Update 512

On October 8, 2011, is the Day of Atonement. Norbert Link will give the sermon, titled, “Hope for the World.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

NOTE:

This will be the last Update for the next three weeks, due to the Church of God’s annual celebration of the Feast Of Tabernacles. Services during the Feast will be broadcast live over the Internet, at www.cognetservices.org. Speakers and times are posted as well. To listen in, just click on Connect to Live Stream.

The next Update will be published for the week ending October 28, 2011.

We have the opportunity to meet once a week and now with the upcoming God-ordained Feast of Tabernacles, we will have the chance to up the ante.  Including the Last Great Day we will be meeting eight days in a row which will give us the occasion to be with like-minded people.

Will we be unified?  Will we all be on the same page spiritually?  If we all have the Holy Spirit of God, then we will be — case closed.

There is ONLY “one body and one Spirit” because there is only “one God and Father of all” (Ephesians 4:4-6).  So if we are of this body and have the same Spirit, then we will all be on the same wavelength.  We will be unified in our approach towards Christianity and one another.  We will all have a similar spiritual personality that will be exemplified in our daily actions and interactions.

In His last prayer before being wrongfully taken into custody, Jesus asked four times on our behalf:

• “…that they may be one as We are,”
• “…that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You,
• “that they also may be one in Us,
• “…that they may be one just as We are one” (John 17:11, 21-22).

For Him to ask this many times when He knew that His physical life was near its end, shows us just how important this was and is.  Do we assign it all due weight today?

As we fellowship with one another, realize that by the Power of God working in and through us, we can be a part of the solution… a part of the answer of this prayer of Jesus Christ.

We report about the controversial targeted killing of U.S. citizens by U.S. drone strikes and the legal and constitutional questions that such actions raise; the U.S. change in its stance towards the status of Jerusalem, as well as Germany’s pressure on Israel to stop any settlement activities in the city; the ongoing troubles in the Middle East; Germany’s 21st anniversary celebration of its reunification; Angela Merkel’s clear victory in the German Parliament and her praise from international allies, supporting her fight for the euro and a united Europe; and we conclude with a frightening and at the same time revealing article on the literal worship of Vladimir Putin.

The Controversial Killing of al-Awlaki

The Los Angeles Times wrote on September 30:

“The killing of two Americans by a U.S. drone strike in Yemen has reignited a debate about whether targeting U.S. citizens — even terrorists — is legal under the rules of war or constitutes an extrajudicial execution that ignores their rights. The Obama administration contends that U.S.-born radical cleric Anwar Awlaki was a legitimate target because he played an ‘operational’ role in Al Qaeda, alleging that, among other plots, he directed a 2009 Christmas Day plan to blow up a Detroit-bound jetliner… But some human rights advocates and legal scholars said the administration had never produced evidence to back up that claim.

“They said the 40-year-old cleric was an influential recruiter and motivator, but there was little evidence to directly link him to belligerent operations against the United States. The attack also killed Samir Khan, 25, a U.S. citizen and anti-American propagandist who ran an Al Qaeda-linked website that called for attacks on the United States. Diane Marie Amann, a University of Georgia law professor who has monitored terrorism trials for the National Institute of Military Justice, said the debate over whether Awlaki’s killing was legal hinges on whether the war against Al Qaeda is an armed conflict or an international police action.

“‘Viewed through the lens of ordinary criminal justice, for the government to kill a suspect rather than put him on trial is summary execution, clearly forbidden by U.S. and international law alike,’ Amann said. ‘Viewed through the lens of armed conflict, the result is different, however: The laws of war permit a state to kill its enemies.’ An array of international law experts defended the legality of the airstrike, illustrating the conflicting interpretations of law in the fight against terrorism.”

Haaretz wrote on September 30:

“The killing of al-Awlaki, who was born in the United States, may mark the first time that a U.S. Commander in Chief has given a public order to the country’s security forces to premeditatedly kill one of its own citizens, without access to a trial or due process under American law.”

The Wall Street Journal added on September 30:

“The case of Anwar al-Awlaki and his extrajudicial killing poses a legal and moral quandary for the U.S.: Can a country that so closely guards the presumption of innocence take a citizen’s life without so much as a court order?”

It is indeed a frightening development, when American citizens can be singled out for assassination without a fair trial, even though no charges had been filed against them and no evidence had been presented that they posed an immediate danger to the country. When our political leaders are given such unrestricted powers, it is easily foreseeable how they might be abused. How far may a future corrupt leader go to misuse such unlimited authority? We should never think something like this could not happen in a civilized country. One should only remember the horrors inflicted on millions of innocent people, when Adolph Hitler received and/or usurped such absolute authority. Not too many expected such developments at the time when he was elected.

Ron Paul Speaks of Wrongful Assassination

In an additional article, the Los Angeles Times wrote on September 30:

“Ron Paul, the Texas congressman who is seeking the GOP presidential nomination, on Friday criticized the Obama administration’s action in killing Anwar Awlaki… Paul was the strongest critic on the Republican side in condemning the attack, which was praised by other candidates… Paul told reporters that Americans need to think about such actions because Awlaki was born in the United States and was entitled to the same rights as all U.S. citizens.

“‘No, I don’t think that’s a good way to deal with our problems,’ Paul said in a videotape of the questioning by reporters. Awlaki ‘was never tried or charged for any crimes. No one knows if he killed anybody. We know he might have been associated with the “underwear bomber.” But if the American people accept this blindly and casually that we now have an accepted practice of the president assassinating people who he thinks are bad guys. I think it’s sad… To start assassinating American citizens without charges, we should think very seriously about this.’

