The
Drive For the National Sunday Law
by
Vance Ferrell
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The Drive for a National Sunday Law DATE OF PUBLICATION: MARCH 2008 In this research report, we are going to pull together a number of interconnected
developments. Some of this we have reported on earlier, but we were not aware of a number of other details. Viewing them as a whole, as we will here do, brings to light a remarkable chain of events—and reveals, to a startling degree, the key objectives with which the Vatican, under the direction of Pope Benedict XVI (both before and after he became pope), wishes to take America as well as the rest of the world. Three facts become clear: The papacy has definite objectives. It is working
slowly, but surely, toward them. Pope Benedict
is speeding up work on one, so it will be fulfilled before his death. SINCE 1981: RATZINGER
IN CHARGE OF ALL THEOLOGICAL
WRITINGS Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who has
always had a remarkably rapid and brilliant mind, has, since November 1981, been in charge of the initiation and preparation of all Catholic theological objectives, and all Vatican and papal
documents. “From 1962 to 1965 he made a notable contribution to Vatican II as an ‘expert’; being present at the Council as theological advisor of Cardinal Joseph Frings, Archbishop of Cologne. “His intense scientific activity led him to important positions at the service of the German Bishops’ Conference and the International Theological Commission. “John Paul II named him Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and President of the Pontifical Biblical Commission and of the International Theological Commission on 25 Novem- PART ONE OF THREE ber 1981. On 15 February
1982 he resigned the pastoral governance of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. [At that time, he
permanently moved to the Vatican.]”—Official Vatican Bibliographical Statement. 1992: PREPARES THE
CATECHISM He directed the latest revision of the official Catholic
Catechism, which was completed n 1992. This book emphasizes two facts: The
doctrines of Rome are the only correct Christian teachings, and Sunday
sacredness lies at the heart of Catholic teachings and worship. Ratzinger was in charge of preparing this latest revision
which all faithful Catholics should own and read. “He was President of the Preparatory Commission for the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, which after six years of work (1986-1992)
presented the new Catechism to the Holy Father.”—Ibid. 1990s: GAINS STILL
MORE POWER “In the Roman Curia he has been a member of the Council of the Secretariat of State for Relations with States [nations]; of the Congregations for the Oriental Churches, for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, for Bishops, for the Evangelization of Peoples, for Catholic Education, for Clergy and for the Causes of the Saints; of the Pontifical Councils for Promoting Christian Unity, and for Culture; of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, and of the Pontifical
Commissions for Latin America, “Ecclesia Dei,” for the Authentic Interpretation of the Code of Canon Law, and for the Revision of the Code of Canon Law of the Oriental Churches.”—Ibid. “Since 13 November 2000 he has been an Honorary Academic of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.”— Ibid. (It was Ratzinger who was in
charge of drafting the papal statement announcing that the entire
evolutionary theory is acceptable as correct Catholic doctrine (!), as long as man is said to have been directly created by God.) “His address to the Catholic Academy of Bavaria on ‘Why I am still in the Church’ had a wide resonance; in it he stated with his usual clarity: ‘One can only be a Christian in the Church, not beside the Church.’ ”—Ibid. It is significant that the above sentence was the only quotation from Ratzinger in his
official Vatican biographical summary. He is actually
repeating the age-old dictum, “Outside the Church of Rome, there is no salvation.” In addition, notice that, in the above biography, he has, for years, been heavily involved in the Pontifical Councils for Promoting Christian Unity. This is the papal organization in charge of working closely with the other churches and with ecumenical organizations. 1998, 2002: BECOMES
VATICAN HEAD, SECOND ONLY TO
THE POPE In November 1998, Ratzinger became
second in command over the College of Cardinals. Four years later, he was given sole
authority. “On 6 November 1998 the Holy Father approved the election of Cardinal Ratzinger
as Vice-Dean of the College of Cardinals, submitted by the Cardinals of the Order of Bishops. On 30
November 2002 he approved his election as Dean of the College of Cardi- nals.”—Ibid. SPRING 1998: THE SECRET SABBATH
AGREEMENT In this mailing, we will include a report I initially mailed out in 1999 (Update on the Secret Interchurch Planning Meeting). In brief, in April 1999, I was told about a secret agreement by our church leaders in the spring of 1998, with representatives from other major denominations, to “tone down” our public presentations of the Sabbath truth and only present them within the confines of our own churches. In order to provide further verification of this most startling information, I asked another friend to phone the General Conference leader who divulged that information, and try to verify it and learn still more. When he called, he was told that several meetings were held in Switzerland over a span of five years, and that they culminated in the Sabbath agreement which our church leaders entered into, in the spring of 1998. (The
World Council of Churches headquarters, in Geneva, would be the obvious place where those meetings were held; since a very large number of denominations, including our own, regularly sent representatives to attend its various meetings.) By the late 1990s, Pope John Paul II, who was a great worshiper of the Virgin, in response to predictions by apparitionists (their word for
Catholic prophets who supposedly receive messages from the Virgin Mary), was eagerly expecting startling events to occur in 2000 and 2001 (which, though nebulously predicted, appeared to claim that Christ would return to earth at that time and set up a temporal millennium). (See our 112-page
book, The Marian Messages: Final Events as Predicted by the Spirits to Faithful Roman
Catholics. $5.50 + $2.50.) Ratzinger, who by the later 1990s was
entirely in charge of preparing and executing Vatican objectives, apparently had a different reason in mind for arranging for those secret Sabbath meetings with the Adventists. Too levelheaded to place much confidence in apparitionists
