Saudi oil prince's iron grip faces ultimate test with UAE's shock OPEC exit
Saudi oil prince's iron grip faces ultimate test with UAE's shock OPEC exit
By Yousef Saba, Ahmad Ghaddar and Maha El Dahan
May 1, 2026 11:48 AM PDT Updated 1 hour ago
[1/2]Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud speaks during a session of the Russian Energy Week international forum in Moscow, Russia, October 15, 2025. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
Summary
Saudi Arabia's energy minister Prince Abdulaziz is half-brother of Crown Prince
Early years of diplomatic touch have transformed into an iron grip on OPEC
UAE exit a critical test for Prince Abdulaziz's influence over oil markets
May 1 (Reuters) - Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman now has an OPEC challenge to deal with on top of the largest ever disruption to global oil supplies.
The Iran war has not only hobbled Gulf crude exports but has meant Saudi Arabia and other members of the group of oil-producing countries are unable to tap the spare capacity usually deployed in times of crisis.
This week's sudden departure of OPEC's fourth-largest producer last year, the United Arab Emirates, taking with it spare capacity second only to the kingdom's, poses a formidable test for the first royal Saudi oil minister whose style has shifted from painstaking diplomacy to increasingly unilateral decision making, said two delegates from the broader OPEC+ group, an alliance with Russia and a number of other producers.
"The UAE has been chafing inside OPEC for years and never got a fair hearing over its...quota. So now the chickens have come home to roost," said Jim Krane, a fellow at Rice University's Baker Institute.
Also known as ABS, Prince Abdulaziz's OPEC+ power stems from Saudi Arabia's massive oil and spare capacity. Unlike past energy ministers, he is a royal backed by his half-brother, de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
ABS waged and won a price war with Russia in 2020 when Moscow initially refused to cut production as demand plummeted, later telling a Saudi documentary: "It was an issue of to be or not to be - who is the boss of this sector."
He also repeatedly defied former U.S. President Joe Biden's calls for production hikes. In 2022, OPEC granted ABS, now 66, unprecedented powers, trusting him as chairman to call meetings at any time.
Now, his demand for market discipline is set to meet a new reality. Should the Strait of Hormuz reopen and Gulf oil production normalise, an unconstrained UAE, which accounted for 12% of OPEC production last year, represents a variable the Saudi prince can no longer control.
The Saudi government communications office, the Saudi energy ministry and the UAE's energy and foreign ministries did not reply to requests for comment.
LITTLE ROOM FOR DEBATE
During the pandemic-driven oil market crash of 2020, ABS insisted on a unanimous agreement for historic OPEC+ production cuts, driving days of marathon negotiations until a diplomatic compromise involving the United States shouldering a share of lone holdout Mexico's output curbs was reached.
But that gruelling commitment to unity has since hardened, the two OPEC+ delegates said.
Saudi officials now typically inform ministers from smaller OPEC+ producers of the final agreement the day before meetings take place, the pair said. At one recent meeting, calls went first to Russia's Alexander Novak, then representatives of the other six countries committed to voluntary cuts, lasting less than half an hour in total, one of the delegates added.
Several delegates have acknowledged that Saudi Arabia bears the brunt of output cuts. Still, the source added that the lack of consultation on major decisions was an annoying departure from past practice, while noting that OPEC+ had also marginalised the role of its technical expert assessments in late 2022, effectively pushing decisions directly to ministers, with little room for debate.
"We appreciate what His Royal Highness is doing for the oil price," the delegate said, however, speaking on condition of anonymity.
While the recent events have prompted questions over OPEC's survival and its alliance with Russia, one of the delegates and another source familiar with the group's thinking told Reuters that the crisis would ultimately strengthen cohesion, making for smoother decision-making.
RIVALRY
Saudi Arabia and the UAE's geopolitical rivalry burst open at the turn of the year when fighting broke out in Yemen between opposing factions supported by Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.
A long-simmering oil dispute within OPEC had already come to the boil in 2021, when Abu Dhabi demanded a higher output quota. A deal securing a 300,000 barrel-a-day boost was only secured after grievances were aired publicly.
"It is unreasonable to accept further injustice and sacrifice - we have been patient," UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei told Sky News Arabia at the time.
A frustrated ABS told Al Arabiya that "a bit of rationality and a bit of compromise saves OPEC+", adding that he had "never seen such a demand" in his 34 years of attending OPEC meetings.
The UAE's quota had risen by about 500,000 bpd, or 0.5% of global demand since 2019, more than that of the group's other members. That included a boost to the UAE's target in June 2023, when Angola and Nigeria saw theirs cut. Angola quit months later in anger.
The Saudis had made the concessions as the UAE committed to spending $150 billion on an expansion plan to build more capacity, but on Tuesday it left the group anyway.
WIDENING LOSSES
For oil markets, the UAE's exit and output targets mean little while the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed.
Iraq and Kuwait have lost the most exports, while the UAE has maintained some supply via the Gulf of Oman. Saudi Arabia has managed to reroute 60-70% of exports to the Red Sea via a pipeline built in 1981 during the Iran-Iraq war.
On the sidelines of an OPEC conference last year, which Reuters and other outlets were barred from covering, Mazrouei said the UAE was ready to raise capacity a further 20% to 6 million bpd after 2027 - half of Saudi capacity - a clear challenge to ABS's fight to rein in overproduction.
Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Kirsten Donovan
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/newsmaker-saudi-oil-princes-iron-grip-faces-ultimate-test-with-uaes-shock-opec-2026-05-01/
AI Overview
Russian forces and affiliated private military groups (like Wagner/Africa Corps) are currently engaged in direct combat against Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist groups (notably JNIM) in the Sahel region of Africa, particularly Mali. These operations have seen intense fighting, with Al-Qaeda affiliates inflicting significant casualties on Russian personnel
Energy
Iran attacks on crucial Saudi pipeline and production facilities slash kingdom’s oil output
Published Thu, Apr 9 20264:44 PM EDT
Spencer Kimball
Key Points
Saudi Arabia’s key pipeline to reroute oil away from the Strait of Hormuz came under attack by Iran recently.
The attack has cut throughput in the pipeline by 700,000 barrels per day.
Attacks on Saudi’s Manifa and Khurais production facilities have slashed the kingdom’s output by 600,000 bpd.
Saudi Arabia’s critical pipeline to the Red Sea suffered a recent attack from Iran, cutting throughput by 700,000 barrels per day.
The attack hit a pumping station on the East-West pipeline, according to a state-news agency report. This pipeline brings crude oil from processing facilities near the Persian Gulf to an export terminal on the Red Sea called Yanbu.
The Saudis have relied on the pipeline, which has a capacity of 7 million bpd, as their main way to export crude oil during the Iran war. Riyadh cannot export through the Strait of Hormuz due to Iranian attacks.
Attacks on Saudi’s Manifa and Khurais production facilities have slashed the kingdom’s output by 600,000 bpd, according to the Saudi Press Agency report. Several refineries have also been attacked.
The damage to Saudi energy infrastructure will only compound the massive disruption to global oil supplies triggered by Iran’s attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. agreed to a two-week ceasefire on Tuesday in exchange for Iran allowing ships to pass through the strait. But the CEO of the United Arab Emirate’s state-owned oil company said Thursday that the strait remains effectively closed to traffic.
Iran has made clear that ships must obtain its permission to pass through the strait, said Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co.
“This moment requires clarity,” Al Jaber said in a social media post. “So let’s be clear: the Strait of Hormuz is not open. Access is being restricted, conditioned and controlled.”
The strait connects Gulf oil producers like Saudi Arabia and the UAE to global markets. About 20% of global oil supplies passed through the waterway before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28.
Gulf oil producers have shut down about 13 million bpd of production due to the disruption in the strait, said Matt Smith, an oil analyst at Kpler, in an interview with CNBC on Thursday.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/09/iran-war-oil-saudi-arabia-east-west-pipeline.html
On 19 October 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to allow major concessions for Gazprom to develop the Leviathan reserves.[26]
In late February 2023, partners involved in Leviathan announced spending of $51 million to prepare a new floating LNG floating terminal, and an additional $45 million in expanding production. The floating LNG terminal, expected to come online in the mid-to-late 2020s, is expected to expand capacity to 6.5 bcm. According to CEO of Ratio Energies, Yigal LANDAU, "The development plan will enable a significant increase in Leviathan's production to 21 bcm (billion cubic meters) a year."[30][31]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leviathan_gas_field
AI Overview
As of March 2026, Russian officials have reported increased terrorist threats against Gazprom infrastructure, particularly targeting pipelines in the Black and Mediterranean Sea regions. Simultaneously, Saudi Arabia continues to navigate persistent, sophisticated drone and missile attacks from Houthi militants, despite improvements in its general counterterrorism efforts.
Gazprom & Mediterranean Security (2026)
TurkStream/Blue Stream Attacks: Between March 17-19, 2026, Russian officials stated that Ukrainian militants targeted critical energy infrastructure, including TurkStream and Blue Stream pipelines, with UAV strikes, specifically targeting the Russkaya, Kazachya, and Beregovaya compressor stations.
Maritime Threats: These actions follow previous attacks on tankers in the Mediterranean and Black Seas, which Russia has described as "terrorist attacks" targeting global energy logistics.
Regional Context: Russia maintains that maintaining its military presence in the Mediterranean is crucial for securing energy routes against terrorism.
Saudi Arabia Security Situation (2026)
Houthi Threats: Yemen's Houthi militants continue to pose the highest security threat, utilizing drones, ballistic missiles, and unmanned surface vessels to attack Saudi energy infrastructure and critical facilities.
Ongoing Attacks: As of April 2026, reports indicate that Saudi Arabia intercepts ongoing missile and drone attacks, with incidents occurring near critical energy facilities.
Travel Advisory: A Level 3 (Reconsider Travel) advisory is in place for Saudi Arabia, driven by the threat of terrorism and ongoing missile/drone attacks on civilian facilities.
Internal Security: Despite high-level anti-terrorism cooperation with Western powers, Saudi Arabia faces sporadic internal threats, such as attacks on government buildings and security checkpoints.
Geopolitical Intersections
Russia-Saudi Cooperation: Despite past oil conflicts, Russia and Saudi Arabia have cooperated within OPEC+ to stabilize markets, with Russia offering to work with Saudi Arabia on counterterrorism efforts.
Russia's Regional Role: Russia has sought to position itself as a key power in the Eastern Mediterranean, in part to counteract regional instability and secure energy assets.
Note: The provided information includes reports from March and April 2026 regarding ongoing security threats in these regions.
AI Overview
There are no credible reports of Russian combat troops operating on the ground in Gaza. Russia's involvement in the Gaza crisis is primarily diplomatic and humanitarian, utilizing the conflict to boost its influence in the Middle East, distract from the war in Ukraine, and weaken Western influence.
Pope Leo XIV has been planned to be assassinated in Jerusalem between 2028-2029 in the midst of brokering a peace treaty between Russia America and Israel after terrorist attacks on Gazprom pipeline in the Mediterranean off the coast of Palestine that results in Russian troops sent to Gaza and a brief war with American troops at the Gaza border for Cardinal Louis Sako brought out of retirement to finish in finalizing the peace treaty.
Paul VI Visits the Holy Land
In January 1964, Pope Paul VI made history by becoming the first pope to visit the Holy Land, just six months after his papacy began. This significant pilgrimage was rooted in his earlier experiences as a papal assistant and his desire to address the complex social and religious landscape of Palestine at that time. The visit occurred amid a backdrop of political division, as Israel was a young nation facing ongoing tensions with its Arab neighbors, and Jerusalem was divided. During his trip, Pope Paul VI engaged in several key activities, including Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, meetings with the Eastern Orthodox patriarch Athenagoras I, and visits to important Christian sites in Nazareth and Bethlehem.
The pope's visit symbolized a shift towards improved relations between the Eastern and Western branches of Christianity, particularly in light of the ongoing Vatican II council aimed at fostering dialogue among various Christian denominations. His public messages emphasized the importance of unity and cooperation among faiths, extending even to Jews and Muslims, whom he referred to as fellow children of Abraham. Despite the politically charged atmosphere of the region, the pilgrimage highlighted a commitment to peace and spiritual growth, leaving a lasting impact on communities that honored his visit with tributes. However, the subsequent political developments in the region would later complicate the Vatican's relationship with Israel.
Authored By: Strickert, Fred 1 of 3
Authored By:
Strickert, Fred
Published In: 2023 2 of 3
Published In:
2023
https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/paul-vi-visits-holy-land
The next Pope to be elected after Pope Leo XIV is going to be Cardinal Louis Sako brought out of retirement and will choose his Papal name to be Pope Paul VII
The May 1605 conclave held from 8 to 16 May 1605; Cardinal Camillo Borghese was elected to succeed Leo XI as pope. Borghese took the name Paul V. This was the second conclave of 1605, with the one that had elected Leo XI having concluded just 37 days earlier. It had the only recorded case of an injury at a conclave, which was the result of a physical fight amongst the cardinals over who should be elected pope.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1605_conclave
AI Overview
Paul the Apostle was a 1st-century Jewish Pharisee and Roman citizen who transformed from a persecutor of Christians into the early church's most influential missionary. After encountering the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus, he conducted extensive missionary journeys and authored 13 books in the New Testament, playing a key role in spreading Christianity to Gentiles.
Conversion (Acts 9): Originally named Saul, he zealously persecuted early Christians. On the road to Damascus to arrest believers, he was blinded by a light and encountered Jesus, leading to his dramatic conversion.
FORMULAS OF THE INSTITUTE
OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS
Approved and Confirmed by
POPES PAUL III AND JULIUS III
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://web.archive.org/web/20200211182223/https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/ConstitutionsandNormsSJingls.pdf
Paulos III NONA (born Amel Shamoon Nona; November 1, 1967) is an Iraqi Catholic hierarch who has served as Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Baghdad since 2026. He previously served as Archbishop of Saint Thomas the Apostle of Sydney from 2015 to 2026, and as Archbishop of Mosul from 2010 to 2015, including his exile amid the ISIS takeover in his region.
Patriarch of Baghdad
On 12 April 2026, the Synod of Bishops of the Chaldean Catholic Church elected Nona as Patriarch of Baghdad. He took the name "Paul III" upon his election.[5][6][7]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_III_Nona
AI Overview
No, there has never been a Pope Paul VII in the history of the Catholic Church. There have been six popes named Paul, with the most recent being Pope Paul VI, who served from 1963 to 1978.
Revelation 18:6
1599 Geneva Bible
6 [a]Reward her, even as she hath rewarded you, and give her double according to her works: and in the cup that she hath filled to you, fill her the double.
AI Overview
The 37th Annual Slammy Awards (TV Special 1987) - IMDb
The 1987 WWF Slammy Awards, mockingly marketed as the "37th Annual Slammy Awards," was the second-ever WWF award show, held in Atlantic City and featuring musical performances, including Vince McMahon's famous "Stand Back" performance.
Arturo Sosa the Superior General of the Society of Jesus is retiring by 2028, Jeffrey Burwell elected Superior General of the Society of Jesus at the 37th General Congregation.
AI Overview
Based on available information, there is no record of a "37th General Congregation" of the Jesuits. The most recent major governing assembly, the 36th General Congregation, was held in 2016, where Fr. Arturo Sosa was elected Superior General.
Wikipedia
Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, Named Next Provincial of the Jesuits of Canada
March 15, 2024 — The Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) announced the appointment of Fr. Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, as the next provincial of the Jesuits of Canada.
https://jesuits.org/stories/jeffrey-s-burwell-sj-named-next-provincial-of-the-jesuits-of-canada/
Trump, Vance meet with Pope Leo's Florida brother, 'a major MAGA fan', at White House
Kim Luciani
USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
May 22, 2025, 12:58 p.m. ET
Key Points AI-assisted summary
President Donald Trump met with Pope Leo XIV's brother, LOUIS Prevost, at the White House.
https://heraldtribune.com/story/news/2025/05/22/trump-pope-leo-florida-maga-brother-louis-prevost-white-house-visit/83773944007/
̶A̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶(̶L̶a̶t̶i̶n̶:̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶t̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶)̶,̶ ̶a̶l̶s̶o̶ ̶c̶a̶l̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶a̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶a̶b̶d̶i̶c̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶,̶ ̶o̶c̶c̶u̶r̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶c̶u̶r̶r̶e̶n̶t̶ ̶p̶o̶p̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶C̶a̶t̶h̶o̶l̶i̶c̶ ̶C̶h̶u̶r̶c̶h̶ ̶v̶o̶l̶u̶n̶t̶a̶r̶i̶l̶y̶ ̶r̶e̶s̶i̶g̶n̶s̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶p̶o̶s̶i̶t̶i̶o̶n̶.̶ ̶
̶h̶t̶t̶p̶s̶:̶/̶/̶e̶n̶.̶w̶i̶k̶i̶p̶e̶d̶i̶a̶.̶o̶r̶g̶/̶w̶i̶k̶i̶/̶P̶a̶p̶a̶l̶_̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶
On 13 May 1981, in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, Pope John Paul II was shot and wounded by Mehmet Ali Ağca while he was entering the square.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Pope_John_Paul_II
SAKO Limited (natively Sako Oy)[1] is a Finnish firearm and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Kanta-Häme in southern Finland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAKO
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Revelation 13:3
LOUIS Raphaël I Sako (Arabic: لويس روفائيل ساكو;[1] born 4 July 1948) is a Chaldean Catholic prelate who has served as Patriarch of Baghdad since 1 February 2013. Pope Francis made him a cardinal on 28 June 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Raphal_I_Sako
The word asas in Arabic means "PRINCIPLE". The Asāsiyyūn (plural, from literary Arabic) were, as defined in Arabic, the principle people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Assassins
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
King Charles III and Prince William are then assassinated by a terrorist bombing for Princess Charlotte coronated as Queen of England, masterminded by Archbishop Sarah Mullally and Jesuit Superior General at that time, Jeffrey Burwell.
Prince Harry is going to be coronated King of England after the assassination of Queen Charlotte and Prince Louis and is to declare war on America and the Vatican for their role in the destruction of Jerusalem, Madrid is going to launch nuclear attack on London, Paris is going to launch nuclear attack on the Vatican, Moscow is going to launch a nuclear attack on Paris and Beijing is going to launch a nuclear attack on Moscow, all going to happen in the time space of 2030-2032.
Emmanuel Macron, Xi Jinping and Roman Mayor Roberto Gualtieri are allied.
AI Overview
The term macron (the diacritic mark "¯") originates from the Greek word makrón, meaning "long" or "large". Introduced to indicate a long, heavy vowel sound, it stems from the Proto-Indo-European root *māk-, referring to something "long, thin". It differs from the surname Macron, which has French roots, or the sportswear brand of the same name.
Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron[b] (born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France and Co-Prince of Andorra since 2017. He served as Minister of Economics and Finance under President François Hollande from 2014 to 2016. He has been a member of Renaissance since founding the party in 2016.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmanuel_Macron
Long[1] is the pinyin romanization of a few Chinese surnames. It includes 龍 / 龙, which means "dragon" in Chinese, ranking number 80 on the list of common Chinese surnames in 2006, up from 108 in 1990.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_(Chinese_surname)
The Chinese dragon or loong[1] (/lʊŋ/ LUUNG) is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture generally. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms, such as turtles and fish, but are most commonly depicted as snake-like with four legs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_dragon
Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron Jointly Meet the Press
Updated: May 07, 2024 17:49
On the afternoon of May 6, 2024 local time, President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron jointly met the press after their talks at the Elysée Palace in Paris.
https://www.mfa.gov.cn/eng/zy/jj/xjpdfsxjxgsfw/202405/t20240507_11300643.html
July 1, 1921 was the date the Chinese Communist Party was founded and by revolutionaries such as Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu.
But in the years before the party was formed, thousands of Chinese students went to France to work and study. There is a museum to French-Chinese friendship in the town, where visitors can learn how and why thousands of young Chinese people came to France – with hundreds coming specifically to Montargis.
The Chinese Communist Party's links to a corner of France
Updated 02:02, 27-Jan-2024
Ross Cullen in Montargis
https://newseu.cgtn.com/news/2021-06-28/The-Chinese-Communist-Party-s-roots-in-a-corner-of-central-France-10DEEkl8Exi/index.html
Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran
The current Rector is Cardinal Archpriest Baldassare Reina, Vicar General for the Diocese of Rome[4] since 6 October 2024. The president of the French Republic, currently Emmanuel Macron, is ex officio the "First and Only Honorary Canon" of the archbasilica, a title that the heads of state of France have possessed since King Henry IV.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archbasilica_of_Saint_John_Lateran
The Art of War
The book was translated into French and published in 1772 by the French priest Jesuit Jean Joseph Marie Amiot; it was re-published in 1782. A partial translation into English was attempted by British officer Everard Ferguson Calthrop in 1905 under the title The Book of War. The first annotated English translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910.[2] Military and political leaders such as the Chinese communist revolutionary Mao Zedong, Japanese daimyō Takeda Shingen, and Vietnamese general Võ Nguyên Giáp are cited along with American military generals Douglas MacArthur and Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. as having drawn inspiration from the book.[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_War
Madrid Spain is going to launch a nuclear attack on London for launching a nuclear attack on Washington D.C. because of the CIA and the Vatican causing a terrorist attack in Jerusalem and Moscow Russia is going to be attacked by a nuclear strike from Beijing for launching a nuclear attack on Paris for Paris launching a nuclear attack on Vatican City in the years of 2030-2031
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxYkXLS7xf8dIP8-OwfC32lwpmPyUcjUnC
Roberto Gualtieri (born 19 July 1966) is an Italian historian and politician of the Democratic Party (PD), incumbent Mayor of Rome since 2021 and Minister of Economy and Finances in the second government of Giuseppe Conte from 2019 until 2021.[1] He previously was a Member of the European Parliament from 2009 to 2019, where he chaired the influential Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee within the Parliament from 2014 until 2019.[2]
Early life and career
Gualtieri was born in Rome in 1966. In 1992 he graduated in Literature and Philology at Sapienza University of Rome.[3] In 1997, he obtained a Ph.D. in history at the Scuola Superiore di Studi Storici di San Marino.[4] Gualtieri later became associate professor of Contemporary history at Sapienza University of Rome, where he had authored several books and articles on twentieth century Italian history and on the history of European integration.[5]
Political career
Since 2001, Gualtieri has been deputy director of the Gramsci Institute Foundation.[6] In the same year, he became a member of Democrats of the Left (DS), the main social-democratic political party in Italy, direct heir of the Italian Communist Party.
In 2006, Gualtieri was among the founders of the Democratic Party (Congress of Orvieto, October 2006) and he was among the "wise men" who wrote its Manifesto.[7] In 2007 he was elected to the National Assembly of the party and since 2008 he has been a member of its National board, where he was confirmed in 2014.[8] Gualtieri voted against party leader Matteo Renzi in favour of post-communists both in 2013 and 2014 (the year Renzi won the leadership ballot).[9]
From 2008 to 2011, Gualtieri served as director (with José Luis Rhi-Sausi) of the "Annual Report on European Integration" (published by Il Mulino).[10] Since 2009, he is a member of the editorial committee of the Foundation "Italianieuropei" .
Member of the European Parliament
In 2009, Gualtieri was appointed S&D Group coordinator for the Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE) and standing rapporteur for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) budget in the Committee on Budgets (BUDG). He was also a full member of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO) and substitute of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET).[2] In 2010, he was appointed S&D Group negotiator within the EP negotiating team (with Elmar Brok and Guy Verhofstadt) on the creation of the European External Action Service.[11] In addition to his committee assignments, he was part of the parliament's delegation for relations with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly between 2009 and 2014.
Gualtieri as a MEP in 2014
In December 2011, Gualtieri was part of the European Parliament negotiating team (with Brok, Verhofstadt and Daniel Cohn-Bendit) for the establishment of the "Fiscal Compact".[12] In October 2012, he was designated "sherpa" negotiator for the European Parliament (with Brok, Verhofstadt and Cohn-Bendit) in the working group set up by Herman Van Rompuy on a Genuine Economic and Monetary Union.[13] In 2013 he was co-rapporteur of the Report on constitutional problems of a multitier governance in the European Union with Rafał Trzaskowski.[14] In 2013, he participated in the elaboration of the new Treaty for the European Union, with Brok, Verhofstaft, Cohn-Bendit, Andrew Duff and Jo Leinen, promoted by the "Spinelli Group", of which he is a member.[15]
From 2013, Gualtieri was member of the Spinelli Group in the European Parliament,[15] and he has been among the authors of the "Fundamental Law of the European Union" (with Elmar Brok, Guy Verhofstadt, Daniel Cohn-Bendit, Andrew Duff and Jo Leinen), published by the Bertelsmann Foundation.
Gualtieri led the EU-Election Observer Missions for the parliamentary election in Kosovo in 2014[16] and the 2013 municipal elections in Kosovo.
Following his re-election as an MEP in July 2014, Gualtieri was elected Chairman of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.[17] On the committee, he served as rapporteur of several files, among which the Annual Banking Union report, statistical files, including the appointments of heads and board members of the European Central Bank, the Single Resolution Board, the European Banking Authority, the European Securities and Markets Authority, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority. He chaired the EP Financial Assistance Working Group, established in 2016 to monitor the implementation of third Greek financial assistance program, and the Committee's Banking Union Working Group.
From 2016, Gualtieri was also a member of the Committee of Inquiry to investigate alleged contraventions and maladministration in the application of Union law in relation to money laundering, tax avoidance and tax evasion. In addition, he was a member of the Transatlantic Legislators' Dialogue (TLD),[18] the European Parliament Intergroup on Integrity (Transparency, Anti-Corruption and Organized Crime)[19] and of the European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights.[20]
Roberto Gualtieri in Estonia, 2017
From 2017, Gualtieri served on the Parliament's so-called Brexit Steering Group, which works under the aegis of the Conference of Presidents and to coordinates Parliament's deliberations, considerations and resolutions on the UK's withdrawal from the EU.[21] Within group, he was – together with Guy Verhofstadt and Elmar Brok – one of the Parliament's representatives at the European Council Sherpa meetings on Brexit.
Following the 2019 elections, Gualtieri was part of a cross-party working group in charge of drafting the European Parliament's five-year work program on economic and fiscal policies as well as trade.[22]
Shortly after, Gualtieri was elected vice-chair of the S&D Group, under the leadership of chairwoman Iratxe García.[23]
Minister of Economy and Finance
Gualtieri with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin
In August 2019 tensions grew within the populist government, leading to the issuing of a motion of no-confidence on Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte by the League.[24] After Conte's resignation, the national board of the PD officially opened to the possibility of forming a new cabinet in a coalition with the M5S,[25] based on pro-Europeanism, green economy, sustainable development, fight against economic inequality and a new immigration policy.[26] The party also accepted that Conte may continue at the head of a new government,[27] and on 29 August President Sergio Mattarella formally invested Conte to do so.[28] On 5 September 2019 Gualtieri was appointed Minister of Economy and Finance.[29]
On 26 January 2020, Gualtieri was picked by the centre-left coalition as its candidate at the incoming by-election in the constituency of Rome Quartiere Trionfale for the Chamber of Deputies. The by-election follows the resignation of Paolo Gentiloni from his seat in the Chamber after his appointment as European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs in the von der Leyen Commission.[30]
In July 2020, Gualtieri, along with Prime Minister Conte and Minister Vincenzo Amendola, played a key role in one of the longest European Councils in history. After days of harsh confrontations,[31] the European leaders agreed on a new proposal by the President of the Council, Charles Michel, which provided a budget of €750 billion for the so-called Recovery Fund, composed of €390 billion in grants and €360 billion in loans.[32] Italy would benefit from nearly €82 billion in grants and €127 billion in loans.[33][34]
In January 2021, the centrist party Italia Viva withdrew its support for Conte's government.[35] Although Conte was able to win confidence votes in the Parliament in the subsequent days, he chose to resign after failing to reach an absolute majority in the Senate.[36] When negotiations to form Conte's third cabinet failed, the former President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, formed a national unity government, in which Gualtieri was not confirmed as minister.[37]
Mayor of Rome
On 9 May 2021, Gualtieri officially announced his candidacy as Mayor of Rome in the upcoming election.[38] On 18 October, he defeated the centre-right candidate, Enrico Michetti, with 60.2% of votes.[39] He took office on 21 October 2021.[40]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Gualtieri
Peter Paul "Paulie Walnuts" Gualtieri is a fictional character portrayed by Tony Sirico on the HBO series The Sopranos, one of the chief henchmen of series protagonist Tony Soprano. Sirico auditioned for the role of Uncle Junior with Frank Vincent, but Dominic Chianese landed the role. David Chase instead offered him the role of Paulie Gualtieri and Sirico agreed under the condition that his character would not "become a rat".[3][4] Paulie begins the series as a soldier, later becoming a captain in the DiMeo crime family.[5] He is violent, impulsive, quick-witted, sarcastic and paranoid. Paulie is jovial and quick with a joke but is one of the most ruthless members of the family. Billy Magnussen portrays a young Paulie Gualtieri in the 2021 prequel film, The Many Saints of Newark. Paulie Walnuts is one of the most prominent characters in The Sopranos, and one of the viewers' favorites.[6] Sirico's performance has received acclaim from critics and audiences.[7]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulie_Gualtieri
The Sopranos - Paulie's last war: The Cat
borko
Apr 9, 2026 #sopranos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpnINHUZi2g
Revelation 17:8
1599 Geneva Bible
8 [a]The beast that thou hast seen, [b]was and is not, and [c]shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and shall go into perdition, and they that dwell on the earth, shall wonder (whose names are not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world) [d]when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
Read full chapter
Footnotes
Revelation 17:8 The story of the beast hath a triple description of him. The first is a distinction of this beast from all that ever hath been at any time: which distinction is contained in this verse: The second is a delineation or painting out of the beast by things present, by which he might even at that time be known of the godly, and this delineation is according to his heads, verses 2, 10, 11. The third is an historical foretelling of things to come, and to be done by him: and these are ascribed unto his horns, verses 12, 13, 14. This beast is that Empire of Rome, of which I spake, chap. 13:11, according to the mutations and changes whereof which then had already happened, the holy Ghost hath distinguished and set out the same. The Apostle distinguisheth this beast from all others in these words. The beast which thou sawest, was and is not. For so I expound the words of the Apostle for evidence’s sake as I will further declare in the notes following.
Revelation 17:8 The meaning is, that beast which thou sawest before (Rev. 13:1) and which yet thou hast now seen, was, (I say was) even from Julius Caesar in respect of beginning, rising up, station, glory, dominion, manner and stock, from the house of Julius: and yet is not now the same, if thou look unto the house and stock for the dominion of this family was translated unto another, after the death of Nero from the other unto a third, from a third unto a fourth, and so forth was varied and altered by innumerable changes. Finally, the Empire is one, as it were one beast: but exceedingly varied by kindreds, families, and persons. It was therefore (saith S. John) in the kindred or house of Julius: and now it is not in that kindred, but translated unto another.
Revelation 17:8 As if he should say, Also the same that is, shall shortly not be: but shall ascend out of the depth, or out of the sea (as was said, Rev. 13:1) that is, shall be a new stock from amongst the nations without difference, and shall in the same state go unto destruction or ruin, and perish: and so shall successively new Princes or Emperors come and go, arise and fall, the body of the beast remaining still, but tossed with so many and often alterations, as no man can but marvel that this beast was able to stand and hold out, in so many mutations. Verily no Empire that ever was tossed with so many changes, and as it were with so many tempests of the sea, ever continued so long.
Revelation 17:8 That is as many as have not learned the providence of God, according to the faith of the Saints, shall marvel at these grievous and often changes when they shall consider, the selfsame beast, which is the Roman Empire, to have been, not to be, and to be and still molested with perpetual mutation, and yet in the same to stand and continue. This in mine opinion is the most simple exposition of this place, and confirmed by the event of the things themselves. Although by the last change also, by which the Empire, that before was civil became Ecclesiastical, is not obscurely signified by these words: of which two, the first exercised cruelty upon the bodies of the saints: the other also upon their souls: the first by human order and policy, the other under the color of the law of God, and of Religion, raged and imbrued itself with the blood of the godly.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2017%3A8&version=GNV
"[And] The True Magic Mirror. This is an emblem of the Soul, which when fully developed will act as a mirror to the
universe wherein may be wisdom and truth.
"Lastly, a complete copy of the private text book, 'Ritualistic Occultism,' which contains the ceremonies as made use of by
the Magi, and four of these ceremonials were made use of by four of the Magi, in the dedication of the Magic Circle.
"When all of this had taken place, the stone was completed and then later in the day the characters were engraved upon
the stone by the Brother who had completed the stone.
"Of the midnight 'Feast to the Gods' and of the morning services which took place in the grove it is not lawful for me to
speak at this time, but it is my sincere prayer that all who are enrolled in the Sacred Schools may some day be present with us
and witness these sublime ceremonies, especially as they are conferred in the Spring of the year. [William Cooper: In the
spring of the year.]
"Arrangements were made by the delegates present, through voluntary contributions, to either buy another large grove, or
if that is found impracticable, to build a much larger Hall in the 'Grove of Osiris' so that advanced ceremonies may be held the
coming Spring at the 69th Convocation of the Rose Cross Order."
[William Cooper]: Now, I'm going to reveal something to you that I've never told you before on this program. I've been
working up to it, and now is the time to tell you before I read from the next section of this book. For then you will understand
what has been happening in the last fifty years, and what is happening now.
[William Cooper]: It was Harry Truman, a 33rd degree Freemason, who signed the United Nations treaty, who pushed
through and signed the United Nations Participation Act.
68th Convocation of the Rose Cross Order (aired May 11th, 1993)
https://viefag.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/transcripts-of-william-cooper-s-mystery-babylon-series.pdf
AI Overview
In 2001, what was the point of Sara and the Undertaker? : r/WWESara Calaway (formerly Sara Chirie Frank) is an American professional wrestling valet known as the former wife of WWE legend The Undertaker (Mark Calaway), to whom she was married from 2000 to 2007. She appeared on-screen in WWE during 2001–2002, famously involved in storylines alongside her then-husband.
YouTube
Key Facts About Sara Calaway:
WWE Role: She was introduced to WWE television in 2001 as part of The Undertaker's "American Badass" persona, often appearing in storylines involving stalkers or feud-related segments, such as with Diamond Dallas Page.
Marriage to The Undertaker: Married in 2000, the couple had two daughters together—Chasey (b. 2002) and Gracie (b. 2005)—before divorcing in 2007.
Neck Tattoo: The Undertaker famously got a tattoo of "Sara" on his neck to honor her during their marriage, which was later removed after their divorce.
Post-WWE Life: Following her divorce from Mark Calaway, she married Jason Schnuit in 2009.
Wikipedia
Note: Sara Calaway should not be confused with Sarah Logan, a separate wrestler.
In the Apostolic See
s letters establishing and confirming the Society,
authorization had been granted to enact Constitutions on the understand
ing that once enacted and approved by the Society they would automati
cally be considered as approved and confirmed by the authority of the
Apostolic See.[2] The Society was at that time scattered over the world and
occupied with activities of great importance for faith and religion. Hence,
it quite rightly entrusted its originator and founder, our Father Ignatius
of holy memory, residing in Rome, with the task of writing and enacting
the Constitutions.
Carefully, wisely, and religiously did he UNDERTAKE and carry out this
task that had been laid upon him, to the extent that he made it his chief
concern for a number of years. With many tears, ardent prayers, and
repeated Sacrifices of the Mass, he implored from the Lord the anoint
ing of the Holy Spirit, so that by the latter
s inspiration and guidance he
might accomplish through divine assistance what was impossible
through human prudence. In this way, with immense toil he drew up
the Constitutions with all their parts and brought them to completion.
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/Constitutions%20and%20Norms%20SJ%20ingls.pdf
AI Overview
Based on search results, Sarah Mullally is a former nurse and priest who was installed as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury in early 2026, marking a historic moment in the Church of England. Mark Eastman appears in a related discussion commenting on the history of the Archbishop position.
Sarah Mullally (Archbishop): Former nurse and priest installed as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury in 2026. She is the leader of the Church of England.
Mark Eastman (Commentator): Provided historical context, noting that the first Archbishop of Canterbury was St. Augustine in 597 AD.
The results indicate that Mullally is a public figure in the news as of early 2026, and Eastman commented on a social media post related to her appointment.
One of the most damaging episodes described by Knight was that of a KGB agent turning master spies Kim Philby, Donald Maclean, and Guy Burgess into double agents for Russia. Knight suggests this transformation was accomplished through Freemasonry. The intelligence world was shocked when these three men defected to Russia in 1952 and 1962. It was discovered 30 years too late that Philby, while head of a division in MIS (initials for Mission Impossible, division No. 5), was also a high-ranking KGB agent. The irony in this story is that Philby remained on the British intelligence payroll after defection.41 He died in Moscow, November 5, 1988- taking to the grave his reason for defecting.42
Scarlet and the Beast
by John Daniel
https://ia803001.us.archive.org/28/items/ScarletAndTheBeastJohnDaniel1995/Scarlet%20and%20the%20Beast,%20John%20Daniel%20(1995).pdf
A plan was hatched by a joint collaboration of the Pope and the Jesuits to blow up the House of Lords during the state opening of Parliament on 5th November 1605. Robert Catesby was the leader of a group of English Catholics who plotted to assassinate the protestant King James 1 in the failed gunpowder plot.
https://www.secretsunlocked.org/bible/bible-history/guy-fawkes-day-the-jesuit-treason-and-the-gunpowder-plot/
AI Overview
Joseph Stalin
On Seminary Education: "I was educated in a religious seminary, where I learned the methods of the Jesuits," (often cited in anti-communist literature describing his early life, though technically referring to Orthodox training in Tiflis).
The Liebefeld-Steinhölzli public school in Köniz, Switzerland, reportedly attended by Kim Jong Un
All of Kim Jong Il's children are said to have lived in Switzerland, as well as the mother of the two youngest sons, who lived in Geneva for some time.[12] First reports said that Kim Jong Un attended the private International School of Berne in Gümligen in Switzerland under the name "Chol-pak" or "Pak-chol" from 1993 to 1998.[13][14]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Jong_Un
Lieutenant Harry S.L. Kim was a Human Starfleet officer who served as the operations officer aboard the starship USS Voyager during the seven years it was lost in the Delta Quadrant and, in the 2380s, he served as a tactical officer aboard the USS Dauntless. (VOY: "Caretaker", "Non Sequitur", "The Disease", "Warhead", "Nightingale": PRO: "Supernova, Part 1")
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Harry_Kim
President Donald Trump formally announced Operation Warp Speed on May 15, 2020, in the White House Rose Garden.
On May 15, 2020, President Donald Trump officially announced the public-private partnership.[4][1][9] The purpose of Operation Warp Speed was to coordinate Health and Human Services-wide efforts, including the NIH ACTIV partnership for vaccine and therapeutic development, the NIH RADx initiative for diagnostic development, and work by BARDA.[1]
Operation Warp Speed was formed to encourage private and public partnerships to enable faster approval and production of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] The name was inspired by terminology for faster-than-light travel used in the Star Trek fictional universe, evoking a sense of rapid progress.[10][11]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Warp_Speed
In 1775 the Swiss lodges transferred their allegiance from English Masonry to the German Strict Observance. Under Napoleon the French Grand Orient invaded Switzerland, and a certain number of existing lodges came under its obedience. Geneva was ceded to France during the wars of Napoleon, and Swiss Masonry then became an appendage of the French Grand Orient. In 1818, as demanded by London, English Masonic obedience began to replace the Grand Orients, except in Geneva where the aristocracy permitted one Grand Orient Lodge to function.69
Scarlet and the Beast
by John Daniel
https://ia803001.us.archive.org/28/items/ScarletAndTheBeastJohnDaniel1995/Scarlet%20and%20the%20Beast,%20John%20Daniel%20(1995).pdf
From the founding of the US to the Boer wars in South Africa and from the 20th Century’s two world wars to the Swiss Guard that protects the Pope, the Swiss Octagon Templars have capitalised on the guise of neutrality to set the stage for a New World Order takeover in which we are all sacrificial pawns in their pursuit of absolute power.
Neutral? Don’t you believe it, their militia system is formidable but the state cannot be seen to get involved in external conflict. However, as well-trained fighters, there is still a place for Swiss mercenaries in the world of private security and as agents of the Federal Intelligence Service and Military Intelligence Service of the Swiss Octagon Templars!
