DOMESTIC TERROR ATTACKS MORE LIKELY

The late-August revelation that a migrant smuggling ring with ties to ISIS had assisted over a dozen individuals reach the U.S. from Mexico must be understood as a reminder, as the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks is commemorated today, that terrorist groups have not given up hopes of carrying out more attacks on the homeland. Little is known about these people’s whereabouts, and the worst should be expected. At the same time this revelation has led to an extensive amount of chatter by jihadis online about even more specific ways to enter the U.S. both from Mexico and also Canada.

Every couple of weeks or so, there is more news about Al-Qaeda- and ISIS-connected arrests, trials, and convictions in the U.S. – for example in Massahusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Indiana, Florida, Texas, and Oregon – and overseas, in the UK, Austria, Spain, elsewhere in Europe, and Australia.   In one of the more disturbing cases, a 17-year-old from Pennsylvania was arrested on August 14 and charged, inter alia, with plotting a terrorist attack using weapons of mass destruction. The FBI Joint Terrorist Task Force said that had he succeeded, it could have been “catastrophic.”

Those jihadis whose attacks have succeeded have had to settle for small-scale strikes with limited impact. But this is not for lack of trying nor for lack of desire to perpetrate a mass casualty attack of even greater scope than 9/11. To mark last year’s 9/11 anniversary, Al-Qaeda published a 270-page book, authored by the group’s late deputy leader Abu Muhammad Al-Masri, that stresses the need for obtaining and using nuclear weapons. (Steven Stalinsky, PhD, MEMRI, 9/11/2023)

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30 YEARS OF ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN PEACE

It’s the 30th anniversary of an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal that led to the creation of the Palestinian Authority, intended to provide interim self-government for five years while the conflict’s core issues were solved.

With its vibrant restaurants, bustling malls, and new construction constantly under way, affluent Ramallah has become synonymous with the Palestinian Authority. Since 1993, when the Oslo Accords were signed on the White House lawn, foreign donor money has flowed into this West Bank city, north of Jerusalem. Its streets contain smart government ministries with signs and stationery locating them in the State of Palestine. But Palestinians are acutely aware this is a facade. “Things are bad and going backwards,” Um Nabil, a middle-aged shopper in Manara Square tells me. “Our lives now are full of instability.”   (Yolande Knell, WSJ, 9/13/2023)

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G 20 — PRAISE FOR MODI

The G20 summit in New Delhi wrapped up this weekend, with many praising Indian PM Narendra Modi for getting the G20 nations to agree on a consensus declaration after a month of intense negotiations.

What was agreed to? On climate, member nations agreed “that developing countries need to be supported in their transitions to low carbon/emissions” though it’s not exactly clear what this financing would look like. “Climate justice” remains a contentious issue, as evidenced by Modi’s comments earlier in the week accusing Western nations of forcing the developing world to pay the price for their rapid industrialization.

The G20 declaration also comes just days after the first Africa Climate Summit, where African states pitched themselves as the future of the green economy. In a further testament to the growing importance of Africa, Modi later announced the admission of the African Union as a permanent member of the G20.

But the biggest challenge to consensus was Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine and the divide between many Western states and countries in the Global South that want to maintain solid ties with both the US and Russia. While the declaration recognized “the human suffering and negative added impacts of the war in Ukraine with regard to global food and energy security” – a nod to African nations that have seen supplies disrupted by the conflict – Kyiv was furious that the statement didn’t directly address Russian atrocities.

Indeed, this was a significant departure from the G20’s consensus declaration last year in Bali, which referenced “Russian aggression” and described the conflict as a war “against” Ukraine, not “in” it. And despite the absence of President Putin at the summit, Moscow was notably pleased with the outcome: Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised the declaration, calling it “a step in the right direction.”

A win for Modi? One thing many observers agree on, however, was that the summit achieved India’s goal of boosting its global diplomatic bonafides, in part aimed at countering China’s influence in Asia and Africa. It helped, of course, that Xi Jinping also chose to stay home.  (Gzero Signal, 9/11/2023)

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INCREASED VOLATILITY ON FLEET STREET

That’s 86% more than a year earlier, according to a WSJ analysis of FDIC data, and regulators are growing concerned. Brokered deposits involve banks going to third parties to find customers to invest in high-yield CDs. They are a quick, easy way to boost lenders’ balance sheets but are typically much more expensive because banks pay higher interest rates to entice depositors. Meanwhile, amateur investors are taking their own risks, piling into short-term options for a chance for a big, almost immediate payout—or nothing. Options expiring in five or fewer days accounted for about half of options-market activity as of August, according to data provider SpotGamma, up from around one-third three years ago.  (WSJ, 9/12/2023)

