The Restoration Times

--- Bruce P - Yahoo
wrote:

> To:
> From: "Bruce P - Yahoo"
>
> Date: Fri, 24 Dec 2004 21:02:28 +1300
> Subject: [hwa_prophecy] WHAT IS THE FUTURE FOR THE
> CHURCH OF GOD?
>
>
>
>
> WHAT IS THE FUTURE FOR THE CHURCH OF GOD?
>
>
>
> It is now approaching 10 years since the mass exodus
> from the Worldwide Church of God began, following
> the sweeping doctrinal changes they introduced.
> This article takes a timely review of what progress,
> if any, has occurred since that time in the church,
> and in fulfilling the commission of bringing the
> gospel message to the world.
>
>
>
> THE FAILURE OF THE CHURCH
>
>
>
> If one honestly looks back over the last decade, the
> Church of God has failed the membership, and failed
> fulfilling the commission of bringing the Gospel
> message to the world. It has failed to have any
> real impact in warning the House of Israel of the
> curses for rejecting the Law of God. The ministry
> have failed to work together as a body in fulfilling
> the work, dividing the Body of Christ up into
> competing organisations.
>
>
>
> The leadership of these 300 plus Church of God
> groups continue to deceive themselves and their
> members into believing God is blessing their efforts
> in preaching the Gospel. Does the evidence bear
> this out? Some groups have experienced a little
> growth, but this has been undermined by splits and
> division within the Ministry. Some claim that their
> numbers have grown by including groups from India or
> elsewhere in the third world. If they are honest
> with themselves, few have had any real growth - many
> have declined in their membership numbers.
>
>
>
> Worse still, sadly all too often many of the Church
> of God Ministry has gone back and again adopted the
> traditions and customs from the modern-day Priests
> of Baal (from the so-called Christianity of this
> world).
>
>
>
> CONTROL OF THE MEMBERSHIP
>
>
>
> Increasingly, various COG organisations have
> reverted back to the various techniques adopted by
> the Worldwide COG to have control over their
> members, and to discourage their flocks moving to
> competing groups. Some claim that their group is the
> one that Christ is exclusively working with, and to
> leave their group would mean facing external
> damnation. Many groups criticize other groups for
> not being as righteous as they are.
>
>
>
> When groups such as United were established, there
> was much made of a "New Beginnings", where the
> members input and participation would be encouraged
> within their new organisation. Church Boards were
> encouraged, with member participation. But the
> Ministry soon drifted back to their old comfort
> zones, preferring the top-down heretical structure
> where individual initiative is muted, and members
> are programmed into following along like dumb sheep.
>
>
>
> As a part of this mind-control programming of the
> members, the Journal is now viewed by many in the
> ministry as something evil, described by some as a
> tool of Satan. They criticize the Journal for
> publishing articles or carrying advertisements
> expressing doctrinal views not shared by an
> individual branch of the Church of God. Rather than
> using this material to teach the membership why a
> particular doctrine is incorrect, members are
> encouraged not to read the Journal, claiming that it
> is divisive. Yet, when there are splits within
> their organisation as in the past, they are often
> keen to use the Journal to publish their version on
> why there has been a split.
>
>
>
> While the ministry continue to divide up the Body of
> Christ through establishing more and more splinter
> groups, the Journal is the only independent church
> newspaper that the members of the Body can remain
> informed in contact with one another. Rather than
> being divisive, it provides an independent over-view
> of the Church. The Journal is essential reading for
> the membership to keep the Ministry honest.
>
> THE FAILURE OF THEIR MEDIA EFFORTS
>
> The Churches of God need to ask why the response has
> been so dismal from their media efforts. There is
> little to distinguish their media efforts from
> countless other Christian groups. Most articles are
> little more than summary or world news or Christian
> living type articles. It appears today that the
> Church is so afraid of making a mistake in
> proclaiming what is about the coming disaster to
> strike the House of Israel, everything has become so
> watered-down, wishy-washy, that it has little impact
> on the readers. No longer does the Church have the
> dogmatic leadership of Herbert Armstrong, whose
> preaching brought so many to the understanding of
> the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.
>
> Today, if I want to learn about the fulfillment of
> prophecy, I read Time Magazine, or some other
> reputable news publication, not COG publications.
> The concept of writing about a world news topic as
> in church publications, throwing in a few
> scriptures, and doing a commercial for a booklet
> will not achieve results.
>
> THE FAILURE TO WARN AMERICA AND BRITAIN OF DEFEAT IN
> IRAQ
>
>
>
> One of the greatest failures of the Church in recent
> history is in not warning our nations of the
> consequence of invading Iraq without the UN Security
> Council approval. When the Bush administration
> enthusiastically prepared the unnecessary invasion
> of Iraq on trumped up charges, edged on by the
> Christian right; where was the Church of God warning
> the House of Israel that this would result in defeat
> for America. While the Pope and Middle East leaders
> continued to warn President Bush of the consequences
> of invading Iraq, the Churches of God were deafening
> with their silence.
>
>
>
> Even worse, there were some COG Ministers who prior
> to the illegal invasion, were openly preaching that
> America should invade Iraq, as if this would be
> doing the will of God. Rather than preaching that
> our nations should be looking to God for our
> protection, some ministers were actually preaching
> that America should be going to war to destroy its
> perceived enemies, rather than preaching that
> America should be repenting of its sins, and
> trusting in God for protection.
>
>
>
> Recently radio preacher Ronald Dart wrote on his
> website:
> http://www.cemnetwork.com/essay/essay.php?eid=210
>
> "And I am greatly afraid that it will come to that
> (terrorism attacks in the USA) before we are
> finished. No, it will not be because we invaded
> Iraq. Remember that we had not invaded Iraq before
> 9/11 and we got it anyhow. No, it will be because we
> are who we are and we will refuse to be anything
> else. It will be because Jihad has been declared
> against us and we have no choice but to fight. It
> will be fight, or become slaves to Islam.
>
> Now you may reasonably ask me what the Bible has to
> do with any of this. How can this shed light on the
> Bible, or the Bible shed light on this war? The
> answer is not going to please anyone, but we might
> as well face up to it. The answer is that you fight
> a war with whatever brute force is necessary to
> ensure that you don't have to do worse later. You
> brutally pacify a city like Fallujah in Iraq, and
> you do it the first time you threaten it. You don't
> back down or negotiate with criminals and
> terrorists. You kill them.
>
> It doesn't sound very Christian does it? Well, so
> what? Isn't the United States supposed to be a
> secular nation? Why should our military be guided by
> Christian principles? Our foes are fighting a
> religious war based on perceived Islamic principles?
> Shouldn't we be allowed to fight the war by their
> rules if that is the way they want it? [And don't
> tell me these fellows don't represent true Islam. If
> that is true, why don't the billion or so good
> Moslems rise up against them?]
>
> I will not apologize for sounding harsh. These are
> harsh times, and these are harsh truths. They should
> not be sugar coated. "
>
> While Dart's opinions express the more extreme
> nationalistic right-wing ideology of the COG
> community, he is by no means alone. Many in the COG
> have become influenced from the increasing
> nationalism expressed in the American media. Some
> would rather look to Rush Limbaugh rather than the
> Word of God for how America should conduct itself.
> Many still believe the propaganda and lies told by
> the Bush administration to justify the illegal
> invasion of Iraq, who made ridiculous claims that
> Iraq was a threat to the US, that invading Iraq was
> a part of the war against terrorism (as Dart
> claims), and that they had WMD. Ministers like Dart
> have wrongly encouraged members to believe that
> America has the answer to the world's problems;
> somehow believing because President Bush claims to
> be a Christian, God will bless whatever America
> does.
>
> THE FAILURE TO WARN OF THE COMING ECONOMIC COLLAPSE
>
> Another failure of the Church is not warning of
> consequence of the collapse of the American dollar.
> Why have not the churches been warning the House of
> Israel about the coming economic collapse, and what
> this will mean to our people? Rather than bringing
> a strong prophetic warning message, the media
> efforts of the COG groups is full of watered-down
> maybes, or it is possibly, and so on.
>
> Recently, I wrote an article for the Internet on the
> coming collapse of the dollar, and was swamped with
> enquires and requests to posts it on various news
> sites. People around the world are looking for
> direction - they do not understand what is happening
> to our nations and why. They want to know what is
> going to happen and why.
>
> WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THE CHURCH?
>
> There seems to be a total lack of awareness by the
> ministry in the Church of God on what is about to
> happen to our nations, and the collapse of our
> economies. These man-created church organisations
> are about to end. The collapse of the US dollar
> will mean there will simply be no funding for them
> to continue. We are rapidly approaching the time
> when the Work will be finished. Are the brethren
> being warned and prepared for this approaching
> disaster? While some groups are teaching that life
> is likely to continue on for another 5-15 years,
> economists are warning of an imminent financial
> collapse of the Anglo-Saxon economies, which would
> result in the end of the various COG organisations
> operating as they are today.
>
>
>
> This time is described in the Book of Amos 8:11-12
> "Behold, the days come, says the Lord Jehovah, that
> I will send a famine in the land; not a famine of
> bread nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the
> Words of Jehovah. And they shall wander from sea
> to sea, and from the north even to the east; they
> shall run to and fro to seek the Word of Jehovah,
> and shall not find it". The various Church of God
> organisations will no longer exist, and many of
> their paid ministries will desert their flock. Yet
> we know that the Good Shepherd (Jesus Christ) will
> eventually return to gather His scattered sheep from
> throughout the world. (Ezekiel 34: 1-15). It is in
> Jesus we should be putting our trust as we approach
> the time of Joseph's troubles.
>
>
>
> Bruce Porteous
>
> bruceport@xtra.co.nz
>
> 4 December, 2004
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
>
>
>
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# posted by John Allen @ 6:32 PM

Lest we forget......

Let's keep the truth alive in our lives.

