Prophe-Zine Issue 029

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Prophe Zine

 · 5 years ago

  

 
PropheZine #29 
3 November 1996 

Chris Jewett .............................. Welcome 
Berit Kjos ................................... The State of the World 
According to Gorbachev 
Ray Brubaker ............................ TWA Flight 800ŠDowned by a Missile? 
John Loeffler ............................. Commentary 
Bill Perkins ŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ Special review:  Steeling the Mind '96 
David Wilkerson ........................ Are You Ready For the Coming Storm? 

PropheZine News Bytes 
Lori EldridgeŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠPlague in the US 
Chris Jewett ŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.. EC Single Currency Update 
Chris Jewett ŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.. Rumor of Crisis in the Russian Army 
Paula DemersŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.Biometrics Update 
Chris JewettŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.Bible Sales Down in US 
Lee UnderwoodŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ..FYI - Israel Updates 
Chris JewettŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.Syrian Troop Movements 
SylviaŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.Sylvia's Page of News 
	      ŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ. 666 Update (Technology) 
John LoefflerŠŠŠŠŠŠŠŠ.. Persecution Prayer Requests 
	Our Surfing CorrespondentŠŠ.. Redesigned Web Site 

 
Hey Folks.... 

Here is PropheZine 29! (Notice the new spelling?)  This issue has several 
great articles.  The first one is a killer!  Berit Kjos reports from the 
Gorbachev Global Thing (my title, not theirs) in San Francisco...giving us 
a "New World Order Update" of sorts.  As usual her thoughts are right on 
target and quite insightful. 

New to PropheZine is Dr. Ray Brubaker from God's News Behind the News.  His 
article not only gives us some insights to world events, specifically the 
TWA Flight 800 crash, but also our future in general culminating with the 
haunting question...Are you Ready?  Ray and his wife Darlene have been 
serving the Lord together now for 50 years!  They host God's News Behind 
the News television program from St. Petersburg, Florida, and an annual 
Prophecy Conference.  The next conference will be held 1-4 February 97 at 
the Westshore Airport Hotel in Tampa, Florida.  Scheduled speakers include 
Dave Breese, Grant Jeffrey, Perry Stone, Peter Lalonde, Sherlock Bally, 
Gary Kah, Scott Pearson, Dr. Brubaker, and others.  If you can make it, 
this is one event you won't want to miss!  Call God's News Behind the News 
at 1-800-366-1463 for more information.  We at PZ encourage you in the 
strongest possible terms to attend this Prophecy Conference.  You will not 
regret it (Hey, Ray and I are planning to be there).  Additionally, a 
monthly God's News Behind the News magazine is also available. 
Subscription information may be obtained by calling the 1-800 number. 

Bill Perkins of Compass gives us a first hand report of the kinds of things 
that happen and the topics discussed at conferences like the ones the 
Brubakers put on.  See his review of the Steeling the Mind of America 
Conference held in Vail, Colorado a couple months ago.  I have added the 
mailing address and price list for tapes from this conference at the end of 
the articleŠby the way, we got oursŠand they are excellent! 

Things to watch in the near future are:  the U.S. Presidential election 
and, to a certain degree even more importantly, the general elections of 5 
November; the health of both Yeltsin and the Pope...the individuals filling 
these positions play major roles in the developing One World Government and 
leading the nations against Israel; Syrian and Egyptian troop movements and 
war games...they are extremely close to the Israeli borders, causing an 
obvious additional tension in the Middle East. 

Well, enough jabbering.  Remember, gang, if you come across interesting 
news bytes or articles, get them to us.  Enjoy! 

Maranatha and Agape! 

Chris Jewett 
dsyple@ix.netcom.com 

 

 
"THE STATE OF THE WORLD" 
ACCORDING TO GORBACHEV 
by Berit Kjos 

------------------------------------------------------------------ 
The alternative to the existing world order can only emerge as a result of 
a new human dimension of progress.... We envision a revolution of the mind, 
a new way of thinking...." 
     Mikhail Gorbachev, State of the World Forum, 1996 
------------------------------------------------------------------ 

"O ee lah eh la," chanted Native American Chief Leonard to the beat of his 
drum. "Ahah ela laha." 

The six hundred people participating in the Second Annual State of the 
World Forum, organized by the Gorbachev Foundation, stood up and joined in 
the prayer. "Oho ela helah," they chanted.  Behind the chief hung a large 
banner showing the swirling winds and waters of planet Earth-a stirring 
reminder that all its inhabitants share "one home, one planet" and had 
better take care of her. This banner had been flanked by the flags of the 
nations when the five-day Forum opened in San Francisco on October 2.  But 
now, two days later, those reminders of national sovereignty had been 
replaced by two single blue flags-not the familiar blue symbols of the UN, 
but the insignia of the global Gorbachev Foundation. 

"We have the heart beat of Mother Earth," said chief Leonard. "We are still 
connected to the earth from which we came." He handed Gorbachev a native 
blanket. "We give this blanket with a sacred prayer....We shall continue to 
come and join with you until together we change and transform this entire 
Mother Earth into a new world civilization organized on the principle of 
justice and hope." 

Amidst the applause, a wave of fluttering fingers rose into the air. 
"Those are Mayan butterflies," whispered the youth leader sitting next to 
me. "We want to acknowledge the people who have spoken to us and have 
created a sense of aura in the air. Clapping disrupts that aura. The Mayan 
butterflies are silent." 

I nodded my thanks and pondered the paradigm shift transforming America.  A 
year had passed since Mikhail Gorbachev brought Ted Turner, George Bush, 
George Shultz, Deepak Chopra, Bill Gates and other spiritual, political, 
business and intellectual world leaders to San Francisco to form  "a global 
brain trust." According to Jim Garrison, president of the Gorbachev 
Foundation, they would "focus on the principles, values and actions that 
should guide humanity as we enter the next phase of human development." 

Now, in 1996, that "council of the wise" would lay the "ground rules for 
resolving disputes and problems" around the world. Numerous dialogues and 
roundtable planning sessions would define the rights, responsibilities, 
beliefs, and values of the 21st century world citizenry-behind doors closed 
to all but the chosen few. 

Yet, Gorbachev promised equality. "We are opening this forum... on the 
birthday of Mahatma Ghandi, the great humanist of the 20th century to whom 
all of us owe priceless experience," he told his followers in his welcoming 
message on October 2.  "Ghandi set great goals to be achieved peacefully 
without violence....The use of force may be sometimes an instrument of 
politics... but from the standpoint of evolution of civilization... the 
road lies through democracy... Let us think together what we should do to 
democratize democracy." 

Democratize democracy?  In reality, Gorbachev's version of "democracy" 
looks more like the Soviet 
"people's government" than the American constitutional republic. It would 
force everyone into community "dialogues" using the manipulative dialectic 
or consensus process birthed by German philosopher Georg Hegel and embraced 
by Karl Marx-which comes as no surprise since Gorbachev has never renounced 
Communism. This strategy for managing discussions and blending beliefs 
would achieve his goal of "harmonizing the interests of all nations, 
peoples, and civilizations." 

The new democracy demands the "right" kind of information. "Knowledge and 
information will define human experience," said Gorbachev, "and man's 
spiritual, moral and aesthetic needs will define man's behavior."  Of 
course, the "knowledge and information" that would define experience would 
be controlled by the state.1 

Few seemed to remember that the former chief of the worldwide Communist 
movement had approved some of the world's most abusive assaults on human 
minds and on natural resources. Instead, they listened in rapt attention as 
Gorbachev continued to address "the main issues of the 21st century": 

1. Globalization: "If we leave the world to its own devices.... it will 
mean new sufferings, the death of many people from hunger, epidemics and 
wars.... The humane and moral mind cannot accept this prospect. The 
alternative is a managed process... on a global level." 

2. Environment: "Ninety-three percent [of the American people] want the 
United Nations to act more effectively on global issues, primary on the 
environment. Eighty-four percent spoke in favor of the UN helping to 
develop a more sustainable development. Eighty-two percent favored giving 
UN a right to institute global pollution taxes...." 

3. Business: "Local and national economies are... integrated into a global 
economic system with a universal regulation system.... Transnational 
corporations have become a kind of common system that own one third of all 
production capacities on our planet." 

4. Education: "Transition to an information based society requires a change 
in system of education.... Maybe the time has come for... a congress of 
reason. ... We could bring together the best minds... who 
would speak out on the most important issues of our time.... As the Bible 
said, 'In the beginning was the word"-the word that would generalize and 
summarize the powerful achievements of the intellectual  forces after the 
end of the cold war. This word should be spoken out.'" 

5. Solidarity: "We should... help in the development of a global 
consciousness... to change the world for the better."   Gorbachev's 
concerns were discussed in the secretive roundtables as well as in open 
panel dialogues. The ideas, information, conclusions, and initiatives 
generally fell into the same categories Gorbachev had listed in his opening 
plenary: 

1. GLOBALIZATION.  "Fifty years from now, we won't recognize nation-states 
as we know them today," said ATT&T vice president Waring Partridge during 
at a roundtable dialogue on global communications systems. Internet, more 
than telephones, television, and planes, has linked education, economies, 
and cultures around the world. But, said Forum speakers, the rapid changes 
has brought social chaos, and the global environment, "our collective 
body", is desperately sick. 

The time had come, suggested Forum organizer Jim Garrison, to "examine what 
governing structures and what social contract we should design as we keep 
apace of the globalization." The goal seemed clear: Like the United 
Nations, the Forum envisioned a unified planet where all people would be 
equally informed, entertained, housed, fed, and trained according to 
international guidelines for sustainable development, the 3 E's: 
Environment, Economy, and Equity. 

Global managers, supposedly the within United Nations, would monitor and 
control lands, people, information, education, and values. They would 
demand total disarmament. No nation would have power to start a major 
war-nor to resist the totalitarian controls of global tyrants. 

2. ENVIRONMENT. Chemical pollutants would provide a new environmental 
"crisis" that would help prepare people to accept the global 
management-including the costs Al Gore refers to as "sacrifice, struggle, 
and a wrenching transformation of society."2 As Jim Garrison said, "The 
issue of toxic pollutants is to the environment in the 1990's what global 
warming and the greenhouse effect were in the 80s....Through education and 
more research, the issue gains momentum until it assumes its place as a 
legitimate environmental concern. We hope this conference will provide the 
breakthrough needed to focus world attention on this current growing 
threat." 

If the "scientific" research used to back this new environmental crisis 
works anything like the pseudoscience used to validate ozone holes and 
global warming, it would be based on political fantasy, not scientific 
facts. With the media on their side, global leaders would once again twist 
ambiguous data and local problems into devastating global scenarios 
designed to stir the imagination and frighten people into compliance. 

For years, the sobering voices of factual, non-compromising scientists have 
been drowned out by the propaganda of green activists and 
government-sponsored idealists. Meanwhile, young and old are learning what 
globalist educators, entertainers, politicians, and CEO's want them to 
know: unless they conform, the earth will die. 

3. EDUCATION. The "school-to-work" education system that Gorbachev promoted 
in the USSR is now being implemented in the US--thanks to President 
Reagan's Secretary of State George Shultz, who co-chaired the 1995 State of 
the World Forum. Funded by the Carnegie Corporation, Shultz negotiated the 
US-USSR Education Exchange Agreements signed in 1985.  With guidance from 
Carnegie president David Hamburg (a speaker at the Forum), it which traded 
US technology for USSR psycho-social strategies used to indoctrinate 
children, modify behavior, and monitor the people to ensure 
compliance. 

In spite of what parents are told, America's Goals 2000 not only outlines 
the Soviet education system, it is a link in the vast United Nations 
education system established at the 199O United Nations Conference on 
Education for All.3 

Few individuals have pushed this agenda more zealously than former UN 
Under-Secretary Robert Muller, who once again brought his global/occult 
education ideas to the Forum's discussion tables. For more than a decade, 
his World Core Curriculum has defined education and steered our children 
toward global citizenship, earth-centered beliefs, socialist values, and 
the collective mindset which is becoming a requirement for the 21st century 
workforce. 

To complete the legal framework for this revolutionary education system, 
local activists must engage parents and other "partners" in community 
dialogues. "Grassroots education and community development is critically 
important," said Marian Wright Edelman, president of the Children's Defense 
Fund, in her plenary speech. She stressed the need to develop political 
activists, "making sure as well that we are developing a successive 
generation of young leaders to be empowered to be a part of changing the 
world." 

4. BUSINESS. "Lifelong Learning"-the UNESCO vision now mandated through 
Goals 2000-means involving employers in educating the masses. Business 
leaders must be trained to manage "human resources" and modify behavior 
through the same dialectic or consensus process used in the classroom. The 
"universal regulation system" Gorbachev mentioned is only a beginning, and 
the spreading acceptance of ISO 90004 illustrates how quickly this can 
happen. 

"A redefinition of the relationship between business and society is the 
core of the current paradigm shift," said George McCown, president of the 
World Business Academy. In his report to the Forum titled "The New 
Paradigm", he explains that the current "paradigm shift " can be seen as an 
inevitable alignment between personal, business, and societal needs and 
values. ... Only through an empowered society composed of healthy 
individuals can we ever begin to confront the myriad problems.... Business 
is the engine of most modern societies and will play a dominant role in 
shaping the future." 

The World Business Academy's mission, wrote McCown, is "to engage in the 
continuing exploration and clarification of the fundamental paradigm 
shifts... thereby enabling members to integrate the evolving knowledge and 
consciousness into their lives..." 

Knowledge management is crucial. Again, only the "right" information would 
be disseminated-thus building a knowledge base that supports globalism and 
affirms its propaganda. Few would know the facts needed to resist. 

Although the Forum's international business meetings were closed to most 
reporters, the literature left behind offer more clues. A paper titled 
"Translating Knowledge into Action: A Collaborative Approach for 
Leveraging Technology to Build Systems that Support the Knowledge Workforce 
of the 21st Century" states: 

"To put it bluntly, we have access to too much data. What we really need is 
access to just the right information at the right time.  In the next wave 
of organizational development, we must harness this data for our employees 
using diverse technologies combined in arrays that are being called 
knowledge systems. These systems help transform this voluminousdata into 
knowledge, and make that knowledge available, understandable, and the basis 
for action. To this end, leading edge companies today are 
creating executive positions for knowledge management called chief learning 
officer...." 

The author of this report, Patricia Reilly, suggests that multiple working 
groups hold "Future Search" conferences that help "entire communities to 
build a common vision" and "allow new knowledge to bubble to the surface of 
the participants' awareness." 

In other words, the new planned stimuli will produce a new public 
consciousness-spontaneously. No need to engage the intellect with facts and 
logic. Change simply happens.  Buzzwords such as stakeholders, teams, 
working groups, visioning, and common ground describe this dialectic 
process. Quenching dissent and banning absolutes, it guides the collective 
mind toward the predetermined goal: solidarity. 

5. SOLIDARITY. The planned outcome of the consensus process is 
uniformity-the shared beliefs, values, attitudes, and behaviors needed to 
complete the utopian vision of a unified world. Our Global Nighborhood, the 
report from the United Nations' Commission on Global Governance which 
was available in the Forum book store/library, describes it well: 

"In our rapidly changing world, the standards and restraints provided by 
commonly accepted values and norms become ever more essential. Without 
them, it will be hard-if not impossible-to establish more effective and 
legitimate forms of global governance."5 

Our Global Neighborhood suggests a threefold approach to establishing "an 
ethical dimension to global governance." Do they sound familiar? 

* "Encourage commitment to core values... and strengthen the sense of 
common responsibility for the          global neighborhood." 

* "Express these values through a global ethic of specific rights and 
responsibilities...." 

