2007: Year of the Antichrist?

Did you know that Iranian Shiites believe Jesus is returning soon? That’s right—except they believe he’ll be returning as a footman for their Messiah, the Mahdi, who sounds ominously like the Beast of Revelation. We’ve devoted more than a few posts to this alarming development.

Now our friend Joel Rosenberg—who for our money has the best handle around on these things—is reporting that the Iranian loony toons are expecting their Mahdi to arrive as early as this spring and to conquer Arabia, Syria and Iraq, destroy Israel and then set up a global government. Joel warns not to fall into the trap of believing that these people can be reasoned and negotiated with. “Nothing could be further from the truth,” he writes in his latest posting:

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his cadre of loyal mullahs are not being driven by the same goals and aspirations as are the diplomats in Washington, Brussels or at the United Nations. The President of Iran and his team fervently believe the Islamic Messiah is coming back soon, possibly as soon as this Spring. They are convinced that their divine mission is to create the conditions for the Mahdi's return. As a result, they are committed to instigating more anti--American violence in Iraq, not less. They are determined to obtain nuclear weapons at all costs, not negotiate away their atomic research and development program. What's more, they are deeply committed to building political and military alliances with anti-Western powers, not finding accommodation with the West.

Bottom line: the leaders of Iran are preparing for an apocalyptic war with the U.S. and Israel. It's not a question of "if" but "when." The sooner the White House and our new Congressional leaders realize this and take decisive action to stop this nuclear nightmare, the better.

Read the rest here.

Meanwhile, we’re starting to dig into what we believe may be the most significant book for 2007, Joel’s Epicenter: Why the current rumblings in the Middle East will change your future. Book report eventually to follow.