I haven’t seen the episode of Glenn Beck’s show in question, but it would seem, based upon this report by Rachel Maddow (see below), that he recently brought on a self-proclaimed end times prophet to provide context about the recent protests in Egypt and Wisconsin. Beck’s guest, Joel Richardson, is the author of a book entitled The Islamic Antichrist: The Shocking Truth about the Real Nature of the Beast. He has also written articles for Beck’s website, The Blaze. Here is a clip from a recent article entitled, “The Emerging Leftist-Islamist Revolutionary Alliance.”
…There are two things that must be understood regarding the present revolution in the Muslim world. The first is the unusual alliance between Leftist revolutionaries and Islamist revolutionaries. As Reuters reported, the protests in Amman consisted of “Islamists, leftists and trade unionists”. Their chant? “We Want Change!” The second thing that must be understood is the Messianic undercurrent of the present Muslim revolution.
While it may be difficult for some to make a connection between the religious world of Islam and the generally liberal-bent of the political left, there are in fact some foundational, shared commonalities between the two ideologies. First, both Leftist and Islamist ideologies share a populist, collectivist, and even utopian political vision. While the American ideal seeks “economic freedom”, Leftist and Islamists both seek “economic justice” or radical wealth redistribution as a definitive goal. Second, both the Leftists and Islamists are now using the vehicle of riots, violent protests and revolution to achieve their goals. A significant part of the apocalyptic dimension is that whether atheistic Marxism or religious Islamism, both ideologies also share a mutual hatred of you and me. Whether this is Israel, (the little Satan), or the United States, (the Great Satan), Leftists and Islamists long to see the demise of both.
But as we sit and watch the Islamic world explode it is also essential that we pause to take note of the eschatological and Messianic swirl underlying much of what is now taking place. The yearning of the Islamic world over the past decade has been the overthrow of what is perceived as the corrupt, Western-puppet regimes of the Arab world, but also the unification of the Islamic world under the historical Islamic government of the Caliphate. Underlying all of this is a growing turn to Messianic Mahdism. The Mahdi is Islam’s primary messiah figure, awaited by both Shi’a and Sunni Muslims. Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, chairman of the Islamic Supreme Council of America declares that, “The coming of the Mahdi is established doctrine for both Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, and indeed for all humanity.”
The Islamic Mahdi is expected by Muslims to emerge on the world stage at the end of the age in order to revive and unify the entire Islamic world under the Caliphate. Muslims also believe that the Mahdi will cause Islam to conquer the whole earth, leading to the ultimate victory of Islam over other religions and over unbelief…
Of course, I must add that this wealth-distributing agenda of the Mahdi is also a trait shared by the Biblical Antichrist. According to the Prophet Daniel, the Antichrist would utilize a form of wealth-redistribution specifically to gain the allegiance of his supporters:
When the richest provinces feel secure, he will invade them… He will distribute plunder, loot, and wealth among his followers. – Daniel 11:24
While the idea of Antichrist as wealth redistributor is likely new to some, it is certainly not a novel observation. This view was also well-established in the early church. In his celebrated work, “Against Heresies,” Irenaeus, a bishop from the early third century wrote that the “[Antichrist] pretends that he vindicates the poor.” It is fascinating to note that 1,800 years ago, this leader in the early church was well aware of the fact that the Antichrist would not truly be a man for the lower classes, but simply that he would pretend to be such a champion.
And so here we sit, watching as the Islamic world explodes into violent revolution. The Muslim masses are yearning for “economic justice” and looking for a genuine revolutionary hero. Friends, the bonfire has been lit.
And here’s Rachel Maddow on Beck and Richardson:
So, there you have it. It seems pretty clear, doesn’t it? The messiah of Islam is one and the same as our antichrist. And to believe in the importance of unions is pretty much the same as praying for the rise of the antichrist. So, to bust unions is to do the work of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ, who clearly would have sided with corporations over their workers. Got it?
Of course, there are different theories as to why those on the right would like to see unions destroyed. Here, with more on that, is economist Paul Krugman:
…Why bust the unions? As I said, it has nothing to do with helping Wisconsin deal with its current fiscal crisis. Nor is it likely to help the state’s budget prospects even in the long run: contrary to what you may have heard, public-sector workers in Wisconsin and elsewhere are paid somewhat less than private-sector workers with comparable qualifications, so there’s not much room for further pay squeezes.
So it’s not about the budget; it’s about the power.
In principle, every American citizen has an equal say in our political process. In practice, of course, some of us are more equal than others. Billionaires can field armies of lobbyists; they can finance think tanks that put the desired spin on policy issues; they can funnel cash to politicians with sympathetic views (as the Koch brothers did in the case of Mr. Walker). On paper, we’re a one-person-one-vote nation; in reality, we’re more than a bit of an oligarchy, in which a handful of wealthy people dominate.
Given this reality, it’s important to have institutions that can act as counterweights to the power of big money. And unions are among the most important of these institutions.
You don’t have to love unions, you don’t have to believe that their policy positions are always right, to recognize that they’re among the few influential players in our political system representing the interests of middle- and working-class Americans, as opposed to the wealthy. Indeed, if America has become more oligarchic and less democratic over the last 30 years — which it has — that’s to an important extent due to the decline of private-sector unions…
Sounds like something that a Satanist would say, doesn’t it?
Oh, and here, before we move on, is my favorite quote by Richardson… “In No Way Do I Believe” Obama Is The Antichrist, But “Populist, Wealth-Distributing” Mahdi “Will Employ Precisely The Same Methods As Obama.”
[More on Richardson can be found at Media Matters.]