace into a brothel and pimped out his sisters; while Elagabalus spent more time cruising Rome’s red light district dressed in drag than anything else.  And it is this latter Roman Emperor that most closely resembles the transformation of Mr. Jenner and the trajectory of our modern culture.  

     The Reddit website, which is essentially an online bulletin board system where the community generates answers to questions, has an interesting opinion on Elagabalus.  Admittedly, this description must be accepted with a certain cynicism; but if even a small percentage of it is true, I think you will see why it lends some credibility to Mr. Cavuto's perspective.

Emperor Elagabalus

     Elagabalus was born in 203 AD, and died before his 19th birthday, in 222 AD. Ancient historian Cassius Dio wrote numerous books on the history of Rome, and the 80th book of his chronicles was written in about 229 AD, and makes for some interesting reading.  According to Cassius Dio, Elgabalus may have been one of the first transgender world leaders.  Here are just some of the passages:

     "My Lord Emperor, Hail!" he bent his neck so as to assume a ravishing feminine pose, and turning his eyes upon him with a melting gaze, answered without any hesitation: "Call me not Lord, for I am a Lady." -- Dio Cassius 80:16

     These passages suggest Elgabalus had gender dysphoria and desired to have Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS) and facial hair removal:  "He carried his lewdness to such a point that he asked the physicians to contrive a woman's vagina in his body by means of an incision, promising them large sums for doing so."-- Dio Cassius 80:16

     "He had planned, indeed, to cut off his genitals altogether, but that desire was prompted solely by his effeminacy". -- Dio Cassius 80:11

     "Once, indeed, he shaved his chin and held a festival to mark the event; but after that he had the hairs plucked out, so as to look more like a woman."-- Dio Cassius 80:14

     Although Elgabalus successively married five women, he remained childless; ultimately marrying a male partner.  The "husband" of this "woman" was Hierocles, a Carian slave ". -- Dio Cassius 80:15.

     Now, those of the transgender persuasion, and those of the liberal and progressive communities who applaud the rights and freedom of Bruce Jenner to become the woman he desires to be, can hail this era as valid, and honest, and liberating all they want.  It still does not erase that such practices, along with slave sex (regardless of gender or age); lewd and graphic public pornography; sex-obsessed and X-rated literature; pederasty (man-boy sexual perversion); and mass infanticide (babies born from all that sex were simply discarded on the dung-heaps -- an extreme form of abortion) all contributed to the downfall of ancient Rome.  

     Whether you think that God played a part in it or not; you cannot deny that this was the picture of Rome in her final days.  And I find it extremely interesting that the Godless of today attempt to "normalize" this behavior and lifestyle by pointing out that it was acceptable in ancient Rome.  They say it is just us "phobic" Christians who are exhibiting an irrational response.  But, "acceptable" to whom?  Those who practiced it?  Does that really give it credibility?  Isn't that like saying those involved in ritual child sacrifices accept this practice among their tight little group, so that makes it normal for society?

     Can they at least admit that "the decline of the Roman Empire" happened; characterized, in part, by the debasement of its emperors and wealthy elite, and their obsessive self-gratification?  The emperors may have called themselves Christian, following in the footsteps of the pseudo-Believer Constantine, but they surrendered to the oldest temptation in Satan's playbook ... sex.  

     So, what does all this have to do with Bruce Jenner and Neil Cavuto's bold sentencing of our culture?  It just proves that the story of the downfall of both men, and nations, is as old as history.  Nothing has really changed, and the outcome (without God) will be the same.  "Rome, Final Days" ... it really says it all.

Romans 1:24       "Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves..."

     

Hands Off The Alamo!

     For several years now, officials in San Antonio, Texas have been working with representatives from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to get the San Antonio Spanish Missions declared as "World Heritage Sites", and they feel victory is near.  This designation would also include the most famous and beloved of all the missions, the Alamo, which sits in the heart of downtown San Antonio.
   

     For those of you who are unfamiliar with the history of the Texas Republic, the Alamo is sacred ground.  The Alamo itself consists of the Alamo Chapel and the surrounding Plaza, where most of the fighting occurred during the 1836 Battle of the Alamo; and where 189 defenders sacrificed their lives for liberty instead of surrendering to the tyrannical Mexican president Antonio López de Santa Anna. The site has since become a shrine, representing those who were willing to fight for individual freedom in the face of collective evil.  Every Texas school child knows the history of the Alamo and millions of Texans pay homage to the site year-round.
     Those who favor making the Alamo a UNESCO World Heritage Site, point to the expected $100 million influx from world tourism, and the chance to become part of UNESCO's mission to "ensure the protection of the natural and cultural heritage of nations"; and to "encourage international cooperation in the conservation of our world's cultural and natural heritage".
     But here is my concern (along with others who are a little concerned about giving the United Nations any form of control over our national heritage sites):  when a country allows a historical site to be declared a World Heritage Site they must agree to sign on to the international treaty, known as the World Heritage Convention, and to agree to "establish management plans and set up reporting systems on the state of conservation of their World Heritage sites."
     As expected, when a site becomes part of the UN's World Heritage organization, there is a manual to follow.  The manual states that it is “the duty of the international community as a whole to cooperate” in managing World Heritage Sites, meaning that bureaucrats from foreign countries could well sit on a Board and determine the Alamo’s operation.  One of the “protection obligations” of a World Heritage Site is the requirement to “use the World Heritage logo,” meaning that the Alamo Plaza would be adorned with UN symbols.  And to me, the most disturbing facet of this whole idea is that the UN flag would fly over the Alamo, among the most hallowed ground in all of Texas, and a symbol of the rugged individualism and love of liberty that personifies the history of our great state.
     I'm sure it won't surprise those of you who are familiar with the UN's Agenda 21 policies to find that the manual also suggests strategies for restricting public access to heritage sites due to “environmental concerns” under the guise of “sustainable” tourism, both familiar buzz words reflecting Agenda 21 goals.
     But once again, I was flabbergasted to find that this attempt is nothing new; and in fact, there are already quite a few of our most treasured historical sites that are now flying the UN flag.  For instance, did you know that the Statue of Liberty, Independence Hall, and the Grand Canyon are UN World Heritage sites; or that Mount Vernon, George Washington's home in northern Virginia is vying for a nomination, and both the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma and Martin Luther King's Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery Alabama, have both been placed up for nomination jointly as 'Civil Rights Era Landmarks'?  At this rate, our sovereignty and national identity will be subjugated to a collective heritage belonging to the world.  Is anybody else thinking "One World Heritage"?
     I just think it is incredibly tragic that 179 years after our Texas heroes fought to the death to defend liberty, freedom and sovereignty, that their descendants would so willingly allow another flag to fly over the compound.  Perhaps they need to reconsider the last words from the commander of the Alamo, Lt. Colonel William Barrett Travis, and to rethink their own surrender of the Alamo to the United Nations.

To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World—

Fellow Citizens & compatriots—

     I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna — I have sustained a continual Bombardment & cannonade for 24 hours & have not lost a man — The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken — I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, & our flag still waves proudly from the walls — I shall never surrender or retreat.  Then, I call on you in the name of Liberty, of patriotism & everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid, with all dispatch — The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily & will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days.  If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible & die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country — Victory or Death.

William Barrett Travis.

Lt.  Col. comdt.

P. S.  The Lord is on our side — When the enemy appeared in sight we had not three bushels of corn — We have since found in deserted houses 80 or 90 bushels and got into the walls 20 or 30 head of Beeves.

Proverbs 19:21    "Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."