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MORE THAN 2,200 PEOPLE ARE REPORTED DEAD IN LIBYA AFTER A STORM TRIGGERED DEVASTATING FLOODS  

Much of Derna, a city home to 100,000 people, is under water after two dams and four bridges collapsed.  The death toll from the city alone stands at more than 1,500, (now said to be over 20,000) according to a minister.  At least 10,000 people are missing, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies says.  The storm, which hit on Sunday, is also affecting the eastern cities of Benghazi, Soussa and Al-Marj.  (MORE:  https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-africa-66691046)

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BRIEFLY

• The US, India, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, have announced a new trade route connecting India to the Middle East and Europe through railways and ports. Some commentators see the development as a “direct challenge” to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure project which aims to connect China to the rest of the world, said CNN. Gulf states are trying to find a “balance” in “what they see as a world order that is no longer unipolar,” added the broadcaster.   (The Week, 9/12/2023)

• More than 1,600 scientists, including two Nobel laureates, have signed a declaration saying that “There is no climate emergency.” The declaration is unlikely to get any attention from the mainstream media, unfortunately, but it is important for people to know about: the mass climate hysteria and the destruction of the US economy in the name of climate change need to stop.

• “Climate science should be less political, while climate policies should be more scientific,” states the declaration signed by the 1,609 scientists, including Nobel laureates John F. Clauser from the US and Ivar Giaever from Norway/US.  (Robert Williams, Gatestone, 9/10/2023)

• North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin for the first time since 2019. They are expected to discuss relations between the two nations and a potential arms deal.  Kim is a “reclusive leader” who is “famously paranoid about his security, rarely stepping beyond the sealed borders of his regime,” said The Telegraph. When he does choose to venture overseas, he is more likely than not to be found in an armoured green train that has served the leader of North Korea for decades.   (The Week, 9/12/2023)

• Vast numbers of Emperor penguin chicks died last year because of sea ice melting and collapsing beneath them. Uniquely among penguins, Emperors (the largest species) breed on sea ice rather than on land, with males hatching the eggs in August, during the Antarctic winter. The fluffy chicks then need the ice to remain stable until December, so that they have time to develop waterproof feathers, and sufficient strength to swim. If they fall into the sea before then, they are likely to drown or freeze. But a study has found that last year the sea ice around Antarctica began to break up in October. By February 2023, it had reached its lowest-ever level. As a result, researchers with the British Antarctic Survey believe that in four of the five colonies in the central and eastern Bellingshausen Sea – where the last of the ice melted in November – none of last year’s chicks survived. In total, they estimate that as many as 9,000 perished.   (The Week, 9/12/2023)

• The most likely time to have a car crash is between 3pm and 3:15pm on a Friday.  (The Week, UK, 3/12/2023)

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COMMENTARY

Scripture Reading – Jeremiah 2:1-8, 13

“What fault did your ancestors find in me, that they strayed so far from me? ” (Jeremiah 2:5)

One hazard of technology today is the temptation to scroll aimlessly on social media or web feeds. Maybe we begin by looking for a recipe, but our search turns up a distracting new diet program, or we see a juicy update on a friend we haven’t seen in years—and before we know it, we’ve spent an hour wandering around the internet without a clear sense of direction.

Something similar can happen in our spiritual lives. Sin rarely captures us out of the blue. Instead, we begin small—with a little lie, or a grudge we can’t let go of, or a few too many drinks—and later we discover we have wandered far into places we never thought we would go.

The prophets reminded God’s people Israel that they had wandered from God’s way. They had followed idols—representing the sinful desires of the human heart—rather than walking with the Lord and obeying his directions. They stopped asking, “Where is God in our lives?” They turned away from the living water and dug cisterns that only ran dry.

When Jesus came, he declared that he is the “living water” who fills us with his guiding Spirit (John 7:37). Rather than scrolling aimlessly through life, let’s follow this Savior to keep close to God.   (Joel Vande Werken, Our Daily Bread)

UP TO DATE ON ISLAM

On 9-11, I felt for sure that this would wake Americans up to the serious threat posed by Islam.

It didn’t.

The attacks came on a Tuesday.  Three days later, the liberal Establishment had put together an inter-religious memorial service at the National Cathedral.  Not an inter-denominational service, but an inter-religious service that included a Muslim imam, a Hindu priest, a Buddhist monk and a Jewish rabbi, as well as a Catholic priest.

I also remember reading, a few months later, that sales of the Koran had jumped significantly.   Printing presses could not keep up with demand.

