World War 3: Ruin or Renaissance?

For several years now there has been much talk and many rumors spread about a coming Third World War. Attached with these rumors are endless speculations as to the events which will trigger this global conflict, along with much pondering upon the key nations who might possibly be involved in this epic end time drama. For decades the geographical region known as the Middle East has been the central focus for students of Bible prophecy in their quest of pinpointing where exactly the final battle on earth will be fought. And this future and final war of Biblical proportions is none other than Armageddon. However, some hold that even though World War Three will be devastating, it will not be the end. For many Greek Orthodox prophecies concerning the end times relate that in the aftermath of the Third World War, a time of peace and prosperity will follow. This, however, is not to be mistaken for the millennial reign of Christ on earth as many Protestant denominations teach. For the thousand year reign of Christ on earth symbolically represents the time period between the first coming, and the second coming of Jesus Christ. But before Christ returns, and directly after the global war, the holy Fathers of the Church have predicted that the entire planet will experience a Renaissance.

According to what has been foretold, the majority of the fighting perpetrated during World War Three will not be executed by soldiers and infantry, but with missiles and rockets. It will be a computerized war operated from a central command in remote locations, and not by the traditional warfare of boots on the ground. Technology will play a huge role in the coming war. For by using high tech weaponry, more damage will be done and more human life will be lost. Now precision guided missiles can be launched from the security of an underground military base, and can easily reach targets located hundreds of miles away. So through the use of electrical engineering a global catastrophe will occur at lightning speed. It is estimated that within a period of just three days, over 500 million people will be killed. However, the Fathers also make it abundantly clear that as devastating as this carnage will be, the Lord will use the coming war as a means to purge the world of evil. For the wicked people in government who are guilty of crimes against humanity, will ultimately end up destroying themselves. And when all the fighting is over the good people who had previously suffered under the oppression of  evil men, will suddenly find themselves liberated and set free from the bondage which they unjustly and painfully lived under for so very a long time.

Though many people will survive World War Three, the only factor in determining the survival of the human race will be due to divine intervention. For the prophecy tells us that at the peak of the war, an archangel will descend from heaven and stop the fighting. Miraculously the people will come to their senses, wondering why they were all fighting each other in the first place. Then a former Byzantine Emperor, who is also a Saint of the Church, will be risen from the dead and rule the world from Constantinople for a period of about 35 years. The entire earth will then experience an age of peace and prosperity. A true global spiritual Renaissance will follow the war, and God will provide all peoples from all around the world with an opportunity to hear and accept Orthodox Christianity before the coming of the Antichrist. Now all this may seem far-fetched to many, and some will comment on how foreign this sounds compared to what has been written down in the book of Revelation concerning the end times. However, many in the Greek Orthodox Church do believe that these things will indeed happen. Yet some of those in the Church, both priests and parishioners alike, don't believe these things will happen. Time will tell, but as events continue to unfold in our current state of affairs many people are interpreting these signs as warnings of a coming catastrophe. And these doomsday predictions are not only coming from Orthodox Christians, but from economists and secular humanitarians as well, not to mention all the various Protestant denominations who make the study of the end times their primary mission.

In closing I would like to offer some perspective on the claims made in this brief work and borrow the insight of a very wise and extremely holy man, which in the end could provide for us the best comprehension regarding this somewhat problematic ecclesiastical claim. In all honesty and fairness, we as Orthodox Christians do not know for certain if the prophecy concerning the resurrected Saint known as the "Sleeping King" is in fact the Gospel truth, or if it is simply a legend that has been passed down over the centuries from generation to generation. Yet several years before his repose, some Orthodox monastics had the opportunity to ask the holy Elder Ephraim of Arizona if the prophecies foretelling the global devastation of the Third World War and the Renaissance which is predicted to follow directly afterwards will truly happen. The holy Elder humbly and prudently answered that these events will happen. However, the Elder also discerningly added that if all of us as a people would repent of our sins, then God in His mercy would not allow World War Three to happen, or at least the Lord would grant an extension of time before the prophecy is finally fulfilled. So it is evident that we as human beings determine our destiny by the choices we make, and that our only hope of salvation comes through the personal repentance of our sins. Maybe if we turn from our evil ways now (while there is still time) and serve the Lord before a global war takes place then, God willing, humanity will inherit a Renaissance and not ruin.

