The Catholic Church wields the swollen authority with masterful finesse. And although it prides itself on its concern for the highest values, it is rather engaged in arousing fear. This is sophisticated prevention. The Church thunders and fears so that the faithful are afraid to doubt her teachings; to divide, rule and stigmatize enemies. The “Mark of the Beast” is one of many Church bogeymen, but it is around it that this text revolves. I am invariably disturbed by all sectarian tendencies, so I will not do without criticism. Along the way, I will also discuss, or rather primarily, how the mark of the beast defines the Urantia Book. After all, this categorically cuts religion off from fear. The messages show the forces of hell from a slightly different perspective and I will certainly deal with this topic in the future. Today’s one is rather narrow and, nomen omen, symbolic. In the course of his work, and thanks to the teachings of the Church, he turned out to be almost surreal, so my position will also be biting and exaggerated.
Bu!
The Catholic Church has probably always (and certainly today) and at every possible opportunity proclaimed that evil forces are only waiting until a foolish person begins to question its infallibility. Of course, he does not talk about it directly. It results from a wider manipulation, as a result of which the hierarchs managing it persuaded believers that they are the only credible representatives of God. Therefore, they know best what his will is; they alone have the right to dictate divine terms to humanity. Only they can judge and condemn people in his name. Therefore, it is they, and only they, who know who and for what divine punishment will be; and how terrible it will be. From a certain perspective, it may look as if they are claiming to be God himself.
The Church has thus established the circumstances (and when it is convenient, introduces new ones) under which evil forces can possess and destroy such a wicked person and consequently condemn to eternal suffering (or some other set of punishments that happens to be important in the Church’s traditions). Is there anyone still alive who has not heard of hell? Of course, it was the priest who received the blessed powers to judge in these matters. In order that the faithful would not be too quick to realize that all this serves the institution itself and not God in the first place, the most favorite priestly weapon – the Bible – was employed, or rather its selective, subjectively far-fetched interpretations. After all, it is a holy book, so this is what God said!
The stigma or mark of the beast is a component of the greater bogeyman, which is the devil (Satan, Lucifer, Beelzebub, etc.) — the roguish representative of these evil powers; the master of hell. When you doubt the Church, you don’t trust God; if you do not obey the Church, you oppose God, if you speak about ecclesiastical attitudes in a way that is not flattering, you blaspheme against God. All of this, and more, pushes you into the hideous hands of Satan; and then straight into the depths of hell. The Apocalypse of St. John, (because it is from it that the interpretations of the mark of the beast come from), is an ideal foundation for this type of nonsense.
They are chipping!
While preparing this material, I googled a bit to find out what the Catholic media had to say about the mark of the beast. I really did not expect what I would find.
Interpretations of the Bible are frivolous. Sometimes it is understood literally, sometimes metaphorically, but always in such a way that it suits the Church. It is no different with the catastrophic prophecies of St. John. Until now, I had lived in blissful ignorance, not knowing that the mark of the beast was nothing more than integrated circuits—chips—that would soon be forcibly implanted in humans! Why ask? Well, to mark the devil’s minions.
And the second beast was allowed to breathe life into the image of the first beast, so that this image would speak and command the killing of all who would not worship it. It compelled everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to take the mark on their right hand or forehead, so that no one could buy or sell except those who had the mark, the name of the beast or the number of its name.
13 Rev 15:17
Fear preys on uncertainty and ignorance. The Church is scaring, but science is looking for answers. Therefore, when it turns out that evidence brings certainty and facts knowledge, the Church does not get along with science. A few interpretations of the holy books later, this one becomes sinful; we learn that the clash between the infinite spirit-God and the defeated antichrist-Satan will take place through the prism of technological progress. Only loyal Catholics have a chance to come out victorious from this skirmish. The mark of the beast is not only a bogeyman, but also a dig at impertinent scientific knowledge. A sectarian combo.
Of course, I have also come across more subdued interpretations, which suggest that developing technology may become the beginning of something that will consequently be used as the “mark of the beast”. It seems like a small word, but the whole thing sounds a bit better. Other analyses completely dissociate themselves from attributing to any (especially medical, because some representatives of the Church consider these to be satanic) implants of hellish origin which unfortunately, is rather an exception that proves the rule.
In addition to chips, according to other sources, the “marks of the beast” may also be tattoos, scars or other types of visible marks, marking those who will be minions of the devil-antichrist. So, the Church is allowed to manoeuvre and can point to any symbols or markings, not necessarily religious, as sinful (and it does it every now and then), depending on your current needs.
