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The danger of this heresy lies in the confusion it will produce in the mind
at the coming of Antichrist, who will actually claim that he is Christ
coming for his thousand year reign on earth.
The Bible and the Fathers tell us that Christ has two advents, one for
salvation when he died on the Cross, rose from the dead, ascended to
heaven after promising us to come again for judgment. There is no
intermediate coming of Christ.
The Second Coming of Christ will be on the clouds (Matt 24:30,
26:64, Mark 13:26, 14:62, I Thes 4:17, Rev 1:7) He will not come down
to earth but will “send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and
they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other.” (Matt 24:31) And, if we are alive at the second
coming of Christ we will be “caught up together with them in the clouds,
to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (I
Thes 4:17) In short, He shall not come down to earth, we shall go up to
meet Him in the clouds.
The early Fathers of the Church spared no effort to remind us that
the Second Coming of Christ will not be from the earth but rather from
heaven.
This Jesus Christ who is gone up shall come again, not from earth but
from heaven: and I say, "not from earth," because there are many
Antichrists to come at this time from earth. For already, as thou hast
seen, many have begun to say, I am the Christ: and the Abomination of
desolation is yet to come, assuming to himself the false title of Christ.
But look thou for the true Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God, coming
henceforth no more from earth, but from heaven, appearing to all more
bright than any lightning and brilliancy of light, with angel guards
attended, that He may judge both quick and dead, and reign in a
heavenly, eternal kingdom, which shall have no end.1
The true Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God, comes no more from the
earth. If any come making false shows in the wilderness, go not forth; if
they say, Lo, here is the Christ, Lo, there, believe it not. Look no longer
downwards and to the earth; for the Lord descends from heaven; not
1Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
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alone as before, but with many, escorted by tens of thousands of Angels;
nor secretly as the dew on the fleece; but shining forth openly as the
lightning. For He hath said Himself, As the lightning cometh out of the
east, and shineth even unto the west, so shall also the coming of the Son
of Man be; and again, And they shall see the Son of Man coming upon
the clouds with power and great glory, and He shall send forth His
Angels with a great trumpet; and the rest.1
And the Lord shall come out of heaven, just as the holy apostles beheld
Him going into heaven perfect God and perfect man, with glory and
power, and will destroy the man of lawlessness, the son of destruction,
with the breath of His mouth. Let no one, therefore, look for the Lord to
come from earth, but out of Heaven, as He himself has made sure.2
Saint Paul once said, “I became all things to all men, that I might by all
means save some.” (I Cor 9:22) In the same manner, Antichrist when he
comes, will become all things to all men, that he might by all means
destroy some! To the Jews he will be their long awaited Messiah. To
Christians who defy the Church’s teaching and believe the heresy of the
Millennial rule of Christ, he will be “Christ” coming to reign on earth.
To Muslims, he will be “Al Mahdy Al Montazar,” a last time Messianic
figure that will make the whole world one religion. To the Buddhists, he
will be a re-incarnation of Buddha. To humanists, he will be the perfect
ruler spreading peace, justice and prosperity in the earth. To the
curious, he will offer the greatest show on earth. And to the rest, a kind,
righteous, miracle worker, that showers worldly goods and honours on
his followers. No wonder the scriptures says concerning him, “He is a
proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell,
and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all
nations, and heapeth unto him all people.” (Hab 2:5) “And power was
given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell
upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the
book of life.” (Rev 13:7-8)
1Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
2Saint John Damascene: Expounding the Orthodox Faith
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HIS BLASPHEMY:
Once he gathers unto himself all the nations and heaps unto himself
all peoples, and he is worshipped by all those whose names are not
written in the Book of Life, he will be puffed up in his heart and will
start to show his true colours. He will start blaspheming God. “And he
opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name,
and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.” (Rev 13:6) The same
is predicted to us in the Book of Daniel, “And he shall speak great words
against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High,
and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand
until a time and times and the dividing of time.” (Dan 7:25) “And the
king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and
magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things
against the God of gods.” (Dan 11:36)
It is then that his followers will realize that they have been fooled by
the imposter. The Jews will realize that he is not their awaited Messiah,
for, even that he will be born in the Jewish faith, he will blaspheme
Yahweh, the God of the fathers, and, instead he will claim divine
honours to himself, “ Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, ....
nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.” (Dan 11:37)
“Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that
is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing
himself that he is God.” (II Thes 2:4)
Christians who were deceived into thinking that he is Christ in his
supposed Millennial rule, will also discover the bitter truth, that they
were deceived by the imposter, and that in acknowledging him as Christ,
they have forfeited their share in eternity, and have been damned to the
end, for the Fathers tell us that those who accept him and receive his
mark (see later) have no chance to repent.
And he will put his mark on their right hand and on their forehead, that
no one may put the sign of the honourable cross upon his forehead with
his right hand; but his hand is bound. And from that time he shall not
have power to seal any one of his members, but he shall be attached to
the deceiver, and shall serve him; and in him there is no repentance. But
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such an one is lost at once to God and to men.1
THE FLIGHT OF THE CHURCH:
But not all will be deceived by him, for those whose names are written
in te Book of Life, God’s own elect, for whose sake the days of the Great
Tribulation will be shortened, will see through his deceiving exterior,
and will refuse to submit to him. Having received the seal of the Living
God on their forehead (Rev 7:2-3), they will refuse to be polluted by the
mark of the Beast. They will heed the command of the Lord, “When
ye therefore shall see the Abomination of desolation, spoken of by
Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him
understand:) Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains:
Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out
of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his
clothes.” (Matt 24:15-18) A thorough understanding of this
commandment is vital for our salvation should we be around during
those perilous times. “When you see the Abomination of desolation
spoken of by Daniel the prophet” interpretation: when you see
Antichrist, a.k.a. man of sin, little horn, the beast ... etc, “stand in the
holy place” interpretation: sitting in the temple of God, showing himself
to be God (II Thes 2:4) i.e, being worshipped in the churches as God,
“then let them ... let him ...” We have here two sets of directives. The
first one, “let them which be in Judea flee to the mountain” is directed
to the Church of the elect, to flee. The flight of the Church into the
wilderness has been dealt with in our previous issue. The Book of
Revelation assigns a whole chapter for this emigration of the faithful
away from the Middle East (Rev 12) When the Lord says let them that
be in Judea ..., there are two reasons for this. The first is that like many
of the prophecies, this one pertains both to the destruction of Jerusalem
around A.D. 70, as well as to the desolation of the world that will happen
in the days of the Abomination of Desolation. In interpreting this
command concerning the end of times, Judea will mean the Middle East,
the birthplace of the Church. The second, is that Judea will actually be
1Hippolytus: Discourse on the end of the world and on Antichrist
THE UNHOLY TRINITY
the place where the Abomination of Desolation will set up his kingdom
as king and Messiah of the Jews, universal ruler and god of all nations,
with Jerusalem as his capital as we can understand from Revelation 11:8.
Please refer to our previous chapter for more details.
The second directive that starts with “let him” is a directive to each
and every individual who wishes to be saved from the damnation
reserved for those who worship the beast. It is a command to flee from
the deceiver, to avoid any contact with him. For, though his sphere of
influence will be in the Middle East, he will be all over the place trying
to convert all to his worship.
He will be travelling all over the world bringing his show of false
miracles and using his powers of speech (his great words) and his
charismatic personality to win over, if it were possible, even the elect.
We can deduce this from reading Habakkuk’s prophecy about him (see
above,) where we are told that he never stays home but goes around
trying to gather unto himself all nations and heap unto himself all
people. (Hab 2:5)
Here is the wisdom of the elect and their understanding. For the
Lord’s command is both urgent and absolute that we have no direct
contact with the imposter should he come near us. Should he hold a
revival meeting in Toronto then let the elect go to Montreal, and if he
has his meeting in Los Angeles, then let the faithful go to San Francisco!
Let no one be driven by curiosity to “take a look,” for the Lord
actually warns us against this, “In that day, he which shall be upon the
housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it
away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back.
Remember Lot's wife.” (Luke 17:32)
Lot’s wife’s problem was idle curiosity. She just wanted to take a
look, and she perished. The Lord is warning us because He knows that
if we go we will be deceived, for this is no ordinary man, this is a man
endowed with all the power and authority of Satan. For this reason the
Lord also tells us, “Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in
the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it
not.” (Matt 24:26) Saint John Chrysostom comments on this by saying:
THE UNHOLY TRINITY
And see how He secures them; ‘Go not forth into the deserts, enter not
into the secret chambers.’ He did not say, ‘Go, and do not believe;’ but,
‘Go not forth, neither depart thither.’ For great then will be the
deceiving, because that even deceiving miracles are wrought.”1
I often explain the perils of coming near the Abomination of Desolation
by using a parable! If you have a compass, it will always direct you in
your way. For it will always point to the North Pole (elementary physics!)
The compass is your free will, always directing you to heaven. (The
North pole is on the top of the globe towards heaven! ) Now, if you bring
your compass close to a strong magnet, it will no longer point to the
North Pole, but will always point to the magnet. The magnet is the
deceiver, and if you come near him he will captivate your free will and
you will not be able to go back to your previous condition. That is why
the Lord, in a most urgent way, admonishes us to “flee” and to
“remember Lot’s wife.” The Fathers emphasize this personal flight in
their writings:
But many who are hearers of the divine Scriptures, and have them in
their hand, and keep them in mind with understanding, will escape his
imposture. For they will see clearly through his insidious appearance and
his deceitful imposture, and will flee from his hands, and betake
themselves to the mountains, and hide themselves in the caves of the
earth; and they will seek after the Friend of man with tears and a contrite
heart; and He will deliver them out of his toils, and with His right hand
He will save those from his snares who in a worthy and righteous manner
make their supplication to Him.2
For this cause the Lord knowing the greatness of the adversary grants
indulgence to the godly, saying, Then let them which be in Judaea flee to
the mountains.3
1Saint John Chrysostom: Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew
2Hippolytus: Discourse on the end of the world and on Antichrist
3Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
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Thou hast received the tokens of the Deceiver who is to come; thou hast
received the proofs of the true Christ, who shall openly come down from
heaven. Flee therefore the one, the False one; and look for the other,
the True.1
PERSECUTION OF THE SAINTS:
Revelation 12:7 tells us, “And it was given unto him to make war with
the saints and to overcome them.” Daniel’s prophecies tell us the same
thing: “And the same horn made war with the saints and prevailed
against them.” (Dan 7:21) And again, “And he shall wear out the saints
of the most high.” (Dan 7:25)
If, as we said before, the church will be given a safe haven from the
face of the serpent (and his puppet, the beast) then how come we are
told that he will make war against the saints and overcome them? Well,
the answer is given to us at the end of Revelation 12. After the woman,
(the church) makes her flight into her safe haven, the dragon follows suit
for we are told, “And to the woman were given two wings of a great
eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is
nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the
serpent. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the
woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the
earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and
swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.” (Rev
12: 14-16)
Waters in apocalyptic language means people, so, the above means
that Satan working through Antichrist will mobilize people at his
command against the church but God will intervene miraculously to save
the elect. Immediately after that we are told, “And the dragon was
wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her
seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of
Jesus Christ.” (Rev 12:17) The remnant of the woman’s seed means the
rest of the elect who, being chosen by God to receive the crown of
martyrdom will be left behind. These will be persecuted and killed by
Antichrist. He will think that he had prevailed over them, but in reality,
1Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
THE UNHOLY TRINITY
“They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their
testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” (Rev 12:11)
When the Lamb opened the fifth seal, Saint John saw under the altar
“the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the
testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying,
How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our
blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given
unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest
yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethren,
that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” (Rev 6:9-11) This
means that this persecution and martyrdom of the saints is pre-ordained
by God, so that the number of the martyrs should be fulfilled.