References:

Valava, G.D. The Marble Emperor: Saint Ioannis Vatatzis. (Larissa, Greece: Koutoulas K. Nikolaos, 2008).

Are All Races Racist?

Over the past decade or so, America has been inundated with several high profile criminal cases involving white police officers who have killed unarmed black men. As a result of these black lives lost, many protests have erupted across the nation with black and white activists crying out for justice, and in some cases the desire to de-fund the police has also been proclaimed. However, at the same time black lives were taken by white policemen, Asian hate crimes were perpetrated by African Americans. On top of it all black on black crime has been going on for decades, but Black Lives Matter has yet to march for all the little black boys and girls who were killed by other black people in drive by shootings. Now it is true that white Americans have severely discriminated against blacks all throughout the history of the United States, which has understandably bred hatred in the hearts of blacks against whites. It is indeed the hate that hate produced, but will financial reparations payed to the descendants of enslaved Africans solve the current race relations held between blacks and whites now and into the future? 

Historically slavery wasn't invented in the year 1619 AD. In fact, slavery has been a reality from the very beginnings of human existence on this earth and continues today in countries such as China for example. Going further, the English word "slave" comes from the Slavs who were white Christians that served the Muslim Turks for centuries during the era of the Ottoman Empire. So if both blacks and whites have been slaves in the past, and since current events reveal how blacks have discriminated against Asians, then does this mean that all races are racist? Do all ethnicities hold at least some prejudice towards each another? The attempt of this work will be to showcase the racism held (to a greater or lesser extent) between all peoples across the world and throughout the ages. Hopefully by thoroughly examining the facts of racial tensions in an objective and impartial manner, may we all come to realize that even though each of our races possess certain unique characteristics, overall human beings are basically all the same.

Apart from the resentment which has traditionally fostered between vastly different races such as blacks and whites, prejudices among other people groups who are closely related to one another also exist. Take for instance the Arab peoples. They all have their individual uniqueness, yet at the same time they share a common bloodline which links them together. Even though they are basically half-brothers or cousins, this has not been enough to get the Arabs to stop fighting each other, nor quench the animosity which silently looms in the background even during periods of peace. In the Asian world, rivalries between the Chinese and the Japanese have existed for centuries. Historically speaking, the white people of Europe have also discriminated against each other. This fratricide has been demonstrated by all the wars which have occurred over the centuries in the various European lands, despite the similitude of the color of their pale and peach skin. Africans too have fought each other and at times even enslaved other Africans, way before the white man ever set foot on the soil of the dark continent.

From what has been presented thus far it is revealed that all races do in fact share certain prejudices towards one another. But even within families of the same race do we witness sibling rivalries. So could the root cause of racism really be jealousy? Does a certain amount of pride for one's own race also play a part in the condescending attitude towards all other races? Does physical geography also determine hatred and mistrust towards those who live in lands that certain races also claim descent from? Just as gangs fight over territory in the streets of the inner city, so too have the various people groups in countries across the globe fought wars to protect and maintain certain geographic borders. But in many countries the racial population is not homogeneous. For in one nation there could be several different races or people groups who live in peace and harmony right next to each other and even at times intermarry. So it could be argued that at it's roots, racism is nothing more than one human being dominating another human being based on pride, jealousy, and possibly even fear of that which is different or foreign. Just as white supremacists want an Aryan nation for whites only, so too does the Nation of Islam want a separate nation within America set apart for blacks only. 

So it would appear that the struggle for power and dominion is something that all races have in common. In a sense one could say that its a competition held between differing nations that are the driving forces behind racism. But this can be explained away, due to the inherent love for one's country. Nationalism could also be seen as racism, but it could also be seen as patriotism, just as a man loves the members of his own family. For all the people groups found within a particular nation are in a way one big family, even if the nation is made up of races that share no blood ties. Take the United States of America for example. America is made up of so many different races and nationalities, but the identity by which all these people groups share as a whole is simply American. Whether one is African, Anglo, Arab or Asian, we are all Americans and this patriotism or nationalism is something that could unite the races. Currently America is divided and rumors of race wars and another civil war are fears that are understandable and not to be written off as a conspiracy theory. America must unite or else the country will fall. For when a nation is divided it is more easily conquered. Putting our trust in the hands of politicians is not the answer in my opinion, for this could all be a part of the Imperial policy of divide and rule. So now its up to the people to decide if we will focus on our differences and fight each other, or highlight our common bonds and unite.

Psalms 133:1  Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!