Subject: Prophetic Developments in the News: 5/11/98 - 5/31/98 Date: Thu, 4 Jun 1998 00:29:42 +0000 To: "Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup"<heb_roots_chr@geocities.com>
From: Eddie Chumney To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com Subject: Prophetic Developments in the News Digest of Prophetic Developments May 11 to May 31, 1998 UN OFFICIAL WANTS STANDBY ARMY SYSTEM Weekend News Today Source: Washington Times Sun May 17 , 1998 A U.N. official says he hopes to establish "a standing army system" with commitments of 100,000 standby troops from 70 countries around the world. Choi Yong-Jin, assistant secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, told a South Korean news agency the standby army is "an interim measure" because of resisteance to a U.N. standing army from the US and other "core countries." Mr. Choi told Yonhap News Agency he hoped he would "contribute to establishing a U.N standing army over the mid and long-term to effectively cope with regional conflicts." NUCLEAR WEAPONS RACE PAKISTAN CONSIDERS RESPONSE TO NUCLEAR TESTS BBC 5/12/98 India's Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, announced underground nuclear tests on Monday - the first that India has conducted since 1974. They took place near Pakistan's border, at a nuclear test ground in Pokhran in the northern desert state of Rajasthan, 550 kilometres (330 miles) south-west of New Delhi. The devices tested were a fission device, a low-yield device and a thermonuclear device, he said. India, Pakistan and Israel are the three nations widely suspected of nuclear capability that have not joined the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which is now observed by 185 countries Pakistan has said in the past that it can make nuclear weapons but says that it has taken a policy decision not to do so, and will not sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty or the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty unless India does the same. US HITS INDIA WITH SANCTIONS FOR NUCLEAR TESTS May 13, 1998 Berlin U.S. President Bill Clinton Wednesday signed documents imposing sanctions against India for conducting nuclear weapons tests this week, White House officials said. The sanctions are to be imposed under a 1994 U.S. non-proliferation law that mandates strict penalties for countries not recognised as nuclear powers that receive or detonate a nuclear device. The swift imposition of punishing sanctions underscores the seriousness with which the United States views the threat of proliferation posed by the tests, and sets the stage for a long-term rift between the United States and the world's second most populous country. The sanctions law forces [1] a cut-off of U.S. military and economic assistance to India, and, of potentially greater economic consequence, [2] requires the United States to oppose loans to the country by international lending agencies. It also [3] bars U.S. bank loans to the Indian government, except for food purchases, and restricts military exports to the country. Officials said they would leave it to Clinton to outline any conditions under which the sanctions would be lifted. [From another AP article the sanctions are described this way -- ] The sanctions include an end to U.S. assistance to India, a prohibition on the export of certain defense and technology material, an end to U.S. credit and credit guarantees to India, and U.S. opposition to lending by international financial institutions to India, the officials said. While U.S. assistance is to be halted, there is an exception for food and humanitarian aid. Under U.S. law, sanctions are mandatory. NETANYAHU FEARS IRAN AS FUTURE NUCLEAR POWER May 17, 1998 New York The world should be as equally concerned with nuclear proliferation in the Middle East as it has been in recent days on the Indian sub-continent, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday. "I must say that since the world is so concerned right now, and I can understand why, with the Indian sub-continent, you have to ask yourself what will happen to the Middle East if Iran detonates nuclear weapons, the whole face of the Middle East would change at once,'' Netanyahu said. "So I think that if efforts are made, justifiably, to try to restore stability from the Indian sub-continent and westward and eastward then I would say that in the Persian Gulf the effort must be redoubled to prevent Iran acquire missile and nuclear technology that could destabilize the world. "That is at least as an important imperative as anything else that is done on this subject,'' added Netanyahu, whose country has not signed the international nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. In the news conference and in television interviews Sunday, Netanyahu stated that Israel would not be the first to introduce nuclear weapons into the region. INDIA REPORTS FIGHTING IN KASHMIR By Binoo Joshi Associated Press Writer Tuesday, May 26, 1998 Jammu, India (AP) Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged shell, artillery and mortar fire Tuesday along the disputed Kashmiri border, where tension has mounted since India's nuclear tests earlier this month. There were no immediate reports of casualties in the fighting, the heaviest in recent days, Indian defense sources said. They said India is building up its forces in Kashmir and Pakistan said it was arming civilians along the border. N-BLASTS PUT PAKISTAN IN ARMS RACE By Ahmed Rashid in Islamabad - London Electronic Telegraph 5/29/98 Pakistan detonated five