who were in communion with a spirit calling itself the Virgin Mary, he had his sights on fulfilling the age-old goal of Rome: to bring the nations back into subjection to itself by
exalting Sunday. He shrewdly recognized that if he could get the Adventists to “tone down” their Sabbath message, it would be far easier for him to get Sunday Laws enacted. Someone
may question whether Ratzinger could be that
interested in government enforcement of Sunday. Significantly, another event also occurred in the spring of 1998. Ratzinger’s
carefully prepared manuscript, issued by John Paul II as an encyclical, called for governments throughout the world to enact Sunday Laws. MAY 1998: THE PAPAL ENCYCLICAL CALLING ON
NATIONS TO ENACT NATIONAL
SUNDAY LAWS On May 31, 1998, the papal encyclical, Dies Domini, which Ratzinger as head theologian
drafted, was issued by the Vatican. You
can find the complete text in our tract set, Pope John Paul II Calls for National Sunday Laws, Parts
1-4 [WM–843846]. Ratzinger, already 72 at the time, was
working steadily toward the fulfillment of an objective, which he wanted to accomplish before his death. SEPTEMBER 2000: THE
ORGANIZATION OF GLOBAL CHRISTIAN
FORUM Since national governments did not obey the papal encyclical
in 1998 which told them to enact strict National Sunday Laws, Ratzinger decided he would work through the churches to
get them to fulfill his objectives. But Ratzinger had a problem. Ever
since the early 20th century, when ecumenical organizations first came into existence, Rome had steadfastly refused to join them as an active member. This situation would have to change if America was to pass that Sunday Law. Ratzinger decided that a new, worldwide
ecumenical organization was needed—which Rome would join and carefully dominate. So discussions were entered into, to set up such an organization which, from the beginning, the Catholic Church would enter as a full member and exert a major control (because it has more members than any other church in
Christendom). Although he knew nothing about the predictions in Revelation 13 and Great Controversy, Ratzinger
recognized that the churches in America would have to lead the way and get the U.S. Congress to enact such a law, so it could lead out in influencing the other nations of the world in doing the same thing. Therefore, a
similar organization would have to be set up by Catholic leaders in the U.S. Then he could use an international ecumenical organization to help get the other governments throughout the world to do likewise. First proposed at a December 1998 international ecumenical meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe, Global Christian Forum (GCF) was brought into existence in 2000 during an International Consultation held at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, in September of that year.
Significantly, this was the same place where, under Catholic direction, most of the organizational planning for Christian Churches Together would later occur. Since then, GCF has steadily grown larger, all the while without mentioning the need for Sunday legislation. Ratzinger
wisely recognized that the push for such a law must begin in
America. JULY 2001: BEGINNINGS
OF CHRISTIAN CHURCHES
TOGETHER It began in the residence of Cardinal William H. Keeler in Baltimore, Maryland. He, along with another Catholic leader and two prominent Protestant leaders, met and got it
started. The idea went through the churches like wildfire. The Catholic Church was
willing to join this new organization! Church
leaders everywhere were thrilled. What about? The
fact that, with Rome’s massive number of church members, the Protestants would have
immense political strength in obtaining their objectives in the halls of
Congress! The years passed, and Christian Churches Together (CCT) kept growing larger. In order to placate the Catholics so they would remain in it, the Catholics were given the largest single voting block on its steering committee which makes all the decisions and sets all the
objectives for CCT. It was decided that the organization must include the widest possible denominational participation before declaring itself to have actually begun. For this reason, that
inaugural event did not occur until April 7,
2006. “Thirty-four churches and national Christian organizations, representing over 100 million Americans, have formed the broadest, most inclusive fellowship of Christian churches and traditions in the USA, in a gathering at Simpsonwood Conference
and Retreat Center near Atlanta, Georgia, March 28–31, 2006.”— United States
Conference of Catholic Bishops, Office of Media Relationships, press release, April 7,
2006. At the following year’s annual meeting, held February 6-9, 2007 in Pasadena, California, the Ten-Point Objectives were presented and agreed upon. Here are two of them: “3. The Ten Commandments are to be subscribed to by the nation.” “7. Throughout all the land, a National Day of Rest shall be honored by governments, industrial manufacturers, and public shopping
facilities.” These objectives would require U.S. federal legislative enactments and presidential approval, before they could be implemented. Ratzinger was moving closer to his objectives. Three facts stand out: (1) The Catholic Church has, for the first time, united with the Protestants, Orthodox, Pentecostals, and Evangelicals in America, in a single ecumenical organization which (2) has become the largest in
U.S. history. (3) Its secret ten-point set
of objectives, drawn up by a small committee at the February 2007 meeting, calls for an eventual campaign for Sunday sacredness and attendance in the U.S. This will inevitably lead to a demand for a National Sunday Law. But, in order to get the member denominations organized into unitedly promoting a
single objective, it was decided that “poverty” would be something they could work on for a time. MAY 29, 2007: BENEDICT’S BARI, ITALY
SPEECH A little over three months later, at a mass celebrating the closing of the 24th National Eucharistic Congress on May 29, and in front of 200,000 people in the
Italian city of Bari, Pope Benedict declared that the reinforcement of Sunday
worship is fundamental to his mission at this time in history. Here is part of his speech: “Sunday, the day of the Lord, is the propitious occasion to draw strength from him, who is the Lord of life. The Sunday precept, therefore, is not a
simple duty imposed from outside. To
participate in the Sunday celebration and to be nourished with the Eucharistic bread is a need of a Christian, who in this way can find the necessary energy for the journey [of life] to be undertaken . . We
must rediscover the joy of the Christian Sunday .