So it should not have come as a surprise that, seven years later, the country elected its first president with a Muslim name and definite Muslim connections.

The Obama Administration is staffed by a number of Muslims. Valerie Jarrett, the president’s chief adviser, is a Shi’ite Muslim from Iran; the head of the CIA, John Brennan, converted to Islam while in Saudi Arabia.  There are others, too, in highly influential positions.   It’s no wonder they are panicked at the thought of Donald Trump and his promise to suspend Islamic immigration.

Now, another seven years later, the same president has just declared that March every year will be Muslim History Month. Millions of dollars will be frivolously added to the national debt to pay for it.   In the years to come, we will be hearing many lies, witnessing a re-write of American history, as Muslims did not contribute anything to America for the first 350 years (from 1607).

It should be noted that Muslim History Month follows Black History Month.   Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam, that came to prominence in the 1960’s, would never have believed that this could happen.   But it is happening, right before our eyes.   The media will now follow with programs to show just how it was Islam, not protestant Europeans, that gave birth to this land and made it the most prosperous country in the world.

Fifteen years after James Town, the English settlers had less of a presence on American soil than Muslims do today, less than 15 years after 9-11.

Is there any wonder Americans are flocking to Trump?

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Muslims continue to dominate the news in other parts of the world.

Saudi Arabia has announced the creation of a 34-nation alliance of Sunni Muslims to fight terrorism.   Before you jump for joy, keep in mind that ISIS and Al-Qaeda are also both Sunni Muslims, the latter staging 9/11.   Members were heavily influenced by the Wahabbi sect of Islam, which is the official state religion of Saudi Arabia. They are the most extreme form of Islam.   When mosques are built in western countries, they are often paid for by Saudi Arabia; after completion the country will generously send a Saudi Wahabbi Imam to the mosque to spread the faith.   They also provide imams to work as chaplains in American prisons.   These men work at converting prisoners and are paid by the Federal government.

When the Saudis were criticized for not taking in Muslim refugees during the mass migration to western Europe last summer, they “generously” declared that they would help by building 200 mosques in Germany, once again dispatching the imams needed.

And so we see the progressive spread of Islam into western democracies.   Instead of embracing freedom, they will spread their pernicious religion, which means “submission” or “surrender,” the exact opposite of what America was.

Our children and our grandchildren will never forgive us!

Some Christians get excited about all this, believing that the Saudi led alliance is the prophesied “king of the south,” mentioned in Daniel chapter 11.   Verses 40-44 show that immediately prior to Christ’s return, the “king of the south” pushes at the “king of the north” and the Holy Land gets invaded.

Let’s not be too hasty here to jump to conclusions.

Firstly, we should remember that the old “king of the south,” the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt, did not include Saudi Arabia or most of the other nations in alliance with Riyadh.   The kingdom was ruled from Alexandria, the capital of ancient Egypt.   Egypt is home to roughly 50% of all Arabs.  Egypt is more likely to be the leader of the king of the south.

Saudi Arabia is still a prominent player in the Middle East. Another is Iran.  These two countries are involved in proxy wars in both Yemen and Syria.  Whereas the Saudis are mostly Sunni Muslims, the Iranians are Shi’ites.   The two sects of Islam hate each other with a passion.  You would have to go back to the Thirty Years War (1618 to 1648) to see anything comparable in the Christian world.

At least one church organization that emphasizes Bible prophecy has been claiming dogmatically for over twenty years that Iran is the King of the South.  This is not very likely when you consider that Iran (formerly Persia) was a part of the King of the North prior to the Christian era.   The biblical king of the North was ruled from Antioch to the north of Jerusalem.

The two powers, the kings of the south and of the north, both born out of the rubble of Alexander’s empire, regularly came to blows. Each time they did, Jerusalem, the epicenter of Bible prophecy, was negatively affected.

It is also highly unlikely that Shi’ite Iran will lead a Sunni alliance.

So, who are the “kings of the north” and of the “south”?

Maps give you a good idea.

The following maps are of the two powers about 200 years before Christ, a little over a century after the death of Alexander and the division of his empire.

Now look at this contemporary map, showing the worlds of Shia and Sunni Islam.  The red shows Shia Islam which is basically the old King of the North plus territory to the east.  Blue shows Sunni Islam which includes the territory once ruled by the King of the South.

October 15, 2015 by Rodrigo Silva

The West has been caught up in a growing Shia-Sunni conflict.   We can’t be blamed for the animosity itself, as it began in the seventh century AD, but we must bear some responsibility for the rapid acceleration toward a major war between the two.   Western intervention in Iraq 13 years ago led to the downfall of Sunni ruled Iraq and its replacement with Shia Iraq.  This has led to the development of an arc of Shia Islam, comprising Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran.

