CHAPTER TEN

WAITING FOR A MAN

Henri-Paul Spaak(1888-1972), the socialist leader and former Secretary-General of NATO, who was one of the three major proponents of a united Europe said: "We do not want another committee. We have too many already. What we want is a man of sufficient stature to hold the allegiance of the people, and to lift us out of the economic morass into which we are sinking. Send us such a man, and be he God, or the devil, we will receive him."

Such a man will arise, and his ascent to power is discussed in various places in the Bible. This chapter is the culmination of everything you have read up to now. I believe that the Illuminati has been working behind the scenes to create an environment, that will enable one man to gain enough power to finally pull the countries of Europe together into one political entity.

The Scriptures have given us an excellent indication of the origin of the man who will be known as the Antichrist. The term "Antichrist" is first used in 1 John 2:18, and an indirect reference in 2 Thessalonians 2:4, refers to his opposition to God, which has given rise to the prevalent thought that Antichrist meant "against" Christ, when in fact, as Pastor Milt Maiman(formerly of the Messianic Hebrew Christian Fellowship in Harrisburg, PA) pointed out to me, the prefix "anti", doesn't refer to the Latin which means "against"; but is actually derived from the Greek "ante" which was used to indicate a contrast or substitution and means "to take the place of", or "in front of", or "before or prior to".

Daniel 8:8 refers to the four powers who are Greece, Turkey, Syria, and Egypt; and Daniel 7:7-8 speaks of the seventh world empire, consisting of ten kingdoms, and the rise of another. The second chapter of Daniel, which refers to the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, clearly points out that the ten toes(kingdoms) are an extension of the previous world empire, which was Rome, which would then encompass all of the countries that fell within the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire: parts of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya; Egypt; part of Saudi Arabia; Jordan, Israel, Syria, and Turkey; Portugal, Spain, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, part of the Netherlands, England, part of Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Greece, part of Hungary, part of Yugoslavia, part of Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania, Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Let's look at the ten horns or kingdoms, which right away has led many to think that this represented the original Common Market countries of France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, England, Denmark, Ireland, and Greece. The impact of the theory was lessened upon the later addition of Spain, Portugal, and Austria, which made a total of thirteen nations in what is now called the European Union. However, Denmark and Ireland were not part of the Roman Empire, and this may fit right in with Bible prophecy.

Another fact that supports the theory that the ten kings symbolically represent the area of western Europe, is that, according to the current World Almanac, there are only ten kingdoms, or monarchies now in western Europe: Belgium, Denmark, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

The 16th century French prophet(of Jewish descent), Nostradamus, said: "The year 1999, month seven, from the sky shall come a great king of terror..." According to Daniel 7:20, this leader of the eleventh country, will go against three of these nations, and defeat them. Yet, Revelation speaks of the ten kings pledging their allegiance to the Antichrist. Do these ten include the eleventh nation of the Antichrist? Will he defeat the three nations, and replace them in the federation with his, and two others. Or will the three defeated nations remain, under the leadership of the eleventh. What is the purpose for the Antichrist to go against these three nations. Is it because they were not originally part of the revived Holy Roman Empire; or if they were, what else could prompt him to attack these countries. One clue, is that these nations may be apprehensive about uniting behind the political leadership of the Antichrist. For example, when the European Community met in Maastricht, the Netherlands, in 1991, Great Britain and Denmark voted against the initiation of a common currency.

There are other theories concerning the origin of the Antichrist. Some researchers believe that he has to come from either Greece, Turkey, Syria, or Egypt; but not one of the countries which make up the ten nation federation. That would eliminate Greece. Could this country be Syria. In Isaiah 10:5, 10:24, 14:25, 30:31, he is referred to as the "Assyrian". In Micah 5:5 it says: "And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then we shall raise against him..." The Aramaeans, a seminomadic people who migrated from the Arabian desert around the third century BC, into Syria and Mesopotamia, have also been called Syrians. Let's also look at Habakkuk 1:6- "For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess dwelling-places that are not theirs." The land of the Chaldeans was in southern Babylonia, in what is now southern Iraq. These references seem to point to an Arabic background, and are given credence because they consider themselves the enemies of Israel.

A reference in Daniel 11:37 says: "Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers..." This may be an indication of Jewish ancestry, and some researchers believe that the Antichrist will be a Jew from the tribe of Dan. In Genesis 49:17, when the patriarch Jacob is speaking to his sons, he said: "Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path..." Jeremiah 8:16 refers to the armies of Dan devouring the land. In the seventh chapter of Revelation, John omitted the name of Dan when he listed the tribes of Israel. Dan and Ephraim(who was also missing from the list) were the first to lead Israel into adultery. Dan was replaced by the tribe of Levi, and Ephraim was replaced by Joseph(Ephraim's father).

A remote theory, is that the Antichrist will come from Italy, because Daniel 9:26 says: "...the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary..." The people that destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 AD, were the Romans. Revelation 14:8 says: "Babylon(a symbolic name for Rome) is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication."

Though we can't be sure of the area of his origin, in the end, the Antichrist will succeed in doing what no man has been able to do since the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 AD. Charlemagne, Charles V, Louis XIV, Napoleon, Kaiser Wilhelm, Benito Mussolini, and Hitler all tried to take over Europe to unify it, but failed. The Antichrist will be a strong political leader, who will gain strength through statesmanship and promises of peace. On December 6, 1961, McGeorge Bundy(of the CFR), Special Assistant to President Kennedy, told the Economic Club of Europe, that if Western Europe would unite as one power to have economic, military and political unity, they would be a truly great power. Time magazine even wrote that the real aim of the Common Market was to become a single country. Through the policies of the Antichrist, he will revolutionize industry, agriculture, commerce, and business to bring economic prosperity.

A song by the Sex Pistols, a punk-rock group, contained this line: "I am Antichrist, I am Antichrist, I know what I want, I know how to get it; I want to destroy."

PRIEURE' DE SION

In the past ten years, an incredible revelation has been made in regard to the unity of Europe, the forces behind it, and its relationship to the man who will rise to prominence in Europe's political community. Let me relate the information as it has been presented, and afterward I will comment on how it may fit into the scheme of things. Before you read the section, I have to warn you that these are views which represent a radical departure from those traditionally held by Christians. I do not share these views, but only include them because of how they may have a bearing on prophecy.

False Teachings - Unholy Theories

In 1891, in Rennes-le-Chateau, a tiny southern French mountaintop village, parish priest Berenger Sauniere, made a discovery while doing renovations to restore a church which had been dedicated to Mary Magdalene in 1059. The altar stone had been removed, which rested on two old Visigoth columns, one of which was found to be hollow. Inside were four parchments sealed in wooden tubes. Two were genealogies, one dated from 1244, which carried the seal of Queen Blanche de Castille, mother of King Louis IX; and the other dated from 1644 by Francois-Pierre d'Hautpoul. Of the other two documents, the Testament of Henri d'Hautpoul, which was dated 1695, was written in French, and is believed to be a complex code detailing a state secret; and the other parchment, written in the 1780's by a priest, Antoine Bigou, was written in Latin, and contained two coded Biblical texts, one on each side of the page, which are excerpts from the New Testament. Sauniere went to Paris to present the parchments to Church authorities.

Also during the restoration, a flagstone dating to the 7th or 8th century was removed, allegedly revealing a burial chamber which contained skeletons; and because of the amount of money he would soon begin to spend - a treasure of some sort. There has been much speculation about what this treasure could have been.

Some talk has centered around the Holy Grail. The Grail was believed to be a chalice made of gold, which was first used by Melchizedek as he offered bread and wine to Abraham on Mount Moriah. It was guarded in a Phoenician temple in Tyre, the city of Hiram, the king who designed and built Solomon's Temple. It fell into the hands of the Queen of Sheba, who gave it to King Solomon, and it was last used by Jesus and the disciples during the Last Supper. Other traditions have said that it was used by Mary Magdalene or Joseph of Arimathea to catch the blood of Jesus as it dripped off of his body while he hung on the cross. It was believed that Joseph took the cup to Glastonbury in England; while others claim that Mary took it with her to Marseilles in France.

The Cathars, who descended from the Bogomils in Bulgaria, and existed around the 10th and the 11th centuries, were perceived to be a wealthy people, and were said to possess a treasure beyond material wealth. In January, 1244, three months before the fall of their fortress in Montsegur, two men got out with the gold, silver, and money. As their defeat seemed eminent, the northern invaders served them with terms of surrender in March, and gave the Cathars two weeks to make a decision. One of the terms of this "cease-fire", was that if anyone tried to escape, they would be killed. A day before the surrender, when they would have been released, four men escaped with a rope, down the sheer western face of the fortress. According to legend, the risk was made to protect their treasure. But if all their gold and silver had been smuggled out three months before, what did they risk their lives to protect. Was it the Holy Grail?

The Knights of King Arthur's Round Table searched for the Grail, and legend has it that three of them seen it- Galahad, Percival, and Bors. Later stories revealed that the Grail was kept at the Church of St. Mary Magdalene in Rennes- le-Chateau, which is where she made her home.

Others believe that the treasure Sauniere found, may have been the Temple treasure. In 70 AD when Rome ransacked Jerusalem, carrying its treasure back to Rome, it was believed that they may have gotten all of the Temple wealth, including the Ark of the Covenant. In 410, when the Visigoths invaded Rome, they carried away, "the treasures of Solomon, the King of the Hebrews, a sight most worthy to be seen, for they were adorned in the most part with emerald's and in the olden time they had been taken from Jerusalem by the Romans."

Or, could the treasure discovered by Sauniere been the treasure plundered from the Temple grounds by the Knights Templar.

Many of the Crusaders who went to Palestine to fight against the Moslem invaders were French Catholics, and by 1061, they had conquered Jerusalem, and established Godfroi de Bouillon(1061-1100) , Duke of Lower Lorraine, on the throne of Jerusalem. Known as the "Guardian of the Holy Sepulchre", he claimed to be of the lineage of David, and between 1090 and 1099, organized a secret society called the Prieure' de Sion(Order of Sion). His aims were to possess the wealth of the world, including the Temple treasure, and to establish world government which would be controlled by a Merovingian king in Jerusalem.

Though deposed in the 8th century, the Merovingian dynasty and bloodline continued, and was perpetuated with Dagobert II, and his son, Sigisbert IV. Through alliances and intermarriages, this line continued through Godfroi. This bloodline was known as a "royal tradition...founded on the rock of Sion," which was considered to be equal to other European dynasties.

Their headquarters was at the Abbey of Notre Dame du Mont de Sion, in southern Jerusalem on Mount Sion, where the ruins of a Byzantine basilica from the 4th century stood, which was called the Mother of All Churches. It was Godfroi's younger brother, Baudouin I, who became the first king of Jerusalem; it was the Prieure' de Sion that created the Knights Templar as its military arm.