. May today’s Christians again become aware of the decisive importance of the Sunday celebration.”—Zenit,
May 29. The intensity of the papal commitment for the enforcing of Sunday worship in Europe was emphasized in the pope’s statements, as reported by one of Italy’s most popular conservative newspapers. It reported his words as follows: “We cannot live without Sunday . . The religious holiday of
obligation is a duty of the Christian” (Corriere
Della Sera, May 29). In this May 29 papal address, and the one which followed on September 9, the pope was sending a signal to Catholics everywhere, that they should become more earnest about Sunday sacredness and ready to help the church take further actions in its defense. SEPTEMBER 9, 2007: BENEDICT’S AUSTRIAN
SPEECH On Sunday, September 9, 2007, Pope Benedict gave a speech at St. Stephen’s Cathedral, in Vienna, Austria, in which he emphasized this concern still more: “Dear Brothers and Sisters, ‘Sine dominico
non possumus!’—Without the gift of
the Lord, without the Lord’s day, we cannot live .
. The encounter with the Lord is inscribed in time on a specific day . . To do without or to betray
this focus would deprive life of its very foundation, would take away its inner dignity and beauty . .
All the world’s learning profits us nothing unless we learn to live, unless we discover what truly matters in life. “ ‘Sine dominico
non possumus!’ Without the Lord and without the day that belongs to him, life does not flourish. Sunday has been
transformed in our Western societies into the weekend, into leisure time. Leisure time is certainly something good and necessary, especially amid the mad rush of the modern world . . My great predecessor in the
see of Munich and Freising, Cardinal Faulhaber, once put it like this: ‘Give the soul its Sunday,
give Sunday its soul.’ “Because Sunday is ultimately about encountering the risen Christ in word and sacrament, its span extends through the whole of reality.
The early Christians celebrated the first day of the week as the Lord’s day, because it was the day of
the resurrection. Yet very soon, the Church also came to realize that the first day of the week is the day of the dawning of creation, the day on which God said: “Let there be light” (Gen 1:3). Therefore Sunday
is also the Church’s weekly feast of creation—the feast of thanksgiving and joy over God’s creation. At a
time when creation seems to be endangered in so many ways through human activity, we should consciously advert to this dimension of Sunday
too. Then, for the early Church, the first day increasingly assimilated the traditional meaning of the seventh day, the Sabbath. We participate in God’s rest, which embraces all of humanity. Thus we sense on
this day something of the freedom and equality of all God’s creatures . . Yes, Lord, may this
inheritance [Sunday worship] enter deep within our souls so that we come to know the joy of being redeemed.”—Benedict XVI, homilies 2007, documents, homily
20070909. A news release, commenting on this speech, said that Benedict wants a Sunday Law included in the forthcoming European Constitution: “ ‘Sine dominico
non possumus!’ ‘Without Sunday [worship] we cannot live!’ Pope
Benedict XVI declared during a mass on September 9 at St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna. “Speaking on the final day of his three-day visit to Austria, the German pope voiced a strong call for Christians to revive Sunday keeping as an all-important religious practice. “Give the soul its Sunday, give Sunday its soul,” he chanted before a rain-soaked crowd of 40,000 . . Sunday worship, he warned, was not just a “precept” to be casually adhered to, but a “necessity” for all people. “In the opening greeting, the archbishop of Vienna said a movement in Austria had been initiated to protect ‘Sunday from tendencies to empty [it] of its meaning.’ “In Austria, most businesses are restricted from operating on Sunday. However, some
business groups are pressuring the government to be allowed to open, a move Roman Catholic groups vehemently oppose. “During Benedict’s trip to Austria, he called for Europe to look to its Christian roots, to trust in God, and to defend traditional values.
