Sarah takes a few moments break from preparing for the feast. She gathers Isaac into her arms and gazes upon him, her mind considering the day’s importance. Sarah met the day with mixed feelings. For most of her ninety years she watched as the women she grew up with bore children, nursed them through their baby years, and raised them to adulthood. Even the one born in their household to her handmaiden is now approaching his twentieth year. Soon he will be numbered among the adult men of the clan. He will be old enough to go to war.

By God’s miraculous provision, she bore Isaac, her first and only child, in her old age. Even now, she rejoices in God’s goodness to allow her to bring this child into the world. But, she will never again experience carrying a child in her womb. She will never again experience a child nursing at her breast.

Suddenly, a noise behind Sarah abruptly interrupts her thoughts. She quickly turns her head towards the sound. There, behind the curtain, she sees him. The boy born to Hagar. The brat. Ishmael.

Ishmael taunts her. “The promised one, the promised one. You think you’ve got the promised one. He’s so puny, he’ll never live to be twenty.”

Sarah glares at Ishmael as he runs out of the tent, his mocking voice ringing in her ears. Furious, she immediately seeks out Abraham. She pleads with him, "Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac."  (Genesis 21:10)

Ishmael: Rejected!

Going back to the time shortly after Hagar conceived, the Angel of the Lord spoke to her concerning Ishmael, "He shall be a wild man; His hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand against him. And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren." (Genesis 16:12) Not a positive prophecy for Hagar to hear concerning her son. Yet, God knew a spirit of rejection would control not only this man, but also an entire race of men. Ishmael’s descendants would set themselves against the world, seeking to regain the prominent position given to Isaac’s descendants but denied to them.

Some proclaim Ishmael to be the father of the Arab race. Others disagree, claiming that the Arabs descended from Abraham through his wife Keturah or from Joktan, another descendent of Shem. The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary states, “ … after making due allowance of mixture with Joktanites and Keturahites, we may fairly regard the Arabs as essentially an Ishmaelite race.”

Mohammed: Rejected!

In the year 622 AD an angry crowd drove a man named Mohammed out of the Arabian city of Mecca, along with his family and a few followers. Their anger arose because this man, who claimed to be descendant of Ishmael, said Gabriel appeared to him and told him that the many idols the Arabs worshipped were not gods at all. He insisted they should worship the only true god, which happened to be the god of his tribe, Allah. Mohammed settled in Medina for a time where he refined his beliefs and compiled the content of his visitations by “Gabriel” into an early version of the Koran.

Mohammed returned to Mecca in 630 AD with his family and his followers, which now included the entire town of Medina. Unexpectedly, many in Mecca welcomed him back. He zealously destroyed all the idols in Mecca and in the next two years he and his disciples converted Arabs throughout the southwestern Arabian coast.

Ali and Ismail: Rejected!

Only three years later Mohammed died. His two sons died before he did, leaving no male heir to continue in his place. His father-in-law Abu Bakr became the first Caliph (follower) but he died after ruling only two years. A power struggle developed between Omar, who claimed to be Mohammed’s adopted son, and Ali, the husband of his daughter Fatima. Omar won control; Ali, Fatima, and their supporters fled, eventually settling in Egypt. Omar’s followers became known as the Sunnis while Ali’s group were known as the Shiites. Today Islam claims more than one billion followers of which 85% are Sunni and 15% are Shiite.

The Shiites experienced another leadership crises about 770 AD with the death of the Sixth Imam, Jaafar ibn Muhammad. Two groups formed from the followers of his two sons, Musa and Ismail. (Ismail being the Arabic version of the Hebrew name Ishmael.) Musa’s followers, the Imamias, became the main body of the Shiites and the Ismailis formed the smaller group.  Initially, all camps held similar theological views; they only differed on who should lead the movement.

Enter Mystery Babylon

Woven within the fabric of Islam from the early years to this day, the Sufi movement reached across Sunni and Shiite differences. Rather than breaking off into a separate sect, Sufis tended to remain within the structure of the Islamic party to which they already belonged. They acquired the name suf from their practice of wearing undyed wool to emphasize their contrition. Their mode of dress caused them to be readily identifiable as they set themselves apart from their surrounding culture.

