Apocalypse Now, I mean Very, Very Soon? You Better Believe It...

But does that 'necessitate' or rather presuppose an all-out global thermonuclear war, i.e. World War 111? Thankfully, not necessarily, and certainly not as such insofar as biblical prophecies are concerned, though it seems increasingly likely nevertheless that a number of geographically 'isolated' major, and generally nuclear weaponry-employing wars, are indeed on the very verge of being precipitated...by one foolhardy 'gentleman' in particular, no guessing who!

Yes indeed, whether we're considering North Korea vis-a-vis the United States of America, the USA/Israel vis-a-vis various Middle Eastern/Arab nations...or 'just' Russia vis-a-vis the Ukraine and/or various Baltic nations - among numerous other, generally less than latent, possibilities...the writing does indeed appear well and truly already upon the wall, or at least furiously fast being etched there.

But by his native brand of stupidity, his own especial 'class' of ignoramus personified, Messr Donald J Trump looks certain to expedite 'proceedings' in this regard in a considerable and greatly undesirable fashion while we 'lesser mortals' think and consider and reflect...and simply hold our collective breath.

Buckle up, folks, you/we have evidently 'seen nothin' yet'...as 'the Donald' really puts his a(ss) into g(ear), or is that his foot in his mouth, and does what no other (even somewhat rational, reasonable-minded) United States President has hitherto done...i.e. recognized Jerusalem as the nation of Israel's essential capital.

But before I sign off I'll seemingly contradict myself - a not uncommon phenomenon with Yours Truly, admittedly - by commending him upon keeping his adamant campaign promise, and by recognizing reality.

The problem in this case is that by thus keeping a rashly-made commitment, admittedly made apparently by all his predecessors in recent decades, to simply accept that Israel has only one real capital, i.e. Jerusalem...

...he's thus and so set the entire Middle East upon a trajectory toward war, and of the nasty, no doubt eventually nuclear variety...and no, that's really neither a 'nice' nor a very smart thing to do - at all.

Really, is it? 'Coz some truths and facts are better to go unstated, however true they may well be in theory.

Don't ya think? I mean, really?

So What Do French President Emmanuel Macron, California Governor Jerry Brown and the Roman Catholic Pontiff, Pope Francis, Have In Common? Something Rather Sinister, That Might Seriously Spook You

Suffice to say - for now - that the pawns are being rapidly put into place for the global chess champion to claim his long-coveted, special prize. That prize/reward: a re-establishment of a long-lost global *hegemony. The players involved: a **cabal of popular and/or deeply respected world leaders unsuspected of anything beyond being a bunch of well-meaning if at times somewhat unconventional, unorthodox pragmatists seeking a human species in harmony with both itself and its environs. The tools to those ends: you and me, the citizenry of Planet Earth. The means to achieve said ends: a global crisis of ***multifarious parts and unwonted proportions necessitating human intervention upon an unprecedented scale to bring some order to the chaos.

And what - directly - elicited this blogpost on such a far-reaching topic? A number of factors involving the aforementioned personalities in particular over a number of recent weeks, months and years, is the fact of the matter, but the immediate triggering event that has made me thus put pen to paper, so to speak? A little news item overheard upon my stereo early yesterday afternoon. Which essentially 'said it all' - for those with ears to hear and who, through long experience, are able to 'read between the lines' (of the superficial, mainstream media text). And yet, at the same time, said news item did unexpectedly disclose some rather inconvenient information, which said parties (already cited) I suspect might well have wished to remain hidden or out of public view.

Upon New Zealand's Newstalk ZB 1 p.m. news bulletin yesterday, was the following 'snippet of information': Jerry Brown, the (very long-serving, during two distinct phases separated by threesome decades) Governor of America's most populous state, California, is reported to have told a Vatican Symposium upon climate change that religious commitments were as important as any other considerations in facing up to and dealing with - 'fighting' - the same. And then, before mentioning (if I recollect aright) that Brown believed all means should be employed in this global battle, veteran newsreader Tim Dower (again, if I remember rightly) cited the - very relevant and all-so-revealing - fact that Brown was 'a former Jesuit seminarian'. Indeed, and more's to the point, at that symposium surely Pope Francis - a Jesuit himself - would have been present (if only in spirit or c/o top advisers, if he hadn't been around or able to attend, for whatever reason).

And so, to tie all these various and sundry 'bits 'n bobs' together into one overarching thread, may I simply posit the reasonable surmise or conjecture that, alongside the stunningly electorally successful new President of France, Emmanuel Macron, the 'new (and Jesuit, evidently) kid in town'/'on the block', the various (and well-positioned) Jesuit grandmasters are speedily moving into place. But for what specific purpose, I hear you breathlessly enquire?

Why, to move into higher gear their 'great' and long-planned scheme and bid to regain their (i.e. the Jesuit order's - and the Vatican's) long-lost global supremacy...this time for keeps!

You better believe it folks, it's not only happening, it's coming a whole lot sooner than anyone (including myself) had ever anticipated...in my/our worst nightmares...

Put your seatbelts on, when the crisis finally breaks out, it'll be a rather 'bumpy' ride, I can assure you!

*/**/***According to my ever trusty Concise Chambers Dictionary, meaning, respectively: 'leadership: preponderant influence, esp. of one state over others'; 'a small party united for some secret design'; and 'having great diversity: made up of many parts'.

So Where Does That Place Us In The Divine Scheme of Things?

Assuredly, "no-one knoweth the day nor the hour" when 'the Son of Man' will return..."not even the Son [Himself]...but the Father only". And as Jesus the Christ, Israel's rejected Messiah, later admonished His eagerly-awaiting disciples, just prior to farewelling them (upon this present globe) forever, such "times and seasons" were to be kept top secret in the meantime, being 'put in[i.e. under] the Father['s] own authority".

So far so good, but was that all that Jesus said upon the subject? Did He not at least reveal the tenor of that fearsome time like no other, a time moreover "[w]hen there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world...no, nor ever shall be [again]" - a time elsewhere described as "the time of Jacob's trouble"?

Most assu5redly He did...and in no uncertain terms to boot. Yes indeed. So where do we begin? Well, the gospels themselves are never a bad idea, and how about the selfsame (end-time) passage - and related ones, 'parallel passages' as they're usually referred to? Yes, let's begin there.