“The pope has been very vocal about Europe’s Christian—or Catholic—roots, and is pushing to have them included in the European
Constitution. Although laws concerning Sunday worship are cur- rently determined by individual
nations, look for the European Union to eventually gain jurisdiction over the work week—which is one big reason the Catholic Church is so intimately involved with the evolution of the EU.”—The
Trumpet, September, 17, 2007. AUGUST 2007 PREPARATION OF THE ECUMENICAL BOOK
BEGINS In August, I was deeply impressed that, in view of the increasing activity which I had been reporting about Christian Churches Together, all of the information about the ecumenical movement—including Adventist connections with it—since 1995 should be gathered into one 8½ x 11 book. (The last of my books on that subject had been completed in the mid-1990s. See back page of this book for a complete listing of all the
books.) After starting the project, I came across such a great quantity of material that I questioned why I was doing this; it was so immense. Yet
I was convicted that I must carry it through to
completion. In the providence of God, I discovered the mirror image organization to CCT, Global Christian Forum, which Rome had also organized for the entire world field; plus a remarkable amount of documentation on how deeply our denomination is involved with the other churches. This information was to prove invaluable, when news came of the November Sunday Law meeting and of all that has followed since then. NOVEMBER 14, 2007 THE MEETING THAT WAS
POSTPONED In the week of November 5-9, 2007, a limited number of people were told that a special meeting would be held at the Pope John Paul Cultural Center, in Washington, D.C., for the purpose of exploring whether or not the Religious Right should push for a National Sunday
Law. The meeting would convene in the morning of Wednesday, November 14. One individual who was notified happened to be a faithful Adventist minister, now retired after a lifetime of ministry as a pastor in the denomination. Over a period of time, he had been able to work his way in as an important member of a Christian Right organization, based in Washington, D.C. Upon receiving this startling information, he confided it to at least three individuals (not including me), and asked for their earnest prayers as he went to this meeting—while cautioning them that they must not mention this to anyone! Unfortunately, one of those individuals, a medical doctor living in the Northeast—while telling them it was a secret—excitedly mentioned it to his Sabbath School class on November 10. Of course, you know what happened next. E-mails
flew everywhere. Rather quickly, one was handed to me on Saterday
night. It gave the name and
location of that medical doctor. On Sunday morning, I phoned my friend (the pastor mentioned above) and asked
him about this. He was utterly shocked and slowly said, something like this: “That was confidential and was not to be told.” We both recognized what he had on his hands, but even then did not realize what a massive problem it would develop into. Discussing it at some length, He told me that two people were slated to give presentations at this forthcoming November 14 meeting: a Roman Catholic who would present the reasons for beginning a campaign, to urge Congress to enact a Sunday Law, and my friend (known by the others to be a faithful Seventh-day Adventist) who would give those in attendance reasons why it should not be done. After praying
together, and assuring him that I consistently never divulge secrets until he is ready for a specified amount to be told, we hung up. Then my heavenly Father gave me an idea, and I quickly phoned him back. I told him I
would prepare a four-page research study on what the Founding Fathers of our nation said about the meaning of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, that he could use it in his presentation and give copies to all who attended. This should have a powerful
impact. Ex- tremely happy with the idea, he told
me I would need to have it to him by the next day. He said he would give copies of it to everyone who
attended the meeting. He added that he had an appointment that afternoon, and would leave very early Wednesday morning on a jet for Washington, D.C. To my inquiry, he told me the trip cost would be covered by the Religious Right organization he was working with. Praying to my Father for guidance, I was able to complete the four-page study and fax it to him on Monday. In my final contact at that time with him, he said that, due to all the excited phone calls, the meeting had been hurriedly moved to a hotel. But, throughout the day and those that followed, I was deeply concerned. I kept receiving phone calls from friends who had heard there
was to be a meeting. But, to make the situation worse, I learned that concerned Adventists had been excitedly phoning the Pope John Paul Cultural Center, Christian Coalition headquarters, and some other Washington, D.C. area Christian organizations on Monday and Tuesday. To compound the problem greatly, the Religious Liberty Department at the General Conference sent a man down, uninvited, to the Cultural Center on the morning of Wednesday, the 14th, to attend the meeting! My worst fears were realized when, on Friday, I was unable to contact my friend. He had told me that he would phone me that morning and give me a report I could share
with others. No one else could contact him either. To make a long story short, I would not speak to him again until early February. So, what had happened? You need to understand that the Vatican always works
undercover. On the surface, its vast network appears to occupy itself with such things as holding masses, marching in processions, and talking about helping the
poor. But, out of sight, other objectives are steadily being carried out. In Europe, where it has more
power, the Church openly leads out in demanding enactment of Sunday Laws. But, in America, it works through Protestant churches and organizations. “Romanism
in the Old World and apostate Protestantism in the New” is the rule, not only in the persecution later to be inflicted on Sabbathkeepers (4
Spirit of Prophecy 444:2-445:0; Great Controversy, 616:0) but, we are discovering, for getting the Sunday Law
enacted. So when all these phone calls flooded into the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, the leaders there were understandably shocked.
