All Doves:

The critics of the Pre-Tribulation Rapture regularly quote the fact that Roman Catholic Jesuit priest Francisco Ribera invented "Futurism"; and, therefore "Dispensationalism" as well.  While that may be a given fact in Church history, they disingenuously leave out of the whole picture, presenting the fact that it is only part of the story. 

But before I explain the "rest of the story", make note of the following terms:

    ++ "Problem - Reaction - Solution"
    ++ "Thesis - Antithesis - Synthesis"
    ++ "Divide and Conquer"
    ++ "Hegelian Dialectic"

I will discuss the above later in this post, but it is important that you need to know or to be aware of the terms.  If you have taken a college course in Intro Philosophy, chances are you may know the name Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel.  I do not want those that post on and read Five Doves to ever be accused of being "Low Information/Knowledge Christians".  The folks at the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture-Babble" site have revealed, despite their efforts to the contrary, to be just that - "Low Information/Knowledge" folks.  I'm not even inclined to believe they are genuine Christians because of their approach to the types of material they post, promote, and push upon their readers.  Christ Jesus was all about truth, and that is not evident at the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture-Babble" site.

Intentionally, or perhaps out of ignorance, they try to sell the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture" view and the "Preterist" view that all prophecy was fulfilled by 70 AD, along with the spurious so-called lost books of the Bible, and the Apocrypha Roman Catholic books.  As I have stated a few times, these folks are certainly not about discernment of Truth, not at all, they are peddlers of sensationalism, fear, smorgasbord religion, and deception.  The "Pre-Wrath-Rapture-Babble" site invites its readers to feed on fear and disinformation and distraction of perverted and aberrant teachings.  The plumb line of the Gospel is about the Truth of God, which His followers are to be focused upon and to expose the fraudulent counterfeit teachings, not hyping sensationalism and fear-driven reports.

I haven't done a post on Hermeneutics (Bible Understanding) for a couple months and was beginning to believe there is no interest in knowing how Hermeneutics has evolved over the past two millennia.  I had done two more posts on Hermeneutics but saved them to my Five Doves draft file.  However, because the "Low Information/ Knowledge" folks at the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture-Babble" are unable to be honest with their readers, then it is a suitable moment to set the record straight concerning the disingenuous one-sided approach to attack the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. 

The fact is the distractions they offer at their "dog and pony show", like John Little of 'The Omega Shock Letter', and Joe Ortiz, a brain-washed Jesuit-educated ex-Catholic and anti-Semite, along with Stephen "Mark" Wohlberg and his puppet twin Doug Batchelor of SDA heresy fame, all do nothing but confuse and distract their readers that really are interested in Truth.

I chose the title of this post from a small paperback book, "All Roads Lead to Rome:  the Ecumenical Movement" by Michael De Semlyen, published back in 1993.  Those interested in the One-World-Church would benefit by digesting the author's take on the Ecumenical Movement that is taking in the Charismatic folks into the folds of Rome.  Incidentally, the Charismatic mysticism movement was founded by the Jesuits.  It is at this point we must turn our focus to the Counter-Reformation efforts led by the Jesuits in the 1500's. 

If you want to understand how the Church of Rome and its Jesuit Order, officially formed in 1540, is waging war on Biblical Christianity for the purpose of building its One-World-Religion, One-World-Economy, and One-World-Government, this post will provide you a starting point as a basis of understanding.

In 1973, 'TIME' Magazine reported on the history of the Jesuits and their influence that has spread into many powerful places and institutions since being established in the mid-1500's.  Unless you understand the history, goals, and ongoing Counter-Reformation of the Jesuit Order and the Church of Rome, then you don't fully understand what is occurring in the world today and why.  The Jesuits main focus has and continues to be in eight main areas of influence in order to turn hearts and minds toward the Church of Rome for the purpose of world domination.  These eight areas include:

    1.  Ecumenicalism
    2.  Social Justice/Liberation Theology
    3.  Dominion Theology
    4.  Politics, Community Organizing & Revolution
    5.  Education
    6.  The Press
    7.  The Pulpit and Denominations
    8.  Mysticism

As a bit of background information, the Jesuits and their influence include:

    ++ The Jesuits have greatly promoted mysticism.  The April 1973 cover story in 'TIME' magazine referred to the Jesuits as "a band of mystics".  Former Jesuit Malachi Martin in his book, 'The Jesuits' wrote that the Jesuits advanced the study of mysticism.