“[Former New Mexico Gov. Gary] Johnson made the same points as Paul, warning that killing an American citizen without due process set a dangerous precedent despite the need for the United States to remain vigilant against terrorism… other parts of the Republican Party have advocated a foreign policy based on a more robust U.S. role abroad. Perry… praised the attack… Mitt Romney also praised the Obama administration…

“Ironically, the libertarian opposition to the attack was similar to the argument by the [ACLU] in its disapproval. ‘The targeted killing program violates both U.S. and international law,’ ACLU deputy legal director Jameel Jaffer said in a prepared statement. ‘As we’ve seen today, this is a program under which American citizens far from any battlefield can be executed by their own government without judicial process, and on the basis of standards and evidence that are kept secret not just from the public but from the courts. The government’s authority to use lethal force against its own citizens should be limited to circumstances in which the threat to life is concrete, specific and imminent. It is a mistake to invest the president – any president – with the unreviewable power to kill any American whom he deems to present a threat to the country,’ he stated.”

The warnings should not be ignored, no matter who is raising them.

Los Angeles Times Raises Concern

In a follow-up article, the Los Angeles Times wrote on October 2:

“Amid all the self-congratulation over the killing of Anwar Awlaki and the confident assertion that the world is a better place as a result, it is worth remembering that the secret, unilateral, targeted assassination of a U.S. citizen far from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan is hardly something to celebrate.

“If Awlaki was in fact the architect of terrorism attacks inside the United States, as officials maintain he was, then perhaps his demise is to be welcomed. But we don’t really know, do we? There was no transparent, legal, reviewable process by which he was placed on the list of those targeted for killing by the U.S. government. There was no judicial procedure, nor any public airing of the charges against him. He had no opportunity to respond to specific allegations.

“Even in wartime, the killing of a U.S. citizen — or anyone else — who poses no immediate danger is morally obnoxious. It also is impossible to harmonize with the U.S. Constitution. The 5th Amendment says that no citizen should be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law. If Awlaki had been arrested in America, rather than assassinated in Yemen, he would have had an incontestable right to a trial…

“We understand the government’s conundrum. In this dangerous new world, our enemies don’t wear uniforms, threats cross national borders, and an order given abroad can quickly lead to devastation at home. The U.S. has struggled for a decade with how to safeguard people without crossing moral lines or violating individual rights.

“But if the United States is going to continue down the troubling road of state-sponsored assassination, the government should, at the very least, provide a clear understanding of the criteria used to decide who should be placed on the target list. And there must be some form of judicial review of those decisions; why should a judge’s approval be required to place a wiretap on a suspected terrorist but not to kill him? Since Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. has detained many alleged terrorists, only for courts to discover that the evidence against them was unreliable or wrong…”

When even an Obama-friendly paper such as the LAT raises legal concerns, it is high time to wake up.

Secret Panel Can Put Americans on “Kill List”

Reuters reported on October 5:

“American militants like Anwar al-Awlaki are placed on a kill or capture list by a secretive panel of senior government officials, which then informs the president of its decisions, according to officials. There is no public record of the operations or decisions of the panel, which is a subset of the White House’s National Security Council, several current and former officials said. Neither is there any law establishing its existence or setting out the rules by which it is supposed to operate.

“The panel was behind the decision to add Awlaki, a U.S.-born militant preacher with alleged al Qaeda connections, to the target list. He was killed by a CIA drone strike in Yemen late last month. The role of the president in ordering or ratifying a decision to target a citizen is fuzzy…

“The White House is portraying the killing of Awlaki as a demonstration of President Barack Obama’s toughness toward militants who threaten the United States. But the process that led to Awlaki’s killing has drawn fierce criticism from both the political left and right. In an ironic turn, Obama, who ran for president denouncing predecessor George W. Bush’s expansive use of executive power in his ‘war on terrorism,’ is being attacked in some quarters for using similar tactics. They include secret legal justifications and undisclosed intelligence assessments.

“Liberals criticized the drone attack on an American citizen as extra-judicial murder. Conservatives criticized Obama for refusing to release a Justice Department legal opinion that reportedly justified killing Awlaki. They accuse Obama of hypocrisy, noting his administration insisted on publishing Bush-era administration legal memos justifying the use of interrogation techniques many equate with torture, but refused to make public its rationale for killing a citizen without due process…”

Muslims Concerned

USA Today wrote on October 1:

“Muslim groups around the world condemned al-Awlaki’s violent message but questioned the military strike… Mosque leaders ‘are concerned that the alleged drone attack sends the wrong message to law-abiding people around the world’…  the statement said.

“The Ramadhan Foundation, a British Muslim group, suggested al-Awlaki should have been tried in an international court. ‘One of the greatest values of our countries is that every human being is entitled to a free and fair trial,’ said Mohammed Shafiq, who leads the Manchester-based group. ‘Terrorists and extremists are no different.’ The U.S. is disregarding human rights when it confronts terrorism, Shafiq said.

“‘I am disappointed that the United States government has increased this sort of extra-judicial killing without referring to the legal system,’ he said. ‘These drone attacks have no legal justification in international law and have killed thousands of innocent people, including children.’ It is ‘time for the Obama administration to restore justice and the rule of law,’ he said.”

Even though many Muslims did not approve of al-Awlaki’s activities, their reaction shows that the US action is not popular among many of them. The reason is clear: If controversial actions can be implemented against an unpopular individual such as al-Awlaki, who is to say who will be next on the target list?

Most Americans Don’t Care

BBC news wrote on September 30:

“… some in the US have criticised the administration’s targeted killing of a US citizen abroad, arguing he should have been arrested and put on trial. However… despite the fact Awlaki appears to have been targeted for his words rather than actions, very few Americans are likely to be concerned about any infringement of his rights.”