Not only had the Cultural Center been exposed for what it was: the Catholic headquarters for political action at the Capital, but the planning for Sunday legislation had prematurely been
revealed. So people were told that no meetings were planned at the Center that day. Because the last I was told was that the meeting would be held at a nearby hotel that day, I reported the information I had in a special report (The Sunday Law Meeting [WM–1413]). I have repeatedly said that, when more information which you need to know surfaces, I will give it to you. We
must help the Advent people be prepared for what is
coming! If I afterward learn that there are flaws in the information, I will tell you. After this, a curtain of silence fell over everything. Then in early February, my friend phoned again. He had, at last, received
permission to speak. The February 14th meeting had not been held. But the matter of enlisting
other Christian denominational and Christian Right organization leaders in a campaign to push for a National Sunday Law in America had remained urgent. So much so, that three
meetings were held on Thursday and Friday, November 15 and 16. Here is what I learned in early February: THE FIRST NOVEMBER 15,
2007, MEETING This, the first of two meetings held the day after the canceled meeting, was attended by Catholic cardinals and held at the Pope John Paul Cultural Center on the morning of Thursday, November 15, 2007. We do not know what was discussed at that gathering. But we can assume it must have been heavily focused on the need to push for a Sunday law—and for three reasons: First, the previous day’s meeting (on the 14th) at the Center, which they dared not hold because news had leaked that they wanted to urge Sunday law enact- ment—was solely to have
been on that subject. Second, because the canceled November 14th meeting with Protestant leaders had been moved to the day after this meeting of cardinals (on
the 16th). Third, that meeting on the 16th would be solely about stopping the desecration of Sunday in America in order to save America from further gross immorality— and the only one permitted to speak from the front would be a Catholic cardinal. THE SECOND NOVEMBER 15, 2007,
MEETING This meeting was also held the same day, Thursday, November 15, as the above meeting of cardinals. But this one was held in the
afternoon at a hotel which was only a block or two from the Pope John Paul Cultural Center in Washington, D.C. The Center could be seen from the hotel’s front entrance. About 40 to 45 people were
in attendance at this gathering, which lasted about two-and-a-half hours. Al Gore and David Crockett,
along with a man from Pennsylvania, were sitting at the end, when an acquaintance of ours entered the room. This second 15th meeting was obviously held to prepare the Protestant leaders in attendance for the following day’s meeting about the need to stop Sunday desecration, to avoid the further wrath of God from occurring in the ongoing natural disasters,— a point brought out by the cardinal who presented that Friday meeting! Since the theme of this meeting was the terrible violence of the storms and natural disasters which are increasing,—it provided a good introduction to the meeting on the 16th, which would be about how we must appease God’s indignation about the increasing crime and immorality in America—by “guarding the Lord’s Day.” At this second meeting on the 15th, Gore arose and spoke to them, warning about the implications of what climate change could bring to our planet. He
then showed them a DVD on the
subject. Gore was the principal speaker, but others in the audience also made comments. The lone Adventist there spoke four times at this meeting. In one comment, he mentioned
that the Bible says that God is going to destroy those who destroy the earth. Everyone was
astonished, for they do not know their Bibles as well as Adventists do. Stunned, Al Gore asked him where that was found in the Bible. When he replied that it was found in Revelation 11:18, the audience buzzed with astonishment. And several with pocket Bibles looked up the text and were startled to see that it really was there. THE NOVEMBER 16, 2007,
MEETING The next day, November 16, another meeting was held at this same hotel, close to the John Paul Cultural Center. This meeting was also by invitation only, and only a limited number (about 15 to 20 people) were in attendance. With the exception
of two Catholics, all present were influential Christian leaders. Arriving at about 11:30 a.m., once inside the hotel, each person had to register to make sure he was supposed to be at this meeting. He was
then searched in a separate room by security guards. They first ate lunch in a hotel cafeteria. Al Gore was at a different table, but
left after lunch. After the meal, they had to pass through double doors, turn right, and go to a conference room with theater-type chairs. Everyone was searched
again before entering it. No electronic recording
equipment was permitted. At this afternoon meeting, which only lasted a little over an hour, only one individual stood up front and spoke. He was a Roman Catholic
cardinal, dressed in his red smock. The only other Catholic in the
room was a priest who sat in a corner
in back. Unlike the others who would nod in agreement and make comments, although he listened carefully, he remained totally silent. The cardinal immediately came to the point, which was the need to guard “the
Lord’s Day.” It is of interest that at no time throughout this meeting was any mention made of “Sunday.”
But everyone knew what day he was referring to.