* "Embody this ethic in the evolving system of international norms, 
adapting, where necessary existing norms of sovereignty... " 

Like shared dreams, common memories build that sense of common 
responsibility.  "By remembering the universe as a whole, we draw everyone 
in," said physicist Brian Swimme, "for we hold the universe in common. Our 
starting point is the realization that we are a single community." He 
showed a slide of  Stonehenge to illustrate man's ancient quest for 
connection to the sun, stars, and cosmos.  Next, a picture of an African 
ape showed "how deeply rooted the human is in the animal world." Yet, 
humanity evolved beyond the animal state through "conscious 
self-awareness", becoming its own "a planetary power". 

Strange, isn't it? No wonder facts, logic, and absolute truth no longer 
fit. They simply cannot be squeezed into the mystical whole-or into the 
evolving "truths" created through the consensus process. They remain 
incompatible with today's blended or global spirituality. Biblical Judaism 
and Christianity must go. 

"Religion is as much the problem as it is the solution," said Rabbi Arthur 
Hertzberg, a member of a roundtable preparing "A Charter of Religions and 
Human Responsibility, in his plenary speech. "Religions continue to act... 
as the cheerleaders of hatred." 

A roundtable discussing "The Transformation of Buddhism in the 20th 
Century" reported that "the spread of Western capitalism is muting 
spirituality in the developing countries."  In contrast, "no other religion 
has had a more profound effect on the world than Buddhism."  Apparently, 
its changing face and illusion of compassion-in contrast to the practical 
compassion demonstrated in true Christian cultures-blends 
readily into the evolving truths of today's global spirituality. 

"Buddhism is not an ideology," explained Martine Bachelor, coordinator of 
the Buddhist College in England. "As people change, Buddhism will change." 

 
THE NEW CONSCIOUSNESS.  That's why it fits! Among the free books available 
to participants was Awakening Earth: Exploring the Evolution of Human 
Culture and Consciousness. It gives a dreamy vision of global solidarity 
inspired by a Buddhist-like spirituality. 

"With the rise of a compassionate consciousness," says author Duane Elgin, 
"humanity will be busy creating sustainable communities.... People will 
focus on "environmental restoration, rebuilding cities.... lifelong 
education... Regular rites and rituals will celebrate the recurring cycles 
of the planet. 'Earth Days' will acknowledge our bonding as a human family 
and our connection to the living planet, 'Gaia.' ... 
He assures his readers that people "will embody a balance between masculine 
and feminine archetypes" and  "the alienation and cynicism of the past will 
be transformed as people are offered innumerable ways to participate in 
dialogue... The constant flow of information and dialogue will create a 
palpable global consensus.... Cosmic consciousness-or knowing our 
connection with the consciousness of the living cosmos-becomes a widely 
shared, experiential foundation for the global culture."6 

The dream sounds good-even credible-to those who see reality from the 
perspective of the global paradigm. Most people have begun that shift, for 
our schools and culture have been teaching its values for decades. So it's 
no surprise that the consensus statements by the Forum's Youth Summit 
reflected these same ideals. 

Like their leaders, the thirty-four youths from around the world listened 
to speakers, researched UN data, and used the Hegelian dialectic process to 
synthesize individual views and reach consensus. As Harvard student Bill 
Burke-White said, "We have spent this week re-imagining-re-envisioning  the 
world we have inherited." Speaking for all the youth leaders, he unveiled 
youth culture well-tutored in globalist ideals: 

"Just a few short steps from your meeting rooms this week there is a 
community of youth who were born into the global village; a community that 
has always known our earth a Gaia, a living system to be treated with 
reverence and reciprocity... It is a community that values collaboration 
and partnership over competition.... It embraces both the feminine and 
masculine principles.... 

"This is a community that will not tolerate the continued ecological 
devastation of the sacred landscape of our home... that knows that every 
lost species is an irretrievable loss of self... that has no tolerance for 
dogmatism and fundamentalism. 

"This community needs to learn about the new paradigm or to unlearn the 
old-we were born into an awakening Earth.... Imagine, if you will, a world 
which has realized the Youth summit's vision of building a Global Youth 
Alliance, a planet-wide conversation, an interlinking, a networking of the 
many youth organizations that share these heart-felt visions for the new 
millennium." 

At the start of the Forum, Gorbachev used the Bible, specifically John 1:1, 
to validate these visions and his grandiose schemes. Equating the living 
"Word" with the "achievement of the intellectual forces", he 
twisted God's truth into a lie that promotes the very deception God tells 
us to shun. Squeezing biblical words into a New Age context, Gorbachev 
exposed the irrational and deceptive foundations of the paradigm he 
promotes. 

God Himself, the living and unchangeable Word, told us long ago that basing 
social values on arrogant intellectualism would only lead to despair: "Woe 
to those who call evil good, and good evil.... Woe to those who are wise in 
their own eyes, and clever in their own sight!"  (Isaiah 5:20-21) True 
wisdom is based on God's eternal absolutes-a fact so intolerable to the 
global mindset that its "democratic" dialogues must censor any such notion. 

 
Almost 2000 years ago, that Word foretold a global reign, a cashless 
society, and a world conditioned to accept a global tyrant, and a murderous 
hatred for all who refuse to conform to a compulsory global 
spirituality. The technology to implement the controls described in 
Revelation 13 is now being perfected. Yet, few see the sign post that spell 
danger ahead. Could the world be too blind to notice? 

HOPE. Rabbi Hertzberg, who spoke on "The Sins of Religion," may see more 
than his hosts had guessed. At the end of his talk he shifted his message 
back to biblical realities-to the apparent dismay of Gorbachev. Don't ask 
"ancient communities to dissolve," he warned, "for they will not!" 
Challenging globalist lies, he declared the globalist hope of synthesizing 
"all preceding religions" into a united "world religion" to be utopian. "I 
warn against the delusion that we can make a shining heaven on earth," he 
concluded. "That  can happen only at the end of days, when God wills it." 

He is right! And between now and then, we had better learn the facts, 
expose the lies, follow the truth, and place our hope in the only God who 
can win this war. Revelation 21 shows us a glimpse of His final plan for 
those who refuse to compromise: 

"Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first 
earth had passed away....  And God will wipe away every tear from  their 
eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be 
no more pain, for the former things have passed away.... I will give of the 
fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes 
shall inherit all things." (Revelation 21:1, 4-7) 

-------------------------------------------------------------- 
For practical information about the international education system and 
environmental spirituality designed to mold the minds of all Americans, 
read Brave New Schools (Harvest House Publishers) by Berit Kjos. Available 
through Christian bookstores or call 1-800-829-5646. 
-------------------------------------------------------------- 
Endnotes: 
1 See report on Executive Order 13011: "A National Information System". 
2 Al Gore, Earth in the Balance (New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992) 274. 
3 Explained and documented in Brave New Schools. 
4 "ISO 9000 is a series of international standards and requirements that 
define quality, principles and practices in all element of a registered 
company's operation. This registration is recognized throughout the 
European Community, European free Trade Association Countries and in 90 
countries around the world." News Release, Micropump, Inc., October 9, 
1996. 
5 The Commission Global Governance, Our Global Neighborhood (Oxford 
University Press, 1995), 47. 
6 Duane Elgin, Awakening the Earth (New York: William Morrow and Company, 
1993), 164-171. 

 

TWA FLIGHT 800...Downed by a Missile? 
By Ray Brubaker 

   President Clinton, addressing a veterans group in New Orleans, called 
attention to the growing threat of terrorism.  He declared, "As Americans, 
we can and must join together to defeat terrorism wherever it strikes and 
whoever practices it." He went on to say, "Their aim is to demoralize us as 
a people and to spread fear into every day life.  We must not let them do 
it." 

  We might ask, are we approaching the day predicted by our Lord when he 
warned of, "Men's hearts failing them for fear and for looking after those 
things which are coming on the earth... " (Luke 21:26) 

   The president went on to say, referring to the bombing in Atlanta, "We 
are outraged," adding, "We know that nations are beginning to understand 
that there is no place that is safe when anyplace is vulnerable to 
terrorism." 

   In Atlanta, a crude pipe-bomb, which was hidden in a green knapsack, 
exploded, sending nails, screws and shrapnel flying as far as 100 yards 
from the blast.  Two are dead and III injured.  Deputy Attorney General 
Jamie Gorelick commented, "We must never accept as a fact of life that we 
will have to live with terrorism." 

   Senator Patrick Leahy, Democrat from Vermont, sees the danger in 
attempting to stop terrorism.  It could result in hardships upon good, 
loyal citizens.  He said, "I don't want to see the terrorists win by, in 
effect, revoking our Constitution." 

   What will happen?  Can terrorism be stopped?  Or, could it be as the 
Bible warns, "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall 
come " (2nd Timothy 3: 1) and "... evil men and seducers shall wax worse 
and worse... " (2nd Timothy 3:13). 

   Was a missile responsible for the downing of the TWA 747 jumbo jet that 
took the lives of all 230 on board?  James Kallstrom, who headedthe FBI 
research team said witnesses who have been interviewed recalled seeing 
something "ascending" toward the aircraft.  He indicated more likely they 
had seen something streaking away from it. 

   Military sources said FBI agents were dispatched to reinterview all 
personnel involved in an Air National Guard air rescue exercise that was 
underway in the area just before TWA Flight 800 exploded.  Officials had 
investigated the possibility that the crash might have been caused by some 
kind of bizarre friendly fire accident involving this unit.  However their 
aircraft were unarmed and investigators quickly rejected that theory. 

   The National Guardsmen had asked the FBI to return so the men could 
provide further details of what they saw just before the crash.  Major Fred 
Meyer of the New York Air National Guard testified, "It was a sort of 
course and trajectory that you see when a shooting star enters the 
atmosphere.  Almost immediately after, I saw, in rapid succession, a small 
explosion and then a large explosion." Apparently several have testified 
seeing missiles, or what they believed to be missiles fired at the plane. 

SAMS in the Hands of Murderers? 

   Marvin Schaffer, an expert on missiles, reported that 37 nonmilitary 
aircraft worldwide had been shot down by surface-to-air missiles (SAMS) 
since 1973.  All of those attacks took place outside the continental United 
States.  In discussions with the State Department and with members of the 
Federal Aviation Administration, concern was expressed that it is only a 
matter of time before a missile is used against a U.S. civilian jet. 
Flight 800, with its long glide up the coast, near land but over water, 
seems to fit the scenario experts have feared. 

   No one wants to believe this did happen or could happen because it is 
known terrorists have these weapons and they could be responsible for acts 
of terrorism never before experienced on our shores. 

   A 1994 report from our State Department suggests there "is a growing 
body of evidence" of a potential threat to U.S. civil aviation from 
surface-to-air missiles. 

   The report details the thousands of U.S.-made Stingers and the Soviet 
SA-7, SA-14 and SA-16 missiles distributed by the CIA and the KGB to 
insurgents and governments from Afghanistan to Nicaragua.  Are some of 
these like birds con-coming home to roost? 

   In the past, U.S. government agents provided at least 750 Stingers to 
Afghan rebels who were fighting the Soviets.  Thousands more of the Soviet 
shoulder-launch SA-14's were given by that government to Libya, Nicaragua 
and other countries.  Many of those missiles have found their way into the 
world black market at prices ranging from $20,000 to as much as $100,000. 

   We're told the SAM missiles pose a particular threat to civilian 
aircraft because they're extremely lightweight, 20 pounds or so, have a 
reliable range approaching three miles and can be fired from a shoulder 
launcher. 

   Could this be what may have hit the 747 jet, blowing away part of the 
plane, causing a descent for up to 24 seconds before bursting into a 
fireball, and for 17 additional seconds burning the occupants in the plane 
before falling into the sea?  The possibility that some on board may have 
been alive to experience a literal hell in the last horrifying seconds, is 
indeed a tragic reality. 

   Schaefer, a consultant to the Rand Corporation think tank in Santa 
Monica, California is concerned that more has not been done to prepare for 
such devastation.  Says Schaefer, "They're spending all the money to detect 
bombs in airports, and it's certainly defensible to devote a lot of 
resources there, but the FAA is spending this trivial amount to research a 
very real threat from missiles." And, he adds, "Do you know what they did 
with the money they did spend?  They took an old plane into the desert and 
fired a SAM at it to film it when it blows up.  They're making movies when 
they should be doing research." 

   It is noted, "Most SAMS use heat-seeking devices for guidance.  To 
defeat those relatively unsophisticated devices, airlinerswould need 
lasers or other valuable equipment that can scramble the missile's logic 
and throw it off course.  The cost: an estimated $1 million per plane." 

Connection with Islamic Terrorists? 

   It's interesting to note that Flight 800 was downed outside of New York 
City.  And in New York City, a trial has been taking place.  Among the 
candidates has been Ramzi Yousef, an Islamic zealot trained in the Afghan 
war, captured in Pakistan and extradited to the United States.  Accused of 
masterminding a fiendishly elaborate plot to blow up U.S. passenger planes 
over the Pacific, Yousef is on trial.  Could the attack on a 747 jumbo jet 
be related?  One U.S. official says, "It has been a long time since I have 
seen such strong anti-American feelings in the Middle East." 

   We've been reporting on threats being made by members of Hezbollah, a 
radical Lebanese organization, who have claimed they will seek revenge for 
the U.S. supporting Israel.  Threats have also come from those pledged to 
strike back at the United States for imprisoning Islamic spiritual leader 
Sheik Omen Abdel Rahman, convicted of taking part in plotting to blow up 
the U.N. and several other New York landmarks. 

   Then there is the hard-line Palestinian group Hamas, which has vowed to 
attack the U.S. for agreeing to extradite Musa Abu Marzouk, a top Hamas 
official, to Israel. 

   When President Clinton promised those in Saudi Arabia responsible for 
the deaths of 19 U.S. servicemen would be brought to justice, a letter was 
sent to a Saudi newspaper promising to "respond in an extreme way" to 
"threats made by the stupid American president." 

   A warning that an American target would be surprised with an attack was 
sent to a leading Arabic newspaper by a group called the Movement for 
Islamic Change ... the same group that took responsibility for the bombing 
in Saudi Arabia last November that killed five Americans.  The warning was 
reported in London but not taken up by American authorities.  It is 
believed the shadowy group is funded by Iran with ties to Syria and Sudan. 

 
   So you can readily see how we have become a target for the kind of 
terrorism we may now be witnessing, and no doubt will see more of, from 
those who would seek to do us harm. 

   The prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, all speak of terror with an 
application to Satan as perhaps the originator of terrorism, and with 
Israel a target of terrorism. 

   Ezekiel 32 speaks of Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude which somehow 
we relate to Russian cities, Moscow and Tubolsk, with the notation, "...I 
have caused my terror in the land of the living... " (Ezekiel 32:32). 

   Shimon Peres stated, "Terror is the real obstacle to peace in the Middle 
East," and his successor, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, similarly 
stated, "The first item on my agenda would be the cessation of all 
terrorist attacks from Syrian-controlled areas in Lebanon via Hezbollah or, 
for that matter, other terrorist attacks from groups based in Syria." 
Netanyahu says it is not acceptable "...to have peace talks that are 
progressing, while you have a terror campaign parallel to it." 

   In Washington, he declared, "Those who are on the side of peace must 
show complete dedication to the fight against terrorism.  Anything less 
will simply not do." 

   Dr. Luther C. Peak has stated, "Terrorism is a new word in the common 
parlance of today but its meaning has been with us since Cain slew Abel." 

   TIME (July 29, 1996) comments, "Terrorism is warfare by intimidation, by 
the creation of paranoia.  The devilishly clever design involving Flight 
800, if indeed it was premeditated, was to lob one over America's back 
fence while her people were all in the front room, gathered around the TV 
watching the Olympics." 