Cognizant as we set out upon this biblically-delineated journey that 'today' (now yesterday) in the Northern, and likewise in the Southern, Hemisphere(s), is an important date - and not only in the secular scheme of things. For 'Halloween' - 'All Hallow's Eve' as the witches and wizards, and indeed even the Medieval Church itself 'christened' it - is not only a cherished 'oblation to the devil' (and/or his earthly representatives), but, incredible fact that it is, wonder of wonders even, it was the very day that what became known as the 'Protestant Reformation' was given a critical spark that has never since been extinguished, or ever will. For it was the very day that a then-obscure monk from Wittenberg, Germany, nailed his now-celebrated '99 theses' upon a church door and thus forever revolutionized Christendom. A revolution, as with the invention which enabled it, the printing press, conducted and carried through without worldly weapons, tactics or *bloodshed.

*Yes, I'm well aware that violence between the Church of the Day and its dissenting defectors has been a matter of **historical record over succeeding decades, even centuries, but could I respectfully suggest - again, upon good historical authority - that such Christless, unChristlike, Christ-denying behaviour - upon the part of any and every 'party' (both individual and collective) concerned - was not only in itself a wholesale rejection of the very spirit of Christ and selfsame Reformation, and so didn't truly represent its very essence, but that that Reformation achieved its revolutionary results entirely despite and in spite of the tactics which were sometimes employed (by Protestants that is, for the Roman Catholics engaged in the same were only ever involved in what is known as the Counter-Reformation) either in wholesale ignorance of the Very Founder of the religion, and/or, as often occurred, by a blatant denial of his winsome, loving and loveable spirit, alongside an adoption of the self-righteous, judgmental spirit of Jesus' earthly adversaries, chiefest amongst whom were the notorious Pharisees.

**Speaking of which, may I include a few words and observations regarding a BBC World discussion this very morn (New Zealand time) in which a number (three or four) 'learned divines' ***expostulated, ****expounded and otherwise *****expatiated.

***/****/*****According to my trusty Chambers Concise Dictionary, meaning, respectively: 'to remonstrate/discuss/claim'; 'to expose, or lay open the meaning of; to explain; to interpret; to explain in a certain way'; and 'to range at large (usu. fig.): to enlarge in discourse, argument, or writing' [i.e. upon some matter or topic under consideration]. All of which the aforementioned folk did, and did they what! But more about that in my second part, following some desperately-needed early shuteye tonight, for without it one really cannot achieve a helluva lot, I've concluded over many years and decades of hard-earned experience!
 
To Be Continued...

A Rather Depressing, Even Pathetic Present State of World Affairs: 'nuff said!

Although, contradicting myself, as I am ever wont to do, let me simply add the well-chosen words of a prophetically-gifted woman from a century to a century-and-a-half ago, who stated (I believe around the start of the 20th Century):

There will soon be such sorrow in this world as no balm can soothe.

Or as the sacred Scriptures themselves inform us:
 
"...mens' hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken."

A time when verily "there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring."

That time, I tentatively suggest, has sadly long since arrived...to put it very mildly indeed...

If Monsieur Macron et al "are agin' it", well, hey, there must actually be something in it; or why such a hullabaloo over Catalonian independence (as per Great Britain becoming independent once more) by Europhiles Incorporated?

So we witness anew members, supporters and other assorted and sundry hangers-on of 'Europe Incorporated', i.e. anyone and everyone with pro-European Union sympathies and sensibilities, uniting in disbelief, frustration and anger/hostility to the imminent prospect of the ancient Spanish region of Catalonia - once the Roman- and Goth-occupied area known as Gothalonia according to my handy little The Concord DESK ENCYCLOPEDIA: Volume One: A-E (1982) - declaring, asserting and otherwise seeking to establish its independence. From the utter furore of late whipped up, one would or at least ostensibly could, imagine that it didn't only presage the very finale of European civilization as such, but the imminent Apocalypse and Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself! That is, following the inevitable demise of the Spanish nation itself. Or so the present media coverage would seem to indicate.

Having no especial familiarity with, let alone more than a cursory, media-instilled, knowledge of this age-old regional division of modern-day Spain, obviously I am no expert on the matter, but as a disinterested observer, accruing no benefit whatsoever whatever might betide Catalonia and Catalonians - or for that matter Spain and Spaniards - let me simply note (and posit), in addition to the foregoing, the following thoughts/ideas/considerations (and queries):

*Surely residents/'citizens' of this long-time 'autonomous region in N(orth)E(ast) Spain', to which 'In 1980 the Spanish government handed over certain limited functions', thus enabling/creating 'a Catalan regional government with its own parliament and premier', having 'maintained its own customs and language even after its union with Aragon in 1137', have such a long history of semi-independence that it's hardly surprising that now - when 'everybody and everyone' seems set upon establishing their own identity c/o asserting their own geographical stamp of authority - they might themselves want fuller, even complete autonomy (to pursue their own unique vision of themselves and their place in the world). I mean, it's hardly that unpredictable a political development, surely? (All quotations herein as per the above-mentioned (pocket-sized) Desk Encyclopedia.)

*Perhaps French President Macron's beef at least 'subconsciously' relates to the fact that since 'Catalan, one of the nine Romance languages, and (understandably) native language of Catalonia', is 'also spoken in the French Pyrenees', he's covering himself well ahead of time for the - admittedly probably rather tenuous at best, but nevertheless - forseeable prospect that some of his fellow French-'men' might also (in time to come) seek to join just such a newly-independent state.

*Though the idea isn't unique, indeed I heard some such similar observation made by someone on BBC World Radio or the like recently, isn't it more than a little interesting, curious, suspect even, that those in the vanguard of the 'European Project' at present, expeditiously get their knickers in a knot whenever anyone within modern-day (at least Western) Europe goes the independence route, whereas whenever the same happens elsewhere, even within the bounds of the once 'Eastern' Europe, it's pretty much, "Okay, Jose, she's no big deal, nothing to sweat over or get unduly panicky or worked up about." Or as we kiwis might put it: "She'll be right, mate." Yes, everyone everywhere has the inherent right to self-government and sovereignty, except those within our midst we might have reason to suspect of being either (to be charitable, simply) fuddy-duddy, or, to be much less so, racists and xenophobes (as in British Eurosceptics, for instance), terrorist in modus operandi (as in the Basque separatists, who, incidentally and interestingly, also hail from the Pyrenees region of France and NE Spain) or precociously self-willed (as in the Catalonians). Although, speaking as we are of such matters - at least within the bounds of Westerndom - **Quebecis seem to have ever been allowed a special dispensation...that is, on the off-chance that they ever do - electorally at least - assert their independence from Canada.

