What is the prophesied image of the beast? I have long suspected that it is the Earth itself! After men walked on the moon in 1969 the New Agers were saying they now had "their image." It was an image of "the Whole Earth."
As we approach the time that prophesied events seem apparent and New Agers are becoming emboldened in their a la Shirley Maclaine "Karmageddon" prognostications against us.
I have been reporting, inter alia, on these "deep ecology" "eco-spirituality" developments since 1981. The Harry Potter movies were a form of mass initiation for impressionable children. AVATAR is obviously a form of mass initiation in "New World Religion" concepts for both adults and children.
"According to Bron Taylor, author of the new book Dark Green Religion, nature-based spirituality is not only undergoing a renaissance – it’s giving religious institutions a run for their money.
"Western society is in a dramatic shift away from monotheism, notes Dr. Taylor, professor of religion at the University of Florida. And in many cases, he says, former believers are turning to Mother Earth to fill the spiritual void.
"He cites findings that large numbers of people in Europe and the United States express “deep trust in nature as inherently spiritual or sacred.”
"The trend is obvious on the West Coast. Only 22 per cent of British Columbians attend a religious institution once a month or more, according to a 2008 poll by sociologist Reginald Bibby, compared with 38 per cent in Ontario.
"Instead, spiritual seekers are forming de facto congregations in nature’s cathedrals – mountain valleys and old-growth forests.
"Toni Pieroni, a registered clinical counsellor in Vancouver, says she discovered eco-spirituality about 15 years ago after going through a divorce. “It’s become very much part of my [spiritual] practice,” she says. “If I don’t get out and walk by the trees and by the ocean, I start to suffer.”
"In eco-spirituality workshops that she leads outside her counselling practice, Ms. Pieroni encourages people to think of the Earth as a sentient being, she says, “and to contemplate that the Earth that they’re walking on is also conscious of them.” . . . Similarly, in the movie Avatar, the blue-skinned Na’vi people worship a biological force that unifies their planet and all its life forms. The force is so tangible that the Na’vi can literally plug into it by connecting the tips of their long tails to the fronds of sacred trees. . . . On Pandora, the Na’vi people form circles to channel their world’s unifying power, notes Maureen Jack-LaCroix, an eco-spiritual facilitator and event producer known for her work on New Music West Festival and Tears Are Not Enough/LiveAid.
And in Vancouver, hundreds of people gather once a week in 40 community circles organized by Be the Change Earth Alliance, which Ms. Jack-LaCroix launched in 2008.
While the groups are open to people of all faiths, the goal is to restore a sense of connection with Earth’s life-support systems and to commit to actions that support sustainability, Ms. Jack-LaCroix explains.
“The essence of spirituality is feeling connected and not alone,” she says.
"Dr. Taylor says that dark green religion, despite its ancient pagan roots, is grounded in scientific evidence of DNA and the interrelatedness of life. “You don’t have to rely on some supposed revelation that somebody else had somewhere else in some distant time.”
"Unlike faiths that promise heaven in the afterlife, eco-spirituality calls upon adherents to treat the biosphere as paradise on earth, he explains. Figures such as Al
Gore have called environmental destruction a “spiritual crisis.”
Saying with a loud voice: Fear the Lord, and give him honour, because the hour of his judgment is come; and adore ye him, that made heaven and earth, the sea, and the fountains of waters. (Douay Rheims)Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. (KJV)
6 And I saw another angel flying through the midst of heaven, having the eternal gospel, to preach unto them that sit upon the earth, and over every nation, and tribe, and tongue, and people: 7 Saying with a loud voice: Fear the Lord, and give him honour, because the hour of his judgment is come; and adore ye him, that made heaven and earth, the sea, and the fountains of waters.
8 And another angel followed, saying: That great Babylon is fallen, is fallen; which made all nations to drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice: If any man shall adore the beast and his image, and receive his character in his forehead, or in his hand; 10 He also shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mingled with pure wine in the cup of his wrath, and shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the sight of the holy angels, and in the sight of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torments shall ascend up for ever and ever: neither have they rest day nor night, who have adored the beast, and his image, and whoever receiveth the character of his name. 12 Here is the patience of the saints, who keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
13 And I heard a voice from heaven, saying to me: Write: Blessed are the dead, who die in the Lord. From henceforth now, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; for their works follow them. (Douay Rheims)
And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. (King James Version)
