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This page is focused on news involving the Catholic church and how it may relate to Bible prophecy about the end times before Christ returns. For more background information, visit here.

I have begun to use a different site to share the Watchman Newsletter from December 2008 and on. Some stories will be archived there, but for the most part anything from November 2008 and before will remain here.

This page may take some time to load. For size reasons I have archived topics by year: |2007|2008|

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Fate of Lisbon Treaty rests on Irish referendum Telegraph UK (June 13, 2008) - The fate of Europe lay in the hands of the Irish electorate after they were given the opportunity of a vote denied to the British people. The outcome of the referendum, which will see Ireland's 2.8 million registered voters determine the future of the EU's 495 million citizens, was still too close to call when the polls closed on Thursday night. A low turnout threatened to see the major European Union (EU) reform defeated. While the Yes campaign took comfort in the fact voting levels increased from the earlier low of 20 per cent, initial indications estimated a turnout of 40 per cent. Academics who have studied earlier Irish polls predicted a 45 per cent turnout was the minimum required to deliver a Yes vote, but while in Dublin there were signs of levels reaching the 40-45 per cent, outside the capital, estimates were often lower. A vigorous "no" campaign led by Declan Ganley, the multimillionaire leader of the Libertas group and a son of Irish emigrants, had seen the rival camps draw level in opinion polls. Ireland's main political parties urged their supporters to back the treaty and the formidable political machine of the ruling Fianna Fail party rallied supporters. The contest even saw a Papal intervention, with Pope Benedict XVI appearing to encourage Catholic Ireland to vote yes. In St Peter's Square, the Pontiff paid tribute to St Columbanus, a monk from Co Meath who led a mission into Europe in AD500. "With his spiritual strength, with his faith, with his love of God and neighbour, he became one of the Fathers of Europe, showing us today the way to those roots from which our continent may be reborn," the Pope said. A no vote could delay or doom the painstakingly negotiated pact, which must be ratified by all 27 states. Implementation would see the number of EU commissioners reduced from 27 to 18 and require foreign, defence and security decisions to be taken unanimously.
| EU/UN / 4th Kingdom | NewWorldOrder | RCC |

It's not surprising that the Pope would step in to support a yes vote to the referendum. If indeed the Vatican represents the woman riding the beast of Revelation 13 and 17, the fourth kingdom, then this fits with the support of the reviving of the Roman Empire being attempted through Democratic means today. I have a feeling that it will be a yes and if not, something will happen to circumvent a no vote, there's just too much riding on this politically. Of course I could be wrong so keep watching!

The EU's options should Ireland reject the Lisbon Treaty EU Business (June 11, 2008) - Some options given in the article:

  • FORCE IRELAND TO CHANGE ITS MIND
  • RENEGOTIATE THE LISBON TREATY
  • FORGE AHEAD USING THE NICE TREATY
  • CUT IRELAND ADRIFT FROM THE EU

Pope tells young people to trust in Mary Catholic News Agency (May 18, 2008) - At a meeting with young people in the northern Italian city of Savona, Pope Benedict XVI recited the Angelus prayer with the young people and invited them to trust in Mary. He recalled the words the Virgin Mary spoke to shepherd Benedict Pareto in the year 1400 urging him to build a shrine on Mount Figogna, the place where she appeared. Benedict Pareto, according to tradition, was worried because he did not know how to respond to Mary’s invitation to build a church in a place so remote from the city. The Pope repeated the Virgin Mary’s words: “trust in me! With me in your midst you will not fail. With my help everything will be easy. Only keep your will firm. Trust in me!” “This, Mary repeats to us today,” Pope Benedict said. “An ancient prayer, very dear in popular tradition, makes us turn in confidence to You with these confident words, that today we make our own: ‘Remember, O Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, sought your help or implored your intercession was left abandoned.’ “It is with this certainty that we invoke the motherly care of Our Lady of the Guard on your diocesan community, its pastors, consecrated persons, the lay faithful: young people, families, the elderly. To Mary we entrust the entire city, with its diverse population, its cultural, social and economic problems and challenges of our times, and commitment of those who cooperate for the common good.” Turning to the unique heritage of the region the Pope said, "Together with you, I thank God for the strong and tenacious faith of past generations that, during the centuries have written memorable pages of holiness and human civilization. Liguria and Genoa in particular, has always been a land open to the Mediterranean and the whole world: how many missionaries departed from this port for the Americas and other distant lands!" After the Marian prayer, the Pope directed his attention to Monday’s Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions, a meeting in Dublin convened in order to produce a convention against the deadly weapons. He said the conference was an “important event.” "I hope that, thanks to the responsibility of all participants, we can reach an international instrument that is strong and credible: it is indeed necessary to remedy past mistakes and prevent recurrence in the future," Pope Benedict said.
| RCC | Apostasy |