The Shi’ites are now dominated by Iran.   President Assad’s Syria is also led by Shi’ites, who also dominate Lebanon.   This could all have been avoided if we’d known what we were doing, but we didn’t, so now we see the threat of major war between the two branches of Islam.

We still talk about democracy, but liberal democracy is irrelevant in the Middle East.   Only Israel has a real democratic system.

This conflict is only going to get worse.

So, are Shia and Sunni Islam the kings of the north and south?

That’s certainly a possibility.  But, in 60 BC, the King of the North fell to the Roman Empire. 29 years later, so did the King of the South when Cleopatra killed herself.   After those two conquests, Judea and Samaria were also conquered by the Romans.

The two powers ceased to exist and are not mentioned again until “the time of the end.”   Why do they suddenly appear again?

Remember that prophecy revolves around Israel.   There was no Jewish nation from the time of the Roman Empire until it was restored in 1948.   The lengthy prophecy in Daniel 11 is not about the kings of the north and south, so much as their impact on the Jewish people.   Now that the Jewish people have been restored by God to their ancient homeland, any major threat to them from the North or South, or both, has once again become very relevant.

The principal threat right now is from Shia Islam. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has regularly warned the West about the threat from Iran.   Events in Syria could also affect Israel.  Shi’ite Hizbollah in Lebanon remains a constant threat.

As the US has turned against Israel, the country has been seeking closer working relationships with Sunni Islamic nations, like Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. (I wrote about this recently in a blogpost.)

The Saudi alliance is looking at getting involved in Syria, ostensibly against ISIS, but likely more against Assad.   A Saudi-led intervention there would partially fulfill the prophecy about the King of the South pushing against the King of the North. But it could also be a side-war, another proxy war between the two branches of Islam.

So, again, let’s not get too excited.   A lot could still happen before we see the fulfillment of Daniel 11: 40-44.

“At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through.  He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon.   He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape.   He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels.”   But news from the east and the north shall trouble him; therefore he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.

One thing is for sure and that is the need to watch the Middle East, as events there are often far more important than the events that get reported on our national news programs.

THE NEW HEART OF DARKNESS

Bangui is the capital of the Central African Republic, one of the worst failed states on a continent of failed states!   Most world leaders are not likely to even think about going there. But Pope Francis has just been there for two days.

It’s one of those African countries that is on the fault-line between Christianity and Islam, a fault-line that runs west to east across the continent, dividing the Islamic world to the north and the Christian world to the south.

After spending Sunday in the Christian half, today the pope ventured into the volatile Muslim half of the capital.  He delivered a message of reconciliation to the city’s main mosque and observed that Christians and Muslims have long lived peacefully together.  He described Christians and Muslims as “brothers.”

Unfortunately, it’s not really true, not in the CAR or anywhere else for that matter.

In point of fact, the opposite is the case.   For 1400 years, since the birth of the Islamic religion, the two dominant religions in the world have been in conflict.   Occasionally, those conflicts have exploded into major warfare between the two.   It looks like we are heading in that direction again!

Marco Rubio, one of the people running for President of the United States at this time, referred a couple of weeks ago to “the clash of civilizations” that has developed between radical Islam and the Christian West.   His comment has been much maligned.   One newspaper dismissed the whole concept of a clash of civilizations by pointing out that ISIS is not civilized, so it doesn’t qualify.

But that’s just the point.   ISIS has a view of the world, which is totally at variance with the view in the West.  We may consider them barbaric, but that does not make it any easier to defeat them, thereby heralding a new kumbaya world order!

Besides, ISIS isn’t the problem so much as Islam.   ISIS is relatively new.   It simply exploits a hatred that’s already there, the hatred of Muslims toward all other religions.   The intellectual elite are fond of saying that all religions are religions of peace, but where is the evidence of this, particularly when it comes to Islam?

Islam means “submission” – the very word is antithetical to what the West stands for.   Salman Rushdie warned more than a decade ago that when a Muslim moves to the West (he said “Detroit”), he is not looking to take advantage of our way of life to better himself; rather, he sees himself as part of the advance guard to spread Islam to his new country.   This is why migrants want “sharia” law, rather than to live under the legal system of their new country.

The Hungarian prime minister made a profound comment last week, when he observed, that “not all migrants are terrorists, but all terrorists are migrants.”   That comment was immediately condemned, with people pointing out that many of the terrorists in Europe are home grown.   Yes, but the home-grown terrorists are Muslims.   Some are first generation, some were raised in Europe by migrant parents. The prime minister is right – the Paris attacks and the threat of further attacks stem from a seismic shift in demographics across the continent – whereas six decades ago there were very few Muslims, now there are tens of millions.   This simple equation changes everything.

