Russia invades Ukraine

[Sofia]

Russian church in Ukraine calls for ceasefire

Source: https://www2.stetson.edu/religious-news/220228a.html

It should be noted that on the first day of the war, 24 February, the rhetoric of the leader of the Moscow patriarchate in Ukraine, Metropolitan Onufry, was more radical with regard to the enemy than the current statement by the synod. At that time, the UPTsMP primate unequivocally pointed to the perpetrator of the attack and urged Putin to stop the war and was not afraid to call his actions "a repetition of the sin of Cain."

[Cool Cat]

Russia seems to have a lot happening to it that mimics what is said about Babylon the Great. 
 

• The governments that support the UN turning on it. 
• The riches being sanctioned
• Being in direct opposition to true worship and exalting himself above the true God
• The merchants being forced to distance itself from it.
• Being in control of commodities the world desires(oil, steel etc)
• Sits on many waters(peoples) 35 languages and various regions

 

It also would not surprise me if the Kings of the world beat them self in grief over her destruction, the merchants sat at a distance and mourned her destruction and Jehovah judges her as being worthy of destruction due to what she has done to his people.

 

I am not saying Russia is Babylon the Great but some things seem to be looking to fit perfectly. Some things however don’t and fit more perfectly with our current understanding. Has been interesting to look at though.

[BLEmom]

1 hour ago, Cool Cat said:

Russia seems to have a lot happening to it that mimics what is said about Babylon the Great. 
 

• The governments that support the UN turning on it. 
• The riches being sanctioned
• Being in direct opposition to true worship and exalting himself above the true God
• The merchants being forced to distance itself from it.
• Being in control of commodities the world desires(oil, steel etc)
• Sits on many waters(peoples) 35 languages and various regions

 

It also would not surprise me if the Kings of the world beat them self in grief over her destruction, the merchants sat at a distance and mourned her destruction and Jehovah judges her as being worthy of destruction due to what she has done to his people.

 

I am not saying Russia is Babylon the Great but some things seem to be looking to fit perfectly. Some things however don’t and fit more perfectly with our current understanding. Has been interesting to look at though.

Babylon the Great has been clearly identified for decades as the world empire of false religion. Russia is not Babylon the Great. 

[Jothob]

1 hour ago, Shawnster said:

That's what this war is ostensibly about.  Ukraine wanted to join NATO. Russia did not want a NATO member as a neighbor. Putin complained since 2014 or earlier about Ukraine wanting to join NATO and NATO troops operating in Ukraine. 

 

No. Ukraine will not join NATO during the middle of an active conflict.  An attack on any NATO member results in war with all members.  The rest of NATO does not want WWIII.  Plus, Ukraine may not exist as a nation much longer.  

 

Thank you for the info, I understand better now. 
Im glad in a way they won’t join NATO right now. The alternative option would spell disaster! 

[Paulo]

1 hour ago, Cool Cat said:

Some things however don’t

Some that are clearly different:

Babylon the great has a "kingdom over the kings of the earth", we are told  to "Get out of her"  and it will be destroyed by man - Revelation 17:21; 18:4; 17:16-18

 

Russia/KOTN is a king, thus also under BTG kingdom, we have brothers living there, and it will be destroyed by Jehovah - Daniel 11:45

 

[-Chris-]

Three links to watch how this is playing out on the world stage:

 

https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/02/facing-western-isolation-over-ukraine-russia-looks-mideast-islamic-world

 

I've seen lots of mention of Russia moving closer to China. This describes additional allies and the link to religion.

 

https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-vladimir-putin-west-eu-nato-f810a6d94524b804730a9704ad4f0a87

 

How quickly governments can change ... what once seemed intractable is now possible.

 

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-breaks-taboo-jointly-finance-ukraine-weapons-deliveries-2022-02-28/

 

The nature of the EU appears to be changing.

 

 

Edited March 1, 2022 by -Chris-

[Dages]

In less than one week, so much has changed...

