Church of God News

Italy’s COVID-19 taskforce meeting
(Photo from Governo Italiano)

COGwriter

COVID-19 is impacting economies around the world:

Coronavirus Fear Cancels Events Across Asia, Striking at Economy

March 9, 2020

TAIPEI – Cancellations of events, from school field trips to giant international trade shows, are gouging out service economies around Asia as organizers fear that bringing too many people together would allow the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Spiked events now threaten to flood Europe, where the coronavirus is growing in countries such as Italy and France, analysts believe.

Cancellations hurt sponsors, hotels, airlines, catering and venues behind the events. Cancellations breed more cancellations as well, because organizers hope not to be seen as risk-taking outliers. The trend is expected to last at least through April or May, depending on containment of the virus.

“Event organizers are either being told by governments or voluntarily cancelling their events for health-safety reasons because there have been a couple of incidents where there have been conferences which had created clusters of coronavirus cases,” said Rajiv Biswas, the Asia-Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit.

“Even if the organizers in Asia want to hold (events), the attendees are not willing to attend or their companies won’t allow it,” Biswas added.

International travelers with sights on concerts and conferences would risk 14-day quarantines if they come from an infected country.

The virus-caused respiratory disease COVID-19 has sickened more than 110,000 people in 109 countries or regions and killed about 3,800 since it was discovered in China almost three months ago. China and South Korea are reporting the most cases worldwide.

Singapore and Thailand will feel the drain most because they depend heavily on international events as a source of tourism. The Singapore meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions industry totaled $1.59 billion or 22% of tourist receipts in 2018. Revenue for this sector in Thailand came to $6.65 billion in 2018, half from overseas. Across the Asia Pacific, the sector is worth an estimated $200 billion.

On the ground, cinemas in China have closed completely for more than a month. In Taiwan, public schools spiked field trips and campus fairs through June. At the conference-exhibition level, the Beijing Motor Show was postponed and MWC Barcelona – set for Europe rather than Asia – cancelled. https://www.voanews.com/science-health/coronavirus-outbreak/coronavirus-fear-cancels-events-across-asia-striking-economy

The impact is more than just than the cancellation of some events. Notice the following:

Italy’s massive coronavirus quarantine provokes panic and prison riots; stocks fall 11%

March 9, 2020

Italy’s extended quarantine restricting the movement of people in its industrial northern heartland have provoked panic among residents and accentuated the country’s north-south divide. …

Violent protests have broken out in 27 Italian prisons against coronavirus restrictions with many inmates asking for an amnesty due to the virus emergency, news agency ANSA reported Monday, citing local sources.

Some 20 inmates had managed to break out of Foggia prison in Puglia during a riot Monday morning, ANSA said citing local sources. Shop keepers in the area were told to close their shops in the vicinity of the prison.

Prison unrest broke out in a prison in Modena Sunday after inmates were informed that visits from relatives had been banned to prevent the spread of infection. In the south, relatives of detainees in a Poggioreale prison in Naples clashed with police against the government ban. …

Economists predict that Italy’s economy, weak before the outbreak, will go into recession … https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/09/italys-quarantine-provokes-panic-italian-stocks-plunge.html

Tourism is 10% of GDP in France, 13% in Italy, 15% in Spain. And Now it’s in Free Fall

The world right now is full of places that should be teeming with people but are not, including many iconic tourist landmarks and attractions. In Italy, home to Europe’s third biggest tourism industry, large parts of the country are on lock down after being hit by the biggest outbreak of the COVID-19 outside of Asia. Many of the most famous tourist attractions have been closed and big international events, including the Venice Carnival, have been cancelled.

The impact on the country’s tourism industry has been brutal, prompting panicked representatives to warn that a “generalized panic” over coronavirus could “sink” the sector. “There is a risk that Italy will drop off the international tourism map altogether,” said Carlo Sangalli, president of Milan’s Chamber of Commerce. “The wave of contagions over the past week is causing huge financial losses that will be difficult to recoup.”

Even by late February, when the outbreak was still in its infancy, €200 million worth of travel and accommodation bookings in March had already been cancelled, reported Italian tourism association Assoturismo Confesercenti. …

This unprecedented slowdown of a sector as vital as tourism does not bode well for a country whose economy has barely grown for 20 years and whose banking sector continues to be plagued by systemic problems …

In Spain, tourism is even more important to the national economy, generating approximately €180 billion a year — close to 15% of GDP. …

France, with 89 million tourists in 2018 (last year’s figures are yet to be released), the most visited country in the world, is also feeling the fallout from of COVID-19. Tourism contributes about 10% to GDP. …

This is all happening just weeks before high season is about to get under way. But with millions and millions of tourists voting with their feet by staying at home, one of Europe’s most important and (until four weeks ago) fastest growing industries is taking a hammering. https://wolfstreet.com/2020/03/07/tourism-contributed-10-to-gdp-in-france-13-in-italy-15-in-spain-now-its-in-free-fall/

Yes, tourism is an important component of many countries in the European Union. Yes, this is a concern.

