By Gary H. Kah
NEWS ALERT: We had just completed this Summer issue and were preparing to move forward with the set-up and printing of it when the Israel/Iran conflict broke out. So, just a few last-minute comments here. I was in touch with our Jerusalem office this morning. Israel is prepared for Iran’s response but will likely take more hits. My greater concern at the moment is how Iran might retaliate against the United States through its proxies. There are thousands of Islamists (potential terrorists) inside of our country at this very moment who are loyal to Iran if for no other reason than their hatred for Jews and promise to annihilate America and Israel. We need to be prepared for the worst – organized lawlessness/destructive riots, acts of terror, and possible drone, cyber, or EMP attacks. Remain vigilant and prayerful during this tense period.
View online my presentation “Israel: The War & God’s Plan for the Jewish People” given in New Zealand on March 30th: https://youtu.be/ryk6yOHI8Yo
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It seems as if the whole world has changed in just a few months’ time. The battle we are in has ramped up, and the stakes are high. A new pope, a new WEF leader, a ratified WHO Pandemic Agreement, an almost nuclear Iran, increased terror attacks and big city riots in the US, and unending conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine are just a few of the unfolding events we’ve been closely following. Since it is impossible to cover everything here, I have prayerfully chosen three areas to hone in on because of their widespread impact on millions and the lack of credible coverage they are receiving in the media. These areas involve the Vatican, the growing Islamist terrorism, and the spread of anarchy in the United States.
The Death of Pope Francis
No one pushed harder and did more to usher in a new global order than the late Pope Francis, who met his Maker on April 21, at the age of 88. Here’s a brief summary:
● Francis was the first Jesuit pope. While he projected himself as a humble leader who was for the common people, he was in reality a dedicated globalist and one-world activist who cooperated closely with the World Economic Forum (WEF). Strangely, Klaus Schwab, the WEF’s founder and executive chairman since 1971, stepped down on the same day Francis died – being replaced by Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, an Austrian businessman and the former CEO of Nestle.
● Francis had been the keynote speaker at the World Government Summit in Dubai, UAE where he strongly promoted the globalist Climate Change agenda. He even launched his own program – the Global Compact on Education – which was intended to prepare Earth’s population to more readily embrace the new world order.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Dec. 17, 1936 – April 21, 2025)]
● He sought to unify the world’s religions, a necessary step in the creation of a functional system of world government. Toward that end he oversaw the establishment of the Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi, UAE which opened to the public on March 1, 2023. This complex includes an Islamic mosque, a Jewish synagogue and a Christian church. His accomplice in all of this was Egypt’s Grand Imam, Ahmed el-Tayeb.
● Francis was soft when it came to upholding traditional biblical values, thus gaining much support from the LGBTQ movement. He also consistently favored Leftists in US politics, despite their pro-abortion stance.
● During the Covid saga he called for the most extreme lockdown measures and was closely allied with the WHO, the UN and big pharma.
● He also consistently favored Palestinian initiatives while towing a hard line with Israel.
(See Carl Teichrib’s article “The Interfaith Legacy of Pope Francis” in this issue for a timeline of the pope’s religious activities during his tenure at the Vatican.)
Although the pronouncements and actions of Rome’s leaders can be far-reaching, what is of even greater significance is the impact of this false religious system on the spiritual lives of its millions of followers. Tania Curado-Koening, a former Catholic, shares her experience in a moving article penned right after Francis’ passing. It is titled “The Cost of Conversion, the Fall of a Pontiff, and the Choice Before America.” Please take a moment to read it before continuing with this article.
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The Cost of Conversion, the Fall of a Pontiff, and the Choice Before America
By Tania Curado-Koenig
I was the first in my entire family—on both my mother’s and father’s side—to be born again. Raised in a deeply traditional Roman Catholic household in Brazil, with roots that included nuns and priests, my encounter with Jesus came not through religious ritual, but through the preaching of the Word—thanks to American missionaries who brought the Gospel with clarity and power. When I gave my life to Christ, everything changed. And the cost was immediate.
My grandfather called me anátema—cursed—and barred me from his home. I was forbidden from attending family birthdays, reunions, or holidays. I had not just changed religions. In their eyes, I had betrayed a legacy. But I had encountered the living Christ, and I could not turn back. He is the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2), and He gave me the courage to stand. Over time, the very same Gospel that cost me so much brought salvation to many in my family. Several were born again and baptized. The seed had been planted, and it bore fruit.
