The new millennium has brought some ominous changes. Last month alone unleashed a flood of anti-Christian plots around the world. All were designed to suppress God's unchanging truth -- an intolerable obstacle to global solidarity. Even "friendly" regimes have joined this war on faith:

"There is a growing and intensifying attack on Christians around the world. It is not just confined to the Middle East and Islamic countries."[1]

"...lawmakers in the lower house of the Mexican Congress approved a bill officially instituting the separation of church and state....The bill passed 363 in favor with one 'no' vote and one abstention. It 'guarantees the autonomy of institutions from religious norms, rules and convictions..."[2]

"Moroccan authorities raided [the orphanage] Village of Hope and said they were expelling the 20 workers and parents. The 33 children who were being cared for cried out 'hysterically' for their foster parents as they were left behind.... Lately Morocco has taken a tyrannical stance against Christians, forcibly deporting foreigners and bringing charges against the Moroccan nationals they associated with.”[3]

 

"Sweden is forcing Iraqi Christian refugees to leave its country. This will put the lives of Iraqi Christians in greater danger.... Swedish hospitality was beginning to diminish."[4]

These ideological clashes may look like isolated incidents, but they expose the corrupt values behind the rising system that is shaping our global culture. Mexico, Morocco and Sweden are all tied to the international laws and standards of the United Nations and its many branches -- including the Alliance of Civilizations (AOC). This statement from the AOC website gives us a glimpse of its agenda:

"The Alliance seeks to forge collective political will and to mobilize concerted action at the institutional and civil society levels to overcome the prejudice, misperceptions and polarization that militate against such a consensus. And it hopes to contribute to a coalescing global movement which... rejects extremism in any society."[5]

Do you wonder what they mean by "extremism?" According to media reports, its main expressions are Islamic terrorism and Biblical Christianity! Though neither can be conformed to the UN vision of solidarity, the former provides a useful "crisis" as well as a needed tool for silencing the latter.

"The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States"

On February 22-23, thirty-two leaders from Central and South America gathered in Cancun to organize the new regional union of "Latin American and Caribbean States." Communist rulers from Cuba and Venezuela were warmly welcomed. The United States and Canada were not invited.  

Nor was Porfirio Lobo, Honduras' new president. Instead, the leaders planned to discuss the issue of his legitimacy. Some still denied the unwanted facts behind the legal removal of the corrupt former President Zelaya -- a collaborator with Communist Hugo Chavez and the drug lords they both protected.[6]

Russia -- another AOC member -- cheered the rise of this left-leaning alliance:

"Russia hailed Friday the creation this week of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.... The new organization can be an important factor for the formation of a multipolar world order. Russia is ready to undertake cooperation and political dialogue with it."[7]

Mexican President Felipe Calderon, host of the two-day summit, urged the attending leaders to set aside  their "ideological differences" and focus on a "future where the values we believe in -- democracy, justice and freedom -- can flourish."[8]

Democracy, justice and freedom! It sounds good, doesn't it? But what do those words really mean in this context? How can freedom blossom in the midst of lawlessness, corruption and communism?

Remember the upside-down slogan from George Orwell's eye-opening book, 1984:

"War is PEACE. Freedom is SLAVERY. Ignorance is STRENGTH."

It exposed Soviet-style brainwashing back in the 1940s, when the British media had persuaded the masses to love Stalin. Yet, it still fits our times! When nations ban God's moral guidelines, familiar words can become convenient tools in the hands of its trainers. Fact and fiction become interchangeable -- a mere matter of political expediency. That's why global warming has been accepted as absolute truth despite all the contrary facts! [See Green Lies]

 

O'Brien, Orwell's fictional change agent, was a master at twisting the truth and changing minds:

“You are a slow learner, Winston,” said O’Brien gently.

“How can I help it?” [Winston] blubbered. “How can I help seeing what is in front of my eyes? Two and two are four.”

“Sometimes, Winston. Sometimes they are five. Sometimes they are three. Sometimes they are all of them at once. You must try harder. It is not easy to become sane.'"[9]

Mind control is more gentle and subtle today.[10] What hasn't changed is the goal: unity based on global standards and Communist pragmatism. Now as then, everyone must conform to the new ways of thinking. None can resist or obstruct global re-education [The subject of Part 2 in this series].

O’Brien was looking down at [Winston].... "There is a Party slogan dealing with the control of the past," he said. "Repeat it, if you please.”

“Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past," repeated Winston obediently.

"We, the Party, control all records, and we control all memories. Then we control the past, do we not?"

“But how can you stop people remembering things?" cried Winston....

O’Brien’s manner grew stern again. He laid his hand on the dial....[9]

Amending Mexico's Constitution: Separation from what?

Mexico flows right along with this shift from moral freedom to amoral solidarity. Luke Goodrich explains it well in his insightful article, "Mexico's Separation of Church and State:"

"Last week, Mexico's lower house of Congress began the process of amending the Mexican Constitution to formally declare the country to be 'laica' ['lay' or 'secular']. Supporters say the amendment merely codifies Mexico's commitment to the separation of church and state. But the term 'laica,' like the term 'separation of church and state,' means different things to different people....

"Jaime Cardenas Garcia, a congressional supporter of the amendment, has said the amendment is necessary because of the presence of 'a militant Catholic Church' that opposes legal reforms [such as legalizing third trimester abortions].

"Another congressional supporter, Feliciano Marin Diaz, has argued that the amendment is necessary to ensure that 'religious beliefs' will not be used to support political allies or oppose political adversaries. In short... it might be an attempt to suppress the Catholic Church's ability to engage in public policy debates.

"Most Mexicans self-identify as Roman Catholic. But for most of the twentieth century, the government was heavily anticlerical.... For example, when President Calderon suggested in June that 'young people drug themselves because they don't believe in God' he was excoriated for violating the separation of church and state and, more tellingly, for forgetting that faith is 'reserved to the private sphere of individuals' and is unwelcome in politics.... The proposed 'laica' amendment looks like it might be an attempt to codify this sentiment."[11]

"But who cares?" asks Mr. Goodrich. "Why not codify the idea that religious arguments are unwelcome in the public square?" Note his wise warning:

"First, since religious beliefs are inseparable from the individual, forcing religious arguments from the public square effectively forces religious individuals from the public square. ...Nihilists, Capitalists, and Socialists can all bring their philosophy to bear on public life, but Catholics (or other religious minorities) must check their religion at the door....

"Second, religion... has classically served as a bastion of dissent and a check on unlimited government power. But once the government delegitimizes religious dissent, it can also delegitimize other forms of dissent. The end result is not just increasing restrictions on free speech, but at worst, the tyranny of a government-enforced viewpoint and unchecked government power."[11]

Back in 1994, Dr. Thomas Sowell wrote a review of Road to Serfdom by Friedrich Hayek. It brought a similar warning:

"At the heart of the socialist vision is the notion that a compassionate society can create more humane living conditions for all through government 'planning' and control of the economy....

"Idealist socialists create systems in which idealists are almost certain to lose and be superseded by those whose drive for power, and ruthlessness in achieving it, make them the 'fittest' to survive under a system where government power is the ultimate prize."[12]

How does the United States fit into this global transformation?

Though excluded from the new "Community" of Latin nations, the USA is certainly not falling behind. Far from it! The interlinked webs that connect our government to nations, regions and rulers around the world are beyond description. So let's look closer to home. The latest attack on Christianity took place in Gilbert, Arizona:

"The city...has ordered a group of seven adults to stop gathering for Bible studies in a private home because such meetings are forbidden by the city's zoning codes.....

 

"There had been no complaints about the meetings, which had been rotating among members' homes before the officer wrote the letter and ordered the group to 'terminate all religious meetings...regardless of their size, nature or frequency."[13]

The ban was revoked after a legal team from Alliance Defense Fund showed that the city's action was unconstitutional. But this incident, like many others,[15] remind us that the First Amendment is being interpreted in ways that make freedom increasingly fragile.

A Christian response

 

Our Lord rejected any kind of compromise. He died at the hands of religious leaders who were offended by His uncompromising words.

 

His disciples followed the same narrow path. When the high priest complained that they had disobeyed public guidelines and "filled Jerusalem with [their] doctrine,” they answered:

“We ought to obey God rather than men." Acts 5:29

There's no wall between Christians and the world around us. We walk freely among its people as citizens of heaven and messengers of His love. But there is a wall between what is holy and unholy. God tells us to "Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good." (Romans 12:9) Only by His Word and Spirit in us can we discern the difference and encourage each other to follow His narrow way -- in the midst of rising hostility. So,