Wonder what happened to all the Nazi loot from World War II? Access to some of Switzerland’s secret vaults could provide answers and offer some indication as to how Adolph Hitler rose to power in Germany and how Swiss neutrality served the Third Reich and paved the way for the Fourth Reich to up sticks to the United States to continue the New World Order’s march to world domination.
Cult of Isis and the march of the Swiss Octogon Templars
From Solomon's Temple to infinity and beyond
By
Steve Harrison
https://vocal.media/fyi/cult-of-isis-and-the-march-of-the-swiss-octogon-templars
Dame Sarah Elisabeth Mullally (née Bowser; born 26 March 1962) is an English Anglican prelate and former nurse. She has been the bishop of London since 2018, and is the first woman to hold this office.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Mullally
In Hebrew, the word saraph means "burning", and is used seven times throughout the text of the Hebrew Bible as a noun, usually to denote "serpent",[4] twice in the Book of Numbers, once in the Book of Deuteronomy, and four times in the Book of Isaiah.[5]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seraph
The 7 July 2005 London bombings, sometimes referred to informally as 7/7, were a series of four coordinated suicide attacks carried out by Islamist terrorists that targeted commuters travelling on London's public transport during the morning rush hour.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_July_2005_London_bombings
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms.[b]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_III
Princess Charlotte of Wales (Charlotte Elizabeth Diana; born 2 May 2015) is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, and a granddaughter of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. She is third in the line of succession to the British throne.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Charlotte_of_Wales_(born_2015)
"Killer Queen" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by lead singer Freddie Mercury and recorded for their third album Sheer Heart Attack in 1974.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_Queen
Pope Leo meets Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally, pledging to keep working past differences
Published Monday, April 27, 2026 | 1:27 a.m.
Updated Monday, April 27, 2026 | 3:42 a.m.
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV prayed Monday in the Vatican with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, and vowed to keep working to overcome differences in a historic meeting with the first female leader of the Church of England and the spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion.
The encounter between Christianity’s two most famous religious figures would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, given the divisions between their two churches over women’s ordination and Mullally's appointment.
Leo acknowledged that “new problems” in their relationship had been added onto “historically divisive issues.” But he nevertheless vowed to continue the tradition of past popes to continue to try to reunite the churches.
Anglicans split from Rome in 1534, when English King Henry VIII was refused a marriage annulment. Despite a formal theological dialogue that began in the 1960s, big differences remain, especially over the Church of England’s decision to ordain women. The Roman Catholic Church reserves the priesthood for men.
Leo quoted Pope Francis as telling Anglican primates that “it would be a scandal if, due to our divisions, we did not fulfil our common vocation to make Christ known.”
“For my part, I add that it would also be a scandal if we did not continue to work towards overcoming our differences, no matter how intractable they may appear,” Leo said.
Mullally thanked Leo for welcoming her on her first foreign visit since she was installed last month.
Mullally, whose appointment has split the already divided Anglican Communion, arrived early to meet with Leo in his library. The two then prayed together in the Urban VIII Chapel inside the Apostolic palace for what the Vatican said was a “moment of prayer.” Mullally’s office said Leo presided but that they both “said the grace together.”
In her remarks to Leo, Mullally said both of them were called to preach the Gospel with “renewed clarity.”
“In the face of inhuman violence, deep division, and rapid societal change, we must keep telling a more hopeful story: that every human life has infinite value because we are precious children of God; that the human family is called to live as sisters and brothers,” she said. “We must therefore work together for the common good — always building bridges, never walls; that the poorest among us are closest to the heart of God.”
A pilgrimage to Rome amid challenges
Mullally is on what she has called a four-day pilgrimage to Rome that has included visits to the main pontifical basilicas, where she has prayed at the tombs of Saints Peter and Paul and met with top Vatican officials.
Lambeth Palace says her visit is designed “to strengthen Anglican–Roman Catholic relations through prayer, personal encounter, and formal theological dialogue. It aims to deepen bonds of communion, affirm a shared witness, and encourage ongoing collaboration at both global and local levels.”
The first female Anglican priests were ordained in 1994, its first female bishop in 2015, and now Mullally as the first archbishop of Canterbury.
Leo and Mullally have already exchanged greetings, with Leo congratulating her on her installation last month but acknowledging she was taking over at a “challenging” time and that differences still divide the Anglican and Catholic churches.
“We also know that the ecumenical journey has not always been smooth,” Leo wrote. “Despite much progress, our immediate predecessors, Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby, acknowledged frankly that new circumstances have presented new disagreements among us,” Leo wrote.
He nevertheless vowed to continue dialogue, and in October Leo welcomed King Charles III and Queen Camilla to the Vatican, where they prayed in the Sistine Chapel. Charles is the titular head of the Church of England.
That event, Oct. 25, marked the first time since the Reformation that the heads of the two Christian churches had prayed together.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the first formal ecumenical statement between the Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches, signed in 1966 at St. Paul’s Outside the Walls basilica by Archbishop Michael Ramsey and Pope Paul VI.
Mullally for her part has expressed solidarity with Leo’s peace message, after the American-born pope was harshly criticized by President Donald Trump for his calls for peace in Iran.
Popes past have met with female Christian bishops and archbishops: Francis met in 2015 with Archbishop Antje Jackelén, the first woman to lead the Lutheran Church of Sweden. Francis also invited the female Anglican bishop, Jo Bailey Wells, into a private meeting of his cardinal advisers in 2024 to discuss the role of women in the Catholic Church.
An historic meeting that follows the king's visit
George Gross, an expert on theology and the monarchy at King’s College London, said the meeting was historic, particularly given the Vatican doesn't recognize the female priesthood.
“If we were to go back several hundred years, it’s unthinkable,” he said. “It’s the fact that the pope is willing to meet, but in itself it also shows the difference, the gap.”
Gross said the prayer was clearly an attempt to show the two churches united, especially in confronting the global conflicts and projecting a message of unity. Such optics, he said, were in continuity with the visit to the Vatican in October by the king.
“It’s a doubling down of togetherness,” he said.
An appointment that divides the Anglican communion
Her appointment though has split the Anglican Communion, whose 100 million members in 165 countries are deeply divided over issues such as the role of women and the treatment of LGBTQ+ people. Many in England and other Western countries hailed her appointment as a historic breaking of a stained-glass ceiling.
But the communion’s largest and fastest-growing churches in Africa belong to a conservative group called the Global Anglican Future Conference, or Gafcon, which has sharply criticized her appointment and threatened a final break. In the U.S., the conservative Anglican Church in North America formed in a break from the more liberal U.S. and Canadian Episcopal churches and has signed onto the Gafcon statement opposing Mullally’s appointment.
https://lasvegassun.com/news/2026/apr/27/pope-leo-meets-archbishop-of-canterbury-sarah-mull/
Revelation 17:4 That harlot, the spiritual Babylon, which is Rome. She is described by her attire, profession and deeds.
https://biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation174-5&version=GNV
Jews For Jesus <liveupdate@jewsforjesus.org> Unsubscribe
4:26 PM (1 hour ago) 5/1/2026
to me
Pray for London
Hey friends,
I’m speaking to you today from London. Like many of you, I’ve been watching the news, and once again Jewish people have been targeted. Just minutes from our ministry center, two Jewish people were stabbed on the street.
The truth is, this is becoming almost normal. And it should stir us to pray for protection over Jewish communities and for comfort for those affected.
But there is hope. In the midst of rising antisemitism, we’re also seeing God at work.
Across the world, our missionaries are opening the Hebrew Scriptures with people who are more open than we’ve seen in years. Please pray for boldness for our teams, as they share the gospel with those open to encountering Yeshua.
If you’re able, would you prayerfully consider giving today to help reach more people with that hope?
Thank you. God bless you and shalom.
Aaron Abramson
Executive Director and CEO
Jews for Jesus
Presidential elections are scheduled to be held in the United States on November 7, 2028, to elect the president and vice president of the United States for a term of four years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2028_United_States_presidential_election
Kamala Devi Harris (English: /ˈkɑːmələ ˈdeɪvi/ ⓘ,[1] born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who has been the 49th and current vice president of the United States since 2021, serving under President Joe Biden.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamala_Harris
RAPHAEL Gamaliel Warnock[1] (/ˈrɑːfiɛl ˈwɔːrnɒk/ RAH-fee-el WOR-nok; born July 23, 1969) is an American politician and Baptist pastor serving as the junior United States senator from Georgia, a seat he has held since 2021.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael_Warnock
The Burning of Washington, also known as the Capture of Washington, was a successful British amphibious attack conducted by Rear Admiral George Cockburn during Admiral John Warren's Chesapeake campaign. It was the only time since the American Revolutionary War that a foreign power had captured and occupied a United States capital.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington
London is going to launch nuclear attack on Washington D.C 2030-2031 after false flag attacks in Jerusalem because of the Vatican and CIA.
The United States presidential line of succession is the order in which the vice president of the United States and other officers of the United States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_line_of_succession
Tulsi Gabbard (/ˈtʌlsi ˈɡæbərd/; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and military officer serving since 2025 as the eighth director of national intelligence (DNI).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsi_Gabbard
The Cheyenne Mountain Complex (CMOC)[a] is a non-public military installation of the United States Department of Defense[b] located inside Cheyenne Mountain, in El Paso County, Colorado.[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheyenne_Mountain_Complex
The conspiracy is racist, considering Blacks, Hispanics, and Aboriginal Peoples to be inferior races of useless eaters. They believe or at least profess that the Anglo/Aryan race is the true Israel (British Israel and Christian Identity for the dupes and an Anglophile Secular Humanism for the leaders) and thus the Master race.
HOTT - MAJESTYTWELVE (http://hourofthetime.com)
https://hourofthetime.com/majestyt.htm
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxprHPbc3-VZOVAmtWdw-QO6R-mskncL8G
AI Overview
If Jesus was born in September 4 BC, he would have been approximately 33 years and 7 months old on Easter in April 30 AD. However, historical consensus often places his birth earlier (6-5 BC) or his death later (AD 33), making the 33-year duration a traditional theological calculation rather than a strictly confirmed chronological fact.
Birth Timeline: Jesus is widely believed to have been born between 6 BC and 4 BC, just before the death of King Herod.
Death in AD 30: If born in September 4 BC, he would be roughly 33.5 years old by Passover in March/April of 30 AD.
Alternative Dates: Many scholars argue for a crucifixion date of April 3, 33 AD, based on a three-year ministry beginning around 29-30 AD.
Age "About 30": Luke 3:23 states Jesus was "about 30" when starting his ministry. If this was 26/27 AD and lasted 3-4 years, the 33-34 age range holds true.
Historical Complexity: Because there is no year zero in our calendar system, and the Gregorian/Julian calendars have discrepancies, calculating the exact age is difficult.
The tradition that Jesus died at age 33 is widely accepted, fitting a birth in 4-6 BC with a death in 30-33 AD, but scholars generally agree the 33 years are a minimum estimate, with some arguing for an age closer to 40.
The main differences between the way the Julian and Gregorian calendars are calculated are that the Gregorian calendar is a few minutes shorter than the Julian calendar and that, in the year it was established, the Gregorian calendar lost 10 days compared to the Julian calendar.
https://ajuntament.barcelona.cat/oficina-afers-religiosos/en/blog/christianity-understanding-gregorian-calendar#:~:text=The%20main%20differences%20between%20the,compared%20to%20the%20Julian%20calendar.
When the new calendar was put in use, the error accumulated in the 13 centuries since the Council of Nicaea was corrected by a deletion of 10 days. The Julian calendar day Thursday, 4 October 1582 was followed by the first day of the Gregorian calendar, Friday, 15 October 1582 (the cycle of weekdays was not affected).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregorian_calendar
AI Overview
In 4 BC, the Festival of Booths (Sukkot) began at sunset on September 11 in the Julian calendar.
Calendar Correspondence
The 15th of Tishri (the biblical start date) corresponds differently across calendars for the year 4 BC:
Julian Calendar: September 11
Gregorian Calendar: September 13
Duration of the Festival
The festival lasted for eight days, concluding on September 18 (Julian) or September 20 (Gregorian).
Significance and Symbolism
The Festival of Booths, also known as Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles, is one of the three major pilgrim festivals in the Hebrew Bible.
Historical Roots: It commemorates the 40-year period during which the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, living in temporary shelters (booths) after their Exodus from Egypt.
Agricultural Context: It marks the end of the harvest cycle, particularly for grapes and olives, serving as a time of thanksgiving for the year's bounty.
Messianic Association: Many scholars and religious traditions associate this festival with the birth of Jesus, suggesting he may have been born during this time in 4 BC to symbolize God "tabernacling" among humanity.
Ritual Practices
Observance of the festival involves several key commands found in Leviticus 23:
Building a Sukkah: Families construct and dwell in temporary huts with roofs made of natural materials (branches/leaves) through which the stars can be seen.
The Four Species: Participants wave the Lulav (palm, myrtle, and willow branches) and Etrog (citron fruit) in six directions to recognize God's omnipresence.
Holy Convocations: The first and eighth days are designated as Sabbaths or days of rest with no customary work.
Pope Francis Talks About 'Palpable' Grief at 9/11 Memorial
He will also visit the museum and see the iconic steel cross.
BY MEGHAN KENEALLY and AARON KATERSKY
September 25, 2015, 9:21 AM
Pope Francis arrived today at the site of the Sept. 11 terror attacks for what was called a "multi-religious gathering."
He was far from the only religious leader present, as Cardinal Timothy Dolan was to introduce the pontiff. But there are also Jewish, Muslim, Sikh and other leaders involved in the ceremony.
Pope Francis said a prayer and laid a white rose at the slabs of names of victims by one of the two reflecting pools. He then met with several relatives of first responders who died in the attack, as well as former New York City Mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg and Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
The group then went into the museum's great hall, located at the bedrock of the building, where a prayer service was held and Pope Francis gave a short speech. He started his remarks by apologizing, in English, that he would be saying the rest of the speech in Spanish.
"I feel many different emotions standing here at Ground Zero, where thousands of lives were taken in a senseless act of destruction. Here grief is palpable," he said.
Before his visit, museum curator Jan Ramirez gave ABC News an overview of the tour that the pontiff would receive during his visit.
The backdrop for the interfaith service of peace is the surviving retaining wall of the original World Trade Center.
The pope will skip the rooms that recount the day and enter the historical exhibition space in the room that houses artifacts from the aftermath.
The dominant object is the World Trade Center Cross, steel wreckage in the shape of a cross excavated from World Trade Center 6 that became a focal point for recovery workers, and where a Franciscan priest offered Mass every Sunday on West Street in front of the cross during recovery work on the pile. A piece of aluminum duct work sits atop the cross like a shroud.
"This is bound to be the most iconic of the artifacts the pontiff will want to see," Ramirez said.
Here is the full transcript, as translated by the Holy See, of Pope Francis' remarks inside the 9/11 Museum:
Dear Friends,
I feel many different emotions standing here at Ground Zero, where thousands of lives were taken in a senseless act of destruction. Here grief is palpable. The water we see flowing towards that empty pit reminds us of all those lives which fell prey to those who think that destruction, tearing down, is the only way to settle conflicts. It is the silent cry of those who were victims of a mindset which knows only violence, hatred and revenge. A mindset which can only cause pain, suffering, destruction and tears.
The flowing water is also a symbol of our tears. Tears at so much devastation and ruin, past and present. This is a place where we shed tears, we weep out of a sense of helplessness in the face of injustice, murder, and the failure to settle conflicts through dialogue. Here we mourn the wrongful and senseless loss of innocent lives because of the inability to find solutions which respect the common good. This flowing water reminds us of yesterday’s tears, but also of all the tears still being shed today.
A few moments ago I met some of the families of the fallen first responders. Meeting them made me see once again how acts of destruction are never impersonal, abstract or merely material. They always have a face, a concrete story, names. In those family members, we see the face of pain, a pain which still touches us and cries out to heaven.
https://abcnews.com/US/pope-francis-arrives-911-memorial-multi-faith-service/story?id=34037052
The Oculus was positioned as part of the World Trade Center masterplan by Daniel Libeskind and designed by SANTIAGO CALATRAVA.
World Trade Center Oculus
50 Church Street New York, NY 10007
Oculus Transportation Hub | World Trade Center (officialworldtradecenter.com)
https://www.officialworldtradecenter.com/en/local/learn-about-wtc/oculus-transportation-hub.html
The Order of Calatrava (Spanish: Orden de Calatrava, Portuguese: Ordem de Calatrava) was one of the four Spanish military orders and the first military order founded in Castile, but the second to receive papal approval. The papal bull confirming the Order of Calatrava was given by Pope Alexander III on September 26, 1164.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Calatrava
In 1129 the Master, accompanied by three hundred knights, recruited from the noblest houses of Europe, led a huge train
of pilgrims to the Holy Land. It was at this time that the Templars formed part of the Christian contingent which, allied with
the Assassins, tried to take Damascus. [And it wasn't the first time nor the last that the Christian Knights Templar, or
supposedly Christian Knights Templar (they really weren't Christian at all) were allied with the Assassins.] Were they (as the
Orientalist von Hammer alleges) connected in some secret way with the Assassins? [Yes, our research shows that it is a
historical fact. And it is also a historical fact that the Assassins were prepared to adopt Christianity if they could gain greater
power thereby (Christianity, that is, on the surface, just as the Knights Templar had done)]. Hammer points to the similarities
of the two organizations. The followers of Hasan Ibn Sabah were in contact with the Templars, and had a similar method of
organization. They were in existence before the Templars were formed: “The Ismailians ([or] Assassins) was the original, and
[folks] the Order of the Templars, [was] the copy.”
The Templars and the Assassins (aired March 2nd, 1993)
https://viefag.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/transcripts-of-william-cooper-s-mystery-babylon-series.pdf
AI Overview
Asāsiyyūn (أساسيون) refers to a debated etymology of the "Order of Assassins" (Nizari Isma'ilis), translating to "people who are faithful to the foundations" or "people of principle".
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
NEW YORK
P.J. KENEDY & SONS
PRINTERS TO THE HOLY APOSTOLIC SEE
Todd Morgan Beamer was an American passenger aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked and crashed as part of the September 11 attacks in 2001. He was one of the passengers who attempted to regain control of the aircraft from the hijackers."
"Following this, the passengers and flight crew decided to act.[1] According to accounts of cell phone conversations, Beamer, along with Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett, and Jeremy Glick, formed a plan to take the plane back from the hijackers.[10] They were joined by other passengers, including Lou Nacke, Rich Guadagno, Alan Beaven, Honor Elizabeth Wainio, Linda Gronlund, and William Cashman, along with flight attendants Sandra Bradshaw and CeeCee Lyles, in discussing their options and voting on a course of action, ultimately deciding to storm the cockpit and take over the plane.[1] Beamer told Jefferson that the group was planning to "jump on" the hijackers and fly the plane into the ground before the hijackers' plan could be followed through.[7][8] Beamer recited the Lord's Prayer and the 23rd Psalm with Jefferson, prompting others to join in. Beamer requested of Jefferson, "If I don't make it, please call my family and let them know how much I love them." After this, Jefferson heard muffled voices and Beamer clearly answering, "Are you ready? Okay. Let's ROLL. These were the last words spoken by Beamer heard by Lisa Jefferson.[1][8][9]"
Todd Beamer - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd_Beamer
Jefferson Airplane - House at Pooneil Corners - Manhattan Rooftop Concert (1968) - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuwMEiNg3B8
Jet Fuel Can't Melt Steel Beams" is an assertion made by September 11th, 2001 attack conspiracy theorists that the burning fuel from crashed planes would not have been able to melt the supporting beams of the World Trade Center. The claim is widely mocked online for being based on flawed evidence.
Jet Fuel Can't Melt Steel Beams | Know Your Meme
https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/jet-fuel-cant-melt-steel-beams
Six months after the Twin Towers fell, they returned in the form of two blue beams of light illuminating the Manhattan skyline. Since then, they have lit the sky annually as a Sept. 11 commemoration known as Tribute in Light. The tradition will continue this year to remember the 14th anniversary of the attacks.
A Look at Tribute in Light | National September 11 Memorial & Museum (911memorial.org)
https://www.911memorial.org/connect/blog/look-tribute-light
A Blue Mass is a Mass celebrated annually throughout the United States[1] in the Catholic Church for those employed in the "public safety field" (i.e. police officers, firefighters, correctional officers, 911 operators and EMS personnel).[2] The color blue relates to the blue-colored uniforms predominantly used by these services.[3] Similar to the Red Mass, the service honors those who have died in the line of duty and those currently serving as first responders.[4] The Mass is an opportunity for the community to show gratitude to first responders and their families.[5]
Blue Mass - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Mass
The story behind this image of slain Davis police officer Natalie CORONA
By Lisa Fernandez and KTVU Published January 12, 2019 Updated December 28, 2020 California KTVU FOX 2
DAVIS, Calif. (KTVU) - In the image, she's wearing a royal BLUE gown, carrying a black-striped American flag with a thin blue line streaked across it.
Her heels are high. Her hair is done. Her smile is BEAMING. And she's standing in the middle of Leesville Grade Road next to a field in Williams, Colusa County, population 21,000, in California's Central Valley, where her father was a sheriff's deputy and now a county supervisor.
It's this compelling photograph of slain Davis police officer Natalie Corona that circulated throughout the country on Friday, hours after the 22-year-old was shot to death by a suspect identified on Saturday as Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, 48. A note found on his bed inside his home, where he later killed himself, stated that he believed Davis police bombarded him with ultrasonic waves."
The story behind this image of slain Davis police officer Natalie Corona (ktvu.com)
https://www.ktvu.com/news/the-story-behind-this-image-of-slain-davis-police-officer-natalie-corona
Serge Monast (1945 – 5 or 6 December 1996[1][2]) was a Canadian investigative journalist, poet, essayist and conspiracy theorist. He is known to English-speaking readers mainly for the originating the conspiracy theory Project BLUE BEAM, which concerns an alleged plot to facilitate a totalitarian world government by destroying traditional religions and replacing them with a new-age belief system using NASA technology.[3][unreliable source?]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serge_Monast
SEPTEMBER 11, 1990 | CLIP OF PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS ON PERSIAN GULF
George H.W. Bush describes the New World Order in his address to the US Congress on the Crisis in the Persian Gulf.
User Clip: George Bush defines the New World Order | C-SPAN.org
https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4528359/user-clip-george-bush-defines-world-order
ROLLback of governments hostile to the U.S. took place during World War II (against Fascist Italy in 1943, Nazi Germany in 1945, and Imperial Japan in 1945), Afghanistan (against the Taliban in 2001), and Iraq (against Saddam Hussein in 2003).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rollback
In 1917, the Virgin appeared in Fatima. "The Mother of God" was a smashing success, playing to overflow crowds. As a result, the Socialists of Portugal suffered a major defeat. "Roman Catholics world-wide began praying for the conversion of Russia and the Jesuits invented the Novenas to Fatima which they could perform throughout North Africa, spreading good public relations to the Muslim world. The Arabs thought they were honoring the daughter of Muhammad, which is what the Jesuits wanted them to believe. "As a result of the vision of Fatima, Pope Pius XII ordered his Nazi army to crush Russia and the Orthodox religion and make Russia Roman Catholic." A few years after he lost World war II, Pope Pius XII startled the world with his phoney dancing sun vision to keep Fatima in the news. It was great religious show biz and the world swallowed it. "Not surprisingly, Pope Pius was the only one to see this vision. As a result, a group of followers has grown into a BLUE Army world-wide, totaling millions of faithful Roman Catholics ready to die for the blessed virgin. "But we haven't seen anything yet. The Jesuits have their Virgin Mary scheduled to appear four or five times in China, Russia, and major appearance in the U.S.
"What has this got to do with Islam?
Note Bishop Sheen's statement: "Our Lady's appearances at Fatima marked the turning point in the history of the world's 350 million Muslims. After the death of his daughter, Muhammad wrote that she "is the most holy of all women in Paradise, next to Mary."
"He believed that the Virgin Mary chose to be known as Our Lady of Fatima as a sign and a pledge that the Muslims who believe in Christ's virgin birth, will come to believe in His divinity.
"Bishop Sheen pointed out that the pilgrim virgin statues of Our Lady of Fatima were enthusiastically received by Muslims in Africa, India, and elsewhere, and that many Muslims are now coming into the Roman Catholic Church."
How the Vatican created Islam (remnantofgod.org)
http://www.remnantofgod.org/books/docs/how-the-vatican-created-islam.pdf
A Look at the Museum’s Memorial Hall
“No Day Shall Erase You From the Memory of Time.”
This quote from Book IX of "The Aeneid" by the Roman poet Virgil suggests the transformative potential of remembrance and is indicative of the museum’s mission to honor and remember the victims of the attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993. Each letter was forged from pieces of recovered World Trade Center steel by New Mexico artist Tom Joyce.These words are part of a larger art installation in the 9/11 Memorial Museum created in 2014 by artist Spencer Finch, titled “Trying to Remember the Color of the Sky on That September Morning.” The installation is the focal point for Memorial Hall, the area between the two main exhibitions at bedrock in the museum.Every one of the 2,983 watercolor squares is its own shade of BLUE – one for each of the 2001 and 1993 attack victims – and the artwork as a whole revolves around the idea of memory. Our own perception of the color blue might not be the same as that of another person. But, just like our perception of color, our memories share a common point of reference.By Jordan Friedman, 9/11 Memorial Research and Digital Projects Associate "
A Look at the Museum’s Memorial Hall | National September 11 Memorial & Museum (911memorial.org)
https://www.911memorial.org/connect/blog/look-museums-memorial-hall
Rosicrucianism is a theosophy advanced by an invisible order of spiritual knights who in spreading Christian Hermeticism, Kabbalah, and Gnosis seek to enliven and to preserve the memory of Divine Wisdom, understood as a feminine flame of love called Sofia or Shekhinah, exoterically given as a fresh unfolded rose, yet, more akin to the BLUE fire of alchemy, the BLUE virgin. Rosicrucians have no organisation and there are no recognizable Rosicrucian individuals, but the order makes its presence known by leaving behind engrammatic writings in the genre of Hermetic-Platonic Christianity.1 The historical roots of Hermeticism is to be located in Ancient Egypt. Long before the rise of Christianity, Hermetic texts were structured around the belief that organisms contain sparks of a Divine mind unto which they each strive to attend. Things easily transform into others, thereby generating certain cyclical patterns, cycles that periodically renew themselves on a cosmic scale. These transformations of life and death were enacted in the Hermetic Mysteries in Ancient Egypt through the gods Isis, Horus, and Osiris. In the Alexandrian period these myths were reshaped into Hermetic discourses on the transformations of the self with Thot, the scribal god. These discourses were introduced in the west in 1474 when Marsilio Ficino translated the Hermetic Pimander from the Greek. The story of Christian Rosencreutz can be seen as a new version of these mysteries, specifically tempered by German Paracelsian philosophy on the Lion of the darkest night, a biblical icon for how the higher self lies slumbering in consciousness.2
Rose Cross Over The Baltic
by Suzanne Ackerman
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vWI_uTVg5lzNCDm16itq-PLSavozNR_F/view?usp=sharing
Why was Thomas called the Twin (John 11:16)?
Answer
Twins are two children of the same parents born from the same pregnancy, usually within minutes of each other. One of Christ’s twelve disciples, Thomas, was “called the Twin” (John 11:16, ESV) or “nicknamed the Twin” (John 11:16, NLT).
John’s Gospel mentions in three passages that Thomas was called the Twin (John 11:16; 20:24; 21:2). The Greek name Thōmas is a transliteration of an Aramaic word (te’oma), meaning “twin.” Thomas is also a transliteration of the Hebrew word (te’om) for “twin.” The Greek Christians of Jesus’ day tended to use the Hellenistic name Didymus (also meaning “twin”), which appears in John’s three remarks about Thomas being called the Twin.
The Bible does not name Thomas’s twin. The best we can do is speculate. Some believe that Thomas and Matthew may have been twins because their names often appear together in biblical lists of the disciples (see Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15).
The Acts of Thomas is an apocryphal book that suggests Thomas was called “Twin” because he looked like Jesus. In the Syrian church, Thomas is believed to be the twin brother of Jesus. Another gnostic writing, the Gospel of Thomas, reinforces such claims of secret knowledge about Thomas, even expounding on his fate: “Against his wishes Thomas traveled to India under the command of the Lord. There he was martyred with spears by the hand of an Indian king. He was raised up and his empty tomb took on magical properties. Today in St. Thomas, India, Christians assert that they descend from the apostle” (Elwell and Beitzel, “Thomas, The Apostle,” Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, Baker Book House, 1988, p. 2,057).
Besides what we glean from John’s Gospel, the Bible provides little concrete information about Thomas. From John 11:16, we learn that Thomas possessed courage and commitment to Christ. When Jesus decides to return to Bethany because His friend Lazarus has died (John 11:14–15), the disciples are reluctant to go, fearing the Jews there might try to stone Him again (John 11:8). John records, “So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him’” (John 11:16, ESV).
In John 14:1–4, Jesus tells the disciples that He would prepare a place for them in heaven, adding that they would know the way to get there. Thomas is unafraid to be vulnerable with Jesus and honestly expresses his skepticism: “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” (John 14:5). The Lord is keen to give Thomas His answer, one that has illuminated the only path for believers ever since: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).
The best-remembered passage about Thomas is John 20:24–29, where he doubts the report of the other disciples who claim they have seen the risen Lord. He tells them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe” (verse 25). One week later, Jesus appears to Thomas, saying, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe” (verse 27). From this famous episode, Thomas receives his second nickname, “Doubting Thomas.” Of course, Thomas does believe, exclaiming, “My Lord and my God!” (verse 28).
The Doubting Twin Thomas also takes part in a fruitless fishing trip in which Jesus appears to seven of the apostles, telling them to cast their nets on the opposite side of the boat (John 21:1–14). When they do, they catch so many fish they cannot haul them in. Jesus is teaching His disciples to be “fishers of men” instead of fishermen. He shows them that their success in all future endeavors will depend on always following His direction.
The Bible doesn’t say why Thomas was called the Twin, nor who his twin may have been. The only certainty we can glean from Scripture is that Thomas was dubbed the Twin. The title may have been a nickname because he resembled another person, or he may have had a biological twin sister or brother. If Thomas did have a twin, we can only hazard a guess about the twin’s identity.
https://www.gotquestions.org/Thomas-called-the-Twin.html
Saudi Arabia and terrorism today
Daniel L. Byman
September 29, 2016
Congress’ override of President Obama’s veto to allow Americans to sue Saudi Arabia for links to the 9/11 plot raises many questions, not least of which is the relationship between Saudi Arabia and terrorist groups today. As I testified earlier this year, Saudi Arabia has made considerable progress on counterterrorism in the last 15 years but still has a long way to go.
Before the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and really until al-Qaida began to attack the Kingdom directly in May 2003, Saudi Arabia was often uncooperative on counterterrorism and more part of the problem than part of the solution. Since 2003, the Saudi regime has emerged as a vital counterterrorism partner, and several important successes against al-Qaida in particular are due in large part to Saudi cooperation. Yet it’s not a simple story of progress: the Kingdom engages in many troubling behaviors today that make the terrorism problem worse. In the end, policymakers would do well to remember that Saudi Arabia is a key partner but not a friend: the United States and Saudi Arabia share many common interests, but they do not share common values or a common worldview.
What’s the link, exactly?
Understanding Saudi Arabia’s relationship with terrorists, however, is far more difficult than assessing Iran’s backing of terrorism, which is open, extensive, and state-sponsored. Much of Saudi support is done by non-state actors. Yet being “non-state” does not absolve the Saudi government of responsibility. These non-state actors enjoy a range of relationships to the Saudi regime. Some receive or did receive official patronage. Others, particularly those tied to leading clerics in the Kingdom, are embraced indirectly by the regime’s self-proclaimed role as Defender of the Faithful. And still others are truly private, acting independently of the government and in times in opposition to it.
In addition, the Saudi royal family itself occupies an unusual role. In one sense, the royal family—with its tens of thousands of princes—is not the government. However, the family’s and the government’s finances are interwoven, and if a prince supports a group it has an unofficial imprimatur of approval. King Salman himself, for example, helped raise money for the mujahedin in Afghanistan and the Balkans.
Many of these voices are responsible for indoctrination rather than direct violence. That is to say they might propagate views on the Satanic nature of Jews, the apostasy of Shiites, or the heretical nature of the Ahmadiyyas, as well as the legitimacy of using violence to fight foreign occupiers of Muslim lands—be it Indian forces in Kashmir, U.S. forces in Iraq, or Israeli forces in historic Palestine. Such support, in the United States, would often be considered distasteful but part of protected free speech. For terrorists, however, it can prove invaluable as it provides theological legitimacy for their actions, enabling them to attract recruits and funds.
Behind-the-scenes pressure
Washington’s ability to influence the Kingdom is limited, however, given the Saudi domestic sensitivities of these issues. U.S. pressure under the Bush and Obama administrations has moved Saudi Arabia away from many dangerous activities and has helped transform Saudi capacity in fighting terrorism. Even if the key motivation was the change in the perceived threat to the Kingdom itself rather than U.S. influence, these are considerable successes that deserve recognition.
Changing Saudi policy still further is difficult. Although the United States has sold the Kingdom almost $100 billion in arms during the Obama administration, the Saudi media remains critical of the president as unreliable and hostile to the Kingdom. Riyadh, moreover, is frustrated with U.S. policy regarding Iran in particular, but also in the region in general. Saudi Arabia backed the coup in Egypt, in opposition to U.S. policy, and Saudi leaders were previously outraged that the United States abandoned the Mubarak regime. The Obama administration has largely abandoned criticizing the Saudi regime on human rights grounds, but it is important to remember that most Saudis do not share U.S. values regarding women’s and homosexual rights, religious liberty, and other basic freedoms that are fundamental to American society.
Quiet pressure is almost always best when trying to change Saudi policy.
Many issues regarding counterterrorism—particularly the promotion of extremism abroad via sectarianism and criticism of non-Muslims—touch on core domestic political issues vital to the regime’s legitimacy and very survival. Change in these areas will at best be slow, and the United States should expect progress to end or even reverse should the regime’s domestic situation face challenges.
Quiet pressure is almost always best when trying to change Saudi policy. The small circle of decisionmakers in Saudi Arabia does not take well to public embarrassment, and they believe strongly in the value of close personal relationships. To be effective, U.S. pressure must involve top officials, including the president. Otherwise, it will simply be ignored or may even prove counterproductive.
Saudi Arabia is a vital partner in the struggle to defeat the Islamic State, al-Qaida, and other groups. But it is not a friend. Demonizing Saudi Arabia does not help advance U.S. interests, but nor should critics of U.S. policy in the region see Washington and Riyadh as fully aligned given the profound difference in values.
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/saudi-arabia-and-terrorism-today/
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxFIp2r1YYit1vx5hzqtlPuLylRuNs-MWd
AI Overview
In the Bible, the "House of David" refers to the royal dynasty established by God via a covenant with David, promising an everlasting kingdom (2 Sam 7:11-16). Unlike the earlier, temporary military leaders known as judges (like Othniel), the House of David represents a permanent, ruling monarchy characterized by establishing justice and righteousness in Israel.
Church of the Great God
Key Aspects of the House of David & Judgment:
Establishment: God promises David a "house" (dynasty) that will last forever, contrasting with the prior era when God raised up judges to deliver Israel.
Administration of Justice: David is noted for ruling all Israel with justice and equity, setting a standard for his descendants.
Thrones of Judgment: Psalm 122:5 highlights that "thrones of judgment" belong to the house of David, signifying the royal administration of law.
The Messianic Judge: The prophets foretold a future, ultimate ruler from David’s line who will sit on David's throne to bring justice and righteousness (Isaiah 16:5, 9:7).
New Testament Fulfillment: Jesus Christ is presented as the ultimate fulfillment of this promise, often called the "Son of David," who reigns over an eternal kingdom.
Zechariah 12:8
1599 Geneva Bible
8 In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and he that is feeble among them, in that day shall be as David: and the house of David shall be as God’s house, and as the Angel of the Lord before them.
AI Overview
Based on Joel 3, God promises to restore Judah and Jerusalem and assemble all nations in the Valley of Jehoshaphat ("Yahweh has judged") for a final judgment. This occurs because the nations scattered His people Israel, divided His land, and enslaved them. God himself will act as the judge to defend Judah and punish foreign nations for their violence against His people.
What was the Court of the Gentiles in the Jewish temple?
Answer
Herod’s temple, destroyed along with the rest of Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70, contained four separate “courts,” separated from one another and each designed for a different purpose: the Court of the Gentiles, the Court of the Women, the Court of Israel (or the Court of Men), and the Court of Priests. The Court of the Gentiles is referred to as “the outer court” in Revelation 11:2.
https://www.gotquestions.org/Court-of-the-Gentiles.html
2. The Seventy Weeks Prophecy from Daniel Chapter Nine
(24) Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
(25) Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
(26) And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.
(27) And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. KJV
These four verses comprise the entire text of the seventy weeks prophecy. There are two schools of thought on the interpretation of verse 27. The Futurist school being the most popular today, hinges upon the acceptance of several presumptions:
Presumption 1. That the seventieth week of Daniel, unlike the first sixty-nine weeks, is not contiguous:
24 – Chapter Two – Learning the Lines
meaning that there is an undetermined gap or interval of time between the sixty-ninth and the seventieth weeks of years, and that this gap has been going on for almost two thousand years.
This first presumption cannot be supported by any accepted interpretive method and there is nothing in the text, nothing in the chapter, nothing in the book of Daniel, nor the entire Bible, which explicitly supports inserting an undetermined gap of time between the sixty-ninth and seventieth weeks of the prophecy. Therefore it must be assumed upon wishful thinking or pure conjecture. And there must be a total disregard for the literal meaning of the text. However these presumptions are exactly what Evangelicals have accepted, whether they know it or not!
The Abraham Accord
Harbinger of the Temple Mount Play about to Begin
by
Nicklas Arthur
The Judge was an ancient and powerful demon sent to wipe out the human race with his unique power of burning the humanity out of his victims. Centuries later, Drusilla and Spike reassembled the Judge and brought him to life.[1]
https://buffy.fandom.com/wiki/Judge
The Exodus 1947 incident unfolded when a ship carrying Jewish Holocaust survivors, who sought refuge in Palestine, was intercepted by the British navy, leading to clashes and the eventual deportation of the refugees back to Europe.[48] During World War II, Palestine served as a strategically significant location for British military operations against Axis forces in North Africa.[48] The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini, collaborated with Nazi Germany while in exile during World War II.[50]
Arab–Israeli wars
Further information: 1948 Palestine war and 1967 Arab-Israeli war
In 1947, the United Nations proposed a partition plan for Palestine, suggesting separate Jewish and Arab states, but it was rejected by the Palestinians and by neighboring Arab nations, leading to the outbreak of a civil war in Palestine, the first phase of the broader 1948 Palestine war.[48]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestine
Pope Leo XIV has been planned to be assassinated in Jerusalem between 2028-2029 in the midst of brokering a peace treaty between Russia America and Israel after terrorist attacks on Gazprom pipeline in the Mediterranean off the coast of Palestine that results in Russian troops sent to Gaza and a brief war with American troops at the Gaza border for Cardinal Louis Sako brought out of retirement to finish in finalizing the peace treaty.
King Charles III and Prince William are then assassinated by a terrorist bombing for Princess Charlotte coronated as Queen of England, masterminded by Archbishop Sarah Mullally and Jesuit Superior General at that time, Jeffrey Burwell.
Prince Harry is going to be coronated King of England after the assassination of Queen Charlotte and Prince Louis and is to declare war on America and the Vatican for their role in the destruction of Jerusalem, Madrid is going to launch nuclear attack on London, Paris is going to launch nuclear attack on the Vatican, Moscow is going to launch a nuclear attack on Paris and Beijing is going to launch a nuclear attack on Moscow, all going to happen in the time space of 2030-2032.
Juliet Rose Landau (born March 30, 1965)[1][2][3][4] is an American actress, director, producer, and ballerina best known for her role as Drusilla on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff show Angel, the latter appearance earning her a Saturn Award nomination.