Likewise their doctrine set them apart as they rejected the legalistic religious structure and the unapproachable god of orthodox Islam. They pursued personal experience with an approachable god. Professor E.G. Browne notes that early Sufis distinguished themselves by their “… ascetism, quietism, intimate and personal love of God, and disparagement of mere lip service or formal worship.” [1] Later Sufism emphasized the esoteric interpretation of the Koran and the knowledge of oneness with their god.

The harlot’s entrance into Islam took place in 872 AD with the arrival of Abdullah ibn Maymn. This man, well educated and acquainted with all the major religions of the world, professed devotion to orthodox Shiism, but he also claimed knowledge of mystic doctrines passed down from Ismail. He gained an audience in the Ismaili Shiite movement into which he introduced Gnostic Dualism. We cannot portray Islam as a pure religion, suddenly corrupted by Mystery Babylon. Rather, we recognize Islam as a false religion serving a false god. However, we do find that at this point in the history of Islam, the harlot injected her trademark structure of mystery and secrecy.

Abdullah founded a sect known as the Batinis with two purposes in mind. He planned to use religion to manipulate the masses and also to allow the enlightened to control and in fact occupy thrones of nations. To achieve this he installed seven degrees of initiation. Only those of the most advanced degrees would know the true objective of their sect. Abdullah believed “Imams, religions, and morality were nothing but an imposture and an absurdity. The rest of mankind. … were incapable of understanding such doctrines.”[2] This concept allowed a vast number of people to work toward a cause of which they had no knowledge.

The Fatimids

Around 909 AD, a man named Ubaidallah founded a new Fatimite Caliphate in opposition to the Sunni rulers of Bagdhad. The Fatimids ruled over conquered territory in Tunisia, Sicily, NE Algeria, and NW Libya. Soon Egypt fell under their control[ASP1] . The sixth Fatimite Caliph al-Hakim came to power in 996 and proceeded to lead the Shiite movement into a deeper forbidden union with the harlot, Mystery Babylon. Al-Hakim expanded the model introduced by Abdullah, adding two degrees to the original seven. But more importantly, he established the Dar-ul-Hikmat (House of Knowledge) in Cairo, Egypt in the year 1004. This Grand Lodge provided a center for the expansion of an Islamic version of Mystery Babylon.

During this Caliph’s administration, a significant interchange took place between Islam and Christianity. Pope Sylvester II established diplomatic contact with al-Hakim in the year 1000. In his earlier years, Sylvester, known then as Gerbert, entered a monastery at Aurillac. The abbot, recognizing Gerbert’s genius, sent him to study mathematics in Spain, which at that time enjoyed the reputation of being the learning center of the continent. Gerbert studied in the midst of a cauldron of mysticism, for Spain’s culture mingled Fatimite Mysteries, Jewish Cabalism, and Christian Gnosticism. After completing his studies Gerbert spent much of his career establishing clerical orders and libraries across Southern Europe. He also played a significant role in restoring a Merovingian dynasty (the Capet dynasty) to the French throne.

Gerbert, a student of the Mysteries, eventually held Christianity’s highest ecclesiastical position. As Pope Sylvester II, he sent a group of Chroniclers and knights to Jerusalem in the year 1001. Once there, al-Hakim, a 9^th degree Fatimite adept, provided a Byzantine Greek church for their use. We have no historical records to inform us as to the mission assigned to this group, but it appears Sylvester sent them to research and prepare the way for his vision of peace and cooperation between Christianity and Islam. Possibly Sylvester intended to facilitate the arrival in Jerusalem, the Holy City, of a Merovingian, a falsely called descendent of Jesus Christ, who would ascend to the throne of King David. One hundred years later, this came to pass when, as mentioned in the previous chapter, King Baldwin I accepted the title King of Jerusalem.

The Assassins

In the year 1078, the House of Knowledge founded by al-Hakim drew a young Persian named Hasan Saba. Hasan, raised in the Shiite tradition, converted to Ismaili doctrine and then journeyed to Cairo to study under the Fatimite dynasty. After being received in honor, he wore out his welcome by involving himself in certain plots, being arrested, and then deported. Eventually, Hasan returned to Persia and set in motion an operation that would forever change the way governments would do business.

