THE SPIRIT OF THE AGE – ZEITGEIST?

My wife and I had a meeting with our accountant a few days ago, and we asked how things were going for her in her rural accountancy practice. She told us that things were very tough – mainly because her rural clients were struggling with cash flow and trying to make ends meet. Interest rates are climbing, and commodity prices are decreasing. Prices for lambs and cattle at the sale-yards have dropped precipitously, and it looks as though there is a coming drought over the Australian summer. Then she said,

“Of course there is also the prospect of WWIII and the fact that Australia has only seven days of fuel reserves”.

The conversation reminded me of the enormous gap that there is between the country where people are working with their hands to produce something – for example fibre, meat, grain, milk, and those in the city where the biggest challenge may be where to find the best vegan, organic, vanilla latte.

“Physicals” v “Virtuals”

The conversation drew my mind back to an interesting article written by N.S. Lyons in February 2022, titled “Reality Honks Back” – related to the Canadian truckers – see this link

Reality Honks Back

In this article the author writes:

“To simplify, let’s first identify and categorize two classes of people in society, who we could say tend to navigate and interact with the world in fundamentally different ways.

The first is a class that has been a part of human civilization for a really long time. These are the people who work primarily in the real, physical world. Maybe they work directly with their hands, like a carpenter, or a mechanic, or a farmer. Or maybe they are only a step away: they own or manage a business where they organize and direct employees who work with their hands, and buy or sell or move things around in the real world. Like a transport logistics company, maybe. This class necessarily works in a physical location, or they own or operate physical assets that are central to their trade.

The second class is different. It is, relatively speaking, a new civilizational innovation (at least in numbering more than a handful of people). This group is the “thinking classes” Lasch was writing about above. They don’t interact much with the physical world directly; they are handlers of knowledge. They work with information, which might be digital or analog, numerical or narrative. But in all cases it exists at a level of abstraction from the real world. Manipulation and distribution of this information can influence the real world, but only through informational chains that pass directives to agents that can themselves act in the physical world – a bit like a software program that sends commands to a robot arm on an assembly line. To facilitate this, they build and manage abstract institutions and systems of organizational communication as a means of control. Individuals in this class usually occupy middle links in these informational chains, in which neither the inputs nor outputs of their role has any direct relationship with or impact on the physical world. They are informational middlemen. This class can therefore do their job almost entirely from a laptop, by email or a virtual Zoom meeting, and has recently realized they don’t even need to be sitting in an office cubicle while they do it.

For our purposes here, let’s call these two classes the Physicals and the Virtuals”.

The gap between how the “Physicals” and the “Virtuals” earn their income and understand the realities of life, explains much of the political and philosophical differences that we encounter each day. The “Virtuals” are shielded from the realities of living and are protected from the impact (for the moment) of the globalist ideas being promoted by the the UN and the New World Order.

To the “Virtuals” it makes sense that the best way to deal with the “climate crisis” is to shut down agriculture, eliminate food-producing animals and abolish fertilizers. In contrast, the physicals realize immediately that this “solution” is complete madness and the end result will be famine and disaster. Additionally, the “Virtuals” are concerned about “misinformation” and “disinformation” and so they are beavering away on their laptops drafting laws to take control of the internet.

Unfortunately, we are under the rule of the “Virtuals”, the government bureaucrats who are able to work from their laptops at home, drafting regulations to make it impossible to use land for agricultural production and putting mountains of red tape in the way of the “Physicals” who simply want to sell their produce. At the heart of the policies being implemented by the “Virtuals “ is a desire to exert central control, and even if few realize it, control via the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – see this link. The UN boasts that it is doing great work with these SDGs and that it has “169 targets, 3961 events, 1347 publications and 7777 actions. These guys are serious!

This bureaucratic hyperactivity puts us in a manipulative trap where escape is almost impossible. I have discovered that most local governments in Australia, without any election mandate, are implementing policies to meet these UN goals. We are like the cowboys of old where despite circling our wagons and trying to defend ourselves, we are low on ammunition and have limited protection. The “Physicals” may hold out for a while, but the “Virtuals” will get us in the end because they have all the digital tools of control.

The great COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020-2022 have provided a template for governments to exert control over entire populations. This centrally coordinated activity provided new digital tools for enforcing government controls: vaccine “passports”, linked to digital identification, linked to geolocation data from people’s cellphones, linked to the monitoring of financial transactions (this tool was highly successful as a weapon used against Canadian truckers). Now, AI is an additional weapon in the armamentarium of the “Virtuals”. With the future introduction of central bank digital currencies, central control will be almost impossible to defeat.