John
--- destinyworldwide
wrote:

> To: realtruth@yahoogroups.com
> From: "destinyworldwide"
>
> Date: Mon, 13 Dec 2004 21:00:53 -0000
> Subject: [realtruth] The Plain Truth About Christmas
>
>
>
>
> The Plain Truth About CHRISTMAS
>
> Chapter 1, by Herbert W. Armstrong, copyrights 1952,
> 1972, 1974
> Chapter 2, by Keith W. Stump, copyright 1985 Chapter
> 3, by John
> Halford, copyright 1985 Chapter 4, WCG, copyright
> 1986
>
>
>
> Where did the world get. Christmas?...from the
> Bible, or from
> paganism? Here are the astonishing facts which may
> shock you! Test
> yourself. How much do you know of the origin of the
> Christmas tree--of
> "Santa Claus--of the mistletoe--of the holly
> wreath--of the custom of
> exchanging gifts?
>
>
>
> Chapter 1
>
> THE PLAIN TRUTH ABOUT CHRISTMAS
>
> WHEN I was a very little boy, I was taught to hang
> up my stockings on
> Christmas eve. When I awakened the next morning,
> they were filled with
> small toys and sacks or little boxes of candy and
> nuts. And beside the
> mantle, from which my stockings hung, a Christmas
> tree had suddenly
> appeared, decorated with shiny tinsel. And on it
> hung presents. Other
> presents for us children were piled on the floor
> underneath. I was
> told Santa Claus had come down the chimney during
> the night and left
> all these things. But did I question what my parents
> had told me? Of
> course not. I accepted it--took it all for granted.
> Didn't you? Stop
> and think a moment! Very few have ever reflected on
> why they believe
> what they do--why they follow the customs they do,
> or from where those
> customs came. We were born into a world filled with
> customs. We grew
> up accepting them without question. Why? Sheep
> instinct? Well, not
> exactly. But by nature we do tend to follow the
> crowd, whether right
> or wrong. Sheep follow others to the slaughter.
> Humans ought to check
> up where they are going. How--when did Christmas
> originate? Does
> Christmas really celebrate the birthday of Christ?
> Was Jesus born on
> December 25th? Did the original apostles, who knew
> Jesus personally
> and were taught by Him, celebrate His birthday on
> December 25th? Did
> they celebrate it at all? If Christmas is the chief
> of the Christian
> holidays, why do so many non-Christians observe it?
> Do you know? Why
> do people exchange presents with family members,
> friends, relatives,
> at Christmas time? Was it because the wise men
> presented gifts to the
> Christ-child? The answer may surprise you. Most
> people have "supposed"
> a lot of things about Christmas that are not true.
> But let's quit
> "supposing" and get the facts!
>
> What Encyclopedias Say
>
> The word "Christmas" means "Mass of Christ," or, as
> it came to be
> shortened, "Christ-Mass." It came to non-Christians
> and Protestants
> from the Roman Catholic Church. And where did they
> get it? NOT from
> the New Testament--NOT from the Bible--NOT from the
> original apostles
> who were personally instructed by Christ--but it
> gravitated in the
> fourth century into the Roman Church from paganism.
> Since the
> celebration of Christmas has come to the world from
> the Roman Catholic
> Church, and has no authority but that of the Roman
> Catholic Church,
> let us examine the Catholic Encyclopedia, 1911
> edition, published by
> that church. Under the heading "Christmas," you will
> find: "Christmas
> was not among the earliest festivals of the
> Church...the first
> evidence of the feast is from Egypt." "Pagan customs
> centering around
> the January calends gravitated to Christmas." And in
> the same
> encyclopedia, under the heading "Natal Day," we find
> that the early
> Catholic father, Origen, acknowledged this truth:
> "... In the
> Scriptures, no one [who obeyed God] is recorded to
> have kept a feast
> or held a great banquet on his birthday. It is only
> sinners [like
> Pharaoh and Herod] who make great rejoicings over
> the day in which
> they were born into this world" (emphasis ours).
> Encyclopaedia
> Britannica, 1946 edition, has this: "Christmas
> (i.e., the Mass of
> Christ).... Christmas was not among the earliest
> festivals of the
> church...." It was not instituted by Christ or the
> apostles, or by
> Bible authority. It was picked up afterward from
> paganism. The
> Encyclopedia Americana, 1944 edition, says:
> "Christmas.... It was,
> according to many authorities, not celebrated in the
> first centuries
> of the Christian church, as the Christian usage in
> general was to
> celebrate the death of remarkable persons rather
> than their birth...."
> (The "Communion," which is instituted by New
> Testament Bible
> authority, is a memorial of the death of Christ.)
> "... A feast was
> established in memory of this event [Christ's birth]
> in the fourth
> century. In the fifth century the Western Church
> ordered it to be
> celebrated forever on the day of the old Roman feast
> of the birth of
> Sol, as no certain knowledge of the day of Christ's
> birth existed."
> Now notice! These recognized historical authorities
> show Christmas was
> not observed by Christians for the first two or
> three hundred years--a
> period longer than the entire history of the United
> States as a
> nation! It got into the Western, or Roman, Church,
> by the fourth
> century A.D. It was not until the fifth century that
> the Roman Church
> ordered it to be celebrated as an official Christian
> festival!
>
>
> Jesus Not Born December 25th
>
> Jesus was not even born in the winter season! When
> the Christ-child
> was born "there were in the same country shepherds
> abiding in the
> field, keeping watch over their flock by night"
> (Luke 2:8). This never
> could have occurred in Judea in the month of
> December. The shepherds
> always brought their flocks from the mountainsides
> and fields and
> corralled them not later than October 15, to protect
> them from the
> cold, rainy season that followed that date. Notice
> that the Bible
> itself proves, in Song of Solomon 2:11 and Ezra
> 10:9, 13, that winter
> was a rainy season not permitting shepherds to abide
> in open fields at
> night. "It was an ancient custom among Jews of those
> days to send out
> their sheep to the fields and deserts about the
> Passover (early
> spring), and bring them home at commencement of the
> first rain," says
> the Adam Clarke Commentary (Vol. 5, page 370, New
> York ed.).
> Continuing, this authority states: "During the time
> they were out, the
> shepherds watched them night and day. As...the first
> rain began early
> in the month of Marchesvan, which answers to part of
> our October and
> November [begins sometime in October], we find that
> the sheep were
> kept out in the open country during the whole
> summer. And, as these
> shepherds had not yet brought home their flocks, it
> is a presumptive
> argument that October had not yet commenced, and
> that, consequently,
> our Lord was not born on the 25th of December, when
> no flocks were out
> in the fields; nor could He have been born later
> than September, as
> the flocks were still in the fields by night. On
> this very ground, the
> nativity in December should be given up. The feeding
> of the flocks by
> night in the fields is a chronological fact..." Many
> encyclopedias and
> other authorities affirm that Christ was not born on
> December 25. Even
> the Catholic Encyclopedia frankly states this fact.
> The exact date of
> Jesus' birth is entirely unknown, as all authorities
> acknowledge.
> Chapter 2 of this booklet covers scriptures which at
> least strongly
> indicate it was in the early fall--probably
> September-- approximately
> six months after Passover. If God had wished us to
> observe and
> celebrate Christ's birthday, He would not have so
> completely hidden
> the exact date.
>
>
> How This Pagan Custom Got into the Church
>
> Then how did this pagan custom creep into the
> Western Christian world?
> The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious
> Knowledge explains it
> clearly, in its article on "Christmas": "How much
> the date of the
> festival depended upon the pagan Brumalia (Dec. 25)
> following the
> Saturnalia (Dec. 17-24), and celebrating the
> shortest day of the year
> and the 'new sun'... cannot be accurately
> determined. The pagan
> Saturnalia and Brumalia were too deeply entrenched
> in popular custom
> to be set aside by Christian influence .... The
> pagan festival with
> its riot and merrymaking was so popular that
> Christians were glad of
> an excuse to continue its celebration with little
> change in spirit and
> in manner. Christian preachers of the West and the
> Near East protested
> against the unseemly frivolity with which Christ's
> birthday was
> celebrated, while Christians of Mesopotamia accused
> their Western
> brethren of idolatry and sun worship for adopting as
> Christian this
> pagan festival." Remember, the Roman world had been
> pagan. Prior to
> the fourth century, Christians were few in number,
> though increasing,
> and were persecuted by the government and by pagans.
> But, with the
> advent of Constantine as emperor, who made his
> profession of
> Christianity in the fourth century, placing
> Christianity on an equal
> footing with paganism, people of the Roman world
> began to accept this
> now-popular Christianity by the hundreds of
> thousands. But remember,
> these people had grown up in pagan customs, chief of
> which was this
> idolatrous festival of December 25th. It was a
> festival of
> merrymaking, with its special spirit. They enjoyed
> it! They didn't
> want to give it up! Now this same article in the New
> Schaff-Herzog
> Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge explains how the
> recognition by
> Constantine of Sunday, which had been the day of
> pagan sun worship,
> and how the influence of the pagan Manichaeism,
> which identified the
> SON of God with the physical SUN, gave these pagans
> of the fourth
> century, now turning over wholesale to
> "Christianity," their excuse
> for calling their pagan festival date of December
> 25th (birthday of
> the SUN-god), the birthday of the SON of God. And
> that is how
> "Christmas" became fastened on our Western world! We
> may call it by
> another name, but it's the same old pagan
> sun-worshipping festival
> still! The only change is in what we call it! You
> can call a rabbit a
> "lion," but it's still a rabbit, just the same.
> Again from the
> Encyclopaedia Britannica: "Certain Latins, as early
> as 354, may have
> transferred the birthday from January 6th to
> December 25, which was
> then a Mithraic feast...or birthday of the
> Unconquered SUN... The
> Syrians and Armenians, who clung to January 6th,
> accused the Romans of
> sun worship and idolatry, contending...that the
> feast of December
> 25th, had been invented by disciples of
> Cerinthus...."
>
>
> The Real Origin of Christmas
>
> But if we got Christmas from the Roman Catholics,
> and they got it from
> paganism, where did the pagans get it? Where, when,
> and what was its
> real origin? It originated in ancient Egypt in the
> days of King Osiris
> and Queen Isis, and their son Horus, about 3,000
> B.C. Yes, it stems
> from roots whose beginning was long before the
> Flood! From many
> ancient writings, considerable is learned of this
> man, who started in
> Egypt a great organized worldly apostasy from God
> that has dominated