Sadly, many Americans don’t seem to care about anything these days except as to how to put food on the table. According to USA Today, less than one percent care about America’s “war against terrorism.” However, to ignore and even accept by default potentially illegal and unconstitutional actions is a very dangerous trend.

America’s Foolish Foreign Policy

Reuters reported on October 2:

“U.S. officials have met members of the Muslim Brotherhood’s political party, a U.S. diplomat said, after Washington announced it would have direct contacts with Egypt’s biggest Islamist group whose role has grown since U.S. ally Hosni Mubarak was ousted… The Brotherhood is one of Egypt’s most popular and organized groups, with a broad grassroots network built up partly through social work even in Mubarak’s era. The contacts may unsettle Israel and its U.S. backers.

“The Brotherhood [officially] renounced violence as a means to achieve political change in Egypt years ago. But groups like Hamas, which have not disavowed violence, look to the Brotherhood as a spiritual guide… The diplomat said contacts with the Brotherhood were part of [a] bid to understand Egypt better and explain U.S. policies.”

Fast and Furious

The Weekly Standard wrote on October 4:

“The Fast and Furious scandal, in which the Justice Department knowingly gave Mexican criminal gangs thousands of guns, just keeps escalating. The latest development centers around whether or not Attorney General Eric Holder lied to Congress about having knowledge of the controversial gun trafficking operation. Recently released documents say Holder was briefed about the operation long before he told the Judiciary Committee he was first aware of what was going on. (Holder now claims he misunderstood the question was being asked.)

“What’s more, CBS News investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson — who’s been covering the scandal from the beginning — says in an interview… that the White House and Justice Department have taken to screaming at her for reporting on the story… Finally, Attkisson notes that the White House is claiming that a thorough investigation of the scandal is unwarranted…”

Angry Protests Against Bank of America

Mail On Line wrote on October 1:

Police have arrested two dozen protesters for trespassing during a demonstration against Bank of America’s foreclosure practices at the banking giant’s offices in downtown Boston… Organizers say about 3,000 people joined the protest…

“The Bank of America website crashed yesterday after being overwhelmed by angry customers following the decision to charge them to use $5 a month if they use their debit cards. The site went down for hours in the morning and hours later service was still intermittent. The breakdown came less than 24 hours after the bank revealed it will roll out the fee early next year…

“Though the bank… will use the revenue to help increase revenue, the move is seen as biased against less wealthy clients as they are more likely to use a debit card because they are often denied credit.”

We are informed that the $5 monthly fee will apply to purchases with debit card—not for using it at a teller to withdraw money. Also, the bank may not begin charging the fee in all states of the USA next year, but may begin with certain (undisclosed) states first.

Hillary Clinton Changes Position on Israel

The New York Sun wrote on September 27:

“Secretary of State Clinton, in a sharp departure from her stance when she was a senator, is warning that any American action, even symbolically, toward recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel must be avoided for the reason that it would jeopardize the peace process. Her warnings were issued in a brief she has just filed with the Supreme Court — in which she is arguing that a law she voted for when she was Senator is unconstitutional because it could require the U.S. government to give to an American citizen born [in] Jerusalem papers showing the birthplace as Israel…

“Mrs. Clinton’s brief alleges that any American action that ‘symbolically or concretely’ signals it recognizes Jerusalem being in Israel would ‘critically compromise the ability of the United States to work with Israelis, Palestinians and others in the region to further the peace process.’ The brief contends that American policy is to remain neutral over all sovereignty issues, leaving them to negotiations, and that the U.S. thus ‘does not recognize Palestinian claims to current sovereignty’ in the West Bank or Gaza either…

“If the Obama administration believes in the neutrality principle it is asserting in the Supreme Court — and that the mere mention of ‘Jerusalem, Israel’ on its website, or putting ‘Israel’ on an individual’s passport, would violate that principle – the question will arise as to whether it will also scrub… the references to the ‘Palestinian’ territories. If it does not treat both situations the same, the Supreme Court may legitimately question whether the Clinton brief is asserting the true reason for the administration’s adamant opposition to the designation of ‘Israel’ [in connection with Jerusalem].”

Biblical prophecy indicates that the USA and Israel will be at odds in the future. Conduct such as the one described above might contribute to such development.

“Time Is Short”

Newsmax reported on October 2:

“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns that ‘time is short’ before Iran obtains nuclear weapons and poses a direct threat to Israel and the rest of the world. ‘Iran poses certainly a great danger to Israel, but it represents an enormous danger to the Middle East and to the world,’ Netanyahu said to PBS’s Charlie Rose, during a recent visit to New York to speak at the United Nations… ‘Iran supplies terrorists with rockets and many other things. It would give [terrorists] a nuclear umbrella or worse, actually give them nuclear weapons’…

“Pointing to steps Iran has already taken against Israel, Netanyahu said, ‘We vacated [Gaza] and Iran essentially walked in with its Hamas proxy, and they’re packing a lot of missiles. We walked out of Lebanon, and Iran walked in with its Hezbollah proxy, and they fired thousands of rockets into the north of Israel. The last thing we want is to walk away from the West Bank or pieces of the West Bank and have Iran come in and place thousands of rockets on Tel Aviv.’

“But Netanyahu still has hope that stricter international sanctions against Iran could bring down the Islamic Republic. ‘I think this regime is a lot weaker than people think,’ he said… ‘I don’t believe that the Iranian people will coalesce around a regime it detests… I think they’ll applaud this pressure, because they want to be relieved from this medieval regime, this violent theocracy that is oppressing them and threatening everyone else.’”