So long as Europeans and westerners in general see Islam as a peaceful religion comparable to Christianity, it will not be possible to deal with the problem we now face.

Donald Trump is another presidential candidate who has come in for a lot of criticism, especially for claiming that, in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, he saw Muslims celebrating in New Jersey.   I have to say that I do not remember that.   What I do remember is a brief video of people on the West Bank (Palestinians) celebrating.   I also know that we were not shown that a second time.   In an interview a few weeks later, the chief of the CNN News Bureau that day, was asked why it was only shown briefly.   Her response was that she knew the celebrants were only a few people, that the majority couldn’t possibly feel that way, so she wouldn’t show it again.

Now the video has been recovered from the archives to expose Mr. Trump as a “liar.”   How convenient!   How typical of the liberal media.

Yesterday, one of the Sunday morning news programs interviewed Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, who were in Baghdad. Both were advocating 20,000 US troops be sent to Syria to fight ISIS.   The same morning, a one-hour documentary produced by Fareed Zakaria, interviewed the German journalist who is the only known westerner to have spent time in ISIS territory.   He said that ISIS wants US troops in Syria, that’s what they have been hoping for. Once they have western troops in Syria, their home turf, they will have a fulfillment of their long held dream, the apocalyptic battle between Islam and the West, the clash of civilizations liberals deny.

Amongst other things, western forces will boost the number of ISIS volunteers.   Before the US invasion of Iraq, there was no ISIS or al-Qaeda in either Iraq or Syria.   It’s impossible to predict the outcome in the region of western coalition “boots on the ground.”

It’s not just US politicians who do not know how to deal with ISIS.   In Paris today leaders from around the world are gathered to discuss climate change.   Rather than agree a plan to defeat the immediate threat of terrorism, they are talking about the long-term threat from climate change.   They have even tried to link the two, when there is no link.

A century ago, Africa was often referred to as the “Heart of Darkness,” after a novel of that name published in 1899.   Although the story was set in Africa, it wasn’t just Africa that had a heart of darkness; the white hero Kurtz, representing imperialism at its height, was also guilty.   Today, Islam is the heart of darkness, with ISIS, a fundamentalist resurgence of primitive Islam, threatening the peace and prosperity of the world.

But Islam does not have the exclusive patent on violence.

The other major religion in the news with the pope’s visit, is Roman Catholicism. Pope Francis is currently reaching out to Muslims, claiming that Christians and Muslims are brothers.   But that approach could suddenly change.

In 1095, faced with violent attacks on Christians by Muslims, Pope Urban II called on the nations of western Europe to launch a “crusade” to free the holy places from Islamic rule.   The crusades that followed lasted two hundred years.

Far from being ancient history, the Islamic world sees today’s western nations as “crusader states” and Israel as a revival of the twelfth century Kingdom of Jerusalem.   Their medieval mindset has not moved on from that struggle.

It was the Catholic Church that galvanized the nations of western Europe to fight militant Islam.   Jesus Christ warned His followers that “false Christs” would appear before His second coming:

“Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be?  And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”  And Jesus answered and said to them:   “Take heed that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” (Matt 24:3-5).

In Revelation 6 we see false religion as the first of the four horsemen that bring destruction upon the earth.

The medieval Christian church could be just as barbaric as ISIS.   Beheadings and burnings were common punishments for dissent.

It’s well to remember these lessons of history in the hope that we can avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.

NETANYAHU’S ADDRESS HIGHLIGHTS DIVISIONS OVER ISLAMIC MILITANTS

Prior to 9/11, most Americans were barely aware of the religion of Islam.

In the short time since that tragic day, Islam has established its presence in the country with mosques and schools in every sizeable community.   The president of the United States has even said that the country was founded on Judeo-Christian-Islamic principles.

One thing the religion has done is divide the country and other nations where there has been widespread immigration from Muslim lands, mostly in the Middle East.

At no time has that division been greater than now.

In France, it was the Charlie Hebdo killings that caused the division, between those on the right of the political spectrum who want an end to Islamization and the immigrants themselves, supported by those on the left who side with them.

In Germany, there is PEGIDA staging weekly demonstrations against the Islamization of Europe.   Critical of PEGIDA are the established political parties who bend over backwards to assure Muslims that there is a place for them in their societies.

Now division has come to the United States with the visit of the Israeli Prime Minister, Binyamin Netanyahu.

Some would say the division is over Israel.   But the divide is also over how best to handle militant Islam.

