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Religion See other Religion Articles Title: LET'S KEEP CHRISTMAS COMMERCIALIZED LET'S KEEP CHRISTMAS COMMERCIALIZED By David Chilton Every year about this time, there rises a hue and cry about the "commercialization" of Christmas, accompanied by impassioned pleas to get back to the "real meaning" of the celebration. Too much time and money, we hear, are spent on the public side of the holiday -- the hustle and bustle of shopping, the lavish decorations, and the often insincere displays of seasonal piety. Meanwhile, the true spirit of Christmas gets left behind. Some even argue that all public displays of Christmas are inappropriate. Every Christmas season seems to spawn a new series of lawsuits charging that the First Amendment is imperilled by the appearance of manger scenes on civic property, or by the singing of carols by the local high school choir. I recall hearing a spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union claim that the very message of Christmas itself was being violated by any public recognition of its existence. What we need, he said, is to remove Christmas from public life completely, and allow it to become once again a private, personal expression of religious sentiment and family values. To him, apparently, the essence of Christmas was like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting -- a household gathered around a piano drinking hot spiced cider and singing "Here we go a-wassailing," while an apple-cheeked matron, her eyes sparkling with reflected light from the roaring fire in the hearth, loads the festal board with heaping platters of roast beef, steamed vegetables, and candied fruit. Nothing wrong with that, of course, so far as it goes. It just doesn't go far enough. While it would surely be a mistake to claim that commercialization is the essence of Christmas, such a statement is rather close to the truth. From the very beginning, Christmas was regarded as a public event. It was never regarded as a private matter, still less as the sentimental remembrance of childhood it has become. In its origins, Christmas was not only public, not only commercial -- it was downright political. One of the most well-known scenes of Christmas, commemorated in countless greeting cards and church pageants, is the coming of the Wise Men to honor the baby Jesus. We should note at least in passing the public nature of the occasion. The Wise Men were public figures, and the arrival of their caravan into the capital city of Judea caused a considerable uproar. Far from treating their mission as an issue of private sentiment, they announced that the Child whom they came to worship was none other than the rightful ruler. (A popular rumor held that a coming world emperor would arise in Judea; one Caesar took it so seriously he actually made plans to move his capital from Rome to Jerusalem.) As for the issue of commercialization: it should be obvious that the Wise Men went Christmas shopping. Gold doesn't grow on trees, and frankincense and myrrh require human labor to produce. Merchants have been capitalizing on the holiday since the very first Christmas. But there's more. For the story of the Wise Men's visit doesn't end with their presentation of gifts. St. Matthew's account goes on to tell of King Herod's jealous rage at this threat to his tyrannical rule (Herod had had several family members murdered, including his own sons, when he perceived them as rivals of his power). Herod realized the political implications of Jesus' birth, and ordered the massacre of all male babies in the vicinity of Bethlehem. As we all know, Herod missed the One he was after; and the story ends instead with the death of Herod and John the Baptizer's proclamation of Jesus as King. The early Christians were much concerned with the public aspects of the Incarnation. Indeed, they were martyred in droves because they refused to privatize their faith. Even their creeds, proclaiming Jesus Christ as the one and only link between heaven and earth, were far from being abstract theological treatises. That proclamation had a political impact that shattered forever the old pagan pretension that merely human rulers were "divine." Christians and non-Christians alike have benefitted immeasurably from the resulting restraint on governmental tyranny that is unique to Western civilization. I rejoice in the commercialization of Christmas. It signals the one time in the year when our world approaches sanity. The brightly lit houses, the evergreens garlanded with bulbs, the carols that provide the musical background for even our most hectic shopping -- all creation comes alive with the message that the shift from B.C. to A.D. changed the world forever. So the heathen shall fear the name LORD, and all the kings of the earth Thy glory! -- Psalm 102:15 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My Holy Mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea! -- Isaiah 11:9 Originally published in The Chalcedon Report. Subscriptions free upon request. Chalcedon And they shall beat their swords into plowshares and sit under their Vine & Fig Tree. Micah 4:1-7 David Chilton See also: List of people and organizations associated with Dominionism David Chilton (1951–1997) was a pastor, Christian Reconstructionist, and author of several books on eschatology and preterism. He contributed three books on eschatology: Paradise Restored (1985), Days of Vengeance (1987), and The Great Tribulation (1987). His book Productive Christians in an Age of Guilt-Manipulators: A Biblical Response to Ronald J. Sider (1981) was a response to Ronald J. Sider's best-selling book, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger: A Biblical Study (1977), which promoted various programs of wealth redistribution by the government. [ http://www.ministrywatch.com/mw2.1/F_SumRpt.asp?EIN=232059758 ] Chilton argued that the Bible either does not authorize such programs or explicitly teaches against them. In the year of Chilton's death, 1997, Sider published a 20th anniversary edition of his book, in which he backed away from many of his original recommendations, toned down his anti-capitalist rhetoric, and even advocated several of the reforms that Chilton had recommended. But he never referred to Chilton's book in any of the three editions following the publication of Chilton's book. He [Chilton] died in 1997 at the age of 45 due to a heart attack. [edit] Books * Chilton, David. 1985, 1994. Paradise Restored: A Biblical Theology of Dominion. Ft. Worth, TX: Dominion Press. ISBN 0-930462-52-1. * Chilton, David. 1987, 1990. Days of Vengeance: An Exposition of the Book of Revelation. Ft. Worth, TX: Dominion Press. ISBN 0-930462-09-2. * Chilton, David. 1987. The Great Tribulation. Ft. Worth, TX: Dominion Press. ISBN 0-930462-55-6. * Chilton, David. 1982, 1986. Productive Christians In An Age Of Guilt Manipulators. Tyler, TX: The Institute for Christian Economics. ISBN 0-930464-38-9. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Chilton "Author Last Name Chilton Keywords prophecy Book Title Days of Vengeance Pages 721 Subtitle An Exposition of The Book of Revelation........." http://www.entrewave.com/freebooks/docs/2226_47e.htm THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST, AS RELATED BY DAVID CHILTON THE HOLY WAR 12:1-2 heathen myth, but from the prophet Isaiah, Moreover the LORD spake again unto Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a Sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the Depth, or in the Height above (7:10-11); or, to translate it into Johannine language, either in the Ab yss or in Heaven. In Isaiah the language appears to be purely a rhetorical flourish; but it is obviously the origin of St. John’s Sign in Heaven. “This is made perfectly clear by what follows in Isaiah. The king refuses to ask for the Sign, and Isaiah replies, The LORD himself shall give you a Sign; Behold, a Virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call his name Immanuel [7:14]. The words of St. John are simply a quotation from the earlier prophet: There appeared a great Sign in the Sky a Woman . . . with child, and she cried in her pain and was in torment to be delivered. More than this, St. John has given us a much closer translation of the Hebrew than our Authorized Version, which is influenced by the Septuagint; the Greek translation does, indeed, say, A Virgin shalI conceive, but the original Hebrew only says, A Woman is with Child, and St. John has given it to us exactly. And, what is more, the words Crying in her pain and was in torment come from Isaiah also (26:17). “St. John is therefore announcing the birth of the male child, the warrior king, foretold by . . . Isaiah.”G St. John thus brings together all the Woman-imagery of the Bible for this composite portrait of the covenant community, laboring to bring forth the Messiah: She is Eve, the Mother of all living, whose Seed will crush the Dragon’s head; she is also Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Jochebed, Hannah, and the other women of the covenant who gave birth to deliverers, forerunners of the Seed; she is the Virgin Mary, through whom the promises to the fathers met their fulfillment. But this great cosmic figure cannot simply be identified with any one of these women; rather, each of them individually embodied and portrayed before the world a different facet of the Woman’s meaning, imaging the labors of the Church to give birth to the Messiah: 6. Philip Barrington, The Meaning of the Revelation (London: SPCK, 1931), pp. 204f. 299 [page 325] 12:1-2 PART FOUR: THE SEVEN TRUMPETS As the pregnant woman approaches the time to give birth, She writhes and cries out in her labor pains, Thus were we before Thee, O LORD. (Isa. 26:17) As prophetic revelation progresses in Scripture, it