But let me be clear: what I left behind was not just tradition—it was a system that encouraged idolatry and resisted the true Word of God. The spirit behind that resistance is not neutral. It is religious, yes—but not holy. And today, as news breaks that Pope Francis has died, I say this not with hate nor joy, but with solemnity: only God knows where his soul went.
The Bible is explicit. There is Heaven or Hell—no middle ground, no purgatory, and no salvation by works.
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9)
For years, I watched as Pope Francis turned his back on biblical truth. He openly supported Brazil’s radical leftist leader Lula da Silva, embraced Maduro’s brutal regime in Venezuela, and elevated socialist ideologies over the cries of the persecuted. He went even further—aligning the Vatican with global forces that undermined Israel’s legitimacy and promoted Palestinian statehood. He stood not with the covenant of God, but with those who seek to divide the land of promise.
Under his leadership, many in Brazil abandoned the Catholic Church—not because of revival, but because of disillusionment. Even among the faithful, there was an unease. They could no longer reconcile the Pope’s Marxist alliances with their lived realities under dictatorship and economic collapse.
I was raised under Brazil’s military regime. I understand what it means to watch your country bend toward tyranny. What I find deeply troubling today is not just the silence of the Church—but the complicity of Western leaders. Just yesterday, the Vice President of the United States, Vance, visited Pope Francis and said nothing. He also met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and failed to mention the ongoing persecution of Christians under the Hindu nationalist regime.
There is a dangerous spirit of ecumenism rising—a false unity that embraces every faith except the one that dares to say Jesus is the only way. America must not bow to it. The Church must not bow to it.
This is a moment of reckoning. Will we stand for truth, or will we allow the lines between light and darkness to blur beyond recognition?
As for Pope Francis, his earthly legacy may be praised by the media, but eternity is not decided by applause. It is decided by the cross. And no one—not even a pontiff—enters Heaven apart from Jesus.
Let this moment awaken the Church. Let it remind us that truth matters, that grace is everything, and that our loyalty must be to the Lamb, not to man.
“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under Heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) ■
Tania is the wife of our friend and colleague Bill Koenig who has served as a White House correspondent for many years. Bill publishes “Koenig’s Eye View from the White House.” To read other articles by the Koenigs or to subscribe to his publication, visit their website at watch.org.
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For those individuals who believe that the new pope might take a different direction, don’t hold your breath. The majority of Cardinals who were under the age of 80 and therefore eligible to vote on a new pontiff, were handpicked by Francis during his reign. All appearances are that Francis and Leo XIV are cut from the same cloth. We are investigating Pope Leo’s background and record and will present our findings in the Fall issue.
The Enemy Within
Unless you’ve been living under a rock you are aware of the fact that hatred towards Bible-believing Christians and Jews has risen dramatically since October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel killing some 1200 people, injuring thousands and taking more than 200 hostages, some of whom were Americans. Israel retaliated by going into Gaza with decisive force. Within days massive pro-Hamas protests erupted around the globe. Here in the US, most of the protests have occurred on college campuses. They have been encouraged by far-left university professors and funded by over one hundred NGOs and powerful globalist institutions such as the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the George Soros foundations, among others. For the most part these protests – which have been turning violent – have not been spontaneous demonstrations, but rather highly organized events intended to advance a globalist/Marxist agenda.
In recent weeks this choreographed public display of hatred has resulted in direct physical assaults on US citizens, not only on Jews but increasingly on Christians as well. The horrific attacks in Seattle, Washington DC, and Boulder are the first fruits of the pro-Hamas/terrorist protests that have been permitted to take place on university campuses throughout the United States. Don’t expect these incidents to subside, as the enemy is now among us. Thousands of potential terrorists were allowed to walk into our country under the Biden administration. And, any attempts by the Trump administration to remove bad actors and foreign criminals from our soil are being litigated and opposed by Marxist loyalists – some of whom are in the US Congress. Corrupt leftist judges are in cahoots, consistently ruling in their favor.
If the funding of pro-Hamas propaganda could be stopped it would go a long way toward curtailing the protests and physical attacks against American Jews and Christians. Along with the funds from the NGOs and global foundations already mentioned, money from Middle Eastern countries and China is flowing into US institutions of higher learning at an alarming rate. The number one foreign funding source of our universities is Qatar. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are number two and three respectively. With funding comes influence. Those colleges receiving the most foreign funding have been the epicenters for the pro-Hamas protests. A mere coincidence?
