From Israel To Italy

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” Gal.5:1

During a holiday in beautiful Austria, we were encouraged to visit a delightful town on the shores of a lake, Zell am See. It is a well known ski resort and is located in a beautiful setting, with towering mountains all around. We were enjoying a welcome break after 8 years in Italy, where we have been challenged in many ways and especially in the Christian spiritual realm. While walking around this town, we came across the Catholic Church which dates back many centuries, (as many of these
churches do!). As part of our stay in Italy is evangelizing Italians, we have spent many months of study in an effort to get to grips with the reason for such spiritual oppression in that country. Many friends and visitors have commented that they “feel” oppressed in their spirits whenever they come to Italy. We are now realizing more and more that the Vatican
and, therefore, the Catholic Church play an enormous role in this. One can argue the point, but the religion of any country has an effect on the whole population. Whether one has separation of Church and State or not, the religious beliefs of the country’s political establishment shapes the way a country is run through it’s laws and other things. If one has a very strong spiritual influence like the Vatican has in Italy, then that shapes not only the political system but also the psyche of the population. The purpose of this blog is not to go into details of this, except to give two simple examples :

1. One of the first “duties” of a newly elected Italian Prime Minister is to visit the pope (sic).
2. By law, Italians have to sign away a percentage of their tax to either the Catholic Church or two other religious establishments. It is called the “Otto per mille” or “Eight per thousand”. In other words,eight euro out of every thousand euro paid in tax goes to the designated institution. There will be a more detailed blog on this later.

So what has all this to do with the photo? Quite a lot.
I walked into the church to see what was inside.As I turned to walk out, this sculpture caught my eye.It was at the back, almost hidden.Above it, to the left was a statue of the “madonna” holding what is supposed to be baby Jesus.The contrast was enormous.On the one side , this pathetic representation of our Glorious Lord and on the other a jewel studded statue of the “mother” of Christ.

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. In a flash of intuition, I suddenly realized:”this is it!!” I have yet to see anything graphic that condenses everything that I have studied over these few years regarding the spiritual bondage of catholics,
and sadly, more and more Protestant denominations than this statue.
Jesus, the Anointed One, is still considered as a dead figure on a cross or as a baby in the arms of a woman.
Yet He is the soon returning Glorious, Resurrected, God the Son.
The problem in Italy and other predominantly catholic countries is that Yeshua Mashiach is held captive in the minds of people. Catholics will more than likely pray to other “gods” or “godesses”, (read saints and madonnas), than to the True and Only God.
The striking thing about this sculpture was not only that the representation of the Lord was chained to the wall, but that it was behind bars too!
Almost as if to say, “We must make doubly sure that Jesus is not freed, just in case the truth comes out and we lose an empire of a billion plus subjects.”
If you think I am exaggerating, come and experience Italy for yourselves.
This is the reason that we pray and intercede for a Holy Spirit led Reformation in Italy. May the King of Kings break the chains of religious bondage and apostasy so that hundreds of million of prisoners will see the light and experience the glorious freedom from sin.
Grace and shalom

Catholic Evangelical Islam Italian Culture Judaism New Age Religion The Hebrew Worldview The Serenissima Ministry Group

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It may seem a strange title seeing that I have never been to Israel and that I lived most of my life in Africa. Born and grew up in Kenya and then South Africa. But it reflects the the spiritual journey that Israel’s Messiah has mapped out for me. For a more detailed bio, read the Africa link.
It all began on the 5th of January 1975 in Cape Town , South Africa. That fateful night when the Holy Spirit convicetd me that I was a sinner and where I met the Saviour.
Born of Italian parents, baptized as a baby, christened (I still have the photos of the Bishop of Nairobi laying hands on me) and grew up as a Catholic. Like 95 % of my countrymen, I believed that I was a Christian, albeit not a good one, but as long as I went to confession & communion I would be OK. Nobody told me about repentance as a 180 degree turnaround, new birth, sanctification.I learned to blaspheme the Lord when I was 15 years old . (There is a separate blog on italy and blasphemy under Italian Culture).BUT GOD, I like this expression in the bible !BUT GOD, so loved me that He gave His only begotten Son that I should not perish but have life eternal- John 3:16. So Israel’s Messiah took hold of my life that night and 30 years later, here we are in Italy witnessing and winning souls for Him.
You may ask : Aren’t Catholics Christians? No. In the same way that belonging to a Protestant Church does not automatically make you a Christian. There is only one qualification : “you must be born again”- John 3:5. When I came to Italy 8 years ago I used to make a distinction between Protestants and Catholics. Now I realise that many Protestant denominations are sliding deeper into apostasy. Many denying the Lord Himself. Truly as Jesus said ” a dog returns to his vomit and a sow wallows in the mud “.Traditional churches that were born out of the Reformation and whose early pioneers were murdered and often burnt at the stake , now openly support homosexuality, abortion. Some leaders do not even believe in the Deity of Jesus, virgin birth and other fundamental beliefs.
So here I am, a thoroughbred Italian in the flesh, but a thoroughbred Christian in the spirit, sent of God to witness to my fellow Italians - i 2 i.

Battistuzzi Family The Hebrew Worldview

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