| News and Views | June 1945 |
The Scene Changes
SELDOM do sensational news events follow one another so rapidly as they have during recent weeks. In a remarkably short time we have seen the curtain fall on one of the last acts in the drama of a dying world order; and now it is rising on a new scene in that drama. It has not only been a change of scenes, but a number of the familiar actors have disappeared. Some whose names have been headlined as heroes and some as villains, are now but memories, except as their efforts for good or evil may continue to influence the course of events since they have died.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, and Joseph Goebbels are names which no longer will dominate the daily news. As the curtain rises on a new act we see some of the old personalities still on the stage, such as Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill. Some new actors are also now on the stage—President Truman, for example.
The change of actors in the world drama of news is, however, only incidental. The scene itself has changed, or is changing, which is the important consideration. It is changing from a war-making act to one of attempted peace-making and reconstruction. The surrender of Fascist troops in Europe, and the United Nations Conference in San Francisco, head the list of major events which impress upon us the fact that there is now a new act on the stage and that we will need to be alert if we are to follow the theme, or plot, and thus be able to understand the significance of many of the details which we will see from day today.
Our chief interest in the meaning of world events is from the prophetic standpoint. How are the prophecies of the Bible being fulfilled in what is taking place? Of fundamental importance in this connection is the definiteness with which the Scriptures teach that human wisdom will never be able to establish an order of lasting peace and security. While this does not mean that we should condemn the sincere efforts of the world’s statesmen to do what they can for the betterment of humanity, it does mean that we will have no illusions as to the possible success of such efforts.
Nor is this a pessimistic outlook! It is because we believe the Bible that we are convinced that peace and joy are soon to be realized by the people—that “the desire of all nations shall come.” (Hag. 2:7) The Scriptures declare that the “zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” (Isa. 9:7) This is why we have confidence; and the more so because the events of these tragic days prove that God’s time for intervening in world affairs is imminent—the prayer, “Thy Kingdom come” will soon be answered.
Gathering of the Nations
The San Francisco Conference is prophetically significant in that it evidences further the desire of the nations to unite for mutual protection. In Zephaniah 3:8 the Lord foretold that He would gather the nations and assemble the kingdoms. Nearly a half century ago the author of the book entitled, “The Battle of Armageddon,” commenting on this prophecy observed that:
“The gathering of the nations in these last days, in fulfillment of the above prophecy, is very notable. Modern discovery and invention have indeed made the remotest ends of the earth neighbors to each other.
“Even the dull heathen nations are arousing themselves from the dreams of centuries. … And they in turn are now sending their representatives abroad that they may profit by their new acquaintances.
“Truly, the nations are ‘assembled’ in a manner not expected, yet in the only manner in which they could be assembled; namely, in common interest and activity; but alas! not in brotherly love, for selfishness marks every step of this progress.”—Pages 270, 271
During the years since the above was written the nations have continued to associate themselves in commercial and military alliances, as well as in peacetime leagues. The San Francisco Conference represents another step in this direction. Modern inventions, brought about through the prophetic “increase of knowledge,” have shrunk the size of the earth to such an extent that no nation can now be so isolated from the others as to be independent of or disinterested in what they do. They must work together, or perish.
Sir Anthony Eden, Foreign Secretary for the British Government, said in his opening address to the conference that it might well be the world’s last chance to save itself from complete destruction. President Truman said that if the conference failed in its purpose, world chaos would be the result. No one disagreed with these conclusions. All the great leaders of the world recognize the gravity of the situation; and they also recognize how difficult are the problems which have been posed by human selfishness.
Possibly Mr. Eden was a little too pessimistic in concluding that the San Francisco Conference is the last chance the nations will have to save themselves. It is quite possible, we think, that even unsatisfactory arrangements which the conference makes, may partially steady world affairs for a while. The failure of this conference to establish permanent peace will later, however, leave the nations in a hopeless state of chaos. Of this final failure, the Scriptures leave no doubt.
But the Bible does reveal the ultimate failure of all selfish human efforts to establish peace—especially the efforts of united nations. Zephaniah 3:8 explains that these last-days’ gathering of the nations is in order that the Lord may pour upon them His indignation, and that the whole symbolic earth, will be destroyed by the fire of His jealousy. That this is the way it will ultimately terminate is clearly shown by the failure of all the previous efforts along the same lines.
We do not wish to imply that simply because one effort fails all others must also fail. The reason nations never have been able to abolish war is that none have been willing to forego their own selfish interests; and selfishness is still in the saddle of national and international politics. Besides, the underlying evils which have produced wars are still practiced by all nations.
