The Enemy That Confronts Us

By Apostolos Makrakis

Delivered in the city of Athens on June 26, 1966.

The previous oration on the calling and mission of the Greek people demonstrated that the Greek nation is a chosen vessel, destined by God to carry the truth before Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; that it is the colt of Palm Sunday upon which sat the King of kings and Lord of lords in order that he may be recognized as such by both the Jews and the other nations of earth. We finally reached the following conclusion: the aim of the foreign policy of Greece con­sists in destroying the anti-Christ authority of Mohammed, and the establishment of Christian law and Christian Civilization throughout both the East and the West. Here we encounter the enemy that we must battle. You will recall that, according to what we stated in the first address, those who fight must know well four facts: 1) that for which he is battling; 2) the enemies against whom he is battling; 3) the power with which he fights; 4) the techniques of warfare and of overcoming the enemy.

You will recall that we promised to present this four-fold knowledge of our battle, and thus far we have, with God’s help, fulfilled the first part of the promise. We did this by demonstrating both logically and scientifically what the principles are for which the glorious people of Greece have been fighting for nineteen centuries, and for which we would fight, continuing the history and the undertaking of our illustrious Fathers. We now come to fulfill also the second part of the promise by pointing out who the enemy is against whom we are warring, and whom we must annihilate as soon as possible.

Before we can understand the nature of our enemy, we must first discuss what it means to be familiar with the enemy. The individual who can best answer such a question is one who is experienced in the military art. Ask a commander experienced in warfare what knowl­edge he must have of the enemy with whom he is about to engage in battle. Is it sufficient for him to know simply that he has such an enemy and a battle against a certain hostile power; or must he know well who this foe is with regard to his power, intelligence, and capability; i.e. how many and which forces he has, what use he plans to make of these forces, when and where he moves against him? A military commander admittedly must possess such knowledge of the adversary whom he plans to battle. Otherwise, if he were ignorant of such facts, he would not know how to act and would inevitably suffer defeat.

Therefore, we too ought to come to know beforehand as profoundly and extensively as possible the adversary whom we would destroy. We should learn everything about his strength and his weakness. Such knowledge alone assures us of victory; so let us speak about it. But on what basis can we discuss this subject? On the basis of the Holy Scrip­tures of God, this truly reliable oracle of our dear fatherland. God’s Holy Scriptures teach us adequately concerning everything we are interested in knowing; and in the light of Scripture we shall see who our enemy is and how we can bring about his desired destruction.

The advent and the criminal acts of the anti-Christ Mohammed, as well as the time of his rule, were vividly prophesied first by the prophet Daniel, then by St. John the Divine in the sacred Book of Revelation, and third by St. Paul in his second Epistle to the Thes­salonians. The exegesis of these three prophecies will provide us with the necessary knowledge of the enemy. Let us, therefore, begin with the interpretation of the prophecy of Daniel.

In the first year of the reign of Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, Daniel saw the following dream: [see Daniel 7:3] he beheld in a vision, he relates, that the four winds of heaven from the four directions of the horizon were beating upon the great sea which we call the Mediterranean. He saw four great beasts come up from the disturbed sea, one diverse from another. The first beast was a lioness. It had the wings of an eagle, which after a while were plucked and fell; the beast was lifted up from the earth and stood upon its feet as a man, while it received a human heart. The second beast which came up was a bear; it had in its mouth three ribs. As it stood in a certain place, it was told: “Arise and devour much flesh!” The third beast to emerge was a leopard. It had four wings of a fowl and four heads, and dominion was given to this beast. The fourth beast which came out of the sea was formidable and terrible, and extremely powerful.

Nature has no beast similar to the fourth one, and it remained un­named. It had teeth of iron; it tore things asunder, stamped upon the other beasts with its feet, and devoured them. While exceeding by far the three other beasts in strength and beastiality, it also had ten horns. Among the ten horns, there was seen growing a small horn which first extracted three horns found in front of it, and then sur­passed all the other horns in height. This horn had human eyes and a mouth uttering great and blasphemous words against God. This beast, moreover, even fights the saints and overcomes them. Afterwards Daniel saw that thrones of judges were set up, and that the “Ancient of days” presided over the tribunal. His raiment was as white as snow; the hair of his head was as pure fleece; his throne was aflame; and his wheels were a flaming fire. A rivet of fire flowed before him. Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him, and myriads upon myriads stood at his side.