However, with this last pronouncement about the desires of the Iranian people, Netanyahu might be dead wrong. Also, note the next article.

Ganging Up Against Israel

Haaretz wrote on September 30:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday and expressed anger over the approval of 1,100 housing units in… Jerusalem. The Chancellor’s office said Merkel told Netanyahu that the new housing permits ‘raise doubts over the Israeli government’s readiness to begin serious negotiation with the Palestinians.’

“Over the past two weeks Merkel, along with U.S. President Barack Obama, worked to issue a new Quartet declaration calling on the sides to return to the negotiating table as soon as possible. ‘The Quartet’s announcement made it clear that the sides must avoid taking provocative steps,’ Merkel told Netanyahu. ‘I cannot understand how only a few days after the Quartet’s announcement there is news of the approval of 1,100 new housing units.’ Merkel added that ‘the government of Israel must now clear the doubts over its seriousness. It is your responsibility…’

“On Tuesday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas spoke with Merkel and said he understood that the Quartet was calling for negotiations based on the 1967 borders and opposed unilateral moves, meaning construction in the settlements should stop.”

It should be clear from this article what the Quartet is really up to. Note the next article.

All Land Belongs to Palestinians

Haaretz wrote on October 1:

“Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has assailed a two state solution for Israel and the Palestinians, saying the Palestinian bid for statehood at the United Nations is doomed to fail… The Palestinians should not limit themselves to seeking a country based on the pre-1967 borders, Khameini said, because ‘all land belongs to Palestinians’… Khamenei also called Israel a ‘cancerous tumor’… Last year, Khamenei told a top Palestinian militant leader that Western support of Israel was ineffective, because Israel’s obliteration was imminent according to the will of God.”

The Vatican’s New Policy Towards Islam

Israel News reported on October 2:

“It has been five years since gave his controversial lectio about Islam at the German University of Regensburg. On September 12th, 2006, Joseph Ratzinger claimed that the god of the Muslims is both transcendental and unreasonable and he severely condemned jihad and the use of violence in the name of Koran. It was the only public event in which a Pope told the truth about some aspects of Islamic religion… It was… a vigorous attack against certain aspects of Islamic fanaticism.

“The reaction to the Pope’s speech was a familiar spectacle: Threats, riots, and violence. From the religious leaders in Muslim majority countries to the New York Times, all demanded the Pope’s apologies. In the Palestinian areas, churches were attacked and Christians targeted. In the Somali capital, Mogadishu, an Italian nun was executed. In Iraq, Amer Iskander, a Syrian Orthodox priest, was beheaded and his arms mutilated… The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood pledged ‘reactions worst of those against the Danish cartoons’… Under pressure, and aiming to stop any further violence, the Pope apologized.

“Benedict XVI recently visited again his native Germany, but this time with a different agenda. Five years later, the Vatican adopted a pro-Islam course and has capitulated to fundamentalists… Dialogue with Iran’s mullahs is pivotal in the new Vatican agenda… Last month, the Vatican published a letter… , addressing… ‘Dear Muslim friends.’ In the letter, [the Vatican] asked for Islamic help to form an alliance against atheism…

“The State of Israel is easily expendable in the new pro-Islam policy. In January 2009, thousands of Muslims marched in front of Milan’s Duomo to protest against Operation Cast Lead in Gaza. They burned Israeli flags and chanted anti-Jewish slogans. Joaquin Navarro-Valls, John Paul II’s spokesman for 22 years, defended the ‘freedom of expression’ of the Muslims who burned the Star of David. Months later, Pope Benedict visited Bethlehem… Benedict delivered a message of solidarity to the 1.4 million Palestinians isolated in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. He said nothing of the suffering of Gaza’s 3,000 Christians since Hamas took over that territory in 2007.  Benedict could have decried the bombings, shootings and other Islamist attacks against Gaza Christian establishments, the brutal murder of the only Bible-store owner of Gaza, or the regular intimidation and persecution of Christians there.

“A few weeks later… Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [gave] a speech [before the UN] condemning Israel as ‘totally racist’ and referred to the Holocaust as an ‘ambiguous and dubious question.’ When Ahmadinejad began to speak against the Jews, all European Union delegates left the conference room. The Vatican delegation didn’t say a word.
 
“To understand the new Vatican’s approach toward Islam, one should also read what happened in the historical synod on the Middle East hosted by the Pope last autumn. Nothing was said about Islamist persecution of Christians; indeed, every effort was made to show the Catholic Church’s sympathy to Muslim grievances, especially against ‘Zionism’ – a word evoked as a symbol of evil…

“The very roots of the Christian heritage in the Middle East are being extirpated. When last winter Christians were killed in Egypt, Cardinal Tauran and the Vatican foreign office requested to ‘avoid anger’ and downplayed the Islamist role in the butchering. In the summer of 2010, Bishop Luigi Padovese, Vatican vicar for Anatolia and president of the Catholic Episcopal conference of Turkey, was slaughtered by Islamic fanatics in Iskenderun on the eve of the Pope’s trip to Cyprus. Vatican diplomacy did its part to convince the Pope to immediately and preemptively rule out the idea that this was a ‘political or religious’ murder.

“Elsewhere, the number of Christians in Turkey declined from two million to 85,000; in Syria, from half the population they have been reduced to 4%; in Jordan, from 18% to 2%; nearly two-thirds of the 500,000 Christians in Baghdad have fled or been killed; in Lebanon, Christians have dwindled to a sectarian rump, menaced by surging Shiite and Sunni populations, and in Saudi Arabia Christians have been beaten or tortured by religious police. It’s an ethnic cleansing of monumental proportions that makes it clear why the Vatican’s submission to political Islam, along with its religious anti-Israel stance, will be remembered as one of the greatest moral failings of the 21st Century.”