    ++ The term social justice was coined by the Jesuit Luigi Taparelli in 1840 and was later used by Karl Marx in 1848.

    ++ The idea of Papal infallibility was officially confirmed in 1870 at the First Vatican Council due to the work of the Jesuits.

    ++ Jesuit philosopher Pierre Teilbard de Chardin is known as the father of the New Age Movement.

    ++ Jesuit Luis de Alcasar created the false belief in Preterism that declares that the Rapture occurred in 70 AD. Preterism was created by Jesuit Luis de Alcasar in order to put the antichrist into the past because many of the reformers taught that the Papal system would be the headquarters of the Harlot Church described in Revelation 17 and the Papal system would be used by the Antichrist to build his demonic world empire.  This has been a factor in many of the statements made by the last few popes.  And now we have a Jesuit as the Pope of Rome.
This is the "rest of the story" about which the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture-Babble" folks will not tell you in their attacks on the Pre-Tribulation Rapture.

    ++ Jesuit Alfonso Salmeron is the founder of the school of "Higher Criticism" which seeks to undermine the authority of God's Word by calling into question its inspiration and inerrancy.  The school of "Higher Criticism" has for nearly a century, for all intent and purpose, taken over theological education around the world.  Very few seminaries are independent enough today to skirt the teachings of people such as Jullius Wellhausen, Friedrich Schleiermacher, and Albrecht Ritschi.  The seminary accreditation body dictates what a school has to include in its curriculum.

    ++ Liberation theology seeks to mix "Christianity" with "Marxism".  The term "Liberation Theology" was coined in 1971 by the Peruvian priest Gustavo Gutierrez and greatly advanced the Jesuit Jon Sobrino of El Salvador.  The current Pope was deeply involved during his tenure as a priest, archbishop, and cardinal in South America in the "Liberation Theology" movement. 

    ++ In a 'Chicago' magazine article by Daniel Libit, it was reported "whenever asked how his presidential campaign had so quickly assemble its grass-roots operation, he would credit [Gregory] Galluzzo's membership.  A former Jesuit priest .. Galluzzo had good reason to feel proud:  He was indirectly responsible for bringing Barack Obama to Chicago to be an organizer". 

This is but a short list of the influence of the Jesuit Order in America.  But particularly important for Bible-believing Christians to understand is how and why the Jesuits distracted the public from the truth of Scripture.  The papacy suffered a major setback through the Reformation.  The Church sought the help of the monastic orders; however, they were so decadent they had also lost the support and faith of the laity.  The Dominicans and Franciscans were peddling trinkets, relics, and indulgences [get out of hell cards] to anyone who could cough up the cash.  It was at this point the Pope called upon the Jesuits.  The order was created, and authorized by the Pope in 1540, for which he was deeply indebted to them.  Their infusion of a new spirit spread rapidly across Europe.  Like a wounded giant, Romanism arose in desperation to recover her lost prestige and shrunken territory.

The Jesuit influence and power was immediately felt all across Europe.  They grew more powerful and stronger year by year.  They began to do street-corner preaching like Protestants were accustomed to doing, in the streets, and markets, and were known to be articulate and eloquent preachers of the age.  They spread across Europe, through Italy, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Austria, and Bavaria. 

In 1558, Diego Lainez was elected second Superior-General of the Order.  At the Council of Trent he successively exerted his power and skill on behalf of Papal supremacy.  The Jesuits were entrenched in the educational system from local kinder schools to the university system.  Their reputation was that they were among the best teachers of the land.  Even Protestant's began to send their children to them because of the scholastic progress one could make.  The Jesuit system of education is built on a "Authority - Group Think - Ridicule" foundation. 