In 1118, Hugues de Payen, a nobleman from Champagne, and Godfroi de St. Omer, a French Knight, along with seven other Knights, founded the Order of the Knights Templars(Order of the Poor Knights of Christ and the Temple of Solomon). They swore to live according to the rules of St. Augustine, and to use their swords, arms, and strength to defend the Christian faith. They also took vows of chastity and poverty, and promised not to join any other organization. They pledged to "keep the roads and highways safe...for the protection of pilgrims" and not to surrender any wall, or foot of land. They offered their services to Baudouin I, the King of Jerusalem, and an entire wing of the royal palace on the Temple Mount (the site of Solomon's Temple) was given to them to be used as a living quarters. In 1139, Pope Innocent II decreed that these Knights of Christ owed their allegiance to no one but the Pope (thus becoming a military arm of the Catholic Church), and they began to wear white robes with a red cross on the front. They carried a black and white striped banner which displayed the cross, and the words: "Non nobis, Domine, sed nomini tuo da gloriam," which became their battle cry. Their meetings were carried out in secret.

It is known, that for nine years, the Knights were searching for something beneath the Temple grounds, and evidence points to the fact that they might have found something. In March, 1952, a copper scroll found in cave III at Qumran, near the Dead Sea, revealed that more than 138 tons of gold and silver were buried in 64 locations, before the Romans destroyed the Temple. It is believed that 24 of these locations were under the Temple Mount, which was plundered by the Templars and taken to Europe, where it became the basis for the establishment of the international banking system.

In 1153, a nobleman, Bertrand de Blanchefort, who lived only a couple of miles from Rennes-le-Chateau, became the 4th Grand Master of the Knights Templars. He escalated their growth into the diplomatic and political circles, and established a Templar presence in the area. Their numbers soon increased to 9,000, and the Order spread to Tripoli, Antioch, Cyprus, Portugal, Castile, Leon, Arragon, France, Flanders, the Netherlands, England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, Italy and Sicily. They had a presence in most areas adhering to Christianity.

In 1187, after the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin, they were forced to move their headquarters to the island of Cyprus; and in 1188, the Prieure' de Sion withdrew their control from the Knights Templars, and divorced themselves from them. They moved their headquarters to a Temple in Paris, and through their organization and wealth, the Knights became the bankers of Europe.

By the end of the 12th century, they had 30,000 members(mostly French), and they fought in the wars of their own countries. They soon gained so much power, that their Grand Master Jacques du Molay became a challenge to the authority of King Philip IV("the Fair"). Between 1303-05, King Philip had Pope Boniface VIII(1294-1303) kidnapped and killed, and had his successor, Pope Benedict XI(1303-05), poisoned; then had his own man, Clement V(1305-16), elected to the vacant papal throne. Pope Clement worked with Philip to begin a campaign to destroy the power and the influence of the Knights, the Merovingian bloodline, and to confiscate their treasures.

In Germany, Spain, and Cyprus, they were acquitted of any charges; but not in England, Italy, and France. On October 13, 1307, all the Templars in France were arrested, amidst charges by a former member(Esquian de Horian), and an investigation by Pope Clement, who said that they appeared to serve Christ, but actually worshipped Lucifer. Accusations included: immorality, heresy, denying Christ and the Virgin Mary; spitting and stepping on the cross; burning the bodies of dead Templars and giving the ashes to initiates to mix in with their food and drink; carrying out rituals with a skull, believed to be that of founder Hugues de Payen; and worshipping a demon who took on the form of a cat. When King Philip's men broke into the Templar castle in Paris, they discovered a silver bust of a woman's head, with a hinged top, which when opened, contained two head bones wrapped in a white cloth, with a red cloth around that. They were believed to be part of the skeletal remains of Mary Magdalene.

It was revealed, that part of the initiation, required the initiate to deny, curse, and spit at the cross, as part of a gesture symbolizing St. Peter's denial of Christ, thus introducing the candidate to the Order as a sinner, so they could teach him the ways of Christianity. In actuality, the Knights had actually become opposed to the Pope, when they realized the Vatican's pagan relationship to sun worship; and since the Catholic Church had become so identified with St. Peter, the Knights had renounced Peter, and became followers of John.

In 1312, Pope Clement ordered that the Knights Templars were to be suppressed. On March 18, 1314, Jacques de Molay, the 22nd Grand Master of the Knights, Geoffrey de Charney(who possessed the Shroud of Turin, which was stolen from Constantinople), and two of their highest officers were burned at the stake for trying to overthrow the government. In England, Edward II joined in the denunciation by arresting and torturing 140 knights, 54 of whom were burned at the stake.

Some of the remaining Templars fled to Portugal, where there were protected by King Dinis II. Most however took refuge in Scotland, where they stayed for 400 years, developing the Scottish Rite branch of Masonry. In England, where the Templars established the first modern Masonic lodge at York, it was identified as the York Rite; while in France, it became known as the Scottish Rite. To signify the accomplishments of the Order, it was made the highest attainable degree in Masonry. It is said that "every true Mason is a Knight Templar..."

Meanwhile, the Prieure' de Sion existed for another 300 years, until 1619, when the historical record dried up.

According to recent information, it is believed that Sauniere's "treasure" was actually the knowledge gleaned from the parchments, that the crucifixion of Jesus was a set-up, and that he was alive as of 45 AD. Sauniere's niece, Madame James of Montazels, inherited the parchments in 1917, and kept them until 1965 when she sold them to Capt. Roland Stanmore and Sir Thomas Frazier, who keep them in a safe deposit box in Lloyds Bank Europe Limited of London. Only two of the parchments have been released, the contents of the other two have not been revealed.

In the original sources concerning the Holy Grail, references are not to a cup, but to a mystery.

In the 1180's, "Le Roman de Perceval"(or "Le Conte du Graal"), a poem by Chretien de Troyes, chronicles one, Perceval, who seeks his knighthood. At the castle of the "Fisher King" he sees the Grail, which is golden and is studded with jewels. It is not linked to Jesus. Perceval discovers that he is a member of the "Grail family" because the custodian of the Grail is his uncle. Chretian died before completing his work, and no copies exist. However, the story lived on, becoming closely aligned with King Arthur. "Roman de l'Estoire dou Saint Graal" by Robert de Baron in the 1190's was the version that Christianized the story, claiming that Joseph of Arimathea filled the cup with Christ's blood, and that his family became the keeper of the Grail. Galahad was purported to be Joseph's son, and the Grail was passed onto his brother-in-law, Brons, who took it with him to England, becoming the "Fisher King". In this version, Perceval is the grandson.

The most noted version is "Parzival", which was written between 1195 and 1216 by Wolfram von Eschenbach, a Bavarian Knight who claimed that Chretien's version was inaccurate because Wolfram received his information from a more reliable source. He said that the Grail is some sort of stone. But more important, is his preoccupation with the Grail family, the genealogy, or bloodline.

In early stories, the Grail is called the Sangraal and Sangreal, which was divided to read "San Graal" or "San Greal", when in fact, it should have read "Sang Raal" or "Sang Real", meaning "Royal Blood". So therefore, the Grail actually had more to do with blood, and not a cup which held blood.

The "Queste del Saint Graal" written between 1215 and 1230, indicated that the Grail was brought to France by Mary Magdalene, and that the Grail story occurred about 456 years after the resurrection of Jesus, or about 487, which was about the time of the rise in Merovingian power.

In 1964, an ancient parchment scroll was excavated on the western shore of the Dead Sea, at the ruins of the fortress of Masada. It was there that 965 Jewish men, women, and children, burned the complex, killed each other, and committed suicide, rather than be captured by the Romans. The Roman Army spent three years with a legion of 6,000 men, and 15,000 Jewish slaves, to build an assault tower in order to destroy the last vestiges of Jewish resistance.

In a cave on the upper face of the southern-most cliff below the plateau, 25 skeletons were found: 14 male, ages 22-60; a man between 70 and 80; six females between 15-22; four children from 8-12; and a fetus. Either the Roman centurions were unaware of this group which were separated from the main complex, or they were allowed to remain where they had fallen, just as the three skeletons found in the palace at the northern end of the complex, which were believed to be that of Eleazar ben Ja'ir, the Jewish commander, his wife and child. It seems as though this special group of 25 were also left untouched. Because of the discovery of this document, it is now believed that the Zealots on Masada were actually a bodyguard contingent for the Hasmonean Royal Family, headed by Jesus, their king and Messiah, who they swore to defend till the death.

The document which was discovered, had been written on the evening of April 15, 70 AD, just after the Roman battering ram had compromised the fortress gate, and was pulled back, to await the Roman attack which would come at first light. The document was signed by Yeshua ben Ya'akob ben Gennesareth, who described himself as a "son of eighty years" and the last heir of the Hasmonean(Maccabean) Kings of Israel. Translated, the name was "Jesus of Gennesareth, son of Jacob." This document was the 15th parchment to be discovered on Masada, and it is believed that it was smuggled out of Israel by a rogue archaeologist, and taken to Russia. The contents were allegedly revealed to the Vatican in February, 1967.

So, how could this be? There is a developing trend that purports that Jesus was not the product of a virgin birth, that he was a normal man with a messianic complex, who was part of a conspiracy to fake his own death in order to fulfill Old Testament prophecy. It is believed that the Last Supper was actually a meeting to plan a way for Jesus to cheat death. During the crucifixion, what the Bible said was a sponge soaked in vinegar, was said to actually have been a drug that made Jesus appear as though he were dead. Joseph of Arimathea then went to Pilate to ask for permission to claim the body, so that it could be interred in a tomb owned by Joseph. To substantiate these facts, it is pointed out that the place of the crucifixion had to be near the tomb. While the other gospels state that he was crucified at Golgotha, "the place of the skull", John 19:41 says that he was crucified in a garden, where a new sepulchre had been hewn by Joseph. This garden was actually "Golgeth", the "wheel press", where olives were pressed into oil, which was the Garden of Gethsemane. Some have even theorized, that Joseph was actually the former husband of Mary, who had left Nazareth, and established himself at Jerusalem. Inside the tomb, an Essene physician was waiting to revive Jesus, thereby creating the illusion of a resurrection.

The apocryphal Gospel of Peter, discovered in an upper Nile valley in 1886, had existed as early as 180 AD, and reveals that Joseph of Arimathea was a friend of Pontius Pilate, and that Jesus was buried in the "garden of Joseph." Basilides, an Alexandrian scholar, who wrote various commentaries on the Gospels between 120-130 AD, believed that Jesus did not die on the cross. In December, 1945, an Egyptian peasant discovered a pot near the village of Nag Hammadi in northern Egypt, which contained 13 scrolls, which consisted of copies of Biblical texts, which dated to about 400 AD, and were based on writings that were no older than 150 AD, and provides a good historical reference because they were not altered by the Roman Catholic Church. In one, the Second Treatise of the Great Seth, it talks about Jesus escaping his death on the cross through substitution, who was identified as Simon of Cyrene. An ancient document, found in the 4th century, in the library of a building used by Greek monks, said that Nicodemus and Joseph conspired to retrieve the body of Jesus so that it could be revived by Essene physicians. A document known as "The Crucifixion by an Eye Witness", which surfaced in Germany near the end of the 1800's, was said to have been copied from the original text of an Essene scribe, and revealed that Jesus was the son of Mary and an Essene teacher who was not identified. Because of the Essene medical knowledge, he was able to survive the Crucifixion, and by appearing to his disciples afterwards, make it seem as though he had risen from the dead.