Early life
Landau was born in Los Angeles to Jewish parents Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, both of whom were actors.[5][6][7] Her older sister is film producer Susan Landau Finch.[8] She spent her early childhood in West Los Angeles.[9] Landau is a former professional ballerina.[10]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliet_Landau
Rosa Jesuitica, oder Jesuitische Rottgesellen, das ist, Eine Frag ob die Zween Orden, der ganandten Ritter von der Neerscharen Jesu, und der Rosen-Creuzer ein einiger Ordensen: per J. P. D. a S. Jesuitarum Protectorum. Prague, 1620.” (4to).
This is a truly curious tract upon the “relations of the Jesuits and the Rosicrucians."
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dT28PyPUPfqDfC0iVg7nGFsle8vYBXLf/view?usp=sharing
Juliet Rose Landau has been chosen to be an immortal Prophetess for Jesus Christ.
Landau, city, Rhineland-Palatinate Land (state), southwestern Germany. Its location is picturesque, along the Queich River in the Haardt Mountains. The settlement was first mentioned in 1106, and an Augustinian monastery was founded there in 1276.
https://www.britannica.com/place/Landau-Germany
The Story of the Yekkes – Jewish Germans in the Land of Israel
ushi
April 30, 2018
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After the Nazis came to power in Germany 1933, some half a million German Jews were gradually leaving Germany. The vast majority of those descendants of Ashkenazi communities, who lived along the Rhine since the ninth century fled to America and Great Britain, while a small 10% chose to immigrate eastwards to the Land of Israel.
https://anumuseum.org.il/blog/jeckes/
https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugkx9FSZlFXWLYsH9dJ3NNr4tmpZWFgpm1S7
Gerardo Sasso (c. 1040 – 3 September 1120), also known as Blessed Gérard, was an Italian lay brother in the Benedictine Order in the Catholic Church who was appointed as rector of the hospice in Jerusalem at Muristan in 1080.[1] In the wake of the success of the First Crusade in 1099, he became the founder of the Order of St John of Jerusalem, also known as the Knights Hospitaller, an organization that received papal recognition in 1113. As such, he was the first Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller.[2]
Name
Gerard Sasso became known as Pierre-Gérard de Martigues due to a mistaken tradition of his place of birth being Martigues, in Provence.[3] However, William of Tyre, writing in the late 12th century, cites Amalfi as Gerard's birthplace. This is not implausible, as merchants from Amalfi were involved in the reconstruction of the hospice in Jerusalem in the 1020s after its destruction in 1005 under caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.[4]
An alleged surname Tum, variously also Thom, Tune or Tenque, is due to an error by Pierre-Joseph de Haitze (1730),[5] who mistook the word tunc, "then", as a name of Gerard. De Haitze's mistake was identified in 1885 by Ferdinand de Hellwald.[6] Before the erroneous nature of the surname Tunc became clear, Italian historian Francesco Galeani Napione (d. 1830) Italianized Gerardus Tunc as Gerardo da Tonco, suggesting that he was a native of (or held possessions in) Tonco in Piedmont.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerard_Sasso
AI Overview
Gerard is a masculine given name and surname of Germanic origin, meaning "spear-brave" or "strong spear". It is derived from the Old Germanic elements gēr or gari ("spear" or "lance") and hard ("hardy," "brave," or "strong"). The name was introduced to Britain through the Norman Conquest and is common in Germanic and Romance languages.
Etymological Breakdown:
Ger- / Gari-: Derived from Proto-Germanic roots indicating a spear or lance.-hard: Derived from Proto-Germanic, meaning brave, hardy, or strong.
Historical Significance and Variations:
Spread: The name gained popularity in medieval Europe, partly due to the veneration of Saint Gerard of Toul (935-994).Variations: It exists in many forms, including Gérard (French), Gerardo (Spanish/Italian), Gerhard/Gerhardt (German/Dutch), Gearóid (Irish), and Gerrard (English).Derived Surnames: The name has led to various surnames, including Girard and Guérard.
Related Name: Often associated with the similar Germanic name Gerald, which means "spear ruler".
In Revelation 17:3-5 the apostle John describes a vision, which Rev. J. R. Church in Guardians of the Grail believes is fulfilled in the Grail legend. The Whore of Babylon is holding in her hand a golden cup full of blasphemy. Church believes the cup is the blasphemous Holy Grail Another element of the Grail legend is the spear supposed to have pierced the side of Jesus, also known as the Spear of Longinus or the Spear of Destiny. Whoever possesses this spear, so the legend goes, will rule the world. The Merovingians, whose descendants are the Habsburg pretenders to the Austrian throne today, are in possession of the spear. It is on display in the Habsburg museum in Vienna, Austria~ No one, however, knows the location of the Holy Grail. At least no one is telling. Although heretical, this secret society should not be discounted, for it is alive and well today. In fact, in 1956, an Order calling itself the Prieure de Sion, or Priory of Sion, registered itself publicly for the first time with the French government. (Sion is French for Zion.) It is from this Order that the legend of the Holy Grail originated five centuries after Christ's death. Rev. Church remarks of this organization: This mysterious group is presently made up of over 9,000 men, including Protestants, Roman Catholics, Jews, and Moslems. The members of this secret sect should be considered unfaithful to their respective beliefs, for in reality they are neither Christian nor Catholic, they are neither Jew nor Moslem. Their doctrine sidesteps the basic tenets of those beliefs and replaces them with the teachings of their greatest prophet - whom they believe to be Buddha.2 From this secret order J. R. Church believes will come the Anti-Christ, for he writes, "Their ultimate goal is world government!'
Scarlet and the Beast
by John Daniel
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zCd0nFuvnM4OYWuVW5QUBCpsTfBv5bYx/view?usp=sharing
The Hospitaller commandery of Saint-Jean-d'Acre is a monumental complex founded by the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, also known as the Knights Hospitallers. It is located in the city of Saint-Jean-d'Acre (now Acre in Israel). In the 13th century, the commandery became the headquarters of the Order until the fall of the city in 1291.[1]
History
The first years
From the first years of the establishment of the Crusaders in the city, the Hospitallers received donated properties. In 1110, King Baldwin I granted the Knights Hospitaller permission to keep the constructions located north of the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. In the years 1130, the buildings were damaged during works near the church and the Hospitallers decided to move near the 12th century north wall of the city. This is the actual place of the commandery.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hospitaller_commandery_of_Saint-Jean-d%27Acre
Welsh name
Siôn (Welsh pronunciation: [ʃoːn]) or Sion is a Welsh form of the Anglo-Norman Jean,[1] pronounced in English similarly to the Irish name Seán.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sion_(name)
The Priory of Sion is an initiatory Order of chivalry, founded on July 15 1099 in Jerusalem, by Godfrey of Bouillon, at the Abbey "Our Lady of Mount Sion" as "Order of our Lady of Mount Sion."
http://www.prieure-de-sion.com/
The Order – A Brief History
The origins of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem date back to the First Crusade, when its leader, Godfrey de Bouillon, liberated Jerusalem. As part of his operations to organize the religious, military and public bodies of the territories newly freed from Muslim control, he founded the Order of Canons of the Holy Sepulchre. According to accounts of the Crusades, in 1103 the first King of Jerusalem, Baldwin I, assumed the leadership of this canonical order, and reserved the right for himself and his successors, as agents of the Patriarch of Jerusalem, to appoint Knights to it, should the Patriarch be absent or unable to do so.
https://eohsjeastern.org/a-brief-history/
Horses: the extent to which they can be possessed in our houses [575, 576]; the extent to which they can be used on missions [574, 625]
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://web.archive.org/web/20200211182223/https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/Constitutions%20and%20Norms%20SJ%20ingls.pdf
The equites (/ˈɛkwɪtiːz/; lit. 'horse' or 'cavalrymen', though sometimes referred to as "knights" in English) constituted the second of the property/social-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian order was known as an eques (Latin: [ˈɛ.kʷɛs]).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equites
Historical Institute of the Society of Jesus: a Roman work of the entire Society, 304 §2
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
The Counter-Reformation (Latin: Contrareformatio), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival,[1] was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It was a comprehensive effort arising from the decrees of the Council of Trent.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-Reformation
Johann (Hans) (1526-75) was the eldest of six children born to the reformer Martin Luther and his wife Katharina (who also reared four orphans).
https://ghdi.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=3716#:~:text=Johann%20(Hans)%20(1526%2D,a%20profession%20of%20the%20law.
Jacobus Arminius (/ɑːrˈmɪniəs/; Dutch: Jakob Hermanszoon[a]; 10 October 1560 – 19 October 1609) was a Dutch Reformed minister and theologian during the Protestant Reformation period whose views became the basis of Arminianism and the Dutch Remonstrant movement.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobus_Arminius
In 1129 the Master, accompanied by three hundred knights, recruited from the noblest houses of Europe, led a huge train of pilgrims to the Holy Land. It was at this time that the Templars formed part of the Christian contingent which, allied with the Assassins, tried to take Damascus. [And it wasn't the first time nor the last that the Christian Knights Templar, or supposedly Christian Knights Templar (they really weren't Christian at all) were allied with the Assassins.] Were they (as the Orientalist von Hammer alleges)109 connected in some secret way with the Assassins? [Yes, our research shows that it is a historical fact. And it is also a historical fact that the Assassins were prepared to adopt Christianity if they could gain greater power thereby (Christianity, that is, on the surface, just as the Knights Templar had done)]. Hammer points to the similarities of the two organizations. The followers of Hasan Ibn Sabah were in contact with the Templars, and had a similar method of organization. They were in existence before the Templars were formed: “The Ismailians ([or] Assassins) was the original, and [folks] the Order of the Templars, [was] the copy.”
The Templars and the Assassins (aired March 2nd, 1993)
https://viefag.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/transcripts-of-william-cooper-s-mystery-babylon-series.pdf
1236
June 29 – Siege of Córdoba: Castilian forces under King Ferdinand III (the Saint) capture Muslim Córdoba from Emir Ibn Hud, as part of the Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula.[2]
July – At a diet (princely convention) in Piacenza, Emperor Frederick II proclaims his wish to recover all Italy for the Holy Roman Empire.[3]
Pope Gregory IX condemned the links that both the Knights Templer and Knights Hospitaller have with the Assassin fighters in the Middle East. He issues a bull, a formal proclamation issued by the pope, preventing further contact with the Assassins.
May 6 – Roger of Wendover, English Benedictine monk and chronicler, dies at St. Albans Abbey. His chronicle is continued by Matthew of Paris.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1236
Atheism: resisting it with all our forces is a special mission given to the Society by the supreme pontiff, 253 2°; a mission which should permeate all forms of our apostolate, 254; our efforts are to be directed toward nonbelievers, ibid.; toward that end, an experience of God must be fostered in ourselves, 223 §§3-4, 224, 247
1° 2° 3° 6°;
and also in others, by means of the Spiritual Exercises, 271
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://web.archive.org/web/20200211182223/https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/Constitutions%20and%20Norms%20SJ%20ingls.pdf
The word asas in Arabic means "PRINCIPLE". The Asāsiyyūn (plural, from literary Arabic) were, as defined in Arabic, the principle people.
AI Overview
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
NEW YORK
P.J. KENEDY & SONS
PRINTERS TO THE HOLY APOSTOLIC SEE
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
The Brothers Hospitallers of Saint John of God, officially the Hospitaller Order of the Brothers of Saint John of God (abbreviated as OH), are a Catholic religious order founded in 1572 in Toledo, Spain.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brothers_Hospitallers_of_Saint_John_of_God
The Art of War
The book was translated into French and published in 1772 by the French priest Jesuit Jean Joseph Marie Amiot; it was re-published in 1782. A partial translation into English was attempted by British officer Everard Ferguson Calthrop in 1905 under the title The Book of War. The first annotated English translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910.[2] Military and political leaders such as the Chinese communist revolutionary Mao Zedong, Japanese daimyō Takeda Shingen, and Vietnamese general Võ Nguyên Giáp are cited along with American military generals Douglas MacArthur and Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. as having drawn inspiration from the book.[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_War
https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugkx4zBCcjhUKKBqtlvf3RfWcGxcvApw1uhu
Susan Landau Finch of Chapman University, the "sister" of Juliet Rose Landau, has been chosen to be a Teacher for Jesus Christ "harmless as a dove" if they repent.
Susan Landau Finch is transgender.
AI Overview
Positions in God's Kingdom on earth, often referred to as the five-fold ministry, are roles aimed at equipping believers rather than just holding a title. The primary roles include Apostles, Prophets/Prophetesses, Evangelists, Pastors, and Teachers. Other roles focus on service and leadership, such as elders, deacons, bishops, and missionaries, all tasked with nurturing the Church.
Indiana Wesleyan University
Five-Fold Ministry (Ephesians 4:11):
Apostle: Pioneers, establishes churches, and provides spiritual oversight.
Prophet/Prophetess: Speaks God's word, offers direction, correction, and warns the people.
Evangelist: Proclaims the gospel and brings people to faith.
Pastor: Shepherds, feeds, and protects the congregation.
Teacher: Instructs believers in the word of God.
Susan Meredith Finch (née Landau; born August 13, 1960) is an American film producer, writer, casting director, and director.[1] She has an independent film company called Wildwell Films, based in Los Angeles. She has been married to Roy Finch since November 28, 1999. They have one daughter born in 2009.
Early life
Landau is the daughter of actors Barbara Bain and Martin Landau.[2] Both her parents were Jewish.[3][4] Her younger sister is American actress, director, producer and ballerina Juliet Landau. The sisters spent their early childhood in West Los Angeles.[5]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Landau_Finch
AI Overview
Direct masculine equivalents for Susan (derived from Hebrew Shoshana, meaning "lily" or "rose") include Susannus, Sushant, or Italianate forms like Suzano. Popular, sound-alike, or thematic alternatives often used to honor the name include Sullivan, Sunny, Sutton, Samuel, Sander, or Zane.
Direct & Related Masculine Names:
Susannus: An historically documented Latin masculine form of Susan.
Sushant: An Indian name often cited as a male equivalent.
Susano: Derived from the Japanese god Susanoo.
Sawsan: An Arabic form used for males in some contexts.
Wikipedia
Common Sound-Alike & Honor Names:
Sullivan / Sully: Frequently used for the "Su-" sound.
Sunny / Sonny: A friendly, often unisex nickname.
Sutton: Similar in style and beginning with S.
Samuel / Samson: Suggested for similar phonetic structure.
Sander / Zander: Often used to mimic the "-san" ending.
Zane: A Latvian nickname variant for the name Susanna.
Thematic Alternatives (Meaning "Lily/Rose"):
Cal / Calvin: Derived from the botanical connection to lily.
Royce / Royston: Derived from the botanical connection to rose.
Müllerian duct development, fertility problems, ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, premature births and cancers, especially clear cell adenocarcinoma (CCA) of the vagina and cervix in girls and young women [21]. In ‘DES sons’, epididymal cysts, hypospadias, cryptorchidism, hypoplastic testes and micropenises have been observed [22,23,24,25,26].
All DES sons who identified as transgender women underwent karyotyping at their local hospital at the moment of transition.
https://mdpi.com/2039-4713/14/1/10
Dame Sarah Elisabeth Mullally (née Bowser; born 26 March 1962) is an English Anglican prelate and former nurse. She has been the bishop of London since 2018, and is the first woman to hold this office.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Mullally
In Hebrew, the word saraph means "burning", and is used seven times throughout the text of the Hebrew Bible as a noun, usually to denote "serpent",[4] twice in the Book of Numbers, once in the Book of Deuteronomy, and four times in the Book of Isaiah.[5]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seraph
The 7 July 2005 London bombings, sometimes referred to informally as 7/7, were a series of four coordinated suicide attacks carried out by Islamist terrorists that targeted commuters travelling on London's public transport during the morning rush hour.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_July_2005_London_bombings
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms.[b]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_III
Princess Charlotte of Wales (Charlotte Elizabeth Diana; born 2 May 2015) is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, and a granddaughter of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. She is third in the line of succession to the British throne.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Charlotte_of_Wales_(born_2015)
"Killer Queen" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by lead singer Freddie Mercury and recorded for their third album Sheer Heart Attack in 1974.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_Queen
Pope Leo meets Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally, pledging to keep working past differences
Published Monday, April 27, 2026 | 1:27 a.m.
Updated Monday, April 27, 2026 | 3:42 a.m.
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV prayed Monday in the Vatican with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, and vowed to keep working to overcome differences in a historic meeting with the first female leader of the Church of England and the spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion.
https://lasvegassun.com/news/2026/apr/27/pope-leo-meets-archbishop-of-canterbury-sarah-mull/
"[And] The True Magic Mirror. This is an emblem of the Soul, which when fully developed will act as a mirror to the
universe wherein may be wisdom and truth.
[William Cooper]: It was Harry Truman, a 33rd degree Freemason, who signed the United Nations treaty, who pushed
through and signed the United Nations Participation Act. It was also Harry Truman, a 33rd degree Freemason, operating in
concert with Wild Bill Donovan, the head of the OSS, a member of the Sovereign and Military Order of the Knights of Malta
and of the Order of the Knights Templar, who created the National Security Act -- pushed it through congress. Harry Truman
signed it. It created the UMBRELLA of national security, a curtain of secrecy.
[William Cooper]: It created the Central Intelligence Agency. And behind this curtain of secrecy, the secret societies have
186
been working to destroy the sovereignty of all nations and bring about a one-world, totalitarian, Socialist government.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HoqB7gKRXQ
Sarah Michelle Gellar is the actress who portrayed Buffy Summers on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel television series.
https://buffy.fandom.com/wiki/Sarah_Michelle_Gellar
Juliet Rose Landau (born March 30, 1965)[1][2][3][4] is an American actress, director, producer, and ballerina best known for her role as Drusilla on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff show Angel, the latter appearance earning her a Saturn Award nomination.
Early life
Landau was born in Los Angeles to Jewish parents Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, both of whom were actors.[5][6][7] Her older sister is film producer Susan Landau Finch.[8] She spent her early childhood in West Los Angeles.[9] Landau is a former professional ballerina.[10]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliet_Landau
Rosa Jesuitica, oder Jesuitische Rottgesellen, das ist, Eine Frag ob die Zween Orden, der ganandten Ritter von der Neerscharen Jesu, und der Rosen-Creuzer ein einiger Ordensen: per J. P. D. a S. Jesuitarum Protectorum. Prague, 1620.” (4to).
This is a truly curious tract upon the “relations of the Jesuits and the Rosicrucians."
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dT28PyPUPfqDfC0iVg7nGFsle8vYBXLf/view?usp=sharing
Juliet Rose Landau has been chosen to be an immortal Prophetess for Jesus Christ
The mother of Susan Landau Finch and Juliet Rose Landau, Barbara Bain, is also transgender.
Barbara Bain (born Mildred Fogel;[1] September 13, 1931[2]) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cinnamon Carter Crawford[3] on the action television series Mission: Impossible (1966–1969), which earned her three Primetime Emmy Awards, as well as a Golden Globe Award nomination. She also starred as Dr. Helena Russell on the British-Italian coproduction science-fiction television series Space: 1999 (1975–1977). Bain has also appeared in the films Animals with the Tollkeeper (1998), Panic (2000), Forget Me Not (2009) and On the Rocks (2020).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Bain
Thomas Trace Beatie (born 1974[1]) is an American public speaker, author, and advocate of transgender rights and sexuality issues, with a focus on transgender fertility and reproductive rights.[2]
Beatie came out as a trans man in early 1997. Beatie had gender-affirming surgery in March 2002 and became known as "the pregnant man" after he became pregnant through artificial insemination in 2007.[3] Beatie chose to be pregnant, with donated sperm,[4][5] because his wife Nancy was sterile.
The couple filed for divorce in 2012. The Beatie case is the first of its kind on record, where a documented legal male gave birth within a marriage to a woman, and for the first time, a court challenged a marriage where the husband gave birth.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Beatie
Tracing boards are painted or printed illustrations depicting the various emblems and symbols of Freemasonry. They can be used as teaching aids during the lectures that follow each of the Masonic Degrees, when an experienced member explains the various concepts of Freemasonry to new members. They can also be used by experienced members as reminders of the concepts they learned as they went through the ceremonies of the different masonic degrees.[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracing_board
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxwW7rEoN7tMUW4MWqnyZgJnwmAu95q5lp
AI Overview
Maia (or Maja) is the Roman and Greek goddess of spring, growth, and fertility, after whom the month of May is named. As a nurturer of Earth, she represents the blossoming of nature and is often associated with the Roman goddess of flowers, Flora. She was also worshipped as a "great mother" goddess.
The Sun of May (Spanish: Sol de Mayo) is one of the national symbols of the Río de la Plata countries of Argentina and Uruguay, featured in their respective flags and coats of arms.[1][2] It is named after the May Revolution of 1810, the event that catalyzed the Independence process in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. It is also known as the Inca sun (Spanish: "sol incaico"),[3][4] since the most widespread explanation of its meaning is that it represents Inti, the solar god of the Incas.[1][5] However, no contemporary sources confirm an Inca origin for the symbol and this claim which emerged later with the development of Argentine historiography.[1] The Sun of May design appears to be heir to the long previous use of the "sun in splendour" in European heraldry.[5][6]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_of_May
Fulcanelli’s main strategy, the key to unraveling the mystery, lies in an understanding of what he calls the “phonetic law” of the “spoken cabala,” or the “language of the birds.” This punning, multilingual wordplay can be used to reveal unusual and, according to Fulcanelli, meaningful associations between ideas. “What unsuspected marvels we should find, if we knew how to dissect words, to strip them of their bark and liberate the spirit, the divine light which is within,” Fulcanelli writes. He claims that in our day this is the natural language of the outsiders, the outlaws and heretics at the fringes of society. (See appendix A, “Fulcanelli on the Green Language,” for the complete text of this chapter.) 6 This spoken cabala was also the “green language” of the Freemasons (“All the Initiates expressed themselves in cant,” Fulcanelli reminds us) who built the art gothique of the cathedrals. “Gothic art is in fact the art got or art cot —χοτ—the art of light or of the spirit,” Fulcanelli informs us. Ultimately the “art got,” or the “art of light,” is derived from the language of the birds, which seems to be a sort of Ur-language taught by both Jesus and the ancients."
The Mysteries of the Great Cross
by Jay Weidner
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vrxcBcn4h7RRM2SA3X1SS1DsooSxfitI/view?usp=sharing
The Roman Collegia were Ancient Masons of the Mysteries
Of the emblems of the Collegia, it is enough to say that here again we find the simple tools of the builder used as teachers of truth for life and hope in death. Upon a number of sarcophagi, still extant, we find carved the square, the compasses, the cube, the plummet, the circle, and always the level. There is, besides, the famous Collegium uncovered atthe excavation of Pompeii in 1878, having been buried under the ashes and lava of Mount Vesuvius since the year 79 A. D. It stood near the Tragic Theater, not far from the Temple of Isis, and by its arrangement,with two columns in front and interlaced triangles on the walls, was identified as an ancient lodge room. Upon a pedestal in the room was found a rare bit of art, unique in design and exquisite in execution, now in the National Museum at Naples. It is described by S. R. Forbes, in hisRambles in Naples, as follows:
It is a mosaic table of square shape, fixed in a strong wooden frame. The ground is of grey green stone, in the middle of which is a human skull, made of white, grey, and black colors. In appearance the skull is quite natural. The eyes, nostrils, teeth, ears, and coronal are all well executed. Above the skull is a level of colored wood, the points being of brass; and from the top to the point, by a white thread, is suspended a plumb-line. Below the skull is a wheel of six spokes, and on the upper rim of the wheel there is a butterfly with wings of red, edged with yellow; its eyes blue… On the left is an upright spear, resting on the ground; from this there hangs, attached to a golden cord, a garment of scarlet, also a purple robe; whilst the upper part of the spear is surrounded by a white braid of diamond pattern. To the right is a gnarled thorn stick, from which hangs a coarse, shaggy piece of cloth in yellow, grey, and brown colors, tied with a ribbon; and above it is a leather knapsack… Evidently this work of art, by its composition, is mystical and symbolical.
Here is a picture of the description above; I am more than certain many of the more informed readers of this blog have seen it before. This mosaic is from a Collegia (lodge) room. The only reason it still exists today, and was not destroyed by countless Orthodox purges, is because it was buried in volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, which made it unreachable for about 1800 years.
Therefore, the above photo of the Pompeii Mosaic that was buried in 79 AD, came from a Collegia (lodge) room, and is visible proof that this ancient organization is linked to Masonry today. One must simply look at the symbols within the Mosaic and break them down allegorically.
For those people who don’t understand the concept of an allegory, a short definition will help you better understand how it is used within Masonry,
an allegory in its most general sense is an extended metaphor. Allegoryhas been used widely throughout the histories of all forms of art, largely because it readily illustrates complex ideas and concepts in ways that are comprehensible to its viewers, readers, or listeners. Allegories are typically used as literary devices or rhetorical devices that convey hidden meanings through symbolic figures, actions, imagery, and/or events, which together create the moral, spiritual, or political meaning the author wishes to convey. One of the best known examples is Plato‘s Allegory of the Cave.
https://www.gnosticwarrior.com/the-roman-collegia-were-ancient-masons-of-the-mysteries.html?fbclid=IwAR2a-uSsdbJggfn5mofIhonPoN7fRd3lGdPBiTQfuriOZ69yZ3Hee_pSfWI
At first, the Roman Pontiff had no immediate connection with Pergamos and the hierarchy there; yet, in course of time, the Pontificate of Rome and the Pontificate of Pergamos came to be identified. Pergamos itself became part and parcel of the Roman empire, when Attalus III., the last of its kings, at his death, left by will all his dominions to the Roman people, B.c. 133.* For some time after the kingdom of Pergamos was merged in the Roman dominions, there was no one who could set himself openly and advisedly to lay claim to all the dignity inherent in the old title of the kings of Pergamos. The original powers even of the Roman Pontiffs seem to have been by that time abridged,+ but when Julius Ceasar, who had previously been elected Pontifex Maximus,{ became also, as Emperor, the supreme civil ruler of the Romans, then, as head of the Roman state, and head of the Roman religion, all the powers and functions of the true legitimate Babylonian Pontiff were supremely vested in him, and he found himself in a position to assert these powers.
THE
TWO BABYLONS
OR
THE PAPAL WORSHIP
PROVED TO BE
THE WORSHIP OF NIMROD AND HIS WIFE
With Sixtysone Woodcut llustrations from
NINEVEH, BABYLON, EGYPT, POMPEII, &c.
BY THE LATE
by
REV. ALEXANDER HISLOP
https://ia601309.us.archive.org/23/items/twobabylonsorpap00hisl_0/twobabylonsorpap00hisl_0.pdf
Juliet Rose Landau (born March 30, 1965)[1][2][3][4] is an American actress, director, producer, and ballerina best known for her role as Drusilla on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff show Angel, the latter appearance earning her a Saturn Award nomination.
Early life
Landau was born in Los Angeles to Jewish parents Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, both of whom were actors.[5][6][7] Her older sister is film producer Susan Landau Finch.[8] She spent her early childhood in West Los Angeles.[9] Landau is a former professional ballerina.[10]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliet_Landau
Rosa Jesuitica, oder Jesuitische Rottgesellen, das ist, Eine Frag ob die Zween Orden, der ganandten Ritter von der Neerscharen Jesu, und der Rosen-Creuzer ein einiger Ordensen: per J. P. D. a S. Jesuitarum Protectorum. Prague, 1620.” (4to).
This is a truly curious tract upon the “relations of the Jesuits and the Rosicrucians."
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dT28PyPUPfqDfC0iVg7nGFsle8vYBXLf/view?usp=sharing
Juliet Rose Landau has been chosen to be an immortal Prophetess for Jesus Christ
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxwIpmi5n6dd8CfPp8tI3i49H0eo2CDnxh
Paul Heyman (born September 11, 1965) is an American professional wrestling manager, former executive, promoter, and commentator. He is signed to WWE, where he performs as the on-screen manager of The Vision stable.
Heyman first gained prominence in the late 1980s as an on-screen manager under the name Paul E. Dangerously, working for promotions such as World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and the Continental Wrestling Federation. In 1993, he became the creative force behind the Philadelphia-based Eastern Championship Wrestling (ECW), eventually purchasing the company in 1995 and renaming it Extreme Championship Wrestling.
Heyman is best known for his work as a manager, widely praised for his promo ability, character work, and influence on talent development.[2][3][4][5][6] He has managed some of wrestling's biggest names, including Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins, and is credited with helping elevate numerous stars through his work both on and off screen.
Early life
Paul Heyman was born on September 11, 1965, in the Bronx, New York City, to Sulamita (née Szarf; 1928–2009) and Richard S. Heyman (1926–2013), both of Jewish descent.[7][8] His mother was a Holocaust survivor who endured the Łódź Ghetto and was later imprisoned at Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen concentration camps. His father was a personal injury attorney and served in the United States Navy during World War II.[9][10][11][12]
National Wrestling Alliance / World Championship Wrestling (1988–1993)
In 1988, Heyman joined Jim Crockett Promotions, which soon became part of World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Reprising his Paul E. Dangerously persona, he managed the Original Midnight Express (Dennis Condrey and Randy Rose) in a storyline rivalry against the new incarnation of the team—Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane—who were aligned with manager Jim Cornette. During this period, Heyman also briefly managed "Mean" Mark Callous, the future Undertaker in WWE.[14]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Heyman
AI Overview
Chaldean Jews, or Jews originating from Chaldea, are historically connected to southern Babylonia, where the Neo-Babylonian empire (626–539 BC) was ruled by Chaldean dynasties. Abraham is described as coming from "Ur of the Chaldees" (Genesis 11:28).
The Society was at that time scattered over the world and
occupied with activities of great importance for faith and religion. Hence,
it quite rightly entrusted its originator and founder, our Father Ignatius
of holy memory, residing in Rome, with the task of writing and enacting
the Constitutions.
Carefully, wisely, and religiously did he UNDERTAKE and carry out this
task that had been laid upon him, to the extent that he made it his chief
concern for a number of years. With many tears, ardent prayers, and
repeated Sacrifices of the Mass, he implored from the Lord the anoint
ing of the Holy Spirit, so that by the latter
s inspiration and guidance he
might accomplish through divine assistance what was impossible
through human prudence.
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/Constitutions%20and%20Norms%20SJ%20ingls.pdf
AI Overview
PAUL Reubens made a memorable guest appearance on WWE Monday Night Raw on November 1, 2010, fully in character as Pee-wee Herman. Appearing at the Nassau Coliseum to promote his Broadway show, he engaged in comedic backstage segments and an in-ring confrontation with The Miz, Alex Riley, and the BIG Show (PAUL Wight).
Pro Wrestling Stories
The next Pope to be elected after Pope Leo XIV is going to be Cardinal Louis Sako brought out of retirement and will choose his Papal name to be Pope Paul VII
The May 1605 conclave held from 8 to 16 May 1605; Cardinal Camillo Borghese was elected to succeed Leo XI as pope. Borghese took the name Paul V.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1605_conclave
AI Overview
Paul the Apostle was a 1st-century Jewish Pharisee and Roman citizen who transformed from a persecutor of Christians into the early church's most influential missionary.
FORMULAS OF THE INSTITUTE
OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS
Approved and Confirmed by
POPES PAUL III AND JULIUS III
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://web.archive.org/web/20200211182223/https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/ConstitutionsandNormsSJingls.pdf
Paulos III NONA (born Amel Shamoon Nona; November 1, 1967) is an Iraqi Catholic hierarch who has served as Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Baghdad since 2026.
Patriarch of Baghdad
On 12 April 2026, the Synod of Bishops of the Chaldean Catholic Church elected Nona as Patriarch of Baghdad. He took the name "Paul III" upon his election.[5][6][7]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_III_Nona
AI Overview
No, there has never been a Pope Paul VII in the history of the Catholic Church. There have been six popes named Paul, with the most recent being Pope Paul VI, who served from 1963 to 1978.
Revelation 18:6
1599 Geneva Bible
6 [a]Reward her, even as she hath rewarded you, and give her double according to her works: and in the cup that she hath filled to you, fill her the double.
AI Overview
The 37th Annual Slammy Awards (TV Special 1987) - IMDb
The 1987 WWF Slammy Awards, mockingly marketed as the "37th Annual Slammy Awards," was the second-ever WWF award show, held in Atlantic City and featuring musical performances, including Vince McMahon's famous "Stand Back" performance.
Arturo Sosa the Superior General of the Society of Jesus is retiring by 2028, Jeffrey Burwell elected Superior General of the Society of Jesus at the 37th General Congregation.
AI Overview
Based on available information, there is no record of a "37th General Congregation" of the Jesuits. The most recent major governing assembly, the 36th General Congregation, was held in 2016, where Fr. Arturo Sosa was elected Superior General.
Wikipedia
Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, Named Next Provincial of the Jesuits of Canada
March 15, 2024 — The Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) announced the appointment of Fr. Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, as the next provincial of the Jesuits of Canada.
https://jesuits.org/stories/jeffrey-s-burwell-sj-named-next-provincial-of-the-jesuits-of-canada/
Trump, Vance meet with Pope Leo's Florida brother, 'a major MAGA fan', at White House
Kim Luciani
USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
May 22, 2025, 12:58 p.m. ET
Key Points AI-assisted summary
President Donald Trump met with Pope Leo XIV's brother, LOUIS Prevost, at the White House.
https://heraldtribune.com/story/news/2025/05/22/trump-pope-leo-florida-maga-brother-louis-prevost-white-house-visit/83773944007/
̶A̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶(̶L̶a̶t̶i̶n̶:̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶t̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶)̶,̶ ̶a̶l̶s̶o̶ ̶c̶a̶l̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶a̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶a̶b̶d̶i̶c̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶,̶ ̶o̶c̶c̶u̶r̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶c̶u̶r̶r̶e̶n̶t̶ ̶p̶o̶p̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶C̶a̶t̶h̶o̶l̶i̶c̶ ̶C̶h̶u̶r̶c̶h̶ ̶v̶o̶l̶u̶n̶t̶a̶r̶i̶l̶y̶ ̶r̶e̶s̶i̶g̶n̶s̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶p̶o̶s̶i̶t̶i̶o̶n̶.̶ ̶
̶h̶t̶t̶p̶s̶:̶/̶/̶e̶n̶.̶w̶i̶k̶i̶p̶e̶d̶i̶a̶.̶o̶r̶g̶/̶w̶i̶k̶i̶/̶P̶a̶p̶a̶l̶_̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶
On 13 May 1981, in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, Pope John Paul II was shot and wounded by Mehmet Ali Ağca while he was entering the square.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Pope_John_Paul_II
SAKO Limited (natively Sako Oy)[1] is a Finnish firearm and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Kanta-Häme in southern Finland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAKO
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Revelation 13:3
LOUIS Raphaël I Sako (Arabic: لويس روفائيل ساكو;[1] born 4 July 1948) is a Chaldean Catholic prelate who has served as Patriarch of Baghdad since 1 February 2013. Pope Francis made him a cardinal on 28 June 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Raphal_I_Sako
The word asas in Arabic means "PRINCIPLE". The Asāsiyyūn (plural, from literary Arabic) were, as defined in Arabic, the principle people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Assassins
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
Pope Leo XIV has been planned to be assassinated in Jerusalem between 2028-2029 in the midst of brokering a peace treaty between Russia America and Israel after terrorist attacks on Gazprom pipeline in the Mediterranean off the coast of Palestine that results in Russian troops sent to Gaza and a brief war with American troops at the Gaza border for Cardinal Louis Sako brought out of retirement to finish in finalizing the peace treaty.
Dame Sarah Elisabeth Mullally (née Bowser; born 26 March 1962) is an English Anglican prelate and former nurse. She has been the bishop of London since 2018, and is the first woman to hold this office.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Mullally
In Hebrew, the word saraph means "burning", and is used seven times throughout the text of the Hebrew Bible as a noun, usually to denote "serpent",[4]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seraph
The 7 July 2005 London bombings, sometimes referred to informally as 7/7, were a series of four coordinated suicide attacks carried out by Islamist terrorists that targeted commuters travelling on London's public transport during the morning rush hour.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_July_2005_London_bombings
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms.[b]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_III
Princess Charlotte of Wales (Charlotte Elizabeth Diana; born 2 May 2015) is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, and a granddaughter of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. She is third in the line of succession to the British throne.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Charlotte_of_Wales_(born_2015)
"Killer Queen" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by lead singer Freddie Mercury and recorded for their third album Sheer Heart Attack in 1974.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_Queen
Pope Leo meets Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally, pledging to keep working past differences
Published Monday, April 27, 2026 | 1:27 a.m.
Updated Monday, April 27, 2026 | 3:42 a.m.
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV prayed Monday in the Vatican with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally,
https://lasvegassun.com/news/2026/apr/27/pope-leo-meets-archbishop-of-canterbury-sarah-mull/
Revelation 17:4 That harlot, the spiritual Babylon, which is Rome. She is described by her attire, profession and deeds.
https://biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation174-5&version=GNV
https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugkx7fFDqCHhxxCqfqRg4KPmgSHeyIvo4bDA
AI Overview
Cardinal Robert Prevost (now Pope LEO XIV) visited Las Vegas prior to his election, with Archbishop George LEO Thomas mentioning they shared lunch in 2023. Described as humble and soft-spoken, Cardinal Prevost’s visit left a positive impression on local Las Vegas Catholic leaders, who expressed deep joy at his election as the first American pope.
Key Details regarding the visit and local reaction:
Meeting with Leadership: Archbishop George Leo Thomas of Las Vegas noted he met with the now-Pope in 2023.Impression: Thomas described him as having "the demeanor of a parish priest," describing him as quiet, simple, and unassuming, yet having a profound presence.
Reaction to Election: Following the 2025 announcement of his election as Pope Leo XIV, local Catholic congregations in Las Vegas gathered at the Guardian Angel Cathedral for a special mass of thanksgiving.
Local Connection: Local leaders expressed optimism, believing Pope Leo XIV’s pastoral, humble approach will serve the church well, noting his fluency in multiple languages and global experience.
Leon (Ancient Greek: λέων, romanized: léon; leōn) is a first name of Greek origin, meaning "lion". It gave rise to similar names in other languages, including the Latin Leo, French Lyon or Léon, Irish Leon, Spanish León, Armenian Levon / Լևոն or Georgian Levan / ლევან.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_(given_name)
1 Peter 5:8
1599 Geneva Bible
8 [a]Be sober, and watch: for your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Re-Elect Brad Pope Lyon County Sheriff 2026
https://www.facebook.com/Bpope4sheriff/
AI Overview
"Las Vegas" is Spanish for "The Meadows," a name given to the area in 1829–1830 by Rafael Rivera, a scout with the Antonio Armijo trading party. The name refers to the wild grasses and green, spring-fed meadows that flourished in the desert valley. It is derived from the Spanish word vega, meaning fertile, low-lying land along a river or stream.
Raphael (UK: /ˈræfeɪəl/ RAF-ay-əl, US: /ˈræfiəl, ˈreɪf-/ RA(Y)F-ee-əl; "God has healed")[a] is an archangel first mentioned in the Book of Tobit and in 1 Enoch, both estimated to date from between the 3rd and 2nd century BC.[5][6]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael_(archangel)
AI Overview
The name Raphael (and its variant Rafael) originates from the Hebrew name Rafa'el (רָפָאֵל), translating to "God has healed" or "God's healing". It combines the Hebrew elements rapha ("to heal") and el ("God"), signifying divine healing power.