University students protesting against Israel & the US
According to the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) which has investigated this foreign funding, as of October 13, 2023 American universities and colleges had received $22 billion from foreign sources that have no recorded nor reported dates of receipts, out of a total of all foreign donations to that date (10/13/2023) of $51 billion. More than 50% of this, it was determined, came from “authoritarian and antidemocratic Middle East governments.” The rate of contributions increased by nearly 55% between 2020 and the end of 2023, prompting one NCRI analyst to conclude, “It’s not just that we have a problem, it’s becoming a force multiplier.” Among the top ten beneficiaries of these foreign donations are Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Georgetown and Johns Hopkins. NCRI’s assessment ends with the following observation and warning:
Taken together, these findings portray that a pool of substantial foreign funding, significantly correlated with antisemitic and antidemocratic trends on campus, has grown enormously since the dates covered in the NCRI’s initial report, and has grown significantly less transparent for public scrutiny.
(Source: “US universities foreign funders: How much do we know?”, Nathan M. Greenfield, University World News, December 10, 2023.)
Dancing with the Devil?
Qatar especially has not been a friend of the United States. They have been a proxy for Iran, which has increasingly become a proxy for China. Qatar’s Emir has provided a safe haven for Hamas leaders in his country’s capital city Doha, which is also the headquarters of Al Jazeera – the media propaganda arm for anti-Israel Muslim extremism. I can only hope that President Trump, during his recent tour of Arab countries, worked behind the scenes to “dial back” Qatar’s funding of American universities; the same for Saudi Arabia and the UAE. If not, don’t expect acts of terror to decrease in the US. The funding must be completely cut off! Otherwise, we have only witnessed the beginning of what could become widespread persecution against Jews and Christians in America.
Earlier this year a former Muslim named Imtiaz Mahmood explained why this hatred runs so deep among Muslims. His insightful essay follows below.
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Imtiaz Mahmood: “Let me tell you why a Muslim would drive his car into a crowd of innocent people. I was raised Muslim, and I know exactly why this happens. It’s not poverty. It’s not oppression. It’s not even radicalization. It’s the logical outcome of Islamic doctrine itself.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a Muslim or not; we, as human beings, carry guilt deep inside us. We know we are not good enough and spend our lives trying to redeem ourselves through good deeds, thinking it will make the guilt disappear.
Christianity, for example, offers a way out of guilt, a solution not based on your works but on Christ’s. Salvation isn’t earned; it’s given. You accept that you can’t redeem yourself because Christ did everything on your behalf. That means you’re free. Free to live, free to build, free to serve, free to love.
When Christians feel lost, broken, and needing forgiveness, they can go to church, talk to a pastor or priest, and leave knowing they have been forgiven.
Islam, on the other hand, doesn’t offer redemption; it weaponizes guilt. Instead of providing salvation, Allah exposes you, holds your sins over your head, and threatens you with hellfire and torture in the grave.
The Quran isn’t a book of peace; it’s a book of threats. It bullies Muslims into obedience through fear, humiliation, and punishment.
So, what happens when a Muslim seeks redemption? They try to be better Muslims. They pray, fast, give to charity, go on Hajj, and do everything Allah commands. But it never works. I know. I did it.
And no matter how much you pray, no matter how much you try, the guilt never goes away. Because deep down, every Muslim knows it’s not enough. Allah always demands more.
Allah loves those who die fighting against the infidels. That’s not an opinion, it’s in the Quran, Hadith, and every lesson taught to children.
This is why Muslims, even the so-called “moderates,” always hesitate to condemn terrorism. Because they know Allah requires jihad. They might not be willing to commit it themselves, but they cannot say it’s wrong.
So when a Muslim fails to reach peace through religious rituals, they have two choices: Give up, stop being devout, and learn to live with the guilt, or commit to jihad because that’s the only way to be true to yourself.
