God's declaration of Truth

GOD HAS SHOWN MERCY. FOR THOSE WHO REJECT THAT, THERE IS ONLY THE JUSTICE AND VENGEANCE OF GOD WHICH IS ETERNAL DAMNATION.

Luke Chapter 19

The words of Our Only Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in red.

19:10 "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."
19:11 As they were hearing these things, he added and spoke a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately be manifested.
19:12 He said therefore: "a certain nobleman went into a far country, to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.
19:13 And calling his ten servants, he gave them ten pounds and said to them: Trade till I come.
19:14 But his citizens hated him and they sent an delegation after him, saying: 'We will not have this man to reign over us.'
19:15 And it came to pass that he returned, having received the kingdom: and he commanded his servants to be called, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading,
19:16 And the first came saying: 'Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.'
19:17 And he said to him: 'Well done, thou good servant, because thou hast been faithful in a little, thou shalt have power over ten cities.'
19:18 And the second came, saying: 'Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.'
19:19 And he said to him: 'Be thou also over five cities.'
19:20 And another came, saying: ' Lord, behold here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin.
19:21 For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up what thou didst not lay down: and thou reapest that which thou didst not sow.'
19:22 He saith to him: 'Out of thy own mouth I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up what I laid not down and reaping that which I did not sow.
19:23 And why then didst thou not give my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have exacted it with usury?'
19:24 And he said to them that stood by: 'Take the pound away from him and give it to him that hath ten pounds.'
19:25 And they said to him: 'Lord, he hath ten pounds.'
19:26 But I say to you that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath shall be taken from him.
19:27 But as for those my enemies, who would not have me reign over them, bring them hither and slay them in my presence."
19:28 And having said these things, he went before, going up to Jerusalem.
19:29 And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethania, unto the mount called Olivet, he sent two of his disciples,
19:30 Saying: "Go into the town which is over against you, at your entering into which you shall find the colt of an ass tied, on which no man ever hath sitten: loose it and bring it.
19:31 And if any man shall ask you: 'Why are you loosing it?' You shall say thus unto him: Because the Lord hath need of it.' "
19:32 And they that were sent went their way and found the colt standing, as he said unto them.
19:33 And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said to them: "Why are you loosing it?
19:34 But they said: "Because the Lord has need of it."
19:35 And they brought it to Jesus. And casting their cloaks over the colt, they set Jesus on it.
19:36 And as he went, they spread their cloaks upon the road.
19:37 And when he was drawing near, being now at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole company of his disciples began to rejoice and to praise God with a loud voice, for all the miracles that they had seen,
19:38 Saying: "Blessed is he who comes as king, in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"
19:39 And some of the Pharisees, from the crowds, said to him: "Master, rebuke thy disciples."
19:40 He said to them: "I tell you that if these keep silence, the stones will cry out."
19:41 And when he drew near, seeing the city, he wept over it, saying:
19:42 "If thou also hadst known, and that in this thy day, the things that are to thy peace: but now they are hidden from thy eyes.
19:43 For the days shall come upon thee: and thy enemies shall cast a trench about thee and compass thee round and straiten thee on every side,
19:44 And beat thee flat to the ground, and thy children who are in thee. And they shall not leave in thee a stone upon a stone: because thou hast not known the time of thy visitation."
19:45 And entering into the temple, he began to cast out them that sold therein and them that bought.
19:46 Saying to them: "It is written: My house is the house of prayer. But you have made it a den of thieves."
19:47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. And the chief priests and the scribes and the rulers of the people sought to destroy him.
19:48 And they found not what to do to him: for all the people were very attentive to hear him.

The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Thessalonians

The day of the Lord is not to come till the man of sin be revealed. The apostle's teachings are to be observed.

2:1 And we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and of our gathering together unto him:
2:2 That you be not easily moved from your sense nor be terrified, neither by spirit nor by word nor by epistle. as sent from us, as if the day of the Lord were at hand.

Chap. 2. Ver. 2. Spirit . . . utterance. . . letter indicate three possible sources of their belief that the parousia is imminent. Spirit refers to some falsely claimed revelation, utterance may be a statement of Paul’s which was misunderstood, or wrongly attributed to him, the letter seems to be one forged in Paul’s name.

2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for unless there come a revolt first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition

Ver. 3. . . The parousia must be preceded by a great apostasy, i.e., a great religious revolt, and the advent of the man of sin, i.e., Antichrist. Son of perdition, one entirely deserving of eternal punishment.

Ver. 3. The day of the Lord will not come. These words have been inserted to complete the sentence, which in the original is elliptical. The expanded reads "Let no man deceive you by any means: for the day of the Lord will not come unless there come a revolt first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition"

2:4 Who opposeth and is lifted up above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself as if he were God.

Ver. 4. In the temple, that of Apostate Jerusalem which the full consensus of the Church Fathers declare he will rebuild - i.e. the Temple of Remphan; and in the Apostate shell of the former Christian church, which he perverts to his own worship: as the Freemasons have done to the Vatican.

Ver. 4. Antichrist will be characterized by great impiety and pride. He sits in the temple of God, etc. He will aspire to be treated as God and proclaim that he is really God.