In 1963, scrolls known as the Talmud of Jmmanuel(sic), were discovered by Greek Catholic priest, Isa Rashid, in a cave he claimed was the burial cave of Jesus. Written in old Aramaic, sealed in protective resin, and buried under a flat rock, it is believed to have been written by Judas Iscariot. Pieces of the scrolls were missing, some unreadable, some deteriorating, yet, what had survived, was completely contrary to the story of Jesus as related in the Bible. The document claims that Joseph of Arimathea realized that Jesus was still alive, and quickly went to Pilate to request the body, taking it back to his own tomb. There was a secret second entrance, and it was through here that his friends were able to bring the herbs and salves necessary to provide medical treatment. In three days he was strong enough to walk. After a few appearances to his disciples, he went to Syria, then to India, and the area now known as west Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the Himalayas, where he continued to teach. He married and had children, and it was believed that he died at the age of, between 110-115 years old, in Srinagar, in Kashmir, India. These scrolls were in the possession of his first born son, who returned to Jerusalem, and hid them in the burial cave of Joseph of Arimathea where Jesus had been taken.

In 367, Bishop Athanasius of Alexandria made a list of writings which were to become what we now know as the New Testament. His selections were ratified by the Church Council of Hippo in 393, and again four years later, by the Council of Carthage. Therefore certain "books" were left out, and were "lost" even though they may have been historically accurate. One of the primary duties of the Church fathers between the 7th and 12th centuries, was to obtain manuscripts from collections in Eastern countries, which contained information that differed from the version accepted and taught by the Church. These original documents may still be in the Vatican archives.

The first mention of the resurrection of Jesus appears in 1 Corinthians 15:3- 8, because this was actually written about ten years before Mark was written. Therefore the stories concerning the resurrection of Jesus were unknown to Paul. In 1 Corinthians 9:1, Paul says: "...have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord?", yet there is no historical reference that he knew Jesus. The word "seen" was translated from the Greek word "ophthe", which means to have one's eyes opened to realms beyond this physical world, which refers to visions. It is the same verb which is used by Isaiah (Isa. 6:1) when he said: "I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne..." It was also used in Luke 24:34 to say that Jesus "appeared to Simon" and in the Book of Acts to describe the resurrection. Paul never spoke of a physical resurrection, because in light of the proper translation, it was only in a spiritual resurrection, where Jesus now "sitteth on the right hand of God (Col. 3:10)."

Nearly a hundred "gospels" appeared during the first three centuries, and to preserve continuity and protect the new Christian religion, the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were chosen. Despite some gaps and contradictions, they were very similar. These books were not written during Jesus' lifetime, but date from a time of major revolution in Judea, 66-74 and 132-135, and the earlier writings that they had been based upon have since been lost.

All the writers of the Gospels had, concerning Jesus, was just an outline of the man. There were no eyewitnesses to consult, so where there was a void in detail, they just referred to the Hebrew Scriptures to fill in the blanks. For example, the removal of Jesus to Egypt by his earthly father Joseph, hearkens back to the patriarch Joseph in the Book of Genesis; the story about the young Jesus in the Temple, was modeled after Samuel's Temple experiences; the Sermon on the Mount was an attempt to paint him as another Moses; the story of Jesus' raising of the widow's son at Nain, was taken from Elijah's raising of the widow's son in 1 Kings 17:17; Jesus' feeding of the 5,000 was just a retelling of God's providing for Moses' people as they wondered in the wilderness; the story of Jesus walking on the water, was a misunderstanding of the Greek preposition which could mean "on" or "alongside of"; and the ascension of Jesus was taken from the story of Elijah being taken up into Heaven.

The earliest Gospel was considered to be Mark, which was compiled between 66-74 in Rome, and was believed to address a Greco-Roman readership, and if he wanted it to survive, he could not make it appear as though the Romans were responsible for the death of Jesus. It actually ends without the disciples' assertion that Jesus rose from the dead, and only says that the women were told that he had risen. Mark never mentions whether he was ever seen after the crucifixion.

In 1958, in a monastery near Jerusalem, Professor Morton Smith of Columbia University, discovered a letter that contained a missing fragment of the Gospel of Mark, which through the years had been suppressed by Bishop Clement of Alexandria, who was informed that a gnostic sect known as the Carpocratians were interpreting various passages in the Gospel of Mark for their own purposes, which did not coincide with Church doctrine. The passage was part of the story about Lazarus being raised from the dead, and hinted that he wasn't actually dead. Along with the exclusion, there was also an addition, because the original manuscript ended with the death and burial of Christ, and the discovery of an empty tomb. Yet, the version that exists today, includes the Resurrection, which was added in the 2nd century, making the last twelve verses of Mark fraudulent. However, research by Ivan Panin(outlined in a booklet called The Last Twelve Verses of Mark), utilizing analysis of numeric design, has done alot to reaffirm its authenticity.

The gospels of Luke and Matthew used Mark as a source for their writings. Luke (who also wrote the Book of Acts) dates to about 80, and was composed for a Roman official at Caesarea, and therefore was not anti-Roman. While Matthew's genealogy of Jesus only goes back to Abraham, Luke's goes back to Adam. Where Mark mentions only an empty tomb, in Luke, the women actually go in and see for themselves that it is empty. They encounter not one, but two angelic beings. Luke goes more into depth regarding the subsequent physical appearances of Jesus.

Matthew was put together about 85, and allegedly not by the disciple Matthew. It was intended to be a revision of Mark, in order to put more emphasis on the divine nature of Jesus, and borrowed references from the Book of Joshua who referred to placing guards at a cave in which he had five captured kings imprisoned, and having the cave sealed with a huge stone. It also alluded to Daniel in the lion's den, and how he came out alive, when he applied the story to Jesus in regard to him surviving the tomb. In Mark, Peter is quoted to have said to Jesus, "Thou art the Christ," and in Matthew, he is quoted to have said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." The disciples were told to baptize "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost," which it is alleged that Jesus could not have said, because it actually represented a theological premise that didn't occur till much later.

Polycarp, author of a letter to the Philippians, wrote about the first three Gospels, but not the fourth, because it didn't exist, and wasn't mentioned until 180 by Theophilus of Antioch. John has come to be regarded as the most accurate of the Gospels, even though it is believed to have been written over a period of years by theologians, at the Greek city of Ephesus, who in 100, sought to fill the void in the contents of the other three. John has the risen Jesus being seen by only Mary Magdalene, where in other books, other women accompanied her; and also singles her out as being a primary mourner. This hint at a more intimate relationship has given rise to a theory as to the actual role that Mary had in the life of Jesus. In the other three gospels, the Last Supper is portrayed as a Passover meal, after which Jesus was crucified; however in John, the crucifixion occurred before the Passover, whereby John puts more emphasis on the footwashing that occurred. This discrepancy had been explained by saying that John was using the lunar calendar, while the others were using the solar calendar, however, it is now believed that John's purpose was to present Jesus as the Passover lamb of the Jews, who is killed as their sacrifice. Where in Luke, only Peter goes to inspect the tomb; in John, it was Peter and John. Critics claim that the story of Doubting Thomas(John 20:19-31) wasn't true, based on the premise that Jesus was tied to the cross, rather than nailed. Some have even claimed that there was "no historical proof that he(John) ever existed."

Simon Peter, the "Rock" upon whom Jesus said he would build his church, was believed to be the first to "see" Jesus after the resurrection, and it was through his efforts that the philosophy of Christianity was perpetuated. The primary contention is that the New Testament was doctored to present Jesus as being divine. Because Jesus was not of the priestly tribe of the Levites, it was necessary to validate his claims so that he would be accepted by the early Christians. In the Book of Hebrews, completed before the fall of Rome around 68, Jesus was described as being a perfect priest after the order of Melchizedek, who in Genesis was referred to as a priest of the most high God, yet neither was he a Levite. The Book of Hebrews, said to be written by Paul, also refers to the presence of Jesus in Heaven, but never refers to a physical resurrection.

Books such as The Passover Plot(1965) by Dr. Hugh J. Schonfield, Forgotten Worlds(1971) by Robert Charroux, The Jesus Scroll(1972) by Donovan Joyce, and Resurrection: Myth or Reality?(1994) by John Shelby Spong, have questioned the authenticity of the Bible. In a 1977 book, called The Myth of God Incarnate, 7 scholars and professors from prominent American seminaries seriously questioned whether Jesus was Lord, and said that the Bible should be updated by having all traces of the deity of Jesus removed. They said that Jesus didn't claim to be divine, but was promoted to that status by early Christians who were under pagan influences. Another book, The Five Gospels: What Did Jesus Really Say?, a report by 77 Biblical scholars, which were part of the Jesus Seminar, says that Jesus did not say about 80% of the words which are attributed to him in the four gospels. They claim that the words were inserted by Christians after his death. In October, 1994, the Seminar convened and decided that the virgin birth of Jesus was fabricated. One participant called it "theological fiction." This group is now working on a new Bible commentary that will reflect all of its findings.

The Gospel of John doesn't mention the birth of Jesus, but it covers the conclusion of his ministry. The incident of the wedding at Cana is only mentioned in John, and is unusual in that the bride and groom are not identified, yet Jesus his disciples, and his mother were there. When they ran out of wine, it was Jesus who performed the miracle of turning water into wine. The question was asked- why Jesus would use his holy powers for such an insignificant purpose; unless it was his own wedding. Researchers have analyzed John 2:9-10, and feel that where the head of the feast is speaking to the bridegroom, it is actually Jesus that he is addressing. It is argued that this marriage was Jesus being married to Mary Magdalene, who it is believed was the woman whom Jesus cast the demons out of, who washed and annointed the feet of Jesus, and who is identified as Mary of Bethany(sister of Lazarus and Martha). She figures heavily in the gospels, and it was to her that Jesus first revealed himself after the Resurrection.

In the Gospel of Mary, Peter says: "Sister, we know that the Savior loved you more than the rest of women." The apocryphal Gospel of Philip refers to Mary as his "spouse", and says: "There were three who always walked with the Lord; Mary his mother and her sister and Magdalen, the one who was called his companion...the companion of the Savior is Mary Magdalen...(he) loved her more than all the disciples and used to kiss her often on the mouth." Near the end of the book, it says: "There is the Son of Man and there is the son of the Son of Man. The Lord is the Son of Man, and the son of the Son of Man is he who is created through the Son of Man." It was Mary Magdalene, who carried the Grail, Sangraal, or "Royal Blood" to France.