The Quran spells it out clearly: “Kill those who do not worship Allah or obey the Prophet” (9:29). So when a Muslim embraces this identity fully, killing infidels isn’t just justified; it’s joyful. It’s an act of:
✔ Saving yourself
✔ Obeying Allah
✔ Securing your eternity
✔ Finally escaping the crushing weight of guilt
This is why a Muslim can drive his car into a crowd of innocent people and feel nothing but satisfaction. Because for the first time in his life, he finally believes he has done something worthy of redemption.” ■
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While we can appreciate President Trump’s overseas efforts to bring temporary peace to the Middle East and a resolution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, he needs to exercise caution in dealing with forces that have in some cases been long-time adversaries of the United States. I question the wisdom of accepting a luxury presidential jetliner from Qatar. What will Qatar expect in return? And, on a similar front, will the Trump administration rely on close cooperation with the newly appointed American pope in solving global problems, or will the White House remain guarded, keeping a safe distance from the Vatican which has historically worked against US interests? Perhaps it will all end well since Trump is usually planning and strategizing a few steps ahead. However, if his recent Mideast tour results in more extensive Muslim influence in the US and a partial abandoning of Israel, then all bets are off – America will pay a heavy price…God will no longer favor us as a nation.
Intentional Chaos & Anarchy
Along with the growing pro-Hamas/anti-Israel protests and sentiments, what is equally concerning is the fact that many of these same individuals are violently opposing efforts by ICE to apprehend foreign criminals hiding within the United States. They literally want to keep “the bad guys” in our country, where they can freely act out their evil intentions. Who in their right mind would do such a thing? The answer: those whose goal is to dismantle and take down America in order to force us into a demonic totalitarian world system. The current escalation of violence in cities across our country, which is being egged on by leftist mayors and governors, is unfortunately a sign of things to come. I believe it will soon come to a head.
LA rioters wreaking havoc
Our President and those around him need an extra measure of wisdom in dealing with this unfolding crisis. The enemy would like nothing more than to turn the current unrest into an all-out civil war, thereby weakening and ultimately imploding America from within. This is what the embedded Marxist/Islamist operatives want.
American citizens have been waking up quickly as the globalist agenda is being exposed. The conspirators can’t afford to have their grip on the nation slip away; they realize that if they don’t force a violent takeover now, they could lose their opportunity to conquer America. So, be prepared for a rough summer and fall. What we’ve witnessed so far may be just the beginning. Much more violence and upheaval can be expected. Meanwhile, our foreign adversaries are watching and waiting for the right time to make a move against us.
Therefore, we must continue to pray for President Trump, his Cabinet members, and those in Congress who will determine the path forward for our country. The need for godly wisdom and discernment has never been greater. Personal ambition and egos must be laid aside and surrendered to the Lord – for the sake of America’s future. If this doesn’t happen, our days as a “somewhat free” nation are numbered.
As for our families, we and our loved ones must walk in the wisdom of the Lord – remaining repentant, vigilant, and close to our eternal King. Let’s pray for the unlimited resources of God to do all He has for us to do in the midst of these difficult days.
The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways,
But the folly of fools is deception.
The faithless will be fully repaid for their ways,
And the good rewarded for theirs.
The simple believe anything,
But the prudent give thought to their steps.
- Proverbs 14:8, 14-15
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Christians, are you redeeming the time, making the most of every day to grow in your walk with Jesus, and to share His good news with those you encounter? The people of this world…the people in our country…desperately need hope. And the only true hope for this world and for eternity is found in Jesus Messiah. If you haven’t done so already, turn your life completely over to Him and entrust everything – your family, your possessions, your future – to Him. He loves and cares for you and will never abandon you or steer you wrong. Come what may, you can rest secure in Christ! ■
Have You Trusted Jesus as Savior?
God loves mankind – his greatest creation. His perfect will is for all to be saved and none to be lost (John 3:15-18, 5:24). However, He makes clear that only those who have accepted (believed in) His divine Son, Jesus Christ, will be spared from the punishment of hell and will spend eternity with Him (Matthew 10:28 & II Peter 2:4-10).
If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you must believe that Jesus is who He says He is and that He paid the penalty for your sins with His death on a cross. Accept His free gift of eternal life which He can offer because He conquered death through His resurrection. Then, with the help of His Holy Spirit, turn from your old ways of living (repent) and follow Him. Take a moment and tell the Lord that you desire to receive Him into your life and ask His Holy Spirit to dwell inside of you and lead you into all truth.
Once you have settled this most important matter, be devoted in your relationship with the Lord. Spend time with Him by reading His Word (the Bible) and talking to Him (praying) daily. As you grow in His grace, He will direct you and open doors showing you how best to serve Him. With Jesus at the helm, your life and eternity are secure in His care. No situation or power of the enemy will be able to separate you from the love of Christ!
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?… No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
—Romans 8:35, 37-39