Hasan acquired a remote fortress, known as Alamut, recruited young men, and trained them to be fearless warriors. These men were not normal warriors, for they did not fight in legions, etc. Normally, a man went on his mission alone to face a single enemy. He inserted himself into the life of his intended victim, earning his trust until the moment came he would take the victim’s life. The art of political murder came to be named after them, for they were called assassins, after their master Hasan’s name.

These men did not fear death for Hasan arranged, through an elaborate deception, for them to sample paradise during their training. He convinced them they would return to this paradise when their mission successfully ended with the death of their victim and their own death. Thus, the assassin carried out the attack publicly, openly in daylight, in a way that he would forfeit his own life as he took the life of his targeted victim.

Certainly, political murder in the course of palace intrigues already took place regularly throughout history. Yet Hasan, using his ability to strike any person of any rank in any country at any time he chose, raised this weapon to a new level. His ability to do this terrorized leaders of nations into bowing to his demands. Hasan also refined the art of inserting moles, or undercover spies, into governments he sought to control. At times an assassin whose allegiance belonged to Hasan would hold the second highest position in an opponent’s court. In all, Hasan controlled governments having great armies without mustering a large army and without fighting any major battles.

Hasan spread his movement by establishing similar outposts elsewhere. One Assassin commander, Sinan ibn Salman ibn Muhammad, took over a mountain fortress at Kahf, Syria in 1162. This particular fortress had lasting impact on Western Civilization through their contacts with the Crusaders. Maps of the Middle East created at the time of the crusades designated a mountainous region near the coast of Syria as the Country of the Assassins. Crusaders knew Sinan as the Old Man of the Mountain. Nesta Webster cites Lecouteulx de Canteleu, who wrote, “… one of the Knights, Guillaume de Montbard, was initiated by the Old Man of the Mountain in a cave of Mount Lebanon.” It seems unlikely that this knight would be the only one to be initiated into the Assassin organization. Clearly, the Knights Templar mingled with the Assassins to the degree that they took on many of their forms. Orientalist S. Ameer Ali wrote:

"From the Ismailis the Crusaders borrowed the conception which led to the formation of all the secret societies, religious and secular, of Europe. The institutions of Templars and Hospitallers; the Society of Jesus, founded by Ignatius Loyola, composed by a body of men whose devotion to their cause can hardly be surpassed in our time; the ferocious Dominicans, the milder Franciscans - may all be traced either to Cairo or to Alamut. The Knights Templar especially, with their system of grand masters, grand priors and religious devotees, and their degrees of initiation, bear the strongest analogy to the Eastern Ismailis." [3]

Nesta Webster also gives us this significant quote from Clavel, a French Freemason:

Oriental historians show us, at different periods, the Order of the Templars maintaining intimate relations with that of the Assassins, and they insist on the affinity that existed between the two associations. They remark that they had adopted the same colours, white and red; that they had the same organization, the same hierarchy of degrees, …  that both conspired for the ruin of the religions they professed in public, and that finally both possessed numerous castles, the former in Asia, the latter in Europe. [4]

Modern Terrorism

Eventually, the Assassin movement gave way as superior military strength overran its strongholds. Currently, Islamic fundamentalists comprise the greatest threat to America and to world peace. The impact of a Sunni sect known as Wahhabis overshadows that of radical Shiites. Born in Saudi Arabia in 1703, Ibn Abdul Wahhab formed a movement that would uphold sharia (Islamic law). Their rise to prominence resulted as a response to the corruption of the Ottoman Sultans. Intolerance and violence are trademarks of Wahhabi, Taliban and other Islamic fundamentalist groups. The Wahhabi sect dominates Saudi Arabia and has many followers in the Persian Gulf. Osama bin Laden, who came from a wealthy Saudi Arabian family, adheres to Wahhabi fundamentalism, as did all nineteen hijackers of the 9-11 attack.