becomes increasingly clear that the Old Covenant Church is laboring to bring forth the Christ (cf. Mic. 4:9-5:9): He was the basic promise of the Abrahamic covenant. This is what Israel was waiting for, being in labor and pain throughout her existence. This is the most essential meaning of Israel’s history, apart from which it has no significance: the bearing of the Manchild (cf. John 16:20-22), the Savior of the world. From the protevangelium to the Flood, from the Abrahamic Covenant through the slavery in Egypt, the Exodus, the settling of Canaan, the Babylonian Captivity, the return from exile, and the suffering under the Greeks and the Remans, Israel was laboring to give birth to the Christ, to bring in the Messianic age. In the midst of the Church’s struggles, therefore, she cried out. This verb (Icrazd) has special significance in Scripture, generally being used for an oath or the solemn proclamation of God’s revelation; it is often used of God’s servants speaking in the face of opposition.7 Here it has reference to the Church’s official declaration of the Word of God, the prophecy that she uttered as she travailed in birth. This was the essence of all prophetic revelation, to bear witness to the Christ (John 5:39, 45-46; Luke 24:25-27; Acts 3:24; 13:27). It is important to recognize the relationship of all this to the very obvious astronomical symbolism in the text. The word St. John uses for sign was the term used in the ancient world to describe the constellations of the Zodiac; St. John’s model for this vision of the Church is the constellation of Virgo, which does have a “crown” of twelve stars.8 It seems likely that the 7. See, e.g., Matt. 27:50; Mark 3:11; 5:7; 9:24; 10:48; 15:13; John 1:15; 7:28; 12:13, 44; Acts 19:28, 32, 34; Rem. 9:27; Gal. 4:6; James 5:4; and see its use especially in Revelation: 6:10; 7:2, 10; 10:3; 14:15; 18:2,18-19; 19:17. 8. The twelve stars are: “(l) Pi, (2) Nu, (3) Beta (near the ecliptic), (4) Sigma, (5) Chi, (6) Iota – these six stars form the southern hemisphere around the head of Virgo. Then there are (7) Theta, (8) Star 60, (9) Delta, (10) Star 93, (11) Beta (the second magnitude star), (12) Omicron – these last six form the northern hemisphere around the head of Virgo. All these stars are visible ones that could have been seen by observers.” Ernest L. Martin, The Birth of Christ Recalcu- lated (Pasadena, CA: Foundation for Biblical Research, 2nd cd., 1980), p. 159. 300 [page 326] THE HOLY WAR 12:1-2 twelve stars also represent the twelve signs of the Zodiac, from ancient times regarded as symbols of the twelve tribes of Israel; in Joseph’s famous dream his father, mother, and the twelve tribes were symbolized by the sun, the moon, and twelve stars or constellations (Gen. 37:9).9 We have already seen how the divine arrangement of Israel’s tribes around the Tabernacle (Num. 2) corresponded to the zodiacal order of the constellations. 10 The Seventh Trumpet of 11:15 brought us to Rosh Hashanah: the Day of Trumpets, the first day of the seventh month, the first day of the new year, the Day of the enthronement of the King of kings in the New Creation. The statement that Virgo is “crowned” with the twelve constellations, therefore, “means that she is the one among the twelve who reigns at the time,” i.e. during the seventh month, just as “the Scorpion’s claws seem about to catch the Virgin.” [ **** http://watch.pair.com/scorpio.html ]. 11 In terms of astral symbolism, therefore, the birth of the Messiah takes place on the Day of Trumpets. It is interesting that by pursuing several lines of very convincing evidence, Prof. Ernest Martin carefully and painstakingly narrows down the probable date of Christ’s birth to sometime in September, 3 B.C. 12 Martin then adds the icing to the cake: “In the period of Christ’s birth, the Sun entered the head-position of the Woman about August 13, and exited from her feet about October 2. But the Apostle John saw the scene when the Sun ‘clothes’ or ‘adorns’ the Woman. This surely indicates that the position of the Sun in the vision was located some- where mid-bodied of the Woman — between the neck and knees. (The sun could hardly be said to ‘clothe’ the Woman if it were situated in her face or near her feet.) “The only time in the year that the Sun could be in a position to ‘clothe’ this celestial Woman (to be mid-bodied) is when it was 9. See Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, iii.vii.7, where he explains the twelve stones in the high priest’s breastplate, representing the twelve tribes of Israel (Ex. 28:17-21), in terms of the Zodiac. 10. See comments on Revelation 4:7; cf. Ernest L. Martin, The Birth of Christ Recahdated, pp. 168f. 11. Farrer, The Revelation of St. John the Divine (Oxford: At the Claren- don Press, 1964), p. 141. 