25 May 2016 3 min read

I’m a Bible-believing Christian, who believes in prophecy. But I am depressed and dismayed by some of the allegedly ‘Bible-based discussions’ taking place around the EU Referendum in June.

While there are plenty of sensible issues of concern to Christians being debated, I’ve also heard a number of people claim that a vote for remaining in the EU amounts to a vote for Babylon and even the ‘mark of the beast’.

So can we inject some rigour and accuracy into our use of scripture when discussing this extremely important issue? Lets start by taking a look at the passages often used by some end-time enthusiasts to make their anti-EU case.

Biblical prophecy 

Daniel 7 describes a 10 nation confederacy arising out of a ‘fourth beast/kingdom’ in the Last Days. This is followed by a boastful ‘little horn’ uprooting ‘three horns’.

Some Christians believe this refers to the EU, but clearly a 10 nation confederacy cannot be applied to a 28 nation European Union! To insist that it does, distorts scripture. And yet, last week I saw a church website insisting: ‘It is 28 countries now but at some time in the future it will be reduced to 10’. When you make a mistake admit it; don’t keep on perpetuating the error.  

This means that attempts to apply Revelation 13:1-7 (which builds on Daniel’s prophecy) – where a beast with ten crowns/horns has authority over all the earth – to the EU, collapses, since the association with a ten-nation-confederacy clearly does not refer to the EU!

To go on and associate the mark of the beast with some EU-based plot is the stuff of desperate prejudice and without a shred of scriptural evidence. I’ve even heard talk of a super-computer in the EU with coding involving ‘666’. These conjectures are fantastical and not worthy of being described as biblical scholarship.

Old news

I am old enough to remember Late Great Planet Earth (1970) and to have once been influenced by it. At that stage in the Cold War a northern enemy of Israel (Gog, Magog = the USSR?) and a ten-nation-confederacy in Western Europe (the European Economic Community?) all looked alarmingly familiar. But Hal Lindsey clearly got it wrong, and it’s about time we stopped perpetuating the error.

On Board with Pope Francis Doctrinal Tower of Babel

Whatever ‘Babylon the Great’ refers to in Revelation 14:8 there is no more reason to associate it with the EU than with any other period in past or future history. David Hathaway may have chosen a memorable title in his book: Babylon in Europe (2006); but it is basically perpetuating the same errors as Late Great Planet Earth, with his own twist. For example, he states that the European Parliament building in Strasbourg is deliberately designed in the shape of the Tower of Babel.

Hal Lindsey clearly got it wrong, and it’s about time we stopped perpetuating the error

In fact, the EU building is based on structures and shapes drawn from Classicism and the Baroque; from Roman and Greek theatres to Galileo’s and Kepler’s ellipse. Its transition from a central geometrical structure to the ellipse, is meant to depict the constant motion expressing the evolution of the institutions, evolving from central power to a democratic organization. It is unfinished as, at the time of its construction, Europe was ‘unfinished’ and no country from the former Soviet bloc had at that point joined the EU. Not as exciting as ‘Babylon’ and ‘666’ but some fellowships continue to perpetuate the fictions.

So the picture on the Euro coin is no more sinister than a Christmas Tree at Christmas, or Britannia as a Classically-derived representation of Britain on a coin or banknote.

I’ve even seen one church website claiming that the seat 666 is kept free, for dark purposes. It’s not, and this is very easily checked. It’s upsetting to see this kind of ignorant rumour-mongering being allowed to pass as serious study of prophecy.

Anti-EU enthusiasts jump on every piece of imagery that seems to support their case. For example, the depiction of the Classical scene of Europa and the bull on a Euro coin (pictured above), is referred to, in some circles, as ‘evidence’ of some pagan plot. In reality it just references a piece of Classical literature from the European past. On this basis we would scour our houses of Christmas Trees and every card with a bit of holly on it at Christmas if we really thought this way. And we would stop calling ‘Easter’ by that name, since the English name is actually derived from a long forgotten Anglo-Saxon deity. The simple reality, though, is that an image only has the meaning that a culture invests in it. Once it becomes just a piece of imagery, it loses its meaning. So the picture on the Euro coin is no more sinister than a Christmas Tree at Christmas, or Britannia as a Classically-derived representation of Britain on a coin or banknote.