> this world until now. After the untimely death of
> King Osiris, his
> wife, Isis, propagated the doctrine of the survival
> of Osiris as a
> spirit being. She claimed a full-grown evergreen
> tree sprang overnight
> from a dead tree stump, which symbolized the
> springing forth unto new
> life of the dead Osiris. On each anniversary of his
> birth, she
> claimed, Osiris would visit the evergreen tree and
> leave gifts upon
> it. December 25th was the birthday of King Osiris
> reborn as the son
> Horus. This is the real origin of the Christmas
> tree. Through her
> scheming and designing, Isis became the "Queen of
> Heaven," and Osiris
> under various names, became the reborn "divine son
> of heaven." Through
> the generations, in this idolatrous worship, Osiris
> also became, among
> the later Phoeniceans, Baal the Sun-god. In this
> false system,
> reintroduced at Babylon, after the Flood, by Nimrod
> (see Genesis 10
> and 11), the "Mother and Child" (Isis and Osiris
> reborn) became chief
> objects of worship. This worship of "Mother and
> Child" spread over the
> world. The names varied in different countries and
> languages. In Asia
> the worship passed under the names of Cybele and
> Deoius. In Rome,
> Fortuna and Jupiterpuer. Even in Greece, China,
> Japan and Tibet is to
> be found the counterpart of the Madonna, long before
> the birth of
> Christ! Thus, during the fourth and fifth centuries,
> when the pagans
> of the Roman world were "accepting" the new popular
> "Christianity" by
> the hundreds of thousands, carrying their old pagan
> customs and
> beliefs along with them, merely cloaking them with
> Christian-sounding
> names, the Madonna and "Mother and Child" idea also
> became
> popularized, especially at Christmas time. Every
> Christmas season
> you'll hear sung and chanted dozens of times the
> hymn "Silent Night,
> Holy Night," with its familiar "Mother and Child"
> theme. We, who have
> been born in such a world, reared and steeped in
> these things all our
> lives, have been taught to revere these things as
> holy and sacred. We
> never questioned to see where they came
> from--whether they came from
> the Bible, or from pagan idolatry! We are shocked to
> learn the
> truth--some, unfortunately, take offense at the
> plain truth! But God
> commands His faithful ministers, "Cry aloud, spare
> not, lift up thy
> voice like a trumpet, and show my people their
> transgression!"
> Shocking as these facts are, they are the plain
> facts of history and
> the Bible! The origin of Christmas goes back to
> ancient times. It is
> bound up in the apostasy which has gripped a
> deceived world these many
> centuries! In Egypt, it was always believed that the
> husband of Isis
> (Egyptian name for "Queen of Heaven") was reborn as
> the son Horus on
> December 25th. Through the influence of Egypt and,
> later, Babylon over
> civilization, the nations celebrated this famous
> birthday over most of
> the known world for centuries before the birth of
> Christ. December
> 25th is not the birthday of Jesus the true Christ!
> The apostles and
> early true Church never celebrated Christ's birthday
> at any time.
> There is no command or instruction to celebrate it
> in the Bible--
> rather, the celebrating of birthdays is a pagan, not
> a Christian
> custom. Thus the ancient idolatrous "Mysteries,"
> have been handed down
> through the pagan religions under new
> Christian-sounding names.
>
>
> Origin of Holly Wreath, Mistletoe, Yule Log
>
> Now where did we get this mistletoe custom? Among
> the ancient pagans
> the mistletoe was used at this festival of the
> winter solstice because
> it was considered sacred to the sun, because of its
> supposed
> miraculous healing power. The pagan custom of
> kissing under the
> mistletoe was an early step in the night of revelry
> and drunken
> debauchery--celebrating the death of the "old sun"
> and the birth of
> the new at the winter solstice. Mistletoe, sacred in
> pagan festivals,
> is a parasite! Holly berries were also considered
> sacred to the
> sun-god. The Yule log is in reality the "sun log."
> "Yule" means
> "wheel," a pagan symbol of the sun. Yet today
> professing Christians
> speak of the "sacred Yule-tide season"! Even the
> lighting of fires and
> candles as a Christian ceremony is merely a
> continuation of the pagan
> custom, encouraging the waning sun-god as he reached
> the lowest place
> in the southern skies! The Encyclopedia Americana
> says: "The holly,
> the mistletoe, the Yule log...are relics of
> pre-Christian times." Of
> paganism! The book 10,000 Answers to Questions,
> compiled by Frederic
> J. Haskins, says: "The use of the Christmas wreath
> is believed by
> authorities to be traceable to the pagan custom of
> decorating
> buildings and places of worship at the feast which
> took place at the
> same time as our Christmas." Also: "The Christmas
> tree is from Egypt,
> and its origin dates from a period long anterior to
> the Christian Era"
> (italics ours).
>
>
> Yes, and Even Santa Claus!
>
> But what about dear old Santa Claus? Is he as
> benevolent and holy as
> many suppose! The name "Santa Claus" is a corruption
> of the name "St.
> Nicholas," a Roman Catholic bishop who lived in the
> 4th century. Look
> in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, volume 19, pages
> 648-649, 11th
> edition, where you'll read: "St. Nicholas, bishop of
> Myra, a saint
> honored by the Greeks and Latins on the 6th of
> December.... A legend
> of his surreptitious bestowal of dowries on the
> three daughters of an
> impoverished citizen...is said to have originated
> the old custom of
> giving presents in secret on the Eve of St. Nicholas
> [Dec. 6],
> subsequently transferred to Christmas day. Hence the
> association of
> Christmas with Santa Claus...." Through the year,
> parents punish their
> children for telling falsehoods. Then, at Christmas
> time, they
> themselves tell their little children this "Santa
> Claus" lie! Is it
> any wonder many of them, when they grow up and learn
> the truth, begin
> to believe God is a myth, too? One little fellow,
> sadly disillusioned
> about "Santa Claus," said to a playmate, "Yes, and
> I'm going to look
> into this 'Jesus Christ' business, too!" Is it
> Christian to teach
> children myths and falsehoods? God says, "Thou shalt
> not bear false
> witness!" It may seem right, and be justified by
> human reason, but God
> says, "There is a way that seemeth right to a man,
> but the end thereof
> are the ways of death!" "Old Nick" also is a term
> for the devil! Is
> there a connection? Satan appears as an "angel of
> light," to deceive!
> (II Cor. 11:14; Rev. 12:9.) And so when we examine
> the facts, we are
> astonished to learn that the practice of observing
> Christmas is not,
> after all, a true biblical practice, but a human
> custom--one of the
> ways of Babylon our people have fallen into! But
> when it comes to the
> most important part of all in this Christmas
> observance--the Christmas
> shopping season--the buying and exchanging of
> gifts--many will exclaim
> triumphantly, "Well, at least the Bible tells us to
> do that! Didn't
> the wise men give gifts when Christ was born?"
> Again, we are due for
> some surprises, when we learn the plain truth. Let's
> look at the
> historic origin of trading gifts, then see exactly
> what the Bible does
> say about it.
>
>
> Isn't Exchanging Gifts Scriptural?
>
> From the Bibliotheca Sacra, volume 12, pages
> 153-155, we quote: "The
> interchange of presents between friends is alike
> characteristic of
> Christmas and the Saturnalia, and must have been
> adopted by Christians
> from the Pagans, as the admonition of Tertullian
> plainly shows." The
> fact is, this custom fastened upon people of
> exchanging gifts with
> friends and relatives at the Christmas season has
> not a single trace
> of Christianity about it, strange though that may
> seem! This does not
> celebrate Christ's birthday nor honor it or Him!
> Suppose someone you
> love has a birthday. You want to honor that person
> on his or her
> birthday. Would you lavishly buy gifts for everyone
> else, trading
> gifts back and forth with all your other friends and
> loved ones, but
> ignore completely any gift for the one whose
> birthday you are
> honoring? Rather absurd, when viewed in that light,
> isn't it? Yet this
> is exactly what people the world over are doing!
> They honor a day that
> is not Christ's birthday by spending every dime they
> can scrape
> together in buying presents to trade back and forth
> among friends and
> relatives. But I can say by years of experience, as
> I believe most
> pastors and ministers can say, that when the month
> of December rolls
> around, nearly all professing Christians forget to
> give gifts to
> Christ and His cause almost altogether! December
> often is the most
> difficult month to keep Christ's work from dying!
> People are too busy
> trading gifts to think of Him and His Work, it
> seems. Then, in January
> and even into February it seems they have to catch
> up from what they
> spent for Christmas, so they seldom get back to
> normal in supporting
> Christ and His Work before March! Now consider what
> the Bible says
> about the wise men giving gifts when Christ was
> born. It is in Matthew
> 2:1-11. "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of
> Judaea in the days of
> Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the
> east to
> Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of
> the Jews?... And
> when they were come into the house, they saw the
> young child with Mary
> his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and
> when they had
> opened their treasures, they presented unto HIM
> gifts; gold, and
> frankincense, and myrrh." Notice, they inquired for
> the child Jesus,
> who was born KING of the Jews! Now why did they
> present gifts to Him?
> Because it was His birthday? Not at all, because
> they came several
> days or weeks after the date of His birth! Are we to
> see in this an
> example for us, today, to trade gifts back and forth
> among ourselves?
> No, notice carefully! They did not exchange gifts
> among themselves,
> but "they presented unto HIM gifts." They gave their
> gifts to Christ,
> not to their friends, relatives, or one another!
>
>
> Gifts for a King
>
> Why? Let me quote from the Adam Clarke Commentary,
> volume 5, page 46:
> "Verse 11. (They presented unto him gifts.) The
> people of the east
> never approach the presence of kings and great
> personages, without a
> present in their hands. The custom is often noticed
> in the Old
> Testament..." There it is! They were not instituting
> a new Christian
> custom of exchanging gifts with friends to honor
> Christ's birthday.
> They were following an old and ancient eastern
> custom of presenting
> gifts to a king when they came into his presence.
> They were
> approaching Him, born KING of the Jews, in person.
> Therefore custom
> required they present gifts--even as the Queen of
> Sheba brought gifts
> to Solomon--even as many people today take a gift
> along when they
> visit, for example, the White House for an
> appointment with the
> President. No, the custom of trading gifts back and
> forth does not
> stem from this scriptural incident at all, but
> rather, as quoted from
> history above, it is the continuance of an ancient
> pagan custom.
