Apocalypse Now?

Given that we are creeping closer to the Mayan calandar's predicted catastrophic date of 21 December 2012, Have you ever wondered what it’s all about? Why are we here? Where did we come from? Where are we heading? Given the chaos, crime, pollution and society’s troubles, are the old biblical prophecies correct and the hellfire and damnation scenario awaits us when the end of the world comes? Recently I read and reviewed Alpha to Omega: Journey to the End of Time for some answers.

Author Matthew Petti formulates a fascinating theory that only by knowing where we came from do we have an idea of where we are heading. In this book, he sets out to prove our true ancestors. Our flaws as humans, and our failure to change, arise from our historical thinking. Yes, we are simply repeating what we have learned. Today’s chaotic world mirrors the cumulative effects of the unchanging flaws in our most basic assumptions. Beliefs about God, our origins, human history and the hereafter are deeply embedded into the collective mind through the inheritance of age-old teachings and behaviors. The author investigates the metaphysics of faith, and why old beliefs have failed humankind in a modern world. This includes as analysis of the Book of Revelations as an indication of what may (or may not) transpire if the world continues on its headlong course of destruction.

This is a controversial book. The author delves into ancient history (including prehistory and Biblical history), archaeology, geography, myths, and legends to link together a collective mind-set or ethos for human society from those small beginnings many thousands of years ago. One may or may not believe in the supremacy of angels and the workings of heaven in human affairs, but Matthew Petti puts forward an intelligent and logical argument to substantiate his theories. He discusses his ideas of the ‘God’ spirit within humans, a controversial topic on its own, including free will and God’s will, and the concept of obedience to a higher power. To fully appreciate the author’s thinking it’s better to either have belief in some higher power and acceptance of Biblical references and characters, or else (if one is an atheist/agnostic) to suspend disbelief and simply read this book as a fascinating investigation of man’s possible superhuman and human origins. Well-researched and -argued, the book is a journey in itself for anyone interested in our physical origins and spiritual development.

I enjoyed this book because I find ancient history and man’s origins fascinating. I also decided to ask the author a few questions about it.

1. What made you write this book? You’ve done a huge amount of research and put a lot into it – there must be something driving your work.



Author Matthew Petti

My lifelong search for meaning to our existence began at the age of 22. One summer evening in 1977, while driving on an open highway, I had a thought, “There really is a God.” This wasn’t new to me, having been raised Catholic, attending 12 years of Catholic School and following all the rituals of the religion. As I began to agree with the thought, it echoed with an extreme profoundness and suddenly I found myself gasping for air as a surge of new conceptual information began to flood my mind and overwhelm me. I couldn’t assimilate all the information, but an INSATIABLE curiosity to dig deeper into the book of Revelation immediately ensued.

2. The idea of an ancient higher civilization has fascinated many people. How old do you think this civilization is, and why do you think there is so little left of their existence (apart from the monumental architecture)?

The remnants of ancient advancements dating to about 15 to 20,000 years ago, which have been found on the Yucatán Peninsula, Mesoamerica, Easter Island and Machu Picchu, just to name a few, are a thorn in the side to the archaeologists, scientists and historians who preach the linear view of evolution and human development. The problem with other theories, which attempt to explain these advancements as the result of a recent previous civilization eradicated by some sort of cataclysm, is that they cannot be supported by prevailing scientific evidence proving that never in the history of humans (1.5 million years) has the world and its inhabitants been completely annihilated.

Ancient alien theory has emerged as the only explanation to the architectural wonders discovered because it circumvents the scientific evidence. The traditional scientific viewpoint holds that mankind was strong enough and willful enough to account for many of the ancient mysteries. Ironically, the most glaring contradictory evidence is swept under the rug in an effort to maintain the support of uninformed constituents.

Meanwhile, the religious viewpoint claims a great flood occurred, which totally wiped out a society, except for eight people and hundreds of thousands of animals on board a ship, who were somehow able to completely repopulate the Earth. Once again, scientific evidence proves that this could not have happened—at least not in the last 1.5 million years— while common sense tells us that it would've been impossible to board a ship with seven pairs of every species of animals on earth.

Since there is no evidence of a supreme society in our recent history, but instead, remnants of advanced achievements, which surpass both the technologies available during those times and today, then we can assume that the gods and demigods of ancient myths were the offspring of those who survived a cataclysm of 7 million years ago.

3. Why can’t we recreate the level of achievements they left behind, given our computer advantages, and other developments that would surely outweigh the flaws you say are inherited from the past and a previous, repeated mindset.

The flaws inherited from the past have been in our misinterpretation of events and circumstances. Our repeated mindset is the battle between truth and belief. What we accept as truth is limited by what we can imagine as possible. What we imagine as possible is limited by what is presented and agreed upon. What is presented and agreed-upon is limited by the scientific and not so scientific assessment of the information and the predispositions of an authority.

