Mulling over LEE LOFASO to STEVE ASHER 27 Apr 2003

>>> Continued from previous message

[sni]

>LL>True.  JP is not perfect by any means, but has reached out to
>LL>non-Catholics and non-Christians, hoping to help make the world a
>LL>better place for all.

SA>Yes, and he steadfastly refused to endorse the US's invasion plan for
SA>Iraq, as he could not see it as being a "just" war. Will the US seek
SA>to bring about "regime change" in the Vatican? :)

 LL> I'm sure Bush has a contingency plan, just in case the pope has
 LL> WMD.  :) 

I can just imagine the Swiss Guard fending off a coalition invading
the Vatican, using pikes & swords... :)

>SA>====================================================================

>SA>Personally, while I have some suspicions that Bush might prove to be
>SA>the Beast, I also suspect that he is being "set up" to
take the rap
>SA>for someone even more sinister, such as the [permanent] President of
>SA>Europe when that position is created.

>LL>There are actually *two* Beasts depicted in Revelation - an Earth
>LL>Beast and a Sea Beast.  Maybe Bush is one Beast and Blair the other
>LL>Beast?

SA>Yes, there are. The first is normally referred to as the Antichrist, the
SA>second as the False Prophet. AFAIK, when someone claims to be the Messiah,
SA>the Jews also need an accompanying Prophet to attest to his authenticity,
SA>much as John the Baptist pointed to Jesus Christ.

 LL> Jewish theology is rather wacky.  Muhammad had to use that theology
 LL> to justify himself as being the "messenger", or last Jewish
 LL> prophet. 

Hmm... I wasn't aware of that, thanks!

SA>Just as the Pope is often described, with extensive documentation, to be
SA>the Antichrist, I'm not convinced, as whoever it is will need to be
SA>accepted by the Jews as their Messiah. I can't see them accepting a Pope
SA>anytime soon.

 LL> The Jewish concept of messiah is much different than the Christian
 LL> concept of messiah.  For example, the Jewish concept of messiah is
 LL> that of a human being who lives and dies, there being no
 LL> resurrection. 

Yep. The Islamic concept is also interesting. Roughly, they believe in
a deceiver / "antichrist" figure, the Dajjal, who will appear at the
end of the age - Jesus Christ, who Islam sees as a prophet, but not 
divine, will supposedly slay the Dajjal, and claim that Islam is the
true religion, in preparation for the Mahdi to appear & rule the restored
Caliphate.

SA>Much the same with Bush. He would need to be willing to abandon the White
SA>House and rule from Jerusalem. Possible? Yes. Likely? For now, although
SA>Bush apparently believes that God is driving him in his attempts to deal
SA>with evil, terrorism, WMD etc etc... I doubt he would leave the White
SA>House for Jerusalem [?]. Bush / Blair are certainly displaying aspects of
SA>the two beasts, and if they take a crack at France [and Germany / Belgium]
SA>I'd certainly consider them as likely suspects!

 LL> Bush could set up a temple in Jerusalem where he can beam himself
 LL> down from time to time in order to meet with world leaders.  The
 LL> White House would still be where it is today, and Bush would still
 LL> govern America from the White House.  But from the temple Bush
 LL> could rule the world... 

Whether it is Bush, Blair, or someone else, that is quite likely
how he will rule, with the image that the world is forced to worship
being televised [which is increasingly digital / interactive], or
via the Internet.

SA>Although it doesn't seem likely, based on the US's excellence in almost
SA>everything - economic, political, military etc, I still feel that the
SA>wheels will fall off much like the Soviet Union, leaving the way open
SA>for Pax Europa rather than Pax Americana.

 LL> It is hard to imagine America losing its place in world leadership
 LL> to that of Europe.  America has an aging population, but Europe has
 LL> a population that is aging even faster.  The growth areas are in
 LL> Latin America and in Asia.  And that makes China the world's future
 LL> superpower.

While it is hard to imagine, it is quite possible, given the generally
negative global reaction to the USA's attack on Iraq and its apparent
desire to attack other nations that that don't go along with Pax 
Americana, but turn to Europe as a counterforce or rival to the US,
switching from the US dollar to the euro etc etc.

Out of the frying pan, into the fire.

Interesting times.

 LL> "May you live in interesting times." - Mao Tse-Tung

Cheers, Steve..

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