> Instead of honoring Christ, it invariably retards
> His Work, often sets
> it back, at the Christmas season every year.
>
>
> Does It Really Honor Christ?
>
> Now come two arguments often used to justify
> Christmas observance. (1)
> Many will reason this way: "But, even though the
> exact date of Jesus'
> birth is unknown, should we not select some date to
> celebrate as His
> birthday?" The answer is positively no! Did you not
> notice the
> statement quoted earlier from the Catholic
> Encyclopedia that sinners
> alone celebrate their birthdays? The celebration of
> birthdays is not a
> Christian, but a pagan custom, observed by sinners!
> (2) But, many
> still reason, "Even so--even though Christmas was a
> pagan custom,
> honoring the false sun-god, we don't observe it to
> honor the false
> god, we observe it to honor Christ." But how does
> GOD answer in His
> Word? "Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared
> by following them
> [the pagans in their customs]...that thou inquire
> not after their
> gods, saying, How did these nations serve their
> gods? even so will I
> do likewise. Thou shalt not do so unto the Lord thy
> God: for every
> abomination to the Lord, which he hateth, have they
> done unto their
> gods" (Deut. 12:30-31). God says plainly in His
> Instruction Book to
> us, that He will not accept that kind of worship,
> even though intended
> in His honor. To Him, He says, it is offering what
> is abominable to
> Him, and therefore it honors, not Him, but false
> pagan gods. GOD says
> we must not worship Him according to the "dictates
> of our own
> conscience"--a term we often hear. But Jesus said
> plainly, "God is a
> spirit: and they that worship him must worship him
> in spirit and in
> truth" (John 4:24). And what is truth? God's
> Word--the Holy
> Bible--said Jesus, is truth (John 17:17); and the
> Bible says God will
> not accept worship when people take a pagan custom
> or manner of
> worship and try to honor Christ with it. Again,
> Jesus said: "In vain
> they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the
> commandments of men"
> (Matt. 15:9). Christmas observance is a tradition of
> men, and the
> commandments of God, as quoted, forbid it. Jesus
> said, further, "full
> well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may
> keep your own
> tradition." That is precisely what the millions are
> doing today. They
> ignore the commandment of God. He commands,
> regarding taking the
> customs of the pagans and using them to honor or
> worship God: "Thou
> shalt not do so unto the Lord thy God." Still, most
> people today take
> that command of God lightly, or as having no
> validity whatsoever, and
> follow the tradition of men in observing Christmas.
> We have professed
> to be Christian nations, but we're in Babylon, as
> Bible prophecy
> foretold, and we don't know it! "Come out of her, my
> people, that ye
> be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive
> not of her
> plagues"--soon to fall--is the warning of Revelation
> 18:4. Make no
> mistake! God will allow you to defy and disobey Him.
> He will allow you
> to follow the crowd and the traditions of men. He
> will allow you to
> sin. But He also says there is a day of reckoning
> coming. As you sow,
> so shall you reap! Jesus was the living Word of God
> in Person, and the
> Bible is the written Word of God. And we shall be
> judged, for
> eternity, by these words! They should not be taken
> lightly or ignored.
>
>
>
> Chapter 2
>
> JESUS' BIRTH--THE UNTOLD STORY
>
> Was Jesus born in December? If not, when was he
> born? And in what
> year? Anyway, what difference does it make? These
> are questions often
> asked. It is time they were answered!
>
>
> A Visit to Bethlehem
>
> In late December of each year, thousands of tourists
> flock into the
> small town of Bethlehem in the Judean Hills south of
> Jerusalem to
> participate in annual Christmas celebrations there.
> Some make the
> 6-mile journey from Jerusalem on foot. Upon arrival,
> they crowd with
> silent awe into the paved expanse of Manger Square
> in front of the
> revered Church of the Nativity, built over the
> traditional site of
> Jesus' birth. Inevitably, some of these tourists
> arrive in Israel
> unprepared. They have not thoroughly studied their
> guidebooks. As they
> step off their plane, they receive a real shock!
> November through
> early March is "winter" in Israel! The weather gets
> cold, especially
> at night. Often it rains--or even snows! Yet many
> arrive in Israel
> carrying luggage bulging with summer attire,
> reasoning that it is
> always hot and arrid in the Middle East. So they
> hurriedly purchase
> coats and sweaters in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem for
> their pilgrimage down
> to Bethlehem. Nevertheless, most of those who stand
> in Manger Square
> on December 25 each year--prepared and unprepared
> alike--fail to
> perceive the message being proclaimed by the very
> weather around them!
> Notice this plain testimony of your Bible: On the
> day of Jesus' birth
> "there were in the same country shepherds abiding in
> the field,
> keeping watch over their flock by night" (Luke 2:8).
> The shepherds
> were living out in the open fields, tending their
> flock through the
> night. The point? Ask any biblical scholar, or any
> modern Israeli:
> This never could have occurred in Judea in the month
> of December--nor
> even in November, or late October for that matter!
> In ancient times as
> today, shepherds brought their flocks in from the
> fields and penned
> them in shelters not later than the middle of
> October! This was
> necessary to protect them from the cold, rainy
> season that usually
> followed that date. (The Bible itself makes it clear
> that winter in
> Palestine is a rainy season; see Ezra 10:9, 13; Song
> of Solomon 2:11.)
> Yet Luke 2:8 tells us that at the time of Jesus'
> birth, the shepherds
> were yet abiding in the fields--by night, at that!
> They had not yet
> brought their flocks home to the sheepfolds. Clearly
> the cold, rainy
> season had not yet commenced. Thus, on the basis of
> Luke's testimony
> alone, we see that Jesus could have been born no
> later than
> mid-October--when the weather is still pleasant at
> Bethlehem. A
> December 25 nativity is too late!
>
>
> More Proof
>
> Additional biblical evidence lends further support
> to the foregoing
> conclusion. Luke 1:24-38 informs us that the virgin
> Mary miraculously
> became pregnant with Jesus when her cousin Elizabeth
> was six months
> pregnant with a child who would later be known as
> John the Baptist.
> Jesus, then, would have been born six months after
> John. If we could
> know the time of John's birth, we could then simply
> add six months and
> know the time of Jesus' birth. Does the Bible reveal
> the general time
> of John's birth? Notice: Elizabeth's husband
> Zacharias was a priest at
> the temple in Jerusalem. Luke 1:5 records that
> Zacharias was "of the
> course of Abia [in Hebrew, Abijah]." In the days of
> King David of
> ancient Israel (10th century B.C.), the number of
> priests had so
> increased that they had to be divided into 24
> courses or shifts, which
> would take turns in performing the priestly duties
> (I Chron. 24). Each
> course served one week at a time, beginning and
> ending on a weekly
> Sabbath day (II Chron. 23:8). The course of Abijah
> was the eighth
> course or shift in the rotation (I Chron. 24:10).
> The Talmud
> (collection of Jewish civil and religious laws and
> commentaries)
> records that the first course performed its duties
> in the first week
> of the first month of the Hebrew calendar. This
> month (called Abib or
> Nisan) begins about the start of spring in the
> Northern Hemisphere.
> The second course worked the second week. The third
> week--being the
> annual festival season of Passover and the Days of
> Unleavened
> Bread--found all 24 courses serving together,
> sharing the heavy duties
> of that special time. The third shift then took its
> turn during the
> fourth week of the year. Projecting forward, the
> eighth course--the
> course of Abijah, in which Zacharias served--worked
> the ninth week of
> the year. But Zacharias' course then stayed on at
> the temple to serve
> the 10th week also--the week of the annual Pentecost
> festival--along
> with all the other courses. It was during that
> two-week period of
> work--near the end of spring-- that the announcement
> by the archangel
> Gabriel came to Zacharias regarding his wife's
> imminent conception
> (Luke 1:8-20). When his two weeks'service was
> completed, Zacharias and
> Elizabeth went back to their home and Elizabeth
> conceived (verses
> 23-24)--sometime late in June or early July. The
> rest is a matter of
> biology and arithmetic. Elizabeth's sixth month of
> pregnancy would
> have been in December. She would have given birth
> three months
> later--in late March or early April of the following
> year. Six months
> after that, Jesus would have been born, in late
> September or early
> October--before the sheep were brought in from the
> fields, as we have
> seen! Clearly, Jesus was not born in December. Late
> September or early
> October was also the time of year that taxes were
> customarily paid--in
> the fall, at the end of the harvest. Joseph and
> Mary, it will be
> remembered, had journeyed to Bethlehem to be taxed
> (Luke 2:3-5). The
> fact that there was "no room for them in the inn"
> (Luke 2:7) also
> suggests the time of the autumn harvest, because the
> annual fall
> festivals occurring at that time attracted
> multitudes of Jews to
> Jerusalem and nearby towns, filling all available
> accommodations.
>
>
> Jesus Born "Before Christ"?
>
> An even more frequent question received from readers
> concerns the year
> of Jesus' birth. Few subjects are fraught with so
> much confusion and
> misunderstanding. This immediately brings up a
> preliminary question:
> How could Jesus have been born in a year
> "B.C."--Before Christ--as
> most authorities suggest? It would seem to be a
> contradiction in
> terms! First, understand that the manner of
> reckoning time according
> to B.C. and A.D. was devised hundreds of years after
> Jesus' birth. It
> was invented in the sixth century A.D. by a monk in
> Italy name
> Dionysius Exiguus. This Dionysius misunderstood the
> time of the reign
> of Herod the Great, king of Judea. So he reckoned
> the birth of Jesus
> to have occurred in December of the year 753 AUC (ab
> urbe
> condita--"from the foundation of the city [of
> Rome]"). In past ages,
> time was often reckoned using the founding of Rome
> as the starting
> point for counting. Thus, in Dionysius' new system,
> January 1, 754
> AUC, became January 1,-- A.D. 1 (anno Domini, "in
> the year of the
> Lord"). That is, he assumed Jesus was born on
> December 25, just a week
> before January 1, A.D. 1.
>
>
> Error Later Discovered
>
> Later, it was discovered that Dionysius had been
> incorrect in his
> reckoning of the reign of Herod and hence of the
> commencement of the
> Christian era. Jesus had been born some years
> earlier than Dionysius
> had thought. But by then, the new chronology was in
> general use and it
> was too late to change! It has continued in use
> throughout most of the
> world to the present day. With that understanding,
> we can now proceed
> to determine the year of Jesus' birth. There are