One of these evils is secret diplomacy. At the close of the first World War, Woodrow Wilson advocated the abolishing of secret diplomacy. His suggestion was, “Open covenants, openly arrived at.” But this is now forgotten, so that at San Francisco the real business of the conference is carried on by small groups behind locked doors. The general conference knows but little of the real reason behind much that is done.
Righteous principles in the international approach to the problem of war have deteriorated in another way also since the close of the first World War. It was then believed that the safest road to peace was by encouraging the limitation of armament. The Soviet Union then suggested almost total disarmament for all nations. But not so now. The maintenance of large armies and navies by the conquering powers; the holding of naval bases; and using armies of occupation in the conquered countries are now decided upon as the only effective way to preserve peace. After centuries of freedom from militarism of Europe, even the United States may now have a peacetime draft of its youth in order to maintain a huge army to help keep the peace of the world.
A Moment’s Meditation
One of the sustaining pillars of our vanishing civilization has been religion. It has not been ideal religion, but then, neither has our civilization been ideal. The religion of Christendom has had in it at least a smattering of Christian principles, and to the extent that these principles have influenced world affairs we have had a better world than otherwise would have been possible. Communism claims that religion has been the opiate of the people to keep them in subjection to capitalism, and no doubt superstition and fear have wielded a powerful restraining influence among the masses.
But now this pillar is becoming shaky and unreliable. A realistic evidence of this is in the fact that when our Secretary of State, Mr. Stettinius, opened the San Francisco Conference he did so, not with prayer but, by calling for a moment of silent meditation. This is a professed Christian nation. The inauguration of our Presidents is accompanied by prayers; the President often calls upon the nation to pray, especially in times of emergency; the people are urged to celebrate victory by prayer; yet at the San Francisco Conference no prayer could be offered.
The reason is obvious! The excuse given was that too many gods and too many religious viewpoints were represented there. It was evidently decided that heathen gods wouldn’t be interested in a prayer that was offered to the Christian God, or if they were interested, they couldn’t do anything about it. We are inclined to think, however, that overshadowing this excuse was the fact that one of the “big four” powers represented at the conference does not believe in prayer at, all. It is quite possible, we think, that the moment of meditation was substituted for prayer as a compromise to atheism more than anything else.
We mention this because it is further evidence of the darkness of this dark day through which the world is passing. In the Master’s prophecy concerning this time He said that the symbolic “sun” and “moon” would be darkened, which means that we should expect a growing lack of interest in God and His plans for the blessing of the people. The god of military power is becoming more and more enthroned in the international council chambers of the world.
The San Francisco Conference has revealed some of the major issues confronting the world as the din and smoke of battle temporarily subside. The problems of Poland highlights one of them. Russia is determined to control the kind of government that will now rule Poland, while Great Britain and the United States are trying to modify Russia’s stand. This is not altogether because either of these great powers is so vitally interested in the welfare of Poland, but because the Polish problem has brought reactionary and revolutionary forces to grips. Here the battle between these two forces has been joined. In this situation we have a symbol of the worldwide struggle which will flare up in all countries as the common enemies of the war are brought to bay.
Capitalism and Catholicism are the main issues at stake in the Polish dispute, but mostly Catholicism. The Lublin Government of Poland which is sponsored by the Russians is opposed to the pre-war strangle-hold the landowners and the church had on the Polish masses. The exiled Polish government in London wants this old system continued. So the battle lines are drawn, and students of prophecy will do well to watch the outcome.
The New York Post reports that Sir Anthony Eden explained to the House of Commons concerning the Polish dispute that “the religious issue in that area is far older than the nationalist issue, and it is that which lies at the root of much of the feeling.” Thus we see that the governments are not blind to the real nature of the problems facing the world as a whole, and Europe in particular, as they settle down to the task of peacemaking and reconstruction.
If Poland were the only country involved in the revolutionary struggle which is being waged, the problem would be more easily settled. But it is not! The victories of the Russian armies have extended Communistic spheres of influence over much of Europe. And even where the armies have not raised the red flag of Communism, the prestige gained by helping so largely to defeat the common enemy has caused millions throughout the world to be receptive to the ideology of the Communists.
Besides, we should not lose sight of the fact that Fascism came into power, with the help of Catholicism, to stamp out Communism in Europe, particularly in Italy and Germany. And now, the Communists which went “underground” during the temporary triumph of the counter-revolutionary forces of Fascism, are emerging once more to the open, and with the backing of Russia, are ready to carryon the fight to revolutionize the world. The recent report by Lowell Thomas, of a hundred thousand Italian Communists demonstrating in Rome, is but a symbol of what is occurring throughout the old Roman world. Mr. Thomas also brought back the word from Italy that the ruling House of Savoy was hanging on to its power by a very slender thread.