Around 70 AD, Mary, the wife of Jesus, took his children, and fled the Holy land to escape the Roman destruction of Jerusalem. They made their way to a Jewish community in Provence, in southern France, where the lineage of Jesus, through marriage, was joined with the royal family of the Franks, thus creating the royal Merovingian dynasty. Within the Merovingian royal family, there were many Judaic names.

It could be that the Holy Grail, "Sang Raal", or "Royal Blood", could actually represent the womb of Mary Magdalene, which produced the bloodline. It is even conjectured that French cathedrals like Notre Dame, were built in honor of Mary Magdalene, and not the mother of Jesus.

During the 5th century, the Sicambrians, a Germanic tribe called the Franks, crossed the Rhine River into Gaul into what is now Belgium and northern France.

Merovee was the first king of the Merovingian bloodline, and he is surrounded in legend. He was said to have been fathered by two. When his mother was already pregnant by King Clodio, she went swimming in the ocean, where she was raped by a sea creature "similar to a Quinotaur", so that when Merovee was born, the blood that coursed through his veins was a combination of both, which gave him superhuman powers. Merovee claimed he descended from Odin, a Norse God(which is where we get Wednesday, Woden's Day, or Odin's Day), which some researchers believe actually referred to Dan, one of the twelve tribes of Israel, because the Merovingian kings claimed to be the descendants of the Spartans and Trojans.

The Spartans lived in the southern Greek peninsula of Arcadia, later migrating across the Aegean Sea to build the city of Troy. According to the Iliad, by the Greek poet Homer, the founder of Troy was Dar-dan-us. Over the centuries the Spartans made their way into southern France, while the Trojans moved north and west into Germany, Belgium and northern France, following the Danube River, eventually settling in the province of Lorraine. In the apocryphal book of 1 Maccabees, it was written that the Spartans were related to the Jews and were of the stock of Abraham, and for various reasons, were believed to have been from the tribe of Dan.

When the tomb of Childeric I, son of Merovee, was opened in 1653, 300 miniature bees of gold were found, which Napoleon had sewn into his coronation robe. In the Bible, the Danites were represented by a serpent, an eagle, a lion, and bees. The eagle's wings on the back of the lion in the 7th chapter of Dan may symbolize Dan breaking away from the tribe of Judah. The tribe of Dan lived in the territory west of Jerusalem, near the coast of the Mediterranean, and after the death of Samson, lost their lands, and went north into Lebanon where they lived for 600 years. In 721 BC, when the Assyrians took ten of the tribes captive, there was no mention of Dan, thus they soon lost their identity. The Celts claim they came from the tribe of Dan, and that the name Denmark, and the Danube River, give evidence of their migration.

As mentioned earlier, when Dan was referred to as a "serpent by the way", the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, an apocryphal book written about 150 BC, which is said to represent the final words of Jacob's twelve sons to their families, attributes this statement to Dan, made when he was 125 years old: "I read in the Book of Enoch, the Righteous, that your prince is Satan...I know that in the last days you will defect from the Lord, you will be offended at Levi, and revolt against Judah, but you will not prevail over them."

When Moses built the Tabernacle, he chose two men to head up the project, Bezaleel, of the tribe of Judah, and Aholiab of the tribe of Dan; and after it was completed, the tribes were positioned around it, and instructed to display their standard. Dan was in the north, and given the symbol of Scorpio, which according to the Egyptian Zodiac was a snake; and yet, Ahiezer, captain of the tribe, chose an eagle, considered a hunter of snakes. The symbol of ancient Spartan Greece was an eagle, as was the symbol of ancient Trojan Rome. In recent history, the symbol of the Hapsburg dynasty was an eagle.

The offspring of Merovee were noted for a birthmark, a small red cross, above their heart or between their shoulder blades, which became their symbol. The Merovingians were known as sorcerer-kings, who could heal, had clairvoyant powers, and could telepathically communicate with animals. They wore powerful amulets, and were called the "long-haired Kings" because they didn't cut their hair. Merovee (447-58) was a practitioner of the religious cult of Diana. His son, Childeric I(458-96) practiced witchcraft. Childeric's son, Clovis I(496-511) adopted Christianity, converting to Catholicism, and in 496, he was given the title "Novus Constantinus" ("New Constantine") by the Bishop of Rome, giving him the authority to preside over the rebirth of a "Christianized" Roman Empire, consolidating the power of the Church, and creating a tie between Church and State. During his rule, the Frank kingdom grew to cover most of France and Germany. It is believed that the Vatican knew the secret of the bloodline.

The Church had a hand in the assassination of Dagobert II, and Childeric III was deposed by Pepin III, the first of the Carolingian dynasty. The removal of the Merovingians was culminated with the coronation of Charles the Great, Carolus Magnus, or Charlemagne, who in 800 became the Holy Roman Emperor, thus betraying the pact made with the Merovingian bloodline, ending their dynasty. But the bloodline continued in the personage of Sigisbert IV(son of Dagobert II), who fled southward, taking on the surname "Plant-Ard" (eventually "Plantard"), and the title of the Count of Razes.

In 1956, the Prieure' de Sion was registered with the French Government, with the objective of "studies and mutual aid to members". They were headquartered in Sous-Cassan, and within the group they circulated a magazine called "CIRCUIT", which was an abbreviation for "Chivalry of Catholic Rules and Institutions of the Independent and Traditionalist Union."

In 1976, the excommunication of traditionalist Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre by Pope Paul VI was expected. He represented the conservative branch of the Roman Catholic Church, who fought against the modernization of the Church. In the end, the Pope backed down, and the Guardian(8/30/76) revealed their theory why: "The Archbishop's team of priests in England...believe their leader still has a powerful ecclesiastical weapon to use in his dispute with the Vatican. No one will gave any hint of its nature, but Father Peter Morgan, the group's leader...describes it as being something 'earth-shaking'."

The Order held a convent at Blois on January 17, 1981, the first since the one in Paris in 1956. The 121 at the meeting were all figures in high finance and international politics. A man named Pierre Plantard de Saint-Clair was elected as their Grand Master. His name figures prominently in many Prieure' documents. He is the lineal descendant of King Dagobert II and the Merovingian dynasty. In 1960, he spoke of an "international secret" hidden at Gisors. His grandfather was a personal friend of Berenger Sauniere, and he owns land in the area of Rennes-le-Chateau. In French records, he was listed as the Secretary-General of the Prieure' de Sion. When asked what their objectives were, he said: "I cannot tell you that. The Society to which I am attached is extremely ancient. I merely succeed others, a point in a sequence. We are the guardians of certain things. And without publicity."

The organization is not limited to just restoring the Merovingian bloodline, and has many Jewish members, though the full extent of the membership is unknown. Documents on file indicate that their organizational hierarchy is similar to the Masons.

In 1979, in Paris, Plantard told reporters of the BBC, when asked if his organization had the treasures of the ancient Jewish Temple, he said: "Yes...they will be returned to Jerusalem when the time is right." He claimed that the real treasure was "spiritual" and consisted of a "secret" that would create a major social change regarding the restoration of the monarchy. In talking about France, Plantard said that Mitterand was "a necessary stepping-stone." He revealed that their Order is on a timetable, and that their plans were unstoppable.

Plantard talked about unrest within the membership of the Prieure's Anglo- American contingent. The signatures of Gaylord Freeman, John Drick, and A. Robert Abboud were found on their official correspondence. They were associated with the First National Bank of Chicago. Drick was the President, and on the Board of Directors of other companies, including Stepan Chemical, MCA, Oak Industries, and Central Illinois Public Service. Freeman, an Illinois lawyer, was Chairman of the Board of First National, and on the Boards of other companies, including First Chicago Corporation, Atlantic-Richfield, Bankers Life and Casualty Co., Baxter Travenol Labs, and Northwest Industries. He also chaired a Committee on inflation for the American Bankers Association. He was a member of the MacArthur Foundation and a trustee of the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. Robert Abboud had also been Chairman of the Board of First National, and later became President of Occidental Petroleum Corp. It was originally believed that the signatures were forged from a 1974 Annual Report, but it was later discovered they were produced with rubber stamps. Though Freeman denied membership in the Prieure' de Sion, or of having any knowledge of their activities, Plantard has corroborated the information and said that their association with Freeman and other financiers, had more to do with their goal of European unity, which had become their primary concern.

Plantard resigned as Grand Master, and member of the Order in July, 1984, "for reasons of health", plus other personal reasons, foremost being that he didn't agree with 'certain maneuvers' by "our English and American brethren."

During the 19th century, the Prieure' de Sion, working through Freemasonry and the Hie'ron du Val d'Or, attempted to establish a revival of the Holy Roman Empire, which would be a theocratic United States of Europe, ruled simultaneously by the Hapsburgs and by a radically reformed Church. Their goals were thwarted by World War I and the fall of Europe's reigning dynasties. However, they continued to work for a United Europe as a protection against the Soviets, and as a neutral power to serve as a balance between Russia and the United States.

Out of the Merovingian bloodline has come most of the ruling families of Europe, and some Roman Catholic Popes. The genealogy of Dagobert's son, Sigisbert IV, can be traced through a dozen families, including the Houses of Luxembourg, Montpezat, Montesquiou, Sinclair, Stuart, Devonshire, Plantard, and ending with the Hapsburgs. Even though the Hapsburg empire no longer exists, when the first parliament of the European Economic Community met in 1979, one of its primary delegates was Dr. Otto von Hapsburg, the oldest son of Charles I, the last Hapsburg emperor. He and son Karl have been among the leading proponents of a United Europe. Karl von Hapsburg is the heir apparent to the Hapsburg legacy.

In 1909, Hitler found out about the legend behind the Holy Lance of Longinus(the Spear of Destiny, said to be the one used to pierce the side of Jesus during the crucifixion). It is said, that whoever possesses the Spear, will rule the world. It was in the possession of 45 Merovingian rulers from 752-1806, and when Hitler saw it, it was on display at the Hapsburg Treasure House Museum in Vienna. His obsession for the Spear ended, when he began his European military campaign against Austria for the purpose of getting this holy relic, which he did on October 13, 1938. He placed it in the Hall of St. Katherine's Church in Nuremberg. When the War got closer to Germany, the Spear and other treasures were secured in a protective vault. On March 30, 1945, when the American invasion was expected, the treasures were moved again, however, the holy spear was accidentally left behind, where it was found by the Americans. Upon the order of Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe, it was returned to the Hapsburgs.

It is believed that the Prieure' de Sion has "incontrovertible proof" concerning Jesus and his continuing bloodline, and has been working to again bring this bloodline to power.