   




   




     

What The Armenian Genocide Tells Us

     Yesterday marked the 100th anniversary of nearly one-and-a-half million people killed during the genocide campaign against Armenian and Christian minorities by the Turkish Islamic Ottoman empire -- I would note, this was history's last caliphate prior to ISIS.

     Now, the current leader of Turkey can deny that a genocide took place; and the current White House can refuse (for the seventh straight year) to use the word “genocide” when referring to this atrocity, but they can't make the truth disappear.  Historical scholars stand beside groups like the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), who report the following:  "More than one million Armenians perished as the result of execution, starvation, disease, the harsh environment, and physical abuse.  A people who lived in eastern Turkey for nearly 3,000 years [that is, 2,500 years before the Islamic Turks invaded and occupied Anatolia, now known as “Turkey”] lost its homeland and was profoundly decimated in the first large-scale genocide of the twentieth century.  At the beginning of 1915 there were some two million Armenians within Turkey; today there are fewer than 60,000."
     Furthermore, there is actual correspondence from a member of the Turkish regime at the time.  One of the documents authenticated by Turkish authorities in 1919 is a telegram sent in June 1915 by Dr. Sakir, one of the leaders of the secret organization that carried out the planning and implementation of the Genocide.  He asks the provincial party official who is responsible for carrying out the deportations and massacres of Armenians within his district: "Are the Armenians, who are being dispatched from there, being liquidated? Are those harmful persons whom you inform us you are exiling and banishing, being exterminated, or are they being merely dispatched and exiled? Answer explicitly....".  It sounds pretty systematic, premeditated and highly coordinated to me!
     The historical deniers of genocide will try to get you to believe that the indigenous Armenians died through the process of resettlement, or because they were caught in war zones.  But the numbers don't lie ... 1,500,000 deaths over a two-year period aren't "accidental", or because they were in the wrong place, at the wrong time.
     You cannot deny such historical accounts as these:  Torture squads would apply red-hot irons, tear off flesh with hot pincers, then pour boiled butter into the wounds. The soles of the feet would be beaten, slashed, and laced with salt. Dr. Mehmed Reshid tortured Armenians by nailing horseshoes to their feet and marching them through the streets. He also crucified them on makeshift crosses... The Muslims hacked Armenians to pieces and dashed infants on the rocks before their mothers. They burned bodies not for sanitary reasons but in search of gold coins they believed the Armenians had swallowed. The Muslims also tore apart the victims’ feces in the search for gold. U.S. consul Leslie Davis, a former attorney and journalist, documented the Islamic zeal...  “We could all hear them piously calling upon Allah to bless them in their efforts to kill the hated Christians,” Davis wrote. “Night after night this same chant went up to heaven and day after day these Turks carried on their bloody work.” Around Lake Goeljik, Davis wrote, “thousands and thousands of Armenians, mostly innocent and helpless women and children, were butchered on its shores and barbarously mutilated.”
     So the question remains -- Why the denials?  And why hasn't the U.S. government officially confirmed the Armenian Genocide ... especially since the U.S. House of Representatives has a long and proud tradition of reaffirming America’s moral stand against all genocides – past and present?  Here is a list of those they have acknowledged in the past, by either commemorating them or condemning them:  the Holocaust, the Cambodian genocide, the Darfur genocide, the Ukrainian genocide, and the Bosnian genocide.  Furthermore, 44 individual states have acknowledged it!
     Perhaps some of the reasons for denying the past atrocity find their equal in the attempts to deny what the current caliphate is attempting to accomplish. In the period immediately after World War I the tactic was to find scapegoats to blame for what was said to be only a security measure that had gone awry due to unscrupulous officials, Kurds, and common criminals.  This was followed by an attempt to avoid the whole issue, with silence, diplomatic efforts, and political pressure used where possible.  In the 1930s, for example, Turkey pressured the U.S. State Department into preventing MGM Studios from producing a film based on Franz Werfel's The Forty Days of Musa Dagh, a book that depicted aspects of the Genocide in a district located west of Antioch on the Mediterranean Sea, far from the Russian front.
     Today, we hear the White House press corps downplaying the atrocities of ISIS against Christian minorities in the Middle East; after all, they are only like a "J.V. team", right?  Furthermore, the ANCA reports that the Turkish government has hired former U.S. Congressman to lobby on their behalf in attempts to keep the U.S. from officially recognizing the Genocide.
     In the 1960s, prompted by the worldwide commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Genocide, efforts were made to influence journalists, teachers, and public officials by telling "the other side of the story."  Foreign scholars were encouraged to revise the record of genocide, presenting an account largely blaming the Armenians or, in another version, wartime conditions which claimed the lives of more Turks than Armenians.  Thereafter, Turkey tried to prohibit any mention of the Genocide in a United Nations report and was successful in its pressure on the Reagan and Bush administrations in defeating Congressional resolutions that would have designated April 24 as a national day of remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.  The Turkish government has also attempted to exclude any mention of the Genocide from American textbooks.  Stronger efforts still have been made to prevent any discussion of the 1915 genocide being formally included in the social studies curriculum as part of Holocaust and genocide studies.
     Does that ring a bell?  Do we not see that the current Caliphate is influencing the media, and using them, to tell their side of the story?  Are not some journalists and public officials complicit in playing down the danger of Islamic radicalism?  Isn't Common Core attempting to rewrite history, as well as present a sanitized version of Islam, while decrying the barbarism of Christianity?
      So, it is up to the world to tell the truth and to warn of the familiar images of genocide that are flooding out of the Middle East.  And in case you still doubt the veracity of the Armenian Genocide, I invite you to read the miraculous story of a 100-year-old Armenian woman, who is one of the last people alive to give a first-person account of the annihilation of her people.  Read her story so that you will know the horrors of genocide, and so her memories will never die.
     
Psalm 116:115    "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints."

   

The Survivors Remember ...