It is also highly significant that the cardinal referred to the ten-point objectives which had been approved the previous year at the annual meeting of Christian Churches Together, held in Pasadena in February 2007, where it had been approved and signed by 37 leaders representing the various churches and church organizations in
attendance. But this could be expected since the Catholics started CCT and have the largest single voting block on its steering committee which would have been in charge of preparing that ten-point set of goals. It is also significant that only a leading Roman Catholic delivered this, the only presentation made at that meeting. And, lastly, it is significant that there was very hearty, general agreement by the audience with all that he said and asked
them to do. At this November 16 meeting, this was the theme of the cardinal’s presentation: “I’m all for those Ten Objectives, but it is the seventh one we’re all concerned about! The moral decay in
America will only continue, unless we do something to stop it. This can only be done by
guarding the Lord’s Day.” You will recall that the seventh of the CCT Ten Objectives was about pushing for enactment of a National Sunday Law. I will quote it again for you: “7. Throughout all the
land, a National Day of Rest shall be honored by governments, industrial manufacturers, and public shopping facilities.” (See Christian Churches Together [WM–13861389] for more on the Ten-Point
Objectives. You will find all of these recent Sunday Law reports in the back of our new book, Adventist Ecumenism to 2008. See the back page of this present report for more on that book.) Repeatedly, as the cardinal spoke, various ones in the audience would nod their heads, make sounds of agreement, and occasionally make brief comments from their seats. It was obvious
that, as our friend watched, all were in full unity and agreement with what the cardinal was saying. Frequent mention was made of the immoral decay that America was rapidly sliding into and the indications that the judgments of God were soon to fall, as evidenced by the rapid increase of natural disasters. That, of course, helps us
better understand why this gathering occurred the day after Al Gore presented statistics on the rapidly increasing, most terrible effects of climate
change. From time to time, the cardinal referred to “His Holiness,” indicating that Pope Benedict approved of this necessity of “guarding the Lord’s Day” more forcefully than ever before. Appeals were repeatedly made that the only way in which America could be saved from its rapid descent into immorality was by stopping the desecration of the Lord’s
Day. Only in protecting the Lord’s Day could God’s anger
be staved off. Otherwise, it was stated that His judgments will fall all the harder on America. —We have here, what could be termed, a reverse mirror-image of the First Angel’s Message of Revelation 14:6-7! The Adventists used to warn the world that the Judgment was imminent, and all must keep the Ten Commandments and the
Bible Sabbath. We are now being told by Rome that the judgments of God will fall upon us—if we do not sacredly observe the false sabbath! At the close of this meeting, the cardinal suddenly announced that no one was to say anything about this entire matter—including any mention of these meetings—until the Vatican had given those in attendance
permission to do so. He said they would be notified when
this could be done. Gladly would Rome have postponed the time much longer, when the news of these meetings could be released. But Benedict
will turn 81 on April 16. He knows he must work quickly if he is to achieve his cherished goal of pushing through a series of National Sunday Laws, first in America through Christian Churches Together working with Religious Right political groups, and then elsewhere in the world field, working through Global Christian Forum—both of which he had earlier set up to carry out Catholic political
objectives. Weeks passed. It was not until the first part of February that this permission was granted. The following statement (variations of which are by now being passed around) was issued from the Vatican to both introduce and excuse the need to push for strict enforcement that would remove the desecration of Sunday, “the Lord’s Day.” That was why my friend was able to once again make contact with me. You might
wonder why he remained silent so long, but he did so in order to retain his connections—so he will be able to continue to provide God’s people with additional information later on. We need his help, and he
has kindly been willing to provide it. We urgently
need all the advance we can obtain! I am told that the following statement, provided by the Vatican in early February, repeats the message of the cardinal at that November 16, 2007, meeting. The thoughtful reader will find these points helpful in providing a major outline of the basic reasoning which will be used in promoting this forthcoming legislation. It sounds similar to
predictions, written over a century earlier in Great Controversy, which foretold that just such arguments would be used in support of Sunday legislation and the vilification of Sabbathkeepers: “I call upon the CCA [Catholic Campaign for America] to join with the CCOA [Christian Coalition of America] to help in our spiritual fight to help save America, the second
Israel. We must band together to stave off the crisis of gross neglect of Bible truths, and help America and the nations of the world to a realization for what is happening and continues to worsen. “These crises will increase in America, the second Israel of Bible prophecy. The Lord will allow more terrorist attacks and these will increase as it was in Old Testament times of the
first Israel. The Lord will allow the enemies of the second Israel to awaken the people in an effective
but unexpected way. Now [we see] global warming - the melting of icebergs and ice caps - water shortages - poor people starving and dying by the millions [is
the result]. The desecration of the Lord’s Day by the mega malls and shopping centers - various sporting events - all unnecessary frolicking on the Lord’s Day [is a major part of what is causing the Lord’s anger]. “Our government leaders and church leaders, who really care, must protect all from these immoral activities. If we don’t, it will soon be
too late. The Lord’s Day must be
protected and supported by responsible persons. If we do not care and understand, a crisis of even greater magnitude no doubt will soon come. PART THREE OF THREE “We must work and pray and support efforts to protect the Lord’s Day. We need more
than ever to work together to help stave off
God’s anger. We must show our Lord that we will work together to protect His day of worship. Unless we work together to avert the crisis, it will surely come.” When the meeting ended, my friend handed out copies of the research report I had send him earlier that
week. The title of this report which I prepared is The Right to Religious Liberty. It provides many very clear statements by the Founding Fathers of America regarding the meaning of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. I earlier
sent you a copy of this research study [WM–1415]. It is also
available in the back of our new book, Adventist Ecumenism to 2008. Because my friend handed a complete copy of it to everyone who attended that meeting on the 16th,— they would henceforth have no excuse for trying to override the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution in their eagerness to enact a federal Sunday Law here in America. THE FEBRUARY 4, 2008,
MEETING Another Christian meeting, to which only certain leaders were invited, was held on this date in Washington, D.C. Significantly, this was the day before the “super Tuesday” election.