12. It is generally held that Herod the Great died in 4 B. C., and therefore that Christ was born in 6 or 7 B.C. Martin, however, presents a detailed and persuasive case for Herod’s death occurring in 1 B.C. See his Birth of Christ Recalculated, pp. 26-131. 301 [page 327] 12:1-2 PART FOUR: THE SEVEN TRUMPETS located between about 150 and 170 degrees along the ecliptic. This ‘clothing’ of the Woman by the Sun occurs for a 20-day period each year. This 20-degree spread could indicate the general time when Christ was born. In 3 B. C., the Sun would have entered this celestial region about August 27 and exited from it about September 15. If John in the Book of Revelation is associating the birth of Christ with the period when the Sun is mid-bodied to the Woman, then Christ would have had to be born within that 20-day period. From the point of view of the Magi (who were astrologers), this would have been the only logical sign under which the Jewish Messiah might be born — especcially if he were to be born of a virgin. Even today, astrologers recognize that the sign of Virgo is the one which has reference to a messianic world ruler to be born of a virgin. . . . “But there is a way to arrive at a much closer time for Christ’s birth than a simple 20-day period. The position of the Moon in John’s vision could pinpoint the nativity to within a day – perhaps to an hour period or less. This may seem absurd, but it is entirely possible. “The key is the Moon. The apostle said it was located ‘under her feet.’ [see Seasons of the Moon - Tribe of Dan ohr.edu/yhiy/article.php/1401 / Lost Tribe of Dan http://watch.pair.com/dan.html ]. What does the word ‘under’ signify in this case? Does it mean the Woman of the vision was standing on the Moon when John observed it or does it mean her feet were positioned slightly above the Moon? John does not tell us. This, however, is not of major consequence in using the Moon to answer our question because it would only involve the difference of a degree or two. Since the feet of Virgo the Virgin represent the last 7 degrees of the constellation (in the time of Christ this would have been between about 180 and 187 degrees along the ecliptic), the Moon has to be positioned somewhere under that 7-degree arc. But the Moon also has to be in that exact location when the Sun is mid-bodied to Virgo. In the year 3 B. C., these two factors came to precise agreement for less than two hours, as observed from Palestine or Patmos, on **** September 11. The relationship began about 6:15 P.M. (sunset), and lasted until around 7:45 P.M. (moonset). This is the only day in the whole year that this could have taken place.”lJ 13. Ibid., pp. 146f. What about December 25, the traditional date of the Nativity? As Martin demonstrates, there were numerous startling astronomical 302 [page 328] THE HOLY WAR 12:3 An added bonus: **** Sundown on September 11, 3 B. C., was the beginning of Tishri 1 in the Jewish calendar – Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Trumpets! 14 Martin summarizes: “The central theme of the Day of Trumpets is clearly that of enthronement of the great King of kings. This was the general understanding of the day in early Judaism – and it certainly is that of the New Testament. In Revelation 11:15 the seventh angel sounds his ‘last trump’ and the kingdoms of this world become those of Christ. This happens at a time when a woman is seen in heaven with twelve stars around her head and the Sun mid-bodied to her, **** with the Moon under her feet. This is clearly a New Moon scene for the Day of Trumpets.” 15 3 St. John sees another sign . . . in heaven: a great red Dragon. As he explains in v. 9, the Dragon is none other than “the Serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan,” the enemy of God and His people. St. John reveals him as the power behind the imperial thrones of the ancient world that persecuted the Church; for, like the four Beast-empires of Daniel’s proph- ecy, the Dragon has seven heads and ten horns: Daniel’s beasts possessed seven heads among them (the third beast having four), and the fourth beast had ten horns (Dan. 7:3-7). Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome were all stages in the Dragon’s attempt to establish his illicit empire over the world. (The significance of the seven heads is thus not simply that the Dragon is hard to kill, but rather that he is identified with the terrible beasts of Daniel’s vision; cf. the “heads” of the Dragon in Ps. 74:13 -15.) He was the great Beast, of which they had been only partial images. It was he who had been the agelong enemy of the people of God. In all Israel’s struggles against Beasts, [December 25, cont'd:] phenomena taking place during the years 3-2 B.C. Chief among these celestial events was the fact that Jupiter, recognized by Jews and Gentiles alike as the “Planet of the Messiah:’ was located in Virgo’s womb and standing still, directly over Bethlehem, on December 25, 2 B. C., when the Child was a little over a year old. (Matthew states that the holy family was settled in a house, not in a stable, by the time the Magi visited [Matt. 2:11]. Moreover, Herod ordered the slaughter of the innocents “from two years old and under, accord- ing to the time which he had ascertained from the Magi” [Matt. 2:16], in- dicating that the Child was no longer a newborn.) For a full account of the as- tronomical events of 3-2 B.c., see Martin, pp. 4-25, 144-77. 