Saint Cyril of Jerusalem tells us, if you feel that you are called to
martyrdom, then, by all means, don’t run, stand up, be counted among
those who will be crowned with the crown of martyrdom:
But if any man is conscious that he is very stout-hearted, to encounter
Satan, let him stand (for I do not despair of the Church's nerves), and let
him say, Who shall separate us from the love of Christ and the rest. But,
let those of us who are fearful provide for our own safety; and those who
are of a good courage, stand fast.1
THE FALSE PROPHET:
We have now made the acquaintance of the Red Dragon (Satan,) the
Beast coming out of the sea (Antichrist,) now we are going to be
introduced to a third character, “And I beheld another beast coming up
out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a
dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him,
and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first
beast, whose deadly wound was healed.” (Rev 13:11-12)
Revelation 19:20 identifies this second beast as the false prophet. The
false prophet is described as having two horns like a lamb but he spake
as a dragon. This means he will have the appearance of a lamb but is
really a devil. This description agrees with the Lord Jesus definition of
1Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
THE UNHOLY TRINITY
false prophets, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's
clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” (Matt 7:15)
Like his master, this second beast will have a fake aura of holiness
around him but in reality he is a dragon (a devil!) We are told that he
exercises all the power of the first beast. That means that the dragon,
(Satan), will give this second beast, the false prophet, the same power as
he gave to the first beast, Antichrist. The false prophet will convince the
inhabitants of the earth to worship Antichrist. Because of this role he
has been called a forerunner of Antichrist in the same manner that John
the Baptist was a forerunner for Christ. John the Baptist testified to
Jesus saying, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the
world.” (John 1:29) In like manner, the false prophet will do the same,
telling people this is your God worship him.
FIRE COMING FROM HEAVEN:
We are told that the false prophet will do great wonders, so that he
“maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.”
(Rev 13:13) This is what the commentators say about this:
In a parody of Pentecost, this monstrous cult leader is able to make fire
come down by means of deception and sorcery.1
This means that the false prophet will be able to imitate the day of
Pentecost, making fire to descend on his followers even as the believers
received the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost.
THE IMAGE OF THE BEAST:
The false prophet will order everyone on earth to make an image of
the Beast (Rev 12:14). “And he had power to give life unto the image of
the Beast, that the image of the Beast should speak. (Rev 12:15). Many
people believe that this image that comes to life and speaks is none other
than the almighty Television! Saint John in the Revelation saw an image
of Antichrist in every house and the image was “alive” and speaking. Of
course, St. John did not know that something called T.V. would be
1Orthodox Study Bible: Footnotes on Revelation 13
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invented nineteen centuries later.
This means that Antichrist will use Television to its maximum
potential. He will be on every channel and people will be worshipping
him even at home when they see him on T.V. delivering his sermons or
giving his “blessing” to his “flock”. As a great speaker with irresistible
charisma and many miracles Antichrist will put heavy emphasis on the
use of T.V. Satellites will bring him alive to every house in the world and
in every language.
THE MARK OF THE BEAST:
The false prophet will order that people would have the mark of the
beast on their forehead or the right hand. That mark would be his name
or the number of his name: 666. Those who refuse this will be at a
financial disadvantage, unable to buy nor sell.
Christ gave to those who believed on Him the honourable and life-giving
cross, and he in like manner will give his own sign. ... and he will put his
mark on their right hand and on their forehead, that no one may put the
sign of the honourable cross upon his forehead with his right hand; but
his hand is bound. And from that time he shall not have power to seal
any one of his members, but he shall be attached to the deceiver, and
shall serve him; and in him there is no repentance. But such an one is lost
at once to God and to men.1
The technology of biometric identification, i.e., identifying a person by
scanning his forehead or his hand, is already available. In the same
manner in which a cashier scans a product at the cash register and its
name, size, price ... etc. appear on the screen, this technology can
identify a man’s name, social security number, even his medical history
by scanning his forehead or his hand. No doubt, Antichrist will use this
technology to identify his own followers, and to discriminate against
those who are “unbelievers.”
For those who are sceptics about this, or think that it is far fetched,
let me offer excerpts from an article that appeared in the Globe and
1Hippolytus: Discourse on the end of the world and on Antichrist.
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Mail, Canada’s largest newspaper on October 22, 1999. The article
appeared on the first page with the title:
ONTARIO’S ID PLAN SPURS PRIVACY FEARS
Every resident of Ontario would be required to carry new high tech ID
... (this) would be needed for all dealings with the provincial government,
including health insurance, social assistance payments, students or
seniors eligibility, or enrolment in an educational institutions. Driver’s
licences, birth certificates, and hunting and fishing permits could also be
incorporated.” “Eventually, a single card could enable an Ontario
resident to gain access to Federal as well as provincial services, said
Management Board Chairman Chris Hodgson, who is responsible for
bringing in the new card.” “Mr. Hodgson said advanced technology cards
are being used in European countries such as Germany and France.” “A
high-tech firm working with the government to implement the new card
says, biometrics, the use of a digital imprint of a finger, retina, or facial
or hand features to identify a person would be central to the project.”
“Yesterday, Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, Ann
Cavoukian, voiced her concern about the new card.” “ Ross Hutchison,
chairman of Mytec Technologies, which specializes in biometric
identification systems, said the Ontario government is already far
advanced in preparing its information systems to receive the card.
THE UNHOLY TRINITY:
The dragon (Satan), the Beast (Antichrist), and the second beast (the
false prophet) have been collectively called the unholy trinity. For Satan
would like to be worshipped in the same way that God is worshipped.
If God is worshipped as one God in a Trinity, so also would Satan have
his own unholy trinity, where Satan would emulate God the Father,
Antichrist would emulate Christ and the false prophet emulates the
Holy Spirit. Revelation 20:10 tells us the end of the unholy trinity,
“And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and
brimstone, where the Beast and the false prophet are, and shall be
tormented day and night for ever and ever.”
ANTITHEOTOKOS: FALSE PROPHETESS?1
As we said earlier, Satan has devised various ways for deceiving various
kinds of people. Satan will have no problem with Jews, since they are
fervently waiting for a “Messiah,” a worldly king, who will reign in their
holy city Jerusalem, and will even be a universal ruler. With non-
Christians, the miracles, prosperity and worldly things he will bestow on
them will be enough to sway them behind Antichrist. Satan’s main
problem in deceiving the world is bringing Christians to the folds of
Antichrist. A minority of Christians who believe in the heresy of the
Millennial rule of Christ, will be easy prey for him, believing Antichrist
to be Christ in His “Millennial” coming.
But the great majority of Christians are either Catholic or
Orthodox. Both churches condemn the Millennial rule of Christ as a
heresy. So, how can Satan deceive those Christians who form 85% of
all Christians?
Satan is a very crafty creature, and he knows that one of the things
on which Catholics and Orthodox agree is their veneration of the holy
Virgin. So, if Satan would be able to make one of his demons to
impersonate the Virgin Mary, and, through this false virgin, assure
those Christians that the Lord will indeed come to earth and reign
among them for a thousand years, those Christians that will believe the
false virgin will actually fall easily for Antichrist.
The question arises, can Satan do this? II Corinthians 11:14 tells
us that Satan can transform himself into an angel of light! And if Satan
can and will bring in a man that will impersonate Christ, an Antichrist,
what hinders him from bringing in some entity to impersonate the
Theotokos, an Antitheotokos?
This is not a fantasy or an unproven theory, it is actually happening
right now! In the following pages we will give you the details.
It all started on May 8, 1972, when a simple minded Catholic priest
became convinced that he is receiving “messages” from the Virgin
Mary. These messages urged him to start a movement (cult) inside the
Catholic church, among the clergy and the laity. Ever since, the cult has
been extending all over the world, so that by 1995, membership in the
1Published: December, 1999
ANTITHEOTOKOS
cult reached 300 bishops, 60,000 priests and tens of millions of lay
persons.
The messages of this false virgin (whom we shall call
Antitheotokos) were printed in a book of more than 1000 pages.
Millions of copies of this book are given for free in all languages. I
stumbled across the book by chance, and what I read really scared me!
In the following pages I will share with you excerpts (direct quotations)
from this book.
THE CULT:
The first thing that strikes the reader is the classic cult
indoctrination that is contained in these messages. First, Antitheotokos
asks her followers for complete obedience:
I am your leader, you therefore, my beloved ones must listen to my
voice, be docile to my teachings, and above all, be prompt and
obedient to my orders ... give me always a ‘yes’ and no longer think
anything of yourself. I want to be the one who thinks of everything.
No questions allowed:
Do not ask me where I am leading you; do not seek to know
beforehand the path which I have marked for you. Your duty is to
second my action with your docility.
My plan can be carried out only through you. Nevertheless, it is not
for you to know it in detail. It is enough that it is known by me, as
I am your leader. You must all obey my orders with docility and let
yourself be led by me. Do not ask me where I am leading you. I
shall place each one of you at his proper post. Each one must look
only to doing his own part well.
Like all other cults, the cult leader demands nothing less than blind
trust from his/her followers:
You must completely entrust yourselves to me, in a total and
everlasting way, ... you must entrust yourselves in a manner that is
complete, giving me everything ... you should truly be wholly mine.
I want you to grow in trust in me. You must let yourself be led by
this trust without ever offering resistance, but rather being, as it
were, carried and guided by it every moment of your day.
ANTITHEOTOKOS
Antitheotokos demands that her followers surrender their free will to
“it.” This is interesting, for God does not deprive us of our free will.
Only the devil can rob us of our free will if we walk into his nets by our
free will.
One who has consecrated himself to me belongs totally to me. He
cannot, at any moment of the day, decide freely what he is to do with
himself. If you remain with me, I myself will tell you at every
moment what I would like you to do, and then whatever you do will
always be according to my will.
Cult leaders brainwash their prey to be completely detached from
everyone and everything, family, friends advisers... etc:
How many ties you still have my sons! Ties to your own self, to other
persons however good and holy they be, to your activities, to your
ideas, to your feelings, And I will break them one by one, so that you
will be mine alone.