The dreadful beast is tried together with the blasphemous and arrogant horn and is condemned to the consuming fire. Besides this, the rule of the other beasts is abolished. Then Daniel saw someone like the Son of man coming upon the clouds of heaven and approach­ing before the throne of the ”Ancient of days.” To him there was given sovereignty, honor, and the kingdom; and all nations, races, and tongues shall be subjected to him. His authority is an eternal one which shall not pass away, and his kingdom will not suffer decay.

This vision brought horror and disturbance to Daniel. He drew near to one of the by-standers and asked of him the significance of the vision. The angel answered: These four beasts depict four kingdoms which will come and will pass away. After these things, the saints of the Most High assume the reign and will retain it forever. Following this general interpretation of the vision, Daniel sought more particular explanations concerning the fourth beast and the horn which had extracted the three horns – the horn which had eyes and a mouth speaking great and blasphemous things, and overpowering the saints until the time of the judgment, when the Ancient of days gave the kingdom to the saints of the Most High.

Then the angel said: “The fourth beast depicts the fourth kingdom upon earth which would surpass all the others, and tear asunder, trample upon, and devour the whole earth. Its ten horns represent ten kings. That one horn depicts a king who would surpass in wicked­ness all the others. He would humble three other kings and speak out against the Most High, and set at naught the saints of the Most High. This king would undertake to change the times and the law, and would prevail as long as he could. When this age passes away, how­ever, the authority of the beasts shall be abolished with judgment and justice, and the saints of the Most High shall take over the kingdom. This kingdom is an eternal one, and all rulers shall be subdued and shall obey the Son of man.” No more is said about the vision. That is Daniel’s dream, and its exegesis. Now let us forthwith take the record of history in our hands and see how much of this dream was actualized in time and how much remains yet unfulfilled.

The prophecy states that the four beasts are four kingdoms which will rise up on earth and then will be taken away. Since the time of the prophecy to this day, history records four kingdoms. The first is that of the Assyrians and the Babylonians, depicted by the lioness which. has two wings of an eagle. The second is that of the Medes and the Persians, depicted by the bear which has three ribs in its mouth. For the Persians devoured, so to speak, the Medes, the Assyrians, and the Babylonians, and subjected many nations on the three continents. This is why this bear was addressed with the words, “Rise and devour much flesh.” The third kingdom is that of Alexander the Great, depicted by the leopard. This beast had four wings and four heads because immediately after the death of Alexander, the one kingdom was divided into four powers, that of Egypt, that of Syria, that of Asia Minor, and that of Macedonia.

The fourth kingdom is that of the Romans, depicted by the fourth beast which was frightening and exceedingly powerful. This kingdom surpassed all the others, and just as the prophecy foretold, it tore asunder, trampled upon, and devoured the whole earth. The fourth beast had ten horns which signify many kingdoms situated, as if were, on the fourth beast and fourth kingdom. History relates that from within the great Roman Empire there sprang up many kingdoms, naturally independent, but bound to one another by means of treaties and governed according to the law of checks and balances. The prophecy foretells that from among the ten kingdoms there is to emerge a kingdom surpassing all the others in evil. This kingdom initially grows as a small horn; but it uproots three horns found in front of it, and grows larger than all the others. This horn speaks blasphemous words against God; it wages war against the saints, conquers them, sets them at naught, and seeks to change the times and the law.

History relates that when the world-wide rule of Rome fell and there sprang up from within the Roman Empire many kingdoms, then also there emerged the anti-Christ Mohammed as a king and prophet in Arabia. Although this man enjoyed little power at the outset, he nevertheless overcame three kingdoms founded before him, viz. that of the Persians, that of the Crusaders which had been established in Jerusalem; and that of the Visigoths in Spain. Having gained control over Asia, Africa, and Europe as far as the Pyrenees, his dominion expanded beyond that of all other kingdoms, and he began to fight the saints of the Most High, i.e. the Greek Orthodox people. Moham­med continued this war until he prevailed against the Greeks and set them at naught by capturing Constantinople. He tried with all his might to replace the Gospel with the Koran, and spoke blasphemies against God the Father and God the Son.

The prophecy foretells that the blasphemous horn depicting the anti-Christ Mohammed will reign for a period of time and periods of time and still half a period. By a period of time is meant three-hundred-sixty years, for approximately that many days make up one year. By periods of time is meant twice three-hundred-sixty years, and by half a period, one-hundred-eighty years. Now the sum of the three periods of time and the half period totals one-thousand two-hundred sixty years. And in the Book of Revelation the period of time and periods of time and the half period totals one-thousand two-hundred sixty days, understood in lieu of years. Thus, according to the prophecy, the Mohammedan authority and deception will last one-thousand two-hundred sixty years, after which it will cease to exist, and the saints of the Most High will take over the kingdom. History dates the appearance of Mohammed between 612-622 A.D. Now from 612 to 1866 A.D. there are one-thousand two-hundred fifty-four years. In the light of this fact, our enemy has six years left to live, or sixteen yean the most, if the era of Mohammed is dated from 622 A.D.

But I know this also, that God has time at his own command; that He extends and shortens it according to the disposition of those who call upon Him. God is able to change the six or sixteen years into as many months, if we ask this of Him with faith. And again, if we do not turn to Him for mercy and judgment, the time will be extended according to the measure of our wickedness. Holy Scripture confirms this statement with many parables: in the second year of their exodus from Egypt, the sons of Israel were ordered to go into the promised land and to occupy it. However, because they were fearful and dis­obeyed the voice of the Lord, they were condemned to wander in the wilderness for forty years. It was because of their unbelief that the time for the occupation was extended to such a degree.

After this, Joshua, while fighting the Canaanites, requested the prolongation of the day, saying: “Let the sun stand still.” And the sun did stand still, and the day was extended just as the chosen one of God requested. The prophet Elijah announces to the king Ezekias that the day of his death is approaching, and that he should set in order his household affairs before dying. The king Ezekias prays and his life-pan is extended another fifteen years.

Christ too says that for the chosen ones of God, the evil days are cut short; we see this shortening of time in his Resurrection. For according to the prophecy and the sign of Jonah, He should have remained in the heart of the earth three days and three nights, i.e. from Friday when He was crucified until one day after the Sabbath, or Sunday when He was resurrected. Accordingly, Jesus was in the tomb only two nights and one day. Thus the time was cut short for the glory of Christ: For if the days are lessened for God’s chosen ones, how much more ought this to have been done for the Son of God? All these apocalyptic facts convince us that God who is the Sovereign Lord, holds time in His own hand; that He either prolongs or lessens it according to the disposition and supplications of those who call upon Him.

It depends upon us, therefore, whether the survival of our adversary will be cut short or lengthened. In accordance with the cited prophecy, this enemy is a formidable criminal, condemned to death by the “Ancient of days.” And he will perish very quickly, if we act. according to the will of God and ask of Him mercy and judgment. Our adversary has nothing else in his favor except our faithlessness or little faith. In order that we may destroy him as quickly as possible, we must strengthen ourselves in the faith. For through faith all the saints “conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, received promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.” [Hebrews 11:32] The utterance of God is worthy of faith, for the words of the Lord are pure, silver-tested in fire, proven seven times over to be genuinely clean. The souls of foolish and demented people alone reject and disbelieve the words of God.

For how can one, while even half-witted, disbelieve in God’s word, since time has consistently actualized the dreams of the holy prophets? It is only those things which the prophets foresaw, whether good or bad, that become fact; and every attempt, every activity whatever tend­ing to thwart the prophetic word proves itself vain. Demosthenes toiled in many ways in behalf of the Athenians against Philip· and Alexander, hut he achieved nothing because his policy was contrary to the prophecy of Daniel. The Popes and the Crusaders struggled hard against the anti-Christ Mohammed, but accomplished nothing because they were in opposition to the prophecy of Daniel which foretells the rise of Mohammed and sets the time of the rule of the blasphemous horn. The Byzantine Graeco-Romans also suffered great hardships to save themselves from capture by the· barbarians; but it was impossible for them to escape from being defeated and being set at naught. For this is what Daniel had foretold, seeing that the horn of blasphemy waged a war against the saints and overcame them.

Indeed then, how can the so-called Eastern Question [which referred to the border question raised by the liberation of the Orthodox subject people under Ottoman rule] be resolved other than in the manner foreseen by the prophet? The prophet foresaw that the horn of the anti-Christ Mohammed waged war against the saints and overcame them. The prophet also foresaw that the ”Ancient of days” condemns the criminal to death, and renders justice to the saints who were wronged. More simply said, the prophet foresaw that the glorious polis of Constantine [Constantinople] was taken away from us unjustly and righteously returned to us. The first part of the prophecy, i.e. the worse part, was fulfilled. How is it possible for the second part of the prophecy, which is the better one and that which glorifies the justice of God, to remain unfulfilled or to be fulfilled in a manner contrary to the prophetic word? For this reason we can see that every attempt and all efforts tending to belie the prophecy is proved futile.

