From our understanding of Bible prophecy we have expected the influence of the Roman Catholic Church to rise again from her decline, loss of prestige and power that developed after her loss of temporal power in 1870. The Scriptures make it clear that at the time of the end the Catholic Church will wield considerable influence in the affairs of nations, not only from the religious perspective but also from the political (particularly European) perspective as well.
The influence of the Papacy in the European nations forming the beast that opposes Christ is well documented in Revelation 17. “So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman [the papacy] sit upon a scarlet covered beast [made up of European nations], full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns” (v3). “These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful” (v14).
On the broader perspective the worldwide status and apparent invincibility of the Roman Church and the Papacy just prior to her destruction at Christ’s coming is captured by the words in Revelation 18:7, “How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.”
The latter day rise of the Papacy from the ashes of the 19th century is quite breathtaking and recent moves by the current Pope, Benedict XV1, and his standing in world affairs have indicated that the Papacy’s drive for increased power and influence is continuing unabated. It is fascinating to read and watch the ever increasing influence of the Papacy both on the political European front and the broader religious front exactly as predicted in the Scriptures of truth.
Let us consider some of these developments from recent newspaper articles.
1.“Putin in landmark Vatican Visit”
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has met Pope Benedict XV1 for the first time during an official visit to Rome. They discussed ways to improve relations between the Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox Churches, dogged by long-standing differences. Pope Benedict puts great emphasis on healing the churches’ divisions and some say this [ie the meeting with Putin] is helping to mend the 1,000-year schism between Rome and the eastern Christian Churches” (BBC News 13/3/07).
“Mr Putin, who came to the papal audience with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, has close ties with the Orthodox Church and has favoured improved relations with the Vatican” (The Australian 14/3/07).
2. “Moscow-Rome Warming likely”
“The Russian Orthodox Church has chosen an advocate of improved relations with the Vatican as its new spiritual leader, raising the prospect of a reconciliation between Rome and Moscow. Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad was elected yesterday as Patriarch in the church’s first leadership election since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Kirill enjoys good relations with the Vatican and has met the Pope numerous times. He told an interviewer soon after Benedict XV1’s elevation that co-operation was ‘absolutely necessary’.
‘I think the place of Christian values in the world will in many ways depend on the character of Orthodox-Catholic relations, at least on the European continent’, he said” (The Australian 29/1/09).
3. “Churches confront 1000-year schism”
Are the Catholic and Orthodox branches of Christianity at long last about to settle their differences? According to Catholic Archbishop of Moscow Paolo Pezzi, “it is possible, indeed it has never been so close”. In an interview with Corriere della Sera that appeared on Monday, he said the end of the schism (which occurred in 1054) “could happen within a few months”. “Now the path to rapprochement is at its peak and the third millennium of the church could begin as a sign of unity” (The Weekend Australian 19–20/9/09).
4. “Vatican says evolution compatible with the Bible”
As part of the worldwide celebrations honouring the anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth 200 years ago and the 150th anniversary of the publication of “On the Origin of Species”, the Vatican did not want to be seen “off-side” of world trends and had this to say: “The Vatican said that the theory of evolution was compatible with the Bible but planned no posthumous apology to Charles Darwin for the cold reception it gave him 150 years ago” (Sydney Morning Herald 17/2/09).
Whatever happened to Papal Infallibility on this and other matters?!!
5. Anglicans welcomed back into the fold
In recent times the worldwide Anglican Church has been racked with internal problems over the issues of the ordination of women priests, homosexual priests and same-sex partnerships. The Papacy has moved to capitalize on the dissensions and weakness of the Anglican Church. Firstly, the developments in the Anglican Church: “A formal split in the Anglican Church worldwide has moved closer after clergy and laity in the US voted to allow the consecration of openly gay bishops” (The Australian 15/7/09).
“Bishops in the US dealt a death blow to hopes for unity in the worldwide Anglican Church when they approved in principle services for same-sex partnerships” (The Weekend Australian 18–19/7/09).