The Iranian Murderous and Propagandistic Dictatorship

Fox News reported on October 1:

“Iran state media put out a stunning report Saturday claiming that imprisoned Christian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani is facing the death sentence for rape and extortion, not for apostasy and refusing to renounce his religion… [as] part of a larger Iranian media push to counter reports that Nadarkhani was facing execution for refusing to recant his Christian faith… In a ruling from the Iranian Supreme Court, translated into English by the ACLJ, Nadarkhani was sentenced to execution by hanging for, ‘turning his back on Islam’ and ‘converting Muslims to Christianity.’”

“The ruling also alleges that he also participated in Christian worship by holding home church services and baptizing himself and others, effectively breaking Islamic Law. FoxNews.com obtained a copy of the ruling and there is not a single mention of rape or extortion allegations…”

On October 3, Fox News added:

“Imprisoned Iranian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, originally sentenced to death for apostasy and refusing to renounce Christianity, is now in even greater danger of being put to death in light of reports in state-run media of other charges, including being a Zionist and a threat to national security. ‘The charge of being a Zionist and thus a traitor is among the most serious accusations that can be made in Iran,’ said Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the American Center for Law and Justice, or ACLJ.”

This Hitler-like regime will do everything in its power to advance its own interests, but the world seems to be, by and large, indifferent to the fundamental threat that this country is posing.  Some may utter meaningless and inconsequential “concern”—such as the US government did this week—while other countries and companies still cooperate with it. However, the same powers which inspired Hitler might very well be at work now in Iran. As a famous German proverb says: “If you want to eat with the devil, you must have a long spoon.”

Rockets Missing in Libya

Der Stern Online reported on October 2 that Libya’s new (transitory) government admitted that over 5,000 rockets are missing, and that nobody knows where they are. The magazine stated that these rockets are used to defend against attacking airplanes, but that they can also be used, of course, to shoot down civilian passenger planes.

This is indeed a potential nightmare scenario…

Soon–Civil War in Syria?

The New York Times wrote on October 1:

“The semblance of a civil war has erupted in Homs, Syria’s third-largest city, where armed protesters now call themselves revolutionaries, gun battles erupt as often as every few hours, security forces and opponents carry out assassinations, and rifles costing as much as $2,000 apiece flood the city from abroad, residents say… [They] speak of a decisive shift in past weeks, as a largely peaceful uprising gives way to a grinding struggle that has made Homs violent, fearful and determined.

“Analysts caution that the strife in Homs is still specific to the city itself, and many in the opposition reject violence because they fear it will serve as a pretext for the government’s brutal crackdown. But in the targeted killings, the rival security checkpoints and the hardening of sectarian sentiments, the city offers a dark vision that could foretell the future of Syria’s uprising as both the government and the opposition ready themselves for a protracted struggle over the endurance of a four-decade dictatorship…

“Homs is a microcosm of Syria, with a Sunni Muslim majority and minorities of Christians and Alawites, a heterodox Muslim sect from which President Bashar al-Assad draws much of his leadership.

“Six months of protests and crackdown here have frayed ties among those communities, forging the conditions for urban strife… Tension has grown so dire that members of one sect are reluctant to travel to neighborhoods populated by other sects. Men in some parts of the city openly carry weapons.

“Perhaps the most dramatic facet of the struggle is a series of assassinations this past week that have left nearly a dozen professors, doctors and informers dead in a paroxysm of violence that echoes the sectarian vendettas still besetting Iraq…

“Near the Lebanese border — where residents say weapons flow across a porous border from Turkey, Saudi Arabia and even Qatar — Homs strikes an odd posture. Many of its Sunni residents are at once fearful and proud, empowered by their opposition to dictatorship. Many Alawites are terrified; they are often the victims of the most vulgar stereotypes and, in popular conversation, uniformly associated with the leadership.

“In Alawite villages, only government television is watched. To do so in Sunni neighborhoods amounts to treason. There, Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya are the stations of choice…”

When will man ever learn that “violent uprisings” are tantamount to rebellion in God’s eyes, and they will never produce lasting peace? Such true peace will only come when Jesus Christ returns, and the heart of man will be changed…

Will Syria Set the World on Fire?

WorldNetDaily wrote on October 4:

“NATO troops are training in Turkey for a Turkish-led NATO invasion of Syria… Separately… Russia has been inspecting Syrian forces and has been advising Syria about possible Syrian military responses should NATO attack the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad… The report comes as Assad reportedly warned yesterday he will set the Middle East on fire if NATO forces attack his country. ‘If a crazy measure is taken against Damascus, I will need not more than six hours to transfer hundreds of rockets and missiles to the Golan Heights to fire them at Tel Aviv,’ Assad reportedly said, according to Iran’s state-run Fars news agency.

“Assad made the comments in a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmad Davutoglu, reported Fars… Assad also reiterated that Damascus will call on Hezbollah in Lebanon to launch an intensive rocket and missile attack on Israel, reported Fars. ‘All these events will happen in three hours, but in the second three hours, Iran will attack the U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf and the U.S. and European interests will be targeted simultaneously,’ Assad was quoted as saying. While Assad’s remarks could not be immediately verified, Iran, which runs Fars, is a close partner to the Damascus government.”

At the same time, the UN Security Council was not even able to pass a watered-down U.S.- and European-backed draft resolution on Tuesday, condemning Syria for its brutal crackdown on protesters, due to a double veto from Russia and China.