Satanic Intentions

When my research started to head in this direction, and I began to read all of the "evidence" regarding the theories I have just outlined, I was in shock. These revelations were so incredible, that they bordered on the impossible. I say that, because these theories run completely contrary to everything I have been taught to believe. The arguments were so strong, that at times my faith seemed to waver. But I believe that God had his hand on me, and He enabled me to separate fact from Satanic lies and deceit.

There seemed to be something here, but for the longest time I just couldn't put my finger on it. But soon, the deeper I got, certain things stood out. By approaching these theories as being untruths, which they are, and isolating certain aspects of the premise, I think that the Prieure' de Sion becomes an important piece of the puzzle which I have been trying to assemble.

My theological beliefs are based on the fact that Jesus Christ, was, and is the Messiah, the son of God; that he was crucified, and died on the cross for the sins of the world; and that after three days, he rose from the dead, and commissioned his disciples to preach the gospel to all people. I was raised to believe that, and as I have gotten older, it continues to be an undeniable fact. Since I consider this to be the truth, there must be a reason why people would go to such lengths to disprove the resurrection of Jesus.

There seems to be a poison that is slowly spreading in Religion. For years, the story has been building that Jesus planned the crucifixion to fake his death in order to fulfill Old Testament prophecies. This basically says that the concept of Christianity is based on a lie, and that Christ was only a man, who was transformed into the son of God by early Church leaders. There was not many people that held to this belief. However, with knowledge gleaned from archaeological excavations, the discovery and translation of new apocryphal and biblical texts, and new interpretations of scripture, the liberals have been successful in spreading this propaganda. Even though Jesus has been accepted as a great man, a great teacher, and credited for the establishment of the largest religious group in the world, this movement has sought to strip away his divinity by saying that the Resurrection was concocted to draw people into the Church.

About ten years ago, this revelation of the Prieure' de Sion began to surface amidst talk that not only was the Crucifixion planned, but that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene, and had children whose descendants became part of the Merovingian Royal Family. Although not alot is known about this group, there seems to be evidence that they may have found much of the Temple treasure, and used this wealth to establish themselves as a financial power in the world. For 900 years, their goal has been to establish a World Government that would be led by the Merovingian bloodline. The Merovingians ruled in Europe, and the Prieure' de Sion has been working behind the scenes to unite Europe under a single form of government. After all these years, why does this group continue to work towards this goal. The implication has been made that the group represents the Merovingian bloodline, and by extension, are the living descendants of Jesus Christ.

Now, go back to the Biblical references in Daniel and Revelation referred to earlier, which talk about the rise of a future leader of the reestablished Holy Roman Empire, which is actually Europe. This leader will have to be a man capable of gaining the political support of all the European states. He will be a military genius who will be able to give Europe a sense of security, and a brilliant statesman whose words and deeds will make him a champion of justice. He will understand the problems of Europe, and bring peace to the land.

As time goes on, and more propaganda is spread concerning this bloodline of Jesus, more people will begin to believe it. And remember, only two of the four documents discovered by Sauniere have been revealed; plus, it is believed that the Prieure' de Sion is also in possession of documentation that will prove their contention. Something else that has to be considered, because of all the controversy and secrecy surrounding the Dead Sea Scrolls, is there something there that will contribute to this massive deception. When the time is right, this information will be revealed, and it will be the final blow which will allow all of their plan to come together.

Who better to lead a united Europe, then a living descendant of Jesus Christ, who can use New Age philosophy to claim that he is a reincarnation of the Son of God. A man who will embody everything they have been looking for in a leader. A man whose rise to power seems to fulfill the Biblical prophecies of a coming Messiah. In light of this possibility, and the obvious longevity of this group, circumstantial evidence would seem to point to the fact, that the Prieure' de Sion could be the ultimate power behind the Illuminati, using them to bring the world to a point where this man would be accepted with open arms, as the answer to the world's problems.

Once this leader takes his place as the head of the revived Holy Roman Empire, it will not be long before he is revealed to be the antagonist referred to in the Bible as the Antichrist.

After wading through all of the information I have presented to you, finally you have reached the point where you can understand the whole premise upon which this book was based. It is my belief, that the purpose of the movement towards a New World Order, is to establish a one-world government, and to set the stage for the rise of the Antichrist.

THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS

The ruins of the settlement of Khirbet Qumran stand on a cliff, a mile away from the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, in the Jordan Valley. It is here, just south of Jericho, and twenty miles east of Jerusalem, that one of the most important archaeological discoveries in religious history have been made.

Early in 1947, three Bedouin shepherds from the Ta'amireh tribe had their flock in the area, and while Jum'a Muhammad was looking for a stray goat, he discovered a cave in the cliffs. He threw a rock into the hole, and heard the sound of breaking pottery. Two days later, his cousin, Muhammed Ahmed el-Hamed, returned and crawled into the small cave, which measured 6 feet by 20 feet. The cave contained many earthenware jars, about 2 feet high and 10 inches wide. Though many were broken, 9 were believed to be intact. Inside one of the jars, he discovered three leather rolls wrapped in linen. In a subsequent visit, four more leather rolls were discovered. These rolls turned out to be ancient scrolls, which have been referred to as the Dead Sea Scrolls.

A Christian shopkeeper, Khalil Iskander Shahin(known as "Kando"), and George Ishaya(Isaiah) Shamoun, members of the Syrian Jacobite Church in Jerusalem, heard about the discovery and went to Qumran to verify the Bedouin's claims, finding some scroll fragments. They later met with the three shepherds to examine their findings.

One of the Bedouins sold 3 of the scrolls to the Muslim sheik of Bethlehem, and Kando purchased the other 4, which consisted of a 22-foot long scroll containing the entire text of the Book of Isaiah, the Genesis Apocryphon, the Habakkuk Commentary, and the Manual of Discipline(also known as the Community Rule), which had split into two. These 4 were in turn sold to the Syrian Metropolitan (Archbishop) Athanasius Yeshua Samuel, head of the Syrian Jacobite Church. Samuel later sent George Isaiah back to Qumran to carry out secret extensive excavations. It is believed that other scrolls were discovered, the contents of which have not been revealed.

In September, 1947, Samuel took the four scrolls to Hems, Syria, where he met with the Patriarch of the Church. During his return trip, he again sent a team to Qumran.

Samuel got in touch with Professor Eleazar Sukenik of the Hebrew University's Department of Archaeology in order to have the age of the scrolls determined. Meanwhile, in November, 1947, Sukenik was contacted by someone identifying himself only as an Armenian antique dealer, and he was able to purchase the other three scrolls, which turned out to be The War of the Sons of Light With the Sons of Darkness(also called The War Scroll), the Book of Hymns(also known as the Psalm of Thanksgiving Scroll), and another copy of Isaiah.

In January, 1948, Sukenik received one of Samuel's scrolls, which turned out to be the Isaiah scroll, which he was able to inspect. Although he was interested in purchasing the four scrolls, he couldn't raise the money necessary to make the transaction.

Samuel then contacted the William F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, where the scrolls were inspected by John C. Trever and William H. Brownlee, who felt they were as old, if not older than the 2nd century Nash Papyrus fragment, which up to then, was the oldest known example of Biblical Hebrew. A set of prints were forwarded to Professor William Foxwell Albright at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, who was the leading Hebrew epigraphist in the world. He dated the material back to 100 BC. Upon examination of all these Hebrew and Aramaic scrolls and fragments which have been discovered at Qumran, it is generally accepted that they were written between 250 BC and 68 AD, when the Romans destroyed the Qumran settlement.

The scrolls were taken to a bank in Beirut, and then in January, 1949, to a New York City bank vault. Up to 1954, only three of the scrolls had been published. Samuel, labeled a 'smuggler' was anxious to sell the scrolls, and would not allow the fourth to be published until all of them had been purchased.

In February, 1949, Gerald Lankester Harding, director of the Department of Antiquities for Transjordan and Arab Palestine; and Father Roland de Vaux, director of the Dominican-controlled Ecole Biblique in the Jordanian sector of East Jerusalem, went to the cave at Qumran, where they found the remains of 30 identifiable texts, and a number of unidentifiable fragments. Harding made it known that he was interested in all subsequent finds made by the Ta'amireh tribe. They would sell the results of their excavation to Kando, who would then sell the items to Harding. Meanwhile, de Vaux, Harding, and a group of fifteen workers continued to excavate around Qumran until 1956, where they uncovered the buildings of what they felt were an Essene community.

For nearly two weeks in mid-March, 1952, de Vaux, three members of the Ecole Biblique, William Reed(director of the Albright Institute), and 24, Bedouins under the supervision of three Jordanian and Palestinian archaeologists, embarked on an effort to conduct a survey of all the caves in the area. This survey indicated the existence of 40 caves, and the umbrella term of the Dead Sea Scrolls refers to the scrolls and fragments that were found in eleven of the caves.

In September, 1952, in Cave 4, located about 50 feet away from some of the Qumran ruins, the largest number of scroll fragments were discovered- the remains of over 500 different scrolls.

By 1959, all the scroll fragments were kept in a room known as the 'Scrollery' in the Rockefeller Museum(formerly known as the Palestine Archaeological Museum), which had been built with funds provided by John D. Rockefeller. The Museum was run by an international Board of Trustees, and later fell under the control of the Jordanian government. After the Six Day War in June, 1967, when Israel took over control of the entire city of Jerusalem, the contents of the Museum were considered spoils of war, so the Israeli government became the guardian of the fragments.

The Museum contained laboratories, photographic facilities, and the Department of Antiquities, however, the headquarters of the entire operation was actually located at the Ecole Biblique, which contained a research library totally dedicated to Qumran research, which was not open to the public. They also published two journals, the Revue Biblique, printed since 1892, and the Revue de Qumran, started in 1958 to publish information on the scrolls.

This may be one of the keys to understanding what may be going on here behind the scenes. In 1882, on the site where, according to tradition, St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr was stoned to death, a French Dominican monk established a Dominican church and monastery in Jerusalem. At the urging of Pope Leo XIII, a Biblical school was begun there in 1890 by Father Albert Lagrange to train scholars with the knowledge necessary to protect the Church against the potential of damaging archaeological discoveries. Originally known as the Ecole Practique d'Etudes Bibliques, it was later renamed the Ecole Biblique et Archeologique Francaise de Jerusalem. Lagrange became a member of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, which had been started by Pope Leo to "monitor" the work of Catholic scriptural scholarship. In 1956, de Vaux became a consultant to this Commission until his death in 1971, as did his successors Father Pierre Benoit, and Jean- Luc Vesco in 1987. The head of the Pontifical Biblical Commission is Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who is also the executive head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which prior to 1965 had been known as the Holy Office, and prior to 1542, as the Holy Inquisition. After 1971, with many common members, the two groups were virtually combined, sharing the same offices at the Palace of the Congregation at the Holy Office Square in Rome. Because of this connection, the implication has been made that the Vatican is exerting its influence over the Scrolls, in order to control what information is released.

