The Great Harlot – Part One
When the evangelist John was exiled to the Greek island of Patmos, he experienced a series of visions about events that would happen at some distant time in the future. These events would be a prelude to the return of the Christ and the dawn of a new golden age on the earth. The last book of the Bible entitled The Revelation of St. John the Divine described the cataclysmic events that John witnessed.
In the course of these visions John claimed that he was visited by an angel who explained to him the sequence of events that would occur during the “end times”. In Chapter 17 he wrote:
“And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, come hither; I will show unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
“So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” (Revelation 17:1-5)
The symbolic language used by John not only confounded the readers of his time. It has continued to confuse readers to this day. Over the centuries various factions within the church have interpreted them in different ways, and Biblical scholars continue to debate the meaning of these words and the significance of the symbolism. Very few seem to have grasped the true meaning of these words.
In 1970 a book was written about these prophecies which became an immediate best-seller. It was the first book on Christian prophecy to be picked up by a national publisher, and to date more than thirty million copies have been sold. In 1979 it was adapted into a movie narrated by no less a person than Orson Welles. This book was co-authored by Hal Lindsey and Carla Carlson, and was entitled The Late Great Planet Earth.
Under the chapter entitled “Revival of Mystery Babylon”, Lindsey and Carlson confessed that it was not their intention to be shocking or offensive. However, they added: “When God’s word is clear, it was never intended that man should dilute what He has to say.” As the authors went on to explain: “Babylon is another term used for the one-world religion. The Bible outlines very specifically that there would be a one-world religion which would dominate the world in the time before the return of Christ”.
The authors then went on to describe the new one-world religion that they believed would come to dominate the world. They noted that the use of the term “religion” should not be confused with Christianity itself. As they wrote: “Christianity is not a religion. Religion is the process of man trying to achieve goodness, perfection, and acceptance with God by his own efforts. Christianity, on the other hand, is God taking the initiative and reaching for man.”
Rather than represent one of the existing faiths of the world, Lindsey and Carlson believed that this new religion would grow out of a combination of practices that were becoming apparent throughout the world in the late 1960s. “But the scene has changed rapidly in the intellectual community in the past few years” they wrote. “Many of those who scoffed at “religion” have become addicted to the fast-moving upsurge in astrology, spiritualism, and even drugs.”
“We believe that the joining of churches in the present ecumenical movement, combined with this amazing rejuvenation of star-worship, mind-expansion, and witchcraft, is preparing the world in every way for the establishment of a great religious system”. It was clear to the authors that the new world religion prophesied by St. John would be Satanic in nature, and would involve the use of occult practices and drugs.
Hal Lindsey remains one of the most illustrious American interpreters of Biblical prophecy, and he continues to command an international following. Through his website he maintains updates of his prophetic interpretations. Yet to this day he appears unmoved in his belief that the predicted one-world religion will be associated with drugs and esoteric practices, because the use of the term “Babylon” by Old Testament prophets was invariably linked with references to “sorcerers”, “magicians” and “astrologers”.
While no one can deny that the use of narcotics has grown over the last forty years into an international scourge, the irony is that while mainstream believers continue to look for Satanic influences in such things as witchcraft, magic and astrology, most Christians seem oblivious to the fact that a one-world religion that exactly matches that prophesied by St. John, has grown up under their very gaze.
This new religion now encompasses the entire world. No man or woman alive on earth today is free from its spell. It not only attracts converts from every major faith, it now embraces every country on the globe. As the Oracle of Tolemac has explained, this new religion not only attracts Kings, Presidents and rulers, it also lures the poor, the weak and the needy, as we shall see in the following instalment.