Clear Victory for Merkel

The Local wrote on September 30:

“In a move which was largely a formality, Bundesrat MPs who represent Germany’s 16 states approved the bill with no formal ballot, a day after it overwhelmingly won the backing of parliament’s lower house. During Friday’s debate in a Bundesrat extraordinary session, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble again stressed the urgent need to protect the eurozone…

“The vote before the Bundestag on expanding the €440 billion ($599 billion) bailout fund had also been seen as a crucial test of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s authority amid fears of a major backbench rebellion. However, she secured an overwhelming majority of her own deputies to back the move. Austria became the 14th eurozone state Friday to approve the new powers for the European Financial Stability Facility.”

Bild Online added that Merkel received much praise from the international press. Denmark’s Information wrote that the chancellor’s European spirit places her in the company of Germany’s great European chancellors Konrad Adenauer, Willy Brandt, Helmut Schmidt and Helmut Kohl. France’s Le Figaro wrote that one must admire the courage of Angela Merkel, and that the vote in the German Parliament reflects a personal victory for her. Switzerland’s “Tagesanzeiger” wrote that in light of the vote of the German Parliament, “Germany is better and more European than her reputation.”

The German government, presently under Angela Merkel, will continue to fight for the survival of the euro and the strengthening of the Eurozone, and other European countries will follow.

Germany Celebrates 21st Anniversary of Reunification

Deutsche Welle reported on October 3:

“Germany marked its 21st reunification anniversary in the former capital of Bonn. It was a significant showcase of unity against a backdrop of European disarray… As tens of thousands of visitors descended on sun-drenched Bonn to enjoy the public holiday, the country’s political elite gathered for the formal festivities in the old parliament building for an ecumenical religious service and a speech by Andreas Vosskuhle, the president of the Federal Constitutional Court…

“The justice said that Germany’s identity has been ‘closely linked from the beginning with the commitment to Europe,’ and he lauded the East German in particular for uniting Germany… Germany, as the European Union’s biggest economy, is a key player in trying to stem the EU debt crisis, but the struggle to rescue Europe’s debt-ridden countries is extremely unpopular in Germany.”

Even though Germans may complain, the country will continue to be the leader of the EU and finally, a united Europe, but it is Great Britain which won’t apparently be a part of it. Notice the next article.

Britain on Their Way Out…?

Mail On Line reported on October 2:

“A historic vote on growing demands for Britain to leave the European Union will be held in the Commons before Christmas. MPs will debate whether the Government should give voters a chance to decide the issue once and for all in a referendum… If MPs vote in favour of a referendum, the result would not be binding on the Government.

“But, combined with growing public opposition to the increasing power of the EU, it would put enormous pressure on David Cameron to let the people decide the country’s European fate. The Commons vote has been forced on MPs – and a reluctant Prime Minister – by public demand after the crisis in the eurozone, with desperate attempts to prop up the Greek economy, led to a surge in anti-Brussels feeling…

“In recent opinion polls, when asked directly, nearly half of [the] people want Britain to come out of the EU, with about a third in favour of staying in. But when the question was rephrased to give the choice of returning to a Seventies-style trade association, a clear majority chose that option…

“Since Britain joined the Common Market, there have been a series of Commons votes on whether there should be referendums on EU treaties such as Maastricht and Lisbon – although none on whether we should remain in the EU. All have been defeated, largely due to Government’s ordering MPs to vote them down.”

Ultimately, Britain will leave the EU, and it is most certainly not to be expected that Britain will ever join the Eurozone.

Europe Replaces the USA

Reuters reported on September 30:

“The powering down of Fermilab’s Tevatron particle accelerator on Friday marked the end of a quarter-century of U.S. dominance in high-energy particle physics. The Tevatron, which accelerates and collides protons and antiprotons in a four-mile-long underground ring, has been replaced by the Large Hadron Collider under the French-Swiss border, which began operating in March 2010…

“Europe has outspent the United States by a factor of three… lack of funding was the final blow for the Tevatron after the U.S. Department of Energy decided not to spend the $35 million needed to extend the Tevatron’s operation through 2014…

“‘We are whores to the machines. We will go to wherever the machines are to do our science,’ said Rob Roser, co-spokesman for CDF, one of the two detectors that used the Tevatron. ‘I personally will move to Europe to work on the next machine…’”

Greece’s Problems—but “Europe Can Afford It”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 4:

“The good news is that Greece will remain solvent until mid-November, despite the decision reached on Monday evening by euro-zone finance ministers meeting in Luxembourg to delay payment of the next tranche from the €110 bailout fund put together in 2010…

“The bad news, though, is that… European stock markets plunged for the second day in a row on Tuesday amid growing concerns that avoiding insolvency may no longer be possible for Greece…

“Jean-Claude Juncker, who heads up meetings of euro-zone finance ministers,… said on Tuesday that Greece… would remain solvent until November without the payment. ‘Everything will be done to avoid (insolvency) and it will be avoided,’ Juncker told news agency AP…

“With pressure increasing on both Athens and the euro-zone leaders to stabilize the crisis, civil unrest continued to swell in Greece, with protestors blocking off federal ministries across the capital on Tuesday morning in protest of austerity measures…

“Center-right daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘… Only two options are plausible. Greece could choose what amounts to an orderly insolvency… [or] Greece’s exit from the currency union and a debt haircut…’

“The left-leaning Berliner Zeitung writes: ‘No, the Greeks should not fall… the cultural revolution… has yet to begin, and can only be brought about by the Greeks. They must, however, be empowered to take action on their own. And this is not possible within the euro zone. Remaining under its support means a euro guardianship with protectorate-like conditions…’

“Left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘Even as parliamentarians work on the second rescue package, Athens’ new deficits show that soon a third rescue package will be necessary… Actually an insolvency… could be agreeable, because the Greeks will never be able to fully pay back their loans. Still insolvency is no solution, because only past loans will be settled. The Greeks, however, continue piling up new debts, as the current budget deficit shows. Thus Greece will continue to need help for a long time. But consolation can still be found: Europe can afford it. After all, Greece only has 11 million residents — and an economic output equivalent to the German state of Hesse.’”