   It was noted, "Palestinian terrorists shocked the world by kidnapping 
and killing more than a dozen members of the Israeli Olympic team right in 
the middle of the modern, gray concrete Olympic Village." 

   It's interesting to know that the Lord exercises terror, too.  We're 
reminded, "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that 
every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he 
hath done, whether it be good or bad.  Knowing therefore the terror of the 
Lord, we persuade men... " (2nd Corinthians 5: 1 0-1 1). 

   Peter teaches that if we are living right, we should not have to fear 
terror, "And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which 
is good?  But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and 
be not afraid of their terror neither be troubled" (I st Peter 3:13-14) 

   And Psalm 91:5 is a comforting scripture for those in the service who 
put their trust in the Lord.  For we read, "Thou shalt not be afraid for 
the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day.  " How wonderful 
to be able to trust the Lord in a day when terror seeks to reign and rule! 

The Tragedy of Being Left Behind 

   I recall one night I saw very vividly, in a dream, a plane going down in 
the Everglades.  It was just as real as if I had been there to see it, and 
I exclaimed, "It crashed!" Next morning, the newspaper related the details 
of how the plane suddenly and unexpectedly crashed.  In recent times we 
have seen two of the worst plane crashes in all of the history of flying - 
made difficult, especially in the recovery of the plane, or parts of it, 
along with the bodies.  The VALU JET crash and the TWA 747 jumbo jet that 
crashed are still largely unexplainable.  The wave of the future, it seems, 
will find more planes downed by terrorists who are threatening to target 
America. 

   Defense Secretary William Perry, appearing before a congressional 
committee, July 9, 1996, referred to an experienced and well-financed 
terrorist organization that is against Americans.  He called the threat, "a 
very serious warning ... We may face it again soon... in Saudi Arabia..(or) 
in other countries in the Gulf." 

   The U.S. is offering a $2 million reward for information on the attack 
in Saudi Arabia. 

   After Flight 800 went down, taking the lives of 230 people, you heard 
reports of the pain and agony of those who lost loved ones who were left 
behind to grieve their loss.  One irate relative testified, "We have to 
make absolutely certain that every loved one comes out of the water." 

   As you know, we have offered a video by This Week In Bible Prophecy 
called LEFT BEHIND, which relates similarly how it will be when Jesus comes 
and loved ones disappear in the Rapture, while their relatives and close 
friends are LEFT BEHIND. [The video is still available for $24.95 plus $3 
shipping and handling.] 

   What tragic loss!  That's why our Lord warned: "Watch ye therefore, and 
pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things 
that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man" (Luke 21:36). 
Jim Harmon, in his book, The Coming Spiritual Earthquake, writes, "If all 
Christians were already guaranteed that they would escape the Tribulation 
period then this admonition would be meaningless." 

   Ray Miller in his book, Pastor Answer This Question, mentions, "If all 
Christians automatically go in the Rapture, why all the exhortations of 
Jesus to prepare for this event?" 

   Our Lord has told us that we're to watch and pray that we might be 
accounted worthy to escape all the things that shall come to pass.  And, 
we're certain he meant the coming awful tribulation, for he spoke of a time 
coming, "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the 
beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Matthew 24:2 
1). 

   Not for the sake of controversy, but to sound forth a waming as did our 
Lord, we know we are saved, and have received the gift of eternal life by 
simple faith in Jesus Christ.  But to escape the coming awful tribulation 
we're told to "Watch and pray" that we might escape it! 

   Even the noted Dr. R.A. Torrey comments, "According to this passage 
there is only one way in which we can be prepared for the coming of the 
Lord when he appears, that is, through much prayer." We might ask, "Do you 
pray to escape the coming tribulation if you're a Christian and devoted 
follower of our Lord?" Or do you take for granted that when Jesus comes you 
will automatically be ready? 

   But that is not what the Scripture teaches.  As Torrey goes on to say, 
"The man who spends little time in prayer, who is not steadfast and 
constant in prayer, will not be ready for the Lord when He comes." 

  "We may be ready!" writes Torrey.  How?  He answers, "PRAY!  PRAY!  PRAY!" 

   Ray Miller, in his book, Pastor, Answer This Question, notes Jesus was 
speaking of the coming tribulation that will follow the Rapture, and then 
asks, "Why would Jesus exhort someone to pray always to escape something 
they were automatically going to escape through the Rapture as many believe 
to be the case?" 

  In Mark's gospel our Lord similarly urges, "Watch ye therefore: for ye 
know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or 
at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you 
sleeping" (Mark 13:35-36). 

  Our Lord isn't referring to real sleeping, but to the lackadaisical, 
careless, slumbering attitude that today characterizes the professing 
Church of Jesus Christ! 

  As one of the speakers said at a prophecy conference, "The job of the 
Church today is to awaken Christians and get them out of bed!" 

  I referred before to two Greek words used here by Jesus: Agoupneite, 
translated "watch," but meaning "wake up!" And, gregoreite, also translated 
"watch," but meaning "keep awake!" Be ever on your guard!  Be Ready! 

  We hear preaching urging "holiness of life" because Jesus is coming soon! 

  The late Dr. M.R. DeHaan is quoted as saying, "Let me seriously warn you 
that God wants His people clean." Says DeHaan, "The Lord will not tolerate 
a defiled bride.  God help us to examine ourselves and make ourselves ready 
now!" 

If Jesus comes and you're not ready? 

  Concerning the ten virgins, only five were actually ready.  And we read, 
"...they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was 
shut" (Matthew 25: 1 0). 

  The foolish virgins were left behind, not because they were not 
believers, but because they were not ready! 

     As Ray Miller explains in his book, "Jesus was very concerned with the 
state of readiness of His people at His coming.  Should those charged with 
the responsibility of instructing God's people be any less concerned?" He 
notes, "The possibility of Christians missing the Rapture is not a question 
of their salvation but of their missed opportunity or position." 

  For instance, in Luke 12 we have the servant who lives carelessly, 
saying, "...My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the 
menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken" (Luke 
12:45). 

  Jesus said, "The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh 
not for hi , and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in 
sunder and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers" (Luke 12:46). 
Did you read that? 

  Here's a man who is looking for the Lord to return, but attacks fellow 
believers while living in sin-eating and drinking.  His portion is said to 
be with unbelievers.  In addition, our Lord states, "And that servant, 
which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself neither did according 
to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.  But he that knew not, and 
did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes... " 
(Luke 12:47-48).  The book of Revelation describes locust-like creatures 
that appear when a star falls from Heaven upon the Earth, and they ascend 
out of the bottomless pit, and are seen attacking those who have not the 
seal of God in their foreheads.  We read, "And to the it was given that 
they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: 
and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a an. 
And in those Days shall men seek death, and shall not find it,- and shall 
desire to die, and death shall flee from them" (Revelation 9:5-6). 

  There will not be any beatings in Heaven.  Could it be this will take 
place on Earth during the tribulation?  And is it possible that some 
believers should come forth in the resurrection with glorified bodies no 
longer subject to death?  They are not raptured but remain behind amidst 
tribulation judgments, for concerning these we read they will desire to 
die, but death will flee from them!  Remember, that takes place during the 
tribulation.  That's why you don't want to be here then! 

The Only Way to Escape Tribulation 

  Do you want to know Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord?  Then invite 
Him into your heart.  Pray every day seeking his help and guidance.  Ask 
the Holy Spirit to fill your life with love, joy and peace. 

  Pray this prayer: "Lord, save me.  I know I've sinned.  You died to save 
me and forgive me of all my sins.  Help me live for you, and keep me ready 
for your coming, I pray." Pray that prayer and mean it.  And, "...be ye 
also read ' : for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh " 
(Mat. 24:44). 

 
COMMENTARY 
By John Loeffler 

 
For some time in this column and on my radio program, oftentimes over the 
strenuous objections of well-meaning Christian drug agents, we have 
predicted the a disaster civil forfeiture of property will ultimately turn 
out to be, especially when (not if) political correctness and forfeiture 
link up. 

During the election campaign last month, President Clinton took a step in 
that direction by proposing that the government be allowed to seize the 
assets of "polluters."   Given the green movement's blatant disrespect for 
private property, this deliver a severe blow to Constitutional protection 
of due process, property and double jeopardy, all of which are now under 
blatant attack by forfeiture actions. 

Property is already being seized and prison time served for violation of 
environmental crimes, whose definitions of wetlands, pollution, etc. are 
confusing, vague and difficult to comply with. 
The whims of enforcement agencies seem to be the determining factor as to 
whether or not an environmental crime has been committed. 

Imagine what would happen if we add "polluters" to that list and begin 
rampant seizure of property.  What would constitute "polluting" under the 
proposed laws?  If we can count on past 
experience, we still won't know even after the law has been written.  It 
will depend on whether the government wants your property or not. 

If you spill oil in your driveway when changing it in your car -- you would 
be a polluter and your house and car would be eligible for seizure!   If 
you happen to rent a house to someone and they 
spill oil,  the innocent owner defense quite frequently doesn't hold up in 
forfeiture cases.  After all, you should know your tenant changes oil in 
his driveway.  Therefore you lose your rental 
property. 

Think I'm overstating the point?  This scenario is playing out in 
forfeiture cases around the country every day.  You're just not hearing 
about it unless it affects you or someone you know. 

Serious studies by criminologists are showing what we expected:  civil 
property forfeiture is becoming a means of legalized extortion on the part 
of government agencies.  Arrests and seizures are frequently made not on 
the basis of what crimes are committed or how drugs can be stopped but 
rather on the basis of how much property can be collected. 

There are now over 100 statutes at the federal level alone allowing for 
property seizure.  Most do not involve drug crimes.  Even a mis-statement 
of income on a home loan application can result in your house being seized. 
It's happening! 

When property is seized, it is charged with the crime and property has no 
rights under law.   The person has the burden of proof to show that 
property should be returned; no criminal accusation 
required, no jury trial, just a civil proceeding.  Innocent owner defense 
is little excuse.  Thousands of innocent owners lose property on a regular 
basis. 

Assets seized in forfeiture aren't placed in a general treasury but rather 
go to the police agency seizing the property.  Forfeiture has now become a 
method of off-budget revenue generation for law enforcement agencies and it 
doesn't take a genius to see what kind of motivation there is for abuse, 
which is rampant nationwide.  "To seize and plunder" substitutes for "To 
serve and Protect." 

Now couple an already abusive forfeiture practice with hysterical 
environmental passion and vague environmental laws and definitions.  It is 
a recipe for disaster. 

Remember that under the U.S. government's current environmental proposals, 
especially the Biosphere Reserve program, the goal is to forcefully remove 
people from 50% of the land currently occupied in this country, thereby 
creating human-free zones.  (This isn't my idea -- it's government policy.) 
Obviously it's constitutionally difficult to accomplish this by forbidding 
people to own property.  The tactic being used is to create regulation and 
financial pressure that make it impossible for people to live in the target 
areas.  Add forfeiture to this arsenal and it will be a free-for-all 
assault on the Constitution.   Anyone will be guilty when they need to be 
and their assets taken. 

John Loeffler 

 

 
Christians Gather In Vail:  Steeling the Mind '96 
by Bill Perkins, Compass International 
billp@compass.org 

(This article first appeared in Chuck Missler's Update for October 1996. 
Re-run here with permission of the author) 

Mature Christians, great speakers, provocative topics and Vail, Colorado! 
In a one-word summary-"WOW!" This year's Steeling the Mind ofamerica 
conference continued to make its mark on the Christian community as the 
premier conservative Christian conference in America. 

The amount of information presented this year was staggering.  Ten speakers 
dealt articulately with twelve eye-opening topics covering volumes of 
information not found in the mainstream media.  The audio and video tapes 
will surely bless thousands as they are passed around between friends, 
family and at church. 

Friday evening began with Don McAlvany giving spine tingling comparisons of 
the United States today with Hitler's rise to power in Germany.  He was 
followed by Jason Baker's presentation of the Internet-in plain 
English-including a live large screen demo. 

Saturday was a day to remember.  It began with a message sent on tape by 
Larry Burkett encouraging men to pray with their wives before they make 
financial decisions.  Tom Cloud, a "balanced-portfolio" financial analyst, 
followed with one full hour of tips and insights regarding the financial 
arena.  If last year's Steeling presentation was any indication of his 
accuracy of advice, every investor in America needs to hear his 
post-election trend analysis for 1997. (Tom Cloud will be at the IMPACT 
Financial Conference Nov. 1-2 in Newport Beach, CA.  Call 1-800977-2177 for 
more information.) 

John Ankerberg was next, exposing the fallacy of New Age thinking by using 
intelligent arguments and Biblical truths.  This must be great evangelical 
material because at the end of his presentation a large number of people 
made a profession of faith accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior! 
Praise God! 

David Barton completed the morning sessions by dispensing hundreds of 
historical facts and insights.  They proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, 
that our country was founded on solid Biblical principles by born-again 
believers who were rooted in the Word.  Not exactly what they're teaching 
in the public schools .... 

Chuck Missler opened the afternoon with a vintage prophecy update called 
"Prophetic Thunder," outlining the closeness of the hour.  Following Chuck 
(no easy task!) was Dale Berryhill from the Washington watchdog group, 
Accuracy In Media.  He easily showed the liberal bias in the mainstream 
media by comparing the truth with actual news footage.  You'll never again 
trust the national nightly news as an unbiased news source. 

Pat Matrisciana, president of Jeremiah Films, rounded out the afternoon by 
sharing insight into the research and production of several videos, 
including "The Clinton Chronicles." It was a bit unnerving, to say the 
least.  Sat urday night began with Joanna Carlson providing an incredible 
30-minute music and praise set.  The highlight was one song, "I Will 
Remember", that was choreographed and performed by the Christian dance 
team, Y'shua Lamb. 

If the beautiful combination of song and dance brought tears to your eyes, 
the next speaker, Republican Presidential candidate Alan Keyes, wiped them 
away.  It's no wonder the media totally ignored him-he's electable! 
Covering every conceivable Christian plank, Keyes gave a passionate, yet 
sincere, admonition of what it will take to get America back to prominence. 
Just a hint-it's not tax cuts! 

The only person on the planet who could follow Keyes and continue the 
conference momentum was Frank Peretti.  And he did.  Building on last 
year's now-classic, "The Chair", Peretti again opened our eyes to the 
stupidity of modern day New Age explanations.  Using humor, fact, and 
simple everyday illustrations, he proved that his gift of writing is 
rivaled by his gift of speaking! 

Sunday's presentations didn't slow down, as John Ankerberg and Chuck 
Missler gave edge-ofyour-seat presentations.  John Ankerberg gave a 
Biblical outline of the doctrine of Hell.  You could have heard a pin drop. 
And once again there were many who accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and 
Savior.  Pray that these new Christians will find good Bible teaching 
churches in which to grow and mature as Christians. 

Chuck wrapped up this year's conference with an overview of the doctrine of 
the Rapture.  His outline was thorough, complete and dispelled anything 
other than pre-trib rapture as unscriptural.  All agreed, the speaker 
lineup, topics, and beautiful Rocky Mountain scenery combined for a weekend 
to beat all weekends. 

EDITOR's Note:  Again, Bill is a part of the Compass International.  Their 
phone number is 1-800-977-2177.  You can also reach Bill by e-mail 
(billp@compass.org).  Compass offers the video and audio tapes of all 
Steeling the Mind messages.  Audio tapes are $6.95 each and videos are 
$19.95 each.  Package deals are also available.  Tapes are: The Corruption 
of America's Freedom (Alan Keyes); The Choice (Frank Peretti); Rapture: 
Who, What, When, Where, and How? (Chuck Missler); America's Founding 
Fathers:  Deist or Christian (David Barton); Hell:  Real or Imagined (John 
Ankerberg); The Washington Coverup (Pat Matrisciana); America's Mass Media 
Deception (Dale Berryhill); How to Avoid the Pitfalls of a Failing Economy 
(Tom Cloud); New Age & The Last Days (John Ankerberg); Prophetic Thunder 
(Chuck Missler); Wakeup Call to America (Don McAlvaney); Christians & 
Internet (Jason Baker) 

 

Are You Ready for the Coming Storm? 
By David Wilkerson 

Isaiah prophesies that God will one day rise up and shake the 
whole earth.  The prophet writes: 

"Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty...and turneth it upside down, and 
scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof...all joy is darkened, the mirth 
of the land is gone.... When thus it shall be in the midst of the people, 
there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree..." (Isaiah 24:1, 11, 13). 

God is going to shake the earth as if it were an olive tree - till every 
bit of fruit falls! 

"...for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth 
do shake....the earth is moved exceedingly.  The earth shall reel to and 
fro...and shall be removed like a cottage...." 
(verses 18-20). 

The entire earth shall appear to be a mere cottage when God begins His shaking! 

Other prophets concur with Isaiah's word: 

Ezekiel says that when God's fury arises, He will shake  terribly all that 
can be shaken: 

"...all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my 
presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places 
shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground....and I will be known 
in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord" 
(Ezekiel 38:20-23). 

Joel says: 

"The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; 
and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of 
his people, and the strength of (His) children..."     (Joel 3:16). 

Haggai writes: 

"For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I 
will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I 
will shake all nations..." (Haggai 2:6-7). 

The writer of Hebrews says: 

"...Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven...that [only] 
those things which cannot be shaken may remain" (Hebrews 12:26-27). 

God is going to shake everything in sight - so that He alone is  revealed 
as the only unshakeable power! 

We Have Seen the Beginnings of God's Shaking in the Past Few Years! 

The Lord literally began to shake the earth with earthquakes in the late 
1980s.  A quake in Armenia wiped out almost that whole province.  A quake 
in Japan measuring 6.9 nearly destroyed an entire city.  Then came the 
horrible quake in San Francisco - and  others followed almost daily in that 
area.  Quakes hit the west coast constantly, from northern California to 
San Diego and down into Mexico.  At one point, a New York newspaper 
headline  asked, "Is God Trying to Quake Us Up?" 

Let me ask you something: What does a loving parent do when a child is 
sleeping but must wake up?  That parent takes his child gently by the 
shoulders and shakes him.  If the child doesn't wake up immediately, the 
shaking then becomes a bit more firm and serious - because the parent knows 
the child will suffer is he doesn't wake up. 

That's just what God is doing right now - both to America and to the world! 
At first, He shook us very tenderly.  But now His shaking has become 
violent - because He has still not succeeded 
in waking us up! 

The prophets I mentioned weren't just speaking into the wind.  When the 
Lord says, "I'm going to shake the earth one more time,"  He means it!  He 
will literally shake our economy, our education system, our government - 
everything we put our trust and confidence in, everything that seems safe 
and secure. 

Could you ever have imagined the greatest nation on earth closed down 
because of bipartisan politics flirting with national bankruptcy, 
threatening payments of our international debts? 

I have had a very vivid, recurring dream about the President of the United 
States - which President, I don't know.  In the dream he is looking out the 
window of the Oval Office, shaking his head in disbelief and saying, "How 
did it happen?  What went wrong?"  None of his solemn Cabinet members or 
aides could explain America's collapse to him. 

And that's just the way it will be when God does His shaking: No one will 
be able to explain it!  I think of the stock market crash eight years ago. 
Overnight it went down 500 points - and there was no reason for it. 
Indeed, things will be going along nicely when suddenly a quake will hit - 
not a physical quake, but an unexpected economic quake.  God will shake our 
very foundations! 

The Bible also warns us that, simultaneous to God's shaking, a great 
demonic flood is descending upon humankind.  The devil is about to bring a 
fierce downpour of filth, wickedness and testings beyond anything our minds 
can conjure.  He knows his time is short - and he is preparing to unleash 
overwhelming winds and waves of evil! 

For example: Many people now own a computer.  What better way could Satan 
invade people's homes than with a demonic flood through the information 
superhighway?  This superhighway could become a direct line to hell.  It's 
already a purveyor of pornography.  I realize this great information 
development can be used to produce many wonderful services.  But it has the 
potential to become a powerful tool of Satan! 

In fact, it may be the very tool the Antichrist uses to usher in his 
kingdom and power.  For example, it might become the source of a cashless 
society.  Already, Chase Manhattan Bank has instituted computer banking in 
New York, with no paperwork involved at all - only numbers. 

I believe the flood of evil is now reaching critical mass, where everything 
has begun to spin out of control.  And, tragically, we don't know it - 
because we have become inured to it!  Things that 
 once bothered us now have become commonplace.  We've seen and heard so 
much evil that nothing moves us anymore. 

I wonder: When the storm comes - when everything begins to spin out of 
control - how many Christians will be able to stand?  How many will have 
the foundation of faith necessary to endure that time? 

I believe that is the Lord's great concern for His people at this moment. 
And it is my great concern as a shepherd: "Lord, how many of Your people 
will fall when the storm strikes with full fury?  How many will stand 
unmoveable?  And how can I prepare them for the great shaking?" 

Jesus Has Given Us What I CallŠthe "Parable of Preparedness"! 

During my time of prayer, the Lord gave me a revelation of Jesus'  parable 
of the builders, found in Matthew 7.  I believe this  parable contains an 
incredible truth for us in these last days. Yet only diligent seekers will 
discover it! 

"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will 
liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain 
descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that 
house; and it fell not:  for it was founded upon a rock." 

"And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, 
shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat 
upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it" (Matthew 
7:24-27). 

Jesus is saying that the only thing that will hold up in th

  
e coming storm 
is to be established on a rock foundation.  One man built his house upon a 
rock, "...and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock" (verse 25). 

Now, the builders of these houses represent two classes of Christians in 
these last days - the wise and the foolish.  They built two different kinds 
of houses and people were already living in both kinds when the storm hit. 

On one hand, it is encouraging to know there will be a body of believers 
who will not fall.  They will be able to withstand every demonic onslaught 
that comes out of hell.  Nothing will be able to move them when the storms 
rage.  That's what Jesus wants us to know from this parable:   A person who 
builds his house upon a rock will survive everything that's coming! 

Yet, sadly, there will be another group of Christians - people of whom 
Jesus says, "Their fall will be great!" "...and great was the fall of it" 
(verse 27).  This means a total, complete, devastating collapse of 
everything. 

At this point, you may be wondering: "What does it mean, exactly, to 'build 
a house'?"  It is important to know what Jesus is referring to here - 
because He says the house each of us is building will face a devastating 
flood. 

The House We Are Building Is About Loving Obedience to Christ! 

The house Jesus is talking about here is our walk with Him.  We are 
building a foundation of getting to know Christ, of understanding His ways. 
We are building into our faith certain characteristics that will determine 
how we react under pressure.  Many Christians may say, "I'm a believer. 
I've built on the rock."  Yet they don't truly understand what this phrase 
means.  And they will have a great shock and surprise when their 
relationship with Jesus does not endure the storm.  They will be exposed as 
having no foundation! 

We can't understand what this parable is talking about unless we understand 
this: *This parable is about obedience!* Jesus is speaking of a person who 
hears His Word and does it - who obeys Him, who acts upon His commands.  He 
is describing a lifestyle - a walk of total, absolute obedience to His 
Word.   That is to be our foundation! 

Of course, Jesus Himself is our Rock.  But that is not the full meaning of 
"rock" as used by Him in this parable.  Some who claim they have built on 
Christ as their rock may not be building properly.  It is because this rock 
is a condition of the heart!  It represents the foundational motives from 
which our obedience to God originates. 

Just as Water Sprang and Flowed Out of the Rock in the Wilderness, This 
Rock Also Has                   a Spring and a Flow! 

There is a flow of obedience in our lives - a flow that springs from the mot 
ives of the heart.  It is important to understand the  motive out of which 
our obedience springs - because if the spring is not pure, everything that 
flows out of it will be polluted. 

There is a kind of obedience that actually makes God weep.  This is when 
people do His Word with reluctance!  It is a legal obedience - a cold, 
technical formality, based on fear of consequences. 

Consider the father who needs to correct his teenage daughter.  He tells 
her, "I can see in your boyfriend's eyes he's using drugs!  I don't want 
you ever to see him again.  And I don't want you coming in at one or two 
o'clock in the morning anymore.  If you do, I'll put you out of the house!" 

The next night, the girl comes home at ten minutes before twelve.  She 
hasn't been with her boyfriend - but he is still in her  heart!  Now she's 
in her room, pouting.  She has been obedient to her father - but only 
because she's afraid she'll be kicked out. 

This is the obedience of a disgruntled child!  Her heart is not in her 
actions.  She's obedient only because she fears her father's wrath.  She 
does not obey him out of pleasure or because she loves him.  On the 
contrary - she's angry at him for restricting her freedom and limiting her 
lifestyle. 

The sad truth is, many Christians in these last days obey God only because 
they are afraid to go to hell.  They fear their Father's wrath!  Their 
obedience to Him is "legal" only.  They have no genuine desire to please 
Him! 

Yet, Jesus did everything out of pleasure for His heavenly Father: "...I do 
nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. 
And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do 
always those things that please him"   (John 8:28-29). 

This was the rock, the foundation, upon which Jesus built a life of 
obedience!  It was the spring, the motive, out of which the flow of His 
obedience came. 

And it is to be our rock also.  It must be the foundational motive of all 
our obedience: "I do it because I want to please my Lord - to bring Him 
great pleasure!" 

Jesus' desire was to do His Father's pleasure!  He shut Himself up in 
prayer on the mountain tops, in quiet places, often all night long.  And 
His one great prayer was, "Father, what do You want?  What will bring You 
pleasure?  What can I do to fulfill the desire of Your heart?" 

And that is the attitude of a person who has the Spirit of Christ - one who 
builds on the rock! 

The Person Who Builds His House on the Rock Is Not Held by Some Kind of 
Legal Obligation. 

The law isn't intended for the person whose obedience springs out of a 
desire to please God.  He is not concerned about what is legal or illegal, 
what is permitted or forbidden.  He has only one criterion: "What does my 
Lord desire?" 

You can lay out all the law before him - all the rules, regulations and 
prohibitions - and he will say, "You don't have to tell me not to do those 
things.  I wouldn't do anything to hurt my Father.  I love Him!  I've 
already forsaken the world and its lusts to go after Him whom my heart 
desires. 

"Show me what He wants, not just what He forbids.  I want His heart's 
desire to become my actions.  I want to know His mind, and to obey it. 
Sure, I love His law.  But that's for the lawless - for those who haven't 
come into a knowledge of intimacy with Christ.  I have another law at work 
in my heart. It's the law of love - one that says, 'Lord, what can I do to 
please You today?'" 

Such a Christian lives a very straight life.  Others often accuse him, 
saying, "You don't even do things that are allowed.  You're in bondage to 
legalism.  You seem so different!" 

This person looks at them dumbfounded and says, "What do you mean, bondage? 
I have great freedom *because* I love Him.  I don't do any of the things 
you're talking about because I have everything in the Lord.  My source of 
happiness is pleasing Him!" 

Such a person isn't moved by threats of hellfire, or even by rewards.  He 
needs no prophet to shake him, no warnings of judgment.  He is in love with 
Jesus - and his obedience to God's Word is a natural outgrowth of his love. 
It is as natural to him as breathing! 

On the other hand, the person who builds his house on sand does so only for 
show.  It is a temporary lifestyle.  He reasons he'll live in that house 
for five years, then sell it and leave the problems to someone else.  It's 
only a facade - with no real foundation! 

You see, this person doesn't believe a storm is coming.  He doesn't want to 
think that things are going to get hard.  Yet that is the way the world 
deals with eternity: They simply don't think about it!  A Christian 
celebrity once asked Johnny Carson,  "What do you think about eternity?" 
He answered, "I try to put it out of my mind." 

Tragically, a lot of Christians try to put eternity out of their minds. 
They try not to think that judgment is at the door.  They don't want to 
believe that one day they'll stand before the Lord and answer for 
everything they've said and done.  I had a horrible, vivid dream about hell 
recently.  I was on one side of a veil that was impassable.  Yet I saw 
people on the other side walking around, moving - but going nowhere!  They 
were paired up (not in marriage) with someone who represented the one thing 
or person they desired most here on earth.  They had gotten the very thing 
they'd thought they wanted - but now it brought such terror and torment to 
their soul, they were weeping and gnashing their teeth.  It was a 
never-ending source of torment! 

The thing that frightened me most was, I saw some people I knew - some whom 
I thought had been holy.  I shouted to them, "Let me pray you out!"  But 
they looked at me and answered, "You can't."  Then they turned and walked 
away.  I tried to go after them, but an invisible wall came down between 
us.  I woke up in bed, trembling and crying out, "Oh, God!  If that's what 
hell is like, let me never fail to warn the people.  Keep me awake!  Every 
time I stand in the pulpit, let it be a life-and-death matter, with no 
coddling, no jokes.  There's a hell - and it's real!"  I will never forget 
the utter hopelessness I felt in hearing the damned say, "You can't help 
me."  Yes, there is a righteous fear of God.  And we need to fear hell and 
the wrath of God!  Paul said, "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we 
persuade men..." (2 Corinthians 5:11). 

Those Who Build on Sand Have Never Truly Known Christ! 

Jesus describes this person in Matthew 7:21-23:  "Not every one that saith 
unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that 
doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.  Many will say to me in 
that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name 
have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?  And then 
will I profess unto them, I never knew you:  depart from me, ye that work 
iniquity." 

I call these people "In the name of Jesus" people.  They're going to stand 
before God's throne and say, "Lord, in Your name we cast out devils, we 
healed the sick, we did many wonderful works for You!"  But the tragic 
truth is, they built their houses upon sand. 

These people did not have a divided heart.  On the contrary - their heart 
was *never* the Lord's!  It couldn't be divided - because it was never 
given to Him in the first place.  They didn't backslide or turn back - 
because they didn't know Jesus from the beginning! 

Many great works have been done by those who have never been intimate with 
Christ.  They cried, "Lord, Lord!" throughout their lives - coming to Him 
for relief, for power, for rewards.  But they never stopped long enough in 
His presence to get to know Him!  I can think of entire ministries and 
churches about which this is true.  They use His name without knowing Him! 

They are busy for Him - but they don't obey Him with a love that flows from 
enraptured hearts.  They simply haven't taken the time to know His heart 
and what pleases Him.  Jesus says such people work iniquity - because they 
use His name without ever becoming intimate with Him!  And He will tell 
them, "You say you did all these things for Me.  But you built your house 
upon sand - because you never knew Me.  You were never obedient to Me!" 

If you say you're a Christian - that you love Jesus, that your house is 
built upon a rock, that you walk in obedience to the Lord - yet you neglect 
Him day after day in prayer, then you don't know Him!  Your house is not on 
the rock.  It's on sand - and it's going to collapse completely in hard 
times! 

You can't get to know Jesus by going to church alone.  You've got to have a 
day-by-day, hour-by-hour conversation with the Lord. You've got to get to 
know Him, to grow to love Him, to desire to know what pleases Him! 

We make the Lord's commandments out to be something burdensome, impossible, 
restricting, damaging to our personal freedom.  And, rather than embracing 
His words to us, we look for ways to escape doing them. 

We distort God's grace in this way - making it out to be some kind of 
tunnel out of the prison of His law.  But grace is actually a teacher of 
holiness: 

"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 
teaching us that, denying 
ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and 
godly, in this present world" (Titus 2:2-3). 