The conflict and chasm between Protestants and Catholicism was so deep and irreconcilable:  the Church believed in Church authority and Protestants in the Bible.  The two systems were absolute and irreconcilable.
Beginning in 1545 under Pope Paul III and ending nearly twenty years later, in 1563 under Pius IV, the Vatican crystalized its actions into what has become known as the 'Council of Trent'.  It has never been annulled, repealed, rescinded, or replaced, even with Vatican II in 1962-1965.  The Council of Trent became the culmination of the Counter-Reformation.  It was Rome's answer to Martin Luther and the Protestants.  Vatican II actually reaffirmed the Council of Trent to be valid in our day.

The Jesuits saved Rome's bacon to put it plainly.  Jesuits are incredibly loyal, intelligent, crafty, self-confident.  I'm two short street blocks from a Roman Catholic Church, and two of the three local priests are Jesuits.  It is located in a small rural village with about 300 residents.  The fact that I am a retired pastor, and their local door-to-door evangelism has brought us into dialogue and controversy because of my knowledge, education, and experience.  I am guarded in what I say because I do not trust Jesuits period.

Following the launching of the Counter-Reformation, Roman Catholic leadership carefully avoided exposition on the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation.  The Jesuits were unable to counter the Protestants that saw Rome as the focus of the prophecies.  The Reformers were forcefully advocates that the Papacy was the specified Antichrist of prophecy.  As I noted in another post, it wasn't until the mid-1990's that the Lutheran Church in America dropped this teaching, so it has been a long haul for Rome to overcome Protestant teachings.  Rome never gives up, quits, nor changes, and thus Rome saw the need to somehow counteract this identification of Antichrist with the Papacy, or lose the battle.  The Jesuits were summoned to the task of overcoming this problem.  The Jesuits arose to the test and cleverly provided the method needed, both for defense and for the attack.  From the ranks of the Jesuits two stalwarts arose, determined to lift the stigma from the Roman Church.

Rome's answer to the Protestant Reformation was twofold, though actually conflicting and contradictory.  This was so successful, that today, Protestants representing the different views squabble amongst themselves, without so much as finding a common point of agreement or ever considering just how this dispute came about in the first place.  Through the Jesuit Francisco Ribera, of Salamanca, Spain and Robert Bellarmine of Rome, the Papacy put forth her "futurist" interpretation.  Almost simultaneously, within a twenty year span, Luis de Alcasar, a Jesuit from Seville, Spain, advanced the opposite "preterist" interpretation.  These views were then designed to meet and overwhelm the Historical interpretation of the Protestants.  Get this point, because it is critical to understand the "Hegelian Dialectic".  Though mutually exclusive, either Jesuit alternative suited the great objective equally well, as both diverted public opinion of the prophecies from the Church of Rome.  The one [Preterism] accomplished it by making prophecy stop altogether short of Papal Rome's career.  The other [Futurism] achieved it by making prophecy over-stretch the immense era of Papal dominance, crowding Antichrist into a small fragment of time in the still distant future, just before the great consummation.  We know it as the "Gap" theory. 

According to the Protestants, the vision of Babylon and the supporting Beast is divinely interpreted in Revelation 17.  It was on this that the Reformers commonly rested their case - the apostate woman, the Roman church, the city, seven-hill Rome, the many waters, the many peoples; the Beast, the fourth, or Roman beast of Daniel; the sixth head, the Caesars; and the seventh, the popes.  So, effectively, the Jesuits were able to distract and divert Protestants away from focusing the light of scrutiny on Rome.  The Jesuit strategy was simply brilliant. 

    ++ The Futurist School, founded by the Jesuit Francisco Ribera in 1591, looks for Antichrist, Babylon, and a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, at the end of the Christian dispensation.

    ++ The Preterist School, founded by the Jesuit Luis Alcasar in 1614, explains the Revelation, by the fall of Jerusalem, or by the fall of Pagan Rome in 410 AD. 

Francisco Ribera (1537-1591), published a 500-page commentary on the Apocalypse, denying Protestants any application of Antichrist to the Church of Rome.  His early death at age 54 halted any future commentaries or writings on the issue.  His commentary assigned the first few chapters of Revelation to ancient Rome, in John's own time; the rest was restricted to a literal three-and-a-half-year's reign of an infidel Antichrist, who would bitterly oppose and blaspheme the saints just  before the second advent.  He taught that Antichrist would be a single individual, who would rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, abolish Christian religion, deny Christ, be received by the Jews, pretend to be God, and conquer the world - all in the brief space of time of three-and-a-half-years! 