Ending the error

As a historian, I have made a study of eschatology and millenarianism in the history of Christianity and my degree specialism was its 17th century manifestation. The sad thing is that the history of the Church is littered with the wreckage of such confident statements as: ‘it’s the Saracens’, ‘it’s the papacy’, ‘it’s Charles I or Oliver Cromwell’ and most recently, ‘it’s the EU’.

The question of whether the EU is Babylon the Great is very easily answered and debunked.

My hope is that we can have a serious and sensible discussion about the EU on important topics such as peace, justice, war, climate change and immigration. The question of whether the EU is Babylon the Great is very easily answered and debunked. It’s high time we all rejected these nonsense claims and got back to a more careful and considered reading of the Bible’s prophetic texts. 

Martyn Whittock is an Anglican Licensed Lay Minister and Historian

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God claims the whole earth as His vineyard. Though now in the hands of the usurper, it belongs to God. By redemption no less than by creation it is His. For the world Christ’s sacrifice was made. “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son.” John 3:16. It is through that one gift that every other is imparted to men. Daily the whole world receives blessing from God. Every drop of rain, every ray of light shed on our unthankful race, every leaf and flower and fruit, testifies to God’s long forbearance and His great love.

And what returns are made to the great Giver? How are men treating the claims of God? To whom are the masses of mankind giving the service of their lives? They are serving mammon. Wealth, position, pleasure in the world, is their aim. Wealth is gained by robbery, not of man only, but of God. Men are using His gifts to gratify their selfishness. Everything they can grasp is made to minister to their greed and their love of selfish pleasure.

Bowing To The Pope’s New World Order Kingdom Agenda! O Jerusalem Jerusalem!

Then cried they all again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber.
John 18 : 40

The sin of the world today is the sin that brought destruction upon Israel. Ingratitude to God, the neglect of opportunities and blessings, the selfish appropriation of God’s gifts—these were comprised in the sin that brought wrath upon Israel. They are bringing ruin upon the world today.

The tears which Christ shed upon Olivet as He stood overlooking the chosen city were not for Jerusalem alone. In the fate of Jerusalem He beheld the destruction of the world.

“If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.” Luke 19:42.

“In this thy day.” The day is nearing its close. The period of mercy and privilege is well-nigh ended. The clouds of vengeance are gathering. The rejectors of God’s grace are about to be involved in swift and irretrievable ruin.

Yet the world is asleep. The people know not the time of their visitation.

In this crisis, where is the church to be found? Are its members meeting the claims of God? Are they fulfilling His commission, and representing His character to the world? Are they urging upon the attention of their fellow men the last merciful message of warning?

For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the LORD; that they might be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.

Jeremiah 13 : 11

Men are in peril. Multitudes are perishing. But how few of the professed followers of Christ are burdened for these souls. The destiny of a world hangs in the balance; but this hardly moves even those who claim to believe the most far-reaching truth ever given to mortals. There is a lack of that love which led Christ to leave His heavenly home and take man’s nature that humanity might touch humanity and draw humanity to divinity. There is a stupor, a paralysis, upon the people of God, which prevents them from understanding the duty of the hour. COL 301.3 – COL 303.1

By Aly Abich Published on: February 01, 2025 06:15 (EAT)

File image of a person holding a knife. PHOTO|COURTESY

A 35-year-old Seventh Day Adventist Church (SDA) elder was on Saturday stabbed to death by a fellow elder during a church service at Ramoya village, Samba Sub location in Suba South constituency in Homa Bay County over a suspected love triangle.

Francis Opiyo, a church elder of Ebeneza SDA church, was stabbed with a knife at the altar before the congregation.

It was reported that Francis was stabbed by his fellow elder a few minutes after delivering church reports to the worshipers before the main sermon that was to be presided over by the church pastor.

According to Suba South Sub County Police commander Caxton Ndunda, elder Francis concluded his session well and handed over to a fellow elder to take over before the pastor’s session which would come later.

However, when Francis was handing over, the suspect, who is a fellow elder in the same church, walked to the altar, removed a knife which he had hidden in the Bible and stabbed Francis’ left side of the chest, where he collapsed on the spot.

Ndunda says the assailant accused Francis of being in a sexual relationship with his wife who is also a church member.

Upon committing the act, the assailant ran away and surrendered to the area Assistant Chief as the elder was rushed to the hospital where he succumbed while undergoing treatment

Ndunda confirmed that they have already apprehended the suspect who is being detained at the Magunga police station

The Police boss urged residents to seek the right modalities of solving social problems instead of resorting to murder.

