Sivan 17, 5759 / June 1, 1999

When I was a little girl, I remember hearing my mother and a couple of her friends discussing the "end of the world". One of the ladies said, "Well, I don't want to live to see that; it'll be so awful!" I was five years old, but something inside of me said I would see these events. Now we're on the brink of the turn of the century--not only the century, but the millenium. A lot has been speculated, a lot has been warned of, a lot has been "prophesied", and there is, for some, the same fear my mother's friend expressed. Because of the varying opinions, even those based on sound scriptural evidence, we can't be positive of the details. However, we should be informed and aware that we are going into a very dangerous period for Israel and the world. I have been reading and gathering information for years from books, newspapers, and magazines. I have been very impressed with the idea that all of this information on its own would be enough to make a sane person go mad with the hopelessness of the situation of our world. However, when we read these things through the lenses of a Torah (Bible) understanding, the picture isn't so bleak afterall. We do have hope--that is in HaShem. How many times do the Prophets say that in the midst of the most horrible travail, those who call on the Name of G-d will be saved? This is the essence of faith. And I know with all my heart that this is our only hope.

As the Psalmist tells us in the first Psalm, as we learn Torah we are like a tree by a stream whose roots seek the water. As those roots sink deeper and deeper into the earth, the tree becomes sturdier and stronger. Then when the storms come, the branches might blow around and bend, but the tree will not be uprooted. Sometimes that well-rooted tree has to be an anchor for others. We've been going through a terrible storm. We've seen some real earth-shaking things. The worst is yet to come, though.

One time I heard of a group of rabbis whose whole concept of reality was the Torah. The only way they believed the physical world existed was that the Torah said so. For them the spiritual realms, the worlds of heaven, were the true reality. They knew that what happens on this plane is first played out on the higher one. They knew that battles won above will be won here, even if they might look like they will be lost. We know that we are promised the Redemption. For this to happen, we know that the Will of HaShem must ultimately triumph--regardless of how hopeless the battle with evil appears.

A friend sent me the following site: http://www.the-news.net/archives/bilburg29-5.htm

Please read this with the realization that this organization has existed for a very long time in secret. Now their meetings and planned agendas are not so secretive. Why? Could it be that their plans are so far advanced that they no longer feel the need for hiding the "conspiracy". "New World Order" is a term we have been hearing for years now. What exactly is this, and what does it mean for our lives?

A few years ago was the 50th anniversary of the UN. Jordan television made a big deal out of it for that whole week. The week's Torah parsha reading happened to be "Noah", which includes the story of the Tower of Babel. I don't think things like this are coincidence. I believe Torah is the living Word of G-d, and that He speaks to us through it as we encounter the events of our own time. The spirit that drove Nimrod of old to defy G-d, enslave others, and declare himself divine, still drives power-hungry men who see themselves as the natural rulers of us all. In a world of their creation, as in the days of Nimrod, human life has little value. The only thing that matters is building a society in their own image, which has no room for G-d or His model of society elaborated in the Torah.

We are coming closer and closer to the Judgement. Each of us has to work out the rectification of his own soul. As in the days of Noah, G-d gives us this chance for the longest possible period. But one day, the injustice of the earth cries for judgement, and G-d, being merciful, acts. As in the days of Noah, things are getting worse and worse, as the plans of the "powers that be" are coming to their fullness. Don't lose hope, however, because theirs is not the last word.

With blessings from Zion,
~Miriam~