The team that de Vaux chose in 1953, to assemble and translate the Scrolls were primarily Catholic:

After de Vaux's death in 1971, his handpicked successor was another Dominican, Father Pierre Benoit, who became the head of the Ecole Biblique, and the overseer of the international team, until his death in 1987. Strugnell, who converted to Catholicism, then became the leader of the team.

As you can see, this small group of Catholic scholars had complete control of all of the Dead Sea Scroll fragments that were found.

In 1954, Yigael Yadin, the former Chief of Staff for the Israeli Defense Forces, who taught Archaeology at Hebrew University, purchased Samuel's four scrolls for $250,000. Ironically, he was the son of Professor Sukenik. These four scrolls, and the three purchased by his father were then housed in a building known as the Shrine of the Book. While the Israelis worked on these scrolls, across town at the Rockefeller Museum, de Vaux and his group of international scholars were working on the fragments they discovered.

In 1967, Yadin interrogated Kando, who subsequently relinquished possession of a scroll he had for six years, which had been found in Cave 11. Known as the Temple Scroll, at 27 feet, it is the longest scroll, and has been dated between 150-125 BC. It has references to the building of the Temple in Jerusalem, and the rituals to be performed there, however, because of the laws found in it in regard to general matters, and quotes from the Pentateuch(the first 5 books of the Bible, known as the Torah of Moses), it has been referred to as the Sixth Book of the Law, and may contain the information referred to in 1 Chronicles 28:11-19 and 1 Samuel 8:11. The Pentateuch was compiled by Ezra(Ezra 7:14) about 458 BC, and it is believed that what was edited out, became part of the Temple Scroll. Five separate sources were compiled to form the Temple Scroll, and it is now considered a supplement to the Torah. In addition to the content, another reason that it is considered a Biblical text, is that in all established Biblical books, the name of God, YHWH(Yahweh), is written in the square Aramaic script like the rest of the text; while in non-Biblical writings, the name is written in Palaeo- Hebrew, while the rest of the text is in Aramaic.

The goal of de Vaux's international team was for the Oxford University Press to publish all Qumran scrolls by 1962 in a series called the Discoveries in the Judaean Desert of Jordan. That didn't happen. The first, in 1955, contained the fragments found in the original cave, known as Cave 1. In 1961, the second volume appeared, however it contained material discovered in the four caves of Wadi Murabba'at, eleven miles south of Qumran, and was dated from 70-135 AD. This find included the Hebrew versions of all the minor prophets, including Hosea, Joel, Amos , Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. In 1963, the third volume was published, containing fragments from Cave 2, Cave 3, and Caves 5 - 10; including the Copper Scroll found in Cave 3, and fragments from two copies of The Book of Jubilees, a copy of which was later found at Masada. Some researchers believe that the Copper scroll should be put in a different category, and separated from the other texts that have been found, because it is the only document that was recorded on metal, it was written in a different variation of Hebrew, and was discovered in an isolated section of the cave; which could indicate a different origin. The fourth volume, in 1965, was a collection of Psalms found in Cave 11. The fifth volume, in 1968, under the direction of Allegro, contained some material from Cave 4, however, most of the scrolls from this cave continued to be withheld from the public, even though Allegro had said in 1964 that the compilation and translation had been nearly completed by 1961. The sixth installment of the series appeared in 1977, the seventh in 1982, and the eighth, which didn't even deal with the texts of Qumran, was released in 1990.

These eight volumes are said to represent only 25% of the information contained in the Scrolls, even though Father Benoit had said in December, 1985, that everything would be published by 1993. Strugnell would later set a deadline of 1996.

Edmund Wilson, author of The Scrolls of the Dead Sea, said in 1955 that de Vaux's team wanted to isolate the sectarian non-Biblical scrolls from being connected with Christianity and Judaism, and concentrated only on the Biblical literature. In 1956, tired of de Vaux's attempts to prevent the Scrolls from being linked to Christianity, John Allegro was a guest on a series of three radio shows in northern England, the third of which resulted in a New York Times article which said: "The origins of some Christian ritual and doctrines can be seen in the documents of an extremist Jewish sect that existed for more than 100 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. This is the interpretation placed on the 'fabulous' collection of Dead Sea Scrolls by one of an international team of seven scholars...John Allegro...(who) said last night in a broadcast that the historical basis of the Lord's Supper and part at least of the Lord's prayer and the New Testament teaching of Jesus were attributable to the Qumranians." In 1987, he quit, calling the team's delays "inexcusable", saying that for years they had been "sitting on material which is not only of outstanding importance, but also quite the most religiously sensitive." He died in 1988.

Robert Eisenman, a former Research Fellow at the Albright Institute, who was a Professor of Middle East Religions and Chairman of Religious Studies at California State University at Long Beach, was denied access to photographs of the Scroll fragments by Strugnell. In 1989, he said publicly, that during the last 40 years, all of the research on the Dead Sea Scrolls was controlled by a handful of scholars who had revealed only a small portion. He called for access to the Scrolls by qualified scholars, and for AMS(Accelerator Mass Spectroscopy) Carbon-14 dating to be performed on the documents to verify the dating, which up to that point had been relying on the original, obsolete form of dating, which had been done shortly after their discovery.

In April, 1989, the Israeli Archaeological Council created a Scroll Oversight Committee to oversee the publication of all Qumran texts, and to make sure the international team completed their assignments, and in July, 1989, Amir Drori, Director of the Israeli Department of Antiquities, a member of that Committee, told the Los Angeles Times, that "if someone does not complete his work on time we have the right to deliver the scrolls to someone else."

After the Israeli government took full possession of Jerusalem in June of 1967, many were surprised that de Vaux was allowed to continue in his capacity as the leader of the team of scholars, even though it was a known fact that he was anti-Semitic, which was why he would not allow any Jewish scholars into the project. In the mid-1980's, Strugnell brought in Israeli scholar Elisha Qimron; Talmud scholar Jacob Sussman; Devorah Dimant of Haifa University; and Emmanuel Tov, Shemaryahu Talmon, Joseph Baumgarten, and Jonas Greenfield, of Baltimore's Hebrew University, to work on some unpublished text. In November, 1990, without informing Strugnell, the Israeli government assigned Emmanuel Tov to become the 'joint editor-in-chief' of the project to finish the translation and publication of the Scrolls. Then, in December, 1990, the New York Times quoted from an October 28, 1990 interview Strugnell had with the Israeli paper Ha-Aretz, where he said that Judaism was a "horrible religion", a "racist" religion, and that Israel was "founded on a lie." Magen Broshi, curator of Jerusalem's Shrine of the Book, said "We've known for twenty years that he was an anti-Semite." On another occasion, he referred to Strugnell's "rabid anti-Semitism." These anti-Semitic comments resulted in him being dismissed from the project as editor-in-chief, even though he still controlled his portion of the texts. Tov became chief editor, along with Professor Eugene Ulrich and Emile Puech.

In September, 1991, Professor Ben-Zion Wacholder, and one of his doctoral students, Martin G. Abegg, from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio, released their compilation of the Qumran texts, which was published by the Biblical Archaeological Society. In 1988, Strugnell had printed 30 copies of a 52,000 word concordance of words found in the scroll, which had been created by de Vaux's team in the 1950's, so it could be used by the team. Wacholder and Abegg used a computer to reconstruct these words, and it was purported to be 80% accurate. Later that month, the Huntington Library in San Marine, California revealed that it had a complete set of negatives, from photographs of photographs, of the original scrolls, which had been given to them in 1987 by Elizabeth Hay Bechtel of the Bechtel Corp. who had founded the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center in Claremont, California(who also had a copy). They made microfilm copies available to any scholar who requested it. The Hebrew Union College also have a partial set; and the Oxford Centre for Postgraduate Hebrew Studies in England has a full set, which had been given to them in May, 1991, by the Israeli Oversight Committee.

The Qumran texts, written in Hebrew and Aramaic, are believed to have been written between 250 BC and 68 AD. They have been divided into two groups - Biblical and non-Biblical. About 20% are Biblical. Copies of every book in the Hebrew Bible have been found, except for Esther(which, coincidentally, was the only book that didn't mention the name of God). In Cave 4, one of the most complete manuscripts which they have been able to reconstruct, is the First Book of Samuel, which was found to contain passages not found in our Bible, and is being used to fill in some of the narrative gaps. The non-Biblical fragments consists of hymns and psalms, biblical commentaries, legal documents, a letter, apocryphal writings, and an inventory of the Temple treasure. Of the non-Biblical, there are texts referred to as sectarian writings, which were produced by a unique sect of Jews who have been identified as the Essenes.

The seven intact scrolls that were found in Cave 1, were quickly published by Israeli and American scholars, but the fragments collected by de Vaux were a different story. Just in Cave 4, there was believed to be well over 15,000 fragments (and perhaps as many as 100,000) from 500 different manuscripts. In all, the find was said to represent about 800 manuscripts. Of the Biblical writings, 25 copies of Deuteronomy were found, 18 copies of Isaiah, and 27 copies of the Psalter. Among the non-Biblical, 11 copies of the Community Rule, 9 Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, 8 of the Thanksgiving Hymn, and 7 of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness.

Prior to the discovery of the Scrolls, the oldest known Old Testament texts, were copies which dated back to 1100 AD, yet they were nearly identical. Originally, only the linen surrounding the scrolls were tested with the Carbon-14 dating process , which indicated a date around the 2nd century BC and the beginning of the 1st century AD. In 1991, new tests by a Swiss laboratory confirmed these results. A palaeographical analysis was done on the script used in writing the texts which revealed a similarity to styles that were used from 250 - 150 BC, 150 - 30 BC, and 30 BC - 70 AD. Archaeological dating was also done with the help of several hundred coins which were found in the Qumran complex. The earliest structures were built between 130 - 110 BC, then rebuilt and enlarged from 110- 40 BC. They discovered evidence of an earthquake which had been recorded as occurring in 31 BC, after which they rebuilt the settlement and occupied it until 68 AD when it was destroyed by Vespasian's Roman legions.

During the Maccabean period, in the 2nd century BC, there were three main Jewish groups, the Pharisees, the Sadduccees, and the Essenes. The Essenes were known to be the "strict" Order. Early historians, such as Pliny the Elder(the 1st century Roman writer), Josephus, and Philo, indicated that the Essenes lived in the area between Jericho and Ein Gedi, on the shores of the Dead Sea, which is where the Qumran ruins are located.

The Sadducees, whose religious principles differed from the Pharisees, separated from them after the Maccabean revolt(168-164 BC). A document identified as Miqsat Ma'aseh he-Torah, or "Some Rulings Pertaining to the Torah"(also known as the Halakhic Letter), which was found in Cave 4, contains about 22 religious laws, and appears to be the basis of the Qumran philosophy. Discovered in 1952, its contents weren't revealed until 1984, and it has lead some researchers to believe that the Qumran group seceded from the established religious center in Jerusalem, and became the group known as the Essenes. Yet the Essene name is never used.