They must no longer live for themselves, not even as regards to their
priestly activity, which absorbs them too much, tires them, and
consumes them, but leaves them empty and far from me.
Note how this Antitheotokos is attacking the priests attachment to their
priestly vocation. How could 60,000 priests not realize that this is the
Devil speaking?
Next, total dependence on the cult leader is encouraged:
I will accustom you to depend on me at each moment, oh, but in a
manner so simple and spontaneous, as a child does in the arms of its
own mother.
I want all the priests of my movement to rely on me as little children.
They must no longer think of themselves; I want to take care of
them myself. I will grant all their requests and satisfy their deepest
desires.
Note that God never promised to grant us all our requests! Neither did
He promise to satisfy our deepest desires. Only the Devil can do this.
He tempted the Lord Jesus by offering to give Him the whole world if
He would worship him!
ANTITHEOTOKOS
The next step is something no cult leader dares to ask of his/her
followers, to allow themselves to be possessed by him/her! We know
that an angel cannot possess a human, neither can a saint possess a
human being, only the Devil can possess a human, and yet
Antitheotokos is asking this of its followers.
Learn to let yourselves to be possessed by me, so that in everything
you do, it will be I who am doing it through you. ... O my priests,
allow yourselves to be truly possessed by me.
Since by their consecration they have allowed themselves to be
possessed by me, I will manifest myself through them and through
them I will act to strike at the heart of my enemy. ... the time will
come when I will make my voice heard by them, and when I will
place myself at the head of this, my cohort, prepared for battle.
Note the military tone used here. Note also that anyone who allows the
Devil to possess him/her, has actually sold his soul to the Devil. This is
irrevocable, since one becomes completely the property of the Devil.
If you remain in the garden of my immaculate heart, you become my
property. And so, no one can any longer take you away from me.
With the act of consecration, you have put your life in my hands.
Now it belongs to me. It is mine. I have taken possession of it.
I want all the priests of my movement to be like this, they must be
my priests! I say it again, mine! From the time they are consecrated
to my immaculate heart they can no longer belong to themselves.
Their life, their soul, their mind, their heart, the good they do, even
the wrong they have done and the defects they possess, all is mine,
all belongs to me.
The rite of entrance into the cult is called consecration to the
Immaculate heart of Mary. It is obvious that through this initiation one
sells himself totally and irrevocably to this Satanic entity; he is
completely possessed by it, no longer belongs to himself and no one can
take him away from this entity, i.e., free him from this slavery to Satan.
Unfortunately hundreds of bishops, tens of thousands of priests and
tens of millions of lay persons have sold themselves by accepting this
initiation into the cult of Antitheotokos. The end result is this:
ANTITHEOTOKOS
Now something is really changing, it is I who am living and working
in you. Your heart beats in unison with mine; your mind follows my
thoughts; your word repeats my voice; your hands repeat my
gestures; you are as it were, born again in me.
Christians are born again when they are baptized, so how can one be
born again a second time by joining this cult, except if accepting to be
possessed by Antitheotokos is actually a renunciation of one’s Baptism.
THE SEALING OF THE DECEIVED:
In the last days people will either have the seal of God on their
foreheads, (Rev 7:3) or have the sign of the Beast on their forehead.
(Rev 13:16) now, listen to this:
I have now imprinted my sign on the forehead of each one of you.
My adversary is no longer able to do anything against those who
have been signed by their heavenly Mother.
The angels of light of my immaculate heart are gathering from
everywhere the elect, called to form part of my victorious cohort.
They are signing you with my seal.
This seal cannot be the seal of God, for we have received that already
in the Sacrament of Chrismation. Could this sign given to the followers
of this cult be that of the Beast?
Note also how the entity calls itself the heavenly Mother, usurping
the prerogative of God the Father. Christ came in His Father’s Name,
telling us about His Heavenly Father, Who is also our Heavenly Father,
and predicted that when Antichrist will come, he will come in his own
name.
The cult has now become so strong that the cult leader,
(Antitheotokos) is boasting its success:
My movement has spread spontaneously everywhere. ... My plan is
now being accomplished everywhere. By the tens of thousands my
children are responding to me, with such a love and great
enthusiasm that it moves my motherly Heart.
This work of mine has now spread throughout the whole world. This
is my work alone and I myself am furthering it in every part of the
world.
ANTITHEOTOKOS
Note how Antitheotokos takes pride in the success of the cult, never
mentioning the movement as the work of God, but saying “it’s my own
work”. Again this is the sign of Antichrist who comes in his own name
and not in the name of God the Father.
THE MILLENNIAL HERESY:
Now that the cult is well established inside the Catholic Church,
the deadly heresy of the Millennial rule of Christ on earth is propagated
by Antitheotokos, in preparation for the coming of Antichrist:
The glorious reign of Christ, which will be established in your midst,
with the second coming of Jesus Christ in the world, is close at hand.
This is his return in glory ... to bring all humanity back to the state
of his new terrestrial paradise.
Christ never promised us a terrestrial paradise, “My Kingdom is not of
this world.” (John 18:36) Antichrist, on the other hand will reign on the
earth until Christ consumes him with the Spirit of His mouth and
destroys him with the brightness of His coming. (II Thes 2:8)
Jesus Christ, surrounded by the choir of the angels, on the clouds of
heaven prostrate at his feet to form a royal throne, in the splendour
of His divinity, will return to bring humanity to a new life, souls to
grace and love, the church to its highest summit of sanctity; and thus
he will restore in the world his reign of glory.
The Second Coming of Christ will be for Judgment. He will send his
angels to gather His elect to meet Him on the clouds. He will not reign
in this world, for at His coming, the earth and the works that are therein
shall be burned up. (II Pet 3:11) Christ will reign with His elect in the
new earth and the new heaven whichHe has promised us. (II Pet 3:13)
And yet Antitheotokos teaches exactly the opposite:
In this world Christ will reign. Jesus will return in glory to bring all
creation back to the full splendour of his new earthly paradise.
This is vintage Millennial rhetoric. The Mormons could not have said
it any better (or worse!)
ANTITHEOTOKOS
THE DATE OF HIS COMING:
The day of the coming of our Lord no one knows, for He Himself
told us so, but Antitheotokos seems to know!
His second coming, beloved children, will be like the first. As was
his birth on this night, so also will be the return of Jesus in glory,
before his final coming for the last judgment, the hour of which
however is still hidden in the secrets of the Father.
This message, which was delivered December 24, 1978, claims that
Christ’s Second Coming for His presumed millennial rule will also be
on December 24! Antitheotokos knows what all Christians know, that
the day of the return of Jesus is only known to the Father, so the claim
is made that Jesus’ return to earth is something other than His return
for the final judgment, the date of which is known only to the Father!
THE YEAR OF HIS COMING:
I confirm to you that by the great Jubilee of the year two thousand,
there will take place the triumph of my Immaculate heart, of which
I foretold you at Fatima, and this will come to pass with the return
of Jesus in Glory, to establish his reign in the world.
Not only is the day known, but the year is also known; December 24,
2000!
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE TRIBULATION?
Christians know that Christ’s second coming must be preceded by
the Great Tribulation, for the Lord told us, “Immediately after the
tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall
not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers
of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the
Son of Man in heaven ...” (Matt 24:29-30) But this is no problem for
Antitheotokos. Why not convince Christians that the Great Tribulation
has actually happened! On September 18, 1988 Antitheotokos said:
In this period of ten years, there will come to completion the time of
the Great Tribulation, which has been foretold to you in Holy
Scripture before the second coming of Christ.
ANTITHEOTOKOS
This means, according to Antitheotokos, the Great Tribulation already
came and went (having ended in 1998 by the latest!) So, now Christ’s
presumed Second Coming could happen any time. A couple of years
ago, the same false prophecy was propagated:
But now, you must enter into, and live out, the final time of the
Great Tribulation.
In confidence, the impression is given that the Great Tribulation is
already happening and that it is coming to a close, making the Second
Coming of Jesus plausible.
Another problem, is that Christians know from reading II
Thessalonians that the Apostasy and Antichrist must come before the
Second Coming of Christ, but there is no problem there either. If
Antitheotokos can convince her followers that the Apostasy is already
in the Church and that Antichrist is already sitting in the Church, then
whoever comes now must be Christ in His Second Coming!
The hour of its great trial has above all come for the Church,
because it will be shaken by lack of faith, obscured by apostasy,
wounded by betrayal, abandoned by its children, divided by schisms,
possessed and dominated by Free masonry, turned into fertile soil
from which will spring up the wicked tree of the man of iniquity, the
Antichrist, who will bring his kingdom to its interior.
In the Church, the great apostasy, which will spread throughout the
whole world, will be brought to its completion; ... There will enter
into the Church the man of iniquity who opposes himself to Christ,
and who will bring into her interior the Abomination of desolation.
Now after prophesying about these things, Antitheotokos, at a later
date, tells her followers that these things have already been fulfilled:
Satan has succeeded in entering into the Church, the new Israel of
God. He has entered there with the smoke of error and sin, of loss
of faith and apostasy, of compromise with the world and the search
for pleasure. During these years, he has succeeded in leading astray
bishops and priests, religious and faithful.
ANTITHEOTOKOS
How true! For through that cult led by Antitheotokos, many bishops,
priests and laity have been led astray. Of course this is not what
Antitheotokos means, what is meant here are those who are not yet
members of this deadly cult.
This Church, which according to Antitheotokos is corrupt, must
now die, and a “new church” must be born!
Today I invite you to descend into the sepulchre with Christ! ... Let
it be the sepulchre of your slavery where the Church dies, the
Church which is sick and divided, pervaded with the spirit of the
world, darkened in its loyalty and holiness, assailed by the loss of
faith and apostasy; and where the new Church is born, holy, faithful,
enlightened, evangelical, poor and chaste, reflecting solely the light
of its Christ upon the world.
This new church that must replace the current Church will be the
church that will welcome Antichrist, thinking that he is Christ in His
second coming. The theme of this new church is further developed:
If you saw the splendour of holiness and the fullness of unity of the
Church, after this period of great tribulation, you too, with me,
would jump for joy! Because then all the nations will walk toward
her.
I am amazed by the deceiving words, convincing her followers that they
are living the Great Tribulation. Antitheotokos “prophesies” of a new
united church for all nations. Any student of the Scripture will realize
that this universal, united church will worship Antichrist, who will
“gather unto himself all the nations.”
THE SECOND PENTECOST:
A new church needs a new Pentecost! So Antitheotokos promises
her followers to send upon them her own “unholy spirit”:
The glorious reign of Christ will correspond to a general flowering
of holiness and purity, of love and justice, of joy and peace. For the
hearts of men will be transformed by the powerful force of the “holy
spirit,” who will pour himself out upon them through the miracle of
the second Pentecost.