But also notice that Italy already had banking problems before COVID-19.

Let me add that while Germany has been the economic engine of Europe and is not as dependent upon tourism, the impact of Brexit on it and France may also be a major negative (see also ‘Will Brexit and coronavirus end the EU?’).

Plus, the European Union has many problems with unity. That was predicted in the Bible thousands of years ago:

Thus, the Bible shows that a European confederation will be around for a time, eventually be destroyed by God, and that is a certain prophecy.

In 1965, the late Pastor General of the then Radio Church of God, Herbert W. Armstrong wrote:

… European countries urgently want political union, the very UNITED STATES OF EUROPE I have been assuring PLAIN TRUTH readers for 31 years is definitely coming. It will unite them into a giant third World Power…

There is a definite German “Kultur! There is a French culture that is in many respects quite different. Then there is a still different Italian culture, a Spanish culture, a Scandinavian culture, a Swiss culture–and all are different! European nations speak different languages, have different aspirations, different customs, different traditions. Europe is often called a “crazy-quilt” of nations.

HOW, THEN, CAN THEY AGREE TOGETHER AND UNITE? For years The PLAIN TRUTH has said these nations are going to have to realize their inability to unite themselves politically-to choose a common political-military Leader that all can trust. They are going to finally face the fact they must look to a Supreme Authority they can all trust! That Supreme Authority cannot be a politician, or a general (De Gaulle is both). The only possible answer is a Religious Leader! (Armstrong HW. Personal. Plain Truth, November 1965, pp.1-2)

So, he felt that while they needed a political-military leader, some type of religious leader was needed to unify Europeans.

In a sermon on July 7, 1984, he added:

And I can see now, the event that is going to trigger the formation of the reunification in Europe; the resurrection of the medieval Holy Roman Empire that we’ve been looking forward to that is prophesied to come…

But I believe that some event is going to happen suddenly just like out a blue sky that is going to shock the whole world and is going to cause the nations in Europe to realize they must unite! … Well now I think I can see what may be the very event that is going to trigger…that is the economic situation in the world…

The whole banking structure in the United States is a network all jointed together. But not only that, one nation has to deal with other nations and imports and exports. And so they have to have a means of transforming money from one nation to another. And so the banking structure is international and interwoven…

Now when the financial structure breaks down, all civilization is going to break down…

To get the final reunification of Europe, the Bible shows that that Europe will reorganize (see also Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations?):

12 The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. (Revelation 17:12-13)

This reorganization will change Europe!

The EU will NOT function as it has.

Economic problems, as well as civil unrest (including migrant issues), will be a factor.

What about the rise of 666?

First notice the following prophecies involving Europe and mentioning 666:

1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. (Revelation 13:1-2, ESV)

16 Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave,^e to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18 This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666. (Revelation 13:16-18, ESV)

Buying and selling can be controlled in a cashless society that relies on digital payments. This is not something that was possible when Jesus had the Apostle John pen the above. But it is possible now with technology. Even before the new coronavirus, more and more in the world, in general, and Europe in particular, were moving that way.

Could COVID-19 play any role in this?

Yes.

Consider that the World Health Organization and certain others are concerned that physical cash can carry the coronavirus and some have advised switching to electronic forms of payment.

Related to that, we put together the following video:

13:55

COVID-19 Leading to 666?

The novel coronavirus of Wuhan, China fame, is now called COVID-19. It has also been called the ‘Coronapocalypse.’ Does COVID-19 have any prophetic ramifications? What did Jesus teach about pestilences and sorrows in the Olivet prophecy in Matthew 24? Could COVID-19 be the ride of the fourth horseman of the Apocalypse? Why was this type of disease expected according to the Old Testament prophecies in Deuteronomy and Leviticus? What has the US Centers for Disease Control warned about? What has the CDC reported about the flu? Were there lessons about fear and infections in the 2011 movie ‘Contagion’? Because of COVID-19, the World Health Organization (WHO), nation of Iran, and certain French locations are telling people not to use cash, but instead electronic forms of payment. The US Federal Reserve is now quarantining money repatriated from Asia to reduce the potential spread of the coronavirus on US currency bills. Is COVID-19 worse than we have been told or could this all be a ‘false flag’ event to encourage people to move towards a cashless society? If the thousands of deaths associated with COVID-19 are pushing parts of the world towards cashlessness, how much more likely will the ride of the fourth horseman and over a billion human deaths motivate people to move to making electronic payments that can be monitored? The Bible tells of a soon coming society that controls buying and selling to force allegiance to a coming European Beast power, known as 666 (Revelation 13:16-18). Does the ‘great tribulation’ begin before ride of the fourth horseman or with the opening of the fifth seal of Revelation 6? Do the words of Jesus helps us better understand the sequence of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse and the start of the Great Tribulation? Will the ride of the fourth horseman help lead to the rise of 666? Is that ride very close? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more.