Most people seem unaware of their impending loss of freedom and most of us are sleepwalking into a future of digital control and surveillance. For example, surveillance cameras have appeared on every street and traffic light. Around two years ago, I read that in China there was one surveillance camera for every 2 people (750 million cameras). In Australia, my recent observations in travelling around Sydney show an exponential increase in surveillance cameras, and we seem to be trying to mirror China’s surveillance state. This also is a feature of life in London where cameras record and fine you for having a “polluting” vehicle. Who gave permission for this, and how did we become trapped in the digital metaverse? It seems to have happened by rules and regulations being implemented outside the normal legislative process by cunning “Virtuals” tapping away on their laptops to introduce increasingly complex layers of bureaucracy.

Somehow, in the midst of busy lives, increasingly lived on social media, we need to stop, stand back and take a 10,000-foot view (for European readers, a 3,048 metre view).  If we look at all the events that have happened in recent years (and are likely to continue and expand), it seems to me that there is a new “spirit” that has been unleashed and has given rise to an increasingly evil plan. It is a spirit of control and centralization that also is a spirit of destruction. Behind seemingly laudable ideas of “saving the planet”, lies a humanist, anti-God agenda that is destructive of life and wants to elevate an elite few to rule us all. We should have been taking greater notice as various dystopian movies such as “The Matrix” and “The Hunger Games” were released giving us clues to what was being planned.

The Spirit of the Age and the Antichrist

The events we have been seeing are not random but highly orchestrated. My view is that this is nothing less than dark spiritual forces at work. These spiritual forces are gaining ascendancy, and from my reading of the Bible, this process will continue as the dark overlords gain increasing power and control in the lead up to the end of the age. Of course, we need to resist these forces at every opportunity (see tips from Patrick Wood in my post last week). However, we have to be prepared for an evil world leader to arise, now with all the tools for central control.

This man, the antichrist, also is called “the man of lawlessness”, “the son of perdition”, “the abomination of desolation” and “the beast” in various books of the Bible. You can read an interesting view of the antichrist at this link.  

While there is no unanimity about events preceding the return of the antichrist, it is evident that there will be the need for central control allowing a world leader to arise with supernatural powers. The end result is the enslavement of humanity as people are required to worship him and pledge their allegiance. There also will be the requirement for a “mark” to be taken to be able to buy or sell (Revelation 13:17). This will be a time unlike any in the history of the world, but the good news is that these events are a prelude to the return of Jesus, to establish His everlasting Kingdom.

It sounds bad and it is. However, there are warnings by the New Testament writers about this time that are helpful for us to live lives today of hope rather than fear. The important point is that we need to recognize that we are in a spiritual battle.

In the early church St Paul warned the church:

“ For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12).

This struggle is as real today as it was almost 2,000 years ago. I often find this difficult to accept as I walk out into the sunshine of the Australian Snowy Mountains and all looks well. I need to remind myself of the “spiritual forces of evil” that are at work, and it seems to me that there is a new spirit of the age that has gained ascendancy. It is nothing less than a spirit of control, deception and destruction. This is the new Zeitgeist. A spiritual problem needs a spiritual solution, which St Paul also gives us, and I will discuss it later in this article.

The Zeitgeist

I’ve seen the word Zeitgeist used frequently in the past year. Before this, I had never really been aware of the word. Turning to Merriam-Webster, the definition is the “general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era”. Merriam-Webster then provides an interesting further explanation:

“Scholars have long maintained that each era has a unique spirit, a nature or climate that sets it apart from all other epochs. In German, such a spirit is known as Zeitgeist, from the German words Zeit, meaning "time," and Geist, meaning "spirit" or "ghost."” In other words the spirit of the age.

It is interesting that the word “spirit” is used, and of course, this points to unseen spiritual forces at work in the world. It is difficult for Western rationalists to believe in a spiritual dimension to society but when you see the word Zeitgeist used, this captures simply the idea of the concept of the spirit of the age.

Zeitgeist I believe, is an accurate term used to depict what seems to have been a shift in the spiritual climate within Western society. It seems to be a shift at a fundamental level in many of the core beliefs that were part of Western society: unalienable rights given by God, a moral code based on the Ten Commandments, independence and freedom, property rights, the integrity of national borders, and ultimately good versus evil. We seem to have replaced our foundational Zeitgeist with a new “spirit” that promotes moral relativism, transgenderism, the celebration of death (abortion and euthanasia), the redefinition of marriage, and perversion.

Not surprisingly, the new Zeitgeist promotes those areas that are against the Judeo-Christian understanding of God and the love for His people – the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The spirit of antisemitism has been at work in the world since a special people was identified by God – Abraham and his descendants through Isaac and Jacob. This spirit seems to have been unleashed in full force in the last weeks, since the horror of the Hamas slaughter of Jews in the region near Gaza.

Remarkably, almost as soon as the killings by Hamas were made known, large groups gathered all over the world, not to protest the killing of innocent Jews but “crimes” against the Palestinians. I have heard many explanations for this, the most common being that the success of Israeli society has been at the expense of the Palestinians, who are downtrodden and therefore, should be supported no matter what they do. However, even a rudimentary examination of the facts that are known about the history of Israel since 1948 indicates that such a position is difficult to maintain. 

The protests, whether in Sydney, London or New York seem to have a common denominator – hatred for Jews and a call to wipe out Israel – as the groups have been chanting: “from the river to the sea”. If you look at a map of Israel, you realize that there if this chant was to be implemented, there is no land left for the Jews and that this chant is calling for Jewish extermination. The groups, which seem to combine Islamists, Communists and an assortment of left-wing agitators who want to bring down Western society, have been given free rein to promote these views, as Western leaders dither.

UK police are reluctant to take action against those calling for jihad, because presumably, their Islamic advisors have told them that “jihad has a number of meanings”. Remarkably, the Metropolitan Police Force has Islamic “advisors” who have extremist views, as outlined in articles from the UK Telegraph recently – Metropolitan Police employee says that supporting Israel is hate crime and Police under fire for allowing jihad chant. Even worse, the UK Home Secretary, who questioned police policy, has just been dismissed by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The UK is heading toward disaster, and the politicians are complicit.

This looks like stupidity, but we are really just caught in the Zeitgeist of the times, where multiculturalism is a cornerstone of society, and so all ideas are valid. This includes even those beliefs that would seek to wipe out Western society and force submission to laws that are alien to our current way of life. It seems idiotic, but I believe that the dark spiritual forces of hatred toward God and His people are gaining ascendancy and we underestimate these forces at our peril.

What is the Solution?

In undertaking research for my book: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times,

I realized that one of the foundational ideas for wisdom is “A fear of the Lord” (this idea is scattered in dozens of places throughout the Old Testament). The Hebrew word for fear is יָרֵא (yârê’) and its meaning is: terror or dread (of God) in some circumstances but also denotes awe, reverence, obedience to God’s law and worship. The Bible tells us that the “fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10). In other words, you can’t even get to the first base of wisdom without a fear of the Lord. This is something that has been lost as we have rejected God in Western society and sought to go our own way. Our society has rejected God and His ways and no longer has any fear of Him and so we chart a course toward transhumanism and embrace laws which defy God. Is it too late for us as a society?

It isn’t too late for us to come to our senses. There is a great verse toward the end of the Old Testament in the Book of Malachi where God says, “Return to Me and I will return to you” (Malachi 3:7). This is the first step in showing “the fear of the Lord”. He is a God of mercy and lovingkindness who longs for us to return to Him.

If we are in a spiritual battle, then we need a spiritual solution. Of course, we need to stand firmly against the false justice movement and those who declare good as evil and evil as good. However, St Paul’s discernment with the early church was that the principal battle was a spiritual one. His solution was to “put on the full armour of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11). The key elements of this armour are outlined in the Book of Ephesians 6:14-18:

• The belt of truth;

• The breastplate of righteousness;

• Wearing shoes of the gospel of peace (the Bible and its message);

• The shield of faith;

• The helmet of salvation;

• The sword of the Holy Spirit;

• Praying always in the Spirit.

There is a lot in these few verses but the above elements of God’s armour remind those who have “the fear of the Lord” that we need not fear the challenges ahead but have the tools, given by God, to combat the current Zeitgeist or spirit of the age as we stand for truth in this age of deception. It is good to reflect on the pieces of this armour and be ready each day to put on the “full armour of God” as we walk out into the fray.

STORIES THAT CAUGHT MY ATTENTION THIS WEEK

The Recent US State Elections

It was surprising that the Republicans fared so badly in the recent elections that involved 37 states and brought about surprising results in Kentucky, Ohio and Virginia. Many believe that the voting system in the US is permanently fixed against the Republicans but a key issue appears to be voter turnout. In some states, only 35% of the eligible population voted. Abortion seems to be a significant issue for voters and this is an assessment made by world affairs brief:

“The growing demand for abortion in this country is a disturbing trend along with the alarming wave of mental and sexual aberrations of gender confusion and homosexuality. All three, acting together point to a nation beset with immorality and bad judgment—not because the majority succumb to such but that the vast majority of national leaders in business, media, education and politics go along with it, and pander to it, which promotes its growth among the youth who are all-too-open to following the fads in popular culture and on social media.”

It does appear as though the issue of abortion is going to be very important in the 2024 US presidential election. The Republicans will have to learn had to deal with this issue, as the Democrats seem to be happy to endorse abortion right up to and even past the point of delivery.

Tools of Democracy Used Against The West

It has been fascinating to watch from afar the trauma and hand-wringing by police and politicians who were attempting to make decisions about how to deal with the large pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas march held in London on Remembrance Day, the 11th of November. The British government dithered about whether to allow the march and the Metropolitan Police appeared to have independent authority to make their own decision. Previously, protesters who called for jihad had not been arrested because police said the jihad could have many meanings.

Similar demonstrations have been held in cities around the Western world and in Sydney there was the notorious chant “gas the Jews”  which I thought would never be heard in this easygoing Australian city.

We in the West are confused in the face of competing philosophies and religious views. We no longer understand what we stand for. Governments have been drawn into the morass of “misinformation” and “disinformation” laws. Democracy and free speech are disappearing before our eyes.

The Brookings Institute published an interesting paper in 2018 titled Democracy in the new geopolitics that raises many of the issues facing Western democracies. The paper discusses the shifting balances of power, which are more evident today than in 2018. A visual demonstration of this comes as Joe Biden comes as a supplicant to meet President Xi of China, in San Francisco in the last few days. President Xi understands where the real power lies – the Silicon Valley Big Tech oligarchs.

We in the West have lost our way. Now we only seem to have blind and aging leaders shepherding us toward the abyss. It is time for “we the people” to wake up and affirm the principles that made the West prosperous and free.

There is a simple story that courageous political parties need to articulate:

• people want to be better off than worse off;

• people want less government control and bureaucratic overreach;

• people want to keep more of their own money;

• people want to own their own property;

• people dislike censorship, and

• people understand that our fundamental rights are not given by the government but by God – they are “unalienable Rights”.

Political parties that are able to articulate and support these foundational ideas will regain the ground given up to the collectivists, but have we lost the will to stand for the values that have made the West great?

COVID-19 “Vaccine” Problems

New Information from the Israeli Ministry of Health

Almost daily, new information comes out from studies that demonstrate ongoing health problems for those who took one of the COVID-19 experimental “vaccines”. Steve Kirsch is relentless at tracking down information about the harmful impacts of the “vaccines” and in a recent post

BREAKING: Israeli MoH data released in March 2023 proves the vaccines are killing people. How come nobody noticed?? Hello!?!?

he cited information from the Israeli Ministry of Health. This is significant because there was forced vaccination of the entire Israeli population with the Pfizer vaccine. He reports that while no health authorities have collected transparent information in relation to vaccine injuries, that there is “unassailable proof that the vaccines are killing people.” Steve Kirsch makes a number of important points in his article but I have highlighted two to share with my readers:

“  Your risk of death increases exponentially with each shot number. For example, if your risk of death increased 5% on shot #1, it might increase another 6% on shot #2, another 9% on shot #3, 18% on shot #4, 50% on shot #5, etc. It’s like shooting yourself with a poison each time. This explains why the excess deaths keep going up worldwide even though booster adoption is going down.

  Lot variation is real. Some lots kill 30X more per dose than others. How is that possible with a safe vaccine? This alone should kill the “safe and effective” narrative.”

A Timebomb in Your Child’s Chest?

Chet Nagle pubished a substack article that is important because he provides details about 11 children who had cardiac arrests at American schools in the last few months. See this link

Is There A Time Bomb In Your Child’s Chest?

He quotes studies that indicate that one out of every 30 to 35 people vaccinated with an mRNA vaccine will have a heart injury. There is no indication for any young person to receive any COVID vaccine and doctors need to be made aware of the risks as the vaccines are still being widely promoted.

Negative Effects of COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy

Various authors including Dr Naomi Wolf have highlighted the damaging impact of COVID-19 vaccines on reproduction. This week, Dr Jessica Rose, who is a clever data analyst and has scoured the VAERS database has written an article that indicates that “31% of women who were exposed to COVID-19 products prior to pregnancy experienced a miscarriage” – see this link

Dr Rose (no relation) has been one of the key scientists who has investigated adverse events of the COVID-19 injections and in this article she says:

“In my quest to discover the wisdom now removed from the CDC website pertaining to advice on injecting pregnant ‘people’, I discovered that 32% of women who reported having been exposed to the COVID-19 injections prior to their pregnancy, had a miscarriage. This percentage was calculated based on both the domestic and foreign data sets.”

It is shocking that without any safety data, as far back as 2020, the “vaccines” were recommended for pregnant women. There is substantial data showing severe impacts on reproduction and this latest article from Dr Rose shows the extent of the danger to pregnancy.

Conclusions

It is alarming to read the extent of control by the New World Order in its various forms. It is right to stand against the systems that seek to enslave us and each of us need to protect our independence and freedom. I believe that it is also important to recognize the “spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12) so that we can not only resist the symptoms of this evil that are being arraigned on the earth but also apply the full armour of God. The spiritual forces of evil are deceptive and cunning and great discernment is needed in the present age to know good from evil. One simple test though is where we are asked to give up personal autonomy and come under government authority, we must simply say no.