Louis RAPHAEL I Sako (Arabic: لويس روفائيل ساكو;[1] born 4 July 1948) is a Chaldean Catholic prelate who has served as Patriarch of Baghdad since 1 February 2013. Pope Francis made him a cardinal on 28 June 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Rapha%C3%ABl_I_Sako
Trump, Vance meet with Pope Leo's Florida brother, 'a major MAGA fan', at White House
Kim Luciani
USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
May 22, 2025, 12:58 p.m. ET
Key Points AI-assisted summary
President Donald Trump met with Pope Leo XIV's brother, LOUIS Prevost, at the White House.
https://heraldtribune.com/story/news/2025/05/22/trump-pope-leo-florida-maga-brother-louis-prevost-white-house-visit/83773944007/
̶A̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶(̶L̶a̶t̶i̶n̶:̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶t̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶)̶,̶ ̶a̶l̶s̶o̶ ̶c̶a̶l̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶a̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶a̶b̶d̶i̶c̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶,̶ ̶o̶c̶c̶u̶r̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶c̶u̶r̶r̶e̶n̶t̶ ̶p̶o̶p̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶C̶a̶t̶h̶o̶l̶i̶c̶ ̶C̶h̶u̶r̶c̶h̶ ̶v̶o̶l̶u̶n̶t̶a̶r̶i̶l̶y̶ ̶r̶e̶s̶i̶g̶n̶s̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶p̶o̶s̶i̶t̶i̶o̶n̶.̶ ̶
̶h̶t̶t̶p̶s̶:̶/̶/̶e̶n̶.̶w̶i̶k̶i̶p̶e̶d̶i̶a̶.̶o̶r̶g̶/̶w̶i̶k̶i̶/̶P̶a̶p̶a̶l̶_̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶
On 13 May 1981, in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, Pope John Paul II was shot and wounded by Mehmet Ali Ağca while he was entering the square.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Pope_John_Paul_II
SAKO Limited (natively Sako Oy)[1] is a Finnish firearm and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Kanta-Häme in southern Finland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAKO
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Revelation 13:3
LOUIS Raphaël I Sako (Arabic: لويس روفائيل ساكو;[1] born 4 July 1948) is a Chaldean Catholic prelate who has served as Patriarch of Baghdad since 1 February 2013. Pope Francis made him a cardinal on 28 June 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Raphal_I_Sako
The word asas in Arabic means "PRINCIPLE". The Asāsiyyūn (plural, from literary Arabic) were, as defined in Arabic, the principle people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Assassins
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
Pope Leo XIV has been planned to be assassinated in Jerusalem between 2028-2029 in the midst of brokering a peace treaty between Russia America and Israel after terrorist attacks on Gazprom pipeline in the Mediterranean off the coast of Palestine that results in Russian troops sent to Gaza and a brief war with American troops at the Gaza border for Cardinal Louis Sako brought out of retirement to finish in finalizing the peace treaty.
Perhaps the most well known myth of Ishtar/Inanna tells of how she chose a young shepherd Dumuzi (later called Tammuz), as her lover; they later became joined through the ritual called “Sacred Marriage.” Shortly after, Dumuzi died. In one version, he is killed by RAIDERS and mourned by his wife, sister, and mother. In another, Ishtar/Inanna travels to the underworld and once there must sacrifice Dumuzi, offering him as her replacement, in order to leave. For half the year, he returns to the world, while his sister takes his place in the underworld, thus becoming the dying and reborn god of agricultural fertility.
https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/objects/166067
The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team plays its home games at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, and is headquartered in Henderson, Nevada.
Founded on January 30, 1960, and originally based in Oakland, California, the Raiders played their first regular season game on September 11, 1960, as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). They moved to the NFL with the AFL–NFL merger in 1970. The team was almost chosen under the nickname "Señors" when established, as close to the team sporting the "Oakland Señors" team name is the original idea of the orange and black team theme colors, that were discontinued as well. The team departed Oakland to play in Los Angeles from the 1982 season through the 1994 season before returning to Oakland at the start of the 1995 season. On March 27, 2017, NFL team owners voted nearly unanimously to approve the Raiders' application to move to the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Nearly three years later, on January 22, 2020, the Raiders moved to the Las Vegas area.[11][12]
The Raiders' on-field fortunes have varied considerably over the years. The team's first three years of operation were marred by poor performance, financial difficulties, and spotty attendance. In 1963, the Raiders' fortunes improved dramatically with the introduction of head coach (and eventual owner and general manager) Al Davis. Since 1963, the team has won 15 division titles (3 AFL and 12 NFL), one AFL championship (1967), four AFC championships (1976, 1980, 1983, and 2002), and three Super Bowl championships: XI (1976), XV (1980), and XVIII (1983). As of the end of the NFL's 2024 season, the Raiders have an all-time regular season record of 509 wins, 480 losses, and 11 ties; their all-time playoff record currently stands at 25 wins and 20 losses.[13]
Al Davis owned the team from 1972 until his death in 2011.[14] Control of the franchise was then given to Al's son Mark Davis, with Al's wife Carol maintaining ownership. The Raiders are known for their extensive fan base and distinctive team culture. The Raiders have had 17 former players who have been enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame as well as two former coaches and Al Davis. They have previously played at Kezar Stadium and Candlestick Park in San Francisco, Frank Youell Field and the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles.
In December 2024, the Raiders were among the first teams in NFL history to sell an ownership stake to outside private equity investors. 15% of the franchise was sold, with 10% going to Tom Brady and his business partner, Tom Wagner of Knighthead Capital, at a cost of $220 million.[15][16] The deal valued the Raiders at $3.5 billion, much lower than previous estimates which had the team valued at $7.8 billion.[16] As a result, Brady had to pay 10% in additional fees to league owners for the favorable terms to become part of the Raiders.[16]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Vegas_Raiders
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxciWxj5aUPfOXh25RWQP674TN_DsoPfC3
AI Overview
At WrestleMania I on March 31, 1985, at Madison Square Garden, Hulk Hogan and Mr. T defeated "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff in the main event tag team match. Managed by Bob Orton Jr., Piper and Orndorff ultimately lost after Orton’s interference backfired, allowing Hogan to pin Orndorff.
Terry GENE Bollea (/bəˈleɪə/; August 11, 1953 – July 24, 2025), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, was an American professional wrestler and media personality.
Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most recognized wrestlers of all time,[8][9][10] Hogan won multiple championships worldwide, most notably being a six-time WWF/WWE Champion. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Hogan also competed in promotions such as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW).[11][12]
Known for his showmanship, large physique, and trademark blond American Fu Manchu moustache and bandanas,[13][14] Hogan began training in 1977 with Championship Wrestling from Florida and achieved global stardom after joining the WWF in 1983. His heroic, all-American persona helped usher in the 1980s professional wrestling boom, during which he headlined eight of the first nine editions of WWF's flagship annual event WrestleMania and regularly headlined Saturday Night's Main Event. His first reign as WWF Champion lasted 1,474 days—the third-longest in the title's history[a]—and he became the first wrestler to win back-to-back Royal Rumbles in 1990 and 1991.[16]
In 1994, Hogan joined WCW and won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship six times. His reinvention as the villainous Hollywood Hogan and leadership of the New World Order (nWo) revitalized his career and significantly contributed to the success of the "Monday Night War" wrestling boom of the late 1990s, including three headline appearances at Starrcade.[17] Hogan returned to WWF in 2002—after WWF acquired WCW—winning the Undisputed WWF Championship for a then-record-equalling sixth reign before departing in 2003.[18] He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005, a second time in 2020 as part of the nWo,[19] and a third time posthumous in 2026 when his match with André the Giant at WrestleMania III was inducted into the Immortal Moments category.
Outside wrestling, Hogan appeared in films such as Rocky III (1982), No Holds Barred (1989), and Suburban Commando (1991), and starred in television shows including Thunder in Paradise and Hogan Knows Best. He also fronted the Wrestling Boot Band; their sole record, Hulk Rules, reached number 12 on the Billboard Top Kid Audio chart in 1995.[20]
Several controversies damaged Hogan's public image. In 1994, he acknowledged using anabolic steroids dating back to 1976 and admitted to discouraging efforts to unionize professional wrestlers. In 2012, the internet media company Gawker published portions of a sex tape, which later had portions leak in which Hogan was heard using racial slurs and openly admitting to being racist. Hogan sued Gawker, which was found liable and subsequently declared bankruptcy. Despite this legal victory, Hogan's reputation was tarnished, a view reflected in the mixed public reaction to his death in 2025.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hulk_Hogan
John (/dʒɒn/ JON) is a very common male name in the English language, ultimately of Hebrew origin.
The English form is from Middle English Ioon, Ihon, Iohn, Jan (mid-12c.), itself from Old French Jan, JEAN, Jehan (Modern French Jean),[2] from Medieval Latin Johannes, an altered form of Late Latin Ioannes.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_(given_name)
Siôn (Welsh pronunciation: [ʃoːn]) or Sion is a Welsh form of the Anglo-Norman JEAN,[1] pronounced in English similarly to the Irish name Seán.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sion_(name)
The Priory of Sion is an initiatory Order of chivalry, founded on July 15 1099 in Jerusalem, by Godfrey of Bouillon, at the Abbey "Our Lady of Mount Sion" as "Order of our Lady of Mount Sion."
http://www.prieure-de-sion.com/
AI Overview
St. John the Baptist Catholic Church is located in Baghdad's Hay Al-Athoriyeen district. It serves the local Chaldean community, with records indicating a long history, including a 100-year celebration by Chaldean nuns, and active services. Note that this is distinct from the 2010 Sayidat al-Nejat (Our Lady of Deliverance) cathedral attack.
The next Pope to be elected after Pope Leo XIV is going to be Cardinal Louis Sako from Baghdad Iraq brought out of retirement and will choose his Papal name to be Pope Paul VII
The May 1605 conclave held from 8 to 16 May 1605; Cardinal Camillo Borghese was elected to succeed Leo XI as pope. Borghese took the name Paul V.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1605_conclave
AI Overview
Paul the Apostle was a 1st-century Jewish Pharisee and Roman citizen who transformed from a persecutor of Christians into the early church's most influential missionary.
Conversion (Acts 9): Originally named Saul, he zealously persecuted early Christians. On the road to Damascus to arrest believers, he was blinded by a light and encountered Jesus, leading to his dramatic conversion.
FORMULAS OF THE INSTITUTE
OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS
Approved and Confirmed by
POPES PAUL III AND JULIUS III
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://web.archive.org/web/20200211182223/https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/ConstitutionsandNormsSJingls.pdf
Paulos III NONA (born Amel Shamoon Nona; November 1, 1967) is an Iraqi Catholic hierarch who has served as Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Baghdad since 2026.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_III_Nona
AI Overview
The 37th Annual Slammy Awards (TV Special 1987) - IMDb
The 1987 WWF Slammy Awards, mockingly marketed as the "37th Annual Slammy Awards," was the second-ever WWF award show, held in Atlantic City and featuring musical performances, including Vince McMahon's famous "Stand Back" performance.
Arturo Sosa the Superior General of the Society of Jesus is retiring by 2028, Jeffrey Burwell elected Superior General of the Society of Jesus at the 37th General Congregation.
AI Overview
Based on available information, there is no record of a "37th General Congregation" of the Jesuits. The most recent major governing assembly, the 36th General Congregation, was held in 2016, where Fr. Arturo Sosa was elected Superior General.
Wikipedia
Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, Named Next Provincial of the Jesuits of Canada
March 15, 2024 — The Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) announced the appointment of Fr. Jeffrey S. Burwell, SJ, as the next provincial of the Jesuits of Canada.
https://jesuits.org/stories/jeffrey-s-burwell-sj-named-next-provincial-of-the-jesuits-of-canada/
Trump, Vance meet with Pope Leo's Florida brother, 'a major MAGA fan', at White House
Kim Luciani
USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
May 22, 2025, 12:58 p.m. ET
Key Points AI-assisted summary
President Donald Trump met with Pope Leo XIV's brother, LOUIS Prevost, at the White House.
https://heraldtribune.com/story/news/2025/05/22/trump-pope-leo-florida-maga-brother-louis-prevost-white-house-visit/83773944007/
̶A̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶(̶L̶a̶t̶i̶n̶:̶ ̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶t̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶)̶,̶ ̶a̶l̶s̶o̶ ̶c̶a̶l̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶a̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶a̶l̶ ̶a̶b̶d̶i̶c̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶,̶ ̶o̶c̶c̶u̶r̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶c̶u̶r̶r̶e̶n̶t̶ ̶p̶o̶p̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶C̶a̶t̶h̶o̶l̶i̶c̶ ̶C̶h̶u̶r̶c̶h̶ ̶v̶o̶l̶u̶n̶t̶a̶r̶i̶l̶y̶ ̶r̶e̶s̶i̶g̶n̶s̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶p̶o̶s̶i̶t̶i̶o̶n̶.̶ ̶
̶h̶t̶t̶p̶s̶:̶/̶/̶e̶n̶.̶w̶i̶k̶i̶p̶e̶d̶i̶a̶.̶o̶r̶g̶/̶w̶i̶k̶i̶/̶P̶a̶p̶a̶l̶_̶r̶e̶n̶u̶n̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶
On 13 May 1981, in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, Pope John Paul II was shot and wounded by Mehmet Ali Ağca while he was entering the square.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Pope_John_Paul_II
SAKO Limited (natively Sako Oy)[1] is a Finnish firearm and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Kanta-Häme in southern Finland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAKO
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Revelation 13:3
LOUIS Raphaël I Sako (Arabic: لويس روفائيل ساكو;[1] born 4 July 1948) is a Chaldean Catholic prelate who has served as Patriarch of Baghdad since 1 February 2013. Pope Francis made him a cardinal on 28 June 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Raphal_I_Sako
The word asas in Arabic means "PRINCIPLE". The Asāsiyyūn (plural, from literary Arabic) were, as defined in Arabic, the principle people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Assassins
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
Presidential elections are scheduled to be held in the United States on November 7, 2028, to elect the president and vice president of the United States for a term of four years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2028_United_States_presidential_election
Kamala Devi Harris (English: /ˈkɑːmələ ˈdeɪvi/ ⓘ,[1] born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who has been the 49th and current vice president of the United States since 2021, serving under President Joe Biden.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamala_Harris
RAPHAEL Gamaliel Warnock[1] (/ˈrɑːfiɛl ˈwɔːrnɒk/ RAH-fee-el WOR-nok; born July 23, 1969) is an American politician and Baptist pastor serving as the junior United States senator from Georgia, a seat he has held since 2021.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael_Warnock
The Burning of Washington, also known as the Capture of Washington, was a successful British amphibious attack conducted by Rear Admiral George Cockburn during Admiral John Warren's Chesapeake campaign. It was the only time since the American Revolutionary War that a foreign power had captured and occupied a United States capital.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington
London is going to launch nuclear attack on Washington D.C 2030-2031 after false flag attacks in Jerusalem because of the Vatican and CIA.
The United States presidential line of succession is the order in which the vice president of the United States and other officers of the United States federal government assume the powers and duties of the U.S. presidency
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_line_of_succession
Tulsi Gabbard (/ˈtʌlsi ˈɡæbərd/; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and military officer serving since 2025 as the eighth director of national intelligence (DNI).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsi_Gabbard
The Cheyenne Mountain Complex (CMOC)[a] is a non-public military installation of the United States Department of Defense[b] located inside Cheyenne Mountain, in El Paso County, Colorado.[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheyenne_Mountain_Complex
The conspiracy is racist, considering Blacks, Hispanics, and Aboriginal Peoples to be inferior races of useless eaters. They believe or at least profess that the Anglo/Aryan race is the true Israel (British Israel and Christian Identity for the dupes and an Anglophile Secular Humanism for the leaders) and thus the Master race.
MAJESTYTWELVE by William Cooper Copyright © 1997 William Cooper All Rights Reserved
https://hourofthetime.com/majestyt.htm
The GENETIC father of Senator Reverand RAPHAEL Warnock is Cardinal Louis RAPHAEL Sako of Baghdad Iraq
AI Overview
The Tau cross (or T-cross) is a T-shaped symbol, shaped like the Greek letter tau (Τ), often called Saint Anthony’s cross or crux commissa. It is heavily associated with Saint Francis of Assisi, who used it as a signature and a symbol of salvation, humility, and the Franciscan commitment to the Gospel.
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxV90cTZTbxwX8O04S6sj6LWXFuCYJjjq1
The Dalai Lama, Pope Leo XIV, and Cardinal Louis Sako of Baghdad Iraq are conspiring to have PM Modi assassinated
AI Overview
The title "Dalai Lama" was created in 1578 by the Mongol leader Altan Khan, who bestowed it upon Sonam Gyatso, a prominent leader of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. While Sonam Gyatso was the first to hold the title, the lineage was retroactively applied to his two predecessors, making Gendun Drubpa (1391–1474) the 1st Dalai Lama.
Wikipedia
Key details regarding the institution:
The Title: Dalai means "ocean" in Mongolian, creating the title "Ocean of Wisdom".
1st Dalai Lama: Gendun Drubpa (1391–1474) was posthumously recognized as the first in the line.
3rd Dalai Lama: Sonam Gyatso (1543–1588) was the first to be called Dalai Lama during his lifetime.
Political Power: The 5th Dalai Lama (1617–1682) was the first to wield both spiritual and temporal (political) power over all of Tibet.
Current Holder: The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, was recognized in 1939 and holds the position today.
Roshani second Insurrection
According to Antoni de Montserrat, a Portuguese Jesuit who visited India furing the rule of Mughal Empire,[9] , Following the death of Bayazid, Jalal-ad-Din (also known as Jalala), son of Pir Roshan, took the leadership of Roshani movement following the death of his father.[10][11] He first went to Tirah, where he organized the Afridi and Orakza'i tribes in an outbreak of violence.[4] The Afridis and Orakza'i attacked and plundered caravans, performed raids, and killed Afghans, Mughals, and Hindus indiscriminately.[8] This provoked counter-attacks and after a series of defeats, many tribesmen deserted Jalala and he fled from Tirah to the Yusufza'is.[4] In 1601, twenty years after assuming leadership of the Roshaniyya movement, Jalala and the Roshanis went to the aid of the Lohani Pashtuns in Ghazni.[8] The Hazaras of that area however, attacked the Lohanis and when the Lohanis appealed to the Roshanis, they attacked the Roshanis too.[4] Jalala was later succeeded by his nephew and son-in-law, Ihdad, who consolidated his position in Tirah. Mahabat Khan, then Subedar of Kabul, was tasked with suppressing Ihdad’s growing influence among the Tirah tribes.[12][13]
In 1619, at the Battle of Sampagha Pass, The Mughals suffered a loss with massive casualties against the Roshani.[14][15] Around 5,000 horses were captured by the Orakzai,[15] but the Mughals inflicted 300 casualties on the Afghans.[14]
In 1630, a grandson of Pir Roshan named Abdul Qadir launched attacks on the Mughal army in Peshawar. Thousands of Pashtuns from the Bangash, Afridi, Mohmand, Kheshgi, Yusufzai, and other tribes took part. The Roshanis failed in the attack, but continued their resistance against the Mughals throughout the 17th century.[16]
Legacy
Bayazid's emphasis on the ascetic life, mysticism, and repentance in anticipation of the Day of Judgement were themes that attracted numerous people and provoked an initially positive reaction from Afghan tribesmen.[4] During Bayazid's lifetime and position as leader of the movement, the pantheistic Sufi character of the Roshaniyya movement and its mass millenarian appeal were overwhelming.[8] After Bayazid's death in 1575 the pantheistic Sufi character of the movement became less and less prominent.[4]
Roshaniyya doctrines were more mystical and less overtly legal, which made them more attractive to Afghans who found the shari'at to conflict with the tribal customs of Pashtunwali.[4] The biggest challenge of the Roshaniyya movement to Pashtun tribal society happened when religious leaders competed with traditional lineage headmen for leadership of the tribesmen.[8]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roshani_movement
Religion: The Jesuit Swamis of India
4 minute read
TIME
April 23, 1973 12:00 AM EST
The Indian Jesuits still take their cue from the adaptability of the pioneer missionary, Father Roberto de Nobili, who adopted the ascetic life of the Hindu holy men shortly after he came to India in 1605. The Jesuits reflect the broad spectrum of the subcontinent’s culture.
https://time.com/archive/6878366/religion-the-jesuit-swamis-of-india/
Dalai Lama endorses Pope Leo's Holy Week message of peace
The 14th Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, is served food on his 90th birthday celebration at the Dalai Lama Temple complex, in Dharamshala, India, July 6, 2025. The Dalai Lama has endorsed Pope Leo's message of peace. (OSV News/Reuters/Anushree Fadnavis)
by Justin McLellan
Vatican City — March 31, 2026
The Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, has "wholeheartedly" endorsed Pope Leo XIV's call for peace, aligning himself with the pope's Palm Sunday appeal for an end to violence and war.
"His call for the laying down of arms and the renunciation of violence resonated profoundly with me, as it speaks to the very essence of what all major religions teach," the Buddhist leader wrote in a post on X published March 31.
https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/vatican-news/dalai-lama-endorses-pope-leos-holy-week-message-peace
Fourteenth Rule. Although there is much truth in the assertion that no one can save himself without being predestined and without having faith and grace; we must be very cautious in the manner of speaking and communicating with others about all these things.
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
NEW YORK
P.J. KENEDY & SONS
PRINTERS TO THE HOLY APOSTOLIC SEE
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
AI Overview
"Asas" is the Arabic word for "principle" or "foundation," often used to describe fundamental beliefs. "Asāsiyyūn" translates to "principal people".
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
NEW YORK
P.J. KENEDY & SONS
PRINTERS TO THE HOLY APOSTOLIC SEE
https://ia601603.us.archive.org/32/items/spiritualexercis00ignauoft/spiritualexercis00ignauoft.pdf
Gavrilo Princip (Serbian Cyrillic: Гаврило Принцип, pronounced [ɡǎʋrilo prǐnt͡sip]; 25 July 1894 – 28 April 1918) was a Bosnian Serb student who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary, and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. The assassination set off the July Crisis, a series of events that within one month led to the outbreak of World War I.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gavrilo_Princip
Third Addition. The third: To compare the second day with the first; that is,
the two Examens of the present day with the other two Examens of the previous
day, and see if he has amended himself from one day to the other.
Fourth Addition. The fourth Addition: To compare one week with another,
and see if he has amended himself in the present week over the week past.
Note. It is to be noted that the first (large) G------- which follows means the
Sunday: the second (smaller), the Monday: the third, the Tuesday, and so on.
G
G
G
G
G
G
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola
TRANSLATED FROM
THE AUTOGRAPH
BY
FATHER ELDER MULLAN, S.J.
I.H.S.
NEW YORK
P.J. KENEDY & SONS
PRINTERS TO THE HOLY APOSTOLIC SEE
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YC_luOfFWl0Bm0BWkbANKZGC1kkmdHQf/view?usp=sharing
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxvzESBpAVCI8pj2GYIg31YOlLg79h4plk
The Gnostic Gospels and Vedanta
M. RAM MURTY
n Volume 2 of the Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda are two essays on the Sankhya philosophy. In the first, titled "A Study of the Sankhya philosophy," Vivekananda outlines the essential ideas of Sankhya and then makes the remarkable statement that "it is the basis of the philosophy of the whole world." (Vivekananda, 1983). Speaking about Kapila, the founder of Sankhya philosophy, he then adds, "There is no philosophy in the world that is not indebted to Kapila. Pythagoras came to India and studied this philosophy and that was the beginning of the philosophy of the Greeks. Later, it formed the Alexan- drian school, and still later, the Gnostic. It became divided into two, one part went to Europe and Alexandria, and the other remained in India, and out of this the system of Vyasa was developed. The Sankhya philosophy of Kapila was the first rational system that the world ever saw." (Vive- kananda, 1983) In his second essay, titled "Sankhya and Vedanta," he reiterates the same idea regarding the origins of philosophy of the entire world. Vivekananda's assertions are supported by noted scholars in their recent writings. For instance, Richard Garbe, who has written exten- sively about the Sankhya philosophy remarks, "In Kapila's doctrine, for the first time in the history of the world, the complete independence and freedom of the human mind, its full confidence in its own powers, were exhibited." (Garbe) Winternitz adds: "It seems to me proved that Py- thagoras was influenced by the Indian Samkhya." Radhakrishnan writes:
If in ancient Greece we find doctrines similar to it, they may have had independent origin and growth, though modern scholarship is against such a view. On the question we may quote two authorities on Indian and Greek thought. Macdon- nell observes that the 'dependence of Pythagoras on Indian philosophy and sci- ence certainly seems
in both. It is almost impossible to refer this identity to mere chance... It is not too much to assume that the curious Greek who was the contemporary of Buddha, and it may have been of Zarathustra too, would have acquired a more or less exact knowledge of the religious speculations of the East, in that age of intellectual fermentation, through the medium of Persia," (Radhakrishnan, 2008)
In light of latest historical research, these statements are not exaggera- tions and we have written about the "Greek myth" and the "fabrication of ancient Greece" in our earlier work titled "What is civilization?" in this review. (Murty, 2014) This essay considers some "recent" archaeo- logical evidence and brings it to the foreground to support Vivekananda's statements regarding the origins of world philosophy, especially in the context of the Gnostic Gospels.
In December 1945, near the town of Nag Hammadi in modern Egypt, a remarkable archaeological discovery was made, quite acciden- tally, by two farmers. Digging around a massive boulder, the farmers excavated a large earthen jar almost a metre high that contained thirteen papyrus books bound in leather. Not knowing the value of the find, they showed it to a local historian, who suspected its importance and had them send to an expert Cairo. With all the intrigue and mystery of a spy thriller, the leather-bound books (called codices) finally reached Gilles Quispel, a noted historian in Utrecht. The codices, it turned out, were Coptic translations of earlier works and were dated at sometime between
In December 1945, near the town of Nag Hammadi in modern Egypt, a remarkable archaeological discovery was made, quite accidentally, by two farmers. Digging around a massive boulder, the farmers excavated a large earthen jar almost a metre high that contained thirteen papyrus books bound in leather.
to have a high degree of probability. The doctrine of metem- psychosis in the case of Pythagoras appears without any con- nection or explanatory background, and was regarded by the Greeks as of foreign origin. He could not have derived it from Egypt as it was not known to the ancient Egyptians.' Gomperz writes, "There is far closer agreement between Pythagorism and the Indian doctrine, not merely in their general features, but even in certain details such as vegetarianism; and it may be added that the formulae which summarise the whole creed of the circle and the wheel of births are likewise the same
the second and fourth centuries. As he began the translation, Quispel could not believe what he found. The opening lines were, "These are the secret words which the living Jesus spoke and which the twin, Judas Thomas, wrote down." Immediately he recognized that this was the Coptic translation of the Greek Gospel of Thomas, discovered earlier in 1896. But these new gospels raised a host of questions-did Jesus have a twin brother and are the words recorded in these gospels the authentic words of Jesus which became the focus of intense research for noted historians and scholars over the ensuing seventy years.
The discoveries made at Nag Hammadi were the Coptic translations
of earlier gospels that are not part of the traditional Bible. The New Tes- tament contains only four gospels. those according to Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. The Nag Hammadi gospels-called the Gnostic gospels -have many passages that echo the traditional gospels, but many of these are set in a different background which transforms their meaning. There are also passages in the Gnostic gospels that are not part of the traditional Bible. Many of these resonate with the Vedantic tradition.
What emerges from the Gnostic gospels is the image of Jesus as an enlightened teacher, very much like the Buddha, who when asked who he was replied that he was simply "Tathagata"-"thus comes, thus goes", a wanderer in the journey of life. In her introduction to the Nag Hammadi texts, Princeton University professor Elaine Pagels writes that the Jesus of the gnostic gospels "speaks of illusion and enlightenment, not of sin and repentance like the Jesus of the New Testament. Instead of coming to save us from sin, he comes as a guide who offers access to spiritual understanding. But when the disciple attains enlightenment, Jesus no longer serves as his spiritual master: the two have become equal - even identical." (Pagels, 2003) For example, in the Gospel of Thomas, we find a remarkable teaching that echoes that of the Bhagavad-Gita. "If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you." The scholar immediately recognizes the similarity to the following verses from chapter 6 of the Gita:
Let a man lift himself by himself; let him not degrade himself; for the Self alone is the friend of the self and the Self alone is the enemy of the self. For him who has conquered his (lower) self by the (higher) Self, his Self is a friend, but for him who has not possessed his (higher) Self, his very Self will act in enmity like an enemy. (Radhakrishnan, S., 1973)
All these teachings suggest the equation of self-knowledge as knowledge of God, which is at the core of the Gnostic tradition. The teachings point to Indian sources. In fact, the title of one of the Gospels, "The Thunder, Perfect Mind," sounds Buddhist, and its verses-such as "I am the first and the last, I am the honored one and the scorned one, ..., I am the silence that is incomprehensible, I am the utterance of my name"-echoes the poetry of chapter 9 of the Gita.
Asking if Hindu and Buddhist traditions influenced early Gnosti- cism, Pagels writes,
The British scholar of Buddhism, Edward Conze, suggests that it had. He points out that "Buddhists were in contact with the Thomas Christians (that is, Christians who knew and used such writings as the Gospel of Thomas) in South India." Trade routes between the Greco-Roman world and the Far East were opening up at the time when Gnosticism flourished (A.D. 80-200); for generations, Buddhist missionaries had been proselytizing in Alexandria. We note, too, that Hippolytus, who was a Greek-speaking Christian in Rome (c. 225), knew of the Indian Brahmins and included their tradition among the sources of heresy: "There is... among the Indians a heresy of those who philosophize among the Brahmins, who live a self-sufficient life, abstaining from (eating) living creatures and all cooked food... They say that God is light, not like
the light one sees, nor like the sun nor fire, but to them God is discourse, not that which finds expression in articulate sounds, but that of knowledge (gnosis) through which the secret mys- teries of nature are perceived by the wise. Could the title of the Gospel of Thomas-named for the disciple who, tradition tells us, went to India-suggest the influence of Indian tradition?1 (Pagels, 2003)
In his book Not in His Image: Gnostic Vision, Sacred Ecology and the Future of Belief, John Lash corroborates the report of Hippolytus. He writes:
In 'The Refutation of all Heresies' (book 5), Hippolytus referred to 'Brachmans' (Brahmins) in Alexandria who 'affirm that God is light, but not such as one sees by'. Hippolytus, who was centuries closer than modern scholars to the subject matter, took it for granted that Brahmins from India belonged to the widespread network of Mystery cells extending across Europe and deep into Asia. His comment suggests that the experience of the Mystery light (as I will call it) was universal within the network. Hippolytus also states the Gnostic view, shared by the Brahmins, that 'Deity is discourse.' This tacit statement affirms that the Mystery light is interactive. The *hearing and word' were two-way. The 'Infinite light' is said to be alive. The purpose of encountering the light is to discover the sublime mysteries of nature. (Hippolytus)"
The word 'discourse' here does not imply debate or discussion but rather an internal meditation and dialogue, an inner awareness of the kind spoken of in Advaita Vedanta. The word 'gnostic' comes from the Greek 'gnosis', which means knowledge. It is related to the Sanskrit 'jnana', which also means knowledge. But in neither case does it refer to intellectual knowledge; rather it refers to a deeper knowledge obtained through an inner spiritual journey and meditation. The life of Jesus and his core teachings are very much of the monastic tradition and reflect the view that the human body is only a vehicle for the spiritual journey and that both body and mind are instruments for the ultimate realization.
In one of the most recent and amazing archaeological discover- ies made in 2006, we find support for this idea. The Gospel of Judas portrays a picture of Jesus who continuously taught about this higher awareness. Contrary to the historical view of Judas as the arch villain of the Bible, we find statements in this Gospel indicating that Judas was only carrying out instructions of Jesus and that, in many ways, he was the foremost amongst the disciples in his understanding of his Master's teachings. Naturally, this runs counter to the orthodox view of Judas and it is not surprising that it was banned from the Bible.
So why is it that such teachings were banned from the Bible and why is it that today the official canon accepts only the four traditional gospels? How did the present view come to be? Apparently, the Gnostic gospels were well-known and in circulation up to the fourth century. It was only after Emperor Constantine had supposedly converted to Christianity, or at least when he decriminalized it, that Christian bishops convened in the Turkish town of Nicaea to agree on a common set of beliefs that later came to be called the Nicene Creed, which has come to define Christianity as we know it today. At the core of the creed is the
tenet that Jesus died for our sins, that he is the saviour, and that one must accept him as the "only begotten son". If one accepts this creed, then, and only then, does one attain salvation. The message of the Gnostic gospels runs counter to this creed. In the Gnostic tradition, one must seek for salvation and exert oneself sincerely, with heart, mind and soul through spiritual practice. This is very much in line with most Eastern religious traditions, especially Hinduism and Buddhism.
In fact, the idea that Jesus is the only begotten son occurs in only one place in the entire Bible. In the Book of John, 3:16, we find: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoso ever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life". The Greek word being translated here is "monogenes". In the 1534 transla- tion of Tyndale, we find it is "the only son" whereas in the King James version of 1611 it becomes "the only begotten" and in the 1973 Inter- national Version of the Bible, it becomes "one and only Son"." Some scholars have suggested that a more faithful translation of the word is "incomparable" or "one of a kind". This would make
the meaning of the verse less dogmatic.
It is also curious that the word "doubting Thomas" appears only in
the book of John and not in the other three gospels. The story is told that Thomas did not believe in the resur- rection of Jesus and that
search for God, did not." (Pagels, 2003)
The opening lines of the Book of John describe creation as com- ing out of the word, which is an ancient Indian idea going back to the Krishna Yajur Veda. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made." In the Krishna Yajur Veda, we find an identical passage. "Prajapati vai idam agra asit, Tasya vak dvitiya asil, Vag vai paramam Brahman"." "In the beginning was prajapati (Brahman) with whom was the Word and the Word was verily Brahman." In Jnana yoga, a central thesis is that creation came out of the 'omkara sabda', and this primordial sound symbol has often been equated with Brahman, or pure
awareness.
In his Inspired Talks, Swami Vivekananda opened his discourse with a discussion of the Book of John. Referring to the opening lines of
What emerges from the Gnostic gospels is the image of Jesus as an enlightened teacher, very much like the Buddha, who when asked who he was replied that he was simply wanderer in the journey of life.
he had to see for himself. So we find in the Book of John that Jesus said "Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed, but blessed are they that have not seen and yet believed." There seems to be some antagonism towards Thomas in the Book of John. It would seem that the Book of John became the foundation for the modern view of Christian- ity and that rational discourse as well as meditative discourse and inner spiritual experience as proposed by the Gnostic tradition, including the Gospel of Thomas, receded to the background. The phrase 'doubting Thomas' has since been used in a disparaging way by some.
In her book Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas, Elaine Pagels discusses the conflict between the Gospels of Thomas and John. After intense research, she writes,
I have now come to see that John's gospel was written in the heat of controversy, to defend certain views of Jesus and to oppose others. This research has helped clarify not only what John's gospel is for, but what it is against. John says explic- itly that he writes 'so that you may believe, and believing, may have life in [Jesus'] name'. What John opposed, as we shall see, includes what the Gospel of Thomas teaches - that God's light shines not only in Jesus but, potentially at least, in everyone. Thomas's gospel encourages the hearer not so much to believe in Jesus, as John requires, as to seek to know God through one's own, divinely given capacity, since all are cre- ated in the image of God. For Christians in later generations, the Gospel of John helped provide a foundation for a unified church, which Thomas, with its emphasis on each person's
John, he said,
a
The Hindu calls this Maya, the manifestation of God, because it is the power of God. The Absolute reflecting through the uni- verse is what we call nature. The Word has two manifestations -the general one of nature and the special one of the great In- carnations of God - Krishna, Buddha, Jesus and Ramakrishna. Christ, the special manifestation of the Absolute, is known and knowable. The Absolute cannot be known; we cannot know the Father, only the Son. We can only see the Absolute through the "tint of humanity", through Christ."
The Book of John has more in common with the bhakti tradition of India that emphasizes worship through a symbol, word or image. Thus, if we view the Book of John as not being in opposition to the Gnostic Gospels, and in particular, the Book of Thomas, we see it as offering another route, perhaps a more practical one, to the Divine. For in the bhakti tradi- tion, one finds the concept of the avatar, and what we find in John is the declaration of Jesus as the avatar.
In fact, the parallels between the Book of John and the bhakti tradition, especially as it relates to the story of Krishna as the Avatar, are striking. Apart from the obvious similarities in the words 'Christ' and 'Krishna', we find in the Book of Matthew the story of King Herod or- dering the slaughter of all infants born on the same day as Jesus, which is identical with the story of Kamsa ordering the killing of all children born on the same day as Krishna. This story may have been transplanted from Indian sources along with other aspects we have already indicated. In the
Indian context, we find the Upanishadic tradition, with its emphasis on knowledge and meditation, overtaken by the personality of Krishna and the bhakti tradition. Something analogous seems to have taken place in Christianity, with the Gnostic tradition being supplanted by the bhakti perspective as pronounced by the Book of John and its assertion of Jesus as the Avatar. This analogy has one important feature, namely in the In- dian context, the bhakti tradition is complementary to the jnana tradition, whereas in the Christian context, it seems to be opposed to it.
There is another image that permeates these early gospels. If we read them carefully, we find in them an impression of Jesus as one who is spiritually illumined, who lives with his disciples as one of them, jok- ing with them, eating with them, and claiming no special divine status. For the modern scholar familiar with Sri Ramakrishna, the scenes look familiar. What must have attracted many to the teachings of Jesus was undoubtedly his towering spiritual personality combined with compas-
understand that you are children of the living Father. But if you
do not know yourselves, then you live in poverty, and you are the poverty."
There is an old story from ancient India about a Brahmin scholar whom all considered to be a great philosopher. One day the local king asked him to come before him. Then the king said to him: "I have three questions that puzzle - even torment-me: Where is God? Why don't I see Him? And what does he do all day? If you can't answer these three questions I will have your head cut off." The Brahmin was terri- fied because the answers to these questions were not so simple and he didn't know how to respond. So the king ordered his execution. Then the Brahmin's son intervened and said that he could answer the king's questions, but first securing a promise from the king that if the king was pleased with the answers, then his father would be released. The king
agreed and the son then asked for a container of milk. The boy then asked that the milk be churned into butter. When that was done, he said to the king that the first two
What must have attracted many to the teachings of Jesus was undoubtedly his towering spiritual personality combined with compassion and his message that the answered. The surprised kingdom of heaven is within everyone.
sion and his message that the kingdom of heaven is within everyone. In an age of slavery, tyranny and persecution, especially amongst the poorer segments of society, Jesus offered a message of hope. It would seem many early Christians had practised this teaching even at the point of death, as Jesus had done when he blessed those who crucified him by saying, "Forgive them, Father, they do not know what they do".
Foremost amongst the Gnostic Gospels, the Gospel of Thomas seems to have been in wide circulation, since it was found in many places and copied onto the best quality paper. In this gospel, we do not find any biographical narrative, as we do in the four traditional gospels, nor any mention of the resurrection, but only a collection of teachings. The opening lines resonate with Upanishadic teachings:
These are the secret sayings that the living Jesus spoke and Didymos Judas Thomas recorded. And he said, 'Whoever discovers the interpretation of these sayings will not taste death'. Jesus said, 'Those who seek should not stop seeking until they find. When they find, they will be disturbed. When they are disturbed, they will marvel, and will reign over all. [And after they have reigned they will rest.]' Jesus said, 'If your leaders say to you, Look, the (Father's) kingdom is in the sky, then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you, It is in the sea, then the fish will precede you. Rather, the (Father's) kingdom is within you and it is outside you. When you know yourselves, then you will be known, and you will
questions have now been
king asked for an expla- nation. The son replied, "Where was the butter before it was churned?" "In the milk", replied the king. "In what part
of the milk?" asked the son. "In every part of it", replied the king. The son then said, "In the same way, God is within all things and pervades everything." "Why don't I see him then asked the king. "Because you do not 'churn' the mind" replied the son. "If you 'churn' your mind through reflection and meditation, you too will see Him." Then the king said, "What about my third question? What does he do all day?" Then the son replied, "For the answer, we need to switch places." This was a daring request but since the king's curiosity was piqued, he relented. When the son was seated on the throne, he told the king, "You see, one moment you are here and I was there. Now things are reversed. God perpetually lifts up and casts down every one of us. One moment we are exalted and in another we are cast down." The king was so pleased with all these answers that he released the Brahmin scholar and bestowed many honours on the son. The philosophical teaching embodied in this story can be found throughout the Indian lore, such as the opening verse of the Isa Upanishad. The message from this story can also be found in the Gnostic gospels. The answer to the king's third question reverberates in several places in the Bible. For instance, in Luke, we find: "He hath put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree". I Again, in Matthew: "But many who are first will be last and many who are last will be first". And in Mark: "But many who are first will be last, and the last first".21
Those familiar with the Katha Upanishad will recall its central mes- sage of the mystery of death. One transcends death by gaining spiritual knowledge and as a consequence attains immortality. Enlightenment
does not consist in knowing factual knowledge but in having spiritual experience. Yet some of the early disciples viewed the 'kingdom of heaven' as a physical place, and so we find that in the Gospel of Thomas, the disciples ask what the kingdom of heaven is like, and Jesus says, "It's like a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, but when it falls on prepared soil, it produces a large plant and becomes a shelter for birds of the sky." This is reminiscent of verses of the Chandogya Upanishad, in which the student asks the teacher about the nature of the Atman. The teacher then asks the student to bring to him the fruit of the nyagrodha tree. The student brings it. The teacher asks him to break it open and the student says, "It is broken sir". The teacher asks, "What do you see there?" The student replies "Extremely fine seeds sir". The teacher then asks the student to break open the seeds. The student does so and the teacher asks, "What do you see there?" "Nothing sir", is the reply. Then the teacher says, "My dear, out of that nothing all of this has arisen".""