> several ways of doing
> so. Notice, first, this ancient prophecy from the
> book of Daniel:
> "Know therefore and understand, that from the going
> forth of the
> commandment to restore and to build from Jerusalem
> unto the Messiah
> the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and
> two weeks..."
> (Dan. 9:25). The commandment or decree to restore
> and build Jerusalem
> was made in the seventh year of the reign of
> Artaxerxes I, king of
> ancient Persia (see Ezra 7:8)--according to the
> autumn-to-autumn
> reckoning of the Jews, in 457 B.C. The archangel
> Gabriel told Daniel
> that there would be a total of 69 prophetic weeks
> from that time until
> the public appearance of the Messiah. Sixty-nine
> weeks is equivalent
> to 483 days (69 x 7). A day of prophetic fulfillment
> is a year in
> actual time (Num. 14:34; Ezek. 4:6). So 483
> prophetic days (69
> prophetic weeks) is 483 years. Simple arithmetic now
> takes over.
> Four-hundred-eighty-three years from 457 B.C. (the
> year of the decree)
> brings us to A.D. 27--the year when Jesus, the
> Messiah, began his
> public ministry. (In calculating this, be aware that
> you must add 1 to
> compensate for the fact that there is no year zero.)
> Now consider
> further: It is generally understood that Jesus
> entered upon his
> ministry in the autumn of the year, immediately
> after his baptism.
> (His ministry lasted 3 1/2 years, ending in the
> spring, at Passover
> time.) In Luke 3:23 we learn that Jesus was "about
> thirty years of
> age" when he began his ministry. If he was about 30
> years old in the
> autumn of A.D. 27, then he must have been born in
> the end of summer or
> early autumn and in 4 B.C.! (remember, there is no
> year zero.) It thus
> stands clearly revealed from Daniel's prophecy that
> Jesus was born in
> 4 B.C. But there is yet further proof!
>
>
> Herod's Eclipse
>
> Students of the Bible recognize that Jesus was born
> before the death
> of Herod the Great (Matt. 2:15, 19). When did Herod
> die? The first
> century A.D. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, in
> Antiquities of the
> Jews (book XVII, chapter vi), tells of an eclipse of
> the moon late in
> Herod's reign. I have before me, as I write, the
> authoritative Solar
> and Lunar Eclipses of the Ancient Near East by
> Kudlek and Mickler. Its
> tables reveal that the lunar eclipse in question
> occurred on March 13,
> 4 B.C. Continuing with Josephus' account, we
> discover that sometime
> after the eclipse, Herod--afflicted with a painful
> and loathsome
> disease--went beyond the river Jordan to bathe
> himself in hot springs
> there. The cures he undertook were unsuccessful. His
> condition
> worsened and he returned to Jericho. There, in a
> wild rage, he plotted
> the deaths of many prominent Jews. He also ordered
> his own son,
> Antipater, slain. All these events required some
> months. Josephus
> further reveals (chapter ix) that Herod's death
> occurred sometime
> before a spring Passover. This Passover would have
> been 13 months
> after the eclipse, or the Passover of April, 3 B.C.
> This confirms our
> previously calculated 4 B.C. birthdate for Jesus.
> Further
> corroborating this, Josephus also records (XVII,
> viii, 1) that at his
> death, Herod had reigned 37 years since he had been
> declared king by
> the Romans. That had occurred in 40 B.C., a fact
> that Dionysius
> overlooked. Herod's death therefore took place late
> in 4 B.C.--more
> specifically, according to a Jewish tradition, on
> the seventh day of
> the lunar month Kislev in the Hebrew calendar
> (equivalent to
> November/December on the Roman calendar)--shortly
> after Jesus' birth
> in the early autumn of 4 B.C. This is the only date
> that is consistent
> with all the provable facts!
>
>
> The "Star" of Bethlehem
>
> A word is necessary at this point about the
> celebrated "Star of
> Bethlehem" (Matt. 2) that guided the wise men
> (Greek, Magi) across the
> deserts of the East to Bethlehem. The Plain Truth
> receives many
> letters about this each December. Scholars have
> tried to pinpoint the
> date of Jesus' birth by means of astronomical
> calculations related to
> the appearance of this mysterious "star." For
> centuries, theologians
> and astronomers have debated this perplexing
> question. Dozens of
> theories exist purporting to explain what this
> "star" actually was and
> when it appeared. Some hold it was a comet. Others
> postulate a nova
> (exploding star). Still others say it was a meteor,
> or a planet, or a
> conjunction of two or more planets. (A conjunction
> takes place when
> planets appear, from our earthly viewpoint, to
> briefly become a single
> bright object as their paths cross the sky.) Dates
> for proposed
> celestial phenomena usually range from 7 B.C. to 2
> B.C. But the heart
> and core of the star controversy goes beyond matters
> of astronomy. To
> one who believes that the Bible is the Word of God
> and is to be taken
> at face value, the account of the star in Matthew's
> gospel can have
> only one explanation. It was clearly and
> incontrovertibly a miracle,
> of supernatural, not natural origin! What natural
> phenomenon in the
> heavens--whether comet, meteor, exploding star or
> planet--could "go
> before" the Magi and "stand over" a specific house
> to precisely
> pinpoint it (Matt. 2:9-11)? And if it was
> attributable to a
> nonmiraculous agency, how can we account that it
> appeared and
> reappeared to the Magi and apparently went generally
> unnoticed by
> others? Natural explanations are sheer astronomical
> foolishness! If
> the biblical account cannot be accepted in all its
> details, why should
> anyone believe it has any merit at all? The star was
> clearly a special
> miracle of God, of divine origin defying all the
> proposed natural
> explanations of liberal scholarship. It is quite
> possible that the
> Star of Bethlehem was simply an angel sent to lead
> the Magi to Jesus,
> since the Bible often symbolically uses stars to
> signify angels (Job
> 38:7; Jude 13; Rev. 1:20; 9:1; 12:14; et al.).
>
>
> In Jesus' Name?
>
> We have seen the proof that Jesus was born in the
> early autumn, not in
> the winter. But, some will ask, what difference does
> it make? Is it
> not the thought that counts? What is wrong with
> celebrating a day--any
> day--in honor of Jesus' birth? Each December,
> articles inevitably
> appear in newspapers and magazines pointing out the
> ancient origins of
> today's Christmas customs. All authorities agree
> that the customs
> surrounding Christmas--the Christmas tree,
> mistletoe, holly wreaths,
> yule logs, stockings on the hearth, exchanging gifts
> and so on--were
> practiced in connection with pagan religious
> celebrations centuries
> before the birth of Jesus. None are of Christian
> origin! Anciently,
> December 25 was the date of the pagan Roman
> Brumalia, the final day of
> the popular weeklong Saturnalia celebration,
> celebrated in honor of
> the god Saturn. It was the day of the "invincible
> sun"--a winter
> solstice festival. "Christmas" was not among the
> earliest festivals of
> the Church. It was not until the mid-fourth century
> that Pope Julius I
> decreed December 25 to be Christmas ("Christ-Mass")
> Day. He sought to
> overshadow the popular Brumalia by imparting
> "Christian" connotations
> to the day. But again, some will ask: What is so
> wrong with borrowing
> some of those early customs and using them to honor
> Jesus? May we not
> continue to celebrate December 25, as long as we do
> it in Jesus' name?
> Can pagan practices be "Christianized" in this way?
> More than 34
> centuries ago, the rebellious children of Israel
> fashioned a pagan
> idol--a golden calf--in the wilderness (Ex. 32). It
> was the god Apis,
> the sacred Egyptian bull deity worshiped at Memphis
> on the Nile. Aaron
> declared that the pagan, Egyptian rites by which the
> Israelites
> worshiped the calf were "a feast to the Lord" (verse
> 5). Did God feel
> honored? Did he approve of their using pagan customs
> to worship him?
> Absolutely not! It was a great sin (verse 21), and
> 3,000 paid with
> their lives (verse 28)! They had deceived themselves
> that what they
> were doing was right. We are commanded not to seek
> to worship God with
> customs borrowed from other religions (Deut.
> 12:29-32). "Learn not the
> way of the heathen," God declares (Jer. 10:2). True
> Christians never
> meet paganism half way. Pagan worship--whether "in
> Jesus' name" or
> not--remains pagan worship! Christianity mixed with
> paganism is not
> Christianity at all. Righteousness has no fellowship
> with
> unrighteousness (II Cor. 6:14). God simply will not
> accept that type
> of false "worship." If God had wanted us to observe
> Christ's birthday,
> he would have given us the exact date and specific
> instructions on how
> to observe it. But he has not! Christmas is an
> invention of man,
> issuing from pagan worship.
>
>
> Chapter 3
> SO YOU ARE NOT KEEPING CHRISTMAS?
>
> SO You have decided it's time to make some changes.
> This year you and
> your family are (sssh--don't let the neighbors
> know!)--not going to
> keep Christmas! But it isn't quite as easy as that
> though, is it?
> Christmas has become so much a part of most people's
> lives that not to
> observe it can mean a major disruption. No Christmas
> cards. What will
> Aunt Tess think? No relatives over for Christmas
> dinner. No
> decorations. No lights or Santa Claus. You'll have
> to try to avoid the
> office party, and you'd better write to the school
> explaining that you
> don't want little Fred to play an angel in the
> Christmas play. And no
> tree. I remember the first time we didn't have a
> tree. It had always
> been a feature in our house. We would go to a lot of
> trouble to
> decorate it beautifully, and then put it in the
> front window for all
> to see. A good-looking tree was a status symbol in
> our neighborhood
> and, though I do say it myself, ours was one of the
> best and most
> impressive. But we noticed in the Bible where God
> made some pretty
> pointed remarks about decorated trees. Check it for
> yourself in
> Jeremiah 10:3-4. God said it was a futile, pagan
> custom--a clear case
> of worshipping Christ in vain. So--no tree. Even
> though we knew we had
> done the right thing, we really missed that tree.
> The neighbors all
> had them, sparkling in their windows, but our window
> remained dark. We
> missed it so much that we cheated a bit. We put up a
> few
> decorations--not a tree, mind you, just a few bits
> and pieces to make
> the place look more cheerful. And we had a Christmas
> dinner, only we
> didn't call it that. It was only a celebration." We
> felt guilty about
> it, because we knew we had compromised. It was just
> that the old way
> seemed so comfortable and without a tree and all the
> rest of the
> paraphernalia, Christmas just didn't seem like--er,
> Christmas. Jesus
> Christ knew this would happen. He explained to His
> disciples that they
> would indeed miss some aspects of the old way of
> life, and that even
> as they learned the truth from him they would look
> back nostalgically
> from time to time. Jesus taught an important lesson
> in Luke 5:36-39:
> "No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old
> one; otherwise the
> new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken
> out of the new