Whether Greece will indeed leave the Eurozone is far from certain…

Putin Dreams of Eurasian Union

Reuters reported on October 3:

“Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said he wants to bring ex-Soviet states into a ‘Eurasian Union’ in an article which outlined his first foreign policy initiative as he prepares to return to the Kremlin as the country’s next president. Putin said the new union would build on an existing Customs Union with Belarus and Kazakhstan which from next year will remove all barriers to trade, capital and labor movement between the three countries.

“‘We are not going to stop there and are setting an ambitious goal — to achieve an even higher integration level in the Eurasian Union,’ Putin wrote in an article which will be published in Izvestia newspaper on October 4… Putin said he saw the new union as a supra-national body which would coordinate ‘economic and currency policy’ between its members. It would also be open to new members.”

The Bible shows that a confederation of Russia and other Eurasian countries will develop, including China, India and Japan.

Putin the Saint to Be Worshipped…

Der Spiegel wrote on September 29:

“Mother Fotina… prays to Vladimir Putin. Her sect, in a village east of Moscow, honors Russia’s once and future president as a reincarnation of St. Paul. The group represents a rising trend in Russia, but its origins are surprisingly mundane… They believe [Putin is] a reincarnation of St. Paul… Mother Fotina… considers herself the reincarnation of Joan of Arc… Just as Saul persecuted Christians before his conversion to St. Paul, she believes Putin once beset the faithful as a Soviet KGB officer. The Soviets blew up churches, or replaced them with swimming pools, but ‘when he became president,’ she says, ‘the Holy Ghost came to him.’ Since then Putin leads his flock ‘wisely, just as the Apostle did’…

“Across Russia… popular affection for Putin has started turning to religious worship. The country’s top rabbi, Berel Lasar, swooned a few months ago that Russians had ‘every reason to ask God to bless you. Every day and every hour you do good for any number of people, you save hundreds and thousands of worlds.’ Vladislav Surkow, the influential deputy chief of the Kremlin administration, sees in Putin ‘a man whom fate and the Lord sent to Russia.’

“In Putin’s hometown of St. Petersburg, a proliferation of posters once showed the prime minister as an angel, with one hand extended, blessing the city’s inhabitants. Putin’s face was mounted on a photo of the cherubim crowning the city’s Peter and Paul Cathedral…

“In an act of staged self-sacrifice last weekend, President Dmitry Medvedev recommended to a party congress that Putin should replace him as a presidential candidate — and ultimately as president — in 2012. The 11,000 delegates and party members of ‘United Russia’ cheered like true believers in Moscow’s Ice Palace, at what amounted to a Coronation Mass…

“Mother Fotina believes the people have no choice anyway. ‘God has appointed Putin to Russia to prepare for the coming of Jesus Christ,’ she says…”

This is remarkable in light of the fact that there will also arise in Europe two powerful personages—one with a religious and one with a political and military function—who will be worshipped by the masses. The article, quoted above, shows how easily gullible people can fall for such deception.

No specific amount in regard to Holy Day offerings is mentioned, but God’s Word includes guidelines and principles that can help us to decide how much to give.

Firstly, we must keep in mind that we cannot out-give God. Secondly, those of us who have been in the Church of God for a while know about the existence of the annual Holy Days and God’s command to give an offering on those days. We have time to prepare and save for these offerings so that we do not have to make a last minute decision as to how much we may want to give on a particular Holy Day.

In a recent Editorial in Update #484 (for the week ending March 18, 2011), titled, “Offerings,” we said the following:

“We must be committed to the Work of God in supporting its effort to preach and publish the gospel of the kingdom of God in all the world as a witness. The gospel is a message of good news from the God Family, including the fact that God’s government will be established on the earth at the return of Christ. We manifest our financial commitment to God not only by tithing to the Work, but also by additional financial means. Tithing is required; but if we only carry out our duty, then we are rendered unprofitable servants…

“A much better way of telling how deep our commitment to God and His Work is, is by focusing on our offerings to God. They will show where our heart is, and where we want our treasure to be. Matthew 6:21 tells us: ‘For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’

“We are commanded to tithe, and we are commanded to give offerings. The amount of the tithe—ten percent of our increase or earnings—is pre-determined. The amount of our free-will offerings is not. And how we determine these amounts is indicative of where our heart really is…

“Of course, when we pay God’s tithe and give Him an offering, we are not to boast about it, but we are doing it quietly, discreetly, and from the heart. God can and will, in His due time, bless us openly when we behave with a right attitude…”

God was very displeased with the attitude of the nation of Israel towards their duty to pay tithes and offerings, including on His annual Holy Days, and He expressed His anger in no uncertain terms in the book of Malachi:

“Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation” (Malachi 3:8-9).

So, it is evident that a person can rob God by not tithing or not tithing properly, or by not giving any offering or giving an offering that does not reflect the blessings received from God (compare Deuteronomy 16:16-17). Rather than being blessed by God even more, because of our gratitude and appreciation to God in giving generous offerings, God may pronounce a curse on us for neglecting God’s blessing in our lives.

We understand that salvation is a gift from God. However, God will not grant us salvation if we show Him through our conduct of neglect, indifference and outright rebellion that we are not interested in His gift. The continued failure of obeying God even in matters of tithing and Holy Day offerings could even lead, ultimately, to the loss of salvation.
 