ANTITHEOTOKOS
The miraculous event of the second Pentecost must now be
accomplished, implored and expected by you. Again, there will be
descending upon the Church and upon all humanity miraculous
tongues of fire.
Orthodox commentators feel that the false prophet will be a cult leader
that will bring fire down from heaven upon his followers in imitation of
the Pentecost.
THE NEW TIMES:
The Book of Daniel tells us that Antichrist will change the times,
“And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear
out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and
they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing
of time.” (Dan 7:25) The word “times” in apocalyptic language means
years, for example time and times and the dividing of times means three
and a half years. So, to change the times means to change the years or
the calendar. Although Antichrist will first pretend to be Christ, yet
after he deceives the great majority, he will start blaspheming the Holy
Trinity, claiming that only he is God. He will try to wipe out anything
that will remind the people with Christ, including the current calendar
which tags the years as A.D. (Anno Domini, the year of the Lord.)
Satan has started to prepare humanity for this. For, even now,
politically correct writers, journalists and politicians have stopped using
A.D., exchanging it for C.E. (Common Era) Antitheotokos is preparing
her followers for the “new times” that Antichrist will announce:
Prepare yourselves to live the Pasch of the new times. It is the Pasch
prepared for you. It is the Pasch that awaits you at the end of the
gloomy period of purification and the great tribulation in which you
are now living.
Soon, my sons, a new date will be celebrated.
Antitheotokos even gives a hint of the new calendar that will be
enforced when Antichrist establishes his kingdom, “New Era.” The
term currently in use now, “Common Era” is an intermediate name that
I feel very strongly will be changed to “New Era” The fact that
computers recognize only two digits for the year will make this change
ANTITHEOTOKOS
very “logical.” Since computers will recognize the year 2001 as the year
“01" why bother calling the year “2001 A.D.” or even “2001 C.E.?”
Why not call it the year “01 N.E.”? I base my predictions on the sayings
of Antitheotokos:
In these days, Jesus is working in a very powerful way in every part
of the world, to carry out the plan of his merciful love. For the
present, this plan is hidden and enclosed in the secret of his divine
heart. Today it is being revealed only to the little, to the simple, to
the poor, to the pure of heart. With these little ones, which he is
gathering from every part of the earth, Jesus will soon restore his
reign of glory. This is the road which leads to the new era.
From the chalice of sufferings never experienced until now, there
will come forth the divine sun of a new era, of a humanity heretofore
unknown, of grace and holiness, of love and justice, of joy and peace.
The new era which I am preparing for you, coincides with the defeat
of Satan and of his universal reign. All his power is destroyed. He
is bound with all the wicked spirits, and shut up in hell from which
he will not be able to get out to do harm in the world.
THE ROLE OF ANTITHEOTOKOS:
It seems that this coming of Jesus to rule on earth (really meaning
the coming of Antichrist pretending to be Christ coming for his
Millennial rule) will be associated with the appearance of
Antitheotokos, (probably as the false prophetess):
Even in this second coming, the Son will come to you through his
Mother. As the Word of the Father made use of my virginal womb
to come to you, so also will Jesus make use of my Immaculate Heart
to come and reign in your midst.
I am the Mother of the Second Advent. Allow yourselves therefore
to be formed and prepared by me , so that you can be ready to
receive Jesus, who will come in Glory to restore among you his reign
of love holiness, justice and peace.
Interpretation: I am the herald of the coming of Antichrist! Allow
yourselves to be fooled and deceived by me, so that you can be ready to
receive Antichrist, who will come in a false show of glory to restore
among you the reign of Satan, vanquished by Christ on the Cross!
ANTITHEOTOKOS
Antitheotokos even promises to “come down from heaven” to announce
the Second Coming of her son (Antichrist)!
I myself will come down from heaven to place myself at the head of
the cohort of my beloved sons.
For this reason, I invite you all today to follow me as your heavenly
Mother who am coming down from heaven in order that I myself
may become in these times, your salvation and your sure liberation.
It is passages like this that make me tremble. The thought of a false,
but convincing apparition of someone (or something) claiming to be the
Virgin announcing the coming of the “Son” to reign on earth makes me
very uncomfortable, given the gullibility of our people concerning
reported apparitions especially of the Virgin.
The more I read the false prophecies of Antitheotokos, the more
I become convinced that the second beast of Revelation 13:11 will be
a woman impersonating the holy Virgin, an Antitheotokos in the role
of false prophetess. Satan is the author of political correctness, and
this would be the politically correct thing to do!
Our Lord said, if someone tells you Christ is here or there, believe
it not and do not go. May I humbly add, if someone tells you the Virgin
is here or there, believe it not and do not go.
HIS BEGINNINGS1
The ancient writers of the Church agree that the Abomination of
Desolation, Antichrist, will be a Jew from the Tribe of Dan. They site
many Biblical verses to prove their point.
As the Lord Jesus Christ made His sojourn with us in the flesh (which
He received) from the holy, immaculate Virgin, and took to Himself the
tribe of Judah, and came forth from it, the Scripture declared His royal
lineage in the word of Jacob, when in his benediction he addressed
himself to his son in these terms: ‘Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren
shall praise: thy hands shall be on the neck of thine enemies; thy father's
children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp; from a
sprout, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a
lion, and as a lion's whelp: who shall rouse him up? A ruler shall not
depart from Judah, nor a leader from his thighs, until what is in store
for him shall come, and he is the expectation of the nations.’(Gen 49:
8-10) Mark these words of Jacob which were spoken to Judah, and are
fulfilled in the Lord. To the same effect, moreover, does the patriarch
express himself regarding Antichrist. Wherefore, as he prophesied with
respect to Judah, so did he also with respect to his son Dan. For Judah
was his fourth son; and Dan, again, was his seventh son. And what, then,
did he say of him? ‘Let Dan be a serpent sitting by the way, that biteth
the horse's heel’ (Gen 49:17) And what serpent was there but the
deceiver from the beginning, he who is named in Genesis, he who
deceived Eve, and bruised Adam in the heel?2
Note that the Tribe of Dan was the first among the Tribes of Israel to
embrace idiolatry. (Judg 18:30-31)
And in like manner also we find it written regarding Antichrist. For
Moses speaks thus: “Dan is a lion's whelp, and he shall leap from
Bashan.” (Deut 33:22) But that no one may err by supposing that this
is said of the Saviour, let him attend carefully to the matter. Dan, he
says, is a lion's whelp; and in naming the tribe of Dan, he declared
clearly the tribe from which Antichrist is destined to spring. For as
1Published: December, 2000
2Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the world and on Antichrist
HIS BEGINNINGS
Christ springs from the tribe of Judah, so Antichrist is to spring from
the tribe of Dan.1
Note that both Christ and Antichrist were likened to a “lion’s whelp.”
Saint Hippolytus2 explains this by saying that Antichrist wants to mimic
Christ in everything, Christ is likened to a lion, he is also likened to a
lion. Christ is the “Lion from the Tribe of Judah” (Rev 5:5) and
Antichrist is the “lion from the Tribe of Dan.” Note also that the Devil
has also been likened to a lion. (I Pe 5:8)
‘That it is in reality out of the tribe of Dan, then, that tyrant and king,
that dread judge, that son of the devil, is destined to spring and arise,
the prophet testifies when he says, Dan shall judge his people, as (he is)
also one tribe in Israel.’(Gen 49:16) But some one may say that this
refers to Samson, who sprang from the tribe of Dan, and judged the
people twenty years. Well, the prophecy had its partial fulfilment in
Samson, but its complete fulfilment is reserved for Antichrist.3
Revelation 7:5-8 recounts the sealing of the elect, in giving the names
of the tribes of Israel, the Tribe of Dan is excluded.
And Jeremiah does not merely point out his sudden coming, but he
even indicates the tribe from which he shall come, where he says, “We
shall hear the voice of his swift horses from Dan; the whole earth shall
be moved by the voice of the neighing of his galloping horses: he shall
also come and devour the earth, and the fulness thereof, the city also,
and they that dwell therein.” (Jer 8:16) This, too, is the reason that this
tribe is not reckoned in the Apocalypse along with those which are
saved.4
1Hippolytus: Treatise on Christ and Antichrist
2Saint Hyppolitus is recognized in our Coptic Synaxarion, his
feast day is the 6th day of Meshir
3Hippolytus: Treatise on Christ and Antichrist
4Irenaeus: Against heresies, Book V
HIS BEGINNINGS
THE THREE KINGS:
Although Antichrist will enter the world stage peacefully, yet we are
told that he shall “subdue three kings.” (Dan 7:24) This is presented to
us symbolically in this manner, “After this I saw in the night visions, and
behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly;
and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and
stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the
beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns,
and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before
whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and,
behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth
speaking great things.”(Dan 7:7-8) The little horn is no doubt no other
than Antichrist, and the three horns that were plucked out by the root
are the three kings whom he will subdue. (Dan 7:24) Here is how Saint
Hippolytus characterizes these three kings:
“Another little horn shall rise, which is that of Antichrist. And it shall
pluck by the roots the three others before it; that is to say, he shall
subvert the three kings of Egypt, Libya, and Ethiopia, with the view of
acquiring for himself universal dominion.1
Saint Hippolytus bases his view on Daniel 11:42-43, where we are told
that, “He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the
land of Egypt shall not escape. But he shall have power over the
treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt:
and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.” We have
previously alluded to the fact that “Ethiopia” is a misnomer, for it is a
translation of the Greek “Kush,” which is defined for us by most text
books as “the land to the south of Egypt,” which is present day Sudan.
Why would Antichrist single out these three countries for military
invasion? None of the ancient writers of the Church tells us. So, let us
speculate! Lybia and the Sudan are the only two countries today with
a truly Islamic government. They are considered as trouble making
countries. It would seem that such activist governments should be out
of the way if Antichrist is to have dominance in the middle east, and by
virtue of the money and petroleum in the area, on the world. But Egypt
1Hippolytus: Scholia on Daniel
HIS BEGINNINGS
is a peace seeking country that is respected in the world, so, why is it
necessary for Antichrist to invade Egypt? In my own personal view, it
is the Church of Egypt, the largest and strongest church in the Middle
East that Antichrist has to subdue before he can dominate the area.
Twenty five years ago, the late fundamentalist Moslem leader of Iran
Ayatullah Khomeiny was asked by a journalist, “what do you think is
the greatest danger that faces Islam in the world?” The anticipated
answer was the U.S.A. “The great Satan,” but, surprisingly enough,
Khomeiny told him, “the church of Egypt!” Khomeiny saw in the
U.S.A. a corrupt worldly society that cannot adversely influence Islam.
But, in the Coptic Church, he saw a church awakening from its
centuries long sleep, starting to resume its role as teacher and
missionary, and he felt that this is the greatest challenge to Islam.