Fr. Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621) took up the attack left off with Ribera's death.  The heart of Bellarmine's thesis was both clever and plausible, though very deceptive.  He presented the Antichrist as a individual Jew, which supported the Roman Catholic Church "Replacement Theology".  Because of that he was able to harmonize the life of one man would fit within the life period of one man - three-and-a-half-years.

Fr. Luis de Alcasar (1554-1613), a Spanish Jesuit from Seville created another plausible and believable lie by harmonizing the Scriptures, including:

    -Made the seals the early expansion of apostolic Christianity.
    -God's long-suffering, warnings, and punishments were allotted to the Jews.   
    -The trumpets were judgments on fallen Judaism.
    -The two witnesses were the doctrine and the holy lives of the Christians.
    -After the persecutions Christianity would arise with new glory and convert many Jews.
    -Revelation was the apostolic church, bringing forth the Roman Church.
    -The first beast of Revelation 13 declared to be the persecuting arrogance of pagan Rome - the second beast,         its carnal wisdom.
    -Revelation 17, the mystical meaning of idolatrous ancient Rome.
    -Revelation 18, its conversion to the Catholic faith.

Again, Fr. Luis de Alcasar offered a plausible and believable interpretation which enabled Rome to re-establish its theological supremacy, at least to lessen the exodus of Catholics from the Church.  While the Jesuits were able to distract and divert folks by focusing on Rome as the Antichrist in order that the hemorrhaging of Rome's treasury and the first of the two keys that emblazon the Vatican's crest were saved.  The regaining of the second key which compliments the crossed key of "Spiritual Power" has yet to be fully restored, that being the second key of "Temporal Power".  It's closer than many realize or understand.

The Jesuits were not through, not by a long shot.  The reorganization of the Bank of Rome began branching out and opening offices in various European cities.  Some of the banks they opened up included:  Venice (1587), Wisselbank in Amsterdam (1609), Hamburg (1619), Nuremberg (1621), Rotterdam (1635), and the Bank of England (1694).  The Bank of England, created by the Jesuits, actually became the world's first Central Bank. The Central Banking system that exists in our world today is merely the same central banking system modeled after the original Bank of Rome, and the Jesuits control it, as they always have. 

Our Federal Reserve System is owned by the collective group that includes the [Queen of England, Bank of England, House of Rothschild, Vatican Jesuits].  This year Americans will pay approximately $450-billion in debt servicing, "interest on the National Debt", and every single check made out to the IRS will be deposited in a Trust Fund Account at the IMF, in a bank located in Puerto Rico.  The information made known to me is that the "split" is 60/40 - 60% goes to the Vatican, 40% goes to the Bank of England.  The Federal Reserve is a private corporation, and all Federal Reserve telephone numbers appear in the Yellow Pages, not the section reserved for government agencies.  The House of Rothschild has been the Vatican's "fiduciary" since the early 1800's.  The individual banks that own the stock of the Federal Reserve are all owned directly, or controlled by the House of Rothschild.

I'm going to close off at this point, and need to remind you to just remember, all roads lead to Rome!  But I need to make the point, this information does not disprove the Pre-Tribulation Rapture position, not one iota!  These Roman Catholic Jesuits were able to deceive virtually the world, and if you notice who they blamed, it was the Jews as the scape goat to take the fall.  While the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture-Babble" site either does not know the truth concerning what I have shared or prefer that you not know the Truth, their defense of "Preterism" was a hoax, but more a fabrication of the Jesuits.  History has long proved Preterism to be an unsound teaching, lacking both a cohesive and coherent substance that can withstand the scrutiny of true scholarship, as is the case with the "Pre-Wrath-Rapture" or "Mid-Tribulation" positions.  More to share later.  Time is getting short, with just a month or so to go until Rosh HaShanah. 

In spite of this bit of bad news, we still have the Blessed Hope!

Keep watching and listening for the trumpet call!

Pastor Bob