With this condition so universal, the Polish dispute takes on an importance which otherwise it would not assume. The Vatican seems to sense that as goes Poland so will go all Europe. Because of this the Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano has been violent in its attacks upon the decisions concerning Poland which were reached at the Yalta Conference. The New York Times reported that this Vatican paper has been so outspoken in connection with Poland that someone renamed it Osservatore Polacco. It went so far as to say that Poland was better off under the “occupying authority”—meaning the Nazis—than under the Lublin government.
So the battle rages, and will continue to rage even though the German armies have surrendered. It is said that Pope Leo XIII declared that “Germany must become the sword of the Catholic Church.” From this standpoint it would now seem that Catholicism has lost an important round in the battle for the control of Europe. Nevertheless, the Catholic Church is not willing to admit defeat. She continues to fight, and to fight hard, anywhere and everywhere there is a possible chance that an advantage can be gained.
Papacy’s influence throughout South America is still strong, as is evidenced by the securing of a seat in the San Francisco Conference for Fascist Argentina. This was a victory, but not so complete as had been hoped, for the effort beyond this to have Argentina given a strategic post on one of the committees to draft the new world charter, failed.
The Christian’s position in this revolutionary struggle should be merely that of an onlooker who is watching events with the object of seeing in them the increasing evidences that we are living in the “last days” of Satan’s empire. We see in the struggles of the “Leftists” the long-expected uprising of the underprivileged and priest-ridden masses. At one time we may not have sensed how highly organized the masses would be; yet now we realize that they must be organized in order to cope with the reactionary forces of a religio-political system which is not only itself efficiently organized, but which has been schooled for centuries in the arts of political intrigue and trickery.
The Christian’s sympathy is naturally on the side of the common man, although there is much of injustice and unrighteousness on both sides of this world struggle. We recognize that it is the foretold “increase of knowledge” that has enlightened the people and stirred them. up to clamor for their real and fancied rights. We know, however, that only Christ’s Kingdom will give to the people the peace and security for which thy are now striving. So while we endeavor to radiate peace and good will among all classes, we will continue to pray, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done.”
The enlightened Christian is not distressed over the possibility that the political religion of a false church will be destroyed, for this does not mean the defeat of Christianity. To the student of prophecy and of the divine plan, it means merely the overthrow of a counterfeit Christianity, which, in uniting with the state, and otherwise mixing in politics, claimed to be the real Kingdom of Christ.
One of the Scriptural names applied to counterfeit Christianity is “Babylon.” The original meaning of this term was “the gateway to God,” and such the false church claimed, and still claims, to be. But to God, and to those who are instructed in the Word of God, Babylon means confusion—a confusion of both doctrines and practices—the worst feature of which is the manner in which this false system has confused the worship of God with the worship of men and the idols of men.
The 50th and 51st chapters of Jeremiah; and the 15th to the 19th chapters of Revelation tell of the plagues which were to come upon “Babylon” in the end of the age, and of her final destruction. Jeremiah 50:23,24, reads, “How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations! I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found and also caught, because thou hast striven against the Lord.”
The laying of a snare implies the use of bait, or that which allures the sought-for victim into the snare, or trap. What could be more alluring to “Babylon” than the prospect of again exercising her former political power over Europe and the world? Possibly she thought to attain this riding on the crest of the Fascist wave. If so, it has certainly proved to be a snare, because it means that now she is in danger of being placed in the same category as the hated Fascism which nearly the whole world wants to see destroyed. Catholic countries sending condolences to the German people on the occasion of Hitler’s death hasn’t helped to increase the esteem of the masses for Papacy.
The prophetic meaning, then, of what we now see occurring the world over is a further fulfillment of what the Scriptures say concerning the gathering of the nations in the last days. The increasing tempo in the great class struggles incidental to the collapse of a world order, is also in fulfillment of prophecy. We know that the final outcome will be the complete and utter failure of all humanly constituted authority in the earth, and that then will come the establishment of Christ’s Kingdom. But before that there will be a resurgence of first one class and then another. At present a flood-tide of Communism is threatening the world; but that can change. Political religion and reactionary capitalism may again emerge temporarily as dominating influences in large sections of the earth.
As Christians, let us “watch and be sober.” Let us not try to be wise above that which is written, but wait on the Lord, for we know that His Kingdom is near. Yes, “Our King is marching on.” Of this we become more assured with each passing day, as we note the dying struggles of the various “kings” and “kingdoms of this world.” It is a wonderful time in which to be living; and as we rejoice in the nearness of Christ’s Kingdom, let us pass the good news on to others—to all who have ears to hear!