 

It's encouraging, really Jehovah could make the GT start any day

[Cool Cat]

5 minutes ago, Paulo said:

Some that are clearly different:

Babylon the great has a "kingdom over the kings of the earth", we are told  to "Get out of her"  and it will be destroyed by man - Revelation 17:21; 18:4; 17:16-18

 

Russia/KOTN is a king, thus also under BTG kingdom, we have brothers living there, and it will be destroyed by Jehovah - Daniel 11:45

 

Yes 👍 also it mentions of Babylon The Great  in Revelation 18:18 that in her was “found the blood of prophets and of holy ones and of all those who have been slaughtered on the earth.” That doesn’t seem to fit either. 
 

I just found it interesting that’s all.

 

 

 

 

[Paulo]

2 hours ago, Jonadab said:

Western envoys, allies walk out on Lavrov speech to UN rights forum

Lavrov mentioned again the Ukranian search for nuclear weapons

 

Spoiler

MOSCOW, March 1. /TASS/. Russia cannot but react to the real risk of Ukraine obtaining nuclear weapons, and it has been taking every measure to prevent this, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a video address to the Disarmament Conference.

He stressed that the Ukrainian side’s "irresponsible statements" regarding plans for obtaining nuclear weapons were not a "bravado".

"Ukraine has Soviet nuclear technologies and delivery vehicles. We cannot but react to this real danger. I can promise you that Russia as a responsible member of the international community, determined to adhere to its WMD non-proliferation commitments, has been taking every measure to prevent Ukraine from laying hands on nuclear weapons and the related technologies."

Lavrov said Russia hoped that "everybody is aware of the need for addressing this problem."

In his statement at the Munich Security Conference last Saturday Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky speculated that Kiev might reconsider its obligations under the Budapest memorandum, by which Ukraine pledged not to have nuclear weapons in exchange for security guarantees.

https://tass.com/politics/1414079

 

Edited March 1, 2022 by Paulo

[Friends just call me Ross]

44 minutes ago, Jothob said:

Thank you for the info, I understand better now. 
Im glad in a way they won’t join NATO right now. The alternative option would spell disaster! 

How do you spell disaster?

The Great Tribulation

 

How do you spell relief?

The Great Tribulation

Disasters are not always disastrous.

[carlos]

On 2/28/2022 at 10:50 PM, eliaseje said:

Yes, that is are current understanding although we will have to wait and see if that understanding may need adjusted. 

Our publications are not dogmatic about what those reports are, so our understanding might change over time. But why do you think it would? Daniel speaks of reports that make the KON attack Jehovah's people. But why would these sanctions by Western countries make him launch a final attack against Jehovah's Witnesses? We are in no way involved in the conflict.

[Sofia]

1 hour ago, -Chris- said:

Three links to watch how this is playing out on the world stage:

 

https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/02/facing-western-isolation-over-ukraine-russia-looks-mideast-islamic-world

 

I've seen lots of mention of Russia moving closer to China. This describes additional allies and the link to religion.

 

https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-vladimir-putin-west-eu-nato-f810a6d94524b804730a9704ad4f0a87

 

How quickly governments can change ... what once seemed intractable is now possible.

 

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-breaks-taboo-jointly-finance-ukraine-weapons-deliveries-2022-02-28/

 

The nature of the EU appears to be changing.

 

 

The worlds scene is changing too fast

[Sofia]

3 hours ago, Cool Cat said:

Russia seems to have a lot happening to it that mimics what is said about Babylon the Great. 
 

• The governments that support the UN turning on it. 
• The riches being sanctioned
• Being in direct opposition to true worship and exalting himself above the true God
• The merchants being forced to distance itself from it.
• Being in control of commodities the world desires(oil, steel etc)
• Sits on many waters(peoples) 35 languages and various regions

 

It also would not surprise me if the Kings of the world beat them self in grief over her destruction, the merchants sat at a distance and mourned her destruction and Jehovah judges her as being worthy of destruction due to what she has done to his people.