The gulf between the two became clearer today when the Prime Minister addressed the US Congress in Washington.

The invitation to speak came from the Speaker of the House, John Boehner. The White House made it clear that it was opposed to Netanyahu speaking, claiming it was a breach of protocol so close to the Israel election.

Although most Democrats did listen to the speech, Nancy Pelosi, former Speaker of the House, was very critical almost immediately afterwards, claiming she was “near tears” throughout the speech and “saddened by the insult to the intelligence of the United States.” She was reportedly visibly agitated while Mr. Netanyahu was speaking.

The subject of the speech was Iran and the imminent deal between western allies with the Iranian regime over its nuclear program.   The deadline for this agreement is March 31^st.   Mr. Netanyahu believes that the impending agreement will make it more likely that Iran will develop nuclear weapons – and soon.

The division is clear – and not just over Iran acquiring nuclear weapons.

The division is between those who see a serious threat from militant Islam and those who are in denial.   Iran is not the only threat but it was the focus of the prime minister’s address.   Iran with a nuclear weapon could annihilate Israel, a small country and near neighbor.   Indeed, Iran has threatened to annihilate “the world’s only Jewish state.”

The prime minister reminded his audience of the story of Esther, the Jewish queen married to a Persian king in the fifth century BC.   The Persian king at the time wanted to annihilate the Jews, just as today’s Iranian leadership does.   Tomorrow (Wednesday, March 4^th) is the Feast of Purim, which commemorates the delivery of the Jews from total disaster.

More recently, the leader of Hezbollah, Iran’s chief terrorist proxy said:  “If all the Jews gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of chasing them down all over the world.”

Although Iran is not an Arab country and has traditionally been isolated as the only major Shi’ite Islamic nation, today it dominates four Arab capitals, Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut and Sana’a.   Mr. Netanyahu referenced Iran’s support against Sunni Islamic ISIS, claiming that their support against ISIS does not make them a friend of America.   It’s a case of “the enemy of your enemy is your enemy!”

“Both ISIS and Iran want to impose a militant Islamic empire,” he warned.

“The greatest danger facing our world is the marriage of militant Islam and nuclear weapons.”   This clearly would change everything in the Middle East and the wider world beyond.

Mr. Netanyahu’s address was impassioned.   We have not heard such a powerful speech from a politician in many years.   It is particularly impressive when we consider that English is not his first language.   Mr. Netanyahu and former British statesman Sir Winston Churchill are the only two world leaders who have addressed Congress on three occasions.   Following the speech, Netanyahu was compared on at least two news channels to Churchill, who spent the 1930’s warning of the impending threat from the Nazis, as Netanyahu warns of the increasing threat from militant Islam.   If the world had heeded Churchill, the Holocaust would not have happened. If the world listens to Netanyahu, a future holocaust may be averted.

Students of the Bible know that Jerusalem, Israel’s “eternal capital” will be the focus of major conflict in the near future.

The Old Testament prophet Zechariah, writing about events leading up to the Second Coming of the Messiah, prophesied that Jerusalem and Judah (Israel) will be at the center of the final conflict to confront mankind.

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem.   And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.”  (Zech 12:2-3.)

Zechariah 14:2 adds:   “For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem.”

Centuries later, Jesus Christ, answering a question about the “signs of His Coming,” said:   “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near.”

Mr. Netanyahu was right when he pointed out that “we share a common destiny.”   What happens over there will affect us over here – and all countries in between.

The day before he addressed the US Congress, Mr. Netanyahu spoke to AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), one of the most powerful lobby groups in the United States.   He said then that, whereas the President of the United States spends every day thinking about America’s security, as Israel’s prime minister, he spends every day thinking of Israel’s survival.

In that one sentence, he encapsulated the difference between the leaders of the two nations.   At the present time, militant Islam is a matter of national security to the United States.  If Mr. Netanyahu’s warning is not taken seriously, it could soon become a matter of national survival, as it is in Israel.

OUR CONTRIBUTION TO TERRORISM

Shortly after September 11^th, 2001, I was visiting Ghana in West Africa.

I remember being stuck in a traffic jam with a fellow minister, observing all that was going on around us.   The streets in African countries are always full of people.   At the side of the road, there are stalls selling everything you can imagine.

At one stall on this particular visit was a rather large painting of Osama bin Laden. It must have been 4 feet tall. I turned to my friend and asked him why it was for sale.

Ghana’s Muslim population is about 14% of its total. Most Muslims live in the north and we were on the south coast.

He explained to me that people feel America is trying to take over the world and that Osama bin Laden will stop them.   I was rather taken aback by this remark.

I was shocked on future visits to see many pictures of OBL in Christian homes.