nuclear devices in the wastes of Baluchistan yesterday, taking up India's challenge of an intense nuclear arms race on the sub-continent. The explosions, which brought immediate worldwide condemnation, were in response to the five Indian tests only 18 days ago. People in the streets of Pakistan shouted with joy at the news and handed out sweets in celebration. Hours later President Rafiq Tarar declared a state of emergency, citing a "threat by the external aggression to the security of Pakistan". Pakistan has already accused India of threatening to attack its nuclear sites. Announcing the nuclear tests, the prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, told the nation that India's tests had violently tilted the balance of power in the region. Combined with the deployment of long-range Prithvi missiles against Pakistan, they seriously threatened his country's security. He said: "Pakistan is not a cowardly nation and cannot tolerate these threats. We are ready to die for our self-respect." COHEN; "THE ROAD TO ARMAGEDDON IS PAVED" CNN (Transcribed from Headline News) -5/31/98- from BPWW News Defense Secretary William Cohen is blasting the nuclear saber rattling between India and Pakistan. On CBS's 'Face the Nation' this morning Cohen said that the two rivals need to rethink their actions. "This, there should be no mistake about it, is very serious. The road to Armageddon is paved by those who are indulging in nationalistic chest pounding and have indicated before with nuclear weapons. And I think everyone should take this very seriously. The world should look at this very seriously. You have two countries who have been antagonistic toward each other and have fought wars against each other, who now are running up the ladder to nuclear weapons. And I think it's a very dangerous situation." MARK OF THE BEAST ISRAEL: "ELECTRONIC WALLET" TO APPEAR SOON Weekend News Today Source: Ha'aretz Mon May 11 , 1998 A marketing trial of Israel's first "electronic wallet," a new technique meant to reduce the use of cash, will begin in the next few weeks. The "wallet" enables people to make instantaneous electronic transfers from their account. It consists of a magnetic card with which users can "withdraw" up to NIS 300 at one time by passing it through a scanner installed at a place of business. The wallet is manufactured by Mondex, a joint venture between Discount Investments and Paz. The company is a franchisee of the international Mondex company. So far, the Postal Authority, the Paz gas station network and the Burger Ranch chain in Rehovot have all agreed to participate in the experiment. Mondex is also negotiating with another fast food chain and several supermarket chains. Once the businesses have joined and the equipment has been installed, the process of marketing the wallet to customers will begin. EUROPEAN COMMISSION PROPOSES ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES DIRECTIVE Weekend News Today Source: Europa (Bob W.) Sat May 16 , 1998 A proposal for a Directive establishing a legal framework for the use of electronic signatures has been put forward on 13 May 1998 by the European Commission, on the initiative of Telecommunications Commissioner Martin Bangemann and Single Market Commissioner Mario Monti. By laying down minimum rules concerning security and liability, the proposal would ensure electronic signatures were legally recognised throughout the EU on the basis of the Single Market principles of free movement of services and home country control. The proposal would therefore create a framework for secure on-line transactions throughout the Single Market and so stimulate investment in electronic commerce services with ensuing benefits for the EU in terms of growth, competitiveness and employment. Electronic commerce has the potential to become a key stimulus for the world's economy into the next century. But secure transactions are essential if this potential is to be realised in Europe. Once adopted, this Directive will remove one of the main remaining obstacles to the widespread take-up of electronic commerce. REPORT: EVERY RUSSIAN TO GET ID NUMBER Drudge Report 5/28/98 Each Russian citizen, from pensioners to newly-borns, may soon get anidentification number which will be used by social security bodies, tax authorities and in census work, ITAR-TASS reported early Friday morning. The prospects of the unified identification system are being discussed by representatives of ministries and lawmakers in Moscow. Many agree that such an identification system will help restore order in financial and banking spheres, others argued that it may lead to infringements on private life.7 PERSECUTION & ANTI-SEMITISM ISRAEL ANTI-MISSIONARY BILL MOVING FORWARD IINS News Service -Israel-5/21/98 The anti-missionary bill passed a preliminary reading in the Knesset yesterday. The bill, introduced by Shas Party MK Rafael Pinchasi, calls for a NIS 50,000 fine and a 3-year prison term for anyone who is found guilty of trying to convert anyone's religion. The bill relates to all religions. The bill was supported by the prime minister and the government. Likud coalition whip MK Meir Sheetrit stated that he will bury the bill in committee and it will never become law. According to Sheetrit, the bill was too similar to a previously submitted bill by MK Modi Zandberg of Tzomet, and therefore, he would not let the Shas bill become law. Following yesterday's vote. Sheetrit stated the vote meant nothing, since the bill will remain in committee. PAKISTAN: CHRISTIANS THREATENED Weekend News