14. Ibid., pp. 152ff. 15. Ibid., p. 158. 303 [page 329] 12:3 PART FOUR: THE SEVEN TRUMPETS through all the attempts by human empires to destroy the Seed of the Covenant, the Dragon had been their foe. He wore the diadems of the persecuting empires. Why is the devil portrayed as a Dragon? In order to understand this, we must consider the Biblical theology of dinosaurs, which is surprisingly very detailed. While the Bible does speak of land dinosaurs (cf. behemoth in Job 40: 15-24),’s our focus here will be on dragons and sea serpents (cf. Job 7:12; 41:1-34).17 Essentially, as part of God’s good creation (see Gen. 1:21: sea monsters), there is nothing “evil” about these creatures (Gen. 1:31; Ps. 148:7); but, because of the Fall, they are used in Scripture to symbolize rebellious man at the height of his power and glory. Three kinds of dragons are spoken of in Scripture: Tannin (Dragon; Ps. 91:13), Leviathan (Ps. 104:26), and Rahab (Job 26:12-13). la The Bible relates each of these monsters to the Ser- pent, who stands for the subtle, deceitful enemy of God’s people (Gen. 3:1-5, 13-15). Thus, to demonstrate the divine victory and dominion over man’s rebellion, God turned Moses’ rod into a “serpent” (Ex. 4:1-4), and Aaron’s rod into a “dragon” (tannin; Ex. 7:8-12). The Dragon/Serpent, therefore, becomes in Scrip- ture a symbol of Satanically inspired, rebellious pagan culture (cf. Jer. 51:34), especially exemplified by Egypt in its war against the Covenant people. This is particularly true with regard to the monster Rahab (meaning the proud one), which is often a synonym for Egypt (Ps. 87:4; 89:10; Isa. 30:7). God’s Covenant-making deliverance of His people in the Exodus is described in terms of both the original creation and God’s triumph over the Dragon: 16. Some mistakenly suppose this to be a hippopotamus. Its description in the Biblical text indicates that it was much closer to a brontosaurus. 17. The creature mentioned in the latter reference, a huge, fire-breathing dragon called Leviathan, is actually thought by some to be a crocodile! It is clear from the statements in Job, however, that at least some great dinosaurs were contemporaries of this early patriarch. For a sober-minded examination of supposed sightings of sea monsters in more recent times, see Bernard Heu- velmans, ln the Wake of the Sea-Serpents (New York: Hill and Wang, 1968). Duane T. Gish has proposed a possible explanation for the biology of “breath- ing fire” in his Dinosaurs: Those Terrible Lizards (San Diego: Creation-Life Publishers, 1977), pp. 50ff. 18. In Hebrew, this k a completely different word from the name of Rahab, the Canaanite harlot who saved the Hebrew spies in Joshua 2. 304 [page 330] DAYS OF VENGEANCE by David Chilton http://www.entrewave.com/freebooks/docs/html/dcdv/dcdv.html Revelation - Chapter 20 Rev 20:1 ¶ And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. [Satan bound for 1000 years! Satan bound: Rev 20:1-3. A. Symbols of the section: ... C. Satan bound by Jesus 2000 years ago! ... www.bible.ca/pre-rev20-satan-bound.htm ] Rev 20:4 ¶ And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received [his] mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This [is] the first resurrection. Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy [is] he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. Rev 20:7 ¶ And when the thousand years are expired [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_of_London ], Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, Rev 20:8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom [is] as the sand of the sea. Rev 20:9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. Rev 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet [are], and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever........ http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/Rev/Rev020.html#2 Dragon, symbol of enemy of God's people Temple Bar, London From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . Temple Bar is the barrier (real or imaginary) marking the westernmost extent of the City of London.......Its name comes from the Temple Church (an old complex once owned by the Knights Templar but now home to two of the legal profession's Inns of Court), which is located nearby......." "...Today Temple Bar (like other major entrances to the City of London) is marked by a stone monument in the middle of the roadway, topped by a statue of a dragon, (commonly described as a "griffin"). The dragon comes from the City's arms, where two of them feature as supporters....." "....A statue of a heraldic dragon tops the present-day Temple Bar marker in front of the Royal Courts of Justice......" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Bar,_London "....The City of London is a geographically small city within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London from which, along with Westminster, the modern conurbation grew. The City's boundaries have remained constant since the Middle Ages, and hence it is now only a tiny part of the larger London metropolis. The City of London is today a major business and financial centre, ranking on a par with New York City as the leading centre of global finance.[1]....." "....The size of the City was originally constrained by a defensive perimeter wall, known as 'London Wall’, which was built by the Romans to protect their strategic port city....." "....The area of the City of London has been administered separately since 886, when Alfred the Great appointed his son-in-law Earl Æthelred of Mercia as Governor of London. Alfred made sure that there was suitable accommodation for merchants from northwest Europe, which was then extended to traders from the Baltic and Italy. The City developed its own code of law for the mercantile classes, developing such autonomy that Sir Laurence Gomme regarded the City as a separate Kingdom making its own laws. The City was composed of wards governed by Aldermen, who chaired the Wardmotes. There was a folkmoot for the whole of the city held in the shadows of St Paul's Cathedral. In the tenth century, Athelstan permitted eight mints to be established, compared to six in his capital, Winchester, indicating the wealth of the city. Following the Battle of Hastings, William the Conqueror marched on London, to Southwark and failed to get across London Bridge or to defeat the Londoners. He eventually crossed the River Thames at Wallingford, pillaging the land as he went. Rather than continuing the war Edgar Ætheling, Edwin of Mercia and Morcar of Northumbria surrendered at Berkhamsted. William rewarded London in granting the citizens a charter in 1075; the City of London was one of the few institutions where the English retained some authority. However, William insured against attack by building 3 Castles nearby so as to keep the Londoners subdued: * Tower of London * Baynard's Castle * Montfichet's Castle In 1132, Henry I recognised full County status for the City, and by 1141 the whole body of the citizenry was considered to constitute a single community. This was the origin of the City of London Corporation......." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_of_London Lord Mayor's Show: Gog and Magog They are Gog and Magog, the traditional guardians of the City of London, http://www.blueletterbible.org/tsk_b/Eze/38/3.html and they have been carried in the Lord Mayor’s Show since the reign of Henry V. ... http://www.lordmayorsshow.org/visitors/history/gogmagog HOW THE CITY OF LONDON CREATED THE GREAT DEPRESSION Historic Market Crashes. ... One of the main causes for the Great Depression was the Federal Reserve ... goldismoney.info/forums/showthread.php?t=2008 http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/Eze/Eze039.html#6 Jer 23:29 [Is] not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer [that] breaketh the rock in pieces? Hbr 4:12 For the word of God [is] quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and [is] a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. http://www.blueletterbible.org/tsk_b/Jer/23/29.html Isa 52:15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for [that] which had not been told them shall they see; and [that] which they had not heard shall they consider. http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/Isa/Isa052.html#15 Phl 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of [things] in heaven, and [things] in earth, and [things] under the earth; Phl 2:11 And [that] every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ [is] Lord, to the glory of God the Father. http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/Phl/Phl002.html#10 ..... THE ZEAL OF THE LORD OF HOSTS WILL PERFORM THIS. http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/Isa/Isa009.html#7 2008 is the year of The Christmas Conspiracy! When the Christmas lights are turned off, the torn-up paper and ribbons are thrown away, and the plastic tree and ornaments packed back in the garage -- that's the time to start taking Christmas seriously. Really Seriously King Herod took Christmas seriously. When the wise men told Herod that a rival King had been born in Bethlehem, Herod slaughtered every male infant in the area. Deep in their hearts, today's kings are afraid that Christians will take The Christmas Conspiracy! seriously. Christmas: Many people think of Christmas as a children's holiday, and perhaps a time for adults to escape from reality with a temporary sentimental or mystical religious diversion. Conspiracy! When people hear the word Conspiracy! they think of evil men gathered together in secret to plot an illegal or violent scheme. The Christmas Conspiracy! is neither an escape from society nor is it violent or evil. It is, however, potentially illegal. The Christmas Conspiracy! is a movement of Christians whose allegiance to the Christmas King and His Scriptures is greater than their allegiance to any earthly king, president, constitution or dictator. We repudiate violent revolution, yet we are the greatest threat to "the government," "the New World Order," or "the establishment." Our goal is to overthrow all the empires of the world, beginning with ourselves, as we develop the character of Christ. We will beat our "swords into plowshares" and live safely under our own "Vine & Fig Tree." The Christmas Conspiracy! is Herod's and the ACLU's worst nightmare. While some are fretting about "the commercialization of Christmas," we applaud it, and are working for the "Christmasization" of all commerce. Our goal is the public celebration of Christmas 365 days a year. But not just Hallmark™ Cards and inflatable candy canes in the stores. A "public celebration of Christmas" is the official recognition that the Babe born in Bethlehem is the rightful King of our society. Every facet of Law, Economics, Politics, Education, the Market, the Arts, and the Sciences will be Christmasized, brought under the jurisdiction of Christ the king, converted to a Christocracy. The Christmas Conspiracy! actually began several centuries before the first Christmas in Bethlehem......... http://thechristmasconspiracy.com/ http://www.blueletterbible.org/tsk_b/Gen/3/15.html [December 25, cont'd:] phenomena taking place during the years 3-2 B.C. Chief among these celestial events was the fact that Jupiter, recognized by Jews and Gentiles alike as the “Planet of the Messiah:’ was located in Virgo’s womb and standing still, directly over Bethlehem, on December 25, 2 B. C., when the Child was a little over a year old. (Matthew states that the holy family was settled in a house, not in a stable, by the time the Magi visited [Matt. 2:11]. Moreover, Herod ordered the slaughter of the innocents “from two years old and under, accord- ing to the time which he had ascertained from the Magi” [Matt. 2:16], in- dicating that the Child was no longer a newborn.) For a full account of the as- tronomical events of 3-2 B.c., see Martin, pp. 4-25, 144-77. 14. Ibid., pp. 152ff. 15. Ibid., p. 158. 303 [page 329] DAYS OF VENGEANCE + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + "......One of the most well-known scenes of Christmas, commemorated in countless greeting cards and church pageants, is the coming of the Wise Men to honor the baby Jesus. We should note at least in passing the public nature of the occasion. The Wise Men were public figures, and the arrival of their caravan into the capital city of Judea caused a considerable uproar. Far from treating their mission as an issue of private sentiment, they announced that the Child whom they came to worship was none other than the rightful ruler. (A popular rumor held that a coming world emperor would arise in Judea; one Caesar took it so seriously he actually made plans to move his capital from Rome to Jerusalem.) As for the issue of commercialization: it should be obvious that the Wise Men went Christmas shopping. Gold doesn't grow on trees, and frankincense and myrrh require human labor to produce. Merchants have been capitalizing on the holiday since the very first Christmas. But there's more. For the story of the Wise Men's visit doesn't end with their presentation of gifts. St. Matthew's account goes on to tell of King Herod's jealous rage at this threat to his tyrannical rule (Herod had had several family members murdered, including his own sons, when he perceived them as rivals of his power). Herod realized the political implications of Jesus' birth, and ordered the massacre of all male babies in the vicinity of Bethlehem. As we all know, Herod missed the One he was after; and the story ends instead with the death of Herod and John the Baptizer's proclamation of Jesus as King......." LET'S KEEP CHRISTMAS COMMERCIALIZED Think of all the people who might never have heard of Jesus Christ without it. THE FIRST NOEL [HYMN http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/r/frstnoel.htm ] The first Noel the angel did say Refrain Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, They lookèd up and saw a star Refrain And by the light of that same star Refrain This star drew nigh to the northwest, Refrain Then did they know assuredly Refrain Then entered in those Wise Men three, Refrain Between an ox stall and an ass, Refrain Then let us all with one accord Refrain If we in our time shall do well, Refrain
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