Here is a link to our video: COVID-19 Leading to 666?

The economies of many nations are being affected by COVID-19.

Asia is hit, and China has taken a big hit.

Europe is taking a hit, but is prophesied to reorganize.

666 will rise up and COVID-19 looks to part of setting the stage for this.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Might German Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg become the King of the North? Is the former German Defense Minister (who is also the former German Minister for Economics and Technology) one to watch? What do Catholic, Byzantine, and biblical prophecies suggest?
Germany’s Assyrian Roots Throughout History Are the Germanic peoples descended from Asshur of the Bible? Have there been real Christians in Germanic history? What about the “Holy Roman Empire”? There is also a You-Tube video sermon on this titled Germany’s Biblical Origins.
Germany in Biblical and Catholic Prophecy Does Assyria in the Bible equate to an end time power inhabiting the area of the old Roman Empire? What does prophecy say Germany will do and what does it say will happen to most of the German people? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: Alemania en la profecía bíblic. Here are links to two English language sermon videos Germany in Bible Prophecy and The Rise of the Germanic Beast Power of Prophecy.
The Plain Truth About Gold in Prophecy. How Should a Christian View Gold? What do economists and the Bible teach about gold? Gold and silver may drop in value. Inflation/deflation? What do Christians need to know about gold? A video of related interest may be: Germany, Gold, and the US Dollar.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Great Monarch: Biblical and Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
WTO/TTIP and the Babylonian Beast Will international trade agreements like WTO/TTIP/CETA lead to the fulfillment of end time prophecies concerning the Babylonian Beast power that the Book of Revelation warns against? What does the Bible teach? A related video would be WTO Trade Deal and the Rise of the European Beast Power.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
Brexit Happened: Now What? At 11:00 pm January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom formally left the European Union. Many celebrated, while many mourned. Nigel Farage stated, “This is the greatest moment in modern British history.” What will happen to the United Kingdom? Will the UK be involved in trade deals with the United States of America and the Europeans? Will the UK regret the BRitish Exit (Brexit) from the EU?What will happen with the European Union? Is Europe prophesied to have a great army and many ships? Does the Bible prophesy a reorganization of Europe? Does it prophesy that the Europeans will become a conquering military power? Is the United Kingdom prophesied to be conquered? How does the Bible name the British-descended peoples? Was the British Empire the largest in world history? Was Brexit predicted by Church of God leaders in 1970 and the early 1990s? Will the European Union be negatively affected financially by the departure of the UK? Will this turn out well for the UK or the Europeans? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2027 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2020, 2021, or 2022? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter and newer video is: Could the Great Tribulation Begin in 2020?
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
Armageddon Who is involved and when will this gathering happen? Here is also a video from Dr. Thiel, from Tel Megiddo in Israel: Armageddon. Other videos include: Armageddon Will it come on Trump’s watch?, Iraq, Armageddon, & Prophecy, Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome, Is China paving roads to Armageddon?, and Jordan, Petra, and Armageddon.
Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse What is the pale horse of death and pestilences? What will it bring and when? Some related videos may include Amphibian Apocalypse: Threat to Humans?, Zombie Deer Disease is Here! Are the 10 Plagues on Egypt Coming?, and Biological Warfare and Prophecy. Here is a version of the article in Spanish: El cuarto jinete de Apocalipsis, el caballo pálido de muerte y pestilencia.
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse What do each of the four horseman of the Apocalypse represent? Have they began their ride? Did Jesus discuss the any of this? Might their rides coincide with the “beginning of sorrows? Do they start their ride prior to the Great Tribulation? Did Nostradamus or any other ‘private prophets’ write predictions that may mislead people so that they may not understand the truth of one or more of the four horseman? There is also a related YouTube video titled The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Tweet

This entry was posted on Monday, March 9th, 2020 at 7:00 am and is filed under Prophecy.

• COGWA cancels Sabbath services
• CGI Medina Sabbath services and coronavirus annoucement
• COVID restrictions and protests continue to harm European tourism–a step towards a possible banking crisis to trigger the rise of the Beast?
• LCG cancels Sabbath services
• UCG is suspending Sabbath services in the United States and abroad for at least the next two weekends
• ‘US Health Experts Voice New Coronavirus Concerns’
• Church of God News (and Videos) in Spanish
• BibleNewsProphecy: Jubilee Fake vs Real
• ‘US Leads World in Coronavirus Cases, Deaths,’ ‘666,’ & ‘Bubonic plague triggers health alert in China…Swine flu’
• CG7-D wants all to wear masks; Banned wants COG services cancelled; COGwriter says the Bible disagrees