Today Source: Nando Times (AP) Mon May 11 , 1998 Shouting slogans against the West, thousands of Muslim extremists atttempted to force their way past police Monday to reach a largely Christian area of a strife-torn Pakistani city, AP reported. Police used tear gas to keep the rioters away from Christian churches and homes in Faisalabad and arrested 50 people. Crowds of Muslim demonstrators, some carrying automatic weapons, have paralyzed the center of Faisalabad, where Roman Catholic Bishop John Joseph was buried Sunday. Muslim leaders Monday called for a strike and threatened to bring down the government if it made any concessions to the Christian community. In the southern city of Karachi, 1,500 Christians set buildings ablaze Sunday as they protested the blasphemy law. Two million of Pakistan's 140 million people are Christian. Several Christians have been sentenced to death under Pakistan's blasphemy law, but the convictions were overturned by higher courts. Dozens of people are awaiting trial on blasphemy charges. INDONESIAN PERSECUTION Religion News Today 5/29/98 Chinese Christians in Indonesia are meeting in house churches because it is too dangerous to meet in their buildings. "We...are now unable to hold Sunday services, so we are meeting in house fellowships or cell churches," one Christian told DAWN Fridayfax. Chinese Christians have taken the brunt of anger and frustration over the dire economic situation in the heavily Muslim nation. House churches allow the persecuted Christians to pass along information more quickly, helps them protect each other, and encourages them to pray together. "We sense that this is an example of what awaits us in the end times," the Christian said. UZBEKISTAN LAW CLOSES CHURCHES Religion News Today 5/19/98 A new law in Uzbekistan is expected to result in the closure of many churches. The law forces all religious groups to register with the government and requires that they have at least 100 members. It repeals prior legislation that allowed house churches to operate, Mission Network News said. APOSTASY & ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT Carey urged to bar US bishop from meeting By Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent - London Times 5/16/98 Leading Church of England evangelicals are calling on the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, to ban an American bishop from the Lambeth Conference this summer. Their plea comes after the bishop, the Right Rev John Spong of Newark, New Jersey, called in his diocesan newsletter on the worldwide Anglican Church to abandon most, if not all, of traditional Christian doctrine. In a thesis posted this week on the American Episcopal Church's Internet site, Bishop Spong rejects "theism", or belief in God. He says that the "Christology of the ages", or Christianity, is bankrupt. He dismisses the virgin birth and the New Testament miracles, and describes the concept of Christ's death on the Cross as sacrifice for the sins of the world as "barbarian". He also says it is absolutely certain that the physical resurrection of Christ's body was impossible. SECRET SECT OF TRANSSEXUAL PRIESTS SHAKES CHURCH by Christopher Morgan Religious Affairs Correspondent London Times 5/31/98 The Church of England is facing fresh controversy over the revelation that two women priests began their ministries as men and that the number of transsexual and transvestite clergy is growing. Two other priests are having sex change treatment, church sources have admitted. One has been forced by his bishop to take indefinite leave, but intends to seek a fresh appointment after his operation, as a woman priest. Many of them meet regularly with a number of lay Anglicans as part of a secret group called Sibyls - from the Greek word for prophetess. They hold private church services wearing female clothes. The disclosures come as George Carey, Archbishop of Canterbury, tries to hold the church together in the face of damaging internal divisions over homosexuality and the ordination of women. JUBILEE CRISIS THREATENS TO SUNDER WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES May 15, 1998 By Patrick Quinn, Associated Press Athens, Greece (AP) A doctrinal rift is threatening to pull apart the World Council of Churches, the global assembly formed 50 years ago to unite Christianity. Ironically, the dispute between the council's dominant Protestant denominations and its Orthodox Christian members involves issues that touch directly on the council's mission of inclusion: ordination of women and acceptance of homosexuals and other ostracized groups. Orthodox leaders, supported by other conservative churches, are demanding the council backtrack on such liberal reforms. The dispute threatens even greater divisions including a closer ecumenical bond between the Orthodox churches and the Roman Catholics, the only major Christian church not a full member in the 330-church World Council. The divisions also reflect the forces reshaping Christianity as its nearly 2 billion faithful prepare to celebrate 2,000 years since the birth of Jesus. But the Orthodox churches, whose 350 million followers account for about 25 percent of the council's membership, believe the group has already grown too diverse and inclusive. They have decided to boycott World Council-sponsored prayers and religious celebrations and to abstain from voting. They also threaten to snub some discussions at the World Council's eighth assembly in Harare, Zimbabwe, in December. PONTIFICAL COUNCIL TO SIGN AGREEMENT WITH AL-AZHAR Vatican