While we have no indications that the Sunni Wahhabi sect indulges in the trappings of Mystery Babylon, we might expect the harlot would infiltrate their highest ranks, just as she has those of Christianity. We find many of the national leaders in Moslem dominated countries joined to the Harlot through freemasonry. Of course, the same can be said concerning Israel. Strange bedfellows. Christians, Moslems, and Jews – all joined to the Harlot. The Christian’s Bible, the Moslem’s Koran, the Jew’s Torah are each displayed prominently in their respective Masonic lodge where they pay homage to the Great Architect of the Universe. Whether in ignorance or intentionally they join together to worship Lucifer.

Scores, if not hundreds of years ago, sons of destruction set the course for the supreme application of Ordo Ab Chao, a confrontation between Islam on one side and Christians on the other, so that the power of both would be broken and Mystery Babylon could move into the void. Today most of the world sees Islamic fundamentalism as a destructive force. The War on Terrorism sets the stage for the great deception of a false Armageddon, which will soon take place. After the approaching inferno of World War III takes place, the world will view Christian fundamentalism, the prime initiator of the devastating war, with the same opinion.

Out of the ashes of World War III, the phoenix of the New World Order will rise. Fundamentalists of any of today’s three major world religions, whether Jew, Christian or Moslem, will all be ostracized as warmongers. That may seem like a bleak outlook, but in fact that scenario will bring about the final great revival. But that’s getting ahead of the story. Now let’s look at goddess worship and symbology in Islam.

Goddess Worship in Islam

The Queen of Heaven, not satisfied with simply establishing control through Mystery Babylon, works to create worship directed to her. Ancient pagan religions always included a supreme male god and a mother goddess who would be his consort in their pantheon of gods. Arabian archaeology points to the worship of a family of four – a male god and three female goddesses. Mohammed’s tribe, the Quraysh worshipped not only Allah, but also his three daughters, Al-Lat, Manat, and Al-Uzza. Mohammed’s mission demanded the worship of one god, Allah and no other. The Quraysh of Mecca came to Mohammed and offered him a compromise; “You will worship our gods … for a year, and we shall worship your god for a year.”

This offer sounded good to Mohammed, for he wanted the Meccans to join his movement. He inquired of Allah and returned to respond that the three goddesses were exalted intercessory angels. So both the Quraysh and the Moslems bowed before Allah and the three semi-divine goddesses. By making this concession to paganism in order to bring wider acceptance to his new movement, Mohammed achieved the same result that Constantine accomplished three hundred years earlier – compromise for the sake of unity. However, Gabriel soon came to Mohammed with a corrective revelation. It seems that Satan had whispered lies into his ears. Mohammed informed his followers that the lines he related earlier concerning the angelic goddesses were satanic verses and must be retracted. (Thus the subject of Satanic Verses, the book written by Salman Rushdie and the fatwah (death decree) placed on his life.) The compromise agreement with the Quraysh dissolved and their opposition flared stronger than ever. Nonetheless, the monotheism of Islam prevailed. For a while.

Mystery Babylon did not give up. The harlot not only inserted mystical doctrine and secret societies within Islam, she succeeded in placing a goddess representation of herself within the practice of the Moslem faithful. Over the years Mohammed’s daughter, Fatima, gained more and more adoration and devotion. Initially, historical biographies only mention her. During the years of the Fatimid dynasty she rose to sainthood and the Shiites eventually considered her divine in origin, pure, and sinless. She gained the titles of Zahra, the radiant one, Batul, virgin, Queen of Women, and Queen of Heaven. As one of the Holy Five (along with Mohammed, her husband Ali, and her two sons) Allah created her from divine rays of light at the beginning of time. Fatima’s devotees compare her to Mary, mother of Jesus, and call her Maryam.

The Koran mentions Mary 30 times, always referring to her as the mother of Jesus. Also, within the Koran we find an entire chapter devoted to Mary. Moslem scholars quote Mohammed as saying “Fatima has the highest place in heaven after the virgin Mary.” The honor given these two women manifests throughout the Moslem world in the fact that parents often give the names of Maryam and Fatima to their daughters.