**Though I prefer 'Quebecis' (for the inhabitants of the Canadian province of Quebec), my trusty 'ole Chambers Concise Dictionary (1988) seems to prefer 'Quebec(k)ers', and/or 'Quebecois' (this latter rendering, with a diagonal 'macron' over the first 'e', obvious irony and unintended 'pun' notwithstanding), so that is that, I suppose...

"And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon..."

What a day across the '[belt] of totality' straddling the U S of A at this incredible time in American history, and what a welcome relief/distraction for one and all in that much-afflicted land from the ongoing, never-ending, incessant 'march' ever backward(s) and downward(s) of the Trump Road Show excuse for the American presidency...if only for the briefest moment in time, admittedly.

A welcome and eagerly-grasped moment in which around 11 million Americans - plus vast numbers of temporary visitors - living along the thin geographical 'belt' criss-crossing the United States through 14 - over a quarter - of its 50 states, from the beloved Oregon (my favourite state while sojourning in the U S from later 1992 through mid-1995) over to South Carolina, I *believe. 

This is simply to note this interesting event, and to point out my 'recollection' that the last time such an eclipse criss-crossed the U S of A - or perhaps a little prior, to be precise - forty years ago, i.e. 1979 evidently, a certain individual claiming extremely special, even unique spiritual(heavenly)-(earthly)temporal authority was coming upon the scene and within a short time had 'amassed' significant worldly and religious status and influence. To whom do I allude? None other than Pope John Paul the Second, who I mention in this context for one essential but exceedingly important, even mouth-dropping, reason: he was cited, specified, identified around 1,000 years prior - in a mysterious medieval prophecy which has been treasured within the Vatican Library for almost as long - as one whose actual eventual tenure/'reign', a remarkable 25 years all up, was denoted by said 'prophet', an Archbishop Malachy of the then Ireland (comprising both North and South), in these words/terms: as 'the sun's eclipse'/'the sun's labour'. Spooky, eh.

Perhaps all the more interesting and significant in view of his being not only one of the longest-serving pontiffs in world history, but the one who, many would and could well argue, effectively 'healed the deadly wound' of Revelation 13, after which the entire 'world [would] wonder after the [religio-political power specified]'; and did he achieve that - in literal spades. And though the relatively problematic, crisis-ridden and unpopular pontificate of his immediate successor, Pope Benedict the 16th, Josef Ratzinger, the one-time Prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, previously known as the Holy Office, and originally much more meaningfully (if eerily) designated the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition, intervened until late 2012, when Benedict took the world by shock and awe and handed in his resignation, the tenure of John Paul's ultimate successor, i.e. Jorge Bergoglio, better known these days as Pope Frances, has well and truly accelerated John Paul the Second's stellar efforts, so much so that to suggest the modern-day papacy is esteemed deeply across the face of the globe is if anything a massive understatement.

Enough for today, my precious shut-eye beckons, but I cannot close without restating the greater context from which biblical setting my blogpost's title is taken. As St Luke, physician to and personal attendant upon the Apostle Paul has written in his Gospel account:

And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for[from] fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the [habitable] earth: for the powers of heaven[the heavens] shall be shaken.

Yes, thinking men and women throughout the world today realize, however imperceptibly and subconsciously, that our world now stands upon the very threshold of great and calamitous events, events long prophesied to immediately precede the great, long-heralded Advent in great power and glory to this earth of the Son of Man, the unique God-Man Jesus Christ Himself, Second Person of the Godhead. And at that time all those 'eagerly looking' to that grand event are indeed advised to 'look up and lift up [their] heads; for [their] redemption draweth nigh'.

And when that 'celebrated' event occurs, the long-heralded 'Parousia' (i.e. Rapture) of 'our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ', Paul advises believers, firstly in then Rome (in his letter to the Romans) that:

We shall not [indeed] all [fall a]sleep, But we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, At the last trump[sic]: For the trumpet shall sound...".

And then in Thessalonika (on today's Grecian Peninsula, i.e. in modern-day Greece), in his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul advises the believers there

'not...to be ignorant...concerning them which are [have fallen] asleep', nor to 'sorrow...even [also] as others which have no[t] hope...'.

And why, prithee, not?

'For...we which are alive and remain [the living and the remaining ones] unto the coming of the Lord shall not [by no means] prevent [go before] them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the [A]rchangel, and with the trump[sic] of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain [the living and the remaining ones] shall be caught up together with them...'

Just what time in history do you reckon that marks us out as being in? Hey, you needn't be a rocket scientist or a neurosurgeon to work that one out...do you? I mean, really...

*But was Bermuda also eventually 'shadowed' by the solar-lunar path? Maybe not an American state as such, let alone even a tributary, except of the United Kingdom...whose population, half that of my own beloved Dunedin, not only hosted the recent America's Cup yacht race, once again 'brought home' by God's Own, i.e. New Zealand, but - at least at one time, if he still resides there - included a fellow named Darren Williams, if I remember rightly, who was one of my room-mates while residing during 1993-1994 at Wildwood Lifestyle Centre and Hospital in Wildwood, Georgia...itself at the actual juncture of both Georgia and Tennessee, very close to the famous Chattanooga whose Lookout Mountain (or perhaps only Hill, reality often being somewhat less glamourous than memory's deceptive halls would sometimes suggest) was itself 'home' to a Confederate cannon, and from whose 'lofty' (by U S standards anyhow) 'peak' one could (apparently) see seven different states all up...assuming those seven to comprise/include: Georgia and Tennessee of course; Alabama, only a little ways distant; but also Mississippi, no doubt; and definitely South Carolina; 'assuming' the other two to probably be North Carolina and Kentucky...but I truly can't recall. (But evidently half the number of states directly criss-crossed by today's lunar-solar eclipse across the United States.)