City, May 22, 1998 (VIS) A communique released this afternoon announced that "on May 28, in the offices of the Pontifical Council for Inter- religious Dialogue, an agreement is to be signed between the Pontifical Council and the Permanent Committee of Al-Azhar al-Sharif, Cairo, for Dialogue among Monotheistic Religions. The agreement will be to set up a joint committee for dialogue and cooperation between the two institutions." [http://www.alazhar.org/english/index.htm is Al-Azhar al-Sharif web site] And from Egypt, the other side of the report -- AZHAR-VATICAN TO SET UP DIALOGUE COMMITTEE. Egyptian Gazette May 22, 1998 ROME Preparations are under way to sign the first agreement between Al-Azhar and the Vatican to establish a joint committee for dialogue between the two sides, said Egyptian Ambassador to the Vatican Hassan al-Sadr. Speaking to reporters in the Italian capital yesterday, the ambassador said the accord - the first of it's kind - is meant to bolster principles of peace, justice and coordinate the two prestigious religious institutions' stances vis-a-vis issues of common interest. POPE RECEIVES DELEGATIONS FOR CHRISTIAN-ISLAMIC DIALOGUE Vatican City, May 29, 1998 (VIS) Pope John Paul today received delegations from the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue and the Permanent Committee of Al-Azhar for Dialogue between the Monotheistic Religions, both of whom yesterday signed an agreement for the creation of a Joint Committee for Dialogue. Addressing them in English, the Pope told the delegations that this committee "is a further step in the building of ever stronger and more friendly relations between Christians and Muslims. "Today, dialogue between our two religions is more necessary than ever. This dialogue needs to be credible and marked by mutual respect, knowledge and acceptance. The long history shared by Christians and Muslims has had its lights and shadows. Yet there remains a spiritual bond which unites us and which we must strive to recognize and develop. This may require much effort, but it will prove essential for building that peace which we hope future generations will be able to enjoy." The Holy Father expressed his confidence that, as the members of the new committee "give the best of themselves in sincerity and truth the goals agreed upon will be attained." MILLENIUM PREPARATIONS POPE JOHN PAUL INVITING WORLD OVER FOR CHRISTIANITY'S 3RD MILLENNIUM May 26, 1998 By Candice Hughes, Associated Press Vatican City (AP) Barring a possible trip to the Holy Land, the globe-trotting Pope John Paul II will stick close to home in 2000, blessing pilgrims flocking to Rome to mark Christianity's third millennium. The Vatican released a packed schedule of events Tuesday for the Roman Catholic Church's jubilee year, which begins Dec. 24, 1999, when John Paul opens the doors of St. Peter's Basilica. It ends on Epiphany, Jan. 6, 2001. John Paul has long yearned to visit the Holy Land, but the complexity and political implications of a journey to the volatile region have kept him away so far. At Tuesday's news conference, Vatican officials reported no breakthroughs. Unless something changes, they said, the pontiff will remain in Rome, blessing pilgrims in St. Peter's Square virtually every day. IT IS COMING . . . PRELUDE TO THE MILLENNIUM DESTINED TO BE THE LARGEST CIRCLE IN THE HISTORY OF MANKIND - [Internet Advertisement] http://www.WhisperedPrayers.com/Millenium/PTM1.html As the turn of the century nears, we ask that all Earth Spiritualists and free-thinking individuals join us in an event so large that mere words fail to describe its importance. On Dec. 30th, 1999 we will all gather and enjoy multiple free concerts, free workshops, rituals, and more. The gathering will climax at the turn of the century with the joining of all present in a circle on sacred ground blessed by Tibetan Monks. From this circle we will heal the Earth, project a positive future of caring between all of the Earth's inhibitants, connect with nature, heal ourselves, and ask for reversal of past wrongs. (plus your personal wishes) This event has been created by and caters to Earth Spiritualists (Pagan, Wiccan, Shaman, Celtic, tibetian ... ) and Free - Thinkers. We ask EVERYONE who has an interest in creating a possitive future to please attend. Our goal ? One million voices chanting in the night !!!! Help spread the word !! This is one of the most important Pagan events in the history of humankind. YOU WILL NOT WANT TO MISS IT ! PREPARATIONS FOR THE END SWISS GOVERNMENT CONCLUDES RESTORATION OF PETRA ENTRANCE May 17, 1998 Amman, Jordan (AP) Swiss experts have finished restoring a narrow ravine leading to the stone-carved city of Petra, allowing easier passage for visitors to the ancient Nabataean site. Ernst Eiqhelberger, the deputy head of mission at the Swiss Embassy, said Sunday his country contributed nearly $662,000 to remove rocks and sand from Petra's entrance, known as the "siq,'' Arabic for chasm. Some visitors to Jordan's most famous site have been trapped or killed in the siq in recent years when Petra was flooded in winter by torrential rain or snow. The 4,000-foot-long siq is a narrow gorge that was formed as a result of a prehistoric earthquake. Its width varies from six to 55 feet. The Nabataeans used it as the only entrance to the city they inhabited 2,000 years ago. Jordan and Switzerland signed a 1993 agreement to preserve tourist areas in Petra, which was rediscovered by a Swiss scholar in 1812. **********************************************************************