Interviewing an imaginary reverend from Texas with a familiar name.
THE END Times are upon us.
That's the shocking word from a panel of prophecy experts, analyzing today's headlines in light of scripture and astrological portents.
"Of course there's the famous verse that says the day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night," says Reverend Thomas Coates of the Texas-based Universal Church of Christ, Redeemer of the Dead. "But looking at the signs, I'd say the thief is already in the house. We've been given plenty of warnings in the form of Bible prophecy.
"Now is the time to take heed, and do what has to be done to get through it all."
The Tribulation to come will be a time of widespread war, famine, plague and general chaos.
"But it won't last forever", says panel leader Barbara Elithe, "and we all need to take heart in that promise.
"Even when things are at their darkest, there's a special light shining on the faithful."
Elithe, a renowned religious scholar, recommends that Sun readers turn to the Bible to renew their faith - and begin stocking up their shelters for the coming hard times.
"Based on a close study of world events, I believe those days of prophecy are upon us now," she says. "Our research has turned up no less than seven signs of the apocalypse, splattered across today's headlines."
1. CHANGES IN THE WEATHER
"And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory." - Revelation 16:8-9
The ravages of global warming can no longer be denied, says Dr. Stephen Akutagawa, a meteorologist and seminarian in Johnson City, Tennessee.
"There are ice shelves in Alaska falling into the ocean, altering the sea level. Wildfires have devastated Colorado, Arizona, and California. Droughts have become commonplace in our farmlands, and skin cancer rates have gone through the roof.
"In some areas, the solar UV radiation is so bad, it's become routine to find mutated frogs with extra limbs in rivers and ponds.
"Personally, I spend as little time as possible out in the sun, and when I do, I wear a wide hat and plenty of sunblock."
2. SIGNS IN THE SKY
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." - Matthew 24:29,30
Strange asteroids - like the one that narrowly missed Earth on June 14, or the newly discovered one slated to cross the Earth's orbit in 2019 - are being spotted in the sky in unprecedented numbers. This level of astronomical activity is highly unusual and very significant, says German astrologer and engineer Dr. Felix Prendergast.
"This month, Mercury is preparing to retrograde, and that negative influence is coupled with a planetary alignment in the form of a vast cross," he says. "But even that unusual event is altered in unpredictable ways, due to the presence of so many flying bits of space rock. The stars are telling us to be on our guard for big changes and dangerous times - and no one can say what kind of catastrophe all these asteroids could hold in store for us."
3. MIDDLE EAST UNREST
"Then as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, 'Teacher, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!' And Jesus answered and said to him, 'Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down.'" - Mark 13:1,2
The dawning End Times will be marked with violence in Jerusalem and throughout Israel, the experts warn.
"We know to look for wars and rumors of war, in the words of Christ Himself," says Reverend Coates. "In Israel right now, there are bombs going off, planes firing missiles on children, and tanks rolling through the street. It certainly looks like a war, even though no one is calling it that.
"Could that be what Christ referred to as a 'rumor of war'? It sure seems like it to me."
4. THE BEAST UNVEILED
"Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us."- 1 John 2:18,19
Much of the current escalation in violence can be traced to the diabolical machinations of one man: Osama Bin Laden. But, as the First Epistle of John predicts, he is one among many - leader of a shifting organization of terror-crazed zealots, every one lethally dedicated to their anti-Christian cause.
"One of the key signs that the End Times are upon us is the exposure of the Antichrist," says Elithe. "He's said to be a false religious leader, capable of pulling fire from the sky. Well, even practicing Muslims say Osama and his suicide bombers are violating the Koran's message of peace. And no one in America will ever forget the fire that came from the sky last September."
5. CORPORATE KINGDOMS FALL
"And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast." - Revelation 17: 11,12
According to several of our panelists, the figure of the Beast of Revelation is linked to corporate giants and billionaire CEOs - the "kings" who rule over buying and selling in the modern capitalist system.
"The fall of Kenneth Lay and Enron, followed by a slew of other big companies - ImClone, WorldCom and all the rest - that's seen in scripture as the end of the hour of the Beast," explains Dr. Noel Gothen, a theological researcher from Toronto. "As they continue to fall, look for far-reaching problems with banking systems and political chaos."
Gothen advises readers to prepare for the hard times ahead by stocking up on food, keeping a supply of gold or other non-cash assets at hand, and getting rid of credit cards as soon as possible.
6. CITIES CONSUMED BY FIRE
"The earth quakes before them, The heavens tremble; The sun and moon grow dark, And the stars diminish their brightness. "And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke." - Joel 2:10,30
The epic Chedeski-Rodeo fire was just the beginning of a terrifying "cycle of fire," according to Arizona-based astrologer Gwen Rutherford.
"It's something the Bible, the stars, and the scientists all agree on for once," says Rutherford. "Thanks to global warming, we're as dry as we've ever been, and the fire season has really only begun.
"Numerous passages in the Bible also refer to this period, where fire consumes cities and smoke blots out the stars overhead, as a sign that the final judgement is at hand. The stars won't be in this kind of 'fire-friendly' configuration for ages. It definitely appears that these are in fact the times of prophecy."
She has already advised her friends and relatives to stay clear of large cities in the Southwest, and to read the books of Joel, Zechariah and Revelation to prepare themselves spiritually.
7. BABYLON SCANDAL
"And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.... I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth." - Revelation 17:5-9, 18
"In this chapter of Revelation, St. John of Patmos reveals the unhappy truth about the Catholic hierarchy," says Dr. Evan MacKinnon, a Biblical scholar and former priest. "The city of seven hills is Rome, the seat of the church which has reigned over kings throughout history. The church is borne up by a worldly beast, which then, later in the same chapter, tears the church down.
"In our view, this many-headed beast is a description of modern consumer-based society - an amalgam of manufacturers, multinational corporations and the media.
"And as we are seeing today, that beast has turned on the church, revealing a multitude of past sins."
The sex scandals rocking the Catholic church are the birth pangs of a New World Order, as the forces of evil destroy each other and God purges earthly corruption in the name of righteousness, purity and true faith.
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