 

I am not saying Russia is Babylon the Great but some things seem to be looking to fit perfectly. Some things however don’t and fit more perfectly with our current understanding. Has been interesting to look at though.

Think about the unthinkable 

if it seemed impossible such a thing about Russia 

And it’s happening 

 

Then our faith is strengthened because it can and WILL happen to BTG 😉 

[Sofia]

In an unusual move, more than 150 Russian Orthodox clerics have called for an immediate stop to the ongoing war in Ukraine in an open letter issued on March 1.

It is very rare for such a large number of religious clerics of the Orthodox Church to openly challenge President Vladimir Putin's government. In recent years, the Russian Orthodox Church and its leader, Patriarch Kirill, who did not sign the letter, have fully supported Putin's policies.

 

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-orthodox-clerics-stop-war-ukrane/31730667.html

[eliaseje]

1 hour ago, carlos said:

Our publications are not dogmatic about what those reports are, so our understanding might change over time. But why do you think it would? Daniel speaks of reports that make the KON attack Jehovah's people. But why would these sanctions by Western countries make him launch a final attack against Jehovah's Witnesses? We are in no way involved in the conflict.

I'm not saying that the sanctions are what cause KON to attack JW's. What I am saying is... does Daniel 11:44 specifically relate to JWs. Our current understanding is that it does relate to JWs. Does that scripture have to pertain to JWs? Is the KON going out in great rage to annihilate many to destruction as he is doing right now as the scripture refers to?

Edited March 2, 2022 by eliaseje

[Hugh O'D]

35 minutes ago, eliaseje said:

Does that scripture have to pertain to JWs? Is the KON going out in great rage to annihilate many to destruction as he is doing right now as the scripture refers to?

Quote

Daniel 11:44,45

But reports out of the east and out of the north will disturb him, and he will go out in a great rage to annihilate and to devote many to destruction. 45 And he will plant his royal tents between the grand sea and the holy mountain of Decoration; and he will come all the way to his end, and there will be no helper for him.

Quote

Daniel book via Study Bible on verse 45

In Daniel’s time the grand sea was the Mediterranean and the holy mountain was Zion, once the site of God’s temple. Hence, in the prophecy’s fulfillment, the enraged king of the north conducts a campaign against God’s people. In a spiritual sense, the location “between the grand sea and the holy mountain” represents the spiritual estate of Jehovah’s anointed servants. They have come out of “the sea” of mankind alienated from God and have the hope of ruling on heavenly Mount Zion with Jesus Christ

So, yes he is definitely attacking Jehovah's people at the end.

 

Does that mean the "many" have to be Jehovah's people,? Could it be he's attacking someone else and then turns his attention on us (e.g. Hitler is condemned for attacking JW's but he attacked lots of others too,).

 

I suppose it's possible, I won't argue for or against. It's not our current understanding but we know we don't know all the details yet.

 

The BIG problem is that if the KOTN is attacking left right and centre then how is Gog a coalition of all the nations,? Gog is international. So, rather than argue over the "many" I'd think how can you have Gog and the KOTN attacking lots of the nations simultaneously? I'll leave that with you @eliaseje

[Dhanyel]

The speech by the President of the United States was very strong, a provocation and a big push, let's wait and see if there will be reactions from the Russian side! 

[Jimi-L]

6 hours ago, eliaseje said:

I'm not saying that the sanctions are what cause KON to attack JW's. What I am saying is... does Daniel 11:44 specifically relate to JWs. Our current understanding is that it does relate to JWs. Does that scripture have to pertain to JWs? Is the KON going out in great rage to annihilate many to destruction as he is doing right now as the scripture refers to?