Satan is a very intelligent being and he knows that unless he stifles
this church, his representative on earth (Antichrist) cannot spread his
influence in the Middle East. But, our all knowing God has other plans
for His church in Egypt. For over the last third of a century, the Lord
has been transplanting the church of Egypt, and indeed the church in
the Middle East in the “wilderness of this world.” The unprecedented
exodus of Christians out of the Middle East has been discussed earlier
in a previous chapter. It is made very clear to us in Revelation 12,
where we are told the woman (the church) will be given the two wings
of a great eagle (A jumbo jet?) that she might fly into the wilderness,
where she is nourished for the duration of the reign of Antichrist. (Rev
12:14)
Someone may ask, how can we reconcile Daniel’s warning that “the
land of Egypt shall not escape with God’s blessing in Isaiah, “Blessed
be Egypt my people?” (Isa 19:25) In my own personal view, there is no
contradiction between the two. In Isaiah, the Lord blesses His people
in Egypt. The blessing is for the people of Egypt, wherever they may be.
And, if it is the will of God to say to His people Egypt, “Get thee out of
thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a
land that I will shew thee ... and I will bless thee ...,” (Gen 12:1-2) then
the blessing of God promised of old will certainly follow, even as the
blessing of God followed Abraham when he left his own country to go
to the Land of Canaan.
The blessing of the Lord promised in Isaiah has been fulfilled. Look
at the number of churches and schools we now have in every continent
HIS BEGINNINGS
on Earth. God Almighty had foiled Satan’s plans, for, if it is according
to God’s will that Antichrist would persecute the Church universal
including the church of Egypt, and this we know from reading the
scripture, “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints and
to overcome them.” (Rev 13:7) then what God has been doing over the
last 40 years, is in keeping with God’s blessing for Egypt His people.
I feel very strongly that this transplanting of the church outside
Egypt is one more sign that perhaps the things we have been meditating
on are not for the very distant future.
THE TWO WITNESSES:
The Book of Revelation tells us that shortly before Antichrist’s rise
to power, two witnesses will be sent to warn the world against him:
And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a
thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These
are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the
God of the earth. And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out
of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt
them, he must in this manner be killed. These have power to shut
heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power
over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all
plagues, as often as they will. And when they shall have finished their
testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make
war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their
dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is
called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. And they
of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead
bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to
be put in graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over
them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because
these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth. And after
three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them,
and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw
them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them,
Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their
enemies beheld them. And the same hour was there a great
earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake
were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and
gave glory to the God of heaven. (Rev 11:3-13)
HIS BEGINNINGS
Most of the Fathers of the Church believe these two witnesses to be
Enoch and Elias (Elijah) which will come to earth to warn people not
to follow the deceiver (Antichrist). There are many reasons for this.
First is the fact that Enoch and Elias did not die, but were translated to
heaven alive. (Gen 5:24, 2 Kgs 2:11) The second is the allusion to their
power to “shut heaven that it rain not in the days of their prophecy,”
something Elijah already did during his earthly ministry (1 Kgs 17:1,
Jas 5:17)
The fire that proceeds from their mouth and devours their enemies,
is symbolic of their fiery speeches that no one will be able to contradict.
“The beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit” is none other than
Antichrist, who will be opposed by the two witnesses. Ultimately, he
will seize them and kill them and they will be left unburied for the
whole world to see. The city which is called Sodom and Egypt where
also our Lord was crucified is Jerusalem, which will become the seat of
Antichrist. It is called Sodom because under the rule of Antichrist, the
holy city will become an abomination, since there Antichrist will be
worshipped instead of God. It is also symbolically called Egypt because
like Egypt in the time of Moses persecuted God’s people, so will
Jerusalem become the centre from which Antichrist will give orders to
persecute the Church. We are also told that “they of the people and
kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days
and an half.” This would not have been possible during the time of the
writing of Revelations, but today, with satellite communications, the
whole world can watch this great spectacle on CNN!
We are also told that after three and a half days (symbolic) they will
be resurrected and taken to heaven. A great earthquake will shake the
city of Jerusalem, and “the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to
the God of heaven.” Here we find an allusion to the conversion of the
“remnant of Israel” that St. Paul spoke of, “Though the number of the
children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be
saved.”(Rom 9:27) When the Jews see what happens to the two
prophets, their resurrection and ascension, and the great earthquake,
the “remnant” will believe on Christ.
For when the threescore and two weeks are fulfilled, and Christ is come,
and the Gospel is preached in every place, the times being then
accomplished, there will remain only one week, the last, in which Elias
HIS BEGINNINGS
will appear, and Enoch, and in the midst of it the abomination of
desolation will be manifested, viz., Antichrist, announcing desolation to
the world. And when he comes, the sacrifice and oblation will be
removed, which now are offered to God in every place by the nations.1
But Enoch and Elias the Thesbite shall be sent and shall turn the hearts
of the fathers to the children, (Mal 4:5-6) that is, the synagogue to our
Lord Jesus Christ and the preaching of the apostles: and they will be
destroyed by him. And the Lord shall come out of heaven, just as the
holy apostles beheld Him going into heaven perfect God and perfect
man, with glory and power, and will destroy the man of lawlessness, the
son of destruction, with the breath of His mouth (II Thes 2:8). Let no
one, therefore, look for the Lord to come from earth, but out of
Heaven, as He himself has made sure.2
Most of the other fathers are in agreement that the “two witnesses” are
Enoch and Elijah. They site Malachi 4:5-6 (above). They feel this
prophesy had its fulfillment in the coming of John the Baptist “in the
spirit and power of Elias” (Luke 1:17) as a fore-runner for the first
coming, and will also be fulfilled in the coming of Enoch and Elijah
(Elias) as fore-runners for the second coming of Christ. The two
witnesses will come to warn the world against the deceit of Antichrist.
Some claim that Elias will come to warn the Jews and Enoch to warn
the gentiles.
For this is what the prophets Enoch and Elias will preach, ‘Believe not
the enemy who is to come and be seen; for he is an adversary and
corrupter and son of perdition, and deceives you;’ and for this reason
he will kill them, and smite them with the sword.3
THE MYSTERY OF INIQUITY:
As early as the year 55 A.D., false teachings concerning the second
coming of our Lord started to be circulated in the church. This
prompted St. Paul to write his second epistle to the Thessalonians,
1Hyppolytus: Scholia on Daniel
2John Damascene: Expounding the Orthodox faith
3Hippolytus: Discourse on the end of the world and on Antichrist
HIS BEGINNINGS
explaining the relationship between the second coming of Christ and
the coming of Antichrist:
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come,
except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed,
the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that
is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the
temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that,
when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what
withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of
iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be
taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the
Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with
the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the
working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with
all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they
received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this
cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a
lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had
pleasure in unrighteousness. (II Th 2:3-12)
The facts that St. Paul brings to the remembrance of the Thessalonians
are these: (he tells them “remember ye not, that, when I was with you
I told you these things?):
1. The second coming of Christ must be preceded by the manifestation
of Antichrist. (man of sin, son of perdition, etc...).
2. Antichrist will come with Satanic power and signs and lying wonders
to deceive those that were going to perish anyway, those who refuse
to be saved by the truth.
3. Antichrist will sit in the temple of God (the Church, not the temple
of the Jews) and be worshipped as god (the Apostasy).
4. Antichrist will be working “under cover” until such a time that
“something which withholds” or prevents his appearance be “taken
out of the way.”
St. Paul must have told the Thessalonians about what withholds or
prevents Antichrist from manifesting himself until it is removed out of
the way, for he is reminding them of things that he already taught them
when he was with them. It is unfortunate that we don’t know what St.
Paul told the Thessalonians concerning the thing which withholds and
HIS BEGINNINGS
that has to be taken out of the way so that Antichrist can manifest
himself. Ancient writers of the Church speculated on this matter.
What then is it that withholdeth, that is, hindereth him from being
revealed? Some indeed say, the grace of the Spirit, but others the
Roman empire, to whom I most of all accede. Wherefore? Because if
he meant to say the Spirit, he would not have spoken obscurely, but
plainly, that even now the grace of the Spirit, that is the gifts, withhold
him. And otherwise he ought now to have come, if he was about to
come when the gifts ceased; for they have long since ceased.1
Saint John Chrysostom is discussing the two views that were prevalent
in his time. One view is that the graces or gifts of the Holy Spirit have
to be lifted out of the world before Antichrist reveals himself. He
rejects this interpretation based on the fact that the gifts had already
ceased in the time of Chrysostom and Antichrist did not make his
appearance. The second view, which he favours is that The Roman
Empire had to be taken out of the way before Antichrist appears, a view
that is also held by St. Augustine:
For what does he mean by "For the mystery of iniquity doth already
work: only he who now holdeth, let him hold until he be taken out of
the way: and then shall the wicked be revealed?" I frankly confess I do
not know what he means. I will nevertheless mention such conjectures
as I have heard or read. Some think that the Apostle Paul referred to
the Roman empire, and that he was unwilling to use language more
explicit, lest he should incur the calumnious charge of wishing ill to the
empire which it was hoped would be eternal.2
However, using the same argument, we can say, that the Roman
Empire disappeared 10 centuries ago and Antichrist has not yet
revealed himself! That brings us back to square one, that we don’t
know, from the speculations of the early Church interpreters what St.
Paul meant by “what withholdeth” and what has to be taken out of the
way before Antichrist makes his appearance.
1John Chrysostom: Homily on II Thessalonians
2Augustin of Hippo: City of God, chapter 19
HIS BEGINNINGS
We can speculate about the matter, and my own personal view is that
“wisdom” is the thing that has to be taken out of the way before
Antichrist can appear and fool the whole world into believing that he
is god. I say this, because as I look around me in the world, I have a
feeling that wisdom is becoming a rarity these days! Anyone watching
the American presidential election soap opera will agree with this view!
The Canadian election campaign is not any less insane, nor is the
situation in the Middle East, or the convulsions of the financial
markets.
Then shall intelligence hide itself, and wisdom withdraw to its chambers,
by many it shall be sought and not found.1
And many shall say to many at that time, Where hath the multitude of
intelligence hidden itself, and whither has the multitude of wisdom
hidden itself?2
We can also speculate that it is righteousness that has to be lifted out
of the way before Antichrist appears.
And the little horn, which is Antichrist, shall appear suddenly in their
midst, and righteousness shall be banished from the earth, and the
whole world shall reach its consummation.3
One land shall also ask another and say, Is righteousness passed
through thee? And it shall answer, No.4
1IV Esedras: (1st century A.D.)
2II Baruch (1st century A.D.)
