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dorf in 1844. This 4th-century
Grcek text of the Bi ble-one of
thc oldest biblical manuscripts
ex ta nt - is now in the British
Museum in London.
T he Greek Orthodox commu–
nity of monks at St. Calherine's
has dominated the Mount Sinai
region for centur ies. Not su rpris–
ingly , t he monks repo rtedly
expressed certain objections to
thc proposed World Peace Cenler
when lhey received President
Sadat last November 19, on the
second anniversary of his historie
journey to J erusalcm.
On that occasion, Mr. Sadat
ordered the Egyptian flag hoisted
over t he region (relurned to
Egypt after twelve years of Israelí
occupation) and prayed on the
soi l of Sinai. He called on the
world to adopt the idea of a Sinai
peace shrine and asked for dona–
tions loward it.
A monlh after his return to
Cairo, Sadat commented to archi–
tects that he was pleased with the
si te finally chosen for the proj ect,
an appropriate distance from the
monastery.
" 1
am very happy lo
hear lhat the site does not com–
pete with the monastery," Mr.
Sadat is quoted as telling them.
A Harbinger of Peace
What will be the impact of Presi–
dent Sadat 's World Peace Center
on the war- torn, battle-scarred
Middle East?
President Sadat's bold decision
to make peace with Jsrael- sym–
bol ized by his soon-to-be-built
peace s hrine- has effectivel y
quenched, for the moment at least,
one potent ial spark that might
otherwise have set off yet another
round of Mideast fight ing.
"If
they
inc lin e to peace," the Koran
admonishes, " incline thou also to
it , and trust in Allah." President
Sadat certainly cannot be faulted
for seeking to ful fi ll this tenet of
his faith.
Yet, sadly, despite continuing
peacema kin g effo rt s in the
region, Bible prophecy indicates
that the future holds
war,
not
peace, for the Middle East. But
understand this: the Bible also
reveals that the major mili tary
threat to the region will
not
come
March 198 1
from wi t hin the Middle Eas t
itsel f, but
f rom the outside!
The prophetic book of Daniel
reveals that the ultimate threat
will come from the " king of the
north"-a great end-time mili–
tary power that will becomc
enmeshed in the Middle East
imbroglio, possibly under the pre–
tcxt of " peacekeeping."
1n the New Testament, this
power is referred lO as the Beast
( Revelat ion 17), revealed as a ten
nation reviva) of the a ncient
Roman Empire.
T his revived Roman Empire
will intrude upon many nations
and peoples of the Middle Eas t
lhrough military inte rvention.
Amo ng th ese nat ions will be
Israel
and
Egypt!
" He [the Beast] shall come
into. lhe glorious land [the Holy
Land]," declares Dan iel 11:4 1
( R evised Standard Ve rsion).
Ve rse 42 further reveals: " He
shall st retch out his hand against
the count r ies, and the land of
Egypt
shall not escape... . "
A great military crisis is yet to
occur in the Middle East-one
last cataclysmic upheaval just
prior to the end of this age and
the dawn of a new and bette r
one.
How Peace Wlll Come
As President Sadat has observed,
the way to peace is the
Ten Com–
mandments,
given to Israel on
that first Pentecost more than
3,400 years ago at Mount Sinai.
On another Pentecost nearly
1,500 years later, the Holy Spirit
of God enterecl into the disciples
of J esus (Acts 2), enabling them
to keep the T en Commandments
according to their spirit and
intent, as well as in the Jet ter.
Only when the
entire world
is
obeying not just the letter but the
spirit of the Ten Comma nd–
ments-the way Of LOVING, GIV–
ING a nd SHARING- wiJI wo rJd
peace at last become real ity.
The good news is that this is
go ing t o happe n! Peace
will
come- with the establishment of
the Kingdom of God on this ear th
by the soon-coming Messiah!
President Sadat 's World Peace
Center is designed to
point the
way- to
underline the overrid ing
importance of the Ten Command–
ments given at Mount Si nai.
1
t will
serve as a kind of window through
which we may g limpse the future,
a future when the peoples of the
entire world wi ll come together in
peaceand harmony toseek theGod
ofAbraham.
In the words of Mr. Arm–
strong: " This Peace Center at
Mount Sinai's base will stand as a
prel ude to soon-coming wo rld
peace.
lt
is symbolic of
the way
to
world peace between nations and
religions.
lt
will not, of itself,
bring th at peace.. . . But it is
emblematic of it ... foreshadow-
ing the world peace that is as sure
as the rising of tomorrow's sun ."
Aside from their often wide
di fferences in theology, the three
faiths that will jointly occupy the
Si nai Peace Center wi ll symbolize
this coming t ime of international
cooperation und er the overall
direction of the Ten Command–
ments.
President Sadat's Mount Sinai
peace sbrine might well be con–
sidered a type or forerunner of
the monument of witness in the
Egyptian- lsraeli frontier foretold
in Isaiah 19:19-20:
" In that day shall there be an
altar to the Lord in the midst of
the land of Egypt , and
a pillar
[or monument)
at the border
thereofto
the LORO. And it shall
be for a sign and for a witness
unto the Lord of hosts in the land
of Egypt. ... "
Messiah to Rule
Today's world at large, however ,
is not going to voluntari ly submit
to and obey the Ten Command–
ments.
It
will require a ..Strong
Hand from Someplace" to inter–
vene in man's c ivili zation and
compel humanity to fi nd peace,
joy and universal abundance.
This ..Strong Hand from Sorne–
place" is, of cou rse, the long–
awaited Messiah, expected by
many Jews, C hristians and Mos–
lems alike. This Messiah is prophe–
sied to subdue all military opposi–
tion and impose global peace and
prosper ity. " He shall speak peace
unto t he heat hen," the Bible
declares, "and his dominion shal l
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