> does not match the old" (verse 36). Any seamstress
> understands that.
> New, unshrunk material cannot be used to patch old,
> worn garments.
> When it shrinks, it will tear the old cloth even
> worse than before.
> Jesus' second analogy is not quite so easy for us to
> follow in the
> 20th century: "And no one puts new wine into old
> wineskins; or else
> the new wine will burst the wineskins and be
> spilled, and the
> wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put
> into new wineskins"
> (verses 37-38). In New Testament times glass bottles
> were rare, so
> wine was often transported in animal skins, usually
> from goats. They
> made a strong, airtight and moisture-proof
> container, but you had to
> be careful. New wine that had not finished
> fermenting gave off gas
> that would expand the skins. A new wineskin had some
> "give" to it, and
> would allow for the expansion. But old, used skins
> lost their
> elasticity. They would burst. The wine would be
> spilled and the
> wineskin ruined. But why tell people that? Jesus
> Christ's business was
> not to give the multitude helpful household hints.
> Jesus was using a
> familiar situation to teach an aspect of Christian
> living.
>
>
> Withdrawal symptoms
>
> When someone begins to understand the teachings of
> the Bible, it is a
> totally new experience--unlike anything he or she
> has ever known--like
> new wine or an unused piece of cloth. Now, what most
> of us do is try
> to fit this new truth into our old way of life. That
> is only natural,
> because it is hard to change, and no one likes to
> admit having been
> wrong. The old way of life is familiar and
> comfortable, and we want to
> hang on to as much of it as possible. How about you?
> Perhaps you have
> fond memories of the Easter sunrise service, the fun
> of Halloween and
> those beautiful candlelight carol services down at
> the old family
> church. The truth comes smashing into inherited
> religious ideas and
> preconceived notions of right and wrong. It
> challenges comfortable
> beliefs, making you question things you have always
> done. This new
> way--even if it is right--sometimes seems like an
> unwelcome intruder,
> and you find yourself resenting it. Jesus warned us
> that that could
> happen: "And no one, having drunk old wine,
> immediately desires new;
> for he says, 'The old is better"' (verse 39). It is
> not surprising
> that so many people, even though they acknowledge
> the truth, still
> prefer to cling to their old beliefs. Or perhaps
> they do as my family
> did when we met the truth halfway, with a sort of
> "unChristmas"
> celebration. We didn't enjoy our "unChristmas." You
> never can if you
> know that you are compromising with what is right.
> We were trying to
> put our new wine in the old bottle, and we spoiled
> everything.
>
>
> All the way
>
> Don't make that mistake. If you are beginning to
> understand what it
> means to be a real Christian, realize that it is
> going to demand
> positive action on your part. You can't have it both
> ways, observing
> this world's customs and still expecting the
> blessing of the world
> tomorrow. "Why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and do
> not the things
> which I say?" Jesus thundered (Luke 6:46). He
> expects total
> commitment. He demands that we come out of the
> Babylon of confusion
> that characterizes so much religion today. So along
> with the
> excitement of learning new truth comes the
> responsibility of making
> some painful decisions. Don't compromise. God does
> not want to take
> from us anything that is good. His way of life is
> filled with exciting
> experiences that mean something and lead somewhere,
> not empty,
> senseless but often very expensive rituals. As you
> take the plunge and
> follow God's way of life, you will begin to miss the
> "old wine" less
> and less. You will see it for what it is--a hollow
> counterfeit of the
> real thing. God is showing you the way to freedom
> from all that.
> Instead of looking back at the fraudulent ways of
> this world, you will
> begin to anticipate the excitement of helping others
> learn the truth
> in the world tomorrow.
>
>
> Chapter 4
> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
>
> EACH YEAR our Personal Correspondence Department
> answers numerous
> inquiries regarding the holiday season.
>
> 1. You say that Christmas observance does not come
> from the Bible.
> Where does it come from, then?
>
> Where Christmas customs came from is really no
> secret. You can read
> the origins of Christmas customs in encyclopedias
> and other reference
> works, as well as in newspaper and magazine articles
> that often appear
> during the Christmas season. The facts are readily
> accessible. At the
> end of December and the beginning of January festive
> celebrations were
> taking place in various nations of Europe centuries
> before Jesus was
> born! When that festive season rolled around, little
> children were
> filled with anticipation and excitement. The whole
> family got busily
> involved in putting up decorations. Boughs of holly
> and evergreen were
> assembled and placed about the house. The mistletoe
> was hung. A tree
> was chosen and decorated with ornaments. It was a
> season of giving and
> receiving presents, a time to sing songs, admire all
> the pretty lights
> and burn the Yule log. There were parades with
> special floats,
> sumptuous meals and merrymaking. All this and Jesus
> wasn't even born
> yet! In ancient times, many of the earth's
> inhabitants, realizing
> their dependence upon the sun for light, heat and
> the growing of
> crops, watched the sun's yearly course in the
> heavens with deep
> interest. At different seasons, feasts and
> celebrations were held to
> help, it was thought, the solar orb on its way. The
> end of December
> was an especially significant time in the Northern
> Hemisphere. The
> days were short. The sun was at its lowest point.
> Special festivals of
> thanksgiving and encouragement to the sun were held.
> When, at the
> winter solstice, the days began to lengthen, there
> was great
> celebration lasting into the first part of January.
> The sun--the light
> of the world--had been (re)born! Such festivities,
> once meant to honor
> the sun and its god, were freely adopted by the
> spreading and
> increasingly popular "Christian" religion. Why not,
> in the same way,
> honor Jesus--the real light of the world (even
> though He was not
> actually born in December)? The modern version of
> the Christmas tree
> is supposed to have originated in German lands in
> the Middle Ages.
> Since evergreens were green throughout the dead of
> winter, people
> looked upon them as especially imbued with life. It
> was in honor of
> the tree spirit or the spirit of growth and
> fertility that greenery
> was a prominent part of ancient pagan winter
> celebrations. The Romans
> trimmed trees with trinkets and toys at that time of
> the year. The
> Druids tied gilded apples to tree branches. To
> certain peoples an
> evergreen decorated with orbs and other fruit-like
> objects symbolized
> the tree of life in the garden in Eden. Branches of
> holly and
> mistletoe were likewise revered. Not only do these
> plants remain green
> through the winter months, but they actually bear
> fruit at that time,
> once again a type of the spirits of fertility. Still
> today, catching
> someone under a branch of mistletoe can serve as a
> convenient
> springboard for romantic activity. Few people stop
> to wonder what in
> the world such strange customs have to do with the
> birth of Jesus! The
> ancients lit festive fires in the last part of
> December to encourage
> the waning sun god, just as Christmas bonfires,
> candles and other
> lights burn today at the same time of the year. Use
> of the "Yule log,"
> part of the "Yuletide" season, hearkens back to the
> ritual burning of
> a carefully chosen log by the Druids. The word Yule
> comes from the old
> Anglo-Saxon word hweol, meaning "wheel," a round
> wheel being an
> appropriate symbol for the sun. You thought the
> Christmas shopping
> spree was a 20th century phenomenon? Listen to how
> fourth-century
> writer Libanius described end-of-the-year
> gift-giving and partying in
> the ancient non-Christian Roman Empire: "Everywhere
> may be seen ...
> well-laden tables.... The impulse to spend seizes
> everyone. He who
> through the whole year has taken pleasure in saving
> ... becomes
> suddenly extravagant.... A stream of presents pours
> itself out on all
> sides" (as quoted in Christmas in Ritual and
> Tradition). Of all times
> in the year, it was indeed the season to be jolly.
> Drunkenness was
> widespread. Fortunately, however, the modes of
> transportation in those
> days did not lend themselves to the high rate of
> drunken-driver-induced traffic fatalities that are
> part of the
> Christmas season in many nations today. An important
> part of the pagan
> harvest festivities--beginning in October-November
> with what has
> become Halloween--involved good and bad spirits. In
> many lands,
> visitors--usually bringers of good or evil--made
> their appearance in
> the winter season. Through blending pagan legends
> with traditions
> about saints, certain figures emerged, with similar
> personalities. We
> recognize them today in different nations as Santa
> Claus, Father
> Christmas, St. Nicholas, St. Martin, the
> Weihnachtsmann, Pere Noel.
> Whatever name is used, all these winter visitors
> fulfill a similar
> role. These fictional persons--Christianizations" of
> the pagan
> Germanic deities- -clearly perpetuate certain
> folk-ritual themes
> wherein varying degrees of rewards and punishments
> were dealt out to
> the celebrants. Through the centuries these customs
> came to be
> centered around children. It is not too hard to see
> a connection
> between Santa using the chimney or the shoes and
> stockings hung by the
> fireplace and the ancient superstitions about hearth
> spirits. For
> thousands of years, especially among the Chinese, it
> was customary to
> sweep and scour the house in preparation for the
> visit of the hearth
> spirit. Each year, dressed in a pointed, fiery red
> cap and red jacket,
> this fire god traveled from the distant heavens to
> visit homes and
> distribute favors or punishments. Today he is
> welcomed in the Western
> world each Christmas season. Popular Christmas
> customs, as we can see,
> plainly reflect non-Christian legends and practices.
> Some of the very
> Christmas customs observed today were once banned by
> the Catholic
> Council of Rome, the English Parliament and the
> Puritans of New
> England. The logical question to ask is, What is
> there about Christmas
> that is Christian?
>
> 2. All right. So Christmas is based on pagan
> traditions and myths.
> What is wrong with borrowing some of those customs
> and using them to
> honor Jesus on His birthday?
>
> If we are supposed to celebrate Jesus' birthday, why
> doesn't the Bible
> give us the date of that event? Elsewhere in the
> Scriptures, when God
> revealed certain days He wanted His people to
> observe, no room was
> left for doubt as to when those days occurred. The
> instructions were
> specific because God wanted His people to observe
> those particular
> days. Why, then, the silence as to which day Christ
> was born? The
> plain truth is that the Bible nowhere commands us to