The man on the rock embraces and joyfully fulfills the Lord's commands.  He 
doesn't see God as someone with a belt in his hand, always ready to 
chastise him.  No - he sees the Lord as One with arms outstretched to him, 
saying, "Come to me and receive life, receive strength.  I'll carry you 
through!" 

God's Word Clearly Shows Us What It Takes to Build Upon the Rock! 

Enoch obeyed God with the sole objective of pleasing Him!  "By faith Enoch 
was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God 
had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that 
he pleased God" (Hebrews 11:5). 

Enoch was translated because he pleased the Lord! 

The apostle John says:  "And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because 
we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his 
sight" (1 John 3:22).  "...for thou hast created all things, and for thy 
pleasure they are and were created"   (Revelation 4:11). 

Paul writes: 

"...even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our 
hearts" (1 Thessalonians 2:4).     "...(fulfilling) all the good pleasure 
of his goodness..." (2 Thessalonians 1:11). 

Dear saint, you are not building on the rock if you need a preacher to 
thunder at you to obey God - if you need a set of do's and don'ts, if you 
need to be constantly convicted and reminded of His Word.  No - you don't 
need a rule book!  You need a passionate love for Jesus.  You need to be so 
in love with Him that you know what pleases Him.  Knowing His desires 
should become second nature to you! 

The more you love Him, the easier it is to serve and obey Him. You'll no 
longer care what the world says about you.  You can answer, "I've heard 
from my Father - and I'm doing the good pleasure of His heart!"  A flow of 
obedience must come out of your heart.  It cannot be extracted from you or 
threatened out of you.  It has to freely flow out of you! 

And when your heart is enraptured with Jesus, such obedience naturally 
flows out.  You won't have to constantly go before the Lord, crying, "Oh 
God, break the power of the devil over me!"  No - all those chains will 
begin to fall off as you get to know His heart! 

Are you in love with Jesus?  If your answer is yes, then I have a question 
for you: How can you go throughout the week without spending time in His 
Word?  How can you not yearn to get alone with Him in prayer?  How can you 
not have a time of love talk with your Father, praising and worshiping Him, 
seeking to learn what pleases Him?  These are foundational to obedience! 

Jesus tells us,   "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is 
that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I 
will love him, and will manifest myself to him"   (John 14:21). 

What an incredible promise - all based on an obedience of love!  So, search 
the gospels.  Get to know Jesus' words.  Read the red letters recorded in 
Matthew 5-7, beginning with the Sermon on the Mount.  And as you learn His 
words, do them!  God's commandments are not grievous; they are not a heavy 
burden laid upon us.  On the contrary - obeying them becomes easier the 
more you grow to love Him. 

That is building your house upon the rock! Then, when the storm comes, you 
can stand unafraid.  Nothing will move you - because you are walking in 
loving, pleasing obedience to the Father.  But it is most important that 
you understand obedience is possible only by faith in the finished work of 
Christ.  Only those living by faith in the perfect righteousness of Christ 
can obey Him in love.  Obedience does not save us; that is possible only 
through the shed blood of Christ.  Obedience flows out of our gratitude to 
God for having imputed to us the Lord's perfect righteousness.  This is 
truly building on the rock. *Amen!* 

 
When in New York City Visit Times Square Church 
Located at 51st Street & Broadway 
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Prophe-zine News Bytes 

 
Plague in the US? 
Lori Eldridge 
lorel@on-ramp.ior.com 

(The following was transcribed off of TBN from Hal Lindsey's program 
Intelligence Briefing,  as Hal comments on "The World Around Us" on 
10-29-96 ) 

"I've spoken many times about [how] the optimism of doing away with the 
plagues and violent diseases of the Earth of the 70s has now been dashed. 
We've just discovered a new way superstrains of bacteria entering the 
United States. They are rampant in Asia and in Africa. More than 54 
thousand ships a year enter American harbors from those areas. But every 
one of these ships carries ballast water to trim the maneuverability of the 
ship at sea and make it stable. As they come into the ports they dump this 
water into our waters. About 6 million gallons of this water is contained 
on some of the larger ships. Now this is untreated water that comes from 
the areas where these viruses and these bacterias are rampant. In testing 
in 1991 they discovered, in the holds where this is stored, virtually all 
of the new superstrains of bacteria and virus present. And as the water 
began to be tested they realized, American authorities realized, that it 
was going into our waters. Shell fish take this in. Many of the popular 
fish we eat take this in and so there is a clear chain of reaction where 
these superstrains of plague potential diseases are entering in the US. 
It's rapidly spreading across the world. And this just may be the time that 
Jesus spoke of when, in conjunction with many other signs, he said that 
plague would raise it's horrible spectre over the population of the earth. 
I think this is the time." 

Lori speaking: I noticed on the viedo, while one ship was dumping it's 
ballast water, a brisk wind was blowing the water all over the dock. This 
could easily contaminate any cargo, people, birds, vehicles, or whatever 
sitting on the dock. 

Lori Eldridge 

EDITOR's Note:  Hal Lindsey (Harold E. Lee) and sidekick Cliff Ford 
(Beauregard) report on current events in the light of Bible Prophecy every 
week on TBN (usually Tuesday, but check your local listings...sometimes TBN 
will run a repeat show).   As you can imagine, these guys provide 
outstanding commentary.  We want to thank Lori for her diligence and 
accuracy of this transcription. 

------------------------------------------ 

EC Single Currency Update 
by Chris Jewett 
(based on a story reported in the London Times) 

"And in that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly 
of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have in it the toughness 
of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with common clay.  And as the 
toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the 
kingdom will be  strong and part of it will be brittle.  And in that you 
saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in 
the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does 
not combine with pottery."  Daniel 2:41-43 

This past week in Europe, yet another controversy illustrative of "iron 
mixed with clay"  occured when 
the European Commission decided that France's accounting stratagem met the 
Maastricht criteria for a single currency.  Note:  Maastricht is the treaty 
signed several years ago by representatives of European governments to 
ensure a political union of the European states, i.e. common foreign 
policy, common monetary system, common defense.  This treaty basically 
guarantees the establishment of a unified state, as opposed to a federation 
of states such as those in the Russia.  The treaty is named for the city in 
which it was signed, Maastricht, Netherlands. 

Anyway, the EC ruling on France's proposal came after three days of 
speculation.  During this period, foreign exchange markets were shaken. 
Officials from Britain, Germany and The Netherlands, sitting on a European 
statistics advisory committee, argued against allowing the French this 
accounting move, stating that it contravened European accounting standards. 

 
The French Government's proposal to use a one-off payment from France 
Telecom of 37 billion francs to cut its budget deficit by 0.5 per cent of 
gross domestic product to the 3 per cent limit set in the Maastricht treaty 
has been widely seen by financial experts as a "fudge". 

The French plan directs France Telecom, to pay the money into the state's 
coffers.  The state in return must assume the company's future pension 
liabilities.  The Director-General of Eurostat, the Commission's 
statistical service, a subordinate of the Economic and Monetary Affairs 
Commission, agreed yesterday that the switch could be classified as a 
capital transfer and not a financial transaction, making the whole 
arrangement acceptable. 

Many critics of the French proposal have stated that the one-off transfer 
smacks of creative accounting and runs counter to guidelines in the 
Maastricht treaty which stipulates that countries should take sustainable 
economic measures to qualify for their planned start of the single currency 
slated for implementation in 1999.  Germany, especially, has spoken out 
against creative accounting measures. Economists have argued that the 
transfer of cash in return for future pension payments is not a real 
reduction in the budget deficit. 

Apparently, Commission approval of the French proposal had been expected 
since without France, the chances of the monetary union starting on 
schedule could have been thrown into question.  Iron mixed with clayŠsome 
parts stronger than others.  France may be trying to show some muscle. 
Look for Germany to flex in the future as well. 

Asked whether the decision would pave the way for other member states to 
take a similar approach, a spokesman replied, "All cases are considered on 
their merits. There is no discrimination between the states." He also 
emphasized that this decision was a technical, not a political, one. 
However, the Commission's to allow the French Telecom payment could be 
interpreted as an indication that future creative accountancy could be 
allowed, enabling countries heavily in debt, such as Spain and Italy, to 
meet Maastricht criteria. 

Meanwhile, Britain will probably bow to pressure from its business and 
financial community to join the planned single European currency, the 
European Commission president Jacques Santer said on Thursday. 

"If the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) and the City ask the 
government to join, I do not see any British government refusing,'' Santer 
told journalists at a dinner. 

To date, neither Britain's ruling Conservatives and the opposition Labour 
Party have decided on joining European economic and monetary union (EMU). 
Although smaller British firms are against the monetary union, fear 
pervades in London and among major English business that the country could 
forfeit its role as Europe's leading financial center if it decides to 
"opts-out'' from the monetary union (as 
negotiated by Prime Minister John Major in 1991). 

The CBI, Britain's leading business federation, has been a strong advocate 
of joining the single currency but there are divisions in both main parties 
about whether the country should participate. 

 
Rumor of Crisis in the Russian Army 
By Chris Jewett 
(based on a story from Reuters wire service) 

MOSCOW - Defense Minister Igor Rodionov reported last week that Russia's 
armed forces are on the verge of  "uncontrollable developments."  While 
speaking to an audience of army veterans, Rodionov said a shortage of 
funds, appalling social conditions and poor maintenance were leading to a 
"severe crisis." 

"Russia's leadership and society should know that the chronic lack of funds 
is taking the armed forces to the brink of undesirable, and even 
uncontrollable, developments," the Interfax news agency quoted Rodionov as 
saying. 

"If the 1997 defense budget is not changed, Russia may lose the armed 
forces as an integral and active state structure, with all the consequences 
which would follow that," he said. 

His comments pinpointed the plight of the once powerful armed forces. 
After years of underfunding  many soldiers have resorted to begging in the 
streets and forced the officers to take a second job. 

Rodionov gave his speech at the same time a group of general staff officers 
set deadlines to use force if overdue wages were not paid.  The ultimatum, 
delineated in an open letter by the unnamed officers and published last 
week, strongly encouraged Rodionov to challenge those in the government who 
were set upon ruining Russia and surrendering it to the West. 

"We have enough force to make these gentlemen abandon their plans," said 
the letter in the 
Nezavisimaya Gazeta daily.  These general officers have not been heard from 
since Rodionov's gave his speech.  It is believed that Rodionov adequately 
reflected their concerns. 

Meanwhile, the lower house of the Russian parliament has rejected the 
budget and ministers say a new 
draft is being discussed.  Although the new draft may give the military 
more money, the budget deficit will stay the same and it is not clear where 
the money will come from. 

Russia's former national security chief, Alexander Lebed, fired by 
President Boris Yeltsin last week,  warned that the armed forces were on 
the verge of rebellion.  Lebed's warning gave a dramatic twist to the 
fierce battle for influence evident while Yeltsin's upcoming heart surgery 
prolongs his absence from the Kremlin. 

"I want to remind the politicians Russia has made its choice for the next 
four years," Yeltsin said Friday in a five-minute radio address apparently 
recorded in the Barvikha sanitorium where he is preparing for his bypass 
operation.  "There have been enough struggles for influence, fights for 
jobs, criticism and electioneering. It is time to work..."While each player 
only plays his own pipe we will only be marking time and will lose the 
people's trust," Yeltsin said in a clear, confident voice. 

So far doctors have not set a date for Yeltsin's operation, but are 
apparently satisfied with the his overall condition, and claim it will 
probably take place in late November.  In an effort to allow proper 
preparation for his surgery, presidential aides have been restricting their 
own contact with the Russian president. 

 
Bio-metrics Update. 
By Paula DeMers (Rdy4Battle@ 

Hi Folks, 

I received a phone call by a friend of mine in Alabama about a half hour 
ago.  Her sister went to take a GED test for her high school diploma and 
had to GIVE HER FINGER PRINT!!!!! (Her right fore finger).  My friend, 
knowing what is going on in the world called the GED Administrator in 
Montgomery Alabama, 
OJ Webster (1-800-392-8086) to find out about it. 

Mr. Webster said that is was the "policy" of the state of Alabama, and 
several other states so they would know the "person taking the test was who 
they said they were".  A photo ID was not enough to know for sure....she 
also had to give her social security number. My friend asked twice, "If it 
was a law" to which Mr. Webster replied, "yes, its a policy". 

Folks, a policy is not a law...........a policy is how an organization is 
run....not a state law. 

 
BIBLE SALES DOWN IN U.S. 
By Chris Jewett 
(Based on an article from the London Times) 

Bible sales in America, which are normally robust, have suffered an 
inexplicable drop that has left salesmen on their knees. 

In June, normally the strongest month with parents buying celebratory 
Bibles for school and university graduates, sales slumped by 41 per cent 
compared to last year. Bible sales for the year so far are down almost 10 
per cent. 

Some publishers are blaming a decline in moral standards; others say it is 
the presidential election. "Things may not improve until the election is 
over next week," said Hargis Thomas, the United States marketing director 
for Oxford University Press. "The election seems to be diverting public 
attention from spiritual matters." 

Executives in religious publishing have realized, like Democrat campaign 
managers in 1992, that it is "the economy, stupid". They point out that in 
times of hardship, people tend to pay Greater attention to the gospels. 
America's economy is currently in flower, so there is less demand for 
biblical uplift. 

The American Bible market, normally worth some $200 million a year, has in 
recent years diversified, with an increase in alternative editions to the 
King James Bible. The bewildering number of versions has increased 
publishers' costs and led to almost un-Christian competitiveness between 
publishing houses. One Bible editor yesterday referred to the marketing 
battles as "intense but congenial". But there is little dispute that some 
businesses are in trouble. 

The Family Bookstore chain returned $200,000 of unsold King James Bibles 
recently to publishers, and there is talk that the market has become 
"saturated". Modern translations have done no better, and although 40 per 
cent of Americans in a survey said they did not read the Bible regularly 
because it was "too hard to understand", 59 per cent gave it a miss simply 
for "lack of time". 

But a forthcoming tour by Dr. Billy Graham, the veteran preacher, may boost 
sales. 

 

F.Y.I. - Israel In The News 
By Lee Underwood 

 
Week Ending: November 2, 1996/Cheshvan 20, 5757 

"Thus says the Lord God, 'When I gather the house of Israel from the 
peoples among whom they are scattered, and shall manifest My holiness in 
them in the sight of the nations, then they will live in their land which I 
gave to My servant Jacob.'" Ezekiel 28.25 

HEVRON UPDATE: Israeli and Palestinian negotiators met Wednesday night in Te 
l Aviv without making any new progress in talks on the Hevron redeployment, 
Kol Yisrael reported. US Middle East Coordinator Dennis Ross said Israel 
and the Palestinians have reached basic agreements on civilian issues and, 
to a great extent, on security issues. Ha'Aretz quoted an official involved 
in the talks as saying, "There is no expectation of a breakthrough, the 
talks will continue until Arafat returns [from Europe]." Saturday night 
Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Amnon Lipkin- and Maj.-Gen. Shaul Mofaz met with 
Palestinian negotiator Mahmoud Abbas, Channel 2 reported. The report said 
officials in Jerusalem expressed hope the sides could wrap up an agreement 
within three days, before the American elections. 