He had clearly made a positive impression on many people.   I also remember seeing a popular calendar on peoples’ walls showing people jumping out of the twin towers. Why would anybody want to be reminded? They were, in fact, celebrating a humiliating defeat for the most powerful country in the world.

My friend’s explanation interested me. Why do people think America is trying to take over the world?

The answer lies in America’s cultural pervasiveness, from the style of clothes to the type of movies and television programs we produce, the music, the attitudes and the language.

I also remember an incident on another visit. We had stopped for refreshments halfway from Kumasi to Accra, a five-hour journey. A vehicle pulled up next to us. A number of people got out. They all seemed to be Ghanaians. Then we heard the most awful language. Every sentence included at least one four-letter word. A Ghanaian minister leaned over and said they had all been in America.   Ghanaians frown on the use of the “F” word – any Ghanaian using it is likely to have spent some time in America. That’s the perception, at least, and perception is reality.

In another memorable incident, I was asked why Americans allow their children to talk back to them. I asked the individual what made him think this was the case. He replied that he had seen it many times on American TV shows.

American television shows are shown all over the world. I should elaborate and say that the worst American TV shows are shown everywhere. Jerry Springer fills the airwaves. Violence (“Action!”) is preferred over sex.   And we certainly have a lot of violent shows for export. Is there any wonder that we are seen as a violent country? America’s wars seem like an extension of that violence.

Thinking about the events of the last ten days, the terrorist attacks in Paris and subsequent events, we need to ask ourselves: How much have we in the West contributed to the present situation?   Nothing could possibly condone acts of terrorism but we may be inadvertently contributing to it.

Second generation Muslim immigrants are, in far too many cases, turning to extremism. Could this be their way of dealing with the daily contradiction that is their lives – trying to reconcile a strict religious upbringing with the degeneration they see around them?

President Erdogan of Turkey warned today of a “clash of civilizations” between Islam and the West.   Many Muslims already see themselves as being in a war against “Christianity,” not realizing how unchristian the West has become.

Islam has very different values to those of the secular West. Muslims are deeply offended by the content of entertainment emanating from the West. Yes, they could turn their television sets off, just as they can refuse to buy copies of Charlie Hebdo with a cartoon of Mohammed on the cover.

But we could also stop producing trash! Sadly, in the world of entertainment, there’s little money to be made by adhering to the words of the Apostle Paul. ^“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” (Phil 4:8)

There was a time when America was highly respected around the world. At that time, the country was more Christian with a population living more in accordance with the scriptures, though not perfect by any means.   Today, the US flaunts its immorality, especially in its entertainment.

The US and, indeed, the whole western world, would be wise to remember the words found in Proverbs 14:34: “Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people.”

THE STELLA COULSON APPROACH

 

I can still remember Stella Coulson, even though it’s been almost 40 years.

She was a widowed farmer in the delightful farming community we lived in, thirty miles SE of Bulawayo, on the road to Beitbridge, the main crossing point into South Africa. At the time, we lived in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe.

There was a prolonged terrorist war going on at the time, which affected rural areas more than cities. Today, the war is depicted as a racial conflict between the majority black population and the ruling minority whites. It was not as simple as that. 78% of the “white” army was black, rising to 82% by the end of the seven-year conflict. There was also a great deal of tension between the two main tribes, which complicated everything.

Stella Coulson thought that everything could be resolved “if only we could sit down with the terrorists over a cup of tea and discuss our differences”!

I’ve heard similar comments on both sides of the Atlantic about ISIS.

Compromise is very much a part of the Anglo-Saxon mindset and heritage. It’s deeply ingrained in our culture and our national psyche.

Another term for it is “appeasement.”

In 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain flew to Munich for discussions with Hitler and returned promising “peace in our time.” A year later, Britain and Germany were at war. All Chamberlain had achieved was a few months of peace by throwing Czechoslovakia to the German wolves.   I do not know whether tea was on the table during his discussions with Hitler but the outcome showed clearly the pointlessness of discussions with people who are clearly unreasonable. They want what they want and won’t stop until they get it!

To a certain extent, I can understand Chamberlain’s thinking.   And even Stella Coulson’s.   When you want peace, it’s hard to imagine that others don’t. But they really don’t! There are plenty of lessons from history that illustrate this.

Although Anglo-Saxons may always be ready to compromise, terrorists will not stop until they get everything they want. They are driven by a desire for power and money. Religious extremism may be the driving force, or rather an excuse. Power and wealth are the main objectives.

