SUMMARY: 
Editorial Comment (by Brett Bigg, sub-editor CETF):
A documentary is defined, in the Compact Macquarie Dictionary as, “-adj *1. … pertaining to, consisting of, or derived from documents. -n *2. a factual presentation of a real event, person’s life, etc, in a television or radio program, film, etc.”1 But the use of the word “documentary” in the title, subtitle, summary, or advertisement for a program does not necessarily make it so. A modern phenomena is the creation of documentaries produced with specific agendas and bias—such as pro-Islamic productions designed to improve the public perception of Islam and Muslims in the light of Islam unsheathing the sword of its creator, Muhammad, and unashamedly calling for Jihad on non-Muslims. In like manner, however, some fictional writers are mimicking documentary procedures with the aim of adding “truth” and legitimacy to the author’s work whilst undermining reality. “It’s a conspiracy!” people are shouting, “The [Catholic] Church is hiding the truth!” Sound familiar? Following this anti-Jewish and anti-Christian (quasi pro-Islamic) agenda has been The Gospel of Judas and Dan Brown’s, The Da Vinci Code, for starters. But now we have Britain’s Channel Four “documentary”, by Tony Robinson, titled, The Doomsday Code2. Supposedly an investigation into “the people with powerful political friends in the White House, who are trying to bring about the end of the world, as prophesied in the Book of Revelation”, this production seems more bent on sensation than truth. The Doomsday Code “documentary” aired on 16 September 20063, with a follow-up report, “Debates & Controversies: The Doomsday Code” *4 posted on the Channel Four’s website, by Julia Bard. But one has to question the neutrality, bias and/or perception of both Bard and Robinson in creating this documentary. Julia Bard *5 is, culturally, a Jew, theologically an atheist, philosophically an ardent secularist and feminist (and member of London based Women Against Fundamentalism *6 ), whilst Tony Robinson (reportedly a Catholic) enthusiastically presented and contributed to debunking Dan Brown’s book, in the Channel Four series “The Real Da Vinci Code” *7—but not for the sake of the integrity of the Bible, but rather—with a perceived bias of defending the Catholic Church. So is The Doomsday Code’s and Bard’s report reiterating that, “a growing number of American evangelical Christians reckon they have cracked the [Book of Revelation’s Doomsday] code”8 the complete facts? Or is the media’s focus on “Christian attempts to bring the world to an end” a distraction and smokescreen, for the growing worldwide terrorism of Islam? Will evangelical Christianity get the blame for the Sword of Islam, the political endeavours of secularists and megalomaniacs? Either way, The Doomsday Code, like Brown’s The Da Vinci Code before it, will, more than likely, convince many; in particular the undiscerning and the fool *9.

By TONY PEARCE
CHANNEL 4 did another of the media’s hatchet jobs on the Bible (I eagerly await their first demolition of the Koran) with Tony Robinson fulminating on the evils of “end-timers” in his two hour documentary The Doomsday Code. Ghostly voices quoted from apocalyptic parts of the Bible, notably Daniel and Revelation, while weird demonic-looking beings jerked to and fro. Evangelical preachers from America (mainly) were given a platform and then made to look ridiculous (not a single Brit amongst them—why don’t they ever talk to local British Christians on these programmes?). A few charges made against the evangelicals were that they are responsible for:

• The State of Israel (a bad thing by the way)
• The absence of peace and love in the Middle East
• Global warming
• Poverty and aids in Africa.

In conclusion Robinson made the remarkable discovery that the end time scenario is all a terrible mistake because the writer of Revelation (not John) was a refugee from the destruction of the Temple writing a coded attack on the Emperor Nero (odd that—Nero died in 68AD and the Temple was destroyed in 70AD). He was boating across the Med and got holed up on Patmos where he ate local magic mushrooms and went on a trip which produced the Revelation.
As an evangelical Christian who believes we are living in the last days, I tried not to get too worked up about it, but thought I might jot down my thoughts on some of the more outrageous errors Tony Robinson managed to make.