Negotiators have agreed that the Israel Defense Force (IDF) will redeploy 
in the city within 10 days after the signing of an accord between Israel 
and the Palestinians, Ha'Aretz reported. The actual signing of the 
agreement will serve as the order for the IDF commander in Hevron to carry 
out the redeployment. The political echelon intends for the redeployment to 
be carried out at night in order to prevent friction between soldiers, 
Palestinians and settlers. One week before the redeployment, a transition 
period will take place in which Palestinian Police will arrive in order to 
receive their new command and become familiarized with the situation on the 
ground. Two days after the redeployment order is received from the 
political leaders, an advance team of Palestinian Police will begin working 
in the Israeli Civil Administration building. Within approximately one 
week, the first joint patrol will be carried out. Palestinian Police 
patrolling the buffer zone will be armed with pistols [Swedish designed 
Ingraham automatic 9mm-ed] and will wear civilian clothing. The Palestinian 
Police station will be located at least one kilometer (0.6 mile) from the 
Jewish section of the city. The IDF and the Palestinian Police are to 
cooperate in the event of a terrorist incident and if problems occur with 
joint patrols, Jewish residents or between the Palestinian Authority and 
Jewish residents. If a confrontation breaks out between Palestinians and 
Jewish settlers, officers participating in the joint patrol will attempt to 
restore order. If this is not successful, the matter will be dealt with by 
the Israeli- Palestinian joint liaison office. The city of Hevron will 
administer all municipal services for the Jewish areas of the city. Each 
group will enjoy freedom of movement within its section of the city. Jewish 
residents wishing to cross into areas controlled by the Palestinian 
Authority (PA) will need to receive authorization by the joint liaison 
office. 

A large force of Israeli police will be deployed in Hevron as the signing 
of an agreement draws closer. Police stated they fear acts of provocation 
by 'right-wing extremists' in an attempt to sabotage the impending IDF 
redeployment. The distribution of administrative orders limiting the 
movement of recipients and possibly administrative arrests will be carried 
out by police and the General Security Service (GSS) both in and out of 
Hevron. A clandestine law enforcement unit operating under the auspices of 
the Ministry of Justice is cooperating with the State Prosecutor's Office 
in supplying information relating to the activities of 'right-wing 
extremists' among Hevron's Jewish population. Some of the activists living 
in Hevron told Yediot Achronot they will be going underground in 
anticipation of the administrative arrests. Many of the advocates of 
invoking the administrative orders were outspoken opponents when it was 
used by the former Labor government.Administrative law deprives the 
recipients of due process or any court proceedings. The recipient is 
confined to house arrest or in many case has been thrown in solitary 
confinement for a period of months without having been charged with a 
crime. 

According to press reports published in the Jerusalem Post, the Israeli 
administration has agreed in principal to reopen the Arab market in Hevron. 
This market, presently closed for overtwo years, is located on property 
that was originally part of the Jewish Quarter, before the 1929 riots. It's 
structures, built following the Jordanian conquest of the area in 1948, is 
at the entrance to the present Avraham Avinu neighborhood, which houses 
over 20 families. Reopening of this market would greatly endanger the 
residents of this neighborhood, as they must pass through this area to 
reach the main street of Hevron. The Palestinians say it all belongs to the 
Wakf and may have been leased to Jews, but by now should revert to the 
Wakf. The government wants it reopened as a wholesale market, to limit the 
number of visitors to the market, but Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb 
Erekat says the Oslo agreement designates it will be a retail market and 
this is how it must be designated. 

In another story, tens of thousand people braved the cold Jerusalem rains 
Tuesday night, and participated in a rally in support of the Hevron Jewish 
community. Speakers at the demonstration, including Hevron representatives, 
Knesset Members, rabbis, and others, called upon Prime Minister Netanyahu 
and the government to stand firm and not to give in to the demands of the 
Palestinians to abandon parts of Hevron. Many of them emphasized that this 
was not an anti-government demonstration, but rather one "in favor of a 
strong government and a strong Hevron." 

Meanwhile, the Council of Jewish Settlements in Judea, Samaria and Gaza 
(Yesha) is moving ahead with the construction of 37 housing units in 
Hevron. The homes will be constructed on three plots of land. On parcel 
number 37, 12 units are being constructed. On parcels 52 and 53, adjacent 
to the Tomb of Yishai (King David's father), 25 housing units are planned. 
The Yesha Council and Hevron Jewish Community insist the land parcels are 
Jewish property but the Arab population and left-wing MKs are already 
voicing their objections to the building. (Israel Line, Jerusalem Post, 
Arutz Sheva, SNS) 

OSLO VIOLATIONS CITED: The Prime Minister's bureau has released a list of 
ten of the most serious violations of the Oslo Accords by the PA, Ha'Aretz 
reported. The list also cites the specific sections of the agreement which 
were violated. The violations featured in the document include: firing on 
Palestinian Police on IDF soldiers, ignoring bans on illegal weapons and 
disbanding independent militias, refusal to extradite individuals suspected 
of terrorism, incitement to violence against Israel, refraining from 
changing the Palestinian National Covenant, opening offices in Jerusalem, 
drafting Palestinian terrorists to the Palestinian Police, exceeding the 
number of Palestinian Police, injuring human rights and the rule of law, 
and conducting diplomatic relations. 

In a recent commentary in the Jerusalem Post, Malvina Halberstam (a 
professor of law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York and 
former counselor of international law in the US State Department and Nathan 
Lewin (president of the American Section of the International Association 
of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists), pointed out Israel's obligations in regard 
to these violations by the PA. The basic question set forth in the 
commentary was: "Is Israel under a legal duty to abide by its government's 
undertaking, assumed by then prime minister Peres, to withdraw from 
Hevron?" The conclusions are quite interesting. Under well-established 
principles of international law, Israel may legally terminate or suspend 
the agreement in whole or in part. The Vienna Convention on Treaties, 
generally considered a codification of customary international law, 
provides that a material breach by one of the parties to an international 
agreement entitles the other to invoke the breach as a ground for 
terminating the treaty or suspending its operation in whole or in part 
(Article 60(1)). It further provides that "the violation of a provision 
essential to the accomplishment of the object or purpose of the treaty" is 
a material breach (Article 60(3)(b)). Each of these violations is a 
material breach of the accords justifying termination or suspension by 
Israel. It should be clear to everyone: If Israel chooses not to terminate 
the agreement, even though Arafat and the PA have flouted their 
obligations, that is a political decision by Israel and not recognition of 
a legal obligation. In seeking to renegotiate the agreement to ensure the 
safety of Jews and Jewish holy sites, which recent events have demonstrated 
are not protected by the Palestinian police, Israel does not breach any 
legal obligations. It is proceeding well within its legal rights. While 
this debate arises in connection with Hevron, the general principle that 
one is not obligated to comply with an agreement that has been breached 
materially by the other side is a fundamental principle of contract and 
international law. (Israel Line, IRIS) 

SECURITY ALERT IN EFFECT: Police went on alert Saturday night and 
roadblocks were set up around the country, after the security establishment 
received what was characterized as "concrete information on plans by the 
Islamic Jihad to carry out a terror attack." Many checkpoints have been 
erected on the roads leading to Jerusalem, and IDF troops have been 
stationed at the gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. In addition, the areas 
of Yesha are to remain sealed off for the time being. It was not announced 
how long the measures would remain in effect. 

Meanwhile, hundreds of Arabs met in Gaza City on Saturday to commemorate 
the first anniversary of the killing of Islamic Jihad leader Dr. Fatchi 
Shakaki, who was assassinated in Malta. Dr. Shakaki's father, brother and 
leaders of the Islamic organization Hamas and a representative of Fatah [a 
terrorist wing of the PLO controlled by Arafat- ed] were among those who 
attended the rally. In a message read at the rally, Dr. Shakaki's 
successor, Dr. Ramadan Abdullah Shallah, wrote: "The Israeli enemy should 
not forget for a minute that all the world knows that all of Palestine is 
ours. We will not concede a single meter." "Our guns and our weapons will 
continue to be aimed at our enemies ... until all of Palestine will be 
liberated," Mahmoud Azahar, a senior leader of the Hamas Islamic terror 
organization, told the rally. (Jerusalem Post, Arutz Sheva, SNS) 

US TRACKING SYRIAN TROOP MOVEMENTS: American satellites have detected in 
recent weeks unusual movement of Syrian units which operate 
ground-to-ground Scud missiles, Ha'Aretz reported. The US is reportedly 
concerned by the movements and the pressure they might bring to bear on 
Israel. Ha'Aretz quoted an officer in the IDF Intelligence Branch as saying 
that there is no change in the Syrian deployment, and that the movements of 
the past few days are part of the Syrian army's regular exercises. The 
source noted that the Intelligence Branch has included the risk of war with 
Syria in its working assumption. The Intelligence Branch is conducting 
daily analyses of Syrian military movements and monitoring statements in 
the Syrian media. Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai told the Knesset 
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that the Syrian army is planning a 
large exercise in the coming days, and that the IDF would respond with 
measures to increase alertness without causing a deterioration in the 
situation. For nearly two months, two regiments of Syrian commandos trained 
in airborne assault have been positioned on the northern slopes of Mount 
Hermon. Behind them is a crack armored division transferred from Beirut. 
These are in addition to the three regular Syrian divisions positioned 
permanently opposite the Golan Heights. "The Syrians have carried out a 
chain of events which allow them to cut the time they need to go into 
action," said Labor MK and former chief of general staff Ehud Barak. "We 
are now at one of the most sensitive and tense times in the past 15 years." 
The fear is that if Assad, whose goal is to get the Golan Heights back, 
feels piece talks are deadlocked, he will opt for a limited military strike 
which could be used as leverage for this aim. In the wake of such a battle, 
Assad would expect foreign powers to force Israel to relinquish the Golan. 

Meanwhile, the Jordanian paper Al Maggad, reports that according to Iraqi 
opposition sources, Iraqi military forces, including missiles, are moving 
towards the Syrian border in response to heightened tension between Israel 
and Syria. The report added that Iraq is calling up reserves and all roads 
leading to the Syrian border have been blocked offto allow Iraqi forces a 
clear route to Syria. 

In a related story, Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi stated Syria and Lebanon 
should go to war against Israel to reclaim territory. "Syria and Lebanon 
have the right to ensure their self-defense and to send their army ... to 
liberate the Golan [Heights] and south Lebanon," Gadhafi said Friday at the 
close of a five-day visit to Tunisia. (Israel Line, Jerusalem Post, SNS, 
IMRA) 

MEANWHILE, ON THE LEBANESE FRONT . . .: Hizb'Allah guerrillas staged an 
attack Friday against a position held by the South Lebanese Army (SLA) in 
the Security Zone in southern Lebanon, but no casualties were reported, 
Lebanese police said. The guerrillas attacked the SLA position in Zumrayya 
on the edge of the Security Zone, firing machine guns and anti-personnel 
carrier Tiger rockets. The SLA and IDF retaliated with tank and gunfire 
that hit the outskirts of the villages of Sohmor and Yohmor on the other 
side of the fence. On Thursday night, two IDF soldiers were killed and 
three were injured in a roadside attack by Hizb'Allah guerrillas. An IDF 
investigation revealed that Hizb'Allah had placed four roadside bombs 
several days before the incident, which detonated in a chain reaction 
explosion. The bombs exploded in the same location, the Eastern Sector of 
the Security Zone, where IDF soldiers encountered Hizb'Allah terrorists two 
weeks ago and killed two of them. 

Likud MK Gideon Ezra called for the withdrawal of the IDF from south 
Lebanon stating the Security Zone does not achieve its purpose and 
Katyushas can reach the settlements in the North even from beyond the 
security zone. (UPI, IMRA, Arutz Sheva) 

HOUSING UNITS "UNFROZE" BY GOVERNMENT: Channel 2 reports PM Netanyahu has 
given the green light to "unfreeze" 3,000 housing units that were "frozen" 
by the former Labor Government. The homes, 700 of which are located in 
Ariel (Shomron), were not permitted to be sold or rented. Tens of housing 
units are located in Karnei Shomron (Shomron) and Kiryat Arba (Judea). The 
Director-General of Yesha Aaron Domb, stated "This is the government's way 
of throwing us a bone to pacify us prior to the government's giving the 
okay to leave Hevron. We are thankful and await the main course but this is 
not linked in anyway to the situation in Hevron". 

Meanwhile, MK Chanan Porat (National Religious Party) has announced that 
Amanah - the settlement arm of Gush Emunim - is willing to take upon itself 
any losses incurred by the State as a result of the sale of the 
newly-unfrozen apartments in Judea and Samaria. MK Chaim Oron (Meretz) 
claimed Tuesday that the sale of the completed apartments, including 
repairs of damages caused by their sitting empty for the past several 
years, in addition to development costs, would cause great losses to the 
government. Porat, in the name of Amanah, said that the organization would 
take it upon itself to sell the 3,000 apartments, but added that if the 
sales would generate profits, the funds would be used for the benefit of 
Yesha development. 

In another story, Yediot Achronot reports, contrary to statements made 
about two months ago by the Prime Minister, that new homes will not be 
built in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, about 8,000 housing units are planned. 
The new area has received the designation of a Local Council and is called 
Modi'in Elite. The initial work on the infrastructure is scheduled to begin 
in the coming days. (SNS, Arutz Sheva) 

US CONCERNED OVER ISRAELI-CHINA TRADE: The US is concerned about Israeli 
technology being sold to China, for fear this could upset the regional 
balance in Asia, according to sources close to the Pentagon, whose 
information was confirmed in Jerusalem. The concern is about Israeli 
technology and thereby differs from the past, when the US charged that 
Israel was pirating US technology and sending it to China. US concern has 
apparently increased this year, as China staged live- missile exercises in 
the Taiwan Strait and the US responded by sending aircraft carriers to 
patrol the sea lane. An official in the Prime Minister's Office suggested 
that Israel is likely to be more circumspect before selling any more 
high-technology to China, but refused to discuss specifics, such as 
indications that Israel is currently negotiating with the Chinese over the 
sale of an airborne early-warning system. "Most of Israel's security 
relations with China were built during the Cold War, when the US was 
actively involved in strategic cooperation with China as a counterweight to 
the Soviet Union," he said. "There is a growing awareness in Israel that 
China is identified as a potential American military rival in the future, 
which requires a reassessment of Israeli policy." (Jerusalem Post) 

GOLAN HEIGHTS STATUS: Channel 2 reports most of the government Ministers 
have expressed their willingness to accept a land compromise on the Golan 
Heights in return for a piece accord with Syria. The Ministers stated they 
will be willing to give away portions of land in return for a Syrian piece 
treaty. Ministers Raful Eitan (Tzomet), Dr. Binyamin Begin (Likud) and 
Rabbi Yitzchak Levy (NRP), stated they object to any land compromise on the 
Golan Heights in return for piece with Syria. 

Meanwhile, residents of the Golan Heights are worried, following Monday's 
remarks by Defense Minister Yitzchak Mordechai alluding to a willingness to 
make territorial concessions to Syria. Mordechai said that no government 
minister ever said "Not one inch" in reference to the Golan. Minister 
Rafael Eitan came out Tuesday morning against Mordechai's words, and said, 
"I say: not one inch in the Golan." Golan leader Avi Zeira, speaking on Kol 
Yisrael radio Tuesday morning, said, "The previous government offered all 
of the Golan to Syria, and Syria still refused to make real peace. There is 
therefore no need to continue discussing an option which has already proved 
itself a failure." (SNS,Arutz Sheva) 

EU APPOINTS SPECIAL PIECE ENVOY: The European Union (EU) decided to appoint 
Spain's Ambassador to Israel, Migel Angel Morantinos, as a special envoy to 
monitor the piece process, Ma'ariv reported. The decision was made at a 
meeting of the foreign ministers intended to increase the organization's 
influence in the region. Israeli officials viewthe decision as a 
reaffirmation of Israel's stance which opposes the nomination of a special 
envoy who would become actively involved in the process. They explained 
that the envoy already serves in the region and will only deal with reports 
monitoring the process. (Israel Line) 

EGYPT GAINS POINTS WITH ANTI-ISRAEL STANCE: The Daily Telegraph reports 
that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak "is riding a wave of unprecedented 
popularity following his new hardline stand on Israel." Mubarak's refusal 
to meet with PM Netanyahu, even to attend the emergency Washington summit a 
few weeks ago has even earned him respect among his strongest opponents 
from the Egyptian Islamic movement. According to a spokesman for Egypt's 
outlawed Islamic Brotherhood group, Mubarak "is more popular now and the 
majority of the people approved of his decision." Mubarak's strong 
anti-Israel position has been taken up by the pro-government media, with 
Egyptian commentators feeling free to public discuss "the inevitability of 
another Arab-Israeli war," the Telegraph reports. In fact, a retired 
Egyptian general has announced his intention to launch a political party to 
advocate preparing Egypt for war. 