In the Gospel of Thomas, Jesus teaches,
If you do not fast from the world, you will not find the (Fa- ther's) kingdom. If you do not observe the sabbath as a sabbath you will not see the Father.... I took my stand in the midst of the world, and in flesh I appeared to them. I found them all drunk, and I did not find any of them thirsty. My soul ached for the children of humanity, because they are blind in their hearts and do not see, for they came into the world empty, and they also seek to depart from the world empty. But meanwhile they are drunk. When they shake off their wine, then they will change their ways.... If the flesh came into being because of spirit, that is a marvel, but if spirit came into being because of the body, that is a marvel of marvels. Yet I marvel at how this great wealth has come to dwell in this poverty."
This reminds one of the story Vivekananda relates in his commentary on Patanjali's Yoga Sutras:
There is the story that the king of gods, Indra, once became a pig, wallowing in mire; he had a she-pig and a lot of baby pigs, and was very happy. Then some gods saw his plight, and came to him and told him, 'You are the king of the gods, you have all the gods under your command. Why are you here?' But Indra said, 'Never mind; I am all right here; I do not care for heaven, while I have this sow and these little pigs'. The poor gods were at their wit's end. After a time they decided to slay all the pigs one after another. When all were dead, Indra began to weep and mourn. Then the god ripped his pig-body open and he came out of it, and began to laugh, when he realised what a hideous dream he had had - he, the king of the gods, to have become a pig, and to think that that pig-life was the only life! Not only so, but to have wanted the whole universe to come into this pig-life!" (Vivekananda, 1983)
This passage again emphasizes the danger of complacency and the importance of seeking and practice in the spiritual realm. For later in the Gospel of Thomas, we find: "Seek and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be opened", "
However, the passage is striking for a variety of reasons. It gives
us a very human impression of Jesus the teacher, pining for sincere students. It reminds us of the exasperation of Sri Ramakrishna who went up to the rooftop and cried for suitable students who were eager to gain spiritual knowledge. In the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Nikhilan- anda describes the longing Sri Ramakrishna had for suitable aspirants who could follow his spiritual teachings. Sri Ramakrishna later related,
There was no limit to the longing I felt at that time. During the daytime I somehow managed to control it. The secular talk of the worldly-minded was galling to me and I would look wistfully to the day when my own beloved companions would come. I hoped to find solace in conversing with them and relat- ing to them my own realizations. Every little incident would remind me of them and thoughts of them wholly engrossed me. I was already arranging in my mind what I should say to one and give to another, and so on. But when the day would come to a close I would not be able to curb my feelings. The thought that another day had gone by, and they had not come. oppressed me. When, during the evening service, the temples rang with the sound of bells and conch-shells, I would climb to the roof of the kuthi in the garden and writhing in anguish of heart, cry at the top of my voice, 'Come, my children! Oh, where are you?"" (Nikhilananda, 1984)
In the Gospel of Thomas, Jesus says,
No prophet is welcome on his home turf; doctors don't cure those who know them.... A city built on a high hill and forti- fied cannot fall, nor can it be hidden.... What you will hear in your ear, in the other ear proclaim from your rooftops. After all, no one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, nor does one put it in a hidden place. Rather, one puts it on a lampstand so that all who come and go will see its light. ... If a blind person leads a blind person, both of them will fall into a hole.
These passages suggest frustration and an awareness that the seeker must also be worthy of salvation and able to recognize the spiritual teacher. It reminds one of the verses from the Katha Upanishad, where Yama says to Nachiketa,
Abiding in the midst of ignorance, wise in their own esteem, thinking themselves to be learned, fools treading a tortuous path go about like blind men led by one who is himself blind. ... He who cannot even be heard of by many, who many hear- ing, do not know, wondrous is he who can teach and skilful is he who finds Him and wondrous is he who knows, even when instructed by the wise. Taught by an inferior man He cannot be truly understood as He is thought of in many ways. Unless taught by one who knows Him as himself, there is no going thither for it is inconceivable, being subtler than the subtle.2
The image of the "blind leading the blind" appears in the traditional Bible too, particularly in Matthew.
Jesus continues, "Do not fret, from moming to evening and from
evening to morning, [about your food and clothing]. You're much better than the lilies, which neither card nor spin". This passage also appears in the other gospels of the New Testament and is couched in greater poetic beauty:
Do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, not about your body, what you shall put on. ... Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith? Therefore, do not be anxious. saying 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.
All of this supports the view that it was a monastic teaching that Jesus gave to his disciples.
Again in the Gospel of Thomas, we find that Jesus said, "Whoever blasphemes against the Father will be forgiven, and whoever blasphemes against the son will be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes against the holy spirit will not be forgiven, either on earth or in heaven." So what exactly is the "holy spirit" in the Gnostic tradition? It refers to the 'higher Self" of Vedanta. As noted earlier, the Bhagavad-Gita instructs us that if we purify our mind and harness its energies, then our higher Self becomes our friend; otherwise it will act like our enemy. This calls to mind the fundamental teaching of yoga and has been reiterated again and again by many spiritual exponents of the yoga tradition. For instance, in the teachings of Sri Sarada Devi, we find that
everything depends on one's mind. Nothing can be achieved without purity of mind It is said, 'The aspirant may have re- ceived the grace of the Guru, the Lord, and the Vaishnava; but he comes to grief without the grace of one'. That 'one' is the mind. The mind of the aspirant should be gracious to him."
In the Gospel of Thomas, Jesus said:
It is I who am the light which is above them all. It is I who am the all. From me did the all come forth, and unto me did the all extend, Split a piece of wood, and I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there."
This is similar to the Indian idea of the all-pervasive nature of Brah- man. In chapters 7, 8 and 9 of the Gita, Sri Krishna conveys the omni- presence of the divine: "I am the taste in the waters, ... I am the light in the moon and the sun, I am the syllable Om, I am the sound in ether.""
More historic research is needed to ascertain exactly what may have happened. The discovery of the Gnostic gospels is quite recent. Howey- er, to the Vedantic scholar, it is clear that the essential teachings of Jesus were monastic and emphasized inner reflection and meditation. This tra- dition parallels the Upanishadic and Buddhist traditions in India, as Ed- ward Conze has already suggested. As in India, the philosophic approach to enlightenment, with its emphasis on knowledge and meditation, is not widely appealing; nor is it accessible without considerable mental prepa- ration. Thus, the bhakti tradition evolved naturally in India, where one meditates on a spiritual personality in the form of the divine incarnation. This is how the Krishna tradition developed on the Indian subcontinent. The same must have happened with the life of Jesus several centuries af- ter his death. It is easy for the human being to love and adore a spiritual personality and, through that adoration, grow in spiritual evolution. This bhakti tradition must have been absorbed and assimilated in many of the biblical texts, especially in the book of John. Viewed from the Vedantic tradition, the Book of John is not in opposition to the Book of Thomas or to any of the other Gnostic texts. Rather, John emphasizes the path of devotion whereas Thomas teaches the path of knowledge. These are not contradictory but rather complementary. It is not appropriate or desirable that an individual follow only one path to the divine; he should follow a combination of them since the human mind has many facets and must be developed harmoniously in all aspects. As taught in the Gita, the human mind has four aspects: thinking, feeling, willing and restraining. In the Indian tradition, these aspects are developed and trained through the four yogas, of jnana yoga (the yoga of knowledge), bhakti yoga (the yoga of devotion), karma yoga (the yoga of work) and raja yoga (the yoga of meditation).
We selected the Gospel of Thomas as exemplary of the Gnostic gospels and quoted liberally from it in the hope that other scholars will take up the study in earnest. From this short exposition, it is evident that further research is necessary. From such a study, it will emerge that there is some commonality between the gnostic and biblical traditions on the one hand and the Jnana and Bhakti traditions of India on the other. Such an inquiry and study will only help to hasten the progress of the spiritual seeker.
M. Ram Murty⚫ Department of Mathematics, Queen's University, 99 University Avenue, Kingston, ON, Canada K7L 3N6⚫ murty@mast. queensu.ca
NOTES
1 See page 445, Vol.2, Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. 2 Ibid., p. 445.
3 See R. Garbe, Philosophy of Ancient India, p. 30.
4 See S. Radhakrishnan, Indian Philosophy, Volume 2, p. 227. 5 lbid., p. 210.
6 See Vivekananda Review, February 2014.
7 Judas Thomas should not be confused with Judas. Apparently, Judas
was a common name in those days and Judas was also one of the given names of Thomas.
8 The Nag Hammadi Library, p. 4.
9 See S. Radhakrishnan, The Bhagavadgita, pp. 189-190. 10 The Nag Hammadi Library, p. 5.
11 See J.L. Lash, Not in His Vision, Gnostic Vision: Sacred Ecology,
and the Future of Belief, p. 127.
Radhakrishnan, S. (2005). The Principal Upanishads. New Delhi:
12 See Richard T.A. Murphy, Background to the Bible, Servant Publica- Harper Collins. tions, 1978.
13 See John 20:29.
14 See Elaine Pagels, Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas, p. 34.
15 See John I, 1-4.
16 See Krishna Yajurveda, Kathaka Samhita, 12.5, 27.1. This is quoted and commented upon on page 276 of "A Commentary of the Upani- shads" by Swami Nirmalananda Giri, which is available online at: http:// hinduonline.co/DigitalLibrary/SmallBooks/Upanishad Commentaryful-
lEng.pdf
17 Complete Works, Volume 7, p. 3.
18 The Nag Hammadi Library, p. 74.
19 See Luke 1:52.
20 See Matthew 19:30.
21 See Mark 10:31.
22 Ibid., p. 75.
23 S. Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanishads, p.462.
24 Ibid., p. 75.
25 Swami Vivekananda, Complete Works, Volume 1, p. 248.
26 Ibid., p.87.
27 The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, p. 46.
28 S. Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanishads, p. 610.
29 See Matthew, XV, 14.
30 Ibid., VI, 25.
31 See Teachings of Sri Sarada Devi the Holy Mother, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Madras, 1983, p. 28.
32 Ibid., p. 87
33 The Bhagavad-Gita, Chapter 7, verse 8.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Garbe, R. (1897). Philosophy of Ancient India, Chicago: Open Court. James M. Robinson, E. (1988). The Nag Hammadi Library in English. Brill.
Lash, J. (2006). Not in His Image, Gnostic Vision: Sacred Ecology and the Future of Belief, White River Junction: Chelsea Green Publishing.
Murphy, R.T. (1978). Background to the Bible. Servant Publications.
Murty, M.R. (2014). What is civilization? Vivekananda Review, Febru- ary, 8-13.
Nikhilananda, S. (1984). The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. New York: Ramakrishna - Vivekananda Center.
Pagels, E. (2003). Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas. New York: Random House.
Radhakrishnan, S. (1973). The Bhagavadgita. New York: Harper Colo- phon Books.
Radhakrishnan, S. (2008). Indian Philosophy, Volume 2. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
The Holy Bible. (1962). New York: New American Library.
The Teachings of Sri Sarada Devi. (1983). Mylapore: Sri Ramakrishna Math.
Vivekananda, S. (1983). The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. Calcutta: Advaita Ashram.
https://mast.queensu.ca/~murty/gnostic.pdf
The Pagan Connection Again
As C.S.Lewis and a number of other experts have concluded, there
are only two religions in the world: Christianity and Hinduism
(paganism).19 One teaches that we are separated from the one true God
by sin, and God became a man to die for our sins; the other declares that
men are not separated from God, but that each person has within himself
the power to overcome evil and thus to become God or at least a god.
Hinduism or paganism embraces and absorbs everything except biblical
Christianity, which is its only genuine rival. Although it uses Christian
language to disguise its paganism, Mormonism is less Christian than it is
Hindu. The basic dilemma faced by every Mormon is a direct result of its
Hindu roots. In the Baghavad-Gita, Krishna declares that he comes forth
to save the righteous and to condemn the sinners.20 This is just the
opposite of the biblical Christ, who came to save sinners.21 The great
complaint of paganism and all secret occult societies is that whereas one
must be "worthy" to join them, Christianity deliberately embraces the
unworthy.
Ed was speaking at a church when a local Mormon official stood
during question-and-answer time and proclaimed that Ed was doing the
Church a service by getting rid of its dead wood, those who could not live
up to the standards of the Church. "You are just getting our refuse, our
garbage," he shouted. "Who would want them anyway?" Ed answered, "I
want them, and so does Jesus." While the church was excited with the
answer, it went right over the head of the Mormon official. He had
absolutely no concept of grace.
In Mormonism there is a constant struggle to prove one's worthiness.
Like Krishna, the Mormon Jesus saves only the righteous. Mormon
doctrine declares that without righteousness, there is no forgiveness of
sin; and without forgiveness of sin, there is no personal salvation.22 This
places the Mormon squarely on the horns of the same dilemma that
occupies the pagan in endless rituals that never bring real peace-for it is
sinners, obviously, who need salvation. Jesus said, "I came not to call the
righteous, but sinners to repentance."23 In Mormonism, however, sin is
overcome by gritting one's teeth and living righteously-a task that the
Bible says is impossible: "For there is not a just man upon the earth that
doeth good and sinneth not."24
Jesus declared, "None is good, save one, that is, God."25 The Mormon
is taught, however, that he can become a god by living up to the
57
standards of perfection and righteousness set forth in the Mormon
"restored gospel." Pulling oneself up by one's bootstraps, however, proves
as impossible in the spiritual realm as it so obviously is in the physical.
The God Makers
by Ed Decker and Dave Hunt
https://drive.google.com/file/d/17Q-JQbXNwzDP1drBVQctA9QHJh-fEk88/view?usp=sharing
This US church with expansion in its DNA wants to open a temple in China
James Griffiths
By James Griffiths, CNN
16 min read
Updated 11:14 PM EDT, Thu June 11, 2020
A statue of the angel Moroni, a key character in Mormon theology, seen on top of the Hong Kong Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Hong Kong
CNN
—
Every Sunday, when members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) meet in the conference room of a blue-glass skyscraper in downtown Shanghai, one person always takes a seat right at the back, by the doors.
They are there to intercept the wrong person coming in. This is not to protect any religious mysteries; Mormonism is not a particularly secretive faith and usually seeks out new converts, but because if a Chinese passerby were to join the service, it could mean all those taking part were breaking the law.
There are only five state-sanctioned religious associations in China, all under the tight control of the Communist Party. Others walk a delicate legal tightrope, with the threat of a crackdown always hanging over their heads. While the government tolerates foreigners practicing their religion and attending services together, it takes a hard line against anything approaching proselytising or missionary work, a prohibition the Mormon Church takes seriously.
“We have to ask to see if they have a foreign passport to attend,” said Jason, a lifelong member of the Church who worked in Shanghai for almost a decade until relocating back to the United State in 2018. “I have frequently been this person watching the doors and on many occasions I have sadly had to turn away Chinese citizens who wished to worship with us.”
And that is during the good times. In recent years, the Chinese government has increased its regulation of religious worship, launched crackdowns against underground churches and instituted new restrictions on those faiths which operate in the grey area of only catering to foreigners.
So the Church’s announcement on April 5, that it plans to open a temple in Shanghai, the first ever in mainland China, was seen by some as a bold decision.
The Church claims it won’t change anything, but the idea that a US church with expansion in its DNA could open an official temple in China is likely to be controversial – and may not be allowed by Beijing. Already, authorities in Shanghai have suggested that the announcement was made without their prior approval, even as experts said the Church would likely never have revealed the plans without a clear go ahead.
In Salt Lake City, Utah, the spiritual headquarters of the US-based Church, Jason “could hardly believe” the news.
“I couldn’t have imagined that we would ever have a temple in Shanghai at this time,” he said. “Immediately, my WeChat started lighting up as we were all expressing joy and excitement with our China friends.”
Jason is a pseudonym. Like several other current members of the Church interviewed for this story, he requested anonymity to speak about its functioning in China without the permission of Church leadership.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declined multiple requests for an interview for this story, referring CNN to a website about its operations in China and President Russell Nelson’s statement on April 5.
Members watch as Russell M. Nelson President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter -Day Saints, makes an announcement in January 2017. Nelson said this April that the Church will open a temple in Shanghai. George Frey/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
In the beginning
Founded in upstate New York by Joseph Smith in 1830, it took the Mormon Church some 117 years to grow from six initial members to its first million. Today, it claims more than 16.5 million members globally, with most outside the US.
While the true size of the church is debated (some say they include members who are no longer active) one thing is clear: the massive growth of the Church has been achieved through the work of thousands of missionaries.
Smith said he received a revelation in February 1831, in which God told his followers to “go forth in my name, every one of you” and “build up my church in every region.”
That is how the Church arrived in China over a century and a half ago.
Its start in the country, however, was less than auspicious. In 1853, its then-leader Brigham Young dispatched three missionaries to British-controlled Hong Kong, then a common staging ground for those seeking to spread the gospel in China.
When they arrived, however, they realized that China was in the midst of a bloody civil war, making travel outside of Hong Kong exceptionally dangerous. Their reception in the city was not much better, as the English-language press ran lurid articles about the Mormon faith and accused the faith of blasphemy. Their funds running out, they struggled even to find a Chinese teacher.
“Our staying here to learn the Chinese language without one friend or one possible recourse to us appears totally impractable (sic),” the missionaries wrote in a letter to church leaders as, less than two months after they had arrived in Asia, they boarded a ship bound for California, historian Stephen Prince recounts in his biography of one of the missionaries, Hosea Stout.
A sign outside the Hong Kong China Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Wendy Keeler/Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
It was not until 1949 that the Church established a permanent presence in Hong Kong, with the intention again of using the city to get a foothold into China.
“Nearly one billion of our Father’s children live in China,” then-President Spencer Kimball said in 1978. “If we could only make a small beginning in every nation, soon the converts among each kindred and tongue could step forth as lights to their own people.”
Beginning in 1980, Church leadership began reaching out to the Chinese authorities to try to get permission to operate in the country, and in 1986, small church branches – meeting houses – were organized in Beijing and Xi’an, though only those holding foreign passports were permitted to attend. According to the Church, today there are around 10 meeting houses across mainland China. By comparison, there are around the same number in Hong Kong alone, and more than 50 meeting houses in self-governed Taiwan, where the Church claims around 61,000 members.
Despite this apparent lack of progress, Church leaders say they have built a strong relationship with the Chinese authorities, and in 2010 they announced moves to “regularize” their activities in the country.
“The Church deeply appreciates the courtesy of the Chinese leadership in opening up a way to better define how the Church and its members can proceed with daily activities, all in harmony with Chinese law,” spokesman Michael Otterson said at the time. “They have become thoroughly familiar with us through numerous contacts, and they have seen how we and our members operate in China. They know that we are people of our word when it comes to respecting Chinese law and cultural expectations.”
Currently, two types of Mormon worship are permitted in China: services for foreign nationals, and services for Chinese nationals who converted while overseas. The two are kept separate, and the Church is careful to avoid any sign of seeking to expand its Chinese membership within the country. Unlike with other countries in which it operates, however, the church does not provide membership figures for China.
Building trust
The Chinese Communist Party has always had an uneasy relationship with religion. The state is officially atheist, and the tens of millions of Party members are barred from holding religious beliefs.
Despite a constitutional commitment to religious freedom, only a handful of faiths are permitted to operate, each under umbrella organizations with strong links to the Communist Party.
Two are considered domestic faiths – Buddhism and Taoism – while the others are foreign religions, with varying historical pedigrees in the country, Islam, Protestantism and Catholicism, though Chinese Catholic organizations operate separately to Rome.
Other religions fall into a grey area: the State Council says it is “open” to foreign organizations – but only if they respect China’s sovereignty and principle of religious self-administration.
In practice, this means religious bodies’ first loyalty must be to the Communist Party, not a foreign Church leadership. This point has caused a long-standing rift with the Vatican since the establishment of the People’s Republic, and Chinese Catholics operate separately to the global church, though some progress has been made towards rapprochement in recent years.
Despite this, religious practice is on the rise. But alongside this growth in belief has come increased suspicion of “foreign” religions, particularly Islam and Christianity (though both have long-histories in China). Muslims in the far-western region of Xinjiang have had their religious practices strictly curtailed, while underground Christian churches, once broadly tolerated, have been cracked down upon.
Indeed, around the time Nelson was making the announcement of the new temple, International Christian Concern, a US-based advocacy group, said that believers holding Easter services online were raided by the authorities. Local police could not be reached for comment, the Early Rain Covenant Church which organized the service is considered an “underground,” or unlicensed, operation and has previously been ordered to cease activities, according to Human Rights Watch.
“The Chinese government is very suspicious of religion as a vehicle for potential political opposition,” said William Nee, a Hong Kong-based researcher for Amnesty International.
A statue of Brigham Young, second president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands in the center of Salt Lake City, Utah with the Mormon Temple spires in the background. GEORGE FREY/AFP/AFP via Getty Images
Pierre Vendassi, an expert on Christianity in China, said that the government “is mainly trying to take back the control over religious activities, and uses full force to do so, after a period of time when people could almost freely opt for unregistered, unmonitored religious activities, without facing any consequences, most of the time.”
“Now the message is clear: either accept state control, monitoring and restrictions, or face state hostility,” he said. “For the Christian activities, the purpose is to get house churches and Catholic underground church back under control.”
As far as non-official faiths go, the Mormon Church is perhaps the gold standard for such a group in China. Current and former members, as well as outside observers, agreed that the Church is scrupulous about following Chinese law and avoiding anything that could be seen as proselytization.
Nee contrasted this with “other forms of Protestant Christianity or evangelical traditions coming out of the US, who have a much more aggressive or underground strategy for spreading the faith.”
Sarah, a Mormon who worked as a university professor for several years in China, said she “did not tell people what church I belonged to or even if I belonged to a church.”
“Some friends would ask me if I was Christian. I would say yes (but) we do not talk about it in China,” she said. “They would nod and agree. That is as far as the conversation would go.”
Marcelo Gameiro, a Church member living in Shanghai, said that he does not talk about the church “because it is against the law.”
“But I don’t hide (that) I am a member of the church,” he added. “When I was in Huzhou, I used to go to the Hangzhou branch, it took me three hours to get there, and people started to notice I was going somewhere every Sunday dressed in a tie, so I did tell them where I was going with no problem, I just did not preach the gospel to anyone.”
Sarah said she would “occasionally see Christian religious groups that would come in and rather openly flout the rules of China.” Korean students would get scholarships in China and then try and convert their classmates.
“Several times I talked to them about it, I asked is this the right thing to do, are you making a good example,” she said. “I heard from Chinese people who got rather angry because people would come from other countries and give away Bibles and start conversations about religion, and they would say we are not allowed to talk about this in China.”
A screenshot of a dedicated website set up by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for members in China.
Playing the long game
John Wakefield, a now ex-Mormon who came to Hong Kong as a missionary in the 1980s and still lives in the city, said a big part of the Mormon religion is “we’re going to convert the whole world” and that it’s the fastest growing church in the world. “For them, numbers are really important,” he said.
Another former Mormon, Bryce Bushman, who lived in China for almost four years, where he worked as an urban planner and designer, said that: “Mormon doctrine states that the LDS Church will eventually cover the whole Earth.”
“It’s considered a prophecy, something that is definitely going to happen at some point in the future,” he said. “This gives both the church organization and the members of the church a kind of patient confidence that eventually every nation on earth will allow Mormon missionaries to proselyte and establish church congregations.”
Mormon doctrine also permits “baptisms for the dead,” allowing for the potential salvation of those already deceased, who can then “choose to accept or reject what has been done in their behalf.” This alleviates somewhat the need to spread the word of Jesus to people before they die, has been stated as a motivation for some evangelical missionaries to take great risks in the name of saving souls.
This patience allows the Church to play the long game in China, confident that one day it will be able to bring its message to the country’s vast population.
Josh Steimle, a practicing Mormon who lived in the Chinese city of Shenzhen for two years, said it “would have been so easy to pass along the URL to a Church website to someone who was curious, or give them a Book of Mormon, or a pamphlet about the Church.”
“It was very difficult because we’re a Church that believes in sharing what we believe, and we’re always being encouraged to be good missionaries, and then to move to China and be told to not say a word about what we believe seems to be contrary to everything we’ve been taught,” he added. “But it’s all about the long term vs. the short term. If we shared our beliefs in violation of Chinese law, a few people might join our Church and then the Church would be shut down and kicked out of the country.”
A woman decorates a grave during the Qing Ming festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, at a cemetery in Shanghai on April 6, 2018. Traditional religious practice is growing in China, but the government tightly controls foreign faiths. JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/AFP via Getty Images
Temple doctrine
On paper, a temple should not be too much for the Chinese authorities to stomach.
In its description of the proposed temple in Shanghai, the Church is clear that this does not represent a climactic shift, nor will the Chinese temple be anything like the grand white stone buildings that dot many American cities.
“It would be modest in appearance. It would fit and be consistent with local custom and environment as a place of peace, tranquility, and dignity,” the Church said of the proposed temple, which it said is intended to serve as a replacement for the Hong Kong building, which is currently closed for “long-planned maintenance and renovation.”
It said that entry will be limited to Chinese members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – those who have converted overseas and returned to China – adding that this “does not represent a change in the legal status” or the ability of missionaries to operate in China.
Unlike a regular church, Mormon temples are not open to non-members, and even those within the Church must be considered in good standing and receive a “recommend” from a Church official in order to enter.
While the Church appears to be downplaying the significance of a potential temple, all current and former members interviewed by CNN agreed that it would be a major achievement.
Steimle said that it was “difficult to express how big of a deal this is for me, personally, other members of the Church who have ties to China, and really to the entire Church membership worldwide. It’s going to be a very small temple, but it’s a huge thing for the Church.”
Temples are where the most important and sacred Mormon ceremonies are carried out, including baptisms and “celestial marriages.”
If established, the temple would not be the first active place of worship in Shanghai for an unofficial religion. In recent years, limited services have been held at the Ohel Rachel Synagogue, a historic building that predates the establishment of the Communist state. Most Jews in China however continue to practice behind closed doors, in arrangements similar to Mormon meeting houses.
Whether Mormons in China will be able to get nearer to that presence remains to be seen. In a statement issued two days after the Church’s announcement, the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Ethnic and Religious Affairs said that “according to the relevant laws and regulations of China, foreigners are not allowed to set up religious organizations or venues for religious activities in China.”
The bureau denied any knowledge of plans for a temple in Shanghai, saying they were the “wishful thinking of the Mormon Church in the United States.”
When CNN asked the Church about the current status of the project, a spokesman would only provide a link to the Church’s website detailing plans for the temple and how it would operate. Church representatives would neither confirm nor deny the veracity of the original statement announcing the temple. However, since reporting on this story began, reference to the Shanghai temple has been removed from the Church’s website, though it is still available on an archived version of the page.
Vendassi, the expert on religion in China, said that despite this apparent denial by the authorities, a temple may still end up opening at some point in the near future.
“If an LDS temple has been announced in Shanghai, I think it means they probably had a ‘go’ from Chinese officials to do so,” Vendassi said. “Even if the government says it is a unilateral statement – they actually have no interest in making a bilateral statement, because that would send a message of religious openness.”
Nee, the Amnesty researcher, said that while there was no reason on paper for the Chinese authorities to object to a temple, he doubted whether officials “would be willing to understand the nuances of religions and their theologies” in order to permit such an institution.
As a uniquely American religion, Mormonism’s hopes in China may also be hurt by worsening relations between Washington and Beijing. In the same month the Shanghai temple was announced, Senator Mitt Romney said the coronavirus pandemic had exposed China’s “grand strategy for economic, military and geopolitical domination.”
Romney is by no means alone in criticizing Beijing, but as the country’s highest-ranking elected Mormon, his words may carry more weight with China’s leaders when they are considering the Church’s position there.
Over 20,000 members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square sing a song together at first session of the 189th Annual General conference of the church at the Conference Center on April 6, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. George Frey/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
China change
If the Mormon Church does have to exercise more patience before they open a temple in mainland China, what are a few more years or decades after a century and a half?
Responding to a question of when China would be open to missionaries in 1991, Elder Dallin Oaks – a senior Church leader – said that “I state my belief that China is already ‘open’ – it is we who are closed … We must understand their way of thinking … observe their laws, and follow their example of patience.”
Quoting Mormon scripture, Oaks added that God “will bring His purposes to pass in that great nation ‘in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will’.”
Mormons who lived in China spoke of the country with great fondness, despite the restrictions placed on how they worshipped there. Both Jason and Sarah keep in contact with Chinese friends over WeChat, and hope to visit again in future.
Sarah saw many parallels between China and the Mormon people, pointing in particular to the importance of venerating ancestors in Chinese culture.
“My ancestors are special to me,” she said. “Many of them joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while our first leader, Joseph Smith, was a prophet. Like the people of China who went on the (Long March), my people also traveled across a continent in search of their dream.”
Two of Jason’s four children were born while the family was living in Shanghai, and the kids went to local Chinese schools. Jason and his wife made a concerted effort to integrate into Chinese life more than many other expats around them, doing “many things that few foreigners experience in China.”
“We didn’t speak any Chinese when we came but we did when we left,” he said. This brought him closer both to locals and to other members of the foreign Mormon community who weren’t as comfortable operating in China.
“I can’t possibly begin to count the number of people we had over for dinners, the people we took shopping because everything the supermarket was unfamiliar, how many people we helped to simply get a Chinese phone number and register for WeChat, both for members of our Church and those who were not.”
Both were optimistic about the future of the Church in China, but emphasized the need for patience, a view shared by Steimle.
“Great progress usually doesn’t happen in a straight line,” he said. “Although there have been crackdowns on religion in China, perhaps the obedience of our members and the trust and friendship our Church leadership has built up over the years by working openly with the Chinese government will help open doors.”
This story has been updated to clarify which foreign students were allegedly seen proselytizing in China.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/06/asia/mormon-church-latter-day-saints-china-intl-hnk
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Important Note: This declassified report summarizes many important findings and judgments contained in the Select Committee's classified Report, issued January 3, 1999. U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies within the Clinton administration have determined that other significant findings and judgments contained in the Select Committee's classified Report cannot be publicly disclosed without affecting national security or ongoing criminal investigations.
1.
• The People's Republic of China (PRC) has stolen design information on the United States' most advanced thermonuclear weapons.
• The Select Committee judges that the PRC's next generation of thermonuclear weapons, currently under development, will exploit elements of stolen U.S. design information.
• PRC penetration of our national weapons laboratories spans at least the past several decades and almost certainly continues today.
A. The People's Republic of China (PRC) has stolen design information on the United States' most advanced thermonuclear weapons.
The People's Republic of China (PRC) has stolen classified design information on the United States' most advanced thermonuclear weapons. These thefts of nuclear secrets from our national weapons laboratories enabled the PRC to design, develop, and successfully test modern strategic nuclear weapons sooner than would otherwise have been possible. The stolen U.S. nuclear secrets give the PRC design information on thermonuclear weapons on a par with our own.
The PRC thefts from our National Laboratories began at least as early as the late 1970s, and significant secrets are known to have been stolen as recently as the mid-1990s. Such thefts almost certainly continue to the present.
• The stolen information includes classified information on seven U.S. thermonuclear warheads, including every currently deployed thermonuclear warhead in the U.S. ballistic missile arsenal.
• The stolen information also includes classified design information for an enhanced radiation weapon (commonly known as the "neutron bomb"), which neither the United States, nor any other nation, has yet deployed.
• The PRC has obtained classified information on the following U.S. thermonuclear warheads, as well as a number of associated reentry vehicles (the hardened shell that protects the thermonuclear warhead during reentry).
In addition, in the mid-1990s the PRC stole, possibly from a U.S. national weapons laboratory, classified thermonuclear weapons information that cannot be identified in this unclassified Report. Because this recent espionage case is currently under investigation and involves sensitive intelligence sources and methods, the Clinton administration has determined that further information cannot be made public without affecting national security or ongoing criminal investigations.
The W-88, a miniaturized, tapered warhead, is the most sophisticated nuclear weapon the United States has ever built. In the U.S. arsenal, it is mated to the D-5 submarine-launched ballistic missile carried aboard the Trident nuclear submarine. The United States learned about the theft of the W-88 Trident D-5 warhead information, as well as about the theft of information regarding several other nuclear weapons, in 1995.
The PRC has stolen U.S. design information and other classified information for neutron bomb warheads. The PRC stole classified U.S. information about the neutron bomb from a U.S. national weapons laboratory. The U.S. learned of the theft of this classified information on the neutron bomb in 1996.
In the late 1970s, the PRC stole design information on the U.S. W-70 warhead from the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. The U.S. government first learned of this theft several months after it took place. The W-70 warhead contains elements that may be used either as a strategic thermonuclear weapon, or as an enhanced weapon ("neutron bomb"). The PRC tested the neutron bomb in 1988.
The Select Committee is aware of other PRC thefts of U.S. thermonuclear weapons-related secrets. The Clinton administration has determined that further information about PRC thefts of U.S. thermonuclear weapons-related secrets cannot be publicly disclosed without affecting national security.
The PRC acquired this and other classified U.S. nuclear weapons information as the result of a 20-year intelligence collection program to develop modern thermonuclear weapons, continuing to this very day, that includes espionage, review of unclassified publications, and extensive interactions with scientists from the Department of Energy's national weapons laboratories.
The Select Committee has found that the primary focus of this long-term, ongoing PRC intelligence collection effort has been on the following national weapons laboratories: Los Alamos, Lawrence Livermore, OakRidge and Sandia.
The Select Committee judges that the PRC will exploit elements of the stolen design information on the PRC's next generation of thermonuclear weapons. The PRC plans to supplement its silo-based CSS-4 ICBMs targeted on U.S. cities with mobile ICBMs, which are more survivable because they are more difficult to find than silo-based missiles.
The PRC has three mobile ICBM programs currently underway—two road-mobile and one submarine-launched program—all of which will be able to strike the United States.
The first of these new People's Liberation Army (PLA) mobile ICBMs, the DF-31, may be tested in 1999, and could be deployed as soon as 2002. These mobile missiles require small warhead designs, of which the stolen U.S. design information is the most advanced in the world.
In addition, the PRC could choose to use elements of the stolen nuclear weapons design information—including the neutron bomb—on intermediate- and short-range ballistic missiles, such as its CSS-6 missiles.
The PRC has the infrastructure and technical ability to use elements of the stolen U.S. warhead design information in the PLA's next generation of thermonuclear weapons. The Select Committee concludes that the production tools and processes required by the PRC to produce small thermonuclear warheads based on the stolen U.S. design information, including the stolen W-88 information, would be similar to those developed or available in a modern aerospace or precision-guided munitions industry. The Select Committee judges that the PRC has such infrastructure and is capable of such production.
The Select Committee judges that the PRC is likely to continue its work on advanced thermonuclear weapons based on the stolen U.S. design information. The PRC could begin serial production of such weapons during the next decade in connection with the development of its next generation of intercontinental ballistic missiles.
A series of PRC nuclear weapons test explosions from 1992 to 1996 began a debate in the U.S. Government about whether the PRC's designs for its new generation of nuclear warheads were in fact based on stolen U.S. classified information. The apparent purpose of these PRC tests was to develop smaller, lighter thermonuclear warheads, with an increased yield-to-weight ratio.
The United States did not become fully aware of the magnitude of the counterintelligence problem at the Department of Energy national weapons laboratories until 1995. In 1995 the United States received a classified PRC document that demonstrated that the PRC had obtained U.S. design information on the W-88 warhead and technical information concerning approximately half a dozen other U.S. thermonuclear warheads and associated reentry vehicles.
The document was provided by a PRC national, unsolicited by the CIA—a "walk in." This individual approached the CIA outside the PRC, and turned over a number of documents. Among these was an official PRC document classified "Secret" by the PRC.
This PRC document included, among other matters, stolen U.S. design information on the W-88 thermonuclear warhead used on the Trident D-5 missile, as well as U.S. technical information on several other strategic U.S. nuclear warheads. The document recognized that the U.S. weapons represented the state-of-the-art against which PRC nuclear weapons should be measured.
By mid-1996 the CIA had determined that the individual who provided the information was secretly under the direction of the PRC intelligence services. The CIA and other U.S. intelligence community analysts have nevertheless concluded that the classified PRC document contained U.S. thermonuclear warhead design information and other technical information on U.S. nuclear weapons.
The stolen U.S. nuclear secrets give the PRC design information on thermonuclear weapons on a par with our own. Currently deployed PRC ICBMs targeted on U.S. cities are based on 1950s-era nuclear weapons designs. With the stolen U.S. technology, the PRC has leaped, in a handful of years, from 1950s-era strategic nuclear capabilities to the more modern thermonuclear weapons designs. These modern thermonuclear weapons took the United States decades of effort, hundreds of millions of dollars, and numerous nuclear tests to achieve.
Such small, modern warheads are necessary for all of the elements of a modern intercontinental nuclear force, including: road-mobile ICBMs, submarine-launched ICBMs and ICBMs with multiple warheads (MRVs or MIRVs).
The PRC has an ongoing program to use these modern thermonuclear warheads on its next generation of ICBMs, currently in development. Without the nuclear secrets stolen from the United States, it would have been virtually impossible for the PRC to fabricate and test successfully small nuclear warheads prior to its 1996 pledge to adhere to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
B. The Select Committee judges that elements of the stolen information on U.S. thermonuclear warhead designs will assist the PRC in building its next generation of mobile ICBMs, which may be tested this year.
The stolen U.S. design information will assist the PRC in building smaller nuclear warheads—vital to the success of the PRC's ongoing efforts to develop survivable, mobile missiles. Current PRC ICBMs, which are silo-based, are more vulnerable to attack than mobile missiles.
The PRC has currently underway three intercontinental mobile missile programs—two road-mobile, and one submarine-launched. All of these missiles are capable of targeting the United States.
The first of these, the road-mobile solid-propellant DF-31, may be tested in 1999. Given a successful flight-test program, the DF-31 could be ready for deployment in 2002.
The Select Committee judges that the PRC will in fact use a small nuclear warhead on its new generation ICBMs. The small, mobile missiles that the PRC is developing require smaller warheads than the large, heavy, 1950s-era warheads developed for the PRC's silo-based missiles. The main purpose of a series of nuclear tests conducted by the PRC between 1992 and 1996 was evidently to develop new smaller, lighter warheads with an increased yield-to-weight ratio for use with the PRC's new, mobile nuclear forces.
The Select Committee judges that the PRC will exploit elements of the stolen U.S. thermonuclear weapons designs on its new ICBMs currently under development. The advanced U.S. thermonuclear warheads for which the PRC has stolen U.S. design information are significantly smaller than those for which the PRC's silo-based missiles were designed. The U.S. designs, unlike those in the PRC's currently-deployed arsenal, can be used on smaller mobile missiles.
The Select Committee judges that:
• The PRC is likely to continue to work on small thermonuclear warheads based on stolen U.S. design information;
• The PRC has the infrastructure and ability to produce such warheads, including warheads based on elements of the stolen U.S. W-88 Trident D5 design information;
• The PRC could begin serial production of small thermonuclear warheads during the next decade in conjunction with its new generation of road-mobile missiles;
• The introduction of small warheads into PLA service could coincide with the initial operational capability of the DF-31, which could be ready for deployment in 2002.
These small warhead designs will make it possible for the PRC to develop and deploy missiles with multiple reentry vehicles (MRVs or independently targetable MIRVs).
Multiple reentry vehicles increase the effectiveness of a ballistic missile force by multiplying the number of warheads a single missile can carry as many as ten-fold.
Multiple reentry vehicles also can help to counter missile defenses. For example, multiple reentry vehicles make it easier for the PRC to deploy penetration aids with its ICBM warheads in order to defeat anti-missile defenses.
The Select Committee is aware of reports that the PRC has in the past undertaken efforts related to technology with MIRV applications. Experts agree that the PRC now has the capability to develop and deploy silo-based intercontinental ballistic missiles with multiple reentry vehicles (MIRVs or MRVs).