1 Timothy 2:5
For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.


Vatican: It's OK to believe in aliens Breitbart.com (May 13, 2008) - The Vatican's chief astronomer says that believing in aliens does not contradict faith in God. The Rev. Jose Gabriel Funes, the Jesuit director of the Vatican Observatory, says that the vastness of the universe means it is possible there could be other forms of life outside Earth, even intelligent ones. In an interview published Tuesday by Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Funes says that such a notion "doesn't contradict our faith" because aliens would still be God's creatures. The interview was headlined "The extraterrestrial is my brother." Funes said that ruling out the existence of aliens would be like "putting limits" on God's creative freedom.
| RCC | UFO |

There are extraterrestrial beings that were created before mankind, the Bible calls them angels. They were not created from the earth are they meant to dwell here. 1/3 of them rebelled against God and have been working to deceive mankind since the fall. Genesis 6 even speaks of them taking wives of earth women and producing Nephilim, bringing the judgment of the flood through which only Noah and his family were saved. They were "perfect in their generations," and not tainted by this genetic manipulation by fallen angels. Now scientists today are dabbling with genetic manipulation and corrupting God's creation once again. What is OK is to have a Biblically founded understanding of what is coming to prevent deception because that's the enemy's m/o, deception. He is an angel of light, yet full of darkness and looking to deceive mankind. Be aware of Biblical history, truth is stranger than fiction and things are going to get stranger during the end times!


Vatican, Muslims, to establish permanent dialogue Reuters (March 5, 2008) - The Vatican and Muslim leaders agreed on Wednesday to establish a regular official dialogue to improve sometimes difficult relations between the two religions. A joint statement said the first meeting of the "The Catholic-Muslim Forum" would take place in November in Rome with 24 religious leaders and scholars from each side. The themes of the first session will be "Love of God, Love of Neighbour", "Theological and Spiritual Foundation", and "Human Dignity and Mutual Respect" and Pope Benedict will address the group. The announcement was made at the end of a two-day meeting at the Vatican with five representatives of a group of more than 200 Muslims who had signed an unprecedented appeal to the pope to begin a dialogue. Catholic-Muslim relations nosedived in 2006 after Benedict delivered a lecture in Regensburg, Germany, that was taken by Muslims to imply that Islam was violent and irrational. Muslims around the world protested and the pope sought to make amends when he visited Turkey's Blue Mosque and prayed towards Mecca with its Imam. After the fallout from the Regensburg speech, 138 Muslim scholars and leaders wrote to the German-born Pontiff and other Christian leaders last year, saying "the very survival of the world itself" may depend on dialogue between the two faiths. Although Benedict repeatedly expressed regret for the reaction to his speech in Regensburg, he stopped short of a clear apology sought by Muslims.
| Islam | RCC |