How this break occurred is not really known. According to one theory, when Judea, under Judas Maccabeus, revolted in 165 BC against the Syrian tyrant King Antiochus IV, thus beginning the Hasmonean line of Kings with Judas(165-160 BC), his brother Jonathan(160-143 BC), then his brother Simon(143-134 BC), maintained a friendly relationship with Rome; and in 152 BC when Jonathan made himself the High Priest, this upset the hardline Jews who chose to follow a man they referred to as the "Teacher of Righteousness", who was of the Zadokite(who were descendants of the priestly line of Aaron) line. They went to the desert where they could observe the laws of God.

A document found at Qumran was an earlier version of the Damascus Document, which was discovered (2 copies) in a Cairo synagogue in 1896. Dated between 80 - 75 BC, a copy was found in Cave 6, and 7 copies in Cave 4. The fragments recovered at Qumran have proven the Cairo text to be incomplete. The text refers to a contingent of Jews that remained faithful to the Law. A 'Teacher of Righteousness' came to them, and led them into Damascus so they could renew their 'Covenant' with God. This Covenant is referred to in the Community Rule. It is believed that there was an Essene community in Damascus. In the book of the Acts of the Apostles, Saul was going to Damascus to persecute these early Christians.

Another theory says that after the destruction of the First Temple in 586 BC, when the Jews were exiled to Babylon, the Essenes were formed as a strict Order because they believed they were being punished by God for their disobedience. When the Jews returned to Jerusalem after the Maccabean victories, they became disenchanted and went to Qumran.

It was believed that the Essenes were a pacifist, monastic Order who wanted to separate themseIves from the revolutionary-minded Zealots, yet some of the evidence seems to indicate otherwise. Originally thought to have been celibate, the graves of two women and a child were discovered; plus the Community Rule contained marriage laws. The Essenes did not engage in animal sacrifice, yet the Temple Scroll contains instructions for such rituals, and animal bones have been found. Thought to have been peaceful, their scrolls seem to indicate the knowledge of military strategy; and the ruins of a military defense tower and a forge have been excavated. Several manuscripts from Qumran, were also found at the Zealot stronghold on Masada, and there has been some researchers who believe that there was a connection between the two groups.

While de Vaux and his team were trying to distance the Scrolls from Judaism and Christianity, saying there were no connections, the texts which were already published seem to indicate otherwise. Either the early Christians were just living at the Qumran community, or the early Christians and the Qumran community were one, and the same. Though Essene in nature, the group in Qumran has been compared to the early Church, which was based in Jerusalem. The Habakkuk Commentary said that Qumran's governing body, the Council of the Community, was in Jerusalem. In fact, it is believed that the scrolls were taken to Qumran from Jerusalem for protection. Professor Norman Golb of the University of Chicago has theorized that the Scrolls were from the library of the Jewish Temple, and taken to Qumran, a military installation, during the first Jewish revolt to keep them safe. The vital link for this belief comes from the Copper scroll, which lists 64 locations of hidden Temple treasure. This seems to indicate that perhaps the Qumran settlement was a retreat for the early Christians. But wait, "Christians" before Christ? This is one of the controversial developments that has emerged from the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The New Testament was written in Greek, and Jesus spoke in Aramaic. The Qumran texts are written in Hebrew, and sometimes Aramaic, and has been shown to contain information that is echoed in the New Testament. Prior to the discovery of the Scrolls, the teachings of Jesus had been considered as original, though influenced by Old Testament teaching. However, the Qumran documents now indicate the existence of a basis for his message. The Community Rule, which was discovered in Cave 1, has proven to be one of the most important discoveries in Qumran. It is a record of the rules and regulations of the Qumran community, where all must make a "Covenant before God to obey all his commandments." One of the basic tenets of Christianity, the baptism of purification, is discussed. It says that the convert "shall be cleansed from all his sins by the spirit of holiness uniting him to its truth...And when his flesh is sprinkled with purifying water and sanctified by cleansing water, it shall be made clean by the humble submission of his soul to all the precepts of God." This has led to the theory that John the Baptist had lived at Qumran until he was called by Cod to be the forerunner of Jesus.

In the Acts of the Apostles(Acts 2:44-46), it says: "And all that believed were together, and had all things in common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple..." This shows that common ownership was part of the early Christian philosophy. The Community Rule stated: "All...shall bring all their knowledge, powers and possessions into the Community..."; "They shall eat in common and pray in common..."; and "..his property shall be merged and he shall offer his counsel and judgment to the Community."

Also in Acts, the Church leadership is shown to be made up of twelve Apostles, which according to Galatians, were led by James(the brother of Jesus), John and Peter. In the Community Rule, the Qumran group were governed by a 'Council' of twelve people, with three priests that were in leadership roles, though it is not known if they were part of the twelve.

It also talks about a 'Meal of the Congregation' which is a ritual very much like the 'Last Supper' and the subsequent communion ceremony; while other documents contain parallels with the Sermon on the Mount, and the concept of the battle between the darkness and the light.

The Qumran texts contain references to a messianic figure known as the 'Teacher of Righteousness', which some have tried to identify as being Jesus, however, there are no references as to the divinity of this person, so it couldn't be Jesus. In addition, because of the age of the document, this person would have been living well before the time of Christ. However, recently released fragments do elude to Jesus. An unpublished Aramaic scroll fragment out of Cave 4, mention the "Son of God" and the "Son of the Most High", in a similar manner as Luke 1:32, 35. It is the first time these references have appeared in any outside text. Newly released fragments out of Cave 4 even prophecy the coming the coming of Jesus, as the Messiah. Fragment 4Q285 said that "A staff shall rise from the root of Jesse...the Branch of David... and they will put to death the Leader of the Community."; and fragment 4Q521 said: "The Heavens and the earth will obey his Messiah...He will not turn aside from the Commandments of the Holy Ones...For the Lord will visit the Pious Ones and the Righteous will call by name...He shall release the captives, make the blind to see, raise up the downtrodden...He will heal the sick, resurrect the dead, and to the Meek announce glad tidings."

Much has been made about this small group of men, who for forty years had been silent about the contents of the Dead Sea Scrolls which were in their possession. As emissaries of the Catholic Church, was it because the Scrolls are contrary to the Bible in respect to the origin of Christianity, or was it, as some maintain, because of the power it gave them. I think it may have more to do with the implications concerning Christianity.

As we discussed in the previous section, those who have tried to prove that Jesus faked his crucifixion, have also tried to link him with the Essenes. Even though the Scrolls themselves indicate that the inhabitants of Qumran engaged in the study of astrology and mysticism, this group has been identified as the starting point for the philosophy which became Christianity. If we are to believe the Scrolls, the teachings of Jesus were based on the philosophy of the Essenes. This seriously damages his image as being the father of a Religion that bears his name. Not only that, but it further diminishes his divinity, which has increasingly come under attack.

During the next few years, the last remnants of the Scrolls will be published, and in the near future, new versions of the Bible may be produced which will reflect the "new" information gleaned from the Scrolls. These new versions may further contribute to the taking of Christ out of Christianity, so that the role of Jesus is reduced to that of a political visionary.

Since I believe that Jesus taught only what was given unto him through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, what legitimacy should be given to the Dead Sea Scrolls, if any.

Beyond a shadow of a doubt, they are legitimate documents, and not the result of an incredible forgery, as far as being done shortly before their discovery. Therefore, we have to look in another direction. Now that other scholars have access to them, any incorrect translations would be revised. Which brings us to the reconstruction of the fragments themselves. We have been forced to rely on the accuracy of de Vaux's team, and their ability to fit these pieces together into some sort of coherency. It would seem that gaps in the assembled fragments of text, would make it difficult to actually grasp its full meaning, especially since missing words may have a bearing on how other words are translated. The complex techniques utilized in this process have brought very little criticism in regard to its accuracy.

So that leaves us with only one other point of contention. Can we trust the procedure used the date the Scrolls. Carbon-14 dating has long been criticized as being inaccurate. Originally only the wrapping around them were tested, because they didn't want to destroy any text in order to date them. However, new techniques need less material to achieve the same results. But remember, what is being dated is the material that was written on. If a fragment was dated back to 200 BC, there is no way of knowing whether it was actually written on at that time, or maybe 300 years later. This knowledge makes it difficult to assume the accuracy of any dating.

We must also take into account, whether or not a document is describing actual events, or if it is just plain fiction. For example, it is commonly accepted that some apocryphal books such as Tobit, and Bel and the Dragon were works of fiction, and for that reason were not included in the Bible. Many apocryphal writings were found at Qumran. When it comes to analyzing the contents of a text, how do you decide that it is a historically accurate document, if you don't know the intention of the writer, or even who the writer was. Just as the writers of the Gospels have been accused of embellishment, do some of the Qumran texts contain the same sort of embellishments.

Because of the secrecy surrounding the Scrolls, how will we really know that all of the fragments found, will be released. It was said that some fragments had been taken to the Ecole Biblique. Were they ever returned to the Rockefeller Museum. I guess, what I am thinking here, is that if they had discovered something that would have shaken the very foundation of the Christian Church, would the Scroll team have allowed it to remain, or would it have found its way into the dark recesses of the Vatican, never again to see the light of day, or perhaps only locked away for a short time, to be released when the time is right.

Or how about the existence of other scrolls that haven't made its way into official hands. Strugnell revealed the existence of four other scrolls from Cave 11. Of the two he saw, one was a complete copy of the Book of Enoch. On his deathbed, Lankester Harding, the director of Jordan's Department of Antiquities, claimed to have seen two more scrolls that Strugnell had not seen. All four are located in Jordan. Stories have also circulated about Bedouin discoveries which were not given to de Vaux, and have yet to surface.

It seems that the world hasn't heard the last of Qumran, because archaeologists Dr. Gary Collett and Dr. Aubry L. Richardson, using sophisticated equipment developed by NASA(which can sense nonvisible elements of the electromagnetic spectrum and interpret the type of molecules found in its makeup), claim that there are still unexplored caves there, including one which may contain up to 40 intact jars, of the kind used to store manuscripts, and evidence of another copper scroll. A dig was initiated, sanctioned by the Israeli government, to reach this cave, which have not, as yet, turned up anything.

My feeling is, that we haven't been able to produce enough substantiation from the Scrolls to make the kind of claims that have been made. For example, various books in the Bible contain the same information, and are used to cross reference each other. That wasn't possible with the Scrolls, and because of that, they may never be fully accepted. The fact that some of their rituals are similar to the early Christian Church, may be nothing more than natural progression- or theological evolution.

