A look back at the prescient warnings of a lesser-known
spiritual leader

>From the very start of his work, when the Church was called the
Radio Church of God, Herbert W. Armstrong realized in his study
of the Bible that he must warn about a coming religiously
dominated European superpower just before the return of Jesus
Christ to Earth.

In a July 24, 1983, letter he wrote, “The very first issue of
the Plain Truth magazine appeared February 1934–just 50 years
ago lacking about six months. The article starting on the cover
page warned of a coming sudden appearance of a resurrected ‘Holy
Roman Empire’ in Europe–a union of 10 nations in Europe under
one government, with one united military force. For 50 years I
have been crying out to the world the Bible prophecies of this
coming ‘United States of Europe’–a new united superpower
perhaps more powerful than either the Soviet Union or the United
States!”

That warning continued, unabated, right up to Mr. Armstrong’s
death in 1986.

Knowing that the Bible prophesied a final resurrection of the
Holy Roman Empire, Mr. Armstrong took special care to watch
those men who were critical to the planning and formation of the
European Union. In the late 1970s, he identified a man we should
watch carefully: John Paul II. The appointment of a Polish
pope–the first non-Italian pope in over 400 years–was like an
electric jolt to the entire world, Catholic and non-Catholic
alike. It was clear to Mr. Armstrong that the return of Jesus
Christ was drawing near and that this pope, more than any before
him, was setting the stage for the most climactic time in
history and preparing the Roman Catholic Church for its role in
end-time events.

>From our perspective, another man deserves careful scrutiny as
well: Herbert Armstrong. The prophecies we often write
about–the coming together of the European superpower, the
growing alliance between Russia and China, the soon-coming
return of Jesus Christ–were covered by him for over 50 years
before the Trumpet even existed. Our prophetic understanding is
grounded in his work. His instructions to watch the pope as we
lead up to the return of Jesus Christ provided an education that
far excels that of any news commentator.

Today, both John Paul and Herbert Armstrong are dead, but the
actions they took have prepared the way for the prophetic
fulfillment of the return of Christ. By reviewing these
actions–and Mr. Armstrong’s comments on Bible prophecy during
that critical period–we can see exactly how right Mr. Armstrong
was to watch the pope.

John Paul II

Karol Wojtyla prepared the way for Europe’s unification, east
with west. Read Mr. Armstrong’s comments on this pope’s first
trip to Poland, in 1979, and the eventual outcome: “Many of …
Pope John Paul ii’s activities point to the fact that he can be
the pope that will initiate this European reunion, in a ‘United
States of Europe.’ As a matter of fact, his having come from
Poland, and the effect of his visit there, indicate that instead
of the coming ‘resurrected’ Holy Roman Empire including such
nations of Israelitish ancestry as Holland, Denmark, Norway and
Sweden, the 10 nations to compose it may include such
nations–now Russian satellites–as Poland, Czechoslovakia,
Romania and Yugoslavia. The latter two are long since, to a
considerable degree, independent of the Kremlin. The Soviet
Union may soon experience a breakaway of some of the Balkan
satellite nations. It does seem that the nations of Israelitish
ancestry, in western and northwestern Europe, would likely be
excluded from the coming 10-nation ‘Roman Empire’” (co-worker
letter, Sept. 20, 1979).

In 2004, just as Mr. Armstrong foretold, eight former Eastern
bloc countries were admitted to the European Union–including
Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia. Romania and
Croatia are currently in the application process. As Mr.
Armstrong stated, John Paul ii precipitated the unification of
Eastern Europe with its western counterpart.

The pope also started Europe down the path to religious
unification. Mr. Armstrong often talked about how a united
Catholic Church would drive Europe, even over the objection of
its political leadership. “Bible prophecy says this European
unification will be also a union of church and state (Revelation
17). Many European political leaders do not want religious
domination, or even participation. But they are coming to
realize they cannot be welded together into one great European
supernation without the unifying power of the Catholic Church”
(member and coworker letter, Nov. 22, 1982).

John Paul II made a habit of being “the first pope ever” to
visit certain areas, and his reasons were no secret. He wanted
to heal the breach in Europe between the Roman Catholic Church
and the Orthodox churches–a split rooted in a dispute over the
infallibility of the pope that goes all the way back to the
ninth century. Mr. Armstrong made reference to this dispute:
“The Catholic Church is divided between the Roman Catholic
Church in the west and the Greek Orthodox Church in the east.
The latter has strenuously objected to supremacy of the pope and
to the doctrine of papal infallibility. But on this trip we
learned in Athens that the Eastern Orthodox church at last is
willing to give in on papal leadership, though not yet in
agreement on infallibility. I feel sure some compromise or
agreement will be reached very soon” (ibid.).

John Paul II spent the rest of his life trying to bring the
daughter churches back into the fold. In a May 25, 1995,
address, “That They May Be One,” he stated, “How can unity be
restored after almost a thousand years? This is the great task
which the Catholic Church must accomplish, a task equally
incumbent on the Orthodox Church.” But while his life was spent
working toward the unity of the Catholic Church, his death was
the single greatest catalyst toward achieving that goal. Look at
how John Paul’s funeral, the greatest media event in history,
brought the world together. Mr. Armstrong’s statements on
Catholic unity are right on the verge of coming to pass (see
“Returning to the Fold” on page 18). Any actions Pope Benedict
xvi will take toward further reconciliation with Protestant and
Orthodox religions were made possible by John Paul II.

He Was Right

And yet, on occasion, someone will point out that Mr. Armstrong
was not always correct in stating how quickly prophecy might
unfold. Remember though, the Apostle Paul believed he would be
caught up in the air at Christ’s return as one of “we which are
alive” (1 Thessalonians 4:15). When the Apostle John said, “It
is the last time [hour],” he truly believed that Jesus Christ
was returning shortly. These men, obviously faithful servants of
God, were off in their timing by almost 2,000 years.

When the Great Tribulation comes before the return of Jesus
Christ, no one will think about the timing of Mr. Armstrong’s
comments. They will remember that everything he said came to
pass exactly as he said it would in 1934, as well as the words
the apostles Paul and John penned so long ago.

How far away does a European superpower seem now? With a
Europe-focused conservative new pope, a phenomenon the Trumpet
has continually warned we should expect at this time, how
probable does it seem that the European superpower will take its
final form speedily?

This is not the time to say, as Christ warned against in Matthew
24:48, “My Lord delayeth His coming!”

Far from being wrong in his prophetic statements, Mr. Armstrong
has been proven right again and again. He saw the formation of
the European superpower on the horizon before anyone else did.
He pointed out, decades in advance, that John Paul could be the
pope to initiate the reunion of east and west in Europe. In the
midst of the Cold War, the headline “Why Russia Will not Attack
America!” only ran in one magazine: the Plain Truth. His
analysis of world events was consistently decades ahead of those
around him. For far more proof of this, please request a copy of
our sample Trumpet edition titled “He Was Right,” which
illustrates this fact in detail.

Before Jesus Christ came to Earth the first time, John the
Baptist was sent to prepare the way. Now, a man in this modern
age has prepared the way for Jesus Christ’s Second Coming, which
will have a far more dramatic outcome for everyone alive–in
fact, for everyone who has ever lived. The announcement given
during Christ’s first coming of the good news of His coming
Kingdom is about to be realized! And, just as prophesied in
Malachi 4:5, the world has been prepared before the coming of
that “great and dreadful day of the Lord.”