One girl with the name Fatima lived in Portugal, the daughter of Mahomet Vali, of the stronghold of Alcacer do Sal. In the year 1156, a skirmish between Moslem and Portuguese knights resulted in her capture. Afterward her captor, Knight Templar Gonçalo Hermingues, the Count of Ourem, fell in love with her, won her love, and married her. Unfortunately Fatima died young, leaving a distraught widower. He subsequently named the town near his castle after his departed wife. And so we have the town of Fatima, Portugal, which became the site where the famous apparitions of the Virgin Mary would appear. Not only do millions of Catholics make pilgrimage every year to Fatima, Portugal, many Moslems also make the trek annually.

The devotion of Islam to Mary coupled with the similarities to Fatima sets the stage for unity between Islam and Catholicism. Eventually the individuals organizing the Universal Church will play this card. Bishop Fulton J. Sheen wrote:

"I believe that the Blessed Virgin chose to be known as Our Lady of Fatima as a pledge and a sign of hope to the Moslem people, and as an assurance that they, who show her so much respect, will one day accept her divine Son, too. Mary is the portal for Moslems to accept Christ."

The Star and the Crescent

Islamic apologists claim the Star and Crescent, found on top of all mosques and on the flags of most Moslem nations has nothing to do with the cultural heritage of Islam. That symbol came from a shrine for Diana and the conquering Moslems simply adopted it, well after the time of Mohammed. They prefer to view Islam as a revealed religion whose heritage lies in Judaism and Christianity. Allah, they claim, is the same as the god of the Jews and the Christians. However, in forming his new religion, Mohammed did not shed all of his pagan roots. In fact, he imported much of them, which explains why his “new” religion spread so fast across Arabia. He did not ask these early converts to change much. Just recognize this one god, Allah, who was already part of their pantheon of 360 gods, as the one, true god.

Moon god worship dominated throughout ancient Mesopotamia from Harran to Ur. The residents of Harran, Abram’s home for possibly 25 years, worshipped the moon god as its principle deity from 2000 BC to 1200 AD. Known as Nanna, Suen, or Asimbabbara throughout the Near East, the Harranites knew him as Sin. Unlike their surrounding neighbors, the nomadic Arabian tribes continued to worship a moon god rather than a sun god. Some speculate that this came about because their climate lent itself to grazing sheep at night rather than cultivating fields by day. In cultures where agriculture prevailed, the sun’s life-giving rays inspired sun worship. For a pastoral culture, the sun appeared as an enemy attacking from the sky while the moon presented itself as a friend providing light in the cool of the night.

Along with pagan rituals predating Mohammed by thousands of years, Islam imported the crescent moon and star. This symbol represents the moon god and the sun goddess and adequately represents the generative principle. Just as in Christianity, normal Islam has no place for Mystery Babylon; most Moslems practice their religion faithfully. Only the elite participate in the practices of Mystery Babylon.

God’s Opinion of Moslems

Before we close this chapter, we need to clarify that God loves Moslems, just as He loves all of mankind. The Moslems believe themselves to be God’s chosen people. Jesus quoted from Psalms, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD’S doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it." (Matthew 21:42-43) Moslems claim these words of Jesus show that Allah took the kingdom from Israel because they bore no fruit. Thereafter the Christian church bore no fruit, so Allah bestowed the kingdom to the sons of Ishmael through his prophet Mohammed. They see Ishmael as the stone once rejected, but now placed in the premier position.

Abraham did not reject Ishmael. Oh, how Abraham loved Ishmael. Yes, he loved Sarah, whom Ishmael scorned and mocked. Yes, he loved Isaac, the son of promise. But still, he loved Ishmael and grieved for him when God told him to thrust Ishmael out of his household.

However, God did not reject Ishmael. “But God said to Abraham, "Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called. Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed."” (Genesis 21:12-13)  And in this day we can say yes, God the Father loves Israel, the apple of His eye. Yes, He loves the Church of the Firstborn. But he also loves the sons of Ishmael – just as he loves all the people of the earth. He is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9b)  “And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.” (Psalm 9:10) 

In the next section, we will enter into a five-chapter study of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, beginning with Chapter 6, Separating the Two Kingdoms.