Experts also agree that the PRC could have this capability for its new mobile intercontinental ballistic missiles within a reasonable period of years that is consistent with its plans to deploy these new mobile missiles. The PRC could pursue one or more penetration aids in connection with its new nuclear missiles.
If the PRC violates the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty by testing surreptitiously, it could further accelerate its nuclear development.
The Select Committee judges that, if the PRC were successful in stealing nuclear test codes, computer models, and data from the United States, it could further accelerate its nuclear development. By using such stolen codes and data in conjunction with High Performance Computers (HPCs) already acquired by the PRC, the PRC could diminish its need for further nuclear testing to evaluate weapons and propose design changes.
The possession of the stolen U.S. test data could greatly reduce the level of HPC performance required for such tasks. For these reasons, the Select Committee judges that the PRC has and will continue to aggressively target for theft our nuclear test codes, computer models, and data.
Although the United States has been the victim of systematic espionage successfully targeted against our most advanced nuclear weapons designs—and although the Select Committee judges that the PRC will exploit elements of those designs for its new generation of ICBMs—the United States retains an overwhelming qualitative and quantitative advantage in deployed strategic nuclear forces. Nonetheless, in a crisis in which the United States confronts the PRC's conventional and nuclear forces at the regional level, a modernized PRC strategic nuclear ballistic missile force would pose a credible direct threat against the United States.
Neither the United States nor the PRC has a national ballistic missile defense system.
In the near term, a PRC deployment of mobile thermonuclear weapons, or neutron bombs, based on stolen U.S. design information, could have a significant effect on the regional balance of power, particularly with respect to Taiwan. PRC deployments of advanced nuclear weapons based on stolen U.S. design information would pose greater risks to U.S. troops and interests in Asia and the Pacific.
In addition, the PRC's theft of information on our most modern nuclear weapons designs enables the PRC to deploy modern forces much sooner than would otherwise be possible.
At the beginning of the l990s, the PRC had only one or two silo-based ICBMs capable of attacking the United States. Since then, the PRC has deployed up to two dozen additional silo-based ICBMs capable of attacking the United States; has upgraded its silo-based missiles; and has continued development of three mobile ICBM systems and associated modern thermonuclear warheads.
If the PRC is successful in developing modern nuclear forces, as seems likely, and chooses to deploy them in sufficient numbers, then the long-term balance of nuclear forces with the United States could be adversely affected.
C. Despite repeated PRC thefts of the most sophisticated U.S. nuclear weapons technology, security at our national nuclear weapons laboratories does not meet even minimal standards.
The PRC stole design information on the United States' most advanced thermonuclear weapons as a result of a sustained espionage effort targeted at the United States' nuclear weapons facilities, including our national weapons laboratories. The successful penetration by the PRC of our nuclear weapons laboratories has taken place over the last several decades, and almost certainly continues to the present.
More specifically, the Select Committee has concluded that the successful penetration of our National Laboratories by the PRC began as early as the late 1970s; the PRC had penetrated the Laboratories throughout the 1980s and 1990s; and our Laboratories almost certainly remain penetrated by the PRC today.
Our national weapons laboratories are responsible for, among other things, the design of thermonuclear warheads for our ballistic missiles. The information at our national weapons laboratories about our thermonuclear warheads is supposed to be among our nation's most closely guarded secrets.
Counterintelligence programs at the national weapons laboratories today fail to meet even minimal standards. Repeated efforts since the early 1980s have failed to solve the counterintelligence deficiencies at the National Laboratories. While one of the Laboratories has adopted better counterintelligence practices than the others, all remain inadequate.
Even though the United States discovered in 1995 that the PRC had stolen design information on the W-88 Trident D-5 warhead and technical information on a number of other U.S. thermonuclear warheads, the White House has informed the Select Committee, in response to specific interrogatories propounded by the Committee, that the President was not briefed about the counterintelligence failures until early 1998.
Moreover, given the great significance of the PRC thefts, the Select Committee is concerned that the appropriate committees of the Congress were not adequately briefed on the extent of the PRC's espionage efforts.
A counterintelligence and security plan adopted by the Department of Energy in late 1998 in response to Presidential Decision Directive 61 is a step toward establishing sound counterintelligence practices. However, according to the head of these efforts, significant time will be required to implement improved security procedures pursuant to the directive. Security at the national weapons laboratories will not be satisfactory until at least sometime in the year 2000.Selected Overview Findings On Missile and Space Technology
2.
The PRC has stolen or otherwise illegally obtained U.S. missile and space technology that improves the PRC's military and intelligence capabilities.
A. The PRC has stolen U.S. missile technology and exploited it for the PRC's own ballistic missile applications.
The PRC has proliferated such military technology to a number of other countries, including regimes hostile to the United States.
….
B. In the late 1990s, the PRC stole or illegally obtained U.S. developmental and research technology that, if taken to successful conclusion, could be used to attack U.S. satellites and submarines.
….
C. Currently deployed PRC ICBMs targeted on the United States are based in significant part on U.S. technologies illegally obtained by the PRC in the 1950s.
This illustrates the potential long-term effects of technology loss.
….
D. In the aftermath of three failed satellite launches since 1992, U.S. satellite manufacturers transferred missile design information and know-how to the PRC without obtaining the legally required licenses.
This information has improved the reliability of PRC rockets useful for civilian and military purposes.
The illegally transmitted information is useful for the design and improved reliability of future PRC ballistic missiles, as well.
….
E. In light of the PRC's aggressive espionage campaign against U.S. technology, it would be surprising if the PRC has not exploited security lapses that have occurred in connection with launches of U.S. satellites in the PRC.
….
F. Foreign brokers and underwriters of satellite and space launch insurance have obtained controlled U.S. space and missile-related technology outside of the system of export controls that applies to U.S. satellite manufacturers.
While existing laws address such exports, U.S. export control authorities may not be adequately enforcing these laws in the space insurance industry context, nor paying sufficient attention to these practices.
….
G. The Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act took important steps to correct deficiencies in the administration of U.S. export controls on commercial space launches in the PRC.
But the aggressive implementation of this law is vital, and other problems with launches in the PRC that the Act does not address require immediate attention.
….
H. It is in the national security interest of the United States to increase U.S. domestic launch capacity.
….
Selected Overview Findings on Export Controls
3.
United States and international export control policies and practices have facilitated the PRC's efforts to obtain militarily useful technology.
A. Recent changes in international and domestic export control regimes have reduced the ability to control transfers of militarily useful technology.
i. The dissolution of COCOM in 1994 left the United States without an effective, multilateral means to control exports of militarily useful goods and technology.
….
ii. The expiration of the Export Administration Act in 1994 has left export controls under different legislative authority that, among other things, carries lesser penalties for export violations than those that can be imposed under the Act.
….
iii. U.S. policy changes announced in 1995 that reduced the time available for national security agencies to consider export licenses need to be reexamined in light of the volume and complexity of licensing activities.
….
B. Dividing the licensing responsibilities for satellites between the Departments of Commerce and State permitted the loss of U.S. technology to the PRC.
The 1996 decision to give Commerce the lead role in satellite exporting was properly reversed by the Congress.
….
C. U.S. policies relying on corporate self-policing to prevent technology loss have not worked.
Corporate self-policing does not sufficiently account for the risks posed by inherent conflicts of interest, and the lack of priority placed on security in comparison to other corporate objectives.
….
D. The PRC requires high performance computers (HPCs) for the design, modeling, testing, and maintenance of advanced nuclear weapons based on the nuclear weapons design information stolen from the United States.
The United States relaxed restrictions on HPC sales in 1996; and the United States has no effective way to verify that HPC purchases reportedly made for commercial purposes are not diverted to military uses.
The Select Committee judges that the PRC has in fact used HPCs to perform nuclear weapons applications.
….
E. The PRC has attempted to obtain U.S. machine tools and jet engine technologies through fraud and diversions from commercial end uses.
In one 1991 case studied by the Select Committee, the Department of Commerce decontrolled jet engines without consulting either the Defense Department or the State Department.
i. In 1994 and 1995 the PRC attempted to divert an export of machine tools by McDonnell Douglas to military uses.
….
ii. In 1991 the Commerce Department decontrolled Garrett jet engines without consulting either the Defense Department or the State Department. This led to a PRC effort to acquire related jet engine production technology. The Commerce Department was prepared to approve this transfer, which was only thwarted when the Defense Department was alerted by the U.S. embassy in Beijing.
….
Selected Overview Findings On Chinese Technology Acquisition
4.
• The PRC seeks advanced military technology to achieve its long-term goals.
• To acquire U.S. technology the PRC uses a variety of techniques, including espionage, controlled commercial entities, and a network of individuals and organizations that engage in a vast array of contacts with scientists, business people and academics.
….
A. The PRC has mounted a widespread effort to obtain U.S. military technologies by any means—legal or illegal.
These pervasive efforts pose a particularly significant threat to U.S. export control and counterintelligence efforts.
….
B. Efforts to deny the PRC access to U.S. military technology are complicated by the broad range of items in which the PRC is interested, and by transfers to the PRC of Russian military and dual-use technologies, which may make the consequences of the PRC's thefts of U.S. technology more severe.
….
C. The PRC uses commercial and political contacts to advance its efforts to obtain U.S. military, as well as commercial, technology.
….
D. The PRC has proliferated nuclear, missile, and space-related technologies to a number of countries.
https://www.armscontrol.org/act/1999-04/cox-report-overview
1
2
Case No. 25 PO 00002 3G
PO Rec No.: 323314
254400044
FILED
2025 JAN-7 PM 4:58 JUSTICE PEACE
IN THE JUSTICE COURT OF DAYTON TOWNSHIP
3
4
JOSHUA JAMES COX
5
Applicant,
VS.
6
BILLY DUNN
7
Adverse Party.
8
COUNTY OF LYON, STATE OF NEVADA
TEMPORARY PROTECTION ORDER AGAINST STALKING OR HARASSMENT
9
Expiration: This order was issued by the Court above on January 7, 2025 and will expire
10
on FEBRUARY 21, 2025 at 11:59 pm unless the Court orders otherwise. Hearing to Extend:
There will be a hearing to determine whether to extend this order on FEBRUARY 18, 2025 at 3:00 pm at the Court listed above.
If you do not attend, the court may rule against you.
The Applicant filed a verified application for a protective order. The Court has jurisdiction over this matter. See NRS 200.591, et seq. The Court finds that stalking, aggravated stalking and/or harassment has occurred. Accordingly, and good cause appearing, it is the ORDER of the Court that the following orders apply to the Adverse Party:
1. YOU ARE PROHIBITED from threatening, physically injuring, or harassing the
Applicant and/or the following persons:
Protected Parties: The following persons are protected under this order: Applicant: JOSHUA JAMES COX
2. YOU ARE ORDERED to not contact the protected parties at all in any way,
including but not limited to in person, by phone/text, by email, or through social
media.
3. YOU ARE ORDERED to stay away from Applicant's residence located at: 2024 LONNIE LANE, DAYTON, NV 89403
20
02020 Nevada Supreme Court
Temporary Protection Order Against Stalking or Harassment (Revised October 2020)
Page 1 of 3
8.
7.
6.
How do you know the person you need protection from (check all that apply)?
We are related by blood or marriage. Explain We are or used to be friends/acquaintances.
We are
neighbors
or reside in the same
We are or were co-workers.
Other: (specify relationship):
in any court?
neighborhood.
Are there any other current or prior court cases that involve you and the Adverse Party
No.
Yes. If you know, please list the case type, county, state, and case number:
Firearms/Guns.
Does the Adverse Party own a gun or have a gun in his/her possession or control?
No
Yes
I don't know.
Most Recent Event. Think about the most recent event. These questions ask about the most recent event only.
Approximate date it happened:
City/State/Location where it happened:
Did the other person use or threaten to use a weapon? No Yes.
What Happened? Explain the most recent event and describe any injuries. Give specific and detailed information about the event. You can list past events on the next page. If you are filing on behalf of a child, include details about who happened to the child.
I WAS LEAVING CALIFORNIA ON JANUARY 2ND WHEN THE CFO
AT MY JAR MESSAGED ME AND
ASKED ME TO MEET HER IN HER OFFICE SOMETIME THAT WEEK. I INFORMED HER THAT I WAS OUT OF TOWN BUT WOULD BE THERE IN THE MORNING (JANUARY 3RD). I ASKED WHAT IT WAS ABOUT AND
02020 Nevada Supreme Court
Application for Protection Order
(Revised October 2020)
Page 3 of 8
SHE SAID THAT SOMEONE THAT SHE DIDN'T KNOW WAS TEXTING HER AND 14 OTHER PHONE NUMBERS. AND THEY SENT HER A VIDEO ALSO, BILLY DUNN who RESIDES AT 2031 LONNIE LANE WAS THE PERSON THE OWNERS SENDING THE TEXTY AND VIDEO, HE SENT THESE TO AND FAMRY MEMBERS THAT HE IS STALKING, HARASSING AND CYBER BULLYING ME AND OTHER PEOPLE ONLINE. HE MIGHT DO: IT IS ESCALATING AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT ELSE
EMPLOY ME.
Attach more pages if you need more room (pages 4a, 4b, 4c).
C2020 Nevada Supreme Court
Application for Protection Order (Revised October 2020)
Page 4 of 8
9.
Past Event(s).
Think about any other times the person you want protection from threatened or abused you happened. and/or the child/children. The following questions ask about any past events that may have
Approximate Date:
What Happened:
JUNE 12TH 2024 I GOT HOME
FROM WORK AND MY NEIGHBOR APPROACHED WE AND ASKED IF I SAW A POST THAT BILLY SUNN HAD POSTED ON A TACEBOOK GROUP (RE DAYTON NEVADA JOB SEEKERS). I TOLD HIM NO I HAVEN'T SEEN IT AND ASKED TO SEE IT HE HAD AN A. I., APP ASE TO MAKE A STORY ABOUT ME COMMITTING SUICIDE. I HAVE REPORTED THE VIDEOS ONLINE, BUT I KNOW IT ISN'T ENDUGH AND MY FAMILY AND EMPLOYERS AFE WORRIED FOR ME AND WHAT HE MIGHT DO NEXT!
Approximate Date: What Happened:
10. Law enforcement involvement.
Was law enforcement informed?
No
Yes
a. If so, please provide a copy of the police incident report Was anyone arrested? No Yes (Who),
Is the Adverse Party in jail? A No
Yes
C2020 Nevada Supreme Court
Application for Protection Onder (Revised October 2020)
Page 5 of 8
Case No. 25 PO 00002 3G
If you want to dispute this order or have it changed, you can request a
hearing by filing a written request with this court. Court staff will give you information about how to file your request. The court will set a hearing on your request as quickly as
possible.
ORDER TO LAW ENFORCEMENT
Any law enforcement officer, with or without a warrant, may arrest and take into custody the Adverse Party, when the law enforcement officer has probable cause to believe that (a) an Order has been issued pursuant to NRS 33.270 against the Adverse Party; (b) the Adverse Party has been served with a copy of the Order; and (c) the Adverse Party is acting or has acted in violation of the Order. This arrest may occur regardless of whether the violation occurred in the officer's presence.
Any law enforcement agency in this state may enforce a Court Order issued pursuant to NRS 33.270 without regard to the county in which the Order is issued.
8
9
10
11
January 7, 2025
121
12
13
14
14
15
16
17
18
19
amil
CAMILLE VECCHIARELLI Justice of the Peace
(Revised October 2020)
Temporary Protection Order Against Stalking or Harassment
20
20
©2020 Nevada Supreme Court
Page 3 of 3
About Extended Protection Orders: This application automatically asks the judge to issue up to a 45-day temporary protection order without notifying the other person first.
You can also ask for an extended order that could last for up to 2 years.
If you do, the judge will set a hearing. You and the other person will have to appear in court and explain your side before the judge can extend the protection order.
12.
Length of Protection Order.
X
I want an order up to 45 days only.
I want an order up to 45 days PLUS an extended order that could last up to 2
years.
13. Other Exhibits. You may attach documents, pictures, or anything else that you would like the judge to look at and consider when reviewing your application. The Adverse Party will receive a copy of all documents/evidence you provide.
Describe what you are attaching: Phoras OF TEXTS TO MY EMPLOYER AND PICTURES POSTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA OF ME ALONG WITH THE FICTITIOUS STORY HE HAD MADE AND POSTED. POLICE REPORT FILED ONLINE ALSO.
14. This document does not contain the personal information of any person as defined by NRS 603A.040.
I declare under penalty of perjury under the law of the State of Nevada that the foregoing is true and correct.
Dated MONDAY JAMY 6, 2025.
Submitted by:
Adh
Toster
(your signature)
Joshut J. Cox
(print your name)
VERIFICATION
I declare that I am the applicant in the above-entitled action; that I have read the foregoing application and know the contents thereof; that the pleading is true of my own knowledge, except for those matters therein contained stated upon information and belief, and that as to those matters, I believe them to be true. I declare under penalty of perjury under the law of the State of Nevada that the foregoing is true and correct.
Dated MONDAY JANUARY 6, 2025.
Submitted
by: Vacher
©2020 Nevada Supreme Court
Page 8 of 8
(your signature)
Joshua J. Cox
(print your name)
Application for Protection Order (Revised October 2020)
Work. The Adverse Party should stay away from my workplace.
Do you and the Adverse Party work at the same place?
No Yes
Is your work address confidential? No Yes (do not write details below)
HODGES TRANSPORTATION INC.
Employer
605 FORT CHURCHILL RD.
Address
SILVER SPRINGS, NV 89429 2YON
City, State, Zip Code
County
Employer
Address
City, State, Zip Code
School/Daycare. The Adverse Party should stay away from my school and/or the child's school/daycare.
County
Is the school/daycare address confidential? No Yes (do not write details below)
School/Daycare
Address
City, State, Zip Code
County
School/Daycare
Address
City, State, Zip Code
Other Places. The Adverse Party should stay away from the following places that I and/or the minor children go to regularly.
Location
Why?
Address
Location
Why?
Address
County
City, State, Zip Code
County
City, State, Zip Code
County
©2020 Nevada Supreme Court
Application for Protection Order (Revised October 2020)
Page 7 of 8
Panel: Dayton judge violated rules
Saturday, September 4, 2010
(AP) - A Nevada judicial panels says a Dayton judge violated campaign rules, but without intent.
In a ruling Friday, the Committee on Judicial Ethics and Election Practices said Justice of the Peace Camille Vecchiarelli improperly listed the address and telephone number of the Dayton Justice Court on her campaign blog.
During a hearing last month, she said the information was taken from a biography she had prepared for a judicial conference, and her daughter added it to her campaign blog.
She removed the information when it was brought to her attention on Aug. 18.
The ruling said there was no evidence Vecchiarelli gained an unfair advantage from the listing, and no sanctions were imposed.
A complaint was filed with the ethics panel by Jason Luis, who is running against the judge.
https://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/2010/sep/04/panel-dayton-judge-violated-rules/
AI Overview
Camille and Camillo derive from the Latin camillus, referring to a noble youth serving as an acolyte in ancient Roman religious ceremonies. The term implies a "religious attendant," "helper," or "acolyte". Camillo is the Italian masculine form, while Camille is primarily French (unisex, often feminine).
Ancestry
Key Etymological Points:
Latin Origin: Derived from camillus (masculine) and camilla (feminine).
Roman Context: Refers to a free-born child, often a "noble youth attending at sacrifices," often believed to have Etruscan origins.
Historical Usage: Associated with Marcus Furius Camillus, a 4th-century BCE Roman dictator known as the "Second Founder of Rome".
Gender and Variations:
Camillo (Italian): Masculine form.
Camille (French/English): Unisex (commonly female in French, can be male in older usage or other languages).
Camilla (Latin/Italian/English): Feminine form, featuring in Virgil's Aeneid as a warrior virgin.
Camilo (Spanish/Portuguese): Masculine form.
Meaning Nuances: Often interpreted as "noble youth," "acolyte," or "ceremonial attendant".
Ancestry
The name has endured due to its combination of noble, religious, and historical connotations, often used in literature and across various European languages.
Early Female Transgender Identity after Prenatal Exposure to Diethylstilbestrol: Report from a French National Diethylstilbestrol (DES) Cohort
by Laura Gaspari 1,2,3,†,Marie-Odile Soyer-Gobillard 4,5,†ORCID,Scott Kerlin 6,Françoise Paris 1,2,3 andCharles Sultan 1,*
1
Unité d’Endocrinologie-Gynécologie Pédiatrique, CHU Montpellier, University Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
2
INSERM 1203, Développement Embryonnaire Fertilité Environnement, University of Montpellier, 34295 Montpellier, France
3
CHU Montpellier, University Montpellier, Centre de Référence Maladies Rares du Développement Génital, Constitutif Sud, Hôpital Lapeyronie, 34295 Montpellier, France
4
Laboratoire Arago, Observatoire Océanologique, Sorbonne University, CNRS, 75016 Paris, France
5
Association HHORAGES-France, 66100 Perpignan, France
6
DES International Information and Research Network, Livermore, CA 94551, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
J. Xenobiot. 2024, 14(1), 166-175; https://doi.org/10.3390/jox14010010
Submission received: 28 November 2023 / Revised: 8 January 2024 / Accepted: 10 January 2024 / Published: 12 January 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals in the Human Health)
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Abstract
Diagnostic of transsexualism and gender incongruence are terms to describe individuals whose self-identity does not match their sex assignment at birth. A transgender woman is an individual assigned male at birth (AMAB) on the basis of the external or internal genitalia who identifies and lives as a woman. In recent decades, a significant increase in the number of transgender people has been reported. Although, its etiology is unknown, biological, anatomical, genetic, environmental and cultural factors have been suggested to contribute to gender variation. In XY animals, it has been shown that environmental endocrine disruptors, through their anti-androgenic activity, induce a female identity. In this work, we described four XY individuals who were exposed in utero to the xenoestrogen diethylstilbesterol (DES) and were part of the French HHORAGES cohort. They all reported a female transgender identity starting from childhood and adolescence. This high prevalence of male to female transgenderism (1.58%) in our cohort of 253 DES sons suggests that exposure to chemicals with xenoestrogen activity during fetal life may affect the male sex identity and behavior.
Keywords: sexual identity; diethylstilbestrol (DES); prenatal exposure
1. Introduction
Gender identity defines each individual’s deeply held personal sense of their own gender as male or female or something else [1]. Moreover, gender diversity and variance are umbrella terms used to describe the wide range of gender identifications outside the conventional gender categories [2]. Gender dysphoria [3] relates to the distress and unease experienced by individuals who are discontent with their assigned gender and identify with a gender other than the one associated with their birth sex [4]. A transgender man or woman is a person born phenotypically female or male, assigned female or male at birth on the basis of their external or internal genitalia, who identifies and lives as a male or a female. Actually, for many experts [5] this definition should be enlarged to Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming (TGNC) individuals, people with disorders of sex development (DSDs) and people assigned male (AMAB) or female at birth (AFAB) [6].
All studies on secular trends have reported a dramatic increase in the number of transgender people in recent decades [7]. A temporal change in the age of presentation is another notable phenomenon [8]. Quoting Hassler et al. [8] in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-5), signs of transgender in children include: “A repeated desire to be the other sex or an assertion that they are the other sex; a belief that their assigned sex will change on its own (e.g., thinking they will grow a penis or that their penis will come off when they get older); wanting to change their name to a name typically associated with another gender, or a gender-neutral name; a preference for presenting as another gender (e.g., a child assigned male at birth who prefers long hair and wearing dresses, or a child assigned female at birth who prefers short hair and wearing gender-neutral clothing); resistance or distress when made to present as a gender they do not identify with (such as a ‘girl’ throwing a tantrum over having to wear a dress or a ‘boy’ crying after having to get a haircut); assuming the role of another gender in fantasy games or make-believe; an intense desire to participate in the games and activities typical of the other gender (such as an assigned-male child playing with Barbie and an assigned-female child playing contact sports); a preference for playmates of another gender”.
Hassler et al. also wrote [8]: “In adolescence, signs of transgender includes: feelings of panic or severe discomfort concerning puberty and body changes (e.g., refusing to acknowledge or admit that changes are occurring, refusing to look at their body, or becoming distressed or uncomfortable with body development, menstruation, or ejaculation); discomfort or distress with certain forms of gender presentation, such as disliking long hair or certain types of clothing; increased bullying at school due to differences in acting out one’s perceived gender or lack of self-confidence; isolation from peers due to lack of connection or fear of bullying; depression and/or anxiety as a result of confusion over gender identity or not fitting in with peers; be aware that some adolescents may try to repress their true gender due to outside pressure, such as from family and peers, even if they previously expressed their true gender as a child”.
The literature on the prevalence of transgender people is heterogeneous, depending on the geographic area, inclusion criteria and age at presentation [9]. Specialized centers that manage transgender people estimate a prevalence between 17 and 33/100,000 individuals [10]. Actually, people who identify as transgender represent a sizable proportion of the general population, from 0.1% to 2% [11,12].
Although the biological basis of transgenderism/incongruence is unknown, biological, anatomical, genetic and environmental factors have been suggested to contribute to gender identity [13,14]. The role of sex hormones and genetics in sexual development was described by studies published between 1948 and 2019, and the implication of endogenous steroids in brain sexual differentiation has been widely studied [14,15,16,17,18]. According to the accepted dogma, high levels of fetal testosterone organize the brain towards a male phenotype [19]. Any exogenous chemical that can reduce testosterone action during fetal life can affect the differentiation of genitalia and sex behavior.
Diethylstilbestrol (DES) is a molecule that has strengthened the concepts of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and the fetal basis of adult diseases [20]. It is well known that in utero exposure to DES, a compound with estrogenic and anti-androgenic activity, induces a wide range of reproductive tract/function abnormalities in the so-called ‘DES daughters’, e.g., alterations to Müllerian duct development, fertility problems, ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, premature births and cancers, especially clear cell adenocarcinoma (CCA) of the vagina and cervix in girls and young women [21]. In ‘DES sons’, epididymal cysts, hypospadias, cryptorchidism, hypoplastic testes and micropenises have been observed [22,23,24,25,26]. In addition, although less studied, in utero exposure to synthetic sex hormones, particularly DES, can cause psychological disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorders, eating disorders and suicidal behavior [27]. Interestingly, some studies in patients exposed in utero to DES with psychotic disorders identified methylome changes that affect the expression of ZFP57 and ADAMTS9, two genes implicated in neurodevelopment regulation [28], with potential multigenerational and transgenerational effects [29,30].
In this work, we first describe four transgender women identified among the 253 sons exposed in utero to DES included in the HHORAGES-France cohort (a French National patient association). This high prevalence of male-to-female transgender individuals among DES sons (1.58%) strongly suggests that exposure of male fetuses to this xenoestrogen during fetal life may affect future male sex identity and behavior.
2. Patients and Methods
This study was based on a French national retrospective cohort of DES-treated women (HHORAGES-France Association) (n = 1200) and their families. Detailed standard questionnaires were obtained from all DES mothers when they joined the HHORAGES-France Association and all DES children were already adults at this time. The answers to this online questionnaire were used to select women who met the following inclusion criteria: (1) at least two pregnancies with two viable male babies (same father) among whom the first child was not exposed in utero to DES (pre-DES), followed by one or more children with fetal exposure to DES (DES); (2) confirmed data on the total DES dose (health record or physician’s observation). The cumulative dose D administered to the French pregnant mothers was 4050 mg < D < 7300 mg. This is considered a medium-low-dose cohort, in accordance with the observations by Tournaire et al. [31] and compared with the higher doses administered in the United States (7550 mg < D < 12,742 mg). The answers to the questionnaires were also used to identify women with a DES son who presented female gender variance. We then contacted all DES sons with female gender variance and we carried out an individual interview with them.
The local university hospital ethics committee approved this study (ID IRB No. 202301531), and all patients gave their informed consent through the HHORAGES-France Association (CNIL: J B/EM/DC042793, N° 1006460).
All DES sons who identified as transgender women underwent karyotyping at their local hospital at the moment of transition.
2.1. Patient 1 (M.) (Table 1, First Column)
Table 1. Clinical features of our four patients with female gender variance, from childhood to adulthood.
Currently a writer and photographer, M. was born in 1961 after in utero exposure to DES given to their mother following a previous miscarriage. At birth, M. had male genitalia and unilateral cryptorchidism. At the age of 4 years, M. started to present gender dysphoria that became clear at the age of 9 years (Table 1, first column). During adolescence, M. expressed the conviction of being a woman. This period was also characterized by important school absenteeism and poor academic performance. In adult life, M. presented severe psychological disorders, particularly a severe self-mutilation episode (external genitalia) at the age of 43 years (2004), with a major, life-threatening hemorrhage. After seeing a psychiatrist, M. began the transition with male to female gender reassignment surgery in France, after the agreement of the French court of first instance. Since this operation, she has been receiving Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy (GAHT) and she is regularly followed as part of GAHT management.
2.2. Patient 2 (S.) (Table 1, Second Column)
Currently a composer (guitar and vocals), S. was born in 1969 after in utero exposure to DES. At birth, S. had male genitalia with unilateral cryptorchidism. S. started to question the assigned male gender at the age of 4 years: “I remember very clearly that when I was 3–4 years old, one day I went with my mother to a hairdressing salon and having looked at all the ladies, I thought: ‘When I grow up this is what I will do: I will be a woman’”.
During adolescence, S. felt he was a woman and had severe psychological disorders, particularly depression and suicidal ideation (Table 1, second column). As an adult, S. married and had two children. These two girls had prolactinoma, and one has Asperger’s syndrome, androgyny and ovarian cysts. S. began the transition with male to female gender reassignment surgery, in Brighton, United Kingdom (UK), in November 2015. Since then, S. has been receiving GAHT and is followed by the doctor who managed the transition. According to the UK Gender Recognition Act, S. could change their sex recorded on their birth certificate (male to female) and now, she lives in Scotland. Her elder sister, also exposed to DES in utero after her mother’s miscarriage, died due to vaginal adenocarcinoma during adolescence.
2.3. Patient 3 (Chr.) (Table 1, Third Column)
Currently a ULM pilot teacher, Chr. was born in 1963 after in utero exposure to DES and slow-release progestin. At birth, Chr. had male genitalia without any genital malformation and spina bifida. Chr. reported gender dysphoria at the age of 7 years (see Table 1, third column). During adolescence, Chr. had psychological disorders and enuresis up to the age of 16 years. At the age of 22 years, Chr. married and had one son at the age of 23 years. From the age of 30 years, Chr. regularly dressed as a female and finally divorced after 20 years of married life. Chr. began the transition with male to female gender reassignment surgery performed in Thailand, in 2003, at the age of 40 years. Since this operation, she has been receiving GAHT. She lives in a couple with her former female partner and the French court of first instance of her department recognized her identity change on June 2006, at the age of 43 years.
2.4. Patient 4 (J.) (Table 1, Fourth Column)
J. was born in May 1953 in the USA (Kansas, Mid-West) after in utero exposure to DES. At birth, J. had normal male genitalia and no malformation. Gender dysphoria began at about 3–4 years of age. During childhood, J. always liked to wear his sister’s clothing, including panties, slips and dresses (Table 1, fourth column). J. had no girlfriend at the age of 16 years, and later, fantasized to be Annette Funicello, a very feminine movie star. During adolescence, J. always fantasized by looking at women’s apparel and dreamt of wearing all the items featured in catalogues, especially panties and lingerie, and often dressed as a woman. Once an adult, J. married, “But still society pushed me into marriage which is where I am now, taking cross-sex hormones to become a girl!”. Indeed, from 1997, J. has been taking estradiol to change sex, but did not undergo gender reassignment surgery.
3. Results
In this French national retrospective cohort of DES-treated women (i.e., DES mothers; n = 1200) and their families, 253 boys who were exposed in utero to DES (DES sons) and 148 pre-DES sons were identified. The flowchart showing the included and excluded patients is shown in Figure 1. Four of these DES sons identified themselves as transgender women (transgender prevalence =1.58%) versus zero among the pre-DES sons (0%). The prevalence difference was not significant (p-value = 0.30), probably because of the small sample size. The DES doses were documented for all 253 DES sons.
Jox 14 00010 g001
Figure 1. Included and excluded patients of the HHORAGES-France cohort in which four transgender M/Fs were identified. (HHORAGES-France data.) E2 is the synthetic hormone 17-α-estradiol that was often administered in a cocktail with DES and synthetic progesterone during pregnancy, but was banned for pregnant women in Europe in 1980.
In these four DES sons who identified themselves as transgender women, karyotyping did not reveal any abnormality. Major transgender components and behaviors were present already in early childhood and adolescence, as described in the previous section and summarized in Table 1.
4. Discussion
The number of patients seeking gender-specific healthcare has drastically increased (30–40-fold) in the last three decades [32]. In a recent European study, 0.7–1% of the general population reported incongruent gender identity [33]. However, several reports highlighted the important heterogeneity in the published estimates across studies. Moreover, the definition of transgender is often expanded to include broader manifestations of gender diversity. However, non-binary people should not be included in this wide definition. If we consider the highest prevalence of transgender women reported in the literature (1/17,000) [10], the prevalence we observed in our study (1.58%) is 10- to 100-fold higher. Moreover, the prevalence of female transgender identity was 0% among the 148 elder non-exposed sons (AMAB) in the same informative families.
It is generally accepted that fetal androgens play a crucial role in male brain differentiation by directly activating neuronal regions to provide organizational changes. In male individuals, gender identity, gender behavior and sex orientation are driven by prenatal androgen action [34]. Basic gender identity is developed at the age of 2–3 years [35]. By this age, most children have become aware of gender stereotypes, for instance, through toy preference and clothing. It is interesting to note that in our four patients, most diagnostic signs of transgenderism were present early in life and persisted during adolescence and adult life. In addition, mental health disorders, particularly depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation, have frequently been reported by DES children [27,36] and also by our four patients, starting from early adolescence and then in adulthood. Moreover, in many countries, transgender people live at the margin of society, and despite a higher educational level, they have a lower socio-economic status.
Although research in the transgender field is increasing, the causal mechanisms have not been adequately identified yet [13,37]. Genetic [38,39], biological [1,4], anatomical [40,41] and environmental factors [42,43] have mainly been studied. A greater chance of transgender concordance among XY monozygotic tweens than dizygotic tweens [44] supports a genetic component. A significant association between female transgenderism and over-represented alleles and genotypes (estrogen receptor α, ERα; androgen receptor, AR; Steroid 5 Alpha-Reductase 2, SRD5A2; cytochrome 17, CYP17) has been identified by Foreman et al. [38]. These authors suggested that gender dysphoria may have a polygenetic basis that may alter the masculinization of the fetal brain, contributing to the development of a female transgender identity. Moreover, the second-to-fourth digit length ratio (2D:4D), a proxy of prenatal androgen activity, was recently found to be higher, i.e., feminized, in female transgender persons. This finding reinforces the role of reduced prenatal androgen activity in female transgenderism. Unfortunately, we could not scan the left hand of our patients [45]. The primacy of testosterone [19] activity during fetal life is a critical driver of brain androgenization and the subsequent male sex identity and behavior [39,40].
In many animal studies, EDC exposure during development has been associated with changes in sex behavior, such as disruption of the normal social preference behavior (rats) and alteration of the differentiation of relevant sexually dimorphic pathways (mouse, Japanese quail) [42,43]. The most convincing evidence linking testosterone to the establishment of the male gender identity comes from individuals with DSDs, such as XY complete androgen insensitivity syndrome [45], XY 5 alpha reductase deficiency [46] and XX congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) [47]. For example, individuals with 5 alpha reductase deficiency are usually reared as girls on the basis of their female external genitalia [47]. They change the initial gender assignment during puberty, when testosterone concentration increase can organize the brain structures and influence the adolescent gender identity and behavior. XX fetuses with CAH and exposed to a high testosterone level during prenatal life present a high risk of gender incongruence. The transgender prevalence among individuals with DSDs is much higher than in the general population, although there are substantial differences among DSD etiologies. In a European collaborative work from the DSD Life Study, 4% of the 1040 participants with DSDs reported gender variance [48]. In our four patients, no DSD was diagnosed at birth. Patients 1 and 2 presented unilateral cryptorchidism, which cannot be considered a clinical expression of a DSD on its own, but is a minor effect of in utero exposure to DES. The XY DSD related to insufficient or deficient androgen production or activity during fetal life contributes to the low male sex differentiation of the brain [34]. This will lead to disorders of male gender identity, male behavior and male sexual orientation. Therefore, fetal exposure to any chemicals that can reduce androgen production or action should be considered a transgender risk factor [17]. In 1991, Renish et al. reported that male patients exposed in utero to DES appeared to be feminized [49].
In 2005 and 2020, Kerlin et al. conducted a 5-year qualitative study of DES sons via the Association DES-Sons USA and analyzed a sample of 500 men with confirmed DES exposure. In total, 90 individuals with verified DES exposure identified as transsexual, transgender or gender dysphoric (personal data). In addition, 65 individuals with strongly suspected but not confirmed DES exposure also defined themselves as “transsexual, transgender or gender dysphoric”. Kerlin et al. carried out extensive surveys and interviews with several of them for more than 15 years that enabled a stronger verification of the full scope of DES-related effects (personal data).
Based on a study by Tournaire et al. [21,31], the DES doses administered in France (4050 mg < D < 7300 mg) were lower than those administered in the United States (7550 mg < D < 12,742 mg; doses varied in the different states). These authors investigated DES’s role in clear cell carcinoma development in DES daughters in France and proposed that early fetal exposure (administration beginning during the first trimester of pregnancy which represents most cases) is more important than the dose. We think that this hypothesis is valid also for our DES sons.
Conversely, Titus et al. [50] evaluated a cohort of 2694 DES sons and found little support to the hypothesis that prenatal exposure to DES influences the psychosexual characteristics of adult men. Troisi et al. [51], in a group of 1848 DES sons, reported an odds ratio of 1.4 of having a gay identity or bisexual identity (five of these individuals were transgender women). Similarly, our finding of four transgender women among 253 XY patients who were exposed to DES in utero (1.58%), a much higher rate than in the general population and probably underestimated because no epidemiological investigation has been carried out on this topic, strongly suggests that DES plays a role in male to female transgender development. DES displays antiandrogenic activity in all assays used [52]. Northern blotting and RT-PCR showed a significant downregulation of androgen responsive genes upon exposure to DES [53]. As a xenoestrogen, DES can also stimulate production of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), the major androgen-binding protein in serum that reduces androgen’s ability to enter into the cell [54]. By reducing androgen production, bioactivity and action in target cells, DES must be considered an anti-androgen substance that can alter male sex differentiation of the brain and/or sex differentiation of the internal/external genitalia.
Differences in sex behavior may have correspondence in the brain architecture. Several studies reported an association between brain structure [15,55,56,57] and gender identity. Zhou et al. [58] first showed by brain imaging that the bed nucleus striae terminalis volume differs in men and women, and this is similar in transgender women and women. Garçia-Falgueras et al. [59], using brain imaging, found that the interstitial nucleus of the anterior hypothalamus volume is different between males and females and that its volume in transgender women is within the female range. Luders et al. reported regional gray matter variations in male-to-female transsexualism [55]. Lastly, Mueller et al. analyzed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from transgender men and women and cisgender men and women. Based on their findings, they suggested that transgender persons present a specific brain phenotype [56]. Unfortunately, no MRI data were available for our four patients.
In conclusion, the presented clinical data from our DES cohort, experimental works and the endocrine consequences of environmental disruptors suggest for the first time that male to female transgenderism in DES sons is associated with DES exposure and is not a coincidental finding.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, L.G., M.-O.S.-G. and C.S.; methodology, M.-O.S.-G. and C.S.; validation, F.P. and S.K.; formal analysis, C.S.; investigation, M.-O.S.-G. and C.S.; resources, M.-O.S.-G.; data curation, C.S.; writing—original draft preparation, writing—review and editing, M.-O.S.-G. and C.S.; visualization, F.P. and S.K.; supervision, C.S.; project administration, M.-O.S.-G.; funding acquisition, M.-O.S.-G. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
The APC was funded by HHORAGES Association.
Institutional Review Board Statement
The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee of CHU Montpellier Pole 0078 Femme Mère Enfant protocol code 202301531/9-11-2023.
Informed Consent Statement
Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.
Data Availability Statement
Data are contained within the article.