“Israel exists because of end time Christians causing it to come into being to fulfil prophecies”

Actually there were Christians (not mentioned by Robinson) who did believe and pray and work for the return of the Jewish people to Israel before the event —Lord Shaftesbury, William Hechler, Lord Balfour and others. But there were other reasons (not given in the programme). For example:

• Jewish pioneers returning to the barren land of Palestine under the Turks and draining the swamps, planting trees and making the land productive after centuries of neglect (what a wicked thing to do!)
• Anti-Semitism in Europe causing Jews to look for their own bit of space where they would not be picked on because of being Jewish.
• A UN Declaration in 1948 backed by such rabidly Christian evangelical powers as the Soviet Union under Stalin which brought into being the State of Israel (on a fraction of the land initially promised by the Balfour Declaration).
• Incredible hard work and enterprise of Israel’s citizens creating a viable modern state despite constant efforts of their enemies to wipe them out.

  “There is no peace between Israel and the Arab world because evangelical Christians are preventing it from happening in order to push the world towards Armageddon”

  Why—according to Robinson—they are even supporting that “abomination” of a Wall and trying to rebuild a third temple where the Dome of the Rock now stands. Now there are Christians in America who believe we should support the rebuilding of the Temple, I admit. As I see it they have missed a big point because they also believe the Temple will be defiled by Antichrist so in that case it is a bit more than pouring money down the drain.
  What got missed in the programme was anything about:
• Arab invasions aimed at the destruction of Israel in 1948, 1967, 1973.
• Palestinian terror organisations sending human bombs to blow up themselves and as many Israelis as possible with the promise of 72 virgins in paradise if they succeed (come to think of it that could have been worth a mention within the issue of the evils of fundamentalism couldn’t it?)
• The fact that both Bill Clinton and George W. Bush support in principle the idea of land for peace. Clinton’s last fiing on this one was not stopped by evil Christian fundamentalists tearing up the script, but by Arafat rejecting Barak’s offer of the Temple Mount and half of
• Jerusalem at Camp David in 2000 and reverting to type by launching the second Intifada. Bush’s support for the Road Map potentially gives more land to the Palestinians than Clinton proposed under Camp David.
• The fact that when Israel withdrew from Lebanon and Gaza the vacuum was filled with Hezbollah and Hamas both of whom believe in fundamental Islam and think the best way to run the territory under their control is to use it to fire rockets at Israel.
• The fact that Hamas rejects Israel’s right to exist and aims at destroying the Jewish state. Hezbollah’s hero, chief Nasrullah also wants to destroy the entire Jewish people (said so in Beirut in 2002).

Perhaps I am a bit naïve but I would have thought some of these issues might be a teeny weeny bit relevant to the fact that all is not sweetness and light in the Middle East. But of course you are not allowed to criticise Muslims in the media any more so I suppose you just have to take it all out on the Jews and the Christians. All in the cause of justice and even handedness.

“It’s the fault of the end-timers in the US that the world can’t solve the environmental problem”

Americans consume 25 percent of the world’s energy we are constantly reminded. It is because of end-timers in America that the world can’t get an agreement on the burning of fossil fuels which will save the planet. Come to think of it don’t Europeans use up a few fossil fuels? Take a trip round London’s M25 or the Paris Périphérique if you don’t believe me. Of course you can’t mention China’s rapid and uncontrolled industrialisation because they are Communists and therefore not end-timers.
Actually it is pretty obvious that the world system based on consumption of fossil fuels is going to crash whatever your viewpoint. I have written a book called The House built on the Sand on this subject available for £6 including postage. If you want to save the planet there is a simple way to do it.

• Ban the use of private cars.
• Ban air travel for pleasure trips.

This way you would stop pollution of the environment and dependency on Middle East oil which would also solve the Islamic problem overnight.
But it won’t happen, not just because of America but because the world is not run by the most far sighted people. So we are on the road to ruin. Sorry. But not entirely my fault or that of those who believe we are living in the end times.

“The end-timers don’t like the UN which is the only hope of solving problems of wars and human rights”

Like it has done in its forthright condemnation of human rights abuses in China, North Korea and Saudi Arabia? Or its magnificent efforts to stop the slaughter in Sudan? Or its stern rebuke to Zimbabwe for the oppression of its citizens?!
Do me a favour Tony Robinson. I won’t even bother to spell out why the UN is such a den of hypocrisy, but just ask why its secretary Kofi Annan sanctioned and attended a “Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” in December 2005 at UN headquarters with a large map of “Palestine”, with Israel literally wiped off the map, featuring prominently in the festivities? Why there are endless resolutions against Israel but nothing about the suppression of human rights and freedom of religion (especially for Christians) across most of the Middle East?