The body was moved to St Camillus Hospital Mortuary in Sori Town, Migori County.

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Schools shut as tremors shake Greece’s ‘Instagram island’

Story by Elinda Labropoulou, Billy Stockwell and Chris Liakos, CNN

 • 1d

Help People leave The Popular Tourist Destination.

The Greek island of Santorini is being rattled by dozens of tremors, prompting authorities to close schools and airlines to announce additional flights on Monday to help people leave the popular tourist destination.

And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

Revelation 18 : 4

Over the past four days, more than 200 earthquakes have been recorded between Santorini and Amorgos in the Aegean Sea, with the strongest reaching a magnitude of 4.9.

[15] And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. [18] And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

Revelation 17 : 15, 18

Climate change _Authorities _closed schools _ residents to avoid large indoor gatherings.

Tremors, some with a magnitude above 4, continued to rattle Santorini on Monday. Although these quakes are considered minor or light, authorities have closed schools on Santorini, as well as on Amorgos, Ios and Anafi, and advised residents to avoid large indoor gatherings.

After an emergency meeting Monday, Greek authorities announced that schools on the four islands will remain closed until Friday.

European Union leaders Give Power to the Beast Collective Good Doctrine

“We are dealing with a very intense geological phenomenon. I want to ask the islanders to remain calm,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told reporters in Brussels on Monday, on the sidelines of a meeting of European Union leaders.

That time is at hand. Today the signs of the times declare that we are standing on the threshold of great and solemn events. Everything in our world is in agitation. Before our eyes is fulfilling the Saviour’s prophecy of the events to precede his coming: “Ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars…. Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”
The present is a time of overwhelming interest to all living. Rulers and statesmen, men who occupy positions of trust and authority, thinking men and women of all classes, have their attention fixed upon the events taking place about us. They are watching the strained, restless relations that exist among the nations. They observe the intensity that is taking possession of every earthly element, and they realize that something great and decisive is about to take place—that the world is on the verge of a stupendous crisis.
Angels are now restraining the winds of strife, until the world shall be warned of its coming doom; but a storm is gathering, ready to burst upon the earth, and when God shall bid his angels loose the winds, there will be such a scene of strife as no pen can picture. RH November 23,  1905, Art. A, par. 6 – RH November 23,  1905, Art. A, par. 8

In an update, Vassilis Karastathis, director at the Institute of Geodynamics at the National Observatory of Athens, told Greek media on Monday that “the seismic activity continues regularly with the same intensity.”

Three Angels Message Flight To Help Residents and Strangers Leave The Babylonish Island

Aegean Airlines, Greece’s largest airline, announced two additional flights on Monday and one on Tuesday, traveling to and from Santorini, to help residents and visitors leave the island.

“We hope those who have means trusted out to strangers will see that God’s cause may be benefited by its use. It was placed in their hands by the Lord, to test them and prove them, to see if they will render back to the Master his own when he shall call for it. Means were given them, not to hoard or to use for themselves. Those who are murmuring and complaining at the outlay of means in the Publishing House and in the meeting-house, had better be at work to act their part, lest they shall be found wanting by acting the part of Meroz. God gave commandment, ‘Curse ye Meroz, curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof, because they came not up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord, against the mighty.’ ST December 19,  1878, par. 18

Golden Age Mass Deportation Exodus!

Nikos Zorzos, the mayor of the island, denied that there was a “mass exodus” from the island, and told Greek media that the majority of those leaving were seasonal workers, not permanent residents.

Sitting on several fault lines – known as the Hellenic Volcanic Arc – Santorini is no stranger to earthquakes. But the risk of tremors does not deter as many as 3.4 million people from visiting Santorini each year, dwarfing the 20,000 or so permanent residents of the island.

Tents have been set up at a basketball court to accommodate emergency services in Santorini on Monday. – Petros Giannakouris/AP

A firefighter controls a drone as authorities take emergency measures in Santorini on Monday. – Petros Giannakouris/AP

Golden Age Emergency Flights _photogenic golden light and sweeping scenery.

Santorini is famed for its crescent-shaped caldera, which was created by one of the largest known volcanic eruptions around 3,600 years ago. The tourist destination has been dubbed Greece’s “Instagram island” because of its photogenic golden light and sweeping scenery.

The Hellenic Volcanic Arc, one of the most active volcanic fields in Europe, has seen more than 100 eruptions over the past years.

The most recent large quake in Santorini struck in 1956. The 7.5-magnitude earthquake was followed by a 25-meter-high (around 80 feet) tsunami. At least 53 people were killed and more than 100 injured, while at least one-third of the houses on the island collapsed.

Authorities said current seismic activity is due to tectonic movements that do not appear related to volcanic activity. Similarly, increased seismic activity in 2011 and 2012 did not result in any eruptions, they added.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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Business

In 2018, Google dropped a $10 billion bid for a cloud computing Pentagon contract, saying at the time “we couldn’t be assured that it would align with our AI Principles.” More than 4,000 employees had signed a petition thatyear demanding “a clear policy stating that neither Google nor its contractors will ever build warfare technology,” and about a dozen employees resigned in protest.

By Ramishah Maruf, CNN

 2 minute read

Updated 6:40 PM EST, Tue February 4, 2025

Signage at the the Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on October 10, 2024. David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesNew YorkCNN — 

Google’s updated, public AI ethics policy removes its promise that it won’t use the technology to pursue applications for weapons and surveillance.

In a previous version of the principles seen by CNN on the internet archive Wayback Machine, the company included applications it won’t pursue. One such category was weapons or other technology intended to injure people. Another was technology used to surveil beyond international norms.

That language is gone on the updated principles page.

Since OpenAI launched chatbot ChatGPT in 2022, the artificial intelligence race has advanced at a dizzying pace. While AI has boomed in use, legislation and regulations on transparency and ethics in AI have yet to catch up – and now Google seems to have loosened self-imposed restrictions.

In a blog post Tuesday, senior vice president of research, labs, technology & society James Manyika and Google DeepMind head Demis Hassabis said that AI frameworks published by democratic countries have deepened Google’s “understanding of AI’s potential and risks.”

“There’s a global competition taking place for AI leadership within an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape. We believe democracies should lead in AI development, guided by core values like freedom, equality, and respect for human rights,” the blog post said.

Protestants little know what they are doing when they propose to accept the aid of Rome in the work of Sunday exaltation. While they are bent upon the accomplishment of their purpose, Rome is aiming to re-establish her power, to recover her lost supremacy. Let the principle once be established in the United States that the church may employ or control the power of the state; that religious observances may be enforced by secular laws; in short, that the authority of church and state is to dominate the conscience, and the triumph of Rome in this country is assured. GC 581.1

companies, governments, and organizations create AI Agency that protects people, promotes global growth, and supports national security.”

The post continued, “and we believe that companies, governments, and organizations sharing these values should work together to create AI that protects people, promotes global growth, and supports national security.”

Rome Imperialism : Robert F. Kennedy Jr. HHS “Individualism” Impacts ‘Common Good’ Our Health, Economy and ‘Security‘
https://kingosiemo.wordpress.com/2025/02/04/rome-imperialism-robert-f-kennedy-jr-hhs-individualism-impacts-common-good-our-health-economy-and-security/

Science is not a sport – we don’t have winners and losers. Decisions made by HHS and the many agencies it oversees will impact our collective health, our economic strength and our national security.

Yes, Americans are independent people who make a lot of our own decisions regarding what’s best for ourselves and our families, but our health is inextricably linked. HHS is one of the departments ensuring those connections are managed in ways that can make us all safer and healthier.

The calamities by land and sea, the unsettled state of society, the alarms of war, are portentous. They forecast approaching events of the greatest magnitude.
The agencies of evil are combining their forces, and consolidating. They are strengthening for the last great crisis. Great changes are soon to take place in our world, and the final movements will be rapid ones.—Testimonies, vol. 9, p 11. (1909). Ev 31.5 – Ev 32.1

Google first published its AI Principles in 2018, years before the technology became almost ubiquitous. Google’s update is a sharp reversal in values from those original published principles.

In 2018, Google dropped a $10 billion bid for a cloud computing Pentagon contract, saying at the time “we couldn’t be assured that it would align with our AI Principles.” More than 4,000 employees had signed a petition that year demanding “a clear policy stating that neither Google nor its contractors will ever build warfare technology,” and about a dozen employees resigned in protest.

CNN has reached out to Google for comment.

CNN’s Jordan Valinsky contributed to this report.