> observe birthdays
> in the first place! But an even more important point
> to consider is
> this: When Jesus' name is applied to borrowed pagan
> ideas and
> practices, does Jesus really feel honored? After
> all, it was Jesus
> Himself who told His people Israel not to seek to
> worship Him with
> customs borrowed from other religions (Deut.
> 12:29-32). Time and again
> He made it clear through His prophets that He wanted
> His people to
> remain "cleansed ... of everything pagan" (Neh.
> 13:30, Revised
> Authorized Version).
>
> 3. Even though I have ceased to celebrate Christmas,
> is there anything
> wrong in continuing to exchange gifts out of the
> motive of giving
> rather than wanting to follow pagan customs?
>
> There is nothing wrong with giving to others. Part
> of God's overall
> purpose for our existence is that we learn to give
> instead of seeking
> to get. But a Christian needs to be careful about
> giving a gift around
> Christmas time. The reason? Christians are to be
> lights to the world.
> They must set the example of righteous living. To
> engage in gift
> giving with those who are celebrating Christmas may
> give the
> appearance to them that you are participating right
> along with them in
> Christmas festivities. God tells us to come out of
> the religious
> system of this world and to be "separate" (11 Cor.
> 6:14-18). How can a
> person be separate from such goings on and continue
> at the same time
> to dabble in them? Why not give gifts at other times
> of the year when
> they will be appreciated as spontaneously sincere
> and heartfelt?
>
> 4. How do I tell my friends and relatives that I no
> longer wish to
> exchange presents?
>
> With a smile! That's right. Show firmness, yet at
> the same time be
> relaxed and friendly about it. One of the biggest
> mistakes you can
> make is to come across as a religious fanatic fired
> up with
> purple-veined emotion on the subject. There's no
> need to make friends
> and relatives feel condemned and guilty by what you
> say. Your example
> will be testimony enough to them. Most of them
> haven't the faintest
> idea where Christmas customs came from or why they
> are following them.
> It's more superstition than it is religion. They're
> just doing what
> everyone around them does. Many of the problems
> arising from the
> Christmas season can be resolved if you apply three
> principles: (1)
> Stress your objection to the commercialism of the
> season. Immediately
> you have everyone, with the possible exception of
> some shopkeepers and
> commercial interests, on your side. Who can deny
> that Christmas is a
> crassly commercial holiday, that it is
> budget-bustingly expensive? Who
> would not--especially as general economic conditions
> worsen--rather
> spend the money on more needful items, like maybe
> heating the house?
> Who does not dread the wearisome Christmas shopping
> experience, the
> time-consuming uncertainty as to what to buy for
> whom? All you have to
> say is you've had enough of it, that when you give a
> gift you want to
> do it spontaneously instead of as a slave to some
> custom. After the
> initial shock wears off, most people will respect
> your stand and
> secretly wish they had the courage to do likewise.
> Some, in fact,
> heartened by your example, may do just that! (2)
> Maintain a sense of
> humor. Let's face it, cutting trees down and then
> setting them back up
> loaded with ornaments, the whole gift-trading
> rigmarole, the thought
> of an overweight, bearded individual decked out in
> flamboyant red and
> traveling through the air in a sled or some other
> conveyance when he
> is not slithering up and down someone's
> chimney--these and so many
> other traditions are ridiculous. Feel free to point
> that out. Who can
> deny it? (3) Put the burden of proof on those who
> are celebrating
> Christmas. It's not that there isn't overwhelming
> proof to back you up
> in your decision to cease celebrating Christmas.
> There certainly is.
> But most people have neither the time nor the
> interest for a detailed
> explanation. So shift the burden of proof to them.
> Say, in effect, "If
> you can show me where the Bible says I ought to
> observe Christmas, or
> where it says early Christians celebrated Jesus'
> birthday, I will
> celebrate it also!" The discussion will probably end
> very suddenly at
> that point. Of course, if the person to whom you are
> speaking shows an
> obvious interest in learning about the real origin
> of Christmas, you
> should be prepared to give an appropriate answer.
>
> 5. What happens if someone gives me a gift anyway?
> Should I return it?
>
> If a person is testing you to see how deeply your
> religious
> convictions lie, returning the gift is a proper
> response. On the other
> hand, in cases where the person sincerely doesn't
> know or comprehend
> your stand, a polite note of thanks for the gift and
> a brief statement
> that you no longer observe the Christmas holiday may
> be sufficient. By
> the way, you will find that most people will stop
> giving you Christmas
> gifts anyway after a year or two of not receiving a
> gift from you in
> return.
>
> 6. My friends and relatives continue to send me
> Christmas cards.
> Should I write back to each of them and explain that
> I have quit
> celebrating Christmas?
>
> A brief note to that effect may be in order. As with
> gifts, most
> people will cease sending Christmas cards when they
> stop getting them
> in return.
>
> 7. What do I tell my children now that they will no
> longer be
> receiving presents at Christmas?
>
> Why not tell them the truth? Why not tell them that
> you have come to
> understand that the world is wrong in its observance
> of Christmas and
> that you are going to do God's will because it is
> better than
> Christmas? Be sure to emphasize the positive
> side--that God's way is
> better than Christmas. As proof of this, tell your
> children you are
> going to give gifts to them throughout the year
> because you love them
> all year long, not just on Christmas Day. That, in
> turn, is precisely
> what they can tell their friends who will be showing
> off their
> Christmas gifts. It is important not to leave a void
> in your
> children's lives by removing Christmas observance
> and putting nothing
> in its place. Arrange special activities with them
> often, and
> especially centering around the Holy Days God has
> ordained in the
> Scriptures--the days He does want us to observe.
> (For more
> information, write for our free booklet Pagan
> Holidays- or God's Holy
> Days--Which?)
>
> 8. Is there anything I can do to prevent my child
> from having to
> participate in Christmas activities at school?
>
> One of the most important steps you as a Christian
> parent can take is
> to discuss the subject with the children's teachers,
> addressing the
> problem ahead of time. Politely inform the teachers
> involved that you
> do not observe certain holidays and that you do not
> want to have your
> children take part in celebrations centering around
> those days. Seek
> to avoid, as much as possible, leaving a teacher in
> a difficult
> situation with children to teach but not knowing
> what to have them do
> while others, for example, are drawing Santas. You
> can advise that
> your children may draw winter scenes or snowmen
> instead of things
> immediately associated with Christmas. If the whole
> class is having a
> Christmas party perhaps you could offer to come to
> school and take
> your children home that afternoon to relieve the
> teacher from having
> to find something else for them to do. In any case,
> try to be very
> cooperative with school officials. Above all, ask
> God for wisdom,
> grace and favor in their sight. Your children
> themselves, especially
> as they get older, will be a determining factor as
> to whether they
> become involved in worldly religious holiday
> activities at school or
> elsewhere away from home. You can't be with them
> every minute. This
> underlines the absolute need to provide positive
> instruction at home.
> If children are convinced in their own minds that
> they should not
> participate in certain activities, much of the
> battle is already won.
>
> 9. It is a standard policy for the company where I
> work to give all
> employees a Christmas bonus. Should I accept this
> bonus?
>
> Bonuses given at the end of the year are usually not
> considered as
> Christmas gifts. They are often given in gratitude
> for work done
> throughout the preceding year. It is logical to wait
> until the end of
> the year before giving such a bonus, and Christmas
> seems to be as good
> an occasion as any. Most large companies are not
> interested one way or
> the other in the personal convictions of their
> employees and, when
> that's the case, there is no reason to refuse the
> bonus. If you are
> working for a smaller company where you know your
> employer personally,
> it may be advisable to mention to him or her that
> you don't celebrate
> Christmas. If he or she wants to give you the bonus
> regardless, as
> simply a gift or token of appreciation, you can
> accept it with a clear
> conscience.
>
> 10. Some relatives have invited me to their house
> for dinner on
> Christmas Day. Should I refuse the invitation?
>
> Not necessarily. It depends on the nature of the
> occasion. Since you
> understand the truth about Christmas, to you the day
> will be just
> another ordinary day of the year. And to you the
> simple fact of eating
> a meal with others on that day is no different from
> eating one with
> them on any other day. What matters in this case,
> though, is how your
> relatives will regard the occasion. If they look on
> the meal as part
> of Christmas festivities and place religious
> significance upon it,
> then you would be out of place there. Your
> attendance could give the
> impression that you are observing Christmas with
> them or, if they know
> about your beliefs, that you are willing to
> compromise on your
> beliefs. On the other hand, if the meal is merely a
> convenient
> opportunity for a family get-together, and there is
> no objectionable
> connotation placed upon the meal, then it might be
> all right to accept
> the invitation. Better be prepared to answer some
> questions, though,
> because sooner or later the conversation is sure to
> focus on why you
> don't observe Christmas.
>
> 11. What should I say when someone wishes me "Merry
> Christmas"?
>
> It is often sufficient to respond with a question
> such as "Where has
> this last year gone?" or "It's that time of year
> again, isn't it?" or
> "Do you think it is going to snow?" or even a
> parting statement on an
> entirely unrelated subject such as "Good-bye now" or
> "Have a good
> day!" The surprising fact is that few individuals
> will even notice
> that you haven't wished "Merry Christmas" in return,
> so meaningless is
> the expression. At other times, a smile and a "Thank
> you" (meaning you
> are grateful for their concern) may be more
> appropriate. If you have a
> question regarding the Christmas holiday and it has
> not been answered
> here, please feel free to write our Personal
> Correspondence Department
> at our address nearest you. They will be glad to
> help you.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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# posted by John Allen @ 11:27 AM