Because of further archaeological excavation, we may continue to get a steady flow of information from Qumran for years to come, and how it will affect the perception of Christianity is yet to be seen. All we can do, is to evaluate what is available now, and how some of the questionable texts may be use to manipulate religion in this country.

It would be nice to know how much influence the Rockefeller family has on the Rockefeller Museum, where all the fragments were housed. Their name also figures prominently in the talk concerning the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple. Knowing that they have had a huge role in establishing the New World Order, their involvement in the various affairs of Israel has ominous overtones.

THE WORLD CHURCH

In the previous chapter, we discussed the development of the World Church, now we'll talk about what role they will have when the New World Order is established.

Mark 13:22 says: "For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect." 2 Corinthians 11:13 says : "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ."

The Bible talks about a religious leader who will come to power, and join forces with the political leader who will rise out of western Europe.

The identity of this individual, who has been labeled- the False Prophet, has been the subject of much speculation. However, I think there are some clues as to who this person may be. Matthew 24:26 says: "Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert( Mohammedanism) ; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers(the Vatican); believe it not." The Catholic Ecclesiastical Dictionary states: "The Pope is not simply a man, but, as it were, God." In light of what has been discussed earlier about the development of a World Church, there seems to be quite a few things which point to the Pope being the leader of this World Church, and perhaps the one who will be known as the False Prophet.

A resolution passed at a Vatican Council, called for the placing of the Pope "on the throne of the world." The Pope is known as the "Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church", "Successor of the Prince of Apostles", "Rector of the World Upon the Earth", the "Vicar of Christ" and "Father of Princes and Kings." In Revelation 17:9, it mentions that the seat of the Antichrist will be in the "seven mountains"; and Rome, which was built on seven mountains, is known as the "seven-hilled city." Rome is also the home of the Vatican, which is recognized as an independent government apart from the Italian government. The Pope is literally a God to the Catholic Church, having the authority to forgive sins. Dave Hunt, in his expose', A Woman Rides the Beast, analyzed the title, "Vicar of Christ". He found that the word "Vicar" comes from the latin "vicarius" which means "anti"(or to be more precise, "alternate" or "substitute", which is in line with what was discussed early in this chapter), which leads to the literal translation of "Vicar of Christ", as "Antichrist".

According to Revelation 17:3-4, the color of the False Prophet will be "scarlet(red)." The primary color of the papacy is red, said to signify the blood of Jesus. The color has also been associated with Communism and Satanism. It was alleged that Pope Benedict IX(1032-45, 1047-48) practiced sorcery and magic; Pope Boniface VIII(1294-1303) was said to communicate with demons; and it was believed that Pope Sylvester II(999-1003) and Pope Sixtus V(1585-90) were also involved with sorcery. All of these clues could indicate that the False Prophet could be a Pope.

Some researchers indicate that the False Prophet may be Jewish, but that still doesn't rule out the Vatican connection. In 1130, Anacletus II was elected as the Pope. His great-grandfather was Baruch, a successful Jewish businessman who served as an advisor to Pope Benedict IX. Benedict requested that he convert to Catholicism, which Baruch did, changing his name to that of the Pope. The name 'Benedict' is Latin for "blessed", while the name 'Baruch' is Hebrew for the same thing. The conversion was in name only, because Baruch still financed a synagogue in the Jewish quarter of Rome.

Baruch's son, an aide to Pope Leo IX(1049-55), also converted, changing his name to Lee. Lee's son, Petrus Leonis, was the first to use the name Pierleone. His family became an established financial power in the late 11th century, and became active in the affairs of the Catholic Church. His son, Pietro, was sent to a monastery where he worked his way up, attaining the position of cardinal.

When Pope Honorius II(1124-30) was on his deathbed, preparations were made to elect a new Pope. The Pierleone family offered their son, the cardinal; while the Frangipani family, a traditional Catholic family, offered its own candidate. The Frangipani hid the Pope, and after he died in 1130, convened a portion of the cardinals to elect their choice, who adopted the name Innocent II(1130-43). The Pierleone family held an election the same day, with a greater number of cardinals present, and elected Pietro, who took the name Anacletus II(1130-38). Rome sided with Anacletus, and Innocent II fled to France, then later traveled around Europe, accusing Anacletus of being an "anti-pope." Despite efforts to remove him, Anacletus remained Pope till he died in 1138. A year later, Innocent II returned, and after Victor IV resigned(also considered to be an anti-pope), was elected, and served till his death in 1143. The Vatican now refers to Anacletus II as an "anti-pope" ("one who uncanonically claims or exercises the office of the Roman Pontiff"), and has eliminated him from papal history.

Two other Popes were also members of the Jewish Pierleone family: Gregory VI(1045-46) and Gregory VII(1073-86, known as "Hildebrand", who was a descendant of a daughter of Lee, and was later made a saint).

On May 13, 1917, Lucia dos Santos and her cousins Jacinta and Francisco Marta, who were tending their sheep near Cova da Iria, saw their first of 6 visions of the Virgin Mary in the hilly terrain of Fatima, Portugal. A series of others followed on the same day every month till October. Mary gave three prophecies concerning the end of World War I, World War II, and Russia. One prophecy said that when an unknown light was seen in the sky, it would be a sign from God that he would punish the world through war, persecution, and famine. On the day of Mary's sixth appearance, October 13, she had promised a miracle. Over 70,000 people showed up in the pouring rain to observe the event. In a ten-minute display, the sun came up, spun in the sky, plunged downward, then rose again. The crowd, as well as the ground, were dried.

Lucia later became a Carmelite nun in Coimbra, Portugal, and in 1927 reported that Jesus had appeared to her and made several prophecies. Mary had asked that her last prophecy be kept secret until 1960(when, incidentally, John F. Kennedy, the first Roman Catholic President took office). In 1944, the prophecy was written down, sealed and given to the Bishop of Portugal, and became known as the "Third Secret". It was sent to Rome, where it was kept on the mantle of the Pope's apartment in the Apostolic Palace. When it was opened in 1960, it was said that when Pope John XXIII read the prophecy, he was visibly shaken, and didn't reveal its contents, because he said that it didn't "concern our time". Many believed it had to do with Armageddon, and in recent years, various people have become privy to the words written in Lucia's letter, which contained the third prophecy. The prophecy indicated that the world was to be punished for disobeying the laws of God and turning away from him. When the prophecy was unsealed by the Pope in 1960, it was to published so that the whole world would know about it; and then the country of Russia was to be consecrated to Mary by the Pope and all the bishops. If these two things were done, the wrath of God would not fall upon the Earth. It wasn't done, therefore the country of Russia was to become the instrument of God's punishment upon the nations. In 1957, Cardinal Ottaviani, in referring to the prophecy, said it had to be buried "in the most hidden, the deepest, the most obscure and inaccessible place on earth." In 1978, John Paul II said that his predecessors "preferred to postpone publication so as not to encourage the world power of Communism to make certain moves." In 1980, while speaking to a group of German Catholics, John Paul II admitted that the "Third Secret" did indeed refer to impending punishment from God, and that because Pope John XXIII, for diplomatic reasons, failed to honor the stipulations, the prophecy had been set into motion, and couldn't be stopped.

Jeane Dixon had a vision with the word "Fatima" in it. She saw the throne of the Pope, but it was empty. Off to one side, she saw a Pope, with blood running down his face, dripping over his left shoulder. She interpreted this vision to mean, that within this century, a Pope will be bodily harmed. She saw hands reaching out for the throne. She said that the new head of the Church would have a different insignia than that of the Pope. Because of the unearthly light, she knew that the power would still be there, but not in the person of the Pope.

On April 7, 1970, it was reported that Mary appeared to Veronica Lueken, and has made subsequent appearances to her at the St. Robert Bellarmine Church in Bayside, New York, on the eve of the great feast days of the Church. The messages received during these visitations were recorded on tape, portions of which are revealed in a newsletter known as Directives. The message given on September 7, 1978, contained this startling tidbit: "Lucifer entered the Vatican in 1972, and has since controlled the state of affairs in Rome."

St. Malachy, Archbishop of Armagh(an Irish monk who died in 1148), had made prophecies concerning future Popes. His predictions ended with a Pope called "Peter the Roman" who was the seventh Pope after a Pope whose description resembled Pope Plus X. During his reign, "the City of the Seven Hills will be destroyed, and the Awful Judge will judge his people." The seventh Pope is John Paul II(Karol Wojtyla), from Krakow, Poland, who began his reign in 1978. When Pope John offered free tickets for papal audiences in Rome, the lower left portion of the ticket displayed a group of numbers followed by the number 666. Revelation 13:18 tells us about the connection between the False Prophet and the number 666, and I will talk about that in the next chapter.

On January 24, 1979, at the Vatican, the Pope met for two hours with the Soviet foreign minister, Andrei Gromyko. Afterward, Gromyko referred to him as "a man with a worldview." John Paul said that the meeting was to talk about "the prospects for world peace."

On Sunday, April 3, 1994, the Parade magazine featured a front cover picture of Pope John, with the quote: "We trust that, with the approach of the year 2000, Jerusalem will become the city of peace for the entire world and that all the people will be able to meet there, in particular the believers in the religions that find their birthright in the faith of Abraham." Note the global implication. The interview inside by Tad Szulc focused on the Vatican's establishment of diplomatic relations with Israel on December 30, 1993, which came during a time when Israel was also trying to work out their own peace accord in the Middle East. This agreement will allow the Vatican to have a seat at the negotiations on the final determination of Jerusalem. The Vatican embassy will be in Tel Aviv, where most other embassies are located, because Jerusalem is not recognized as Israel's capital. In March, 1994, the Vatican also established relations with the Moslem country of Jordan, on Israel's eastern border, and it may indicate the beginning of a move by the Vatican to become more involved in the Middle East situation. Pope John said: "It must be understood that Jews, who for 2000 years were dispersed among the nations of the world, had decided to return to the land of their ancestors. That is their right." Vatican hardliners have criticized the Pope's growing role as the "protector of Jews", but maybe this is just a fulfilment of prophecy.

In outlining the theory that the Pope is going to be the False Prophet, and that the Roman Catholic Church is going to be part of the World Church, do not misconstrue this as anti-Catholic rhetoric. As I stated earlier, the Catholic Church, as well as the Protestant churches which make up the World Council of Churches, in the coming years, will be radically different. The liberalism that is becoming so pervasive in Religion today, will turn these churches into shadows of their former selves. The Pope of the future, will not be the Pope as we know him today, and therefore the actions to which the Bible attributes to him, should not reflect on the respect that is due a leader of a religion, that today, theologically is Christian. The real history of the Catholic Church is not known to a large majority of its membership, and therefore, even though they have been deceived, it is wrong to indict those who have sincerely tried to live their lives according to the basic Christian tenets as they know them. It is my hope, that the truths contained in this book will help people find the true path to salvation through Jesus Christ.