Pope Pleased that Europeans Want Defenders in the Middle East

Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict made the news:

Pope Lauds Call to Defend Mideast Christians

Rome’s Zenit News – Jan 10, 2011

VATICAN CITY – Benedict XVI is expressing appreciation to the European countries that have taken up the call to defend Mideast Christians under violent attack.

The Pope stated this today in an annual New Year address to members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See. http://www.catholic.net/index.php?option=zenit&id=31405

His comments were apparently in response to the following items:

Foreign minister calls on EU to protect Christians

AKI – Jan 7, 2011

Rome (AKI) – Italy’s foreign minister Franco Frattini on Friday sent a letter to the European Union’s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton urging the bloc to take steps to protect Christians around the world, according to unnamed sources at the Italian foreign ministry. The letter, signed by the Italian, French, Polish and Hungarian foreign ministers asks for the persecution of Christians to be discussed at a meeting of EU foreign ministers on 31 January, the sources said. It calls for concrete action to be taken to uphold respect for religious freedom and freedom of expression, said the sources.

http://www.adnkronos.com/IGN/Aki/English/Religion/Italy-Foreign-minister-calls-on-EU-to-protect-Christians_311508720699.html

France calls for European response to attacks on Christians

AFP – Jan 4, 2011

French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie on Tuesday called on Europe to come up with a coordinated response to attacks on the Middle East’s Christians after this week’s deadly bombing in Egypt.

Alliot-Marie told Europe 1 radio that she would send a letter to European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton asking that “not only France but all of Europe takes up… this problem in its entirety.” http://www.expatica.com/fr/news/french-news/france-calls-for-european-response-to-attacks-on-christians_121199.html

Notice that this seems to suggest that the Europeans, not the Americans, are the ones getting involved in protecting the primarily Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant victims/terror targets. Ultimately the Europeans will decide to also go into Jerusalem.

Jesus taught:

20 But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. (Luke 21:20, NKJV)

And while this has not happened yet, steps are being taken to fulfill that prophecy. Pope Benedict’s comments may be referred to by others in the future as partial justification to put enough European troops in the Jerusalem area.

We in the Living Church of God believe that many world events are currently lining up with Bible prophecy. And while the end is not yet here, it is getting closer than most seem to think.

Some articles 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”?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies 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? What MUST happen BEFORE the Great Tribulation?
Might German Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg become the King of the North? Could He Become “the Beast”? What makes the German Defense Minister a candidate?
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? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2018 or 2019?
Can the Great Tribulation Begin in 2011, 2012, or 2013? 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? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord?