THE SWISS SECT DEATHS!--What It Could Mean for the Family!
Maria #229
DO 2941
10/94
By Maria
1. I'm sure all of you have heard by now of the tragic deaths of the members of the Order of the Solar Temple, which was apparently a rather bizarre occult secret society based in Switzerland and Canada. I'm sure you've probably also realized that this situation was engineered by the Devil to be one more step in his desperate attempt to curb religious freedom, and to stop the Family in particular! The Enemy never got the victories he was hoping for in that rash of court cases against us, so now he has engineered this incident in Switzerland.
2. The whole thing is a very clever and masterful piece of diabolical work. The worldwide anti-cult media is intent on exploiting the actions of the Solar Temple to turn the public against all nontraditional religious groups, trying to put us--and groups like us--out of action.
3. The Enemy used the "Manson Family" cult murders and later the Jonestown situation some years ago as attempts to try to get at us, as well as other groups. The Waco tragedy was even more dangerous to us, not only because those folks held some beliefs similar to ours, but because the public was propagandized by the media to identify all nontraditional religious movements with Waco. Now they have attacked again, in a part of the world where they can do even greater damage, where there seem to be very few voices willing to speak out and stand up for the truth, and very few true Christians who have any significant voice or influence.
4. The Enemy must have realized that he hadn't hit hard enough on the preaching of the Endtime, convincing people that such beliefs are lunatic and fanatical, so with this Swiss situation he now seems to be giving it all he's got. The Order of the Solar Temple believed the end of the world was coming soon, and preached it, and when they died it did come for them. Now our enemies are trying to say that our beliefs will lead us to the same sad ending. One of our major messages, the Endtime, is now being portrayed by the AC media as something absolutely crazy and utterly fanatical.
5. They not only want to make it look like the Endtime message is dangerous, because, they say, it makes people want to escape this world by mass suicide or murder, but now they're even implying that living together communally is also dangerous because of the peer pressure of the collective group influence. However, their major concern is not that a few people are going to be murdered or take their lives; that's only a cover-up for their true motive, which is to stop us, who they consider their greatest and most dangerous opposition, from making such an impact on the world through our preaching of the Endtime message.
6. They know that if they can scare people into passing laws outlawing communal living, then they can also greatly hinder our mass distribution of the Endtime message. You can't be nearly as effective or do so much if you are only one individual or one little family off on your own with a 9-to-5 job and your kids in public school and hardly any time to think of anything but making ends meet. So it's no wonder the Enemy is trying to prejudice people against communal living. It's almost unbelievable that in a supposedly free world, they would have the gall to try to stop Christians from living together!
7. The message the Antichrist and his forces are trying to get out loud and clear is: "Don't listen to these crazy and fanatical Christians who come around talking about the Endtime being here and warning you of its dire consequences. It's a bunch of baloney and religious nonsense, and you will become crazy, too, if you listen to it!" It is amazing to what extent the Enemy is willing to go to keep our message of the Endtime and of his involvement in it from getting out to the world. We must be having a great impact, along with other Christians who are faithfully preaching it.
8. There seem to be quite a few Christians in the US now who are actively preaching the Endtime, although from what I understand, most of them don't expect it all to end quite as early as we do. However, we are probably the only international group which is actively promoting the Endtime worldwide and getting this message out to the public on every continent. So we know that the Devil is most intent upon stopping us, and that this attack is most directed at us!
9. The anti-cult and anti-Christ forces are warning the world that they should be highly suspicious of any groups of people who are living together. Their message is, "Don't believe what these people tell you about what they are doing, no matter how good it sounds, no matter how sweet they act, no matter how polite they may be, no matter how quiet and orderly they appear, because underneath all of this nice surface appearance there is probably something very sinister going on!"
Believing in the Endtime Does Not Cause People to Become Suicidal!
10. What the Enemy's forces are telling the world is that everyone who believes in the Endtime is crazy and dangerous, and subject to mass suicide because they believe the world is getting worse and the world as we know it is coming to an end. So they brand them as "out of touch with reality," and therefore dangerous. But their logic is horribly flawed. It's nonsensical to say that just because a tiny handful of folks who happen to have some kind of cultic Endtime beliefs may have committed suicide, or may have been murdered, that the millions of others who believe in the Endtime are going to act in a similar manner.
11. That's as good as saying that everyone who faces a bleak dark future of horror and pain is going to take their own life, because they can't stand to face it. But what about terminally ill patients? Knowing the terrible suffering they are going to have to go through, how many of them commit suicide? A very minimal number. And how many people who are facing (or even in the middle of) a horrific war in their country, knowing all the anguish, suffering and terrible destruction that is going to take place (or that is taking place), commit suicide? A very small percentage.
12. So just because you believe firmly that something very bad is about to happen does not mean you are going to commit suicide! Most people bravely face it, including us. Even though we believe something bad is coming, we believe something much better is soon to follow, praise the Lord! So we have even greater strength than most to courageously face future troubles. We have the power of the Lord and a conviction that we need to stay here on this Earth to help others through the difficult times until the glorious appearing of Jesus, Who will make everything right, and wipe away all tears.
13. So while we're willing to dedicate our lives to the Lord and lay down our lives in sacrificial service to Jesus and others, giving till it hurts for our brethren and the lost, and "dying daily" as we decrease and He increases, we certainly are not by any stretch of the imagination suicidal--as we've made clear many times before. We are not depressed, we are not in despair, we do not fear the future and we do not wish to die--only to live to show others the way. Yet there is more than one lying voice in the media, trying to frighten the authorities and the public by saying that the Family is the next tragedy about to happen.
Don't Cower and Compromise!--Stand Up for the Truth!
14. So, for you who are out in the public day after day, you may be facing some major antagonism and questions as a result of this current anti-cult media campaign, but do not water down your message! Remember, that is exactly what the Devil is trying to get you to do! So go on the attack in the power of the Spirit, be proud of who you are and what you stand for, and Whose coming Kingdom you are preaching, and God will bless you for your courage and conviction. Of course, you need to ask the Lord for His wisdom in answering people's questions, and seek His guidance in all that you do. As well, you should make sure you've established good will with your neighbors and local officials, which will go a long way in helping to allay their fears.
15. Every time a major worldwide attack like this happens, it looks like our very existence is in jeopardy, and of course that is what the Enemy means to do: Stamp us out. But God is greater!--And He is soon going to stamp out the Enemy and his anti-Christ forces when Jesus returns for His Own and lets loose His judgments on this wicked world! Remember, God, Who has promised that what He has begun in us He will continue to perform until the End, will not allow His work to fail! He has promised that in spite of world persecution, in spite of world recession, in spite of incidents like Waco and this situation in Switzerland, we will triumph and we will win! So keep trusting and keep praising! There are still great things ahead. Praise the Lord!
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family