We know that Gary Baur and James Dobson were
invited. Shortly after this conservative Christian right meeting, Baur recommended McCain and Dobson expressed his personal preference for Huckabee. It is inevitable that, as we near the Final Crisis, politics will become more and more deeply interwoven with the call for Sunday sacredness. Additional meetings are slated to also be held in April in Washington, D.C.—but Pope Benedict will be the principal speaker at
these gatherings. THE APRIL 15-20, 2008,
VISIT BY POPE BENEDICT
For his upcoming visit to America, Pope Benedict XVI plans to stop in Washington and New York over six days, beginning on April 15,
2008. Eight published meetings will be held. Others, not
publicly announced, will probably also occur. Benedict will arrive in Washington, D.C. on the 15th and will probably hold one or two significant meetings on that day, but no mention is made of what they might be. The other four most important publicly announced meetings will occur on the subsequent three days. (1) He will confer in a closed-door meeting with President George W. Bush at the White House on April 16. (2) Later that same day, he will meet with the U.S. bishops at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. This event is limited to U.S. bishops, archbishops, and cardinals. Planning is being
coordinated by the staff of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. This is likely to be a very important closed-door session with U.S. Catholic leaders. (3) April 17 will be an “interreligious gathering” at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington. Invitations are being handled by the USCCB Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs. This could also be a very important closed- door ecumenical gathering; since it will be attended by leading mainline Protestant, Orthodox, Pentecostal, and Evangelical church leaders. —In addition, we have learned from a special source that, although not publicly announced,— Pope Benedict will also meet on April 17 in a conference room of the Senate Office Building, just down the hall from Senator Robert
Byrd’s office. Those in attendance will include President Bush, Robert Byrd, Nancy Polosi (House of
Representatives leader and a devoted Roman Catholic), along with many very important Christian Right political and church leaders—many of whom gave enthusiastic attention to the November presentation calling for a National Sunday Law. A
total of 22 people will be present at this important
secret meeting. (4) The pope will address General Assembly delegates from around the world at the United Nations Building on April 18. Pope Benedict is the eighth German pope and, at age 78 (when he ascended the papal throne), the oldest cardinal to become pope since Clement
XII (17301740). Although Pope John Paul II visited St. Louis in 1999, according to a November 12 Vatican announcement (Washington Post, November 13, 2007), this will be the first
time a pope will have been in the Washington, D.C. area since 1979. Here is a news release on the April visit by the pope: “Pope Benedict XVI to visit the United States in April. New York Times, November 13, 2007— Pope Benedict XVI is scheduled to come to the United States in April, his first visit as the pope, and plans to make stops in Washington and New York, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops announced yesterday. “During his stay, scheduled for April 15 to April 20, the pope plans to visit ground zero in Lower Manhattan and is scheduled to address the United Nations on April 18, officials said. The subject of his address was not announced. “Pope Benedict is scheduled to meet with President Bush on April 16 at the White House. He will also meet with United States bishops at the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington and celebrate Mass at the new Nationals’ Park stadium. “Cardinal Edward M. Egan of New York said in a statement: “I have assured the Holy Father of a warm and prayerful welcome. We all
look forward to his visit with pleasure and
anticipation.” “In New York, the pope is scheduled to meet with other religious leaders at a parish that has not yet been named publicly. He
also plans to celebrate Mass for members of religious orders at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on April 19. On April 20, Pope Benedict is scheduled to visit ground zero. Later that day, he is to celebrate Mass at
Yankee Stadium.” “Pope Plans Ground Zero, UN Visits in First U.S. Trip, Bloomberg News, November 12, 2007— Pope Benedict XVI will make his first visit to the U.S. as spiritual leader to the Catholic Church next year . . Benedict will travel to New
York and Washington from April 15-20, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said in a statement today. He will meet with President George W. Bush on April 16, address the UN on April 18, and visit the World Trade Center site on April 20. “This is a blessed moment for our nation,” Bishop William Skylstad of Spokane,
Washington, president of the U.S. bishops’ conference, said in the statement. “Pope Benedict is
not just the leader of Catholics, he is also a man of inspiration for all those who work for peace.” . . “The last time a Pope visited the U.S. was in 1999, when Pope John Paul II, then 78, spoke to a crowd of 100,000 and met with President Bill Clinton in St. Louis. John Paul visited the U.S. seven times as pontiff, beginning in October 1979, a year into his papacy. “Joseph Alois Ratzinger
became the 265th leader of the Roman Catholic Church, the world’s largest Christian denomination, and chose the name Pope Benedict XVI in April 2005. There are about 67.5 million Catholics in the U.S. and over a billion worldwide, according to the Conference
of Bishops.” Here is the complete published schedule for this forthcoming visit, as provided by a Vatican source: “Itinerary for Pope’s U.S. Visit, Catholic News Service, November 30, 2007— “• April 16 meeting with the U.S. bishops at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington: Event is limited to U.S. bishops. Planning is being coordinated by the staff of the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops. “• April 17 Mass at the Nationals’ Park stadium in Washington: Ticket distribution plans will be announced after the first of January. “• April 17 meeting with Catholic educators at the Catholic University of America in Washington: Open to presidents of Catholic colleges and universities and superintendents of diocesan