“Archbishop admits Anglican Church is split.” “The Archbishop of Canterbury has acknowledged for the first time that the Anglican Church is in schism in all but name” (The Australian 28/7/09).
The Pope makes his move!!
In the midst of all this dissension Pope Benedict XV1 without any major forewarning or discussions with the Archbishop of Canterbury made his lightning move!! “Pope in attempt to lure Anglicans to Catholic Church. As many as 1,000 priests could quit the Church of England and thousands more may leave churches in America and Australia under bold proposals to welcome Anglicans to Rome. Entire parishes and even dioceses could be tempted to defect after Pope Benedict XV1’s decision to offer a legal structure to Anglicans joining the Roman Catholic Church” (The Australian 21/10/09).
“The legal structure laid out by the Pope will allow married Anglican clergy to be ordained Catholic priests, and will preserve Anglican traditions under the umbrella of Catholicism” (The Australian 22/10/09).
This is a major spiritual ‘coup’ by the Pope. The Papacy has made it clear that the way to salvation is only through the Roman Church and this latest move in encouraging Anglicans to defect to the ‘true church’ can only greatly embarrass the Archbishop of Canterbury. Whilst there is no question that the Anglican Church’s position on women priests (quite apart from male priests also), homosexual priests and same-sex relationships is contrary to Scripture, and the Roman Church of course also has many teachings contrary to the Word of God, the Pope has made no secret of his desire to become more powerful on the spiritual scene worldwide.
The Papacy sits supreme as a queen with more of the disaffected from other branches of Christianity flocking back into the fold. After the disasters of the 19th century, she is a widow no more.
A few more newspaper paragraphs paint the scene! “More roads lead to Rome as divine divide diminishes.” “Already there are stories circulating that the Patriarch of Moscow has urged his ecumenical negotiators in the Vatican to hurry in order that the Anglicans do not get too far ahead. They’re probably apocryphal, but we do know that the Russian Orthodox Church is very close to achieving unity with Rome” (The Weekend Australian 24–25/10/09). Archbishop John Hepworth, Global Primate of the Traditional Anglican Communion has indicated that the Traditional Anglican Communion will switch en masse to Rome.
“Pope blesses Anglican converts”
“The Pope has made it easy as possible for traditional and ‘continuing’ Anglicans to convert to Roman Catholicism while retaining key elements of their ecclesiastical heritage. The eagerly awaited Apostolic Constitution, published by the Vatican this week, will enable hundreds of thousands of disaffected Anglicans to become Catholics” (The Australian 11/11/09).
Brothers and sisters, the rapid, worldwide growing influence of the Roman Church is one of the most exciting fulfilments of Bible prophecy in our times and we thank God for this further impetus to our faith.
The Lisbon Treaty
“These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.”
Whilst the papacy has been busily shoring up its position on the religious front as part of “the beast” of Revelation 17, a significant development has occurred in the EU on the political front as well which paves the way for a further consolidation and strengthening of “the beast” power as foretold in Revelation 17:12,13: “And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.”
The Apostle John saw by way of sign and symbol a position whereby the European “horn kingdoms” would see the expediency of surrendering some of their national powers to a consolidated “beast power” where the Roman Church (“the woman” of v18) would yield great influence and power.
The stage is set for what is known as the Lisbon Treaty to come into effect in Europe by the end of November. This Treaty will have far reaching effects in European affairs and certainly will be in line with the fulfilment of the prophecy above. The collapse of the Berlin Wall on the 9th November 1989 not only paved the way for the eventual reunification of Berlin and Germany but also the collapse of communism in Soviet Russia and many of the previous communist regimes in the Soviet satellite States in Eastern Europe.
In the past few years many of these Eastern European countries have since become member states of the broadened EU and/or NATO. The EU now consists of 27 member States with others waiting in the wings to join. In the past some EU members had hoped that the EU would become a federal single super state but this has not occurred as there was never total agreement from all to go down this path. Remarkably the prophet Daniel predicted that such would not occur 2,500 years ago. “And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with miry clay” (2:43). And a recent article in The Australian 5/11/09 using ‘Revelation type’ language captures the structure of the new EU, “The new EU is a loose-boned beast [our emphasis], far removed from the federal animal desired by the last generation of enthusiasts, at the time of Maastricht in the early 1990s.”