Acknowledgments
The authors warmly acknowledge M. D, S. F., Chr. P., and J. R. for their participation in answering questionnaires and interviews and analyses. This work could not continue without the daily ongoing support of the HHORAGES-France families and board, especially Mauricette P. (HHORAGES-France, a patient association, is registered at the Epidemiological Portal of French Health Databases INSERM (French National Institute for Medical Research) and AVIESAN (National Alliance for Life Sciences and Health) (epidemiologiefrance.aviesan.fr)), Yette B. and Aimée I. The authors also thank Elisabetta Andermarcher for corrections and relevant suggestions for the manuscript.
Conflicts of Interest
M-OS-G is a researcher and President of the HHORAGES-France Association and a mother concerned with DES and other synthetic hormones. The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. HHORAGES-France Association is financed exclusively by subscriptions and donations.
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Pope Paul V (Latin: Paulus V; Italian: Paolo V) (17 September 1550 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a member of the papal Accademia dei Lincei and supported his discoveries.[2] In 1616, Pope Paul V instructed Cardinal Robert Bellarmine to inform Galileo that the Copernican theory could not be taught as fact, but Bellarmine's certificate allowed Galileo to continue his studies in search for evidence and use the geocentric model as a theoretical device. That same year Paul V assured Galileo that he was safe from persecution so long as he, the Pope, should live. Bellarmine's certificate was used by Galileo for his defense at the trial of 1633.[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Paul_V
Borghese
Recorded in many forms including Bourges, Bourgaize, Bourgeois, (France), Burgess, Burges and Burgis (England and Scotland), Borghese, Borgesio and Burgisi (Italy), and others, this interesting surname is of pre 8th century Old French origins. It derives from the word "burgeis", meaning inhabitant and FREEMAN of a fortified town, one which could apply municipal rates, taxes, and duties. A burgeis generally had tenure of land or buildings from a landlord by "burgage", which involved the payment of a fixed money rent. In Scotland, the position of burgess required not only the making of payments, but to be availble to take part in guarding the town. The surname is one of the earliest recorded anywhere in the world. These recordings are from England because this country was the first to adopt both hereditary surnames and to make the necessary registers in which to record them. France was several centuries later, and Italy, not until the 19th century in most areas. Early recordings showing the influence of the Norman-French in England after the Invasion of 1066 include: Ralph le Burgeis, in the Pipe Rolls of the county of Sussex in 1195, and Philip Bourges in the cartulary of Oseney Abbey, Oxford in 1197. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Geoffrey Burgeis, which was dated 1115, in the "Winton Rolls" of Hampshire. This was during the reign of King Henry 1st, known as "The Lion of Justice", 1100 - 1135. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. Over the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop", often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.
https://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Borghese
Facade of St Peter's
Designed by Carlo Maderno (1608-1614) The inscription (1m letters) states:
"Paul V Borghese, Roman, Pontiff, in 1612, the seventh of his pontificate, [built] in honour of the Prince of Apostles
On February 10, 1608 the first stone of the Facade was laid and on July 21, 1612 most of the work was completed. It took another two years for the ornamentation, and the basilica was finally consecrated by Urban VIII on November 18, 1926.
From the central balcony, called the Loggia of the Blessings, the new pope is announced with "Habemus Papum", and gives the Urbi et Orbi blessing (to the city and to the world) upon his election and at Christmas and Easter. The relief under the balcony, by Buonvicino, represents Christ giving the keys to St. Peter. The facade is 114.69 metres (376.3 ft) wide and 45.55 metres (149.4 ft) high and is built of travertine.
Above the basic structure is an attic, with eight square windows decorated with small pilasters, surmounted by a balustrade and 13 statues in travertine. The statues on the balustrade represent Christ the Redeemer (19 feet high), St. John the Baptist and 11 Apostles. St. Mathias is included because he is associated with the other "Eleven" in bearing witness to Christ's Resurrection. St Peter is not included because his statue is below in the Square.
When Carlo Maderno started to build the facade, he was bound to the already existing Michelangelo's wings. He just put the attic all around the building, as planned by Michelangelo. That creation looks mighty and dynamic along the west side of the Basilica but is disharmonious in the facade. For this reason, at the far sides of the facade, Maderno planned two bell towers which lightened and soared the building. In 1621, at the death of Paul V, the ground subsided and the building of the two bell towers had to be stopped.
In 1646, Bernini tried to erect the bell towers again, but had to demolish the left-hand side bell tower because of cracks in the facade. Only the bases of the bell towers remain, two archways at the sides of the facade that seem to form part of it while they should have been separated. This was remedied in 1790 by the installation of two clocks designed by Giuseppe Valadier.
The eight gigantic columns of the facade are almost 10ft wide and 90 feet high.
The restoration of the facade and the 13 statues, begun in April 1985, was concluded on November 30, 1986. The original copper cross (1613) in the arms of the statue of the Redeemer, which was replaced by a new one during the work, was given to the Knights of Columbus in recognition of their support for the restoration.
Sources:
Dom Basil Watkins, OSB (ed.), The Book of Saints, 2002
A. Sperandino, Works On The Facade of St Peter's Basilica, 1989
https://www.stpetersbasilica.info/Exterior/Facade/Facade.htm
The Crown of Ba'al and Master Trusts of the World
The Crown of Ba'al, also known as the Papal Tiara and Triregnum is a three-tiered jewelled papal crown and symbol of claimed papal supremecy since the 16th Century. Since the 16th Century, it has featured prominently as part of the coat of arms of the Vatican, usually with the crossed keys of claims of authority from St Peter. Any text or other claim that alleges the three-tiered crown is older than the 16th Century is deliberately false.
Prior to Pope Boniface VIII (1294-1303) the antipopes of the Roman Cult wore fabric, not metallic headdress, similar to the Persian High Priests of Mithra. However in 1302 Boniface issued his infamous Papal Bull Unam Sanctam, being the first Express Trust claiming control over the whole planet and effectively "King of the world". In celebration, he commissioned a gold plated headdress in the shape of a pinecone, with an elaborate crown at its base.
The pinecone is an ancient symbol of fertility and one traditionally associated with Ba'al as well as the Cult of Cybele.
The 1st Crown of Crown Land
While Pope Boniface VIII was the first leader in history to create the concept of a Trust, the first Testamentary Trust through a deed and will creating a Deceased Estate was not until Pope Nicholas V in 1455 through the Papal Bull Romanus Pontifex. This is only one of three (3) papal bulls to include the line with the incipit "For a perpetual remembrance." This Bull had the effect of conveying the right of use of the land as Real Property from the Express Trust Unam Sanctam to the control of the Pontiff and his successors in perpetuity. Hence, all land is claimed as "crown land".
This 1st Crown is represented by the 1st cestui Que Vie Trust created when a child is born, depriving them of all their beneficial entitlements and rights on the land at birth.
The 2nd Crown of the Commonwealth
The second Crown was created in 1481 with the papal bull Aeterni Regis meaning "Eternal Crown" by Sixtus IV being only the 2nd of three papal bulls as deeds of testamentary trusts.
This Papal Bull created what is known as the "Crown of Aragon", later known as the Crown of Spain, being the highest sovereign and highest steward of all Roman Slaves subject to the rule of the Roman Pontiff. Spain lost the crown in 1604 when it was granted to King James I of England by Pope Paul V after the successful passage of the "Union of Crowns" or Commonwealth in 1605 after the false flag operation of the Gunpowder Plot.
The Crown was finally lost by England in 1975 when it was returned to Spain and King Carlos I, where it remains to this day.
This 2nd Crown is represented by the 2nd cestui Que Vie Trust created when a child is born being the sale of the birth certificate as a Bond to the private central bank of the nation, depriving them of ownership of their flesh and condemning them to perpetual servitude as a Roman person, or slave.
The 3rd Crown of the Ecclesiastical See
The third Crown was created in 1537 by Paul III through the papal bull Convocation also meant to open the Council of Trent being the third an final testamentary deed and will of a testamentary trust, being the trust set up for the claiming of all "lost souls", lost to the See.
The Venetians assisted in the creation of the 1st cestui Que Vie Act of 1540 to use this papal bull as the basis of Ecclesiastical authority of Henry VIII. This Crown was secretly granted to England in the collection and "reaping" of lost souls.
The Crown was lost in 1815 due to the deliberate bankruptcy of England and granted to the Temple Bar, which became known as the Crown Bar, or simply the Crown.
The Bar Associations have been responsible ever since in administering the "reaping" of the souls of the lost and damned, including the registration and collection of Baptismal certificates representing the souls collected by the Vatican and stored in its vaults.
This 3rd Crown is represented by the 3rd cestui Que Vie Trust created when a child is baptized being the grant of the Baptismal certificate by the parents to the church or Registrar being the gift of title of the soul. Thus, without legal title over one's own soul, a man or woman may be "legally" denied right to stand as a person, but may be treated as a creature and thing without legally possessing a soul. Hence, why the Bar Association is able to legally enforce Maritime law against men and women- because they can be treated as things, cargo that does not possess a soul.
https://web.archive.org/web/20220707074738/http://www.friendware.net/final_writs_rome/final_writs_Master_Trusts.html
The Knights Templar
From A Brief Historical Description by Professor Sir John Baker QC LLD FBA
Master of the Bench
The history of the Temple begins soon after the middle of the twelfth century, when a contingent of knights of the Military Order of the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem moved from the Old Temple in Holborn (later Southampton House) to a larger site between Fleet Street and the banks of the River Thames. The new site originally included much of what is now Lincoln’s Inn, and the knights were probably responsible for establishing New Street (later Chancery Lane), which led from Holborn down to their new quarters. Following their custom, the knights built a round church patterned on the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. An inscription on the Round recorded that it was consecrated by the Patriarch Heraclius on 10 February 1185, in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is thought that King Henry II was also present on that day, inaugurating a long association between the royal family and the Temple.
Among the other buildings erected by the knights were dormitories, storehouses, stables, chambers, and two dining halls, one of them in the consecrated central portion and connected with the church by a cloister. It was a house fit for kings to stay in, and several did so. During a visit by King John in January 1215 he received a deputation of barons demanding a charter of liberties; and when the Great Charter was signed later in the year, the Master of the Temple was one of the witnesses. The knights took advantage of their special privileges to make their sanctuary a safe place for depositing treasure, and during the thirteenth century the New Temple became a busy financial centre. It was no doubt during this period that the first handful of lawyers came to live in the Temple, not as distinct societies but as legal advisers to a wealthy international organisation. The Templars thrived, adding to their round church a fine nave, which was consecrated in the presence of King Henry III in 1240. Many knights associated with the order were buried in the church, the most distinguished being William Marshal (d. 1219), first Earl of Pembroke and regent of England, the very model of medieval English chivalry, and one of the instigators of Magna Carta. Marshal’s armoured effigy, battered by time and war, may still be seen in the Round.
After losing the Holy Land in the 1290s, the order of the Temple fell into a decline. The knights were dubiously accused of improprieties, and in 1312 their order was dissolved. Although the pope granted their estates to the Knights Hospitaller of St John of Jerusalem, King Edward II seized the New Temple as forfeit to the Crown. Nevertheless, the consecrated portion was conceded to the Hospitallers, and the remainder was sold to them later.
https://www.innertemple.org.uk/who-we-are/history/the-inner-temple-history/the-knights-templar/
What was the Court of the Gentiles in the Jewish temple?
Answer
Herod’s temple, destroyed along with the rest of Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70, contained four separate “courts,” separated from one another and each designed for a different purpose: the Court of the Gentiles, the Court of the Women, the Court of Israel (or the Court of Men), and the Court of Priests. The Court of the Gentiles is referred to as “the outer court” in Revelation 11:2.
The Court of the Gentiles was the outermost courtyard and the only area of the temple where non-Jews were allowed. As its name implies, the Court of the Gentiles was accessible to Gentiles, foreigners, and those who were considered impure. There, worshippers could mill about, exchange money, and even buy animals for sacrifices. It was from the Court of the Gentiles that Jesus, on two occasions (John 2:13–17; Matthew 21:12–13), drove out the money changers, declaring, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers” (Matthew 21:13). The Court of the Women, the only area of the temple complex in which women could worship, contained the poor boxes. One of these boxes was where the poor widow offered her two mites (Luke 21:1–4). Ceremonially clean Jewish men could enter the Court of Israel, and the Court of Priests, where the altar stood, was accessible only to Levitical priests.
Non-Jews were allowed to enter the Court of the Gentiles, but they were forbidden to go any farther than the outer court. The inner temple courtyards were enclosed by a balustrade, and at the entrances to it notices were posted in both Greek and Latin, warning foreigners and uncircumcised persons that crossing into one of the other courtyards was punishable by death. One of those ancient notices is now on display in a museum in Istanbul. On Paul’s last visit to Jerusalem, some Jews stirred up a crowd and grabbed Paul in the temple, alleging that he had taken Trophimus, a Gentile, into one of the forbidden courtyards (Acts 21:27–29). Paul was innocent of the charge, but the mob beat him with the intent to kill him; it was the quick action of a Roman garrison commander that preserved Paul’s life on that occasion (verses 30–34).
https://www.gotquestions.org/Court-of-the-Gentiles.html
Acts 21
1599 Geneva Bible
21 1 Paul goeth toward Jerusalem: 8 at Caesarea he talketh with Philip the Evangelist: 10 Agabus foretelleth him of his bonds. 17 After he came to Jerusalem, 26 and into the Temple, 27 The Jews laid hands on him: 32 Lysias the captain taketh him from them.
1 And [a]as we launched forth, and were departed from them, we came with a straight course unto Cos, and the day following unto the Rhodes, and from thence unto Patara.
2 And we found a ship that went over unto Phoenicia, and went aboard, and set forth.
3 And when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed toward Syria, and arrived at Tyre: for there the ship unladed the burden.
4 And when we had found disciples, we tarried there seven days. And they told Paul through the [b]Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.
5 But when the days were ended, we departed and went our way, and they all accompanied us with their wives and children, even out of the city: and we kneeled down on the shore, prayed.
6 Then when we had embraced one another, we took ship, and they returned home.
7 And when we had ended the course from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.
8 And the next day, Paul and we that were with him, departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the Evangelist, which was one of the [c]seven Deacons, and abode with him.
9 Now he had four daughters, virgins, which did [d]prophesy.
10 And as we tarried there many days, there came a certain Prophet from Judea, named Agabus.
11 And when he was come unto us, he took Paul’s girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.
12 And when we had heard these things, both we and others of the same place besought him that he would not go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, and said, What do ye weeping and breaking mine heart? For I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the Name of the Lord Jesus.
14 [e]So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
15 And after those days we trussed up our fardels, and went up to Jerusalem.
16 There went with us also certain of the disciples of Caesarea, and brought with them one Mnason of Cyprus, an old disciple, with whom we should lodge.
17 And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
18 And the next day Paul went in with us unto James: and all the Elders were there assembled.
19 [f]And when he had embraced them, he told by order all things, that God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministration.
20 [g]So when they heard it, they glorified God, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousand Jews there are which believe, and they are all zealous of the Law:
21 Now they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews, which are among the Gentiles, to forsake Moses, and sayest that they ought not to circumcise their sons, neither to live after the customs.
22 What is then to be done? the multitude must needs come together: for they shall hear that thou art come.
23 Do therefore this that we say to thee. We have four men, which have made a vow,
24 Them take, and [h]purify thyself with them, and [i]contribute with them, that they may shave their heads: and all shall know, that those things, whereof they have been informed concerning thee, are nothing, but that thou thyself also walkest and keepest the Law.
25 For as touching the Gentiles, which believe, we have written, and determined that they observe no such thing, but that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from that that is strangled, and from fornication.
26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day was purified with them, and entered into the Temple, [j]declaring the accomplishment of the days of the purification, until that an offering should be offered for everyone of them.
27 [k]And when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews which were of Asia (when they saw him in the Temple) moved all the people, and laid hands on him,
28 Crying, Men of Israel, help: this is the man that teachest all men everywhere against the people, and the Law, and this place: moreover, he hath brought Grecians into the Temple, and hath polluted this holy place.
29 For they had seen before Trophimus an Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the Temple.
30 Then all the city was moved, and the people ran together: and they took Paul, and drew him out of the Temple, and forthwith the doors were shut.
31 [l]But as they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was on an uproar.
32 Who immediately took soldiers and Centurions, and ran down unto them: and when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, they left beating of Paul.
33 Then the chief Captain came near and took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains, and demanded who he was, and what he had done.
34 And one cried this, another that, among the people. So when he could not know the certainty for the tumult, he commanded him to be led into the castle.
35 And when he came unto the grieces, it was so that he was borne of the soldiers, for the violence of the people.
36 For the multitude of the people followed after, crying, Away with him.
37 And as Paul should have been led into the castle, he said unto the chief captain, May I speak unto thee? Who said, Canst thou speak Greek?
38 Art not thou the [m]Egyptian who before these days raised a sedition, and led out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers?
39 Then Paul said, Doubtless, I am a man which am a Jew, and citizen of Tarsus, a famous city of Cilicia, and I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.
40 And when he had given him license, Paul stood on the grieces, and beckoned with the hand unto the people, and when there was made great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew tongue, saying,
Footnotes
Acts 21:1 Not only men simply, but even our friends, and such as are endued with the Spirit of God, do sometimes go about to hinder the course of our vocation: but it is our part to go forward without all stopping or staggering, after that we are sure of our calling from God.
Acts 21:4 They foretold through the Spirit what danger hanged over Paul’s head, and this they did as Prophets: but of a fleshly affection they frayed him from going to Jerusalem.
Acts 21:8 He speaketh of the seven Deacons which he mentioned before, Acts 6.
Acts 21:9 They had a peculiar gift of foretelling things to come.
Acts 21:14 The will of God bridleth all affections in them which earnestly seek the glory of God.
Acts 21:19 God is to be praised, who is the Author of all good sayings and deeds.
Acts 21:20 In things indifferent (of which sort were not the traditions of the Pharisees, but the ceremonies of the Law, until such time as Christian liberty was more fully revealed to the Jews) charity willeth us to conform or apply ourselves willingly so far as we may, to our brethren which do not stubbornly, and maliciously, resist the truth, but are not thoroughly instructed especially if the question be of a whole multitude.
Acts 21:24 That is, consecrate thyself: for he speaketh not here of the unclean, but of such as were subject to the vow of the Nazarites.
Acts 21:24 That it may be known, that thou wast not only present at the vow, but also a chief man in it: and therefore it is said afterwards, that Paul declared the days of purification: for although the charges for the Nazarites’ offerings were appointed, yet they might add somewhat unto them, Num. 6:21.
Acts 21:26 The Priests were to be advertised of the accomplishment of the days of the purification, because there were sacrifices to be offered the same day that their vow was ended.
Acts 21:27 A preposterous zeal is the cause of great confusion, and great mischiefs.
Acts 21:31 God findeth some even amongst the wicked and profane themselves, to hinder the endeavors of the rest.
Acts 21:38 Touching this Egyptian which assembled thirty thousand men, read Josephus, book 2, chap. 12.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2021&version=GNV
Monumento a Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour
Photographed by James Hulse, March 3, 2024
1. Monumento a Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour / Monument to Camillo Benso Count of Cavour Marker
Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.
The monument in honour of Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour (1810-1861), the work of the Ferrara sculptor Stefano Galletti, was created following a public competition in 1885 and inaugurated in 1895, on the occasion of the celebrations of the 25th anniversary of Rome as the capital of Rome.
The work, about 17 meters high, consists of a granite base, surmounted by a high pedestal in Bardiglio marble, on which is placed the bronze statue of the great Piedmontese statesman, facing the Palace of Justice built by Guglielmo Calderini in 1882-1911. On the base of the pedestal rest four groups of bronze sculptures that allude to the Unification of Italy. To the south, at Cavour's feet, Italy and Rome, represented as warrior women: the first is standing, with the crown and the Savoy cross and a hand resting on the bundle of rods; the second is seated, with the Savoy shield and the helmet on her head. To the west and east are Thought and Action, both depicted as naked young men: the first half-reclining, with his head covered and his head bent; the second in the act of rising up with sword in hand. To the north, the Force, represented Paid Advertisement
from the lion that guards the urn of the plebiscite. Further down is the dedicatory inscription, the date and two bas-reliefs: behind the Action weapons of the House of Savoy from various eras, behind the Thought symbols of science, technology, geographical discoveries and political-philosophical thought, which want to signify Italian excellence and the foundation of Unity.
Great importance was given to the ceremony of laying the first stone in which the royals of Italy participated.
This is how "Il Messaggero" of Sunday, September 22, 1895 describes the event: "On March 14, 1885, in the presence of King Umberto, Queen Margherita, and many authorities, with a mischievous north wind, in a square in the Prati di Castello the policemen lowered the first stone of the monument to Camillo Benso Count of Cavour to the bottom of a hole.
Together with the block of marble that bore the date of the ceremony carved, a parchment and several coins and medals of the present era were lowered into the hole; the king and queen threw a few splatters of lime on it with a silver spoon, the municipal concert played the anthem.
When the notary Luci had finished reading the minutes, Duke Torlonia begged the king to sign it: King Umberto took one of the pens that were on the table located in the middle of the stage, and signed; then he passed the pen to the queen, who signed it too."
The
The view of the Marker in front of the Supreme Court building image. Click for full size.
Photographed by James Hulse, March 3, 2024
2. The view of the Marker in front of the Supreme Court building
Discovery of the First Stone
During the excavations for the construction of the underground car park in Piazza Cavour, in addition to archaeological finds from the Roman, early medieval and Renaissance periods, the foundation stone of the monument was found: a block of travertine (80x80x30 cm) placed about 10 m deep, on the vertical of the statue, inside the imposing foundation nut.
In a rectangular compartment carved into the upper side of the stone was kept the sealed lead tube containing a parchment, two silver coins and one gold coin. The parchment reported the history of the construction of the monument and the description of the ceremony of laying the foundation stone. The tube was opened during a public ceremony on 18 October 2010, in the presence of the Mayor of Rome Giovanni Alemanno, the Secretary General Liborio Iudicello, the Councillor for Cultural Policies and Communication Umberto Croppi and the Superintendent of Cultural Heritage Umberto Broccoli.
Captions
(Photo #1) Inauguration of the monument to Cavour, 20 September 1895. (Museum of Rome, Photographic Archive)
(Photo #2) Piazza Cavour in about
1930 (Photo #3) Inauguration of the monument to Cavour, September 20, 1895. In the background buildings of the square under construction (Museum of Rome, Photographic Archive)
(Photo
The Monument to Camillo Benso Count of Cavour image. Click for full size.
Photographed by James Hulse, March 3, 2024
3. The Monument to Camillo Benso Count of Cavour
#4) Foundation stone of the monument to Cavour found in 2010
(Photo #5) Foundation stone with lead pipe containing parchment and coins (October 2010)
English:
The monument in honour of Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour (1810-1861), work of the sculptor Stefano Galletti of Ferrara, was chosen by public competition in 1885 and inaugurated in 1895 to mark the 25 anniversary of Rome as capital of a United Italy.
The work, which stands 17 meters tall, is composed of a granite base topped with a high pedestal in bardiglio marble upon which a bronze statue of the Piemontese statesman stands facing the Palace of Justice, designed and built by Guglielmo Calderini from 1882-1911.
Resting against the base are four groups of sculptures in bronze that refer to the unification of Italy. On the south face, at Cavour's feet, Italy and Rome are represented as female warriors, the first standing holding a wreath and cross of the House of Savoy with one hand resting on a bundle of rods, the second seated holding a shield of the House of Savoy and wearing a helmet. The east and west faces are Thought and Action both depicted as nude youth, the first semireclining with covered face and downcast head, the other in the act of rising with sword in hand. On the north side is Force represented by a lion that
Camillo Benso Count of Cavour - 1st Prime Minister of Italy image. Click for full size.
Public Domain - Artist Antonio Ciseri - Wikipedia Commons, 1861
4. Camillo Benso Count of Cavour - 1st Prime Minister of Italy
Inscription on the back of the canvas: Ant. Ciseri painted it in Florence from a photograph, towards the end of 1861
guards a ballot box. Beneath is the dedicatory inscription, the date and two bas-reliefs. The relief behind Action shows weapons of the House of Savoy from various periods, while behind Thought are symbols of the sciences, technology, geographical discoveries, and political and philosophical thought which allude to Italian excellence and the fundamental importance of unity.
Great importance was given to the ceremony of the placing of the first stone, attended by the Italian royalty. In its Sunday edition of September 22, 1895, the Roman newspaper "Il Messaggero" described the event with these words:
"On March 14th, 1885 in piazza dei Prati di Castello, under a brisk north wind, King Umberto, Queen Margherita and many high officials presided over the lowering into place of the first foundation stone of a monument to Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour.
Together with the block of marble bearing the date of the ceremony, members of the city police force also lowered into the pit a parchment, and some coins and medals of the time. The King and Queen sprinkled the objects with lime from a silver spoon while the city band an anthem.
The notary, Mr. Luci read a record of the proceedings which the Duke Torlonia asked the King to sign. King Umberto took a pen from the table in the middle of the platform and signed the document before passing the Paid Advertisement
pen to the Queen who also signed it."
The discovery of the foundation stone
During excavations for the construction of an underground car park in Piazza Cavour, in addition to the uncovering of archaeological finds from ancient Rome, the high Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the foundation stone of the monument was discovered. A block of travertine marble (80x80x30 cm), it lay at a depth of 10 meters beneath the statue, within the area of the monument's imposing base. In a rectangular space ace carved in to the top side of the block was a sealed lead tube which contained a parchment, one gold and two silver coins. The parchment reported the story of the monuments design and construction and the ceremony of the placing of the first stone. The tube was opened during a public ceremony on October 18, 2010 in the presence of the Mayor Giovanni Alemanno, the Secretary General Liborio Ludicello, the city Counsellor for Culture and Communication Umberto Croppi and the Superintendent of Monuments and Cultural Properties Umberto Broccoli.
Captions
Photo #1: Inauguration of the Monument to Cavour, September 20, 1895. (Museum of Rome, Photographic Archive)
Photo #2: Piazza Cavour around 1930
Photo #3: Inauguration of the Monument to Cavour, September 20, 1895. In the background, buildings of the square under construction. (Museum of Rome, Photographic Archive)
Photo #4: Foundation stone of the Monument to Cavour found in 2010
Photo #5: Foundation stone with the lead tube containing the parchment and coins (October 2010)
Erected by Roma Capitale, Department of Cultural Policies and Historic Center, Superintendence for Cultural Heritage.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical date for this entry is March 14, 1885.
Location. 41° 54.311′ N, 12° 28.2′ E. Marker is in Roma, Lazio (Latium, Rome), in Città metropolitana di Roma Capitale. It is in Prati. It is at the intersection of Piazza Cavour and Via Cicerone on Piazza Cavour. The marker is located in the Piazza Cavour in front of the Supreme Court building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Piazza Cavour SNC, Roma, Lazio 00193, Italy. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Ponte Umberto I / Umberto I Bridge (about 240 meters away, measured in a direct line); Church of Saint Mary in the Gate of Paradise (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Vincenzo Monti and Costanza Monti Perticari (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Palazzo Incontro (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Vittorio Emanuele II Bridge (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Eleonora de Fonseca Pimentel (approx. 0.7 kilometers away); Church of St. Louis of the French (approx. 0.7 kilometers away); Saint Louis of the French (approx. 0.7 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Roma.
Also see . . . Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour. Wikipedia
Camillo Paolo Filippo Giulio Benso, Count of Cavour, Isolabella and Leri (Italian: [kaˈmillo ˈbɛnso]; 10 August 1810 – 6 June 1861), generally known as the Count of Cavour (/kəˈvʊər/ kə-VOOR; Italian: Conte di Cavour [ˈkonte di kaˈvur]) or simply Cavour, was an Italian politician, statesman, businessman, economist, and noble, and a leading figure in the movement towards Italian unification. He was one of the leaders of the Historical Right and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Sardinia from 1852, a position he maintained (except for a six-month resignation) until his death, throughout the Second Italian War of Independence and Giuseppe Garibaldi's campaigns to unite Italy. After the declaration of a united Kingdom of Italy, Cavour took office as the first Prime Minister of Italy; he died after only three months in office and did not live to see the Roman Question solved through the complete unification of the country after the Capture of Rome in 1870.
(Submitted on February 9, 2025, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 9, 2025. It was originally submitted on February 6, 2025, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 293 times since then and 46 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on February 9, 2025, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=265971
The Cox Report's 'Dirty Little Secret'
Arms Control Today
Jonathan D. Pollack
Back to Cox Report Main Page
To the uninitiated reader, the Cox Report presents an ominous picture of pervasive, sustained Chinese espionage and illicit technology acquisition breathtaking in its scope, scale and effectiveness. The document alleges extreme laxity in U.S. security procedures and a seriously flawed export control process, both of which were purportedly exploited by China's intelligence organizations and weapons manufacturers. In the committee's view, these actions were knowingly abetted by American scientists prepared to disclose U.S. nuclear weapons secrets and by American aerospace firms intent on securing commercial advantage with China, irrespective of the national security consequences.
Given the substantial excisions in the declassified version of the report, it is impossible to fully assess the potential consequences of China's acquisition of U.S. nuclear weapons design and technical information, however Beijing acquired such data. The report's judgments are sweeping and unequivocal, but the evidence supporting these claims seems far more limited and ambiguous, suggesting that the compromise of information may have been far less extensive than asserted by the report's authors.
But the study's shortcomings extend well beyond its inferences and assertions; they concern its basic premises and assumptions. Despite the document's prodigious bulk and detail, it is remarkably ahistorical. In particular, it is almost totally devoid of reference to the political, military, intelligence, and dual-use technology ties with China assiduously pursued at the highest levels of the U.S. government during the 1970s and 1980s.
Specific espionage claims must be investigated fully, and the acute lapses in security procedures at U.S. weapons laboratories undoubtedly require immediate attention. But instead of telling a larger story, the committee simply accumulates disparate information from an array of sources from which worst-case judgments were then drawn. As a consequence, media coverage focused almost exclusively (and uncritically) on the most sensational allegations, failing to ask how and why the United States and China were drawn into ever-closer dealings with one another.
Amid the report's dire claims and forecasts, a dirty little secret goes entirely unmentioned. From the very onset of the Sino-U.S. relationship in the early 1970s, successive Republican and Democratic administrations believed that the enhancement of Chinese power—as a counterbalance to Soviet power—was in the national security interest of the United States, and persistently sought to advance this goal in the ensuing two decades. This U.S. commitment was repeatedly imparted to senior Chinese officials in both word and deed. The United States was intent on strengthening relations in a host of highly sensitive areas and shaping China's expectations of the United States and its pursuit of U.S. high technology. The Chinese may well have exploited these opportunities by all available means, but they were walking through a door that the U.S. government had long since decided to open.
The U.S. negotiating record with China amply confirms this judgment. From the earliest years of Sino-American relations, senior U.S. officials (including then National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger) provided Chinese interlocutors with highly sensitive U.S. intelligence data on Soviet military capabilities and deployments—without the Chinese having ever solicited this information. The Nixon administration sought to coordinate its diplomatic and security actions with China in Vietnam, in South Asia, and in relation to Taiwan, Japan and Korea. Under President Ford, the United States explicitly encouraged major European allies to relax their export policies toward China, including on weapons sales; the Chinese were regularly kept informed of these actions. U.S. policymakers also sought to find the means to permit sales of U.S. computers to China that it would not export to the Soviet Union.
Under the Carter administration, these ties broadened and deepened. The United States provided Chinese officials with regular intelligence briefings; both countries also undertook active intelligence collaboration (in part to monitor Soviet compliance with the SALT accords). Other programs heightened collaboration against Soviet actions in Afghanistan and Vietnamese actions in Cambodia. These activities accelerated further under the Reagan administration, including the provision (with Chinese assistance) of U.S. Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to mujaheddin insurgents resisting the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
But the Reagan administration's decision to expedite technology transfer to China bears most directly on the report's findings. As the Chinese sought to develop a civilian industrial base where none or little had existed before, technology transfer from the United States was pivotal. Much of this effort involved technologies and know-how with inherent relevance to both civilian and military programs. It included provision of a massive array of technical and design data for assembly of McDonnell-Douglas aircraft in Shanghai, including an MD-82 coproduction agreement signed in 1985—the largest U.S.-Chinese industrial project of the past two decades.
The Cox Report documents Chinese violations of U.S. export control regulations in the purchase and disposition of advanced machine tools from McDonnell-Douglas. But the larger collaborative effort (designed to meet exacting Federal Aviation Administration certification standards for indigenous production of commercial aircraft in China) was comprehensive in its scope. By enhancing a wide array of technical skills and industrial-technology applications required in aircraft manufacture, the project facilitated the skill base of the Chinese aviation industry as a whole, including the military sector.
The report also fails to acknowledge that the Reagan administration initiated foreign military sales (FMS) programs to China, including sales to military end-users, provision of technical know-how to Chinese military research and development, and active collaboration between U.S. defense contractors and Chinese counterparts. By 1987, these programs comprised avionics packages for Chinese combat aircraft, sales of anti-submarine warfare torpedos and gas turbine engines for the Chinese navy (the latter still in use on Chinese destroyers), sales of artillery-locating radar and the upgrading of artillery production capabilities. Other transactions included sales of Blackhawk helicopters and an array of non-lethal military equipment.
Successive U.S. administrations were not oblivious to the multiple implications of U.S. technology transfer to China. The commercial links were undoubtedly important, but the security implications were also inescapable. A more militarily credible China would be better able to counter Soviet power, and it would require the Soviet Union to deploy additional military assets in Asia. It was also assumed that (in return for U.S. technological assistance) the Chinese would exercise political and military restraint in relation to Taiwan, Japan and Korea.
The United States therefore saw China as an asset rather than a threat to U.S. security interests. Senior Chinese leaders acknowledged Chinese industrial and military backwardness to U.S. officials and corporate representatives, and they also made clear the longer-term Chinese intention to emerge as an advanced industrial, technological, scientific and military power. The Chinese repeatedly urged the United States to further relax its export control policies, and likely assumed that the United States would quietly facilitate Chinese efforts to acquire an extensive array of dual-use technologies.
Additional developments throughout the latter half of the 1980s—including purchase of more advanced computers, acquisition of sophisticated machine tools, prospective sales of nuclear reactors, and an explosive growth in the training of Chinese scientists and students in the United States—attested to the consolidation of U.S.-China relations, with an ever-increasing focus on advancing China's technical and industrial capabilities, many with potential relevance to China's military modernization.
In addition, following the Challenger space shuttle disaster, the Reagan administration approved launches of U.S. satellites from Chinese rockets. It was hardly a state secret that Chinese launch vehicles (the Long March 3-B and 2-E) were derived from the same family of missiles used to deliver Chinese nuclear weapons, and that the space launch program was overseen by Chinese military personnel. Underwriting the costs of Chinese launches (there have been approximately 30 launches involving U.S. aerospace companies since 1988) undoubtedly enhanced Chinese space capabilities.
In the aftermath of several egregious launch failures in 1995 and 1996, Hughes, Loral and other major aerospace companies reviewed Chinese assessments of these failures, though Chinese aerospace personnel bristled at the implied criticisms of their programs offered by foreign experts. Alleged violations of U.S. export control provisions and security procedures by several of these companies remain under investigation. But U.S. companies had an obvious incentive to encourage the Chinese to pinpoint and remedy design and manufacturing flaws in the launch vehicles, since further catastrophic failures would have jeopardized their collaborative programs. These reviews by U.S. engineers and technical personnel very likely reinforced modifications in launch vehicle designs that the Chinese themselves had begun to consider. So construed, the Chinese benefitted from U.S. technical expertise. But it defies comprehension that it was in anyone's interest to depend on unreliable launch vehicles.
However, the Tiananmen crisis of 1989 had shattered the working consensus between the executive branch and the Congress on closer U.S.-China relations. Equally significant, the collapse of the Soviet Union eroded the strategic assumptions underlying U.S.-Chinese defense collaboration. The Bush administration sought to retain some of these dealings, but changes in U.S. strategy were already underway, including a substantial augmentation of U.S. military sales to Taiwan as the Chinese increasingly pursued weapons purchases from Russia. The Clinton administration, with intermittent success and also some major setbacks, sought to restore a modicum of civility in Sino-U.S. military relations, but it was not prepared to revisit the post-Tiananmen sanctions precluding military sales to China. At the same time, the scope of U.S. defense links with Taiwan continued to grow during the 1990s.
Thus, the Cox Report appears when the strategic divergence between the United States and China has widened, and when the Chinese are increasingly assertive about longer-term modernization goals that are no longer animated by animosities with Moscow. Indeed, Russia and China share common cause in seeking to inhibit, or at least caution, the United States from the unilateral exercise of its military power. One does not need to subscribe to the more conspiratorial Chinese renderings of U.S. strategy to discern the essential Chinese logic: officials in Beijing see the United States as intent on impeding the growth of Chinese national power and the enhancement of its strategic position.
Given the deliberate pace of Chinese weapons development, it is far from certain that Beijing deems a major acceleration of its weapons programs as either feasible or warranted. Indeed, China's enhancement of its strategic weapons capabilities has remained measured and incremental. If the Cox Committee's claims of Chinese possession of a full array of U.S. nuclear weapons information are accurate, it makes little sense that Beijing would have failed to exploit this knowledge. But if the Chinese conclude that the United States views China in essentially malign terms, an enhanced Chinese national defense effort, quite possibly including accelerated modernization of Chinese strategic weapons capabilities, seems very likely.
But the much larger transformation underway in China concerns the country's mushrooming involvement in global commerce, not its military development. Even as many in the United States exhibit increased unease about the implications of the growth of Chinese military power, the scale and scope of U.S.-Chinese commercial and technological interactions has never been greater. Information and technology flows between the two countries have accelerated dramatically over the past decade; as a consequence, the provision of high-end U.S. technologies to China far exceeds the undertakings of the 1980s. Short of a draconian effort to restrict these transactions and to pursue far more binding multilateral export controls, the momentum of these developments will not be slowed significantly, let alone reversed. Moreover, any such effort would very likely prove self-defeating, both politically and commercially.
Indeed, less than three weeks after release of the report, the committee chairman, Representative Christopher Cox, endorsed a major relaxation of constraints on U.S. computer exports to China. By consenting to a fivefold increase in the allowable speed of computers to be licensed for export to China, he acceded to inescapable commercial and technological realities, even as the committee's report had spoken in worrisome tones about the diverse applications such higher-speed computers could permit.
Although the United States still endeavors to fence off (both literally and figuratively) those activities with immediate national security implications, it is increasingly difficult to square this circle. In the final analysis, the dire tone of the Cox Report says far more about the United States than it does about China. Resolving this fundamental ambivalence about the growth of Chinese power may not prove possible, but the effects of an ominously worded document could make the search for a tolerable center of gravity in the Sino-American relationship ever more difficult.
https://www.armscontrol.org/act/1999-04/cox-reports-dirty-little-secret
Why Mormons Make Great FBI Recruits
What sparked rumors of a “Mormon Mafia”?
by Sarah Laskow
November 4, 2015
Why Mormons Make Great FBI Recruits
At the FBI.
At the FBI. Dave Newman/Flickr
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When the Pew Research Center surveyed Mormons in America about their place in society, more than 60 percent of the participants said that Americans “are uninformed about Mormonism.” Mormons make up about 2 percent of the American population—about the same as Jews—but they’re not sure that the rest of the country quite understands or accepts them. Overwhelmingly, most Mormons described misperceptions about their religion or “lack of acceptance in American society.”
But there’s at least one place in American society where Mormons have found an unusual degree of acceptance—in agencies like the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the CIA, which see Mormons as particularly desirable recruits and have a reputation for hiring a disproportionate number of people who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
While this comes as a surprise to most people, in Washington and particularly among people who work with or report on intelligence and law enforcement, it’s common knowledge. And occasionally it leaks into popular culture: In his 2009 memoir Agent Bishop, Mike McPheters describes his years doubling as an FBI agent and Mormon bishop—a community leadership position he inherited from another FBI agent. In 2015, a (controversial) subplot on ABC’s Quantico featured a Mormon recruit whose upstanding reputation hid a dark secret.
But, in reality, Mormons end up in these agencies for perfectly logical reasons. The disproportionate number of Mormons is usually chalked up to three factors: Mormon people often have strong foreign language skills, from missions overseas; a relatively easy time getting security clearances, given their abstention from drugs and alcohol; and a willingness to serve.