And that’s what ISIS is all about – religious extremism, power and wealth.   They established a Caliphate a few weeks ago, an area as big as Great Britain, and now want to see it expand until it encompasses the entire Muslim world. Long before that goal is realized, they will pose a serious threat to the West.   It can be argued they already do.

When Stella Coulson’s dream was realized and the Rhodesian government did sit down with the terrorist leaders, it led to the end of Rhodesia and an almost total white flight.

Meanwhile, appeasement is alive and going strong in western countries, where there are plenty of Stella Coulsons.

Last Saturday, the National Cathedral in Washington DC, the closest equivalent to England’s Westminster Abbey, hosted a Muslim service.   One female member of the church protested, pointing to a statue of Christ on the cross, reminding everybody that salvation is only possible through Him (Acts 4:12) and that a Muslim worship service in the cathedral desecrated the historic church. She was promptly removed.

Sadly, the parents of Peter Kassig, the latest hostage beheaded by ISIS, will be holding a combined Christian-Jewish-Muslim funeral service.

We are likely to see a bad case of appeasement when discussions with Iran end this month. Meanwhile, Washington is pressuring Israel to appease the Palestinians over their demands, which will seriously weaken the Jewish nation. President Obama’s executive order on immigration also shows an attitude of appeasement There’s an estimated 11 million illegal aliens. Every single one has broken the law. The solution? Give half of them the right to stay here legally.   This will only mean more people entering the country illegally, hoping for a similar future amnesty. Why have laws at all?

When a future Edward Gibbon writes a monumental definitive tome on the “Decline and Fall of the Anglo-Saxon Empire,” he or she will marvel at how quickly Islam gained a foothold in our countries, following September 11^th.   You would think 9/11 would have been a wake-up call. Instead, we’ve seen tens of thousands convert to Islam and hundreds enthusiastically volunteer to fight with ISIS.   It is also remarkable that the first newly elected president after 9-11 had definite Muslim connections, through his father and the school he attended in Indonesia.

This is a classic example of what the Prophet Isaiah was talking about in Isaiah 30:10 “And (say) to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us right things; Speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits.”

Appeasement anyone?

WESTERN EDUCATION IS FORBIDDEN

 

“Western education is forbidden.” Roughly translated that’s the meaning of Boko Haram, words in the Hausa language, which refer to the Nigerian Islamist terror group.

A few months ago, the group kidnapped over 200 teenage girls from one school. They have not been seen since. A leader of the group stated last week that the girls have all been married off. ISIS was selling kidnapped women in Iraq for $1,000 each. It seems likely Boko Haram gave the girls away to terrorists fighting in their group.

Yesterday came news that 46 teenage boys have been killed in another school in Nigeria by Boko Haram.

The number 46 reminded me of a community where we once lived, the city of Bath, in Michigan, just outside of Lansing.

In the spring of 1927 the local school was blown up and 46 people, mostly youngsters at the school, eventually died as a result of that day’s carnage. It remained the worst terrorist attack in US history until Oklahoma City in April 1995, which also claimed many young lives in a daycare facility.

On a website devoted to the Bath disaster are the following introductory words:

“On a cool Spring morning in May of 1927 the Treasurer of the Bath, Michigan, Consolidated School District fire/dynamite bombed his home and farm and collapsed the North half of the school building (having intended to destroy all of it). Within the hour he had committed additional murders in the middle of the village by the suicidal detonation of shrapnel-shrouded explosives that he had packed into his vehicle. Over the following year a total of 46 people would be dead as a result of that day’s mayhem and many, many more would be counted among the injured & maimed. After 86 years this incident still ranks as the worst instance of school violence in U.S. history.”

Like Oklahoma City, this particular incident was an example of homegrown terrorism.

We lived in Bath when 9/11 happened, the worst terror attack in American history. So far. I fear others lie ahead that will be worse in terms of numbers of deaths. 9/11 was perpetrated by Islamist terrorists who hated the West. ISIS is made up of people who feel the same way. Boko Haram reflects a great deal of anger directed at Western education.

Hatred of the West is not going away.

Will ISIS or Boko Haram be defeated? Not likely. Certainly not in the short-term.

Nigeria’s police and military are a joke. That is true right across West Africa. The police are less a force to capture criminals, than people who extort money out of innocent members of the public. The military in most countries is not well disciplined and will run away when confronted by armed insurgents, such as Boko Haram.

Terrorism threatens all of us, even children in school. It’s the scourge of the age. Although the vast majority of terror attacks are perpetrated by Islamists, adherents of all religions are capable of extremely violent acts.

These awful acts should inspire Christians to pray ‘Thy Kingdom Come” (Matt 6:10). Only when Jesus Christ returns and it’s clear which religion really is the truth will terrorism come to an end.