The object of the Lisbon Treaty signed by European member States in 2007, but needing ratification by all States, was to obtain agreement from the European countries that whilst there would not be the creation of a federal state there would nevertheless be agreement to a number of common areas (such as climate change, energy security, terrorism, common immigration policy) and in particular the creation of two new high-powered diplomatic positions – an EU President and Foreign Minister that would be able to represent the EU on the world stage. Initially there was reaction against these propositions from some States but with the Lisbon Treaty now ratified by both the Republic of Ireland and Czechoslovakia all obstacles have been overcome and the stage is now set for the political appointments.
This is a very exciting development in Europe because what we are now seeing developing is exactly as foretold in Revelation 17 – a grouping of independent States who despite wishing to retain some national identity (“horn” powers) nevertheless would see the wisdom of ceding “their power and strength” (v13) to the EU such as in an EU President and Foreign Minister.
A paragraph in a recent article in The Australian Financial Review 5/10/09 could not have presented more clearly what Revelation 17 predicted would be the case in the last days: “The Lisbon Treaty, signed by European leaders in 2007, is the result of years of painstaking negotiations among countries trying to maintain their national identities and hang onto power while ceding some control to an ever more integrated Europe” (our emphasis).
Already there is talk of creating a European army. “Italy is to push for the creation of a European army after the ‘new Europe’ takes shape at this week’s EU summit following the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty. It was a ‘necessary objective’ to have a European army”. (Franco Frattini, Italian Foreign Minister, The Australian 17/11/09).
With the strengthening position of both the Papacy and Russia in European affairs it is not difficult to see how much easier it will be in the future for the Papacy and Russia to deal with only an EU President and Foreign Minister instead of representatives from 27 member States!!
“Benedict may be right that the Catholic Church has a world-historic chance to transform Europe and bring about change” (The Weekend Australian July 14–15, 2007).
The position of the UK
One final point of interest from the Lisbon Treaty is the position of the UK. Interestingly the former Labour PM, Tony Blair, was lobbying for and hoping to get the ‘plum’ appointment of the first EU President. However his popularity for the position amongst member States went cold after the initial flush of enthusiasm, particularly from Germany and France who made it clear that Britain’s Euro scepticism would not sit well with the appointment of Tony Blair. The position of President finally went to the Belgian Prime Minister, Herman van Rompuy.
This suited the current Conservative opposition Party in the UK who were very much opposed in any event to Tony Blair’s lobbying for the position. Little is known of Mr van Rompuy except that in 2004 he fiercely opposed Turkey’s entry to the EU, saying that as an Islamic nation it would not fit Europe’s “Christian values”. Both Germany and France also oppose Turkey’s application to join, and we are sure that Pope Benedict would also fiercely support Mr van Rompuy’s views. What is interesting is that Britain’s EU Trade Commissioner, Lady Catherine Ashton, has been appointed as the first EU Foreign Minister.
The Euro-sceptic Conservatives are expected to win power in the UK elections next year and they had promised a referendum on Britain’s involvement in the Lisbon Treaty if it was not formally ratified by the EU by the time they are elected. (The UK parliament was able to ratify the Treaty without the need for any referendum.)
Now that the treaty has been ratified by the EU before any UK elections, that scenario will not occur but most commentators believe that any UK referendum would clearly reveal that UK citizens are firmly against Britain’s involvement in the Treaty and would vote a resounding “NO”. What the conservatives will do with the treaty if they are elected remains to be seen but certainly interesting days lie ahead. God rules in the kingdoms of men and He raises up into power whoever He wills. So whatever the current position is of the ruling Labour Government, our understanding from prophecy, of course, is that Britain will not be with Europe and Russia in the invasion of Israel.
The current European scene certainly is extremely interesting in the outworking of Bible prophecy.