3Hippolytus: Scholia on Daniel
4IV Esedras
THE GREAT TRIBULATION1
Daniel 12:1 tells us, “And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never
was since there was a nation even to that same time.” The same grim
prediction is repeated to us by the Lord in Matthew 24:21-22, “For then
shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the
world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should
be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake
those days shall be shortened.” The Book of Revelation 7:14-17 gives
us further details about this Great Tribulation, “And he said to me,
These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed
their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore
are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his
temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They
shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light
on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the
throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of
waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”
This Great Tribulation will shortly precede the second coming of
our Lord to gather His elect unto His eternal kingdom as we are told,
in Matthew 24:29-31, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days
shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the
stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be
shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven:
and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the
Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they
shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other.”
It follows that this Great Tribulation will by necessity coincide with
the universal rule of the Abomination of Desolation, that Man of Sin,
“Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or
that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God,
shewing himself that he is God.” (II Th 2:4)
1Published: March, 2001
GREAT TRIBULATION
To be precise, the Great Tribulation will coincide with the latter part
of the rule of Antichrist. The early part of the rule of the deceiver will
actually be like a honeymoon for the inhabitants of the earth:
Progress will have reached an apex and the fight against illnesses and
disease will be reaching such an advanced stage that it will seem as if
even death would soon be conquered.1
Wealth and material prosperity will be everywhere, and people will see
an earthly paradise emerging under the rule of Antichrist, that they will
acknowledge him as God and saviour of the human race. The many
miracles that he will perform will completely dazzle a spiritually blind
world and lead to the sad situation predicted in Revelation 13:3-8:
and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the
dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the
beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with
him? ... and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and
nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose
names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the
foundation of the world.
When Antichrist is acknowledged as God by all those whose names are
not written in the Book of Life, all other religions will be outlawed,
Christian churches will be confiscated and turned into centres for the
worship of the new “God.” The Liturgy of the Eucharist as well as other
Christian services will have to cease as we are told by the Fathers:
And the churches, too, will wail with a mighty lamentation, because
neither oblation nor incense is attended to, nor a service acceptable to
God; but the sanctuaries of the churches will become like a
garden-watcher's hut, and the holy body and blood of Christ will not be
shown in those days. The public service of God shall be extinguished,
psalmody shall cease, the reading of the Scriptures shall not be heard.2
1Pohalo and Novakshonoff: Apostasy and Antichrist.
2Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
GREAT TRIBULATION
Modern Orthodox commentators echo the same view:
At the same time, the Christian sanctuary will be closed and in
it will be placed an idol of Antichrist, a lifelike, speaking statue.
This was called "the abomination of desolation" by the prophet
Daniel. From that time on, the bloodless sacrifice of the
Eucharist will cease on earth.1
This view is not without Biblical support, for in Daniel 8:11 we are told,
“Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him
the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was
cast down.” Daniel 11:31 reiterates this, “And arms shall stand on his
part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take
away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that
maketh desolate.” In these verses the “sanctuary of strength” refers to
the Christian sanctuary and the “daily sacrifice” refers to the
Eucharistic bloodless sacrifice.
It is at this point that the Great Tribulation will start, for we are told
in Daniel 12:11, “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be
taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there
shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” The abomination
that maketh desolate is the talking idol that will be placed in the
Christian sanctuary for people to worship instead of Christ. This is
alluded to in Revelation 13:15, “And he had power to give life unto the
image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and
cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should
be killed.” The thousand two hundred and ninety days is the symbolic
time of the Great Tribulation which is the same as the “time and times
and the dividing of times” of Daniel 7:25 and the “forty two months” of
Revelation 13:5. This period of three and a half year is not to be taken
literally for as with many numbers in the apocalyptic scriptures they are
symbolic. If seven is the symbol of perfection or completion then three
and a half represents imperfection or a time that will not be completed
or shortened. This agrees with the Lord’s assertion that, “except those
days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the
elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” (Mat 24:22)
1Pohalo and Novakshonoff: Apostasy and Antichrist.
GREAT TRIBULATION
The worship of Antichrist in the Christian sanctuary is mentioned by St.
Paul, “Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God,
or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God,
shewing himself that he is God.” (II Th 2:4) “The temple of God” refers
to the Christian sanctuary and not the temple of the Jews in Jerusalem,
for St. Paul would not call the temple of Jerusalem “the temple of
God.”
Our Lord also told us about this, “When ye therefore shall see the
abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in
the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them
which be in Judea flee into the mountains.” (Matt 24:15-16) The
abomination of desolation is the speaking idol of Antichrist that will
stand in every church. Again, the Lord would not refer to the temple
of Jerusalem as “the holy place” but rather to the church.
As soon as the worship of Antichrist starts in the churches, the
Great Tribulation will immediately start. The earthly paradise which
the worshippers of Antichrist thought would last till eternity suddenly
turns into hell on earth:
Then, after all these things, the heavens will not give their dew, the
clouds will not give their rain, the earth will refuse to yield its fruits, the
sea shall be filled with stench, the rivers shall be dried up, the fish of the
sea shall die, men shall perish of hunger and thirst; and father
embracing son, and mother embracing daughter, will die together, and
there will be none to bury them. But the whole earth will be filled with
the stench arising from the dead bodies cast forth. And the sea, not
receiving the floods of the rivers, will become like mire, and will be
filled with an unlimited smell and stench. Then there will be a mighty
pestilence upon the whole earth, and then, too, inconsolable
lamentation, and measureless weeping, and unceasing mourning. Then
men will deem those happy who are dead before them, and will say to
them, “Open your sepulchres, and take us miserable beings in; open
your receptacles for the reception of your wretched kinsmen and
acquaintances. Happy are ye, in that ye have not seen our days. Happy
are ye, in that ye have not had to witness this painful life of ours, nor
this irremediable pestilence, nor these straits that possess our souls.1
1Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
GREAT TRIBULATION
This grim description of the state of the world during the Great
Tribulation is also to be gleaned from reading Isaiah 24:1-13:
Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and
turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.
And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the
servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as
with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the
borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.
The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the LORD
hath spoken this word. The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world
languisheth and fadeth away, the haughty people of the earth do
languish. The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof;
because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken
the everlasting covenant. Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth,
and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the
earth are burned, and few men left. The new wine mourneth, the vine
languisheth, all the merryhearted do sigh. The mirth of tabrets ceaseth,
the noise of them that rejoice endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth. They
shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that
drink it. The city of confusion is broken down: every house is shut up,
that no man may come in. There is a crying for wine in the streets; all
joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone. In the city is left
desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction. When thus it shall
be in the midst of the land among the people, there shall be as the
shaking of an olive tree, and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is
done.
The Book of Revelation tells us that the two prophets Enoch and Elijah
(Elias) will be sent by God to warn the people of the earth against the
deceit of Antichrist. But, few will heed the warning, only those “whose
names are written in the Book of Life” will listen, the rest of the world
will mock them and despise them. It is possible that the two prophets,
will then cause all these calamities to fall on the apostate world, for we
are told in Revelation 11:6, that “These have power to shut heaven, that
it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to
turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as
they will.” We are also told that, “these two prophets tormented them
that dwelt on the earth.”(Rev 11:10)
GREAT TRIBULATION
A major reason for the misery of the people who accepted Antichrist
as their God and saviour is their realization that they have been
deceived by the devil and that not only have they condemned
themselves to a life of misery on Earth but also to eternal damnation in:
When men have received the seal, then, and find neither food nor
water, they will approach him with a voice of anguish, saying, Give us to
eat and drink, for we all faint with hunger and all manner of straits; and
bid the heavens yield us water, and drive off from us the beasts that
devour men. Then will that crafty one make answer, mocking them with
absolute inhumanity, and saying, The heavens refuse to give rain, the
earth yields not again its fruits; whence then can I give you food? Then,
on hearing the words of this deceiver, these miserable men will perceive
that this is the wicked accuser, and will mourn in anguish, and weep
vehemently, and beat their face with their hands, and tear their hair,
and lacerate their cheeks with their nails, while they say to each other:
Woe for the calamity! woe for the bitter contract! woe for the deceitful
covenant! woe for the mighty mischance! How have we been beguiled
by the deceiver! how have we been joined to him! how have we been
caught in his toils! how have we been taken in his abominable net! how
have we heard the Scriptures, and understood them not!1
It is not possible for anyone who accepts Antichrist to retract or repent,
for Revelation 14:9-11 tells us that these people have already been
warned by God about their fate, “And the third angel followed them,
saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image,
and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall
drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without
mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with
fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the
presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up
for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the
beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.”
And he will put his mark on their right hand and on their forehead, that
no one may put the sign of the honourable cross upon his forehead with
his right hand; but his hand is bound. And from that time he shall not
1Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
GREAT TRIBULATION
have power to seal any one of his members, but he shall be attached to
the deceiver, and shall serve him; and in him there is no repentance.
But such an one is lost at once to God and to men.1
Saint Hippolytus continues to describe the misery of those people:
Observe, also, how hard the season and the times will be that are to
come upon those in city and country alike. At that time they will be
brought from the east even unto the west; and they will come up from
the west even unto the east, and will weep greatly and wail vehemently.
And when the day begins to dawn they will long for the night, in order
that they may find rest from their labours; and when the night descends
upon them, by reason of the continuous earthquakes and the tempests
in the air, they will desire even to behold the light of the day, and will
seek how they may hereafter meet a bitter death. At that time the
whole earth will bewail the life of anguish, and the sea and air in like
manner will bewail it; and the sun, too, will wail; and the wild beasts,
together with the fowls, will wail; mountains and hills, and the trees of
the plain, will wail on account of the race of man, because all have
turned aside from the holy God, and obeyed the deceiver, and received
the mark of that abominable one, the enemy of God, instead of the
quickening cross of the Saviour, but for men there shall be darkness,
and lamentation on lamentation, and woe on woe. At that time silver
and gold shall be cast out in the streets, and none shall gather them; but
all things shall be held an offence. For all shall be eager to escape and
to hide themselves, and they shall not be able anywhere to find
concealment from the woes of the adversary; but as they carry his mark
about them, they shall be readily recognised and declared to be his.