4. I read authors like Andrew Collins and Graham Hancock who also share your interests. What do you think of their investigations and conclusions?

Their investigations, among others, were paramount in providing the evidence I needed to faithfully assert that science and archaeology are equally as biased in their determination of history as religion. It is equally absurd to believe in the 6000-year-old creation story as it is to believe that the Egyptians built the Great Pyramid. Thanks to them and others like them, I was able to provide my theory.

5. Your book is heavily based on the Bible, and your discussions of the angelic/divine relationship between heaven and earth reflect this. How many people think of the Bible as a history book, not just a book of inspired writings from long ago?

I'm not sure how many people, as a percentage, view the Bible as a history book. I don’t want people to think my book is really “based” on the Bible, because that might imply that I accept the literal translation. My book is a NEW way of explaining it and other pertinent mysteries relating to our past and the inevitable future to which it is bound. The book of Revelation is a cryptic message that has unveiled more than just the future to me.

6. The Book of Revelation features strongly in your work. Do you think it’s possible to avoid the apocalyptic forecast of what will come, given the nuclear arms race, the declining state of the planet, and man’s inhumanity to man? Or is it too late?

All events and circumstances are shaped by Truth to reveal the errors in our beliefs. If we really believe that we create our own destiny, then our choices and actions will affect our future both individually and collectively. All of our choices and actions are based upon our beliefs. If there are errors in our beliefs or assumptions, we will make the wrong choices, and suffer the consequences.

War, devastation and all of life's tragedies are inevitable until we completely awaken to Truth. The events, which have always been attributed to God's judgment, are really a gift that will eventually lead us back to the Omega, which is absolute fulfillment of Truth and Knowledge. So yes, the events are unavoidable but so is the return to Paradise!

Book Review: the Lost Ark of the Covenant

Lost Ark of the Covenant by Tudor Parfitt



My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Tudor Parfitt's epic twenty-year quest for the lost Ark of the Covenant is a real page-turner! According to the Bible, the Ark contained the Ten Commandments given to Moses and possessed a divine, awesome power. It was used by the ancient Israelites in battle and, by Bible accounts, had the devastating powers of a modern-day weapon of mass destruction. Regarded as the holiest object in the world by the Jewish and Islamic faiths, the Ark suddenly disappeared from Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem over 2,500 years ago and was, apparently, lost forever. The author embarked on a long, arduous, and often dangerous journey in what became an obsessive quest to track down the truth behind this fabled artefact and discover its whereabout today.

I read Graham Hancock's The Sign and the Seal: The Quest for the Lost Ark of the Covenant, which claimed to have located the Ark in Ethiopia, it having been taken there by Menelik, the son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. So, it was with renewed interest that I tackled Mr. Parfitt's account of the link between the holy drum, or ngoma, of the Lemba tribe in Zimbabwe and the Ark. Tudor Parfitt's journey takes him on a trail of ancient documents and codes from Oxford, to Jerusalem, to Africa, and even to Papua, New Guinea. It encompasses not only his obsession with the Ark, but also the dreams and ambitions of friends, helpers, and other interested parties.

The author also takes the reader on some astonishing side paths - the discovery that the DNA of the Lemba, an African tribe, links them directly to the Jews of the Middle East and specifically to the priestly tribe that would have been the guardians of the Ark; the vision that they have of their lost city Senna, and their wish to be recognized. In addition, the strange link that the Gogodala tribesmen of Papua, New Guinea have with Judaism and Israel is also fascinating and makes for one of the funniest travel accounts I have ever read, putting me in mind of Gerald Durrell. That section alone is well worth the book because one feels 'in the author's shoes' (covered with Shoosnake) so to speak!

I enjoyed the author's theory that there were multiple arks, for multiple reasons. Dealing with ancient, biblical, and tribal history is difficult. Oral traditions become twisted as ancient authors sought to portray their particular traditions or holy objects in the best possible light. One only has to read medieval and older accounts of historical figures and events to realize just how much 'tampering' went on, and that history is surely written by the victors. The book left me with unanswered questions: what happened to the Lemba after their DNA links to Israel were confirmed, and what were the results of the DNA testing on the eager Gogodala who, by all accounts, appear to be more Jewish than the Jews?

In dealing with research in Africa, I, as someone living in South Africa, have a special appreciation of what Mr. Parfitt has endured in his search. Africa is a tragic story: a continent riven by corruption, nepotism, wholesale destruction of historical assets, criminality, lawlessness, and tribalism. It's a miracle he managed to find anything in Zimbabwe, given the present state of that country. In all, a fascinating read. With the plethora of investigations into ancient history and secrets, I think readers should enjoy what riveting nuggets authors such as Mr. Parfitt have uncovered.



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