“The end-timers are responsible for poverty and aids in Africa”

Robinson took a trip to Uganda where he was appalled to find preachers telling people we are living in the end times which, he claimed, made them fatalistic and drop out of school and (amazingly) fornicate so much that they spread Aids by not using condoms. Uganda seems to be uniquely a place to be liberated from this infiuence because it has an evangelical Christian president and gets help from American Christians.
Actually Uganda is by African standards a moderate success story. It has pulled itself out of the abyss left behind by the tyranny and slaughter of Idi Amin (not an evangelical Christian by the way—after being deposed he sought asylum in Saudi Arabia which may tell you something of his religious persuasion). It has its problems of course, one of which is fanatical cults which have led to tragic suicides and the horrible “Lord’s Resistance Army” which has nothing to do with Christian belief or practice as a brief reading of the Sermon on the Mount will soon tell you.
There are some other African countries Robinson could have shown on his programme, like Zimbabwe, potentially one of the most fertile and productive countries on the continent, now being wrecked by a mad Marxist. Or Sudan where black African Christians and Muslims are slaughtered and enslaved by racist Arab Muslims. Correction. He could not have shown these countries on TV because he would not have been let in to make his film. Enough said.
Regarding aids and condoms, evangelical Christians believe that sexual abstinence outside of marriage and faithfulness inside of marriage is the way to avoid all sexually transmitted diseases. This outrageous opinion offends all right thinking people in the western media who argue that having sex with as many partners (of the opposite sex or the same sex or both) but using a condom is the best way to avoid spreading STDs.

Rapture, Tribulation, Antichrist and Armageddon

Robinson mocked evangelical beliefs on this subject with the help of a lady vicar from America who he took as the ultimate authority on this subject. What is interesting however is that even a casual look at the average newspaper reveals a strong degree of fear and foreboding that we are heading for disaster because of:

• Violence everywhere and the collapse of cohesion and morality in society
• Environmental problems / global warming threatening the future of the planet
• Fears about energy sources running down causing the system to crash
• The clash of Islam and the West causing a confiict in which weapons of mass destruction could be used
• The Middle East confiict dragging the world into a potentially catastrophic crisis
• Abuse of power causing poverty, corruption and tyranny

You don’t need much imagination to see that all these things could come together in a global crisis which would bring about a surrender of freedom in order to save the planet with some kind of world government taking over. That is what the end time Bible view says will happen with power being given to the Beast (antichrist) of Revelation.
All these things are prophesied in the end time passages of the Bible—in both Old and New Testaments. They are not happening because a few evangelicals in America are orchestrating them, but because human beings have failed to care for the earth as commanded by God in Genesis 1 and have disregarded His commandments and the salvation He offers us through the Messiah Jesus. The Bible does prophesy signs of this event, some of the main ones which are as follows:

• 1. There will be an increase in wars, famines, plagues and earthquakes leading to a time of great trouble on the earth (Luke 21:10-11).
• 2. The earth will be full of violence “as in the days of Noah” and many people will be afraid of what is going to happen (Luke 17:26-27, Luke 21:25-6, Genesis 6:11).
• 3. There will be great sexual immorality “as in the days of Lot” (Sodom and Gomorrah) causing a breakdown of family life and disease (Luke 17:28-8, Matthew 24:12, Romans 1:24-27, 2 Timothy 3:1-9).
• 4. There will be many false cults bringing religious confusion while organised religion will form a union known as Babylon which will persecute true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:5, 24:23-27, Rev 17:1-6).
• 5. There will be an apostasy in the church with false teachers denying the truth of the Bible, especially the divinity of the Lord Jesus and the power of His shed blood to save us from our sins (Matthew 24:10-11, 2 Timothy 4:2-5, 2 Peter 2, 1 John 2:18-23).
• 6. The Jewish people will return to Israel and Jerusalem will be a source of confiict involving all nations of the world (Ezek 36:9, Zech 12-14, Luke 21:20-24, Rev 16:16).
• 7. There will be widespread pollution of the earth (Isaiah 24, Revelation 8:6-11).
• 8. There will be an increase in technology and travel helping to bring the world together into a one world economic and political system (Daniel 12:4, Revelation 13).
• 9. A world leader will emerge, known as the beast or Antichrist, who will take control of this system (Daniel 7, 2 Thessalonians 2, Revelation 13, Revelation 17).
• 10. The message of the gospel will reach all nations despite opposition and persecution (Matthew 24:9-14, Matthew 28:18-20).

It is not only in Revelation that these things are spoken of but throughout the Bible. Revelation sums them up and is anything but the product of a drug induced hallucination. It is a well ordered and amazing book whose symbols make perfect sense in the light of the interpretation given within the book itself or in relation to other passages in the Bible, mainly in the Hebrew prophets. Jewish Christian writer Arnold Fruchtenbaum in his book, Footsteps of the Messiah, says there are over 500 references or allusions to the Old Testament in Revelation. Early church leaders (who were much closer to the event than modern liberal theologians) Polycarp, Irenaeus and Eusebius, all testify to the apostle John as its author during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Domitian in about 95AD. Polycarp who passed this information on to Irenaeus was a disciple of John. I have written an article, When was Revelation written? *10 giving further information on this subject.
According to the New Testament the day will come when believers will be separated from unbelievers (the rapture) and the Lord Jesus will return in person at a time of unique trouble (the Tribulation) on the face of the earth to save the world from destruction. He will judge the world righteously. He will bring in the millennium in which He will reign on earth from Jerusalem bringing peace and justice to the Middle East and to the whole earth. However far fetched and scary it may sound to Tony Robinson it is going to happen. Better to look in to what the Bible actually does say than rely on sensation seeking TV promoters who always have an agenda to undermine it. .

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Footnotes:
1 The Compact Macquarie Dictionary (Macquarie University: Macquarie Library, 1994), 276.
2 < http://www.rebelwarez.com/rebelblog/videos/the_doomsday_code.html>.
3 < http://www.channel4.com/culture/microsites/C/can_you_believe_it/index.html >, cited 2 October 2006.
4 Julia Bard, The Doomsday Code, < http://www.channel4.com/culture/microsites/C/can_you_believe_it/debates/doomsday.html> cited 2 October 2006.
5 Julia Bard, culturally, is a Jew, though theologically an atheist < http://www.secularism.org.uk/33014.html>. Ms Bard is “a freelance journalist and on the editorial committee of Jewish Socialist. She is a member of WAF and the Jewish Women’s Network”, < http:/waf.gn.apc.org/ournal7p26.htm>, cited 3 October 2006. Ms Bard also contributes to the National Secular Society (see < http:/www.secularism.org.uk/3014.html>) which “is the leading pressure group defending the rights of non-believers from the demands of religious power-seekers. We campaign on a wide range of issues, including religious infiuence in the government, the disestablishment of the Church of England, the removal of the Bench of Bishops from the House of Lords and for conversion of religious schools (paid for by the taxpayer) to community schools, open to all” (< http:/www.secularism.org.uk/bout.html>, cited 3 October 2006) and Feminist Review Journal (< http:/www.tesco.com/ooks/roduct.aspx?r=0415065364>, cited 3 October 2006). Furthermore, Julia Bard is, or has been, a writer < http:/www.channel4.com/istory/icrosites//ostgeneration/ndout/redits.html>, editor < http:/www.channel4.com/ife/icrosites//ornfreak/redits.html>, editorial consultant < http:/www.channel4.com/istory/icrosites//harlotte_gray/redits.html>and project manager < http:/www.channel4.com/ulture/icrosites//hariahtv/redits.html>for Channel Four.
6 “WAF [Women Against Fundamentalism] was launched in 1989 to challenge the rise of fundamentalism in all religions … by fundamentalism we do not mean religious observance, which we see as a matter of individual choice. We mean rather modern political movements which use religion as a basis for their attempt to win or consolidate power and extend social control … the heart of all fundamentalist agendas is the control of women’s minds and bodies … Fundamentalism is growing in many world religions today and is damaging to women in all of them”, Women Against Fundamentalism, < http:/waf.gn.apc.org>, cited 3 October 2006.
7 See: < http://www.channel4.com/community/showcards/R/Real_Da_Vinci_Code.html>, cited 3 October 2006.
8 Julia Bard, The Doomsday Code, < http://www.channel4.com/culture/microsites/C/can_you_believe_it/debates/doomsday.html> cited 2 October 2006.
9 Cf Psalm 14
10 CWM plans to publish this article in a future CETF, God willing

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Appeared in Issue CETF NR 38 December 2006
"...contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints" -- Jude v3

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-Last revised-Monday, October 09, 2006