Without there shall be fear, and within trembling, both by night and by
day. In the street and in the houses there shall be the dead; in the
streets and in the houses there shall be hunger and thirst; in the streets
there shall be tumults, and in the houses lamentations. And beauty of
countenance shall be withered, for their forms shall be like those of the
dead; and the beauty of women shall fade, and the desire of all men
shall vanish.2
1Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
2Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
GREAT TRIBULATION
Amid all of the doom and the gloom I am sure that our dear reader
must be wondering, “what about those who refuse to worship
Antichrist?” The answer to this question is actually found in the
scriptures. First and foremost, the Lord who warned us about the
Great Tribulation gave us very specific instructions about what to do
then:
When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of
by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him
understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out
of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his
clothes. (Matt 24:15-18)
Interpretation: when you see Antichrist being worshipped in the
churches, then run for your life! The Lord does not want us to resist
Antichrist or fight against him but to run from him. For great will be
the power he is given. “And it was given unto him to make war with the
saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all
kindreds, and tongues, and nations.” ( Rev 13:7)
For this cause the Lord knowing the greatness of the adversary grants
indulgence to the godly, saying, Then let them which be in Judaea flee
to the mountains. But if any man is conscious that he is very
stout-hearted, to encounter Satan, let him stand (for I do not despair of
the Church's nerves), and let him say, Who shall separate us from the
love of Christ and the rest? But, let those of us who are fearful provide
for our own safety; and those who are of a good courage, stand fast: for
then shall be great tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning
of the world until now, no, nor ever shall be.1
Some Christians will be called to witness to the Lord and become
martyrs. The first among those will be the two prophets Enoch and
Elijah:
And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that
ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and
1St. Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical lectures
GREAT TRIBULATION
shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall lie in
the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt,
where also our Lord was crucified. And they of the people and kindreds
and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an
half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. And they
that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and
shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented
them that dwelt on the earth. And after three days and an half the Spirit
of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and
great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice
from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up
to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them. And the same
hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell,
and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the
remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven. (Rev
11:7-13)
Those who are called to the glory of martyrdom will also be tortured
and killed. Great will be the strife of those blessed ones, but great also
will be their reward:
Blessed shall they be who overcome the tyrant then. For they shall be
set forth as more illustrious and loftier than the first witnesses; for the
former witnesses overcame his minions only, but these overthrow and
conquer the accuser himself, the son of perdition. With what eulogies
and crowns, therefore, will they not be adorned by our King, Jesus
Christ!1
Who then is the blessed man, that shall at that time devoutly witness for
Christ? For I say that the Martyrs of that time excel all martyrs. For the
Martyrs hitherto have wrestled with men only; but in the time of
Antichrist they shall do battle with Satan in his own person. And former
persecuting kings only put to death; they did not pretend to raise the
dead, nor did they make false shows of signs and wonders. But in his
time there shall be the evil inducement both of fear and of deceit, so
that if it be possible the very elect shall be deceived.2
1Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
2St. Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical lectures
GREAT TRIBULATION
The great majority of the faithful will however, heed the Lord’s advice
to flee from the tyrant. This admonition to flea and hide is also given
to us in the Old Testament, “Come, my people, enter thou into thy
chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a
little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the
LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth
for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no
more cover her slain.” (Isa 26:20-21)
Observe how the Lord describes the time as “for a little moment”
for, the Lord is true to His promise that the time of the tribulation shall
be shortened for the sake of the elect.
THE CHURCH IN EXILE:
Revelation 12 gives us a description of the Church during the Great
Tribulation.
And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with
the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of
twelve stars: And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and
pained to be delivered. And there appeared another wonder in heaven;
and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and
seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the
stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood
before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her
child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who
was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up
unto God, and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness,
where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there
a thousand two hundred and threescore days. And there was war in
heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the
dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place
found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old
serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world:
he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and
strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for
the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our
God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb,
and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto
the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them.
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Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come
down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath
but a short time. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the
earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might
fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time,
and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. And the
serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he
might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped
the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the
flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was
wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her
seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony
of Jesus Christ.
The chapter describes the exile of the Church (the woman) at the time
of the Great Tribulation. There are many points that we ought to
meditate on.
The woman (symbolizing the Church) is being persecuted by the
serpent (Satan), so she flees to the wilderness “where she hath a place
prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two
hundred and threescore days.” It is very comforting to know that
during the Great Tribulation, God has a place prepared for the church
where she can find refuge, and where she will be looked after (fed) for
the whole duration of the Tribulation (a thousand two hundred and
threescore days.) The word “wilderness” does not necessarily mean a
desert place, but rather a solitary place, a kind of a retreat. This
corresponds to the admonition of our Lord that we flea to the
mountains. Again mountains here are not to be taken literally, but
rather in the sense of taking the “high ground.” The Old Testament has
several allusions to this flight of the Church into the “wilderness”:
Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman
in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt
dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; there shalt thou be
delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine
enemies. (Mic 4:9-13)
Observe the similarity in the image of the Church, “And she being with
child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered” and “Be in
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pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in
travail.” Again, observe the theme of exile (going out of the city.) But
the most important point is that the object of this exile is, “there shalt
thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of
thine enemies.”
The going of the Church into exile during the Great Tribulation is
also likened to the going of the Church of the Old Testament out of
Egypt into the wilderness, where for forty years the Lord had provided
for His people, before bringing them into the promised land:
Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell
therein, for the fruit of their doings. Feed thy people with thy rod, the
flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the midst
of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.
According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew
unto him marvellous things. The nations shall see and be confounded
at all their might: they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears
shall be deaf. They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out
of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the LORD
our God, and shall fear because of thee. (Mic 7:13-17)
After describing the desolation of the land during the Great
Tribulation, and explaining that this is because of “them that dwell
therein, for the fruit of their doing,” the prophet implores the Lord to
feed His people who dwell solitarily in the wood ... as in the days of old.
Then comes the Lord’s response to the prophet that He will show the
same marvellous things He had shown at the time of the coming of
Israel out of Egypt. The prophet then describes the astonishment of
the nations when they see how the Lord protects His people with a
strong arm. In Revelation 12, we are told that when the serpent (Satan)
tries to reach to the Church in exile by casting out of his mouth water as
a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the
flood, the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and
swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. The
Fathers explain this passage as follows: when Satan acting through
Antichrist sees that the Church is living safely in her place of exile, he
will try to attack her using all the people at his disposal (symbolized by
the water as a flood,) but God will miraculously save the Church, to the
astonishment of the nations around the world.
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The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the
desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom
abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon
shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall
see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God. Strengthen
ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are
of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with
vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you.
(Isa 35:1-4)
The prophet here describes the place of exile of the Church (the
wilderness and the solitary place) as rejoicing at the coming of the
Church into it. He sees this place of exile blossoming and becoming
excellent as the land of Lebanon. It is there that the exiled Church shall
see “the glory of the Lord and the excellency of our God.” The prophet
then exhorts the exiled to encourage one another and strengthen the
weak among them by reminding them of the imminent coming of the
Lord, to take vengeance against their enemies and to save them.
The Church in exile will be subject to varied emotions, fear,
faintheartedness, weakened faith and lack of hope at times, but God
will always be there to comfort His bride who is living in exile.
Saint Augustine feels that Psalm 10 pertains to the Church during
the Great Tribulation:
And because it is believed that he is to arrive at so great a pitch of
empty glory, and he will be permitted to do so great things, both against
all men and against the Saints of God, that then some weak ones shall
indeed think that God cares not for human affairs, the Psalmist
interposing a diapsalma, adds as it were the voice of men groaning and
asking why judgment is deferred, “Why standest thou afar off, O
LORD? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?” (Ps 10:1)
Commenting on Verse 10, Saint Augustine compares the Church
during the Great Tribulation to the disciples when they were in a ship
and “there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was
covered with the waves: but he was asleep And his disciples came to
him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. (Matt 8:24-25)
The Church then labouring in such times, like a ship in great waves and
tempests, awaketh the Lord as if He were sleeping, that He should
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command the winds, and calm should be restored. He says therefore,
Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up thine hand: forget not the humble.
The Lord said to the disciples when they woke Him up, “Why are ye
fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and
the sea; and there was a great calm.” (Matt 8:26) In the same manner
the lord rebukes the Church for her fears, reminding her of His promise
that He will not leave the Church comfortless. (John 14:18)
I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest
be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be
made as grass; And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath stretched
forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared
continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were
ready to destroy? and where is the fury of the oppressor?(Isa 51:12-13)
The Lord uses the same imagery of the storm tossed ship in addressing
the fearful Church promising her that no harm can come to her in spite
of the hostile world around her:
O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will
lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.
And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and
all thy borders of pleasant stones. And all thy children shall be taught
of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children. In
righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from
oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not
come near thee. Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by
me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
(Isa 54:11-15)
We have alluded to Isaiah 24 above. Verses 1-13 describe the
desolation of the earth during the time of the Great tribulation,
however verses 14-16 have a different tune to them:
They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the
LORD, they shall cry aloud from the sea. Wherefore glorify ye the
LORD in the fires, even the name of the LORD God of Israel in the
isles of the sea. From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard
songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness,
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woe unto me! the treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the
treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously. (Isa 24:14-16)
In the midst of the desolation that is taking place in the world Isaiah the
prophet is hearing people who lift up their voice and sing to the Lord.
Their voice is coming from across the sea (where the Church is in exile),
and he asks, why are you glorifying the Lord while you are in the midst
of the fire, (the tribulation) and why are you doing this in the isles (the
land across the sea)? Again he is puzzled by the fact that the songs of
glory to the righteous One (the Lord) are coming from the uttermost
parts of the earth. Then he laments the treacherous deal that has
overtaken the whole world (the deceit of Antichrist perpetrated against
most of the inhabitants of the earth.)
The imagery of the Church in the midst of the fire (the tribulation)
was not lost to the Fathers of the Church, who likened the Church
during the Great Tribulation to the three children in the fiery furnace
(Daniel 3):
For that image which was set up by Nebuchadnezzar had indeed a
height of sixty cubits, while the breadth was six cubits; on account of
which Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, when they did not worship it, were
cast into a furnace of fire, pointing out prophetically, by what happened
to them, the wrath against the righteous which shall arise towards the
[time of the] end. For that image, taken as a whole, was a prefiguring of
this man's coming, decreeing that he should undoubtedly himself alone
be worshipped by all men.1
Like the three children, the Church will be in the midst of the fiery
furnace (the Great Tribulation) and yet Christ be in her midst, and, like
the three children, she shall come out of the fiery tribulation unscathed.
The scriptures give us repeated assurances that God will protect the
elect during the Great Tribulation. In Daniel 12:1, the angel Gabriel
tells Daniel, “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince
which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time
of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same
time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall
1Irenaeus: Against heresies, Book V
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be found written in the book.”
God will give Archangel Michael charge over the Church during the
Great Tribulation. And everyone from among the people of God
whose name is written in the book (of life) shall be saved. Who are those
whose names are written in the book of life? The answer is in
Revelation 13:18, “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him,
whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from
the foundation of the world.” Those who do not worship him are the
ones whose names are written in the book of life.
The Book of Revelation gives us more assurances in this regard:
And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the
living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom
it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth,
neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our
God in their foreheads. (Rev 7:2-3)
God will seal His elect before the Great Tribulation to distinguish them
from those who accept the mark of the beast (Antichrist), so that the
plagues that will befall the earth will not harm them.
And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood,
saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them
that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple leave
out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy
city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. (Rev 11:1-2)
John was given a reed and was asked to measure the temple of God
(the Church) and the altar and those that worship in them. In the
Apocalyptic scripture, measuring assures God’s protection to the place
measured. While in the previous verses protection was offered to the
individual believers who remain faithful to their God, here protection
is again promised to the whole Church and all who remain inside her.
