Contiue With The Harlot Rides A Wild Beast

Did the John class, the one group on earth that eagerly accepted the incoming Messianic Kingdom, share with Christendom in paying homage to the scarlet-colored wild beast? Far from it! On Sunday, September 7, 1919, the convention of Jehovah's people in Cedar Point, Ohio, featured the public talk "The Hope For Distressed Humanity. On the following day, the Sandusky Star Journal reported that J.F. Rutherford, president of the Watch Tower Society, in addressing nearly 7,000 persons, had "asserted that the Lord's displeasure is certain to be visited upon the League. . .because the clergy-Catholic and Protestant-claiming to be God's representatives, have abandoned his plan and endorsed the League of Nations, hailing it as a political expression of Christ's Kingdom on earth.

The dismal failure of the League of Nations should have signaled to the clergy that such man-made organs are no part of a Kingdom of God on earth. What Blasphemy to make such a claim! It makes it seem as though God was a party to the colossal botch that the League turned out to be. As for God, "perfect is his activity." Jehovah's heavenly Kingdom under Christ - and not a combine of squabbling politicians, many of them atheists - is the means by which he will bring in peace and have his will done on earth as in heaven. -Deuteronomy 32:4; Matthew 6:10.

What of the League's successor, the United Nations? From its inception, this body has also had the great harlot riding on its back, visibly associated with it and trying to guide its destiny. For example, on its 20th anniversary, in June 1965, representatives of the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, together with Protestants, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists and Muslims - said to represent two thousand million of earth's population - assembled in San Francisco to celebrate their support and admiration of the UN. On visiting the UN in October 1965, Pope Paul VI described it as "that greatest of all international organizations" and added: "The peoples of the earth turn to the United Nations as the last hope of concord and peace." Another papal visitor, Pope John Paul II, addressing the UN in October 1979, said: "I hope the United Nations will ever remain the supreme forum of peace and justice." Significantly, the pope made no mention of Jesus Christ or of God's Kingdom in his speech. During his visit to the United States in September 1987, as reported by The New York Times, "John Paul spoke at length about the positive role of the Untied Nations in promoting . . . 'new worldwide solidarity.' "

Next time: A Name, A Mystery.