school systems. Planning for the event is being handled by Catholic University, but the guest list is limited to the presidents and
superintendents. “• April 17 interreligious gathering at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington: Invitations are being handled by the USCCB Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious
Affairs. “• April 18 speech to the U.N. General Assembly in New York: Access to the U.N. building and the grounds nearby will be controlled by the United Nations. “• April 18 ecumenical event at an as-yet-unidentified New York parish church in Manhattan: Invitations to Christian religious leaders will be extended by the Archdiocese of New
York. “• April 19 Mass for priests, deacons and religious at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York: Invitations will first go to New York Archdiocese-based priests, deacons and religious, then to those of neighboring dioceses in New York state, New Jersey and Connecticut if seats are available. Event is being coordinated
by the New York Archdiocese. “• April 19 meeting with children with disabilities at St. Joseph’s Seminary Chapel in New York: Event probably will accommodate no more than dozens of children, by invitation only. “• April 19 youths and seminarians rally at St. Joseph’s Seminary: All U.S. seminarians will be invited. Youths will receive tickets through their Catholic schools, religious education programs and youth groups, starting with the New York Archdiocese and then nearby dioceses. Capacity
expected to be between 10,000 and 15,000. “• April 20 visit to ground zero, site where New York’s World Trade Center stood: A simple ceremony is planned, to which representatives of the police, fire, and emergency workers who responded to the 2001 terrorist attack and family members of victims of the attack will be invited. “• April 20 Mass at Yankee Stadium in New York: Ticket distribution plans will be announced in January. Tickets most likely will be distributed through parishes, with all recipients required to submit their names, addresses and other
information.” Here is an interesting official Vatican statement about the godlike status of this man who will be here in April: “Catholic News Service, November 12, 2007— Archbishop Pietro Sambi, apostolic nuncio to the United States, confirmed the dates of the papal trip in remarks on Nov. 12, at the beginning of the annual fall meeting of the U.S. bishops in Baltimore, and made this statement: ‘Peter, the rock on which Jesus founded this church, will be among us in the person of his successor,
Benedict the XVI.’ ” It was definitely predicted over a hundred years ago that the occurrence of an increasing number of natural disasters would be cited by Sunday Law advocates as a reason for its enactment! “David prayed, ‘it is time for Thee, Lord, to work: for they have made void Thy law.’
This prayer is no less pertinent at the present time. The world has gone astray from God, and its lawless state should strike terror to the heart, and lead all who are loyal to the great King to
work for a reformation. The papal power has thought to change the law of God by substituting a spurious Sabbath for that of Jehovah; and all through the religious world the false sabbath is revered, while the true one is trampled beneath unholy feet . . “It is on the law of God that the last great struggle of the controversy between Christ and His angels and Satan and his angels will come, and it will be decisive for all
the world. . . “Men in responsible positions will not only ignore and despise the Sabbath themselves, but from the sacred desk will urge upon the people the observance of the first day of the week, pleading tradition and custom in behalf of this
man-made institution. They will point to calamities on land and sea—to the storms of wind, the floods, the earthquakes, the destruction by fire—as judgments indicating God’s displeasure because Sunday is not sacredly observed. “These calamities will increase more and more, one disaster will follow close upon the heels of another; and those who make void the law of God will point to the few who are keeping the Sabbath of the fourth commandment as the ones who are bringing wrath upon the world. This
falsehood is Satan’s device that he may ensnare the unwary.”— Southern Watchman, June 28, 1904; Christian Service, 155. HOW COULD THERE BE A
NATIONAL SUNDAY LAW NOW? Adventist leaders, who are well-acquainted with the political landscape in America, have for fifteen years been predicting that no National Sunday Law will be enacted by the U.S. Congress in the
foreseeable future. They may be very sincere in their estimate of the situation— but Benedict XVI intends to push the law through anyway! He is going to use
the massive political power of the Catholic Church, combined with immense support of the member churches in Christian Churches Together, and the political muscle of the leading Religious Right organizations in America to push it through. Here is a sample of these comments (this one, I believe, by a very fine man): “Sunday Laws Not an Option Now, Adventist News Network, Silver Spring, Maryland, December 13, 1996—Any ‘so-called’ Sunday law legislation is not an option currently, according to United States congressman Roscoe Bartlett. During a luncheon meeting on December 10 at the Seventh-day Adventist Church World Headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA, Bartlett, was questioned regarding Congress and Sunday law legislation. “He forthrightly indicated that he saw under present circumstances practically no possibility for such legislation to be seriously considered, let alone enacted by Congress. “In his opinion, the opposition from the number of Jewish members of Congress and that of many others would be much too strong.
Bartlett, who is a Seventh-day Adventist, explained that for any such legislation to come forward in a significant way, there would have to be ‘radical changes
in American society.’ “For more than a century, Seventh-day Adventists have opposed work cessation Sunday blue laws, considering them to be religiously motivated and therefore unconstitutional, and furthermore discriminatory toward those observing another day of worship and rest.” So some of our readers may wish to go back to sleep. The last half of Great
Controversy is not expected to begin for a long time into the future. —vf “When we least expect it we may be in the greatest jeopardy. Watchfulness and perseverance, painstaking and constant effort, are necessary in the Lord’s work.” —20 Manuscript Releases, 28 —vf |