At the opening of the Hannukah season, commemorated by
the lighting of the Menorah in Washington DC, strange
lights were captured on film. For the full article
and the pictures, here is the original article:



http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=41819

This might be real or it might be a reflection from
the floodlights into the lense, but, let's assume for
a moment that it is real.

The timing of this event, if real, is quite
significant. Most people do not know what Hannukah
commemorates, so the meaning of this event will be
lost on them.

The Hannukah season is also called the "Feast of the
Dedication," and, if I remember correctly, it
commemorates the dediation of the second Temple after
the Jews returned from exile in Babylon.

There maqy be some significance to this because GOD
ALWAYS DOES THINGS ON HIS TIME, not ours.

Therefrore, if this is for real, it could signify that
the THIRD Temple is about to begin construction in the
Middle East and/or that the revived SPIRITUAL TEMPLE
of God's true Church is about to occur.

Along with the Temple of God, God showed His presence
with the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire
by night. This was the GLORY OF THE LORD that
inhabited the Holy of holies in the Temple. This may
indeed return to our earth shortly, as God begins to
manifest Himself in more and more tangible form to the
world as we approach the end.

This may be significant in light of this other news
event which the corporate media doesn't want to
publicize:

Members of Reestablished Sanhedrin Ascend Temple Mount

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=73311



In a dramatic but unpublicized move, members of the
newly established Sanhedrin ascended the Temple Mount,
Judaism’s holiest site, this past Monday.

Close to 50 recently ordained s'muchim, members of the
Sanhedrin, lined up at the foot of the Temple Mount
Monday morning. [The word s'muchim comes from the same
root as s'michah, , rabbinic ordination.] The men,
many ascending the Temple Mount for the first time,
had immersed in mikvaot (ritual baths) that morning,
and planned to ascend as a group. Despite prior
approval from the Israeli police who oversee entry to
the Mount, the officers barred the group from entering
the Mount all together, and allowed them to visit only
in groups of ten.


Given the newly-mandated restrictive conditions, many
of the s'muchim refused to ascend at all, especially
as a group of over 100 non-Jewish tourists filed past
the waiting rabbis and up towards the holy site. “It
is unconscionable that on the eve of Chanukah, which
celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple, we
should once again be barred from worshipping – by our
own people,” Rabbi Chaim Richman of Jerusalem’s Temple
Institute told IsraelNN’s Ezra HaLevi.

The Sanhedrin, a religious-legal assembly of 71 sages
that convened during the Holy Temple period and for
several centuries afterwards, was the highest Jewish
judicial tribunal in the Land of Israel. The great
court used to convene in one of the Temple’s chambers
in Jerusalem.

This past October, the Sanhedrin was reestablished for
the first time in 1,600 years, at the site of its last
meeting in Tiberias.

“There is a special mitzvah [commandment], not
connected to time, but tied to our presence in Israel,
to establish a Sanhedrin,” Rabbi Meir HaLevi, one of
the 71 members of the new Sanhedrin, told Israel
National Radio’s Weekend Edition. “The Rambam
[12th-century Torah scholar Maimonides] describes the
process exactly in the Mishna Torah [his seminal work
codifying Jewish Law]. When he wrote it, there was no
Sanhedrin, and he therefore outlines the steps
necessary to establish one. When there is a majority
of rabbis, in Israel, who authorize one person to be a
samuch, , an authority, he can then reestablish the
Sanhedrin.”

Those behind the revival of the Sanhedrin stress that
the revival of the legal body is not optional, but
mandated by the Torah. “We don’t have a choice,” says
Rabbi Richman. “It is a religious mandate for us to
establish a Sanhedrin.”

The Sanhedrin was reestablished through the ordination
of one rabbi agreed upon by many prominent rabbis in
Israel and approved as “fitting to serve” by former
Chief Sefardi Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef and leading
Ashkenazi Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv. That rabbi, who
is then considered to have received authentic
ordination as handed down from Moses, was then able to
give ordination to 70 others, making up the quorum of
71 necessary for the Sanhedrin.

“Even Mordechai HaYehudi of the Purim story was
accepted, as it is written, only ‘by the majority of
his brethren,’ and not by everybody," Rabbi HaLevi
explained. "Anyone who deals with public issues can
not be unanimously accepted.”

The rabbis behind the Sanhedrin’s reconstitution claim
that, like the State of Israel, the old-new Sanhedrin
is a work-in-progress. They see it as a vessel that,
once established, will reach the stature and authority
that it once had.

“The first members requested that their names not be
published, so as to allow it to grow without public
criticism of individuals,” HaLevi said. “We want to
give it time to develop and strengthen the
institution, giving a chance for more rabbis to join.”
He added that each of the current members of the
Sanhedrin has agreed to be a conditional member until
a more knowledgeable rabbi joins, taking his place.

Rabbi Richman, also a member of the Sanhedrin, hopes
the body will bring about a revolution in Jewish
jurisprudence. Declining to discuss exactly what
issues are on the Sanhedrin’s agenda, Richman said
that one of the main long-term goals of the Sanhedrin
is to reunify Jewish observance in Israel. The
Sanhedrin includes members of Ashkenazi, Sefardi,
Hasidic, National-Religious and Hareidi communities.

“We Jews went into exiles all over the world,” Rabbi
HaLevi said. “Every community established its own
court. We are talking about more than 50 different
legal systems developing separately from one another.
Part of our return to Israel is the reunification of
our Jewish practices.”

A tradition is recorded in the Talmud (Tractate
Megillah 17b, Rashi) that the Sanhedrin will be
restored after a partial ingathering of the Jewish
exiles, but before Jerusalem is completely rebuilt and
restored. Another Talmudic tradition (Eruvin 43b;
Maharatz Chajas ad loc; Rashash to Sanhedrin 13b)
states that Elijah the Prophet will present himself
before a duly-ordained Sanhedrin when he announces the
coming of the Messiah. This indicates that despite
common misconceptions, a Sanhedrin is a pre-, not
post-messianic institution.


This is very interesting indeed, and we may well be at
a crossroads in time just prior to the
re-establishment both of God's spiritual Temple the
church to its true apostalic roots and the
reestablishment of the physical Temple in Jerusalem.

It may very well be that Elijah the prophet will have
a role, both in restoring the Church of God to its
spiritual roots and reestablishing contact with
physical Israel, playing out his dual
spiritual/phisical role as God's final end time
Apostle and the Final End Time Judge of Isreal.

In this context, you would do well to read my article
on the end time Elijah for background on some of this.

However, new details such as this have come to light
since that article was written about 7 years ago or
so.

http://www.destiny-worldwide.net/rcg/prophecy/elijah.htm

We are living in the times now, I am sure, when end
time prophetic events will go into overdrive. Hold
onto your hats, because the entire world is about to
transform before your very eyes!




Angels photographed
over nation's capital?
Hanukkah mystery: Eerie blue images caught on camera
at menorah lighting
Posted: December 8, 2004
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2004 WorldNetDaily.com


Close-up image of mysterious objects

WASHINGTON – Was it a bird? Was it a plane? Was it a
sign from heaven?

That's what Carrie Devorah wants to know after she
inadvertently photographed some mysterious blue light
images hovering heavenward while taking pictures of
the lighting of the Chabad menorah on the first night
of Hanukkah last night on the Ellipse in the nation's
capital.


Mysterious blue images captured during menorah
lighting in Washington, D.C.

"I took this shot as I was walking to get into place,"
she said. "For those of you who know D.C., you will
recognize the two red lights to the left as being from
the Washington Monument. And you will know there is no
building that tall to the right of the menorah where
the two blue images are."

Are they lens refractions? Are they planes from
National Airport? Devorah isn't sure.

"I was fascinated by the stage light silhouetting the
menorah," the photographer explained. "So I walked as
close as I could – shot with my wide angle lens. ... I
noticed the blue images when I returned home."

Devorah says she took three photographs in sequence
and the blue images – the mystery lights – are
ascending in the sequence.

Devorah was in the news last spring when her brother
Chezi was killed in a terrorist bus bombing in Israel.

She wrote about her experience and her loss in a
WorldNetDaily commentary.

Still feeling the loss, Devorah takes comfort from the
mysterious lights.

"Messiah? A sign? Blue angels?" she asks rhetorically.
"All I know is it was fortuitous on a day I was
needing to see ... one set of footsteps in the sand, a
sign I am being carried."

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