The Eastern Question cannot be resolved either in a Russian, or English, or French, or diplomatic, or Masonic manner. We shall qualify these expressions. The Russian solution to the Eastern Ques­tion consists in the occupation of Constantinople with Russian arms and the establishment there of Russian rule. But such a solution is chimerical and impossible because it is contrary to the vision of the prophet who foresaw that after the condemnation of the blasphemous horn, the saints of the Most High would assume control of the king­dom. Now ask of the prophet, whom does he mean by the saints? He responds, those conquered by the anti-Christ Mohammed. For the prophet proclaims that the horn of blasphemy waged war against the saints and overcame them. By saints, then, the prophet does not mean the Russians, for the Russians were never conquered by the Turks. On the contrary, the Russians were victorious in wars against the Turks. It is also clear that neither the French, nor the British nor the Germans, nor the Italians are meant here, for these nations were not overcome by the horn of blasphemy. Thus the prophet and the justice of the “Ancient of days” refer to us; and if God is with us, no one is against us. Pan-Slavism so-called [the aspiration of Russia in the nineteenth century to gain ascendancy throughout the Balkan peninsula and over the entire Orthodox Church in the Middle East] is in my estimation a hobgoblin which frightens foolish and childish minds, but not those who under­stand the power of the prophetic word. Pan-Slavism is a chimera, for it has no relation to reality.

Let us now ask: in what does the British solution of the Eastern question consist? The British solution of the Eastern Question consists in the perpetuation of Turkish rule in the Middle East. To have the Turks prevail to such a degree that they keep the peoples of the East in bondage and miserable suffering is here understood as a British expediency. This is what the British solution of the Eastern Question consists. This solution is nothing else but the perpetuation of injustice, another chimera, which also contradicts itself and the prophet’s vision. The prophet envisioned only the temporary preponderance of injustice, not its perpetuation. It was the perpetuation of justice alone that he foresaw, for he states: “The saints of the Most High shall take possession of the kingdom, and shall hold it forever.” Since, therefore, the prophet envisioned the temporary prevalence of injustice, the British policy concerning the Eastern Question will be effective only until the time of the horn’s rule is fulfilled.

The French solution consists in the formation of small independent governments under French protection, viz. that of Moldovlachia. Since the prophet, however, neither foresaw nor wrote about such a solution, it should be classed together with the other chimerical ideas which do not correspond to reality. The diplomatic solution consists in the civic equality of the Chati-Choumagioun which the lofty diplomatic intelli­gence sanctioned and the high rule of the Sultan ratified. But this solution is realistic on paper alone – not with regard to actual nations and cities.

Now in what does the recently emerged Masonic solution consist? This solution proposes the syncretism of all the nations of the West and the East into one fold with no shepherd. Masonry is distinctively opposed to Christianity, because the Christian Gospel seek to syncre­tize all the nations of the earth into one fold under one shepherd; Christ, whom, according to the prophecies, all the races and all the nations of the earth shall obey and serve. Masonry, on the contrary, seeks to syncretize all the nations and countries into one fold with no shepherd. The senselessness and absurdity of such people is so obvious that further censure at this point is superfluous. These people want a state without religion, and preach Gospel ethics divorced from the faith and love of Christ. O wretched Masons! If you are not with Christ, your portion is with the Devil, and it cannot be otherwise. I pity those Greeks who became victims of this infernal system of atheism, things – the fools! – that thereby they would serve the inter­ests of Hellenism of which they are altogether ignorant. For if they did know better, they would not fight against Hellenism by becoming asses and Masons.

Let all people, therefore, learn that the Eastern Question cannot be solved according to any of these chimerical plans which are opposed to the most true vision of the prophet Daniel. The Eastern Question shall be resolved as quickly as possible in a truly Greek manner, for the Greek way in every way corresponds with the prophetic vision. Whatsoever the Greek nation has in mind concerning the solution of the Eastern Question, these things also did the prophet foresee. The Greek nation is conscious of the fact and confesses that it is a holy people, chosen by God and carries the pure and unadulterated truth of the faith before Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel. The prophet confirms the Greek sentiment, for he calls those people holy whom the horn of the anti-Christ fights and humiliates.

The Greek nation ardently wants to glorify God in the Church of the Holy Wisdom of God (Santa Sophia) which has been defiled by the barbarians of bad faith. The prophet supports the hopes of the Greek nation, for he states that the “Ancient of days” from His glori­ous throne of justice condemned the anti-Christ to consuming fire, and gave the kingdom over to the saints of the Most High, from whom it had been taken. Since the Greek. way, therefore, in no way differs from the prophetic way, and since we desire those things which God ordains, I conclude that the solution of the Eastern Question shall be in favor of the people of God for the benefit of the whole of humanity. Next Sunday, in direct relation to today’s subject, we shall expound upon the prophecies of St. John the Divine and of St. Paul who was raised ”to the third heaven.”