     This week and last, memorials are being held among the survivors of the Nazi death camps.  In Israel, these days are marked under the banner of Holocaust Remembrance Day.  For those of us who read of the atrocities committed by one human being against another, it is difficult to escape the emotions that accompany the tragedy of millions of lives lost; all because they were born a Jew.
     Our anger and tears and sympathy are displayed as we try to pay homage to those murdered, and we try to put ourselves in their place.  How would we have endured such blind hatred and evil?  Could we have survived it?  Are we even aware that the same unbridled hate is coming against Christians in the Middle East -- and will become a reality here at home?  Have we forgotten the lessons and the voices of history?
     The truth is, none of us can come close to knowing how horrific it was.  We only have the words of the few remaining survivors to keep the truth alive; to repudiate the attempts to rewrite history.  We should pay attention and listen carefully....
     Last Friday, on April 16th, Noah Klieger and Rabbi Israel Meir Lau raised the flag of Israel at the March of the Living in Poland.  Noah was one of the few Jews who survived Auschwitz; Rabbi Lau was the youngest prisoner to be liberated from Buchenwald. Neither would have dared dream at the time that one day they would participate in a symbolic march in memory of the millions murdered by the Germans.
     "The only dream that all the prisoners in the Jews' camps had was to live one day more than Adolf Hitler and survive the Reich of horrors he established. I was a prisoner at Auschwitz at the time, a nameless prisoner, with a number tattooed on my left arm. A prisoner without rights, whose life or death were determined by one SS officer or another.
      Can an ordinary person imagine hundreds of people sitting side by side at the latrine, the building in which holes were dug in the ground every half a meter, holes in which we defecated, many of us suffering from serious dysentery. An ordinary person definitely can't imagine that, just like he can't imagine standing for hours in the parade yard at the end of a working day, when the SS officers find out that one prisoner has not returned (they counted us when we left and returned from work). As long as they didn’t find the missing prisoner, as long as they suspected that someone had managed to escape, they made us stand there for hours. With no other option, we relieved ourselves while standing up. In the extremely cold weather, the urine and feces froze on our bodies and thin pajamas we were wearing. In the summer, the stench made hundreds of us – maybe even thousands – faint."
     There is the story of 80-year-old Rita Kasimow Brown, a recognized Holocaust artist, who always painted herself in her portraits in white.  " I think it has to do with the little white, not-so-white nightgown that I survived the whole Holocaust in."  Rita was just seven years old when the Nazis invaded her hometown of Turmolt, Poland.  In 1941, the Nazis rounded up the Jews there and put them in a ghetto.
     Rita's memories, like so many of the remaining survivors, are those of a child.  "What happened was we escaped the ghetto. We were hiding in all sorts of places, in barns, in bunkers, in all kinds of places with other people, but we got sick and had colds and then my father went away for a few days and what he did, he found another Christian family," she said.  "And there he dug a big pit under the stable and had a connection to the potato bin and a latch that you can open to the farmer's home," she recalled. "Now it was total darkness. We had a little light, from the cow shed, a little straw so there was a little light.  This is how we lived 20 months. We were hungry and fearful. It was just a living hell. It was a living grave," she said.
     As they lay there, Rita's mother taught her songs that she knew from the very cultured life she had led in her birthplace of Vilna.  "We sat like this and prayed and tried to sleep," she said, clutching at her heart.  Being awake was a nightmare, she explained, hour by hour, suffering day and night.  Most of her father's 12 siblings died while her little family of five stayed alive.
     "Being creative helped me survive and not only survive but keep my sanity," Rita said.  "I survived the Nazi murder machine, but the thing for us, the Nazi Holocaust survivors…we are wounded survivors."
     The Holocaust has not only affected those who lived through it, but the following generations.  David Hershkoviz would hear his mother screaming in her sleep as she relived the agony: a German soldier separated her from her own mother, who died at Auschwitz.  Hershkoviz's mother died two years ago. But through a "second generation" study course in central Israel, he's keeping her story alive. The Shem Olam Holocaust Institute is educating people like Hershkoviz to tell their stories when the Holocaust survivors are gone.

     And how many Christians share the story of journalist Nancy Beasley, who ignored the story of the Holocaust for too long?  When her Editor forced her to cover a story on the tragedy, she could no longer avoid it.  "I ended up going to a Kristalnacht ceremony where I think I heard my heart break because the survivors were talking about their family members who did not live, and it just changed my life completely," she said.
     "There was a woman named Raja Shlom and she witnessed the murder of her husband, her father and her father-in-law. And just moments before they were executed, she was talking to her husband. She'd taken some food [to him] and he said, 'Just save the boy, just save the boy,'" Beasley said.
    With the help of a German guard who had been her student, Shlom escaped with her mother, sister and the little boy, whose name was Emanuel.  "And she would say to the farmers as she went through the countryside, 'Don't be afraid. My son's name is Emanuel. That means God is with us,'" she told CBN News.  Those farmers along the way, hid the family.  Now 70 years later, Emanuel's son, Gadi, lives in Israel.  Beasley went on to spend the next 7 years writing that family's story in a book titled Izzy's Fire.  She wrote it to educate children so that they will not fall for the false narrative that God's enemies would have them believe.
     So what are the lessons for us today?  We not only see nations like Iran, who openly cry for the destruction of Israel, but the same evil intentions are being spearheaded against Christians, and it is spreading across the globe.  And if we think we will be spared Satan's plan to rid the world of those who belong to Jesus, then that's all the more reason that we should listen to these survivors.
     Evil will come as rapidly against us as it swept through Europe 70 years ago.  It will harden the hearts of your neighbors.  You will not recognize your family members or friends; they will suddenly become enemies if you do not step in line.  The stories you have read today are those of people who never dreamed that their lives would take that turn.  We must not refuse to listen to them or to learn from them.  Pray for strength to endure what is coming upon the earth, and pray that you will overcome evil with the testimony of Jesus Christ.  The Evil that overtook the world 70 years ago was not wiped out.  It just went into hibernation and is now awakening from its slumber.  We will soon feel it sweep the earth, and this time it is determined to win!

Psalm 50:15    "And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."


   

   

Samuel Adams: Where Are You Today?

     Being a lover of the history of our Founding and the American Revolution, I eagerly awaited The History Channel's miniseries, titled Sons of Liberty.  I had no illusions that history would be presented accurately, but was curious to see how Hollywood would represent the main characters of our nation's early history; especially Samuel Adams, who has always been a favorite of mine.
     My assumptions were correct ... the facts were skewed; the timelines were often off by years; and the circumstances surrounding the colonists' grievances were repeatedly exaggerated.  For instance, General Thomas Gage's appearance on the scene is ten years later than historical fact; there is no evidence of any relationship between Mrs. Gage and Dr. Joseph Warren; and Samuel Adams was not some dashing young hero, free from family obligations, as depicted in the miniseries.  At the opening of the first episode, in 1765, Sam Adams would have been 43, and the father of two surviving children from his first marriage (his wife died young, along with four other children who died in infancy).  He had remarried and was deeply involved in the politics of the day.  These are just a few of the many dramatizations and misrepresentations of the miniseries.
    Furthermore, Sam Adams was far from being the drunk scoundrel, who owned a tavern frequented by misfits, as the History Channel portrays him.  True, he was an inefficient tax collector; but he was quite successful, within political circles, in urging his fellow colonists to oppose the unjust tax measures being enforced by the King of England.  As for the Sons of Liberty, they were more than impoverished hotheads itching for a fight.  They were a secret society of colonial patriots who were committed to protecting the rights of the colonists and to fighting the abuses of taxation by the British government.

     And speaking of unjust taxes, the broadcast missed a huge opportunity to educate any young people who might have been captivated by the dare-devil antics of the Hollywood version of Sam Adams.  There was no real attempt to mention the various Acts imposed by the British Crown to keep the colonists in tow.  As a member of the Caucus Club, one of Boston's local political organizations, Adams was incensed over the 1764 Sugar Act, which imposed a tax on Boston merchants for their purchase of molasses.  He began a writing campaign, attacking the Sugar Act as an unreasonable law. Adams argued that the law violated colonists' rights because it had not been imposed with the approval of an elected representative.  He argued that there should be "no taxation without representation"; a slogan which would become a lightning rod in the colonists' ever-increasing desire for independence.
     For the next decade, Adams continued to write essays concerning the growing divide between England and her colonies.  He condemned the Stamp Act of 1765, which placed a tax on printed materials throughout the American colonies.  During this time he was elected a member of the Massachusetts legislature, and would serve in that capacity until 1774.  In the meantime, he continued his fiery essays against the Townshend Acts of 1767, which placed customs duties on imported goods.  None of this was mentioned in the miniseries; only the celebrated Boston Tea Party, which saw the colonists refusing to pay the taxes levied by the Tea Act of 1773, and subsequently dumping the tea in Boston Harbor.
     (Consider this:  I recently watched a TV survey of college students who could not identify which country we won our independence from.  The History Channel could have served a greater purpose with this fictionalized account of history, don't you think?  Lord knows, I was ashamed at the realization that our youth have lost all interest and knowledge in the narrative of our country.)
     I understand that action sells better than politics, and I am not disputing the role that a passionate and dedicated Samuel Adams played in the years preceding the opening shots at Lexington and Concord.  It is indisputable, as the miniseries portrayed, that he played a dynamic behind-the-scenes role in urging the populace and their colonial leaders towards independence.
    In fact, history has always been fascinated with the part he played in securing our Liberty.  During the 19th Century, when America still clung to her patriotic principles and valued an individual's liberty and right to succeed, Samuel Adams was recognized as a hero of the Revolution.  But the 20th Century saw the genesis of socialism and progressivism taking root in our political consciousness, and Sam Adams gained a negative reputation.  His brilliant essays were viewed as propaganda, and he was painted as an avid promoter of revolution who incited mob violence to push his political agenda.    Today's Progressives would likely call him a "domestic terrorist"; even the modern Tea Party movement, which has become part of his legacy, is disparaged and impugned.
     But whichever version of Samuel Adams you choose to embrace, no one can dispute that he played one of the most important roles in the founding of this nation.  He believed in a "republican" form of government, which advocated that power should be held by the people and their elected representatives, rather than a monarch or dictator.  His writings also show that he believed that force against the government of a nation was only justified when the constitutional rights of the people were threatened, and were so grave that the "body of the people" recognized the danger, and only after "all peaceful means of redress had failed."  Revolution was his last choice.  But shortly after he signed the Declaration of Independence, he delivered these words in a speech at the State House in Philadelphia:

"If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen."
   
     How we need Sam Adams today!  He was able to see the road to Liberty perhaps clearer than any other patriot of his time.  He was able to speak boldly and plainly to the people, championed public virtue in the culture and politics, and believed strongly in a true representative government.  He continued to serve his country in the First and Second Continental Congresses, and was instrumental in drafting the Bill of Rights.  Although The History Channel dramatized only the early days of his political involvement, and much of their storyline was inflated and blurred the historical facts, I am loathe to completely condemn the presentation.
     I believe the miniseries captured the spirit of those passionate days ... days when God placed the right men, at the right time, in the right place.  God had a plan for this nation, and He raised up men like Samuel Adams and Paul Revere and Dr. Joseph Warren and George Washington to lead mankind into a new era.  These men were able to breed a desire in their fellow countrymen to live their lives as free men; exercising their Natural Rights to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.
     It is my hope that The History Channel's excessive and outrageous version of Samuel Adams's life encourages our citizens of all ages to seek more knowledge about him and the American Revolution.  And I further hope it awakens them to just how glorious and miraculous is our history.  The politics of that day were just as controversial and embattled as they are today.  But there burned a fire in the hearts of men that I fear we've lost.  May God rekindle His Spirit in our nation, and the Spirit of '76!

Psalm 33:12   "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom He has chosen as His heritage!"
   









   

Are You Worthy To Be A Citizen?

   

     I heard an ingenious idea the other day on talk radio.  The host was informing his audience that a Tennessee State Legislator has proposed a bill that would require all high school seniors in his state to pass a test proving that they know and understand U.S. history and the Constitution before they can graduate.  The test would be similar to the one that legal immigrants must pass to be granted citizenship, and the students would have to answer 60 out of 100 questions correctly to receive their diploma.
     Why not?  Don't you think it would bode well for our country if the next generation understood, not only the basics of how our government is to function, but the history of what we've done right and what we've done wrong to get to our present state?
     I have been shocked at the lack of knowledge of the American citizenry when it comes to our government and our history.  In fact, over the holidays, I engaged with several college students who all say that History is their least favorite subject.  Since it was my favorite, and I loved studying about the Middle Ages, the various world explorers, and our own American Revolution, I struggled to figure out what makes them uninterested in our historical events or the past.
     I think I have discovered the culprit --- it's our modern technology.  The advent of the cell phone and social media has captivated their interest in the "here and now".  They are only curious about discovering what is happening at this moment; or over the last 24-hour period at the longest.  Just look at the various apps they subscribe to .... InstaChat, Snap Chat .... they aren't called instant messaging applications for nothing.
     Technology has convinced people that the only important thing in their lives is what is happening now.  Anything that happened in the past has no relevance to them; it doesn't affect their self-absorbed lives, and they aren't interested in anything that breaks their preoccupation with their own emotions, interests, or situations.
     So, if I have correctly identified the reason why today's student isn't interested in History or Civics courses, would making them take this test before advancing towards their life goals make any difference?  I don't know, but I think it's worth a shot.  Because if a nation's native citizens cannot identify why they are governed the way they are; or they are unable to relate to the historical events that have shaped their present state, then they don't really know who they are.  And once a nation loses its identity, they are subject to becoming divided and disengaged; open to deception, exploitation, and subjugation.
      That's why newly naturalized citizens often make the best Americans.  They know how our government is to perform, and they understand (through our history) what has made this nation so appealing to immigrants for the past two and half centuries.  They are here because they know what this country stands for, what our history is, and they want to be a part of conserving the principles, ideals and dreams of what it means to be an American.
     So maybe it's time that the rest of us who claim the title of American (by the grace of God), be required to prove that we are worthy of the benefits of living in this great nation.  And maybe ... just maybe ... it would make us see where, and how far, off course we've come.
     Ready to answer some sample questions?  I've picked some random questions from among the 100 that are included in the Naturalization Test for U.S. Citizenship.  See how much you, your children and your grandchildren truly know about the United States of America.

1.    What is the Supreme Law of the Land?  
2.    The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?
3.    What is an amendment?
4.    What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?
5.    What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?
6.    What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
7.    What is the “rule of law”?
       •  Everyone must follow the law.
       •  Leaders must obey the law.
       •  Government must obey the law.
       •  No one is above the law.
8.    What is the economic system in the United States?
       •  Capitalist economy
       •  Market economy
9.    How many U.S. Senators are there?
10.  We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
11.  Name your U.S. Representative.
12.  If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
13.  What is the highest court in the United States?
14.  How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
15.  Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?
16.  There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
17.  What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
18.  What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
19.  What is one reason colonists came to America? 
20.  Why did the colonists fight the British?
21.  There were 13 original states. Name three. 
22.  When was the Constitution written? 
23.  The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers. 
24.  Who is "the Father of our Country"?
25.  What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
26.  Name one problem that led to the Civil War. 
27.  What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
28.  Who was President during World War I?
29.  Who did the United States fight in World War II?
30.  During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States? 
31.  What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?
32.  Name one American Indian tribe.
33.  Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.
34.  Name one U.S. territory.
35.  Name one state that borders Canada.
36.  Name one state that borders Mexico.
37.  Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
38.  What is the capital of the United States?
39.  When do we celebrate Independence Day?
40.   Name one branch of the government. 

     So, how did you do?  Try taking this sample test and then comparing your answers with those of your children or grandchildren.  Is there a discrepancy in knowledge?  If so, are they interested in knowing more about their country?  And, if not, does this concern you?
     I just can't help feeling that we have been so blessed to have been born in this nation; a country that hundreds of thousands have yearned to get to because they sensed that it was special and separate from any other land that has existed in history.  God had a purpose in establishing this nation, it is incumbent upon us to understand its exceptionalism, and to teach it to all our generations.  However, I'm afraid that we are losing that sense of extraordinary purpose and blessed opportunity that was our identifiable attribute.
     Like the old saying goes ... "Those who don't know history, are doomed to repeat it."  Even the Bible warns us that "As it was in the days of Noah...", and to "Remember Lot's wife."  We cannot afford to become indifferent or unmotivated in these times that carry great risk.  We must be knowledgable about who we are; because when we no longer aware of our past, or why we exist in God's eternal plan, then we are in danger of making destructive and devastating mistakes that could see us fade from history altogether.  And with no knowledge of our unique history, or how we are to govern ourselves, we'll never see it coming. 