Meanwhile, this past week marked the 40th anniversary of the Sinai Campaign 
in 1956. In cooperation with France and England, Israel conquered the 
entire Sinai Peninsula. 157 IDF soldiers fell during the fighting, 
following which then-PM Ben-Gurion declared the establishment of the Third 
Jewish Commonwealth. Three months later, under US and Soviet pressure, 
Israel retreated back to the international border. (IRIS, ArutzSheva) 

WHO CONTROLS THE TEMPLE MOUNT? A group from the PLO Authority Wakf entered 
the offices of the Jordanian Wakf on Wednesday and demanded that its 
members leave the Temple Mount. Ha'Aretz reported that there is tension 
between the two religious authorities due to their competition for control 
over the Temple Mount. The Jordanian Wakf appealed for the help of Israel, 
which committed in its piece treaty with Jordan to preserve its status at 
holy sites in Jerusalem. The Prime Minister telephoned Yassir Arafat and 
requested that he restrain the PLO Wakf representatives and return the 
situation to the status quo. Arafat told Netanyahu that he was not aware of 
the incident and promised to handle the issue. Arafat also spoke with King 
Hussein about the incident. The two reportedly reached a solution regarding 
the tension between PLO and Jordanian religious authorities in Jerusalem. 

In another story, the Wakf threatens to close the entry to Hezekiah's 
Tunnel in Silwan if Israel continues collecting an entrance fee from 
visitors. They claim that the site is under the responsibility of the Wakf 
and not the municipality. The Director of the Jerusalem Region of the Wakf, 
Adnan Al Husseini held an emergency meeting and sent a letter to the 
municipality warning that if the municipal workers do not leave the site 
"we will close the place - because it complicates the complicated situation 
in the city." The municipality has been collecting an entrance fee for five 
months after the East Jerusalem Development Corporation spent a million NIS 
(approximately $330,000) to clean and restore the Gihon Spring and the 
narrow tunnel which links it to the Siloam Pool. The opening to the tunnel 
in Silwan is owned by the Wakf. The East Jerusalem Development Corporation 
made an agreement with the Wakf regarding the entrance at the end of 1995. 
(SNS, IMRA) 

COVENANT STILL NOT AMENDED: The Jerusalem Post reports that Thursday 
(10-24-96) marked the end of six months since the April meeting at which 
the PLO's Palestinian National Council (PNC) declared its intention to 
draft a new Palestinian covenant. The existing PLO covenant declares that 
the organization is dedicated to the destruction of Israel through 
violence. At the April meeting, the PNC decided to set up a legal panel to 
review the matter and report in six months. This deadline has now passed, 
but there have been no reports that such a committee has in fact convened. 
The PLO originally committed itself to replacing the covenant as a 
precondition for the September 1993 Israeli recognition of the PLO. (IRIS) 

Week Ending: October 26, 1996/Cheshvan 13, 5757 

"Every place on which the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours; 
your border shall be from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the river, 
the river Euphrates, as far as the western sea" 
Deuteronomy 11.24 

ISRAELI-PLO TALKS ON HEVRON CONTINUE: Talks over an Israeli troop 
withdrawal from Hevron resumed late Saturday night in Tel Aviv. US mediator 
Dennis Ross had spent much of Saturday working behind the scenes trying to 
bridge gaps between Israel and the Palestinians over Hevron. Ross met Prime 
Minister Netanyahu on Saturday and visited Palestinian leader Arafat in his 
Gaza office Friday.  Disputes over Hevron center on demands Israel says are 
necessary to protect the safety of Jewish settlers. Israel wants to have 
the right to chase suspects into Palestinian-controlled territory; to 
restrict Palestinian police to carrying pistols, not rifles, while 
patrolling near Jewish enclaves; and to prevent a 
vegetable market from reopening near the settler areas. Earlier Saturday, 
Arafat's Cabinet said the Palestinians would not agree to change "even a 
comma" in piece agreements already signed with Israel. 

In Jerusalem, about 10,000 Israelis carrying torches marched to Netanyahu's 
office Saturday to press for a quick withdrawal from Hevron. The marchers 
carried torches and banners reading "Give back Hevron." 

On Wednesday, residents of Hevron were detained by police after they began 
posting signs adjacent to Arab stores in Hevron. The signs stated, "This 
property is owned by Jews, descendants of those victims of the 1929 Arab 
massacre of the Hevron Jewish Community." Governmental figures in Jerusalem 
on Monday said that the exact time of signing now depends exclusively on 
Arafat. American mediator Ross made it clear to Arafat that he should not 
expect stronger American support for his positions after the US elections. 
Ross said that it could even be that after the elections, President Clinton 
will not be as eager to achieve diplomatic successes in the Middle East. 

Netanyahu's brother-in-law and close adviser, meanwhile, criticized the 
premier Friday for the impending Israeli troop withdrawal from Hevron, 
saying Netanyahu had disappointed his constituents. Hagi Ben-Artzi, the 
brother of Israeli first lady Sarah Netanyahu, said he had decided to 
resign from the ruling Likud Party and would move next week to the Jewish 
settlement in Hevron. (AP, Channel 2 TV News, SNS, Arutz Sheva) 

FRENCH LEADER VISITS MID-EAST: French President Chirac completed his visit 
in Syria Monday. Chirac stated his support for the Syrian position calling 
for a total Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights. 

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Levy rejected the Paris-backed idea of the 
European Union (EU) of naming a Middle East peace envoy. "We reject it 
completely," Levy said, adding, "The two sides must reach an agreement 
among themselves. Any other method is the antithesis of negotiations free 
from outside pressure." Chirac also toned down his call for the EU to 
co-sponsor the piece process, Reuter reported.  At a joint news conference 
with Syrian President Hafez Assad, Chirac said: "I did not come here to 
teach people lessons ... We are not trying to force our way in. I am simply 
saying that we are available, that we have valid reasons to be involved, 
and that a certain balance of things may justify the presence of Europe and 
of France." A day earlier, Chirac had endorsed the need for such a 
mediator. "France and Europe must stand by the parties as sources of 
friendship and proposals, and not as mere partners for reconstruction," he 
said. "It is time for Europe to co-sponsor this process as well." 

Chirac arrived in Israel on Monday. While Chirac was addressing an audience 
in the Technion, in Haifa, an anonymous caller phoned in a bomb scare to 
Haifa Police Headquarters. The large security force that was on hand began 
a "discreet" search of the area. No explosive devices were uncovered. When 
Chirac reached the French Christian Church in the Old City of Jerusalem, 
Arab civilians in the area tried to shake his hand and greet him. Israeli 
security officials prevented the civilians from reaching the President. 
Chirac shouted at them in English, "Do you want me to go back to my plane? 
Shall I go back to France?" Chirac ordered the security officials to permit 
the civilians to shake his hand and he spoke with them. Upon his arrival at 
the Church, the French President also ordered, "The foreign security 
officials with weapons" away from the site. He was referring to about 20 
Israeli policemen assigned to guard the site during the official visit. The 
French diplomatic establishment filed a complaint with Israeli officials. 
The French Embassy stated that the "cordial visit" was ruined by the 
inappropriate actions of Israeli security troops. PM Netanyahu stated the 
visit of President Chirac was a positive one and the meeting between the 
two leaders was a productive one with good dialogue. When Chirac arrived in 
the Knesset, MK (Moledet) Rechavam Ze'evi stood up and shouted, "This is a 
disgrace to the house and his visit is an anti-Semitic act." Ze'evi then 
got up and left the Knesset session. Chirac concluded his visit to Israel 
Wednesday morning, after speaking at the Palestinian National Council in 
Ram'Allah. He expressed support for a Palestinian state, but advised his 
listeners to "be patient." (SNS, ZINC, Ma'ariv, Channel 2 Radio News, Arutz 
Sheva) 

YESHA ORDERED TO RETURN GUNS: Many residents of communities throughout 
Judea, Samaria and Gaza (Yesha) were ordered to return their Israel Defense 
Force (IDF) issued automatic weapons. The residents of the Jewish 
communities throughout Yesha were always issued weapons for self defense 
purposes. Now, the IDF is asking certain residents to return these weapons 
for fear they will be used to carry out a political assassination. MK (NRP) 
Chanan Porat stated the announcement recalling weapons is shocking. "While 
automatic weapons are being distributed to PLO forces, which may be used 
against the residents of Yesha communities, our self defense weapons are 
being confiscated. We will not be able to defend ourselves. The situation 
is absurd." Meanwhile, the IDF has rescinded its decision to confiscate the 
weapons of Yesha Council head Pinchas Wallerstein. A notification to this 
effect was received in the offices of the community of Ofrah following an 
earlier Arutz Sheva report that the IDF had decided not to allow 
Wallerstein and other Ofrah residents to continue to hold weapons. The 
weapons will not be taken from any of the Ofrah residents. (Ma'ariv, SNS) 

NEVER MIND, THE TANKS ARE HERE: Yediot Achronot reports IDF Tank Corps 
units assigned to Judea, Samaria and Gaza, are now engaged in exercises of 
simulating firing tanks in a populated area. The purpose of the exercise is 
to sharpen skills in firing at a more pinpointed target than is usually 
done with a tank, in order to minimize injuries of persons and properties 
in the area of the target. MK (Meretz) Ron Cohen has called for the tanks 
to be taken away from the PLO-controlled areas. (SNS) 

ON THE NORTHERN FRONT: After five days of deliberation, the Monitoring 
Committee implementing the understandings in southern Lebanon announced 
that it had rejected a Syrian and Lebanese demand to condemn Israel. The 
committee also mentioned the restraint exercised by the IDF in southern 
Lebanon. The IDF's Northern Command was placed on alert, especially in the 
Security Zone, following Hizb'Allah's declaration rejecting the Monitoring 
Committee's decision on violations of the under-standings in southern 
Lebanon. Officers in the IDF's Northern Command said the Hizb'Allah's 
reaction constitutes a challenge to the authority of the committee, in 
which Lebanon and Syria are members. The IDF officers added that Hizb'Allah 
continues to operate in southern Lebanon in a similar fashion to that which 
preceded Operation Grapes of Wrath. 

Senior members of the Labor Party are planning to introduce a bill that 
will require a nationwide referendum regarding the reestablishment of piece 
negotiations between Israel and the government of Syria. The Labor Party 
MKs expect the support of the opposition parties as well as some coalition 
members. The Golan Residents' Committee has criticized the proposal stating 
it is "somewhat hypocritical, as for four years the Labor government held 
negotiations for a full withdrawal from the Golan against the mandate that 
it had re

  
ceived from the electorate - witness Rabin's famous 
pre-1992-election remarks, 'Whoever gives up the Golan, abandons the 
security of the State of Israel' - and without holding a referendum," 
stated Committee Spokesman Uri Heitner. The populace, according to the 
proposal, is to be asked to express its opinion on the principle of "the 
extent of the peace will determine the extent of the withdrawal," as 
formulated by the previous government. (Israel Line, 
Ma'ariv, SNS, Arutz Sheva) 

NO CONFIDENCE VOTE PASSES KNESSET: On Monday, opposition parties brought a 
No Confidence motion against the government. The motion was brought due to, 
what opposition parties are calling a steady continuing decline in the 
economy and the Finance Ministry's lack of positive actions to correct the 
situation. The No Confidence vote passed by a vote of 45 to 43. The 
majority voted against the government, expressing their lack of confidence 
in the current administration's economic polices. The only thing that saved 
the government from collapse is a new law requiring a vote of at least 61 
to bring down a ruling government with a No Confidence motion. Many 
coalition members failed to make an appearance to vote in support of the 
government, thereby leaving Netanyahu susceptible to the defeat. 
(Channel 2 Radio News, SNS) 

SHECHEM UPDATE: Thousands of people have visited the site in Zion Square in 
Jerusalem where hundreds of holy books that were burnt by Arabs in last 
month's pogrom in Shechem have been put on display. The memorial site also 
features photographs and artifacts in memory of the six soldiers who fell 
during the violence at Yeshivat Od Yosef Chai there.  Thousands attended 
the funeral procession of the books. According to Jewish Law, the remains 
of Holy Writings must be buried. The actual burial took place in 
Jerusalem's Har Menuchot Cemetery. 

In a related story, Chief of Staff Amnon Lipkin-Shachak has decided to fire 
the Commanding Officer of the Shechem Region, Col. Tzvika, who was the 
senior officer at the site of the battle last month at Joseph's Tomb. Six 
soldiers were killed there, and eight others were wounded.  Arutz Sheva 
correspondent Haggai Hoberman investigated the circumstances of the 
fighting there, and said that the main problem was the fact that no one in 
the military leadership expected a battle to break out, which led to a 
total lack of psychological and military preparedness on their part. 
Another difficulty was that the enemy was not easily identifiable; while 
some Palestinian policemen were firing at the IDF soldiers, others were 
helping to evacuate the Israeli wounded, under fire; while some Palestinian 
officers were giving orders to shoot, others were sitting with Israeli 
officers in a joint headquarters and giving radio orders to cease firing. 
Hoberman said that Jibril Rajub proved that day that he is strongly in 
control; he personally intervened to stop the battle in Shechem. He further 
said that O.C. Central Command Uzi Dayan distinguished himself by taking 
the responsibility upon himself not to evacuate the Tomb of Joseph. Dayan 
had been given a green light by Defense Minister Yitzchak Mordechai to 
decide whether or not to evacuate; after sitting by himself and considering 
the implications of the decision, he felt that it would be catastrophic for 
the IDF to retreat from a position under those circumstances. (Arutz Sheva, 
Channel 2 TV News, SNS) 

IRAN PRODUCING NERVE GAS: The following article appeared in the October 19, 
1996 edition of the Jordanian publication Al Hayat: Western intelligence 
reports note that Iran will succeed within one year to manufacture 
catastrophic nerve gas. If Iran produces such gas, the Gulf States will be 
in danger and this will threaten the stability of the Middle East. 
Knowledgeable sources advise that Western intelligence is concerned so much 
by the new information that they have asked for a serious investigation to 
be launched in order to determine the importance of the news. The sources 
point out that in the course of the last years Iran has invested efforts in 
order to independently manufacture weapons of mass destruction. The Iranian 
activities, which President of Iran, Rafsanjani, personally oversees, are 
advancing in three areas: nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. The 
Iranians have invested up until now several hundreds of millions of dollars 
in these projects. Much money was devoted to the purchase of new technology 
from the countries of the world in addition to the productive use of the 
services of international experts. The intelligence reports note that Iran 
needs several years in order to produce nuclear weapons. Iran now is at the 
advance stages, and has almost succeeded in independently producing the 
"Sarin" nerve gas [Sarin, developed by the Nazis in the Second World War, 
is nerve poisoning gas of organic phosphorus compound. Pure sarin is 
colorless and odorless and is described as 500 times as toxic as potassium 
cyanide. Iraqi troops were reported to have used it during the Iran-Iraqi 
War (1980-1988) to suppress Kurdish rebels. As it can be comparatively 
easily produced considering the deadly affect, the gas is known as the 
"poor's nuclear weapon".-ed]. (IMRA, SNS) 

MEANWHILE, ON THE SYRIAN FRONT: According to intelligence sources in the 
UnitedStates, there exists a 30% chance of the situation between Israel 
and Syria of heating up. The American intelligence sources have divided the 
chances of an escalation in the tensions between Israel and Syria into 
three categories. 