Returning to Europe (in Bible prophecy) - and not before time

Instalment #1

The errors of my ways having at last caught up with me, I'll aim to fulfil my pledge to my bloggership of June 22nd last...before too much time has elapsed, and hopefully a year on (at the latest). Suffice it for now, that I do intend dealing with the matter of where Europe 'stands' (both today and in times past) in Bible prophecy. Though indeed the subject may prove to have all manner of ramifications thus far unanticipated, let me at this point simply 'posit' a variety of Scriptural texts which I will soon enough endeavour to link/connect with the continent of Europe (at least as it stood 2,000 years ago, as well as at both the commencement and the end of the Cold War.) But for now - or rather today on - I will simply give a necessarily scattered sampling of them in a bullet-point list, alongside the briefest of explanations (some necessarily repeated from that earlier blogpost of 2016):

*'Then one of the seven angels who
had the seven bowls came and
talked with me, saying to me, "Come, I
will show you the judgment of the great
harlot who sits on many waters,
with whom the kings of the earth
committed fornication, and the inhab-
itants of the earth were made drunk
with the wine of her fornication."
So he carried me away in the Spirit
into the wilderness. And I saw a woman
sitting on a scarlet beast which was full
of names of blasphemy, having seven
heads and ten horns.
The woman was arrayed in purple
and scarlet, and adorned with gold and
precious stones and pearls, having in
her hand a golden cup full of abomina-
tions and the filthiness of her fornica-
tion.
And on her forehead a name was
written:
                 MYSTERY,
      BABYLON THE GREAT,
 THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS
             OF THE EARTH.
I saw the woman, drunk with the
blood of the saints and with the blood
of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw
her, I marveled with great amazement.
But the angel said to me, "Why did
you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of
the woman and of the beast that carries
her, which has the seven heads and the
ten horns....
Here is the mind which has wis-
dom: The seven heads are seven moun-
tains on which the woman sits.... 
The ten horns which you saw are
ten kings who have received no king-
dom as yet, but they receive authority
for one hour as kings with the beast.
These are of one mind, and they
will give their power and authority to
the beast."...
Then he said to me, "The waters 
which you saw, where the harlot sits, 
are peoples, multitudes, nations, and 
tongues. 
And the ten horns which you saw
on the beast, these will hate the harlot,
make her desolate and naked, eat her
flesh and burn her with fire.
For God has put it into their hearts
to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind,
and to give their kingdom to the beast,
until the words of God are fulfilled.
And the woman whom you saw is 
that great city which reigns over the 
kings of the earth.' 
Revelation 17: 1-7;9; 12/13; 15-18.
(All bold lettering used is mine.)

And Did Those Feet...In Ancient Times...Walk Upon England's Moun-tains Green?

*And was the Holy Lamb of God, on England's Pleasant Pastures Seen?

Seemingly specious, speculative theories abound - as to whether **'Jesus the Anointed/Messiah[i.e. 'Christ']', in His many and various historically-annotated/attested/documented re(-appearances) to 'one and all'' post-Resurrection, alongside His specially chosen/designated 'twelve'/disciples/apostles, such as Thomas, Philip et al, turned up in such vastly-disparate areas/places as:
*India - c/o the no longer doubting Thomas
*the US of A [aka standard Mormon doctrine] to the American Indians
*England

Such suppositions are, as I've acknowledged, purely speculative; no hard-and-fast, ironclad, incontrovertible and verifiable evidence - anywhere - is available to lay to rest, to establish one way or another and once and for all any (and indeed every) such rumour, fanciful imagining or set of olden time 'alternative facts'. Which of course has never prevented all sorts of folks here, there and everywhere from continually indulging in such idle if fascinating albeit generally unprofitable discussion.

But, at least in terms of the United Kingdom, if not more precisely England and its pre-industrial, indeed pre-feudal society and landscape, while again such a theorem is very intriguing, it is naturally enough more the product of a vivid imagination than anything tenable. However, while not literally adhering to such a spiritual concept, let me add the following addendum (to explain where I'm at thereabouts): could it nevertheless be that the evidently 2,500-some year dispersed ancient nation/kingdom of  Israel - contemporaneous then with the fellow kingdom/nation of Judah (in Judaea) - did indeed, eventually, 'end up' in what today is known as the United Kingdom/British Isles, alongside many other European-wide destinations?

Well, I anyhow believe the answer is a categorical, unequivocal 'Yes!' (The reason, indeed, I'm posting this today, weirdly enough scribbled out in rough copy a few hours or so prior to hearing midday of yet another  awful attack upon the British, in their age-old capital of London, the setting historically of so much tragic conflict and other unpleasant major happenings.)

But having now thoroughly sated your curiosity, I must add the following: having now (a second time) been studying/'studied out' all the be-alls and end-alls, the whys and the wherefores, the ins and outs (and inside outs - and probably outside ins!), in other words the essential guts (and entrails) of this theory, I really cannot do any better or even otherwise than simply acknowledge (and advocate) the careful and prayerful reading/study/perusal of a book by a (once) fairly well-known Bible student, an individual whose famous Plain Truth magazine has found its way into many a letterbox over preceding decades throughout the Western World in particular.

Though certainly not and never a member of ***this man's church, nor either an adherent, open or secret, of all his/his denomination's many and various doctrines, I make no apology whatsoever in declaring that I will readily embrace truth in all its many and variegated manifestations - just as my Master did - wherever and whenever I (happen to) stumble upon or across it. But since the tome's own cross-examination and delineation and exposition of this very interesting and significant, but hey, generally overlooked if not 'positively' ignored Bible topic is thorough, ever-so-logical and well-articulated, I cannot but 'say' "Adieu" now, and suggest interested readers obtain - however they can - a copy of the hopefully unrevised (as it needs no revision) book appropriately entitled The United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy, by the now long-deceased Herbert W Armstrong of the one-time Worldwide Church of God.

And may I add, as someone once (one-four decades back) acquainted with a Church of God member, and moreover hearing through the grapevine while a missionary volunteer in Tasmania, Australia, 18-19 years ago, of the Church's breakup (after Armstrong's death and his son's elevation to denominational leadership I believe) into multiple, multitudinous offshoots, that the essential basis of a significant part of said denomination's welcoming back and re-acceptance into the American evangelical church fold subsequently, based as it evidently was upon its reassessing and revoking and otherwise 'revamping' of some of its basic, fundamental, foundational doctrines, and hence its disavowal of some well-established and sound biblical truth/s upon such matters as the perpetuity and continued obligation of the eternal Moral Law of God - as handed down to humanity via Moses at Mount Sinai - is/was reprehensible - in the extreme - by those who thus partook in such an unwarranted and unscriptural change, and moreover betrayal of sacred truth bequeathed to that Church (while under Armstrong's leadership).

That is, it was a betrayal of sacred trusts for those of Armstrong's successors who thus resiled from fundamental and well-established biblical truth in order to be accepted back into the mainstream evangelical Christian community, in its global centre (as per most denominations, including my own) - i.e. the United States of America. Indeed, as someone I and fellow denominational believers - and Scripture itself for that matter - might have put it, be all means and as far and often as possible let there be a putting away of relatively minor, ultimately rather inconsequential differences in order to maintain and re-obtain if necessary the harmony and unity in the faith that our Lord and Saviour prayed for and characterized as the hallmark and signpost of true believers...whenever and wherever at all possible. But equally, where there is incontrovertibly, not merely deviance from but open, undeniable, clear and obvious departure and even apostasy from 'the faith once delivered unto the saints' by the Christian Church's Lord and Saviour and His hand-picked apostles and prophets, as another prophetically-inspired person has put it: 'Let there be division and even ****[spiritual] war.'