If you would like to see the full list of questions on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services test for citizenship, click here.  

Job 8:8-10   "For inquire, please, of bygone ages, and consider what the fathers have searched out. For we are but of yesterday and know nothing, for our days on earth are a shadow. Will they not teach you and tell you and utter words out of their understanding?"

"Unbroken": A Life of Redeeming Faith

     I was one of the millions of people who eagerly awaited the release of the movie Unbroken.  Having read the novel by Laura Hillenbrand of the heroic life of WWII prisoner of war, Louie Zamperini, I was looking forward to seeing his powerful journey portrayed on screen-- from misfit kid, to Olympic track athlete, to tortured prisoner of war, to tormented husband, to at last finding peace and solace in his salvation through Jesus Christ.

Louie (Left) in a Japanese POW concentration camp

     The world needs inspirational movies like Louie's story.  If you've read the book, Unbroken, then you know what I am talking about.  It was a difficult book for me to read.  The sheer depravity and evil that Louie suffered at the hands of "The Bird" in the Japanese concentration camps was hard to digest.  Ms. Hillenbrand was able to capture the pain, and the wretchedness, and the sheer sadism that the prisoners experienced; with Louie, for some reason, becoming the main target of that hellish existence for two terrible years.
     It was hard for me to even contemplate that one man could inflict such torment upon another.  And it gave me a clearer understanding of why my father, a WWII veteran, who served in the Pacific, had a lifelong contempt for the Japanese.  I am not condoning his attitude or feelings, but I'm sure that the memories of hearing the stories firsthand from returning prisoners was something that was hard for him to let go.  It takes the redeeming act of Christ in one's life to overcome the effects of such evil, and that's how Louie was ultimately able to survive.
     His complete rescue did not come immediately upon his return home.  For a time, he endured alcoholism and marriage troubles.  Then on one fateful night, he attended one of a young Billy Graham's first revival meetings, and there he found the saving grace and love of God.  He was able to finally let go of the anger, the hatred, and the burden of his rage against his Japanese captors.  He was able to forgive them, and even personally made a trip to Japan to meet them face to face.  Only "The Bird" refused to see him.  At the end of the book, I was in tears for Louie -- for the agony and the pain that he had endured at the hands of a madman; for the camaraderie and loyalty that helped him and his fellow prisoners endure; for the faith that he found and which he shared for the rest of his life.
      It was this last phase of his life that was all but virtually ignored in the movie, Unbroken, directed by Angelina Jolie.  I applaud the actor who played Louie.  He mirrored the Louie that I imagined while reading the book; his character was reckless, feisty, determined, stubborn, and unbeatable.  The scenes in the concentration camps were realistic and haunting.  Louie's unbroken spirit came through loud and clear.  But I wanted more of him; I wanted the "whole" Louie to be exposed.  What's more, I wanted the audiences across the country to receive the real reason Louie was "unbroken".

Louie (on left), with Billy Graham

     Instead, what we got was a few sentences in white type, on a black screen at the end of the movie, that explained that Louie found God at a Billy Graham meeting and his faith lasted throughout the remainder of his life.  For the Director, Angelina Jolie, it was enough to "hint" at his faith.  "That is what we tried to get into the film. We wanted people to understand that it is not that you suddenly realize there is something beyond you in the world," Jolie told Christian Broadcasting Network.  "That man is not alone is something we wanted to say from early on in the raft to the prison camp, that there is this, whatever your faith, there is something there," she added. "And whether you choose to see it is your choice and when you come to it and when you feel it, it is there for you ... And so, it was very important to us that sometimes in the mother praying, sometimes in the sunrise, there is always what we would refer to as the light in the film," she said.
     But that does not do justice to Louie Zamperini, or to his faith.  What he believed in was not merely what one sees in the sunrise, or the providential appearance of food after tortuous days at sea on a raft.  Louie believed in what the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross did for him.  It allowed him to forgive his enemies; the forgiveness that was Christ's gift to him, he was now able to extend to those who had made his life hell.  In one interview on Youtube, Louie recounts how he fell to his knees at that Billy Graham revival, and asked God to forgive him for not keeping the promises he had made while on that life raft or in that concentration camp.  He asked Christ into his heart, and he said, within mere seconds he knew that he no longer craved alcohol; and that his anger and confusion over his captivity were all gone.  He was a new creation.
     That would have been a powerful testimony for the conclusion of Louie's life, yet it was decided not to include these years in the movie.  Why should I be surprised?  Hollywood would rather glorify the perversion of sex in a graphic preview of the movie Fifty Shades of Grey, than the grace and mercy that comes with accepting Jesus as your Savior.  And perhaps Hollywood is only able to see Louie as a hero when he overcomes sadistic physical enemies.  It is sad they don't see that overcoming spiritual enemies makes him a greater hero to those who need to hear his testimony.
     We know that Angelina Jolie was able to share the movie with Louie (on her laptop computer) in his hospital room before he died in July of this year.  We can only hope that he was able to share his faith with her, and that his story might impact her life, as it has everyone who has been touched by this brave and faithful man.  Rest in peace, Mr. Zamperini!  Your life is still reaching people for God's Kingdom.

You can also read Louie Zamperini's own account of his war years and the lessons his faith has taught him.  This book, titled "Don't Give Up, Don't Give In: Lessons from an Extraordinary Life", was delivered to the publisher just days before his death in July, 2014.  

1 Corinthians 10:13   "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."

The Spirit of Chanukah

   