In this context, it may be a good idea to analyze the following questions prior to giving an offering:

1-    What would we be willing to pay for salvation, if it was for sale?
2-    What is the value of salvation to us?
3-    Is refusing to give an offering worth the price of the loss of salvation ?

As stated in Deuteronomy 16:16-17, we are not to appear before God empty-handed on His Holy Days, and we are to give as we are able, according to the blessing of the LORD our God which He has given us. This blessing throughout the year is not limited to just financial blessing. It could include the blessing of good health, of a sound mind, of precious spiritual knowledge and understanding, of having a job and a happy family—things which are difficult to value with a price tag. But they all come into play when we determine the amount of our Holy Day offering.  

We also read the following principle in 2 Corinthians 9:6-11:

“But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. As it is written: ‘HE HAS DISPERSED ABROAD, HE HAS GIVEN TO THE POOR; HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURES FOREVER.’ Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.”

God is telling us here that if we give “sparingly,” “grudgingly” and “out of necessity,” we cannot expect generous blessings and enrichment in everything from God, including grace and increase in the fruits of righteousness. At the same time, God does not expect of us to give what we don’t have. It is mainly a question of right attitude. That our attitude plays a big part in giving an offering, and that it is of great importance to God, can be seen in the following passage in Luke 21:1-4:

“And [Christ] looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, ‘Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.’”

In the above record, Christ blessed a widow who only gave two mites–a very small amount–but that was all she had at that time. Her attitude was such that she wanted to give, and Christ used her as an example of generous giving in the eyes of God, even though the rich gave much more, but they did it out of their abundance. Christ was not rejecting the offering of the rich, but in comparison with the widow, she gave much more.

We conclude from the foregoing that it is possible for us to rob God by not tithing faithfully and by not giving generous Holy Day offerings, in accordance with how
God has blessed us. We should plan ahead as to how much we want to give and how we can reach that goal.

We cannot put a price tag on God’s gift of eternal life, but we could lose out on eternal life by not obeying God, including in giving Holy Day offerings in accordance with His injunctions. We are commanded to appear before God with an offering; that is, not empty-handed. Blessings from God come in different forms; they include the physical realm, but they are not limited to just the physical. Our attitude in giving is very important to God.

God expects of His followers to give offerings on His annual Holy Days. They are an opportunity for us to express our gratitude for our calling and the blessings, both physical and spiritual, that God bestows upon us throughout the year.

Lead Writer: Rene Messier

We are delighted to announce that on October 1, 2011, Donna Callender (46) was baptized in Summerland by Rene Messier. She has an 8 year old son and is originally from Texas. She lives currently in Penticton, Canada. We are congratulating Donna and welcoming her in the Spirit-begotten Family of God.

A new StandingWatch program was posted on our Web site (www.standingwatch.org) and on YouTube, titled, “Obama Disappoints the World.” Note these comments from this week’s international press: Frightening deterioration between the US and the Eurozone. Germany and America on collision course. Obama’s lecture on the euro crisis fundamentally wrong, overbearing, arrogant, absurd, embarrassing, pitiful and sad. The U.S. can’t be relied on. It has once again betrayed Palestinians and abdicated its global leadership role. Pax Americana in the Middle East is over. Why is this happening? Does the Bible tell us why? It most certainly does, and you need to know.

Norbert Link’s video-recorded sermon, “The Feast of Trumpets in Isaiah” was posted on YouTube and our Web (www.eternalgod.org).

A new German sermon was recorded and posted on YouTube and on our German Web site (www.aufpostenstehen.de). It is related to the Day of Atonement and is titled, “Hoffnung fuer die Welt’ (“Hope for the World.”).

by Phyllis Bourque

I recently read an internet article entitled, “Lenses shield 9/11 photogs as they capture history.” It questioned how those who photographed the event could bear to keep working in the face of such tragedy. One photographer said that his lens acts as a filter, that “the things are happening over there, on the other side.” Another was quoted as saying, “I let the camera absorb all the disaster or the sadness of an event. It protects ME from the event.” The article noted that these photographers knew only what was happening right before their eyes…not realizing the bigger picture of what was going on.

While I wasn’t there in person, I was there emotionally, owing to the very graphic portrayal through hundreds of photos and videos available on the internet. I was there–falling from the building, choking on the ashen dust, gasping for life! Watching such tragedies in the news takes a toll on me…

As I read the accounts of these photographers, I began to think about the constant barrage of news articles, photos and videos of human suffering all around the world due to wars, tsunamis, flooding, drought, famine, etc., every day more death and destruction, helplessness and despair! Add to this, the stressors in my personal life, and I had to ask myself, how I can bear to watch news that is always bad? I know that these things are prophesied, and I know they will get worse, but how can I have a balanced approach to being aware of world events without allowing it to hover like a dark cloud over each day?

The short answer is, God. But in what way, personally, for me? I found the answer to be in communicating with God–reading the Bible, talking with Him, and using His Holy Spirit within me to help me deal with this life. I found the answer to be in paying attention to the messages delivered by God’s ministers through sermons, the StandingWatch programs, the published booklets, and the weekly update, to help me correlate the issues of life with what God says. And I found the answer to be in fellowshipping with God’s people, who are of the same Spirit, so that we can all encourage each other in times of distress. God has given me all of these resources so that I can live a balanced life in an unbalanced world.

I see then, that focusing my “lens” on the greater plan and purpose God is working out on this earth, gives me a clearer picture of what it all means. From this viewpoint, I feel motivated to continue to move forward in my conversion, using God’s Spirit to overcome personal faults and weaknesses, to become better prepared for what lies ahead, both in this life, and the next.