After all (is said and done), and as the classic old-time hymn, 'Once to Every Man and Nation', so aptly and beautifully expresses the matter, the truth is too important to be traded in for trifles and worldly trinkets. And it will stand, just like the eternal word of the Lord, when all else round about falls (into oblivion). Or as another has also well put it: the truth will (ultimately) out. Yes, whatever it cost Christ Jesus' disciple in this life.

*Evidently from the old classic 'Jerusalem', which we sang - among others - while at (Balmacewen) Intermediate here in Dunedin, from our little school assembly hymnal.

**My thanks to those wonderful, inspired and inspiring folk - of Small Cords Press fame - i.e. George & Eileen Anderson, co-authors of such literary gems as Beyond Magic, Beyond The Mark, Beyond Anarchy, Beyond Murphy's Law, and Beyond Small Cords - at least! (For explaining how this term and others have (arguably) been 'massaged' and otherwise re-engineered to suit less than theologically accurate, and moreover less than spiritually faithful, motives and agendas; among much else.)  

***Though now associated with, indeed a member (for over three decades) of a denomination sharing some very significant and important doctrinal commonalities.

****In concert with the long-established practice of the Early Church (for the first few centuries of its existence), my own denomination and a number of others - not only the Quakers or Religious Society of Friends (in which Yours Truly was raised), as popularly believed - are convinced that a Christian has no place engaging in worldly wars of imperialism and conquest; and lesser still in fighting fellow believers! (The infamous 'Just War' doctrine can be discussed another day, but suffice it for now to declare that much done in the name of religion has never remotely had the Christian Church's explicit or implicit approval or sanction.)

An Extremely Belated Noting of the Passing On of the Very Dear Val Doonican...Singer Superb, and - by all accounts - an Incredibly Decent Human Being: No Mean Feat These Days; Like Tony Benn 'all out for 88' (& Proof au contraire to the saying that 'only the good die young'); who deigned to send me his autograph as a budding young pre/early-teen

We just didn't realize how 'lucky' (that is, providentially blessed) we (really) were...to be able to call Fred Dagg/John Clarke one of our own: A small tribute to the memory of a good, a great kiwi - our (New Zealand's own) beloved 'Gumbooter' Extraordinaire

Just to say, "Thanks John - 'Fred' " - while you remained with us (in the land of the living, if in the land of Oz) we really/certainly/most matter-of-fact definitely 'didn't know how lucky we were'...didn't have the faintest idea, even, of - how very 'fortunate' we were, 'how truly propitious were [our collective circumstances]'. No indeed. Rest in peace. You were well and truly one of our greatest sons, quite literally one in a multitude, mate...inimitable, irreplaceable, and someone who will be sorely missed, and not only by your beloved family.

How special and fitting that you departed from us while out on a 'Sunday walk' (I believe) with your loved ones, sightseeing and birdwatching and photographing in Australia's Grampian National Park. Though upon the death of anyone publicly esteemed many come out of the woodwork whose observations and reflections seem insincere and somewhat hollow - whose very lives reveal virtually the diametrical opposite of what the deceased stood for and championed throughout their lives - that can never take away from the impact of those selfsame lives upon the communities they leave behind. But so often the words are not spoken when they should have been, while those 'grandees' remained alive...and could appreciate the sentiments expressed; and be benefited therefrom.

In 'Maoritanga' they often say that when a great person dies, a sign seen shortly before is that of kereru - wood pigeons - in the vicinity (or suchlike), and sure as night follows day follows night, a few days earlier Yours Truly was startled during a daily saunter in our neighbourhood by the largest number of said *avians atop a power pole overhead. And I also vividly recall the torrential downpour throughout the hours-long state funeral service for one of most beloved prime ministers, Norman Kirk, as Maori singers and the like turned out in large numbers to mourn his premature departing... . So perhaps a gentle token of One Above echoing our sadness by adding a 'gentle' token of His own to our collective grief, though the present potentially deadliest cyclone for half a century to hit our shores will even 'outdo' that deluge in its ferocity (of rainfall and winds). And here in Dunedin we've just had some more 'sizeable'/appreciable precipitation two nights ago now, not to mention Edgecumbe's and Whakatane'e and the Bay of Plenty's recent rendezvous only a week or so earlier with Cyclone Debbie... .

So once again, rest in peace, John...and may you be one of those of whom the Good Book so eloquently testifies, who, 'not having the Law [of God] [as an overt guiding principle in their lives][yet] by nature do the things contained in the Law [i.e.fulfil the requirements of said Law]'; 'these, not having the Law, are a Law to themselves, who [thus] show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts [either] accusing or else excusing them...in the Day when God will judge the secrets of [human beings] by Jesus Christ.' That at least is my fervent hope and wish.

*Strictly speaking, 'aves', according to my ever handy 'ole Chambers Concise Dictionary.

I'm Coming Out...As An 'Unregenerate' Hoarder...with a serious bout of co-dependency blues (to boot)

Yep, the moment of truth has at long last arrived - actually arrived three-and-a-third (or so) days ago now... . Throwing all further privacy and silence to one side, I've decided I finally need to own it - openly - to the world-at-large: i.e. the fact that I am an *unregenerate hoarder. Yes, I've long been afflicted with, have indeed pretty well from my later teens (anyway), had a lifetime/lifelong affliction with OCD: obsessive-compulsive disorder (that is, on top of all my various and sundry physical 'afflictions' such as Gilbert's Syndrome (diagnosed in later 2006) and Coeliac's Disease (in mid-2009).) So to use the terminology so much in vogue these days, yes, I'm finally making my move and **'coming out'. Whew! It's finally 'all out there' (as they say)... .

'They say' the very first step in dealing with/overcoming any major psycho-emotional disorder/condition/affliction is to admit/confess/concede/come clean about (the fact) - if at first only with oneself, 'in one's heart of hearts', as it were - that yes, me, myself & I am/are - currently - afflicted with so-and-so/such-and-such (a condition/ailment etc)., and of course once one has achieved that moment of breakthrough/revelation/insight/honesty, there are ***numerous subsequent steps involved.

*But certainly I do not use the term in the strictly theological sense, as I would not deny having, at my conversion (and ever since), experienced what was once referred to as the 'quickening' of the Holy Spirit. Rather I use it to signify the reality that I am still dealing with all or much of the fallout and implications of said 'condition'. Some addicts, such as alcoholics, are apparently told never to ever think of themselves, let alone suggest to others, that they will ever be completely free of the condition in this life; rather, one is always an [alcoholic etcetera], but has 'simply' entered into a new phase as a 'recovering' [alcoholic etc].