     As one who embraces the Jewish roots of my faith, I strive to comprehend what it is God would have me understand about His various Feast days and those holidays celebrated by the Hebrew faithful.  And since the holiday of Chanukah began at sundown on the 16th of December, and will continue for eight days, I want to take a look at its historical significance and how I can relate it to my Christian walk in this current age.
     You will get the fullest picture of the origin of Chanukah by reading the First and Second Books of  Maccabees.  You will not find these books in our modern Protestant Bibles.  They were, however, part of the Septuagint, the translation of the Hebrew Bible into the Greek language.  This was accomplished in the third and second centuries B.C. in Alexandria, Egypt.  Because Israel was under the authority of Greece for several centuries, the Greek language became more and more common. By the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C., most people in Israel spoke Greek as their primary language.
     As to why the Books of the Maccabees are no longer part of the Biblical canon, and have never been part of the Hebrew Bible, I have no definitive answer.  I am not a Torah scholar, and I am far from all-knowing when it comes to Bible history.  Suffice it to say that for centuries the Books were lost to both the Christian and Jewish faiths due to politics, religious squabbles, and man's interference.  But now there is renewed interest in them for their historical value by both faiths.  Although not considered canon, they are a major contributor to our understanding as to the origin and significance of the holiday Chanukah.  I think you will find fascinating parallels to what we are experiencing today.
     So what do these compelling Books have to say about the time period in which the celebration of Chanukah first began?  Remember, that most people in Israel spoke Greek as their first language.  And there lies a big problem.  How did this happen?  In the wake of Alexander the Great's conquering of the known world, he wanted to "Hellenize" all the vanquished people.  In other words, he wanted to make them as Greek as possible, destroying their native religions and traditions.  After his death in 323 B.C., his empire was split between four of his generals. Two of the ensuing kingdoms (the Ptolemies in Egypt, and the Seleucids in Syria) would greatly influence Jewish history, as the land of Israel found itself situated between these two rival kingdoms.
    Antiochus Epiphanes would become the Seleucid king in 175 B.C., and he was able to take advantage of the division within the Jewish community; between those who wanted to become "more Greek", and those who wanted to maintain "traditional" values and practice their faith according to their covenant with God.  But Antiochus became extremely arrogant, demanding that all peoples unite in a common religion (his), and abandon their traditions and practices according to the Law (teachings) of Moses.
     Not only did the Hebraic Jews, who were faithful to God, find an enemy in Antiochus Epiphanes, but also adversaries among the Hellenized Jews.  To show just how devastating were the policies of the Greek tyrant, Epiphanes, the Jewish religious practices were forbidden; dietary laws were not to be observed; objects associated with Jewish worship were destroyed; the observance of sabbath and feast days was made illegal (punishable by death); circumcision was forbidden; and the Jewish sacred books were burned. In essence, he attempted to destroy the Jewish people and their faith.
      But a recurring theme in the Bible is the fact that God always keeps a remnant who are faithful to Him -- even amidst persecution and apostasy.  At the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, that faithful few can be found in Mattathias, a Jewish priest, and his five sons.  They revolt against the Hellenizing policies of the Greek tyrant, as well as the Jewish collaboration of their own people.  When Antiochus orders a pig to be sacrificed on the altar in God's Temple, Mattathias slays the heretical priest who would do so, and flees with his sons to the hills outside of Jerusalem.  With his ragtag army, he vows to defend his nation and his covenant with God.
     For nearly 25 years, a civil and religious war is waged -- Jew against Jew; between those willing to defend God's covenant against those who would compromise their faith to be "politically correct".  In addition, the maniacal rage of Antiochus Epiphanes against the Jews who dared to revolt against him resulted in massive persecution.  "There was a massacre of young and old, a killing of women and children, a slaughter of virgins and infants. In the space of three days, eighty thousand were lost, forty thousand meeting a violent death, and the same number being sold into slavery." (2 Maccabees 5:11-14).

     After the first three years of war, the Maccabees, now led by Judas after his father Mattathias's death, are able to recapture Jerusalem.  When Judas and his supporters arrive at the Temple, they find it desecrated by ungodly pagan sacrifices using pigs, the altar of the Lord destroyed, and a statue of the Greek god Zeus erected in its place.  Judas and his followers tear down the pagan altar and rebuild a new altar, as prescribed by Moses' teachings.  They then purify the Temple and make new sacred vessels; they brought the lamp stand, the altar of incense, and the table of showbread into the temple.  They rededicate the Temple and the new altar to the Lord, on the anniversary of the date it had first been defiled by the Gentile Greeks.
     1 Maccabees 4:56-59 says, "For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the altar and joyfully offered holocausts and sacrifices of deliverance and praise ... Then Judas and his brothers and the entire congregation of Israel decreed that the days of the dedication of the altar should be observed with joy and gladness on the anniversary every year for eight days ...".  2 Maccabees 10:7 says, "they lighted lamps and celebrated for eight days in the manner of the festival of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles)".
    This is the origin of the eight-day celebration of the Jewish holiday of Chanukah. Part of the modern story of Chanukah includes the legend that when the lamp stand (menorah) was lit, the appointed priests discover that there is only one vial of pure lamp oil with the special seal still intact. They use this vial to light the menorah, and miraculously, it stays lit for eight days, by which time fresh pure oil has been pressed and delivered to the Temple.  It is this "miracle" that is also celebrated during the Chanukah festivities.
     Whether or not this "miracle" actually happened is not for me to say.  I would point out, however, that when you read the First and Second Books of Maccabees, you will find no mention of oil being required for the lighting of the "lamps".  And there are some Jewish scholars who will point out that this part of the story didn’t become significant until hundreds of years later. Having witnessed the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD (by the Romans) and two failed rebellions, the Rabbis of the day wanted to de-emphasize the notion of might and fighting – which wasn’t working so well. They added the miracle of the oil to the Oral Tradition to shift the focus toward faith in God.
     I do not wish to take issue with the veracity of the Chanukah "miracle".  It doesn't really concern me or diminish the importance of this holiday.  Much of our Christian "traditions" and holidays have no Biblical foundation, yet can be observed in a way that honors God's Word.  And as I have grown in my desire to know God's Truth (rather than man's interpretation and embellishment), I find myself shunning the commercialization and myths associated with our own Christmas holiday and choosing a "simpler, more honest" celebration of God's great love in sending His Son into our fallen world.
     I know that Yeshua was not born on December 24th, but I can celebrate the fact that He came as an innocent child to bring us salvation.  I do not disparage those who choose to enjoy the lights and glitter and displays of the Christmas holiday; I just look upon those displays differently now -- enjoying them, but without assigning them a heavenly significance.  My emotional response to the holiday is now centered on the "miracle" of my Savior's birth.
     So, too, does the holiday of Chanukah retain it's foundational importance.  I can look upon it as historical fact; when everything that Evil could manifest against God's Holy Temple was washed away; when the Temple was rededicated and created anew.  I can honor the fact that Chanukah mimics an eight-day celebration just like the Feast of Tabernacles, which celebrates when God's presence was with them amidst the Tabernacle in the desert.  I can appreciate it being the "Festival of Lights", noting that the tradition of lighting the menorah celebrates the dedication of a group of faithful Jews to restore their faith, and to protect it against the schemes of the world that would compromise it.  I can celebrate the victory against Evil that Chanukah represents.  Perhaps most importantly, I can celebrate that Chanukah represents religious freedom; to pursue your faith as established by God's holy covenant with all believers.  And I can be thankful that God is connecting the dots for me, and opening the doors to greater understanding of His ways.  There is much to celebrate ... Happy Chanukah!

Revelation 14:12    "Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus."

How Does It Feel To Be Number Two?

     For more than half of its lifespan, the United States of America has been considered the leading economic superpower of the World.  That's quite a run, and one that no other nation can lay claim to.  For nearly 140 years, America's economy has been the largest among the nations; but there's a new Power that holds that position.

     According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), China just surpassed the U.S. in economic output, producing $17.6 trillion in so-called “real” terms of goods and services. According to MarketWatch.com, as recently as 2000, we produced nearly three times as much as the Chinese.  So how did this happen, and what does it mean for the already shaky American economy?  And what does history tell us this development means for our future, moving forward?
     First of all, the United States has been in the forefront of prosperity and production for my entire lifetime.  So a fall in position in such a rapid timeframe deserves some explanation, don't you think?  I am also left wondering if this economic downturn somehow foretells a decline in other aspects of our nation.  Is it just me, or does this state of affairs seem to mirror our diminishing civil liberties, constitutional rights, and rule of law?  Are we seeing the permanent decline of the United States of America?
     When you look at it from China's perspective, this is just the evolution that sees them resuming their natural place in the global order.  After all, they have a history of dynasties that go back 3000 years, while the U.S. is not even 300 years old!  They just had a little 200 year blip on their radar screen, which explains our dominance during that time period.  Now, China thinks that things are back to being as they should; and perhaps we just got a little too big for our britches?
     The economic gurus will tell you that the bottom line is that China is able to export more than we do, and do it cheaper.  American manufacturing is on the ropes, and China is ready to deliver the knockout punch.  With global powers pushing for a global economy, we are all intertwined with each other ... how many Chinese components are included in "American-made" products?  The truth is that we need, and use, far more Chinese exports/products than they use of ours.  Even if we tried to ban some of our components in the Chinese marketplace, there are emerging economies that are waiting to step in and take our place.
     But here's a whole other paradigm to consider ... The IMF is a creation of the United Nations, and here is its official duty:  "to promote international financial stability and monetary cooperation. It also seeks to facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world. Created in 1945, the IMF is governed by and accountable to the 188 countries that make up its near-global membership."  In other words, it was created to establish a global, or one-world, financial system.
     But here's the irony ... both China and the U.S. economies are fake; China has built "ghost cities" based on an inflated economy, while we have printed ourselves into a counterfeit recovery.  However, for whatever reason, the global elite leaders have decided that China should now be the nation out front of the world economy.