Many have speculated if Russia, the KON, could collapse because of recent events. As a result, Russia is becoming increasingly isolated from the world because of this, and its allies are dwindling. The end of chapter 11 of the Daniel tells about the destruction of the King of the North, and the text is obscure in that it can be interpreted in two ways. The KON will come to an end either in Armageddon or before that. Chapter 12 describes a new situation, a great tribulation that will begin at some point. But there is no way to deduce whether the events in chapter 11:44-45 all happen before or after the GT.  11:45 would refer to the latter but it is best not to be too dogmatic. 

 

It is possible we don't quite understand this until its all over.

 

Either way, the end is near.

 

[GeordieGirl]

1 hour ago, coolbrz731 said:

I think the KON has taken Daniel 11:40 to heart. Another piece of evidence that the GT is right in front of our face.  

Russia threatening to "flood" more lands

Russia has been threatening Sweden and Finland of military action, if they join NATO, for a long time.  Seems like it's a bit of scaremongering and jumping on the Ukraine bandwagon by The Hill.

 

"......... Moscow see Finland’s “policy of military non-alliance as an important factor in ensuring security and stability in northern Europe,” but that “we cannot help but note the targeted efforts of Nato and other members of this alliance to involve Finland as well as Sweden in this alliance,” citing joint military exercises between Finland, Sweden and Nato as one example.

She then stated that possible Nato membership from Finland and Sweden “could have detrimental consequences” as well as “some military and political consequences”.

 

This is not a new statement from Russia: Zakharova has used this language in previous press conferences before the invasion of Ukraine, including on December 24th last year, where she described Nato as “primarily a military structure that focuses on aggressive actions, not defence”. She further stated that Finland and Sweden’s possible accession to Nato “would have serious military and political consequences which would require an adequate response on Russia’s part”.

 

And in 2016, Lavrov stated in an interview that "...... if military infrastructure nears Russian borders, we will obviously take necessary military-technical measures,” stating that Russia oppose the “constant expansion of Nato further east”.

 

Furthermore, Russia have been threatening Sweden and Finland over potential Nato membership for years, so it is unclear whether the country would actually act on these threats if the Nordic countries were to join the alliance.

 

https://www.thelocal.se/20220228/fact-check-has-russia-threatened-sweden-with-military-action/

[Jimi-L]

Russian Empire in 1914. And this is what Putin wants back.

 

It is wonderful to live in Finland... 😓

 

 

Edited March 2, 2022 by Jimi-L

[New World Explorer]

24 minutes ago, Jimi-L said:

The end of chapter 11 of the Daniel tells about the destruction of the King of the North, and the text is obscure in that it can be interpreted in two ways. The KON will come to an end either in Armageddon or before that.

It's best to stick with what FDS informed us about those passages. 

[New World Explorer]

6 minutes ago, Bluebell said:

The fact that the Western World is so united against Russia....( K.o.t.N.)

convinced me that the great tribulation is imminent.

It looks like a rehearsal for the time when they form a coalition of Nations to attack us....

I like how they float terminology "Coalition"  (so future Coalition of Nations will be easier to form, they have good practice now) 

White House: Biden will highlight "unprecedented coalition" against Russia in State of the Union address

https://edition.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-putin-news-03-01-22/h_53d1abdefb38f6a54a45e333b5f9be41

[Dages]

Yeah, they are talking a lot about this "coalition"... and that tickles our JW ears that have been used to this expression for a while now  

[Luisabola]

If I’m correct, I believe the UN General

Assembly is voting later today. Not sure what it means. Sofia? We need you to explain hehe 

[Sofia]

52 minutes ago, Luisabola said:

If I’m correct, I believe the UN General

Assembly is voting later today. Not sure what it means. Sofia? We need you to explain hehe 

Sure 🤗

The 193-member General Assembly scheduled a vote on the resolution ( that deplores Russia s invasion and calls for ceasefire and was previously vetoed by Russia at the security council last week) for Wednesday afternoon after hearing 120 speeches. Unlike Security Council resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding but they do have clout in reflecting international opinion. It shows unity among the World leaders against Russia.

may open a precedent for other procedures in process.