**Again, I appreciate I've borrowed this terminology from it's regular context, have appropriated it to my own use...but hey, it's a free world as they say, and the language is there for us to use in any and every appropriate way we so choose - though forces both overt and more often covert these days would seek to deny us that privilege as we're so well aware... .

Furthermore, I'm using the term for one major additional purpose: to put well and truly, finally and completely to bed, to rest any lingering suspicion/assumption/apparent supposition (of some, whether family or friend, or merely occasional acquaintance) - in view of my ongoing status of singlehood (even when many, and some excellent, 'prospects' of (potential) marriage presented themselves to me - ****in decades gone by, anyway...which, unfortunately - or perhaps providentially! - everything depends upon the perspective one brings to a particular situation, they say...'passed me by'); yes, like innumerable others, I'll freely admit to having oftentimes been unlucky in love...but hey, that just makes me human, doesn't it? No, I mean, really!

***See, for (undoubtedly) the best and most frequently cited, most popularly known list/inventory of such steps in the battle against addiction, those forming the famous AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) Charter: as cited/quoted in the Zondervan Bibles' New International Version Recovery Devotional Bible, we have 'The Twelve Steps' outlined (both bullet-pointwise and much more elaborately) in three preliminary appendices, as follows - though subtly adjusted (by Yours Truly) here (for generalized application):

*1) We admitted we were powerless over [our particular addiction] - that our lives had become unmanageable.
*2) Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
*3) Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
*4) Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
*5) Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
*6) Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
*7) Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
*8) Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
*9) Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
*10) Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
*11) Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
*12) Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to [other addicts], and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

****Perhaps I quickly ought to correct that as well, i.e. in terms of any possible wrong impression left... . Yes, I know some will feel my endless corrections not only ponderous, but perhaps indicative of a grandiose sense of myself, but who cares... . I'm simply wanting to add that I've become well and truly comfortable in my singleness - in my own skin, so to speak - in recent years, in fact so 'comfortable' therein that I've - long since now - realized/concluded that I'm well prepared to live out the rest of my days in that particular 'state', much as some much-envied biblical heroes of mine did - wherever my Lord so chooses to place/send me upon Planet Earth...coming to realize in recent times that I believe I may well have that particular 'spiritual gift' indeed... .
To be continued 

Soon Shall the Trump of God: Afterthoughts

So whatever could possibly have led, nay, I would contend, impelled the translators of the King James Version (of The Holy Bible) to use the term 'trump' in such contexts...even imagining it's an 'archaism' or suchlike (which somehow I doubt very much, and I do possess a little background in the English language, 'Anglo-Saxonism' and the like)...? I.e. in contexts where the far more understandable word 'trumpet' (even in King James' day and age, seemingly) not only would've sufficed but surely been the much superior, preferable term? (Which indeed said translators themselves provide a backhanded confirmation of, by using said alternative rendering, i.e. 'trumpet', themselves, and moreover in *those selfsame Scriptural passages even!)

Yes, isn't it an item of more than a little 'curiosity' that no other version (at least to my knowledge, excepting the likes of The Newberry Bible and suchlike closely based upon The King James Bible), including especially that 'modernized' version of the KJV, The New King James Bible, use/adopt that particular usage, i.e. 'trump', in their parallel passages?

All naturally leading me to pose the logical, and I would argue, unanswerable, question: could a Divine Hand have possibly been instrumental in thus 'manipulating' things (unbeknownst to casual earthly onlookers) - to wit: the very words/phraseology that the biblical translators have thus used. For not all evangelicals - including especially for example those of my own particular denominational heritage, regard the precise text of translated Scripture as absolutely inerrant and infallible, rather the inspiration (of the human 'authors' or rather 'transcribers' thereof). For my readership's interest, however, I personally tend to veer more in the direction of accepting the literal inerrancy thereof - at least in the original (Hebrew, Greek and/or Aramaic) versions/writings, anyhow!

Engineering things undetected, behind-the-scenes, but for what particular purpose? To install the likes of Donald J Trump in the White House/Oval Office? Surely not, you howl in perpetual protest?!?!?

No, I see no divine endorsement as such in President Trump's election, except insofar as Scripture admonishes (believers) and declares: **"Let every soul be subject unto the higher (i.e. earthly) powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God." Which, incidentally, has never been regarded by genuine, 'true-blue' Christians or Christ-followers as some sort of invitation to lie down and let whichever government, however flagrantly unjust and patently ungodly, run roughshod, steamroller fashion, over them...for the annals of church history also include the celebrated 'exhibits' of those who, like Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Nazi Germany, considered acquiescence in the unmitigated evil that Hitler's Third Reich represented, as party to that said evil and thus unconscionable for a true believer. Or as others such as those of my own denomination oftentimes point out, when the authority in power invites and/or even compels one to transgress the commandments of God in order to be in compliance with his/her/their particular edicts, then the genuine Christian has no alternative but, like the famous Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego of biblical history, to say a courteous but firm "No!" to 'Caesar' and a courageous and trustful  "Yes!" to God.

So what is the significance of such 'trump' references? Need I really ask, the answer is surely patently obvious? By thus signalling His eternal foreknowledge of the presence of a significant end-time figure with the 'monicker' of 'trump', to put matters in the colloquial,  the Almighty, the Everlasting One has surely revealed His eternal acquaintance with earthly history from go to woe, and has thus provided just one more indication - as if another were needed in our generation - that "the end of all things is at hand" ["at the very doors"]..."Be ye ready therefore...for in such an hour as ye think not your Lord will come!"

Nuff said, I'm sure!

*Or - to be pedantically precise - at least in those verses previously quoted from 1 Corinthians 15.
**Romans 13:1.

Soon Shall the Trump of God

Soon shall the trump of God             Give out the welcome sound,
That shakes death's silent chamber walls, And breaks the turf-sealed ground.

You dwellers in the dust,            Awake, come forth, and sing;
Sharp has the frost of winter been, But bright shall be your spring.

'Twas sown in weakness here;            'Twill then be raised in power;
That which was sown an earthly seed Shall rise a heav-'nly flower.

Author and Translator: Anonymous
Composer, Arranger and Source of Tune: Norman L Warren, 1934-
(As cited in The Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal, Review and Herald
Publishing Association/SIGNS PUBLISHING COMPANY,
Warburton, Victoria, Australia 3799, 1985.)