      Although this might all seem orchestrated, (and believe me, it is!) we must not forget the ideological changes our Number Two status could represent.  We can expect to see a major change in the psychological, cultural, and moral aspects of the world's nations; because whatever beacon of Freedom we have been to the world is shining just a little dimmer at the moment.  China has not exactly been a bastion of Liberty in the last three-quarters of a century ... Their "cultural revolution" resulted in the deaths of 30 million of their own people, and that's a conservative number.  They killed tens of thousands in Tibet and then invaded Vietnam and India. And does anyone think that their cozying up to Russia is a good thing?
     At the end of the day, I can't help but think of the Biblical prophesies that foretell Satan's political and economic systems that come into play close to the Second Coming of Christ.  In fact, Satan even proclaims (in Luke 4:6) that he has been given power over the earth, and he can distribute it to whomever he chooses.  The rulers of nations will be influenced by his evil machinations, and there will be a darkness imposed on the earth by Satan's rule through the governance of men.
     But we must not forget that it is the hand of God that is really in control of the rise and fall of great nations and empires.  Satan's influence is ultimately supervised by God.  History is full of the narratives of Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome -- all nations that were used for His plan and purpose.  Each one of these nations played a part in the history of Israel and the Church.  We are no different, except that our rise was meteoric, and our fall may be just as spectacular.
     The real question becomes this:  is God through with us?  Can we still be used by Him to further His plan, or have we become so enamored by the temptations of Babylon's Harlot, that we no longer care about our purpose?  When, as a nation, we are focused on ourselves, and we ignore or deny God, it makes no difference if we are Number One -- the collapse is inevitable.  If our role as "defender of the free world" is reduced, and we no longer export faith in God to the nations of the world, then our role may well be finished.  When that happens, we will become a footnote in history.

Daniel 5:26-27     "This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting;"
   
   

This September 11th ... What's Different?

   

     For some reason, this anniversary of 9-11 finds me being more cautious and alert.  Is it that overt threats against our homeland have been made by an Islamic terrorist army that makes Osama bin Laden look like Mr. Rogers?  Is it the missing Libyan jetliners?  Is it that there are credible reports that terrorists from the Middle East and Africa have easily entered the country through the porous southern border?  Or is it that I'm just more "edgy" because the enemy is no longer keeping its plans to attack us under wraps, but boldly proclaiming it from every online social networking service available?
     How about "all of the above"?  Plus, there is the book by the security contractors in Benghazi, who write they were told to "stand down" from rescuing their teammates.  How does that appear to those who wish to destroy us?  All these scenarios point to the likelihood that we are seen as a viable target.  These are the "facts on the ground", so to speak; what I can point to in support of my clear, sound reasoning.
     But then there is what my spirit senses.  There's no physical proof, no material witness, no concrete evidence.  I am simply unsettled in my soul, and aware that danger is in the air.  I also know that this particular day has become a symbol of victory over us, and the September 11th, 2012 attacks on the compound of the American consulate in Benghazi have emboldened our enemies.  And that enemy has coalesced into a murderous, barbarous horde that my spirit recognizes as pure Evil.  It is more than a religious ideology gone bad; it is dark, fiendish and diabolical.
     What's more, we are not the same country we were on September 11, 2001.  I'm sorry to say, but I think we are weaker, less secure, and less determined to defend our might as we were on that fall morning, thirteen years ago today.  Our military is exhausted and stretched too thin as they fight multiple battles on foreign fronts.   Add that to the lack of defense on our borders, and the growing division among the American people on issues such as immigration, racism, and social/moral values, and we are a country disunited and vulnerable.  In short, we are weary of our struggles, and perhaps have even become anesthetized; worn down to a state of desensitization.
     Also, our Western culture is practically incapable of sustaining a long-term state of readiness.  We are ingrained with a desire and demand for instant gratification ... we pay attention to the news for a period of time; gather our buckets of rice and beans; take a few self-defense classes; buy some ammo and extra food and supplies .... and go back to sleep.   "There, I've taken care of my emergency essentials; I'm prepared," we tell ourselves.  "Now, I want to go back to my fun, and my sports, and planning my next vacation."
     But our enemy doesn't think that way.  They've succeeded in attacking us on September 11th -- not once, but twice in the last thirteen years.  And each time they're thinking "bigger and better."  Not only that, but they have the patience to wait until the time is right and they can execute their plan, just the way they want it.  They don't get weary and they don't go back to sleep.
     But, this is the important factor that Americans don't understand --- September 11th is more than just the day planes flew into the World Trade Towers, or the day that America was attacked on foreign soil.  Radical Muslims look upon the attacks in 2001 as it pertains to their history over the last 330 years or so.  September 11th is a significant date to them because it represents the beginning of the defeat of the Turkish Ottoman Empire, (the last great Caliphate), at the battle of Vienna on September 11, 1683.  It represents the beginning of the decline of their Islamic culture and the rise of the Western culture.  Therefore, to the radical jihadists, September 11th has become symbolic of reversing that trend and re-establishing the superiority of Islam.  It only makes sense that with the rise of ISIS, and a new Caliphate, that they want to be able to create a new September 11th to celebrate victory, rather than the bitter taste of a centuries-old defeat.  They are on a roll right now, and this is why I am praying that with God's help, this day will be uneventful.
     And if He decides to bless us and protect us, my prayer is also that we would awaken to the growing peril that we face.  We cannot win this battle alone; we must ask God to go before us and protect our individual lives, our nation, and our way of life.  Keep on your knees, people!  And may there be a hedge of protection around you and your family today.

Deuteronomy 31:8      "The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
   

A "Churchill" Moment?

     I happened to catch just a few moments of British Prime Minister David Cameron's press conference on Friday.  At first I couldn't believe my ears ... a world leader who actually perceives the very real threat of Evil that exists because of the Islamic State (ISIL), and is not afraid to propose a comprehensive plan to stop it.
     Noting that the barbaric murder of American journalist James Foley appears to have been committed by a British jihadist terrorist, Cameron took the lead in addressing what other leaders in the world are reticent to admit.  He was announcing that he had raised his nation’s threat assessment to its second-highest level, in the wake of reports that 500 British jihadists had fought with the Islamic State army, and now were on the verge of returning home.
     These threat assessments and levels have become almost common fare since the September 11th attacks, and we tend to hear the issuance of them with a somewhat cynical ear.  The rationale for their announcement is never straightforward nor transparent; we're always left wondering if it serves some political benefit.  Not so, with PM Cameron.
     “The root cause of this threat to our security is clear,” he said. “It is a poisonous ideology of Islamic extremism.”  Boy, he couldn't have been any more candid, if he tried.  Furthermore, he warned of the danger of a policy of continued concessions:  the problem of ISIS “cannot be solved simply by dealing with perceived grievances over Western foreign policy” and it cannot be “appeased.”