There have been Mormon FBI agents since early in the bureau’s history. Some accounts allege that J. Edgar Hoover had a particular interest in recruiting Mormon agents: one well-known Mormon leader, J. Martell Bird, served in Hoover’s heyday, from the 1940s through the end of the ’60s, and there’s a famous story of a Mormon agent who, in 1940, just five years after the modern FBI was born from an earlier Bureau of Investigation, was tasked with supporting the agency’s first double agent in Germany.
But it wasn’t until the 1970s that outsiders started paying close attention and turning up connections between prominent Mormons and the CIA, Watergate, and other government activities. A 1975 report on the CIA, for instance, included the tidbit that one Mormon-owned PR firm made some “overseas offices available…as cover for Agency employees operating abroad.” And in the 1980s a Brigham Young University professor told the authors of The Mormon Corporate Empire, a 1985 social science study on the church and its power, that “we’ve never had any trouble placing anyone who has applied to the CIA.”
“Every year, they take almost anybody who applies,” he said.
It was around this time, too, that two cases put the Mormon members of the FBI dramatically into the public eye. In 1984, FBI agent Richard W. Miller was arrested; he later became the first FBI agent ever to be indicted for and eventually found guilty of spying for the Soviet Union. (Miller wasn’t the first Mormon to be in this position, though: earlier in 1984, a Mormon who had worked in Army intelligence was arrested for passing secrets to the Soviets.) Miller had been recruited at BYU in the 1960s, the New York Times reported. At the time, the FBI had been particularly interested in candidates with strong Spanish skills, and Miller had minored in the language. By the 1980s, though, he was under close supervision at work and had started dabbling in petty theft, when a Soviet woman approached him.
A class early in the history of BYU. B.F. Larsen (Brigham Young University)
Miller had been assigned to interview émigrés like Svetlana Ogorodnikov, but she was much better at her job than he was at his. His performance as an agent had been lackluster, and his personal life was not going much better, as, not long before his arrest, he was excommunicated from the Mormon church for adultery. Soon, he and Svetlana were sleeping together and discussing plans to exchange information for money. Miller later said he was trying to use Svetlana as a source, not the other way around, but he did pass a classified document to her and her husband, Nikolay.
At Miller’s trial, testimony revealed a tangle of religion and work at the Los Angeles bureau where he worked. One Mormon FBI agent said that he’d understood that Miller had been put under his command, on a prestigious counterintelligence squad, “because of our common religious background.” Another agent, Matt Perez, testified that Richard T. Bretzing, the head of the L.A. bureau and a Mormon bishop, had protected Miller and kept him from being fired.
Not long before Miller’s Soviet dalliance came to light, Perez, a Latino FBI agent, had filed his first discrimination complaint with the equal employment opportunity office. In the course of the next few years, he, along with more than 300 other agents, would file a class action suit against the FBI for racial and religious discrimination. Part of their complaint was that their Mormon higher-ups had favored agents of their own religion.
The judge ruled in the Hispanic agents’ favor on the racial discrimination charge, and though he rejected the religious discrimination charges, he did write that the testimony at the trial showed that Mormon leaders “made personnel decisions which favored members of their church at the expense of Hispanic class members.”
Together, these two cases, which were extensively covered by the media, lodged a new idea in the public mind: There was a “Mormon mafia” in the FBI.
The Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City. Niro87/Wikimedia
It’s hard to put exact numbers on this phenomenon, either then or now. The agency’s public demographic statistics do not include the religious backgrounds of its officers, but the FBI isn’t known for its diversity. Even after its Hispanic officers won that discrimination case and after other lawsuits over similar hiring issues, most people working for the FBI are white men. What is known is that agencies like the CIA and FBI still recruit at BYU, looking for students with language skills and an interest in public service, although even the university doesn’t know how many of its students ultimately end up in these jobs. “We’ve tried to track down employment and recruitment numbers, and it’s really hard to pin this down,” a BYU spokesperson said.
These aren’t necessarily glamorous jobs. Many of the Mormon recruits to the CIA work in analysis, the desk jockeys of the intelligence world, and leave without building a whole career in government. For those who do, though, there’s an easy move to make when they’re ready to leave government service. Often, after a long career in the FBI, agents will join the Latter-day Saints’ Security Department. Bird, the FBI agent who worked with Hoover, became head of church security; Richard Bretzing, the L.A. bureau chief who was so key in the spread of the idea of a Mormon Mafia, left the bureau in 1988—and became managing director of the same office.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/why-mormons-make-great-fbi-recruits
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Temple Cards
Why Do We Wear White in the Temple?
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/friend/2024/12/14-why-do-we-wear-white-in-the-temple?lang=eng
Matthew 23:27-28
New International Version
27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2023:27-28&version=NIV
Mormon President and Pope Francis meet for the first time, after decades of hidden diplomacy
The two leaders met for 33 minutes at the Vatican and exchanged gifts, the day before Russell M. Nelson was due to dedicate the first Mormon temple in Rome
Michelle Boorstein
Sunday 10 March 2019 20:38 GMT
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/pope-mormon-leader-meeting-rome-vatican-lds-church-latterday-saints-a8816421.html
The Palazzo Moroni is a palace located on Via Porta #12 in the historic center of the upper town of Bergamo, Italy. The palace is a civic art museum, as well as used for cultural functions. The building, noted for its Baroque interior decorations, is presently managed by the Fondazione di Palazzo Moroni in conjunction with the city after a donation by Count Antonio Moroni.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palazzo_Moroni
Moroni (/məˈroʊnaɪ/) is described in the Book of Mormon as the last Nephite prophet, historian, and military commander who, according to the faith of the Latter Day Saint movement, became the Angel Moroni who presented the golden plates to Joseph Smith.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moroni_(prophet)#
Mantua was settled in the mid-19th century when members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were sent by Lorenzo Snow to the valley to grow flax. The first group arrived in Mantua in 1863 (although a sign at the main entry route states "Founded 1864"),[6] and were all émigrés from Denmark led by Hans Jens Jensen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantua,_Utah
Lagoon is a family owned amusement park in Farmington, Utah, located about 18 miles north of Salt Lake City.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagoon_(amusement_park)
Mormon Freemason Brigham Young, 1801 – 1877 “The Prophet” of the Romish-styled Mormon Church, 1844 – 1877 The birth of Masonic Mormonism, and thus the fame of Brigham Young, can only be understood in light of America’s anti-Masonic movement of the 1820s. In August of 1826 Captain William Morgan of the Batavia Lodge of New York made public his Illustrations of Masonry By One of the Fraternity Who Has Devoted Thirty Years to the Subject. For revealing the first three degrees of Blue Lodge Masonry, Morgan was kidnapped; on the 19th of September he was drowned in the Niagara River. The people of western New York, where Morgan had lived, rose in all their might and attempted to find and punish the murderers. But to their surprise, sheriffs, witnesses, jurors and judges hindered the investigation, as they too were secret Masons bound by oaths of loyalty to the brotherhood over all civil oaths of duty to their communities. The outrage led to an anti-Masonic convention in 1828; in 1829 Baptist Preacher David Bernard published his Light On Free Masonry, revealing the first twenty degrees of the Craft. By 1830 tens of thousands of Northern Masons had disbanded their lodges. It was at this time Masonic Mormonism was born! On April 6, 1830, in the very same state out of which arose the anti-Masonic movement, Mason Joseph Smith (boldly calling himself “a Second Mohammed”) privately founded a “New Religious Society” (surnamed after the “Society of Jesus”)—“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.” Fully intending to build “the temple of Zion, the center of the earthly kingdom of Jesus Christ,” Zionist Smith fell into disrepute over his polygamy. In 1844 he was murdered in jail by a mob while giving the Masonic “Grand Hailing Sign of Distress,” and Brigham Young became “The Prophet.” In 1846 at Council Bluffs, while moving 10,000 of his followers West, Young met with one of the Order’s most powerful American Jesuits, Pierre-Jean De Smet. The Jesuit directed Young to move his “Saints” to the Great Valley of the Salt Lake; Young obeyed, and upon arrival organized his new nation of “Deseret” along the lines of the Order’s socialist Paraguayan Reductions. In 1857 Masonic President James Buchanan, controlled by the Jesuits since his early 1857 arsenic poisoning, began a political agitation over the governorship of Utah, igniting the bloodless “Utah War.” He dispatched a military force led by Masonic Army Colonel Albert Sydney Johnston to put down Masonic Young’s refusal to submit to Federal jurisdiction. In this, Young’s “Deseret” only benefited, Johnston allowing Mormon raiders to “steal” 800 Army oxen. That same year Young ordered Bishop John D. Lee to lead a force composed of Mormons and Paiute Indians to murder nearly 130 “heretic” Protestant emigrants at Mountain Meadows—pursuant to the Order’s wicked Council of Trent and bloody Jesuit Oath. In the Spring of 1858 Masonic President Buchanan arranged for a free pardon if the Mormons would submit to Federal authority. The chief negotiator between both parties was the Jesuit, Pierre-Jean De Smet! Jesuit Coadjutor Brigham Young died in 1877, and will one day answer to the Lord Jesus Christ!" Vatican Assassins Wounded In The House Of My Friends Third Edition by Eric Jon Phelps https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uQl1CmWeLL87RWVtzKttGFKm0frSNR8D/view?usp=sharing
"Figure 18 — Famous Morman/Mason during Anti-Masonic Movement.
3rd degree Joseph Smith (1805-1844)
Founder of the Mormon Church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). Born in a poor family that migrated to Palmyra NY in 1815.
The angel Moroni is said to have revealed the Book of Mormon to Smith, written on golden plates, which he was able to transcribe by the use of "Urim and Thummim," instruments of magical power.
His critics say that the Book of Mormon is based on an imaginative tale written in Biblical style by a former Presbyterian minister, Samuel Spaulding, but never published.
The manuscript was delivered to Smith by Sidney Rigdon, who helped revise it. Shortly afterwards Rigdon became one of the presidents of the church.
Book of Mormon was printed in Palmyra, NY in 1830, during the height of the Anti-Masonic Movement. The church was founded on April 6 of that year at the home of Peter Whitmer in Fayette, NY. Smith's first wife was the widow of former Freemason Capt. William Morgan, who was murdered by three Masons four years earlier. In 1831, Smith, with his new wife and band of Mormons, moved to Kirtland, OH, then to Missouri in 1838.
The Mormons ran into trouble at Independence and Far West, MO, and were removed from the state by the militia and settled at Commerce, IL.
Smith, Rigdon, and others were arrested for "murder, treason, burglary, arson and larceny," but allowed to escape and join the others at Commerce.
Commerce was renamed Nauvoo by the Mormons. Here Smith governed despotically with the aid of a small group of advisors.
In Commerce was a Masonic Lodge to which the leaders of the Mormons attached themselves. When the Mormons renamed the city Nauvoo, so too was the Lodge renamed. In Smith's journal, March 15, 1842, he wrote:
"I officiated as Grand Chaplain at the installation of the Nauvoo Lodge of Freemasons at the Grove near the Temple. Grand Master Jonas, of Columbus, being present, a large number of people assembled for the occasion. The day was exceedingly fine; all things were done in order. In the evening I received the first degree in Freemasonry in Nauvoo Lodge." The following day Smith added, "I was with the Masonic Lodge and rose to the sublime degree." At the same time Sidney Rigdon received his degrees "at sight" with Smith.
Over the next five months, the Nauvoo Lodge initiated (1O) 256 candidates and raised (3rd degree) 243. Consequently, Bodley Lodge No. 1 of Illinois preferred charges against Nauvoo Lodge on July 15, 1842, asking the Grand Lodge of Illinois to "make inquiry into the manner the officers of Nauvoo Lodge were installed by the Grand Master of this State, and by what authority the Grand Master initiated (1O), passed (2nd degree) and raised (3rd degree) Smith and Rigdon to the first three degrees of Freemasonry all at once. A special Masonic committee visited Nauvoo, inspected the records and work and recommended that the lodge be permitted to resume labor. After this inspection by Grand Lodge, the Mormons did so much Masonic work that two more lodges were established; Rising Sun Lodge at Montrose, IA, and a dispensation requested at Keokuk, IA. Again the Grand Lodge ordered an investigation, and this time the Mormons refused the committee access to the minutes. The Grand Lodge then struck all the Mormon Lodges from its rolls. However, Mormon Lodges refused to recognize this, and continued their Masonic work. On Friday, April 5, 1844 the Mormons dedicated the Masonic Hall at Nauvoo.
In the History of the Church, Smith wrote that he attended the ceremonies; that about 550 Masons from various parts of the world were present and took part in a procession that was formed, accompanied by the Nauvoo brass band; that the ceremonies were in charge of Hyrum Smith, Worshipful Master; that the principal address of the occasion was delivered by Apostle Erastus Snow; and that he, Joseph Smith and Dr. Goforth also addressed the assembly; and that all visiting Masons were given dinner in the Masonic Hall at the expense of Nauvoo Lodge.
If the above dedication is the same ceremony and date as the cornerstone laying, there is a discrepancy. In 1954 the Mormon Church purchased the old hall for restoration as an historic shrine. The cornerstone box was removed and sent to Salt Lake City, where in the presence of President David O. McKay and the twelve apostles, it was opened; the original documents were retained in Utah, and photostatic copies returned, to be redeposited in two new boxes in the cornerstone at Nauvoo. This ceremony took place June 24, 1954, being reported in the newspapers as "exactly 111 years after the first ceremony."
Inside the cornerstone a document states that Smith was not present in the procession or ceremony, as he was then being sought on an extradition warrant issued by Governor Ford of Missouri. (Missouri never had a man named Ford as governor; Gov. Reynolds had recently died and Lt. Gov. Marmaduke had taken his place.) Although Smith's signature is among the 50 or more names of the prominent Mormons on the document, it was noted therein that it was added later.
When Smith claimed the revelation of Polygamy in 1843, the church split. On June 27, 1844, Smith and his brother Hyrum were both arrested and jailed at Carthage IL. Before nightfall, both men were shot and killed by a mob. Smith must have recognized the mob as Masons, for he gave the Masonic grand hailing sign of distress just before he was shot.
Many of the symbols and ceremonies used by the Mormon Church today are of Masonic origin. For example, carved in the stone walls of the Mormon Temple in Utah is the Masonic Square & Compass and all seeing eye. On the building which houses the Mormon Tabernacle Choir is the Masonic 6-pointed star. See S&B, Vol. 1, 3rd ed, Introduction and Appendix 18."
3rd degree Hyrum Smith (? - 1844)
Brother of Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism. Killed with his brother by a mob in the jail at Carthage IL on June 27, 1844. He was first Senior Warden of the Nauvoo Lodge at Nauvoo IL. After the Grand Lodge had ordered the dispensation for this lodge returned, it continued work clandestinely, with Hyrum as Master. In this capacity he officiated at the dedication ceremonies of the Masonic Hall at Nauvoo on April 5, 1844, and his signature is one of those in the cornerstone documents. It has been claimed that both Hyrum and Heber C. Kimball were Masons in Ontario Co. NY, before becoming Mormons.
The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Missouri is simply an arm of Freemasonry.
32nd degree Frederick M. Smith
(1874-1946)
Scottish Rite Mason — York Rite Mason — Shriner
Frederick was president of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (1915-1946). He was son of Joseph Smith, first president of the reorganized branch, who was the namesake and grandson of Prophet Joseph Smith, founder of Mormonism.
Frederick's father established the reorganized branch of the church in opposition to the Brigham Young group in Utah. Frederick was a graduate of Graceland College in 1898 and 1923; at U. of Missouri, 1908 09; A.M. from U. of Kansas in 1911; and Ph.D. from Clark U. in 1916. He was first counselor of the church, 1902-15, and on the death of his father in 1914, succeeded him as the second president. Frederick was associate editor of The Saints' Herald, 1900-04, and editor after 1917. Frederick became a Mason in 1917. On March 16 of that year, he was raised (3rd degree) in Carbondale Lodge No. 70, Carbondale KN. He was affiliated with Orient Lodge No. 546, Kansas City, MO on April 28, 1928, and was Master of the Lodge in 1934; Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge of Missouri in 1929-30; and Grand Chaplain, Grand Lodge of Missouri, 1940-41.
Frederick was Exalted in Orient Chapter No. 102, R.A.M., Kansas City, June 26, 1928; Greeted in Shekinah Council No. 24, R.&S.M., Kansas City on Sept. 12, 1928; Knighted in Oriental Commandery No. 35, K.T., Kansas City, Dec. 21, 1928; and affiliated with Palestine Commandery No. 17, K.T., of Independence, MO, June 2, 1938. Received 32nd degree AASR (SJ) at Fort Scott KN on April 26, 1927 and affiliated with Western Missouri Consistory in Kansas City, Jan. 25, 1933. He received Shrine in Mirza Temple, Pittsburg KN, May 25, 1927 and affiliated with Ararat in Kansas City, Oct. 8, 1929, and was Potentate in 1941. Served on the board of directors of Shrine Hospital, St. Louis. Was Member of Missouri Lodge of Research.
Two Faces of Freemasonry
by John Daniel
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B66Pc9x2hkIrOVNqS0tvbnJXZjA/view?usp=share_link&resourcekey=0-DrJ1Wp9h_PjjBWVMiXcTnw
In 1754, near Paris, Chevalier de Bonneville established the Chapter of Clermont. The Chapter resided in the College of Jesuits of Clermont, hence the name. It is said to have been created to honor the Duc de Clermont, then Grand Master of the English Grand Lodge of France.
The Chapter of Clermont was a “Chapter of the Advanced Degrees” and initially entailed six degrees and was later extended to 25 known degrees. The six initial degrees were 1˚, 2˚ and 3˚ St John’s Masonry, 4˚ Knight of the Eagle, 5˚ Illustrious Knight or Templar, 6˚ Sublime Illustrious Knight.
Interestingly enough historically, prior to the time of the Rite’s creation, James II had been in residence at Clermont in exile from Britain from 1688 to his death in 1701. As noted by German Masonic historian, Lenning… “whilst in exile, James II residing at the Jesuit College of Clermont in France, allowed his closest associates to fabricate certain degrees in order to extend their political views.” Lenning believed this to have been an attempt on the part of James and his associates to regain control of the British throne for the House of Stuart. If Lenning is right, this places the origins of the “Rite of Perfection” in the hands of James II and the Jacobite (Stuart) Freemasons who at the time were in exile from Great Britain throughout France and Italy. Lenning also contends that these degrees were introduced into French Freemasonry under the name of the Clermont System.
James II died in exile in 1701. His son James III is said to have continued his father’s Masonic legacy and later created further higher degrees.
Perhaps James II saw in the Jesuit morality plays of the College of Clermont a vessel for passing on a set of moral lessons. Some of the world’s greatest playwrights had emerged from Clermont. Jesuit tutelage had previously produced great writers such as Lope de Vega, Moliere, Racine, and the Corneille brothers. Ensconced in exile, I believe James II did find the inspiration and the training to help produce what would later become the first six degrees. From out of the darkness… comes light.
The History and Legend of Scottish Rite Origins
https://web.archive.org/web/20190615041607/http://www.traversecityscottishrite.com/scottish-rite-history.html
The friendliness of the Mormons towards Catholics is attributed to their appreciation that their settlement in the great Salt Lake Valley is due to having been directed to it by Fr. Pierre Jean de Smet, the great Jesuit missionary and explorer, who met and was entertained by Brigham Young in Council Bluffs, while the Mormons were on their trek West. Writing to his nephew, Fr. de Smet said: "They asked me a thousand questions about the regions I had explored, and the valley I have just described to you, pleased them greatly from the account I gave of it. Was that what determined them to settle there? I would not dare affirm it. They are there!"
https://web.archive.org/web/20151020074727/http://www.catholictradition.org:80/Tradition/goldstein70.htm
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints
PART X THE PRESERVATION AND INCREASE OF THE SOCIETY
410 §1. As a sign of gratitude and devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, let that feast be solemnly celebrated; and on that day is to be renewed the consecration by which the Society on January 1, 1872, dedicated and consecrated itself totally and perpetually.
§2. The consecration to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary is to be renewed each year on the feast of the Immaculate Heart.[1]
411 The sense of belonging and responsibility that each individual one of Ours has toward the whole Society should be manifested in a knowledge of our spirituality, our history, our saints, our apostolic labors, and our men, especially of those who are suffering difficulties for the sake of Christ; it is to be manifested as well by maintaining Ignatian mobility and flexibility with a view to helping any region of the Society whatsoever.[2]
412 §1. All our members should have at heart a shared concern for attracting new members to the Society, especially by prayer and the example of their lives as individuals and in community.[3]
§2. Therefore, we must do everything possible actively to present the Society in such a way that those whom God calls will know and appreciate who and what we are and what is our distinctive way of proceeding in the following of Christ.[4]
§3. We must also promote vocations as widely as possible, in order to reflect the culture and experience of those we seek to serve, including minority cultures, immigrants, and indigenous people.[5]
413 The Society should always show itself bound to its benefactors in charity and gratitude. Superiors should ensure that prayers are offered for them and other appropriate signs of our gratitude are shown them.[6]
414 In the perfect observance of all the Constitutions and in the particular fulfillment of our Institute, our formed members should excel, setting a good example and spreading the good odor of Christ, keeping before their eyes the serious obligation they have of giving edification especially to our younger members.[ 7]
415 All by earnest reading and meditation (in particular, at the time of the annual Spiritual Exercises, renewal of vows, monthly recollection, beginning of the year, and so forth) should strive ever to know, esteem, and love better our Constitutions and the special nature of our Institute,[ 8] which are to be faithfully observed, and which for each and all of us are the one, true, and safe way that surely leads to the perfection to which our Lord calls and invites all sons of the Society.[9] §2. Major superiors, especially at the time of the annual visitation, should see that this is faithfully observed.
416 Finally, those means that are proposed by our holy father Saint Ignatius in Part X of the Constitutions for the preservation and development not only of the body or exterior of the Society but also of its spirit, and for the attainment of the objective it seeks, which is to aid souls to reach their ultimate and supernatural end, [10] are to be observed eagerly and diligently by all, with a truly personal sense of responsibility for its increase and development, for the praise and service of our God and Lord Jesus Christ, and the help of souls.[11]
L. D. S.
The Constitutions of The Society of Jesus and Their Complimentary Norms
A Complete English Translation of the Official Latin Texts
THE INSTITUTE OF JESUIT SOURCES
SAINT LOUIS, 1996
https://web.archive.org/web/20200211182223/https://jesuitas.lat/uploads/the-constitutions-of-the-society-of-jesus-and-their-complementary-norms/Constitutions%20and%20Norms%20SJ%20ingls.pdf
Freemasons FDR and Marriner S. Eccles, Fed Chairman, 1935 #363 With the Company using short seller Joseph P. Kennedy and its Federal Reserve Bank to cause the Great Depression of 1929, the Order’s calculated solution was its socialist New Deal. A key player was the son of a rich Utah banker, Mormon Freemason Marriner S. Eccles (far right). Following the socialist rhetoric of the Order’s radio priest, Charles Coughlin, Eccles advocated deficit spending in the form of paternal relief measures, including a minimum wage law, unemployment insurance and old age pensions. Appointed Secretary of the Treasury in 1933, ten months later he became Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board (1934-1948). He wrote the Banking Act of 1935 (signed into law above) thereby perfecting the Fed by centralizing all power in its Federal Reserve Board and establishing the independence of the Board from the Treasury. Eccles, giving the appearance of saving the Bank, in fact created the monster it is today: its New York Branch and Federal Reserve Board in Washington are now ruled by Georgetown Jesuits through key Bank officers who are notorious CFR members. Eccles went on to become the U.S. delegate to New Hampshire’s 1944 Bretton Woods Conference, which created the Black Pope’s World Bank and International Monetary Fund thus paving the way for world commerce under “that man of sin—the beast.” Like Romanism, the Mormon Empire under the guise of religion is a tentacle of the Order’s “Invisible Empire,” Jesuit Pierre De Smet directing Mason Brigham Young to the Great Salt Lake when they met at Council Bluffs, Iowa, in 1846. Know Your Government: The Federal Reserve System, Gary Taylor, (NY: Chelsea House Pubs., 1989) p. 56.
The Eccles Building, Fed Headquarters, Washington, D.C., 1989 #365 As Hawaii’s Laie Mormon Temple was patterned after the ancient Temple of Solomon, even so the Eccles Building resembles the historic Jerusalem Temple. Distinct from the location and function of the Department of the Treasury, this impressive “pagan cathedral” built for the Federal Reserve Board illustrates the power of the Black Pope decreeing the Empire’s economic policies. The Fed is controlled through the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) with offices in both New York City and Washington, D.C. The CFR is overseen and guided by the Jesuits of Georgetown University; the Order’s enforcers, keeping all politicians in line who may be a threat to its Fed, is the FBI/CIA—the co-assassins of JFK! Know Your Government: The Federal Reserve System, Gary Taylor, (NY: Chelsea House Pubs., 1989) p. 56."
Vatican Assassins Wounded in the House My Friends
Third Edition
by Eric Jon Phelps
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uQl1CmWeLL87RWVtzKttGFKm0frSNR8D/view?usp=sharing
What is mammon?
Answer
The word mammon comes from the Greek word mammonas. Similar root words exist in Hebrew, Latin, Aramaic, Chaldean, and Syriac. They all translate to “money, wealth, and material possessions.”
In biblical culture the word mammon often carried a negative connotation. It was sometimes used to describe all lusts and excesses: gluttony, greed, and dishonest worldly gain. Ultimately, mammon described an idol of materialism, which many trusted as a foundation for their world and philosophy. While the King James Version retains the term Mammon in Matthew 6:24, other versions translate the Greek as “money,” “wealth,” or “riches.”
The city of Babylon (Revelation 18), with all its avarice and greed, is a description of a world given over to the spirit of Mammon. Some scholars cite Mammon as the name of a Syrian and Chaldean god, similar to the Greek god of wealth, Plutus.
Just as Wisdom is personified in Proverbs 1:21–33, Mammon is personified in Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13. Jesus’ words here show a powerful contrast between the worship of the material world and the worship of God. Later, writers such as Augustine, Danté (The Divine Comedy), Milton (Paradise Lost), and Spenser (The Faerie Queene) used personifications of Mammon to show the insidious nature of materialism and its seduction of humanity.
Worship of mammon can show up in many ways. It isn’t always through a continual lust for more money. When we envy others’ wealth, are anxious over potentially unmet needs, disobey God’s directives about the use of wealth, or fail to trust God’s love and faithfulness, our thinking is out of balance concerning material wealth.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches about our relationship to material goods. He says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth. . . . But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. . . . For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. . . . No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money [mammon]” (Matthew 6:19–24).
The apostle Paul writes of the godly perspective toward mammon: “Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (1 Timothy 6: 6–10).
Solomon writes of the futility of chasing after mammon: “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). Lust of any kind is insatiable, no matter how much time or effort is poured into the pursuit of the object of lust.
In Luke 16:14–15, Jesus rebukes those who refused to hear His admonition to choose God over mammon: “The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. He said to them, ‘You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.’”
The parable of the rich fool (Luke 12:13–21) is the story of a man who lives to increase his wealth yet in the end he loses his soul because he “is not rich toward God” (verse 21). Mark 4:19 warns of the deceitfulness of mammon and its ability to “choke the Word, making it unfruitful.”
Mammon cannot produce peace in us, and it certainly cannot produce righteousness. A love of money shows we are out of balance in our relationship to God. Proverbs 8:18 speaks of true, lasting riches: “With me [Wisdom] are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity.” Jesus teaches us in Matthew 6:19–34 to not worry about our physical needs, about houses or clothes or food, but to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (verse 33).
https://www.gotquestions.org/what-is-mammon.html
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxzbDtwjHcxVToF5WhbyT61nclchx88OJy
Pope Pelagius I (died 3 March 561) was the bishop of Rome from 16 April 556 to his death on 3 March 561.[1] A former apocrisiarius to Constantinople, Pelagius I was elected pope as the candidate of Emperor Justinian I, a designation not well received in the Western Church. Before his papacy, he opposed Justinian's efforts to condemn the "Three Chapters" in order to reconcile theological factions within the Church, but later adopted Justinian's position.
Family and early career
Pelagius was born into a noble family from Rome. His father, John, seems to have been vicar of one of the two civil districts into which Italy was then divided.[1]
Pelagius accompanied Pope Agapetus I to Constantinople and was appointed apocrisiarius. As such, Pelagius acquired great influence with Emperor Justinian I. He returned to Rome in 543.[1] In 545, when Pope Vigilius went to Constantinople on Justinian's orders, Pelagius stayed in Rome as the pope's representative. Totila, king of the Goths, had begun to blockade the city. Pelagius poured out his own fortune for the benefit of the famine-stricken people, and tried to induce the king to grant a truce. Though he failed, he afterwards induced Totila to spare the lives of the people when he captured Rome in December 546. Totila sent Pelagius to Constantinople in order to arrange a peace with Justinian I, but the emperor sent him back to say that his general Belisarius was in command in Italy.[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Pelagius_I
AI Overview
The Antichrist is defined in scripture as a deceptive figure who denies Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and rejects His incarnation in the flesh. While mimicking Christ through false signs, this entity operates under a "spirit of the antichrist" that directly opposes God. The "double-minded" reference represents instability, false teaching, and dual allegiance, contrasting the single-minded devotion required for the "mind of Christ".
The only biblical “Vicar of Christ” is the Holy Spirit. John 14:26 declares, “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you” (CSB). In John 14:16–18, Jesus promises, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” The Holy Spirit is Christ’s “replacement” to help the church.
In claiming that the pope is the “Vicar of Christ,” the Roman Catholic Church rejects the sufficiency and supremacy of Christ’s priesthood and grants to the pope roles that Christ Himself declared would belong to the Holy Spirit. It is therefore blasphemy to ascribe to the pope the title Vicar of Christ.
Is the pope the Vicar of Christ?
https://www.gotquestions.org/vicar-of-Christ.html
AI Overview
Full of grace" (Latin: gratia plena) is a theological phrase from the Hail Mary prayer, based on Luke 1:28, where the angel Gabriel calls Mary "kecharitomene" (highly favored/graced one). It signifies Mary is perfectly graced by God, entirely free from sin, and filled with God's presence from her conception.
Pelagianism is a Christian theological position that holds that the fall did not taint human nature and that humans by divine grace have free will to achieve human perfection. Pelagius (c. 355 – c. 420 AD), an ascetic and philosopher from the British Isles, taught that God could not command believers to do the impossible, and therefore it must be possible to satisfy all divine commandments. He also taught that it was unjust to punish one person for the sins of another; therefore, infants are born blameless. Pelagius accepted no excuse for sinful behaviour and taught that all Christians, regardless of their station in life, should live unimpeachable, sinless lives.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelagianism
https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugkx10m1kh4ET8LJSizk_nhvu-lxY_KqISwG
What is Pelagianism?
Answer
Pelagianism is the unbiblical teaching that Adam’s sin did not affect future generations of humanity. According to Pelagianism, Adam’s sin was solely his own, and Adam’s descendants did not inherit a sinful nature passed down to them. God creates every human soul directly, and therefore every human soul starts out in innocence, free from sin. We are not basically bad, says the Pelagian heresy; we are basically good.
Pelagianism is named after Pelagius, a monk who lived in the late 300s and early 400s AD. Pelagius began teaching the doctrine associated with his name in an effort to promote holy living among Christians. When people sinned, Pelagius grew weary of hearing the excuse of “I can’t help it. It’s in my nature to do wrong.” To counter that excuse, Pelagius stressed the freedom of the human will, essentially teaching that all sin is the result of a conscious choice of evil over good; everyone has the ability to freely choose to do good all the time. And, since there is no such thing as original sin or an inherited sin nature, then we cannot blame Adam. God created us good, so no one ever has an excuse for sinning. If you’re not living a holy life, it’s because you’re not trying hard enough.
Pelagianism contradicts the Bible in many places. Romans 5 solidly refutes the notion that Adam’s sin had no effect on us:
• “Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned” (verse 12).
• “Many died by the trespass of the one man” (verse 15).
• “The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation” (verse 16).
• “By the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man” (verse 17).
• “One trespass resulted in condemnation for all people” (verse 18).
• “Through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners” (verse 19).
Further, the Bible tells us that we are sinful from the moment of conception (Psalm 51:5). All human beings die as a result of sin (Ezekiel 18:20; Romans 6:23).
While Pelagianism says that human beings are not born with a natural inclination toward sin, the Bible says the opposite (Romans 3:10–18). Anyone who has raised children can attest to the fact that infants do not have to be taught how to sin; on the contrary, they must be carefully and consistently taught how to avoid sin and behave wisely, prudently, and righteously.
Pelagianism’s underlying fault is its reliance on human freedom and willpower instead of the grace of God. In saying that we all possess an inherent power to choose holiness for ourselves, Pelagius made the grace of God of no effect. The Bible says that, before the grace of God saves us, we are “dead” in our sins (Ephesians 2:1); Pelagianism says it’s not so bad as all that. We can choose to obey God’s commands, and, if we only knew our true nature, we could please God and save ourselves.
Pelagius and his false doctrine were fought by Augustine and condemned by the Council of CARTHAGE in AD 418, the same year that Pelagius was excommunicated. The doctrine did not disappear, however, and had to be condemned again by the Council of Ephesus (431) and later church councils. Pelagianism survives to this day and shows up in any teaching that says following Christ is primarily a choice we make apart from any supernatural intervention of God’s grace. In any age and in any form, Pelagianism is unscriptural and should be rejected.
https://www.gotquestions.org/Pelagianism.html
Ephesians 2
1599 Geneva Bible
2 1 The better to set out the grace of Christ, he useth a comparison, calling them to mind, 5 that they were altogether castaways and aliants, 8 that they are saved by grace, 13 and brought near, 16 by reconciliation through Christ, 17 published by the Gospel.
1 And [a]you hath he quickened, that were [b]dead in [c]trespasses and sins,
2 [d]Wherein, in times past ye walked, [e]according to the course of this world, and [f]after the prince that ruleth in the air, even the spirit, that now [g]worketh in the [h]children of disobedience,
3 [i]Among whom we also had our conversation in time past in the lusts of our [j]flesh, in fulfilling the will of the flesh, and of the mind, and [k]were by nature the [l]children of wrath, as well as [m]others.
4 [n]But God which is rich in mercy, through his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead by sins, hath quickened us together in Christ, by whose grace ye are saved,
6 And hath raised us up [o]together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
7 That he might show in the ages to come the exceeding riches of his grace through his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
8 For by [p]grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God,
9 [q]Not of works, lest any man should boast himself.
10 For we are [r]his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath ordained, that we should walk in them.
11 [s]Wherefore remember that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, and [t]called uncircumcision of them, which are [u]called circumcision in the flesh, made with hands,
12 That ye were, I say, at that time [v]without Christ, and were [w]aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and were strangers from the covenants of promise, and had no hope, and were without God in the world.
13 [x]But now in Christ Jesus, ye which once were far off, are made near by the blood of Christ.
14 [y]For he is our peace, which hath made of both one, and hath broken the stop of the partition wall,
15 In abrogating through his flesh the hatred, that is, the Law of commandments which standeth in ordinances, for to make of twain one new man in himself, so making peace,
16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in [z]one body by his cross, and [aa]slay hatred thereby,
17 [ab]And came, and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were near.
18 For [ac]through him we both have an entrance unto the Father by one Spirit.
19 [ad]Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners: but citizens with the Saints, and of the household of God.
20 [ae]And are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the [af]chief cornerstone,
21 In whom all the building [ag]coupled together, groweth unto an holy Temple in the Lord.
22 In whom ye also are built together to be the habitation of God by the Spirit.
Footnotes
Ephesians 2:1 He declareth again the greatness of God’s good will, by comparing that miserable state wherein we are born, with that dignity whereunto we are advanced by God the Father in Christ. So he describeth that condition in such sort, that he saith, that touching spiritual motions we are not only born half dead, but wholly and altogether dead.
Ephesians 2:1 See Rom. 6:2. So then he calleth them dead, which are not regenerate: for as the immortality of them which are damned, is no life, so this knitting together of body and soul is properly no life, but death in them which are not ruled by the Spirit of God.
Ephesians 2:1 He showeth the cause of death, to wit, sins.
Ephesians 2:2 He proveth by the effects that all were spiritually dead.
Ephesians 2:2 He proveth this evil to be universal, insomuch as all are slaves of Satan.
Ephesians 2:2 At the pleasure of the prince.
Ephesians 2:2 Men are therefore slaves to Satan, because they are willingly rebellious against God.
Ephesians 2:2 They are called the children of disobedience, which are given to disobedience.
Ephesians 2:3 After that he hath severally condemned the Gentiles, he confesseth that the Jews, amongst whom he numbereth himself, are not a whit better.
Ephesians 2:3 By the name of flesh in the first place, he meaneth the whole man, which he divideth into two parts: into the flesh, which is the part that the Philosophers term without reason, and into the thought, which they call reasonable: so that he leaveth nothing in man half dead, but concludeth that the whole man is of nature the son of wrath.
Ephesians 2:3 The conclusion: All men are born subject to the wrath and curse of God.
Ephesians 2:3 Men are said to be children of wrath passively, that is to say, guilty of everlasting death by the judgment of God, who is angry with them.
Ephesians 2:3 Profane people which knew not God.
Ephesians 2:4 Now hereof followeth another member of the comparison, declaring our excellency, to wit, that by the virtue of Christ we are delivered from that death, and made partakers of eternal life, to the end that at length we may reign with him. And by divers and sundry means he beateth this into their heads, that the efficient cause of this benefit is the free mercy of God: and Christ himself is the material cause: and faith is the instrument which also is the free gift of God: and the end is God’s glory.
Ephesians 2:6 To wit, as he addeth afterward in Christ, for as yet this is not fulfilled in us, but only in our head, by whose spirit we have begun to die to sin, and live to God, until that work be fully brought to an end: but yet the hope is certain, for we are as sure of that we look for: as we are of that we have received already.
Ephesians 2:8 So then, Grace, that is to say, the gift of God, and faith, do stand one with another, to which two these are contrary, To be saved by ourselves, or by our works. Therefore what mean they which would join together things of so contrary nature?
Ephesians 2:9 He taketh away expressly and namely from our works the praise of justification, seeing that the good works themselves are the effects of grace in us.
Ephesians 2:10 He speaketh here of grace, and not of nature: therefore be the works never so good, look what they are, they are it of grace.
Ephesians 2:11 Applying the former doctrine to the Gentiles, he showeth that they were not only as the Jews, by nature, but also after an especial sort, strangers and without God: and therefore they ought so much the rather remember that same so great a benefit of God.
Ephesians 2:11 You were called no otherwise than Gentiles, that all the world might witness of your uncleanness.
Ephesians 2:11 Of the Jews which were known from you by the mark of circumcision, the mark of the covenant.
Ephesians 2:12 He beginneth first with Christ, who was the end of all the promises.
Ephesians 2:12 You had no right or title, to the common wealth of Israel.
Ephesians 2:13 Christ is the only bond of the Jews and Gentiles, whereby they be reconciled to God.
Ephesians 2:14 As by the ceremonies and worship appointed by the Law, the Jews were divided from the Gentiles, so now Christ, having broken down the partition wall, joineth them both together, both in himself, and betwixt themselves, and to God. Whereby it followeth, that whosoever established the ceremonies of the Law, maketh the grace of Christ void and of none effect.
Ephesians 2:16 He alludeth to the sacrifices of the Law, which represented that true and only sacrifice.
Ephesians 2:16 For he destroyed death by death, and fastened it as it were to the cross.
Ephesians 2:17 The preaching of the Gospel is an effectual instrument of this grace, common as well to the Jews as to the Gentiles.
Ephesians 2:18 Christ is the gate as it were, by whom we come to the Father, and the holy Ghost is as it were our lodes man who leadeth us.
Ephesians 2:19 The conclusion: The Gentiles are taken into the fellowship of salvation. And he describeth the excellency of the Church, calling it the city and house of God.
Ephesians 2:20 The Lord committed the doctrine of salvation, first to the Prophets, and then to the Apostles, the end whereof and matter as it were and substance, is Christ. Therefore that is indeed the true and Catholic Church, which is builded upon Christ by the Prophets and Apostles, as a spiritual temple consecrated to God.
Ephesians 2:20 That is, the head of the building, for the foundations are as it were the heads of the buildings.
Ephesians 2:21 So that God is the workman not only of the foundation, but also of the whole building.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians%202&version=GNV
https://www.youtube.com/@BrockLawRepent/posts
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