Words, I've no doubt whatsoever, based upon the rendering given
uniquely in/by The Holy Bible, Authorised King James Version,
of two New Testament passages in particular, both passages dealing
exclusively with the end of all things - and the (associated) blessed fate
of God's elect, whether dead or living: i.e. 1 Corinthians 15:50-55
and 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.


Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit
the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed.

In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump;
(italics and emboldening all mine)
for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

For this corruptible must put on incorruption,
and this mortal must put on immortality.

So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption,
and this mortal shall have put on immortality,
then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written,
Death is swallowed up in victory.

O death, where is thy sting?
O grave, where is thy victory?

(1 Corinthians 15:50-55)


But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren,
concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not,
even as others which have no hope.

For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,
even so them also which sleep in Jesus
will God bring with [H}im. (Capitalization supplied.)

For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord,
that we which are alive and remain
unto the coming of the Lord
shall not prevent (sic) [i.e. precede] them
which are asleep.{modification again mine)

For the Lord [H]imself shall descend from heaven
with a shout, with the voice of the [A]rchangel,
and with the trump of God: (modifications again mine)
and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

Then we which are alive and remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds,
to meet the Lord in the air:
and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Hey, the writer couldn't possibly - conceivably - remotely -
be envisaging our own day and age, could he? Surely not.
'Coz we're not living in the very last days of Earth's history,
are we, and the old *Anglicism 'trump' has no real meaning
(either in King James' own age - or ours for that matter)
does it? And anyhow, the Almighty certainly doesn't have
a sense of humour - either subtle or overt - does He?

Hey, forgive me, I was only thinking aloud -
as I have an unfortunate habit of doing from time to time...

*'an English idiom or peculiarity' (Chambers Concise
Dictionary, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1988) 

Is Apocalypse Now Almost Upon Us?

I say that not because I happen to believe it - actually - is, but because, from all the hype and hysteria presently swirling around the imminent inauguration of the most controversial and unpopular President-Elect in United States history, a Mr Donald J Trump, one would - could - not but assume that the end of days is presently upon us... .

And yet when one peruses the biblical text in the good 'ole King James Version of the Holy Bible - as I myself directly reference in my own 42-pager upon the seemingly endless, never-ending run-up to the most infamous American election of all time - what on earth could references to 'the last [T]rump' and 'the [T]rump of God' otherwise possibly refer to...I mean, really? Surely divine shorthand for the present scenario even if it does simultaneously reveal The Divine One as possessing a super-dooper, unrivalled and unfathomable sense of humour!?!?!

When words are not worth the attention they would attract

The Syrian people - like the rest of the world - heard the stirring, purposeful words of courage and implacability: yes, the "development or moving around of chemical weapons [within Syria] would constitute [the crossing of] a red line"...following which, 'we all understood', the U S of A would take the [requisite military] action needed to rectify the situation...i.e. Syria's despotic murderer Bashir al-Assad would be left in no uncertain terms as to who was really in control in his land: i.e. America - not himself.

No, I myself speak with hyperbole and imprecisely here; rather - by employing said weaponry in order to vaporize his enemies - Assad would be left in absolutely no doubt whatsoever as to what would happen, how the 'civilized world' so-called, would react, were chemical and/or biological weapons to be utilized in the Syrian conflict: real humanity wouldn't tolerate it, would respond swiftly and sharply and put paid speedily to Assad's pretensions, to his genocidal treatment of 'his own'... .

But just as President George Bush (Senior) gave the effective green light to another infamous high-profile despot and tyrant around two decades earlier, President Obama likewise capitulated, grew weak at the knees when push came to shove...and, much as Bush effectively allowed then Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to bombard the Kurds in Iraq's north with biological/chemical weapons after the Iraq War - a war moreover when virtually the entire globe was right behind the United States' action to free Kuwait from Hussein's annexation, to the extent that even that well-known bastion of anti-Americanism, the United Nations, by almost unanimous decision authorized the U.S. military response (just think of it!) - Bush Senior's latter-day successor, Barack Hussein Obama, has likewise - despite his own 'red line' declaration - simply refused to give reality to his own fine, ever so carefully and precisely enunciated words.

Personally I neither support America's *long-adopted role of de facto World Policeman, nor for that matter still entertain even faint hopes of, much less expect, **real moral courage ***from that nation in face of many of the present-day threats encompassing our planet, it's just a pity that those politicians so often lauded to the rafters, such as ****Obama, so often likewise fail to follow through on their solemnly-spoken undertakings. 

*Itself the subject of a two millennia-spanning biblical prophecy in the New Testament Book of Revelation.

**Though some would maintain that President Obama has indeed shown such moral leadership over climate change and his historic (but likely soon to be relegated to the dustbin of history) deal thereabouts with the Government of China no less: that is, in achieving what many had understandably given up hopes of, i.e. some genuine worldwide consensus and concord on that threat to all humankind (whether ultimately human-induced, aggravated or otherwise). For in global environmental catastrophes there are no real winners, and if humankind, animal-kind and plant-kind are pretty well wiped out through our lack of moral courage, vision and preparedness to take a risk-averse, precautionary, *****life-at-any-cost approach to the present threat to life on Planet Earth, our extinct offspring and their own nonexistent progeny will hardly be around to bemoan our lack of foresight, and ask us, much like Scrooge's Ghost of Christmas Past, why we weren't willing to really listen to our own prophets of doom in our day of opportunity. Dead folk, after all, tell no tales.

***Though in so saying I myself - as so many do, in a quite unreflective way - seem to both expect America to consistently adopt just such a de facto position as Moral Watchman of our present-day world and yet simultaneously adopt the surely mutually-contradictory stance of butting out of any and every major present-day conflict or military crisis that presents. Like these other critics I too invariably want to have my cake and eat it too!

****Though to give the man his due credit, on such diverse issues as 'global warming', healthcare, gun control and reconciliation with two longstanding, diehard American foes, Iran and Cuba, he has certainly been well prepared to take the road less travelled, and make real attempts - however presently or ultimately unsuccessful - to put concrete form upon his (otherwise purely idealistic) sentiments thereabouts.

*****By which, I hasten to add, the measure that will ultimately be taken - mandatory Sunday laws, America-wide then internationally ...is most definitely not the answer, and will itself bring on the time of trouble such as never was, and never ever will be again...as it'll usher in The Return of The (True) King...!

Does the 'good man' Always Win Out? Well, yes and no; maybe not in the short-term, but Ultimately - in the long run...