I wonder if the hypothetical antichrist in his cunning and power could not recognize his followers in some other way. I don’t know, for example, by their deeds, or by real intentions? They must also be quite confused. After all, they will want to serve him, they are its supporters. And at the same time they are to be forced to do so? The fact that the Apocalypse of St. John does not even mention the Antichrist in a single word only completes this picture. But we are supposed to be afraid and obedient, and not godlessly look for an ounce of coherence or sense in all this. On the other hand, the followers of the antichrist do not have to be his supporters at all. It would seem that you have to be evil, in the sense that it should be externalized somehow, lived in this and not another way. Well, not exactly. The followers of the antichrist are simply those who are indicated by the priest, because for example, they have tattoos. This is an extreme example, but in such circumstances it does not matter who and what kind of person is. No matter that they have free will. Even people who are objectively good, but marked, will become Lucifer’s servants anyway. This gives you unlimited room to show off.
Reading such revelations, I have not come across conclusions that would not equate the “mark of the beast” with some form of marking (even invisible) the worshippers of the antichrist, without which trade will become impossible. People who are not his servants will thus be pushed to the margins of society. I do not even try to figure out how this ban on trade would be implemented in an increasingly capitalist-oriented world, where probably only money has such enormous power to win over seemingly uncooperative groups of people. How to stop (not necessarily legal) barter trade, if only between not chipped people? Only the antichrist seems to know.
I’m surprised that the Church hasn’t yet anathematized cashless transactions (and ATM cards with chips!). Or at least Bitcoin, whose growing popularity heralds the coming of the last days… Could it be that in the matter of finances, the church leaders decided to go with the times?
The Apocalypse of St. John is often called the most difficult part of the Bible — it contains a lot of complicated metaphors and understatements and in many places it leaves too much room for speculation. It just so happened that the quoted fragment about buying and selling is certainly not a metaphor.
In the era of ubiquitous surveillance, I myself have a rather skeptical approach to chips that are supposed to make life easier and I don’t see any way that I will be persuaded to allow myself to be chipped. However, my fears are by no means motivated by fear of the devil’s schemes; Rather, against human greed and ruthlessness.
666
There we need a wisdom here. Whoever has understanding, let him count the number of the beast: for the number is a man. And his number is six hundred and sixty-six.
13 Rev 18
The carousel of fanciful overinterpretations must be turning. So it was decided that since the Bible refers to the “number of the beast”, and “beast” sounds ominous, then the three sixes must be a symbol of the devil. This is simple and logical.
Attributing the dark energy of numbers — conventional signs used to write numbers — is a turn to medieval superstitions. And the number 666 is sometimes so absurdly demonized that any connection with it can be considered possession or another signal of service to evil powers. The faithful refuse to accept, for example, a car registration in which such a combination of digits was accidentally included! They believe that the mere contact with the sixes will give Satan permission to take over them.
Let me use an example.
Let’s imagine an average, good person. He cares about his family; He sometimes makes mistakes, but he doesn’t really hurt anyone out of malice. Maybe he will throw a breath on the poor, give 1% of his tax to a sick child. Let him be a practicing Catholic – he receives a priest after a priest’s visit, prays and every ‘holy day is holy’, just an average person. And then, suddenly and completely by chance, the number 666 appears in his life. Let it be the number of an ATM card, the address of a new house, or the customer ID of an online store. Bum! The man (perhaps suddenly, perhaps gradually) becomes a monster, and the only salvation for him is exorcism and even so, he may end up in hell.
Catholics give the three sixes a mystical aura, they outdo each other in finding new facts that would confirm the demonic meaning of number, like reckless calculations, reshuffling dates, references to (not only ancient) languages, and even attributing it to specific (of course the bad ones at the moment) countries or people. Human ingenuity knows no bounds.
Officially, the Catholic Church does not approve of such practices and interpretations, but it rather does not stand out with it. Individual priests freely approach these (and not only these) recommendations. Church leaders are also standing in a crossroads: on the one hand, they supposedly do not approve of many teachings preached by their representatives, and on the other hand, they do nothing to discipline them. As far as I can see, this is a calculated action. In countless cases, pointing out the absurdity of the Church’s teachings is criticized as unfounded, because somewhere in the depths of the Vatican records (which are the formal position of the entire Catholic Church) these nonsenses are also pointed out. What is taught every day in religion classes and in churches does not count. It stinks of silent consent to the use of another bogeyman, in this case – numerical. So what if it’s stupid as hell. The important thing is that it works.
Urantia (over) interpretations
The Urantia Book, and I will touch upon this issue more than once in the future, recommends a distance from all interpretations of sacred books, especially those of the ages.
Religious tradition is the imperfectly preserved record of the experiences of the God-knowing men of past ages, but such records are untrustworthy as guides for religious living or as the source of true information about the Universal Father. Such ancient beliefs have been invariably altered by the fact that primitive man was a mythmaker.