Cardinals Hoping for a 5th Marian Dogma Zenit (February 11, 2008) - Five cardinals have sent a letter inviting prelates worldwide to join them in petitioning Benedict XVI to declare a fifth Marian dogma they said would "proclaim the full Christian truth about Mary." The text, released last week, includes the petition that asks the Pope to proclaim Mary as "the Spiritual Mother of All Humanity, the co-redemptrix with Jesus the redeemer, mediatrix of all graces with Jesus the one mediator, and advocate with Jesus Christ on behalf of the human race." The signatories of the letter are five of the six cardinal co-sponsors of the 2005 International Symposium on Marian Coredemption, held in Fatima: Cardinal Telesphore Toppo, archbishop of Ranchi, India; Cardinal Luis Aponte Martínez, retired archbishop of San Juan, Puerto Rico; Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil, major archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly, India; Cardinal Riccardo Vidal, archbishop of Cebu, Philippines; and Cardinal Ernesto Corripio y Ahumada, retired archbishop of Mexico City. Cardinal Edouard Gagnon, who died last August, was the sixth cardinal co-sponsor of the 2005 conference. He was the president of the Pontifical Council of the Family from 1974 until he resigned in 1990. The secretariat of the five cardinal co-patrons released the English translation of the letter, which includes a translation and the original Latin text of the "votum," or petition, that was formulated in 2005 and presented formally to the Pope by Cardinal Telesphore in 2006. The petition states: "We believe the time opportune for a solemn definition of clarification regarding the constant teaching of the Church concerning the Mother of the Redeemer and her unique cooperation in the work of Redemption, as well as her subsequent roles in the distribution of grace and intercession for the human family." Ecumenism: Pointing to ecumenical concerns, the petition continues: "It is of great importance [...] that people of other religious traditions receive the clarification on the highest level of authentic doctrinal certainty that we can provide, that the Catholic Church essentially distinguishes between the sole role of Jesus Christ, divine and human Redeemer of the world, and the unique though secondary and dependent human participation of the Mother of Christ in the great work of Redemption." The text adds that the move would be "the ultimate expression of doctrinal clarity at the service of our Christian and non-Christian brothers and sisters who are not in communion with Rome." In a press statement released along with the letter, the cardinal co-sponsors reiterated the same ecumenical concern and said the proclamation of a fifth Marian dogma would be a "service of clarification to other religious traditions and to proclaim the full Christian truth about Mary." The statement added, "This initiative also intends to start an in-depth worldwide dialogue on Mary's role in salvation for our time. [...] Should this effort prove successful, a proclamation would constitute a historical event for the Church as only the fifth Marian dogma defined in its 2,000-year history." Cardinal Aponte Martínez, one of the cardinal co-patrons said: "I believe the time is now for the papal definition of the relationship of the Mother of Jesus to the each one of us, her earthly children, in her roles as co-redemptrix, mediatrix of all graces and advocate. "To solemnly proclaim Mary as the spiritual mother of all peoples is to fully and officially recognize her titles, and consequently to activate, to bring to new life the spiritual, intercessory functions they offer the Church for the new evangelization, and for humanity in our serious present world situation."
| RCC | Apostasy |


Jesuits gather in Rome to elect new "black pope" Reuters Africa (January 7, 2008) - There won't be any white smoke to tell the world he has been elected, but another sort of secret conclave began in Rome on Monday -- to chose the worldwide Jesuit leader who is known as the "the black pope". At Jesuit headquarters a block from the Vatican, 225 delegates from around the world will choose a new superior general to run the largest and perhaps most influential, controversial and prestigious Catholic clerical order. Their leader is traditionally known as "the black pope" because of the colour of the simple cassock he wears and because -- like the pope who dresses in white -- he has worldwide influence and usually keeps the position for life. But this year's general congregation, as the meeting is known, is different. The current superior general, Father Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, 79, received permission from Pope Benedict to retire for reasons of age. A soft-spoken Dutchman with white hair and a goatee, Kolvenbach has been in the job since 1983 and has won widespread praise for steering the Jesuits through one of their most difficult periods in their 468-year history. Kolvenbach's charismatic predecessor, a Basque named Pedro Arrupe, had several conflicts with Benedict's predecessor, Pope John Paul, who believed the order had become too independent, leftist and political, particularly in Latin America. When Arrupe suffered a stroke in the early 1980s Pope John Paul appointed a personal delegate to run the order to make sure it would not drift further leftwards, a move some Jesuits at the time resented as "papal martial law". Kolvenbach, by contrast, has been credited with re-establishing good relations with the Vatican over the past 25 years while dealing with issues such as declining vocations and the future of the order founded by St Ignatius Loyola in 1540. In the 1960s, the all-male order officially known as the Society of Jesus peaked with some 36,000 members worldwide. It now has about 19,200 members involved in education, refugee help and other social services. The election of Kolvenbach's successor is expected to take place in mid-January after days of prayer and what is known in Latin as "murmuratio", or murmurings, among the delegates about who might make a good superior general. While politicking for the post is strictly banned -- delegates are obliged to 'turn in' anyone who actively seeks the top job -- some names have already circulated in religious media. One is Father Lisbert D'Sousa of India, and some Jesuits have said it is time for the top job to go to someone from the developing world. "This (the developing world) is not only the new center of gravity for the Society of Jesus but for the Church," Father James Martin wrote in America, the weekly of the U.S. Jesuits. "And an election of a developing world general would be interesting as a possible bellwether for the next papal conclave, whenever that will be," he wrote. The new Jesuit leader is elected by a secret ballot. After he is chosen, the delegates are not allowed to leave the room until Pope Benedict is informed, in keeping with a centuries-old tradition that the "white pope" be the first to know who the new "black pope" is. But unlike a conclave to elect the real pope, a Jesuit general congregation can continue for weeks or even months after the new head has been elected in order to discuss the order's future challenges and priorities.
| RCC |