Though this maxim certainly applies to 'the good and the great', to the best - though not necessarily brightest - that humankind has had 'on offer' (i.e.open to public display, to the public gaze) throughout the centuries and millennia, I reserve my thoughts and best wishes today for a much-overlooked and underrated politician in that land of such turbulence, of political turmoil and tension, the United States of America... . No, not on this occasion for the likes of Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King and others of their calibre - nor of course in this instance obviously for such larger than life folk as the legendary (but very real) biblical folkhero Job (about whom Yours Truly has been compiling a layperson's guide for the last umpteen years or so)...and of course above and beyond and infinitely surpassing this 'suffering innocent' and his Scriptural compatriots such as the patriarch Joseph (and even Moses - and many others) stands That Supremely (if temporarily) Tragic - but Ultimately Triumphant/Victorious - Innocent Sufferer Jesus Christ Himself... .

Having made the foregoing elaboration, I greatly hesitate to include any especially present-day flawed and failing individuals among such illustrious company, yet - having stated my initial intention so to do, let me forthwith proceed...but again make a briefest as diversion to another seemingly quite insignificant but worthy individual whose inclusion bears tribute to the salutary lesson that those things - and moreover people - who stand so small 'in the world's eyes' may perhaps - at times - stand greatest in Heaven's estimation... . No, I refuse to subscribe to the media-hyped-up concept that such-and-such and so-and-so an individual is 'worth' so many millions and/or billions sheerly due to the inordinate size of her or his bank balance and other monetary assets, pecuniary interests and/or material accumulations - whereas the beggar eking out a precarious existence in this world's garbage heap is somehow supposedly worth nothing - not only in comparison but presumably even in absolute terms... .But not so did my Lord and Saviour so view things, for as has so often been said, by those engaging in consecrated reflection upon His own infinite sacrifice on Golgotha's cross, if there were no other individual than you or I - or that pauper in this world's system - then, wonder of wonders and miracle of miracles (to directly quote a phrase from a song on the record track of that interesting Jewish operatic of yesteryear, 'Fiddler on the Roof')...yes, the God Man Himself would have given His own precious life to save even that one...from eternal damnation... .

The individual concerned? A young would-have-been, i.e. 'wannabe' filmmaker named 'Cameron', a teenager who inadvertently as it were crossed the path of that exemplary New Zealand filmmaker, director, producer and scriptwriter Sir Peter Jackson and his *equally much-overlooked co-producer and co-writer, wife Fran Walsh - alongside their *equally much overlooked co-writer, Philippa Boyens (who together helped convert JRR Tolkien's epic classic The Lord of the Rings into the film sensation it has now long since become). Cameron, still in his late teens then (if I recall rightly), was soon diagnosed with **cancer (of the blood - leukemia), I believe, and so passed from this life into the seemingly gray ether of the grave, or 'Hades' as it was once known.... But not before Peter Jackson and co made his acquaintance, or he theirs, and thus a wonderful song, 'Into the West', was born that not only encapsulated the very spirit of the denouement of the Great Controversy for the heart of Middle-earth, but in a very real was is its signature tune and parting-gift to posterity.

Though itself now necessarily a mere footnote in this spiel, let me finally make the briefest of mentions here to the original subject of this blogpost...whom I'm dead certain no-one will have guessed. It's the former republican presidential hopeful, the oft-maligned senior senator from Arizona, a Mr John McCain. Though in my own view as a person and human being, every whit as decent and upstanding and fine an individual as the man who bested him, i.e. President Barack Hussein Obama, this former war prisoner and subsequent hero of the Korean War has now appeared unflinchingly before the United States Congressional Panel on Security (I believe) to champion the cause of true democracy in a land wherein the very concept seems to have been on the slippery slide for quite some time already...in clear and decided 'opposition', of sorts, to his own party's President-to-be, Donald J Trump...a patriotism also shown by his 44-year predecessor, fellow Arizonan Senator and Republican Party Presidential standard-bearer Barry Goldwater...who proved his own patriotism to his nation and its democratic traditions and principles by having the guts and the balls to stand up to his own party's one-time President, the infamous Richard Milhaus Nixon - in the renowned Watergate trials. Such would have inevitably resulted in impeachment had not Nixon himself preempted that unwanted outcome by resigning. Again, Goldwater braved fellow Republicans' ire by likewise confronting a subsequent Republican President, the very popular Ronald Reagan - indeed over the very issue that saw my own long-since-deceased Dad 'tear up' his own American citizenship and become a naturalized New Zealander: i.e. the illegal bombing of innocents in Central America during the Iran Contra scandal and suchlike (in the nations of El Salvador and Nicaragua).

Yes, Senator McCain, you yourself have now once again - and in a way that puts and places it beyond doubt or risk of repudiation - proven your quality, as Samwise Gamgee of the Shire said of Faramir of Gondor...in your courageous willingness - whatever opprobrium comes your way...(and yes, you have made some awful decisions in times past, most notably the selection of Sarah Palin, Governor of Alaska, as your running-mate in 2008)...to stand for truth and democracy, and in a world where lip service is increasingly paid to both (but inversely less real respect).

*My own sins now come to mind, as - following a marathon session in the run-up to Christmas and the New Year, during which - as I prepared to finally part with the precious treasure of the entire dvd series of the same to some presumably appreciative nephews of mine - I reviewed all the background 'guff' (after reviewing all the extended films). And thus and so I'd fully intended, to the extent of even making a rudimentary mental outline (if perhaps not on paper) of a tribute to the same folk, i.e. Jackson's much ignored and sidelined partner Fran Walsh and their close confidante and fellow creator Philippa Boyens...but that now for another occasion, and mention - if brief and passing - herein will now have to suffice... . 

**Weirdly a once close secondary school friend - of then and subsequent inter-school Christian fellowship association, as well as chess-playing prowess and dogged rivalry - of mine returned to my home town upon my first viewing of this story (alongside the entire dvd series), himself suffering from the ghastly condition of non-Hodgkin's Lymphona (sp?), and within months himself passed off the stage of this mortal plane...but not before fulfilling a lifetime dream to visit the especially scenic western states of America (such as Utah, Colorado and Arizona). He then suffered a debilitating heat exhaustion that saw him enter a medical clinic (or several)...and three weeks later (after his trip began) returned home to his Mum and Dad (who live/d a few blocks away), within a month received an invoice for medical treatment to the tune of $2,000 or so, and then after he'd died (a month or so on) was subject to the indignity of his surviving parents being forced to pretty well mortgage all their accumulated financial assets as they sought to pay off a further bill (from the aforementioned) for around 20 grand or so...but that for another day... .