4:5.1 (59.6)
The above Message clearly illustrates what logic tells every reasonable person – the Bible (Koran, Vedas, etc.) cannot be considered an infallible source of knowledge. This does not mean that it is bad or that all its teachings should be rejected. On the contrary, The Urantia Book refers to both the New and the Old Testament and repeatedly sets up fragments of them as a model. However, one should be aware that all these are typically human works. And while some of the texts contained there are true, at the same time many of them were adapted to the needs of the time, or simply made up, so they have nothing to do with the divine message. Only personal experience can be a reliable religious guide. This is the only way we are able to filter which fragments of the holy books are worth attention.
Of the Apocalypse of St. John, Urantia Book says:
When in temporary exile on Patmos, John wrote the Book of Revelation, which you now have in greatly abridged and distorted form. This Book of Revelation contains the surviving fragments of a great revelation, large portions of which were lost, other portions of which were removed, subsequent to John’s writing. It is preserved in only fragmentary and adulterated form.
139:4.14 (1555.7)
If we are to believe the quoted Message, the text of the Revelation of St. John, which we have, has dubious credibility in itself. So what can be its (even more literal) interpretations?
Using the Bible as an example, The Urantia Book sometimes corrects our understanding of it by illustrating what the author actually meant. For example:
But it was of Salvington that John wrote: “And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices”—the universe broadcasts to the local systems. He also envisaged the directional control creatures of the local universe, the living compasses of the headquarters world. This directional control in Nebadon is maintained by the four control creatures of Salvington, who operate over the universe currents and are ably assisted by the first functioning mind-spirit, the adjutant of intuition, the spirit of “quick understanding.” But the description of these four creatures—called beasts—has been sadly marred; they are of unparalleled beauty and exquisite form.
34:4.12 (378.6)
The “mark of the beast” also appears in the papers. However, it means no more than the remains of animal origin that we still carry inside us. The “beast” is an early, pre-human ancestor, while the “mark” is the animal reflexes and desires that are still inside us (like fear or aggression).
And I saw as it were a sea of glass, mingled with fire, and those who conquer the beast, and the image of it, and the number of its name, standing by the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
15 Rev 2
When St. John speaks of “conquering the beast,” he is referring to people who, on the path of spiritual development, have forever rid themselves of the past—primitive, completely material instincts. This is the state we are all heading towards. The “sea of glass” is a sort of landing site for the arrival of advancing mortals from the seven mansion worlds, the school-planets encircling the capital (Jerusem) of our planetary system. “God’s harps” are devices that allow us to tune the posthumous sensory mechanism to the reception of cosmic communications.
According to The Urantia Book, man awakens in the first moment after the resurrection on one of the seven mansion worlds. In these spheres, if necessary, we will undergo compensatory training, we will continue our individual course of spiritual development. We can be “cleansed of all remnants of unfortunate inheritance, the influences of harmful surroundings, and unspiritual planetary tendencies.” During this time, the last traces of the “mark of the beast” disappear. I have said more about the mansion worlds in the course of describing the capital of Satania, Jerusem.
What about the three sixes? I have not found explanations similar to the above, but I have my own assumptions. Say the Apocalypse: “… for the number is a man. And his number is six hundred and sixty-six.” I correlated this with the following Message:
The grand universe number of your world, Urantia, is 5,342,482,337,666. That is the registry number on Uversa and on Paradise, your number in the catalogue of the inhabited worlds. I know the physical sphere registry number, but it is of such an extraordinary size that it is of little practical significance to the mortal mind.
15:14.8 (182.7)
If we assume that St. John really saw “the number of man” in his visions, it fits like a glove to the last three digits of our planet’s number. I doubt whether John was a proficient mathematician, and whether he was able to grasp so large a number at that time; perhaps he simply simplified it. If a planet has its number, it can also be safely said that it will also be the number of the inhabitants of this planet, in this case, “the number of a person”.
It is also difficult to assess how clear the visions of St. John were. Perhaps the number 666 revealed to him was actually slightly different? Maybe 606?
Your world is called Urantia, and it is number 606 in the planetary group, or system, of Satania. This system has at present 619 inhabited worlds, and more than two hundred additional planets are evolving favorably toward becoming inhabited worlds at some future time.
15:14.5 (182.4)
A prosaic clerical error is also possible. More than once it happened to me in a hurry to note down the number 0, which looks like 6.
I’m not afraid when it’s dark…
Whether or not my guess is correct, after reading The Urantia Book, it’s hard to share the Catholic Church’s fearful position, not just with regard to the number 666, but with regard to the bogeyman of the “mark of the beast,” and many, not to say in all, others. And even if we assume that the papers are just another religious clownishness of many, it’s hard to deny that the messages they contain are healthier than those of the competition.