An increase in tensions surrounding security in Southern Lebanon. 
A less but still very possible chance of an escalation in fighting on the 
Golan Heights. 
A less chance, but increasing, of a general Israeli-Syrian conflict. 

In a related story, the Emergency Response and Research Institute has 
learned from sources that a military clash between Israel and Syria was 
narrowly averted on Saturday, October 12th, when IDF units assigned to the 
Golan Heights reported several Syrian gunship helicopters flying toward 
their position. IDF warplanes were scrambled, but the Syrian gunships were 
gone upon their arrival. 

In another story, senior Israeli officials denied weekend press reports 
suggesting that former senior State Department official Edward Djerejian 
brought back from Damascus on Thursday (10-17-96) a commitment by Syrian 
President Hafez Assad to unconditionally restart piece talks with Israel 
[see F.Y.I. 10-19-96-ed]. Djerejian, a former US ambassador to Syria and 
Israel before becoming head of the James Baker Center for Public Policy at 
Rice University, met Netanyahu before going to Damascus. Assad's position 
appears to remain constant: he refuses to start talks with the Netanyahu 
government unless it adopts a 1995 unsigned paper reached with Labor on 
Golan-related security arrangement principles, and adopts the verbal 
conditional suggestion by Yitzchak Rabin that he would cede the whole Golan 
up to the June 4, 1967 lines if he received satisfactory resolution of 
crucial security arrangements details and normalization of ties. (Yediot 
Achronot, SNS, Jerusalem Post) 

ARAFAT INCITES VIOLENCE: Yassir Arafat is inciting the Arabs of Hevron to 
use violence against their Jewish neighbors. He met Monday night with a 
delegation of Arab municipal leaders of the city, and reprimanded them, 
asking, "Are there no more rocks left in Hevron?" He later came to the 
Dahaishe refugee camp near Beit Lechem (Bethlehem), and repeatedly called, 
"War! War! Continue the struggle!" to the large crowd that came to hear 
him. The throng then joined Arafat in chanting: 

"We sacrifice our blood and ourselves for Palestine!" Arafat announced, 
"You are the ones who lead the struggle," urging women to have 12 children 
each - "two for you and ten for me." Arafat said that all Palestinians are 
participating in the great jihad over the establishment of a Palestinian 
state. He said that a Palestinian state was a historical necessity and that 
a Palestinian piece would draw a new map in the Arab world. "We are in a 
conflict with the Zionist movement, the Balfour Declaration, and all 
imperialist activity. I call on all the prisoners, and especially Sheikh 
Ahmed Yassein: Remain patient, soon we will pray together at the Al-Aksa 
Mosque in Jerusalem," Arafat said. (Arutz Sheva, Israel Line) 

THE MOSLEM STAND REGARDING THE TEMPLE MOUNT: IMRA interviewed Adnan Al 
Husseini, the Executive Director of the Moslem Waqf, in English, on October 
20, 1996.  IMRA: How do you see Jewish activity at the Western Wall when an 
agreement is finally reached about Jerusalem?  HUSSEINI: We do not want to 
talk of details but there is something very important: we have to insist 
that East Jerusalem is part of the Palestinian state. If you want real 
peace you need a strong Palestinian state beside Israel. IMRA: Do you think 
that the Jews will be permitted to disturb the Al Aksa services by blowing 
shofars [rams horn] at the Western Wall like they do today during certain 
holidays?  HUSSEINI: I do not think so. I think that the governments will 
have to take care of the extreme people. The Jews should understand that 
the Moslems are there at Al Aksa due to God's decision and this is written 
in the holy book and it is very important to understand the famous visit of 
Mohammed there. Since then it is God's decision and after that the Prophet. 
This is from Godfrom the holy book. Islam respects all the religions and 
took care of all the holy books and safeguarded the lives of all 
non-Moslems. We have to respect the factor of time and the new 
understanding which took place and not look backwards two thousand years. 
Otherwise there will be no peace forever. The Moslems are there and it is a 
mosque and they must understand it. (SNS) 

MEANWHILE, THE TERRORISM CONTINUES . . .: An Arab was killed Monday night 
when a rock was thrown at his car on the Ram'Allah by-pass road near 
Beit-El. The rock penetrated the front windshield and killed Fathi Schouri, 
43, of the nearby village of Sinjil. He was driving a car with yellow 
(Israeli) license plates, and investigators at the site are convinced that 
the rock was intended to harm a Jewish driver. An Arutz Sheva correspondent 
notes that there have been many cases of rock-throwing along that same 
section of the road over the past few nights, but the security forces did 
not take serious action to prevent the phenomenon. Palestinian 
investigators, who were taken to the site of the murder and were allowed to 
photograph it, later spread reports to the effect that Jews committed the 
crime. They even induced a passenger in the car to testify that Jews shot 
at the car. Spokesman for the Judea-Samaria Police District Boaz Goldberg 
later announced, "There is absolutely no connection between what happened 
and the Palestinian reports. They are totally contrived." He said that 145 
cases of rock- throwings by Arabs were reported in the past week in Judea 
and Samaria.  Avigdor Eskin, labeled a "Right-Wing extremist" was arrested 
Tuesday night in Jerusalem together with another unidentified man. They 
were putting up stickers that said, "He will redeem us." (Arutz Sheva, 
Channel 2 Radio News, SNS) 

Send comments to Lee Underwood at:  mbi@digital.net 
Archives located at:  http://www.inet-images.com/fellowship/fyi.htm 
Note: The word "peace" is not misspelled in this document. When used in 
conjunction with the Middle East process, it is correctly spelled 
"piece"-ed. 

 

U.S. SATELLITES DETECT SYRIAN MOVEMENT 
based on an article from Israeli Consulate News 

In recent weeks, American satellites have detected the movement of Syrian 
troops known to operate ground-to-ground Scud missiles.  These unusual 
movements have caused US concern in that the movement may bring undue 
pressure on Israel. 

An IDF Intelligence Branch officer said that there has been no change in 
the Syrian deployment, and that the movements of the past few days are part 
of the Syrian army's regular exercises. 

This source noted that risk of war with Syria is routinely figured in 
working assumptions by the Intelligence Branch, and that they conduct daily 
analyses of Syrian military movements and monitor statements in the Syrian 
media. 

Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and 
Defense Committee that the Syrian are planning a large military exercise in 
the coming days.  He also stated that the IDF would increase alertness 
without causing a deterioration in the situation. 

 
Nearing Midnight Update 
Current events that are fast moving and supportive of Bible prophecy. 

** The eruption of Popocatepetl volcano, which is located 20 miles 
southeast of Mexico City, has helped make 1996 a very active year for 
volcanic activity. You would have to go back to 1991 to find a more 
spectacular year - the year Mt. Pinatubo erupted. This year has also been 
an active one for hurricanes. In the Atlantic, a record or near record 
number of category 3 hurricanes was recorded. This follows 1995's record 
year of some 19 named storms. Natural disasters come under the end time 
heading of birth pangs. Jesus described storms, earthquakes, and war as 
precursors of his return. The key factor to remember is that they will be 
increasing in frequency as the end times draw near. 

** Idealists in the Soviet communist era dreamed of a society without cash, 
where workers received what they needed and goods were available on demand. 
Ironically, the first half of their vision has become a grim reality. InRus 
sia today, there is no money to pay wages or pensions, no cash to meet tax 
bills, and few Russians have any cash reserves, yet the store shelves are 
cluttered with goods. The reason for this situation, I believe, is the fact 
that Russia has forgotten God. Russia is one of most mineral rich nations 
on earth, yet it's unable to utilize those resources. Russia has more 
farmland than any other country, yet it can barely feed its people. Again, 
it's because Russia has forgotten God. This is also why after throwing off 
Communism and turning to Capitalism the Russian economy is still incapable 
of provide goods to the people. Under Communism everyone had money and 
there was nothing to buy. Now the stores are full and no one can afford to 
buy anything. It's because Russia has forgotten God. 

 

666 Update 
brought to our attention by John Wilcox (jwilcox@epix.net) 

This is HOT news...This is a company that has taken the step to pull the 
chip out of smart cards and put it in a ring...We are not talking about 
Captain Midnight here folks, check out the following URL: 

http://www.ibutton.com 
A Product of Dallas Semiconductor 

Go ahead check out the WebSite and see what different products are offered. 
Mark of the Beast Technology at its finest.  Also, note the symbols.  By 
the way, I think there may be more involved here than mailing in five bucks 
and two labels from either Malted or Regular Ovaltine. 

 
Sylvia's Page of News 
sylvia@itrc.on.ca 

U.S. WELCOMES RUSSIA, EU SUPPORT FOR MIDEAST PEACE.  The United States 
envoy to Israel said Wednesday he welcomed Russian and European support for 
the Middle East peace process, but that more than one facilitator could 
complicate the talks, which he saw as close to agreement. Ambassador Martin 
Indyk this week joined U.S. special negotiator Dennis Ross, who ended 
Tuesday three weeks of mediation between Palestinians and Israelis in a bid 
to nail down details of the long-delayed Israeli troop pullout from Hebron. 
Russia and the European Union are seeking a greater role in helping the 
talks along. 

For the full text story, see 
http://www.merc.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=412600-6e9 

NEUTRAL SWISS TO JOIN NATO PARTNERSHIP PLAN.  Switzerland announced 
Wednesday it would join NATO's Partnership for Peace (PFP) program in a bid 
to promote security in post-Cold War Europe. But the government took pains 
to assure the conservative majority of Swiss that the move did not 
jeopardize the country's treasured neutrality nor signal its intention to 
join the Western military alliance. NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana 
told a news conference in Stockholm he expected Switzerland to officially 
join PFP Dec. 11. 

For the full text story, see 
http://www.merc.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=412105-55e 

RUSSIA RENEGES ON MISSILE DEFENSES DEAL.  Russia, at the last moment, 
backed away from an agreement on missile defense that was to be signed Oct. 
31, U.S. officials said Wednesday.  An official said "We had a set of 
documents that was agreed by all sides. Texts were confirmed. Translators 
had certified the documents meant the same thing. We had a time and place 
for the signing and people were flying in from all capitals." The collapse 
of the deal is a blow to Clinton's arms control efforts and raises 
questions on how the power struggle in Moscow is affecting Russian policy. 

For the full text story, see 
http://www.merc.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=414152-d43 

U.S. PLEDGES $7.3 MILLION IN RELIEF FOR IRAQ.  The United States, after an 
initial cool reaction to a U.N. appeal, offered $7.3 million in emergency 
aid Wednesday for Iraqi civilians, but blamed Saddam Hussein for wasting 
billions of dollars while his people go hungry. A State Department 
spokesman said the donation would come with a caveat -- that the money be 
used only for Kurds in northern Iraq. That region was a "safe haven," 
patrolled by U.S., French and British warplanes, until rival Kurdish 
factions unleashed civil war there. 

For the full text story, see 
http://www.merc.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=414675-92b 

MYSTERY BUG HITS MIAMI SCHOOL.  A mystery bug hit a Miami elementary 
school, afflicting about 100 children, keeping hundreds from classes and 
spreading panic among parents, a schools spokesman said Wednesday. "It's an 
unexplained illness...We don't know," said the spokesman, Henry Fraind. 
About 100 pupils at the Gordon School in Countrywalk became ill Tuesday and 
Wednesday, with vomiting, diarrhoea and nausea. Many of the school's 1,500 
pupils stayed home. "I believe half the students are not in today because 
of the basic hysteria," Fraind said. 

For the full text story, see 
http://www.merc.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=412763-cab 

HEART STUDY HAS U.S. DOCTORS SEEKING MORE RESEARCH.  A new study raised 
doubts about a hospital procedure for the heart, but is not strong enough 
evidence for doctors to change practices, the head of a physicians' group 
said Wednesday. Recent research about right heart catheterization has 
prompted the medical profession to support more studies of the procedure. 
The study was published last month in the Journal of the American Medical 
Association. Right heart catheterization has been used for 25 years, but 
the study said it does patients little good and may actually increase the 
risk of death. 

For the full text story, see 
http://www.merc.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=416217-5cb 

MYSTERIOUS FUMES IN A JAPANESE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL in downtown Tokyo caused 
60 students to be taken to the hospital this morning.  Officials said they 
did not know the source or nature of the fumes. 

Advertisement:  "What! No Soap?" So he died. -- 'The Great Panjandrum', a 
British Victorian nursery book. <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< 
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<>< <>< 

 

PERSECUTION PRAYER REQUESTS 
By John Loeffler, October 29, 1996 

Vietnam's house church movement has undergone a summer of persecution 
following a harder line on religion announced by the governing Communist 
Party at the 8th Party Congress in June. 

House church leaders in southern Ho Chi Minh City told Compass that "our 
leaders are not just detained for a few days, but are sentenced to three 
years in jail."  Thirteen known house church leaders were now serving a 
minimum of 20 months each. 

In addition to the jailing of leaders, other tactics not prominently used 
by the government in recent years have resurfaced.  These include raids on 
churches.  A total of 11 were reported in August in Ho Chi Minh City with 
entire congregations arrested for a short period.  Heavier financial 
penalties are being levied also.  In Cuchi eight people gathered for a 
Bible study were levied fines equal to $20 each, and had their Bibles and 
books confiscated. In the central highland region where many tribespeople 
have become Christians, fines equal to $140 were slapped on Christians 
found meeting together, in an area where the average monthly wage is little 
more than $20. The fines were reduced to $20 on appeal. (Compass Direct) 

Ibrahim Sharaf el-Din has finally been allowed to leave Egypt after a 
two-year fight.  El-Din, a convert to Christianity who fled Egypt due to 
persecution, returned for a visit and was secretly arrested and jailed in 
October of 1994.  Egyptian authorities detained him for nine months on 
unsubstantiated charges of insulting Islam while living abroad.  He was 
missing for four months before his whereabouts became known to his family. 
(Compass Direct) 

In early September the Sinai Evangelical Christian Pentecostal church 
building was destroyed in the Mexican State of Hidalgo.  On Sunday morning, 
September 8, a mob of 100 irate Catholics converged on the church, threw 
solvent liquids on the building's facade and set fire to the building.  The 
60 church members were meeting in a private home since they had been warned 
of danger. 

Meanwhile 38 adults and children were expelled from their town in the State 
of Oaxaca the same weekend because of their religious faith. (Compass 
Direct) 

Open Doors Latin America has reported that a Christian Couple has been 
released from prison in Peru where they had unjustly been accused of 
terrorism.  Both had been sentenced to 30 years in prison by a military 
tribunal in December of 1992. (Compass Direct) 

Security Police are cracking down on Christians in Uzbekistan's capital 
city of Tashkent.  A Protestant pastor was arrested on charges of violating 
Article 241 of the Administrative Code, which forbids the teaching of 
religious beliefs without permission of the government's Department of 
Religion. (Compass Direct) 

 
Home Page of Popular Prophecy Site Redesigned 
by Our Surfing Correspondent 

Cybernauts were treated to an unusual and unique treat in Cyberspace 
Saturday.  Ray Gano, editor of the e-rag, Prophe-zine, unleashed a 
redesigned Web Site for the publication's Home Page.  Resplendent with a 
search engine, visitor's log, back issue downloads, and interesting 
biographical info about its founder, this site has won several "best of" 
awards, reflecting the creativity, imagination and artistry of the cyber 
prophecy genre.  Future improvements include an "Our Staff" page. 

Explore it now by surfing over to http://www.best.com/~ray673/pzhome.html