| News item |
Overview |
Published |
|
"Annus
mirabilis" |
2011 has certainly been, as another BBC
News article put it (rather more prosaically
than Brother Thomas), “The year when a lot
happened.” A conscious decision has
therefore been made to devote significant
space, in this the first 2012 issue of the
Testimony magazine, to a selection of the
events we have witnessed, that readers might
reflect on the nearness of our Lord’s
return. |
January 2012 |
|
Financial turmoil driving radical reform |
During times of crisis it can be much
easier for politicians to make radical
reforms that in normal circumstances might
take years to accomplish, or perhaps
wouldn’t happen at all. This is exactly what
we are witnessing as a result of the current
crisis with the euro. It is still not
certain exactly what the outcome will be,
but it would appear that, regardless of the
exact detail, more power will be ceded to
Brussels (or Berlin), and there will be
closer financial and political union amongst
the nations concerned. |
December 2011 |
|
Ready and waiting? |
Significant developments are occurring in
diverse regions of the world at such a pace
and on such a scale that we could be
forgiven for feeling somewhat overwhelmed
and confused. How do we make sense of these
things, and how do we know what we should be
looking for? |
November 2011 |
|
The Autocrat rides again |
Those who have read Elpis Israel will
recall that Brother Thomas frequently refers
to Gog, the leader of the hostile host
described in Ezekiel 38 as the ‘autocrat.’
At the time that title was an apt
description of the Czar who ruled Russia as
almost an absolute monarch. In 1917 the
Russian Revolution overthrew the autocratic
regime of the Czar, but it in its place was
established a system that was just as
authoritarian and oppressive. |
November 2011 |
|
Turkey turns on Israel |
The Israeli military have
been cleared of any wrongdoing following an
inquiry into the death of nine ‘volunteers’
on an aid convoy that originated from Turkey
in May 2010. The convoy was intended to
break the Israeli blockade of Gaza but the
attempt ended in violent clashes as Israeli
commandos boarded one of the vessels. In
response to these findings the Turkish
government has expelled Israeli diplomats
and suspended all military and economic
cooperation with Israel. In a speech to the
Arab League on 13 September the Turkish
prime minister, Tayyip Erdogan, stated that
Turkish warships will accompany the next
convoy from Turkey in order to prevent a
recurrence. |
October 2011 |
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The nations
gathering? |
The recent exchanges between President Obama
and Benjamin Netanyahu, in the full gaze of
the world’s media, are a clear indication
that we are drawing towards the final phase
of man’s rule over the earth. Their
respective speeches were full of Bible
echoes that bring to mind the words of the
prophets. |
July 2011 |
|
Earthquakes in
divers places |
An earthquake is surely one of the most terrifying
experiences known to man, and the destruction
wreaked by these events can be on a scale almost
unimaginable. We read in Scripture that God
sometimes uses the power of earthquakes to
accomplish His purpose, whether for judgement, as in
the case of Korah, Dathan and Abiram (Num.
16:31,32), or to effect a miracle, such the release
of Paul and Silas from prison at Philippi (Acts
16:26). |
May 2011 |
|
Israel becomes
a powerhouse |
We have been following with interest the story of
Israel’s discovery of vast reserves of natural gas
in her territorial waters. The find has resulted in
increased tension with Lebanon, which claims that
some of the reserves lie within her maritime
borders, and has also resulted in military
assistance from Russia to Lebanon in the form of
‘advisors’ and a gift of ten MiG fighter jets worth
hundreds of millions of dollars. The story gains
momentum under the headline “Israel becomes a
powerhouse” on the front page of the Business
section of the Sunday Times newspaper (10 Apr.
2011), which reports that Israel’s discovery of
these gas fields means that she is set to be
transformed “into an energy supplier for Europe and
transform energy politics.” |
May 2011 |
|
World watchman |
Japanese earthquake and tsunami; Super-full moon;
Japanese Government “deplores” Israeli settlement
building; PS: Turmoil in the Middle East continues |
Apr 2011 |
|
... no
satisfaction? |
It would seem that, more than ever before, the world
at large is focused on a hunt for happiness. This
was evident over the New Year period, when posters
were popping up to advertise a book claiming, “I Can
Make You Happy”! |
Mar 2011 |