     It's no wonder that of all the former Prime Ministers, Winston Churchill is Cameron's favorite.  While Churchill's history is long, often contradictory and controversial, and even flawed, he was the leader Britain needed in her critical hour.  His courage, his persistence, and his dedication to the purpose of saving his homeland against the aggressive and evil Nazi regime proved that he was the right man for the right cause at the right time. He didn't hold anything back, nor make false promises. He knew the road to victory would be long, dark and bloody.
     While history has yet to record what impact Cameron's speech may have on the future of the Western world, he did his part in stating the obvious:  “We are in the midst of a generational struggle against a poisonous and extremist ideology that I believe we will be fighting for years, and even decades.”  Does he stand alone in his bold pronouncements?  We, here in the U.S. apparently "have no strategy" yet, and the rest of Europe seems impervious to the impending peril of a robust, confident and violent Caliphate.
     In light of Saudi King Abdullah's statement this weekend, other world leaders would serve their countries best by following Cameron's example.  King Abdullah warned, "If we ignore them (ISIL), I am sure they will reach Europe in a month and America in another month ... It is no secret to you, what they have done and what they have yet to do. I ask you to transmit this message to your leaders: 'Fight terrorism with force, reason and (necessary) speed'."
     Cameron made it clear that he intends to do just that: "We’ve already taken a whole range of measures to keep our people safe. We are stopping suspects from travelling by seizing passports. We’re barring foreign nationals from re-entering the UK. We’re depriving people of citizenship and we are legislating so we can prosecute people for all terrorist activity, even where that activity takes place overseas... We’ve taken down 28,000 pieces of extremist material off the internet this year alone, including 46 ISIL related videos. We have made clear that those who carry ISIL flags or seek to recruit to ISIL will be arrested and the material seized."  Are you listening in the halls of Congress and at the White House?
     Cameron also talked about shying away from sweeping new government powers that would hinder the freedom of British citizens, while strengthening the laws they do have.  I must admit that I have an aversion to anything that smacks of our own Patriot Act, and we will have to see if he is true to his word.  But I did like his remarks in which he stood up for, and championed, the British way of life: "Britain is an open, tolerant and free nation.  But we cannot stand by and allow our openness to be confused with a tolerance of extremism, or one that encourages different cultures to live separate lives and allows people to behave in ways that run completely counter to our values. Adhering to British values is not an option or a choice; it is a duty for those who live in these islands. And in the end it is only by standing up for these values that we will defeat the extremism, protect our way of life, and keep all our people safe."  A Leader of a country who extols its exceptionalism ... now that's a breath of fresh air!
     In the end, I don't really know if Prime Minister Cameron will follow through on the promises of his spirited rhetoric.  And I am no political scientist; I can only hope that he is what he appears to be --- and history demands he be --- a man with the moral obligation to stop Evil.  But I do think that Cameron at least recognizes the very real threat that faces not only his country, but Europe, the West, and ultimately, the whole world.  Once again, as in 1940, a British Prime Minister must take the reins and lead his nation against a formidable force hell-bent on dominating the world.  Will Cameron be this generation's Churchill?  He needs to be.
     The words of Churchill in his first speech as Prime Minister would serve Cameron just as well today:  "You ask what is our policy. I will say, it is to wage war with all our might, with all the strength that God can give us, to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime.  You ask what is our aim? I can answer in one word: Victory. Victory at all costs. Victory in spite of all terror. Victory however long and hard the road may be. For without victory there is no survival."  May God hold back His righteous judgment just a little longer.

Psalm 94:16     "Who will stand up for me against the wicked? Who will help me against evildoers?"
   

Never Again!

     This is the rallying cry of Jews throughout Europe as they see the writing on the wall, and vow to stop the hate crimes against their religion by radical Muslims and supporters of the Left.  And it looks as if they have good reason to be on the defensive.  Israel National News cites a study by the World Zionist Organization that reports "Anti-Semitic attacks have increased by 436% in Europe, 1200% in South America, 600% in South Africa, 800% in Oceania, 127% in the United States, and 100% in Canada."
     These attacks include the burning of Israeli flags worldwide.  Mezuzahs (a parchment inscribed with religious texts and attached in a case to the doorpost of a Jewish house as a sign of faith) are being ripped from homes.  Jewish shops around the world are torched.  And the delegitimization of Israel by pro-Arab sympathizers all serve to undermine the security of hundreds of thousands of Jews around the world.
     But European Jews are living by their pledge to "never again" allow a Holocaust like the one instigated by Nazi Germany.  Throughout Europe, Jewish groups are hiring former, elite Israeli soldiers as security guards for Jewish institutions and synagogues.
     Stephen Brown, writing for David Horowitz's Freedom Center and Front Page Mag, says "Well aware of history, German Jewish associations know the first major step in any planned liquidation of Europe’s Jewish communities, especially of their own, is the destruction of their synagogues. This is what occurred in Germany in November, 1938, and later came to be called ‘Kristallnacht’ (Crystal Night). In one night, Nazi thugs destroyed all the synagogues in Germany and Austria as well as many Jewish businesses, homes, cemeteries and social meeting places. The ‘Kristall’ refers to the debris of broken window glass lying on the ground afterwards from destroyed synagogues and Jewish stores."
     That night over 100 Jews were killed in the ensuing violence.  The Nazi regime held the Jewish community responsible for the physical damage and subsequently imposed a collective fine of $400 million (in 1938 rates); this according to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
     History.com further relates that "more than 30,000 Jewish men were arrested and sent to the Dachau, Buchenwald and Sachsenhausen concentration camps in Germany–camps that were specifically constructed to hold Jews, political prisoners and other perceived enemies of the Nazi state."
     Today, European Jews recognize that Kristallnacht was the night that the harassment of Jews in Germany turned to violence, and that it directly led to the extermination of over 6,000,000 European Jews.  Kristallnacht was a turning point, and they are determined that such evil will happen "never again".

     In his article, Brown writes that, today, "radical, anti-Semitic Islamists have replaced the brown-shirted thugs. And they are becoming just as violent as their predecessors in expressing their anti-Jewish hatred."  France has been the scene of particularly violent hate crimes; with French jihadists attacking Jewish community centers and synagogues; and murdering children at Jewish schools, and killing attendees at Jewish museums.  The anti-Semitic attacks have gotten so bad in France, that Jews are leery of walking to synagogue;  physical and verbal assaults occur daily.
     You know it is getting bad in Europe when a visiting German-Jewish lawyer tells an Israeli parliamentary committee, "Things are happening (in Europe) that we have not seen since 1933."
     So the question is this ... Do the European governments have the courage to fight back against such hatred and evil?  Will they try to appease it or ignore it?  Surely, they remember their history and what such lack of action encouraged! "Harshly denouncing" the actions will not be enough!
     If nothing else, the current and growing anti-Semitism throughout Europe and the world should be a wake-up call to Jews and non-Jews alike.  I believe humanity must not allow such atrocities to happen again.  And I believe that God will not see His chosen people suffer such Evil a second time.  He has restored them to the land; and if the hatred and the violence continues to grow, it won't be long until they cry out, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord."
     Just this week, an orthodox Jewish rabbi from New York was shot and killed in Miami, Florida on his way to worship --- this, just days after a swastika was painted on a nearby synagogue.  It's here, people!  Evil is once again targeting Jews and we must all make a personal decision ... will you denounce such hatred?  I do not believe God will let it go unanswered this time.  Come, Lord Jesus!

Psalm 83:1-4    "O God, do not keep silence; do not hold your peace or be still, O God! For behold, your enemies make an uproar; those who hate you have raised their heads. They lay crafty plans against your people; they consult together against your treasured ones. They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation; let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”