Those who stay in the court which is without the temple, (those who stay
in the world rather than go to exile with the Church) will not be
protected in the time of the Great Tribulation.
The Fathers of the Church concur with this view that the exiled
Church will be protected from all harm during the Great Tribulation:
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Then indicating, that these things will in no degree harm the noble and
the firm, He saith, Fear not, neither be troubled. For if ye show forth
the patience that becomes you, the dangers will not prevail over you.1
But many who are hearers of the divine Scriptures, and have them in
their hand, and keep them in mind with understanding, will escape his
imposture. For they will see clearly through his insidious appearance
and his deceitful imposture, and will flee from his hands, and betake
themselves to the mountains, and hide themselves in the caves of the
earth; and they will seek after the Friend of man with tears and a
contrite heart; and He will deliver them out of his toils, and with His
right hand He will save those from his snares who in a worthy and
righteous manner make their supplication to Him.2
For the Lord says, “And when these things begin to come to pass, then
look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. And
there shall not a hair of your head perish.3
But, the puzzling question is this, where is this place prepared by God
for His Church to sojourn in during the Great Tribulation? The
scripture does not tell us, it only gives us clues.
The first clue comes from the Lord’s admonition, “let them which be
in Judaea flee into the mountains.” (Matt 24:16) This means that
people in Israel should seek the high ground or get away as fast as
possible. This is logical since most of the Fathers agree that Antichrist
will reign from Israel and that Jerusalem will be his capital, a fact
alluded to in Revelation 11:8. Antichrist will reign primarily over the
Middle East, most of the countries in that region will voluntarily join
him except for three, which he will have to attack and subdue militarily.
We explained in our previous chapter that these three countries are
Egypt, Lybia and the Sudan. (Dan 11:42-43) We can understand from
this that the place of refuge of the Church must be as far away from the
Middle East as possible.
1St. John Chrysostom: Commentary on Matt XXIV
2Hippolytus: Discourse on end of the World and on Antichrist
3Hippolytus: Treatise on Christ and Antichrist
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We also speculated on “the ten kings, which have one mind, and shall
give their power and strength unto the beast.” (Rev 17:12-13) If the
prophecies of Revelation pertain to our present time, then it is safe to
assume that these “kings” which have one mind could represent the
countries in the European Union. We also said that St. Hippolytus calls
them “ten democracies,” an amazing designation for a saint writing in
the middle of the second century.1 If the reader accepts my theory then
Europe as a whole would not be a good place for a safe haven of the
Church, since the European countries would be in a military alliance
with Antichrist. This will become a must if Antichrist has his hands on
the petroleum rich Middle East.
Another clue comes from Isaiah’s prophesy about the Church
singing in exile, where he hears singing coming from “the isles of the
sea” and “the uttermost part of the earth”. (Isa 24:14-16) This
description could mean a place in the New World. What Isaiah heard
was singing coming from a far away land across the seas.
It is no coincidence that for the last one third of a century, Christians
have been leaving the Middle East, emigrating to Canada, U.S.A. and
Australia. In a previous article, we explained that this is the preliminary
phase of the exile of the Church that will happen in the time of the
Great Tribulation.2
Some people believe that the two prophets Enoch and Elijah will
guide the elect into that place prepared by God for the Church, where
He shall feed and protect her during the Great Tribulation.
THE CHURCH IN THE OLD WORLD:
If we accept the thesis that the place of refuge prepared by God for
His Church will be in the New World, then what about the Church in
the Old World? Saint Hippolytus paints for us a grim picture:
Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land,
strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown
by strangers. And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard,
as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.”(Isa 1:7-8)You
1St. Hippolytus was a contemporary of Origen, whom he met.
2The Abomination of Desolation (3) in Parousia December, 1998
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see, beloved, the prophet's illumination, whereby he announced that
time so many generations before. For it is not of the Jews that he spake
this word of old, nor of the city of Zion, but of the Church. For all the
prophets have declared Sion to be the bride brought from the nations.1
St. Hippolytus sees in the opening verses of Isaiah a picture of the
Church in the Old World under the tyranny of Antichrist. The first
part of the prophecy pertains to the desolation of the countries under
the rule of Antichrist, but the part concerning the daughter of Zion
pertains to the Church which will be besieged.
It is not conceivable that all Christians would go into exile
(presumably somewhere in the New World.) Many Christians will
remain in the Middle East and Europe, so what is to become of them?
Revelation 12:15-17 tells us:
And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman,
that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth
helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up
the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was
wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her
seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony
of Jesus Christ.
When Antichrist fails to assail the Church that has gone into exile,
through the miraculous intervention of God, who ordered His Church
to flee away from the Abomination of Desolation (Matt 24:15-16,) he
will be enraged and will persecute “the remnant of her seed,” those who
could not go to exile but remained behind. What will happen to those?
Unfortunately, the great majority will apostatize and follow the
deceiver, in fulfilment of the Lord’s prophecy, “when the Son of Man
cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8) Many will
certainly confess Christ and be tortured and killed by the Abomination
of Desolation, and will join those who overcame Satan and his
Antichrist, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by
the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the
death.” (Rev 12:11)
1Hippolytus of Rome: Discourse on end of the World and on
Antichrist
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WHY GOD ALLOWS THIS TO HAPPEN?
The Fathers struggled with this difficult question, here is what they
tell us concerning this:
Why then, you say, did God permit this to be? and what dispensation is
this? And what is the advantage of his coming, if it takes place for the
ruin of our race? Fear not, beloved, but hear Him saying, "In them that
are perishing," he hath strength, who, even if he had not come, would
not have believed. What then is the advantage? That these very men
who are perishing will be put to silence. How? Because both if he had
come, and if he had not come, they would not have believed in Christ;
He comes therefore to convict them.1
St. Irenaeus insists that the Tribulation is necessary for our salvation:
And then he points out the time that his tyranny shall last, during which
the saints shall be put to flight, they who offer a pure sacrifice unto
God: ‘And in the midst of the week,’ he says, ‘the sacrifice and the
libation shall be taken away.’ And for this cause tribulation is necessary
for those who are saved, that having been after a manner broken up,
and rendered fine, and sprinkled over by the patience of the Word of
God, and set on fire [for purification], they may be fitted for the royal
banquet. As a certain man of ours said2, when he was condemned to the
wild beasts because of his testimony with respect to God: “I am the
wheat of Christ, and am ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I
may be found the pure bread of God.”3
Again St. Irenaeus comments on the necessity of the Great Tribulation:
There shall be tribulation such as has not been since the beginning,
neither shall be.” For this is the last contest of the righteous, in which,
when they overcome they are crowned with incorruption.4
1St. John Chrysostom: Commentary on II Thessalonians
2St. Irenaeus is referring here to St. Ignatius, who died as a
martyr when he was thrown to the beasts
3St. Irenaeus: Against heresies, Book V
4St. Irenaeus: Against heresies, Book V
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St. Paul, trying to answer the same question tells us:
That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had
pleasure in unrighteousness. But we are bound to give thanks alway to
God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the
beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit
and belief of the truth. (II Th 2:12-13)
The reason , then, is the damnation of the non believers, who “believed
not the Truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” As for us, the
elect, chosen by God from the beginning, this will lead to our salvation.
St. Augustine, commenting on St. Paul’s words has this to say:
God shall permit the devil to do these things, the permission being by
His own just judgment, though the doing of them is in pursuance of the
devil's unrighteous and malignant purpose, “that they all might be
judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness.”1
HOW TO SURVIVE THE GREAT TRIBULATION?
Here is what the Bible tells us in this regard:
PATIENCE:
“In your patience possess ye your souls.” (Luke 21:19) “He that
endureth to the end shall be saved.” (Matt 10:22) Patience is a very
important virtue especially in the last days, when “the love of many shall
wax cold,” (Matt 24:12) and when faith will be weakened (Luke 18:8).
It is for this reason that we should exercise ourselves in this important
virtue. So, if God allows problems to befall you, and it seems that no
solution is in sight, rejoice as St. Paul tells us, “but we glory in
tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience.” (Rom
5:3)
UNDERSTANDING THE SCRIPTURE:
When the Lord commanded us saying, “When ye therefore shall see
the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand
1Augustin of Hippo: City of God
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in the holy place,” He added these words, “whoso readeth, let him
understand.” (Matt 24:15) To study and understand properly the
prophetic and apocalyptic scripture is very important. Daniel 11 speaks
about the elect during the Tribulation, “but the people that do know
their God shall be strong, and do exploits. And they that understand
among the people shall instruct many.” (Dan 11:32-33) Here Daniel is
telling us that those who understand these things (as a gift from God,)
have the obligation to “instruct many”. This understanding of the
scriptures will be denied to the wicked, whose names are not written in
the Book of Life, as we are later told that, “none of the wicked shall
understand; but the wise shall understand.” (Dan 12:10) Those who
understand and instruct others will be rewarded greatly as we are also
told, “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the
firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for
ever and ever.” (Dan 12:3)
Instruction of the catechumens about the coming of Antichrist was
a major component of the Catechism given to new converts. The
Church believed that knowing these things is essential for salvation:
Look therefore to thyself, O man, and make safe thy soul. The Church
now charges thee before the Living God; she declares to thee the things
concerning Antichrist before they arrive. Whether they will happen in
thy time we know not, or whether they will happen after thee we know
not; but it is well that, knowing these things, thou shouldest make
thyself secure beforehand.1
The catechumen was instructed to impart the knowledge he gained to
others especially his or her children both in the flesh or the spirit:
Guard thyself then, O man; thou hast the signs of Antichrist; and
remember them not only thyself, but impart them also freely to all. If
thou hast a child according to the flesh, admonish him of this now; if
thou hast begotten one through catechizing, put him also on his guard,
lest he receive the false one as the True.2
1St. Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
2St. Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures
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DESPISING THE WORLD:
One who wants to be saved from the Great Tribulation should be
willing to do what the Lord told us when He instructed us to flee the
Abomination of Desolation, “Let him which is on the housetop not
come down to take any thing out of his house: Neither let him which is
in the field return back to take his clothes.” (Matt 24:17-18) This means
that when the time comes for us to follow the Church into exile, we
should completely neglect our earthly possessions, house, car, career,
social status, wealth etc ... only trusting in the Lord Who promised us
that He will feed us and protect us throughout the Great Tribulation.
People with many worldly cares may make the wrong decision and
perish for it, as St. Hippolytus tells us:
For truly those who are engrossed with the affairs of life, and with the
lust of this world, will be easily brought over to the accuser then, and
sealed by him.1
1Hippolytus of Rome: Treatise on Christ and Antichrist
The Abomination of Desolation - A series of articles published by Father Athanasius Iskander in PAROUSIA September, 1997 - January, 2003 - Part Two
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