2:5 Remember you not that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2:6 And now you know what restrains him, that he may be revealed in his proper time.

Ver. 6. What restrains him. The Thessalonians knew the obstacle. We also know that it is Jesus Christ.

2:7 For the mystery of iniquity is already at work: only that he who is at present restraining it, does still restrain, until he is gotten out of the way.

Ver. 7. Mystery of iniquity, the evil power of Satan’s threefold prevarication and total Apostasy from God, of which Antichrist is to be the public exponent and champion. He who is at present restraining it. The obstacle is now spoken of as a person. Some point out that Michael the archangel and his heavenly army are obstacles, and this is true, which now prevent the appearance of Antichrist – but the primary obstacle is, as St. Justin Martyr teaches: Jesus Christ Himself; when the great Apostasy is complete, then in effect, Christ is “gotten out of the way.”

2:8 And then that wicked one shall be revealed: whom the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of his mouth and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: him

Ver. 8. When Christ appears in glory, He will inflict defeat and death on Antichrist by a mere word of command.
2:9 Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, in all power and signs and lying wonders:

Ver. 9 – 10. By the aid of Satan Antichrist will perform prodigies which men will falsely regard as miracles, and by means of which they will be led to adopt sinful practices.

2:10 And with all wicked deception to those who are perishing. For they have not received the love of truth that they might be saved.
2:11 Therefore God shall send them the operation of error, to believe lying:

Ver. 11. God shall send. . .That is God shall suffer them to be deceived by lying wonders, and false miracles, in punishment of their not entertaining the love of truth.
Ver. 11. 'God sends.' God will allow their willful rejection of truth to have its natural results of spiritual blindness, impenitence and damnation. A misleading influence, or, “a delusion.” The operation of error - the Greek reads: "energian planes" or literally the energy of delusion, which is exactly and actually the fallen spirits of the devils and demons conjured by pagan religion, especially by idolatry. NOW, currently, the Assisi delusion of the Apostates, Ratzinger and Wojtyla and many others present with them, is a very real and prime example. To give oneself over to this is to invite utter and complete damnation of oneself by God.
2:12 That all may be judged who have not believed the truth but have consented to iniquity.

2:13 But we ought to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of God, for that God hath chosen you firstfruits unto salvation, in sanctification of the spirit and faith of the truth:
Ver. 13. First-fruits, i.e., earliest believers in the gospel. Some manuscripts read: “from the beginning.” That is, God called them from all eternity.
2:14 Whereunto also he hath called you by our gospel, unto the purchasing of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2:15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast: and hold the teachings, which you have learned, whether by word or by our epistle.
Ver. 15. Teachings, i.e., his teachings whether given orally or in writing. Concerning Apostolic teaching – the oral is included in the written at the point we have the whole New Testament complete, i.e. with the completion of St. John’s Gospel.
2:16 Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God and our Father, who hath loved us and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope in grace,

2:17 Exhort your hearts and confirm you in every good work and word.

St. Irenaeus

St. Irenaeus
St. Irenaeus Against Heresies and the warning against the Antichrist - click on picture

Blog List

A few words

The articles posted in the main here are from a variety of sources and perspectives, but all based on the unchangeable truth that all law comes from God, or if it is something that pretends a legalism but does not agree with God's law, then it is nothing lawful at all; the Noachide nonsense is the prime example of that which is not at all lawful. See the right side pane and below the posts at the bottom of the page for a number of sources that help shed light on this. All copyrighted sources are quoted and used for comment and education in accord with the nonprofit provisions of: Title 17 U.S.C., Section 107.

By Command of God

Eucharist in house churches Commanded by God - HE COMMANDS TO NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE VATICAN WHICH HAS ALREADY BECOME TOTALLY APOSTATE AND DIABOLIC AT THIS POINT.

GO HERE: Traditional Catholic Prayers: Eucharist in house churches Commanded by God. To rise above the concerns of the world to the service of God.


Traditional Catholic Prayers: Office of the Hours for the Week












Go Here: The Return of Christ

And here:
Parousia of Jesus Christ Our Lord

The Promise of His coming. His commands to prepare and be worthy.

Statement of what is happening in the world in connection with the Second Coming of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Nuzul i Isa and Qiyamah, the Parousia of Jesus Christ Our Lord and His judgement of all men that have ever lived.

Rv:22:7 Behold I come quickly. Blessed is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Senators doubtful as HSBC touts money-laundering fixes | Reuters:


 


 





Senators doubtful as HSBC touts money-laundering fixes | Reuters:


HSBC Bank President and Chief Executive Officer Irene Dorner (L) and HSBC Holdings Chief Legal Officer Stuart Levey are sworn in before testifying before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in Washington July 17, 2012. REUTERS-Gary Cameron

WASHINGTON | Wed Jul 18, 2012 11:25am IST

(Reuters) - Officials of HSBC Holdings Plc pledged to a U.S. Senate panel on Tuesday that the bank is changing the way it polices illicit funds, but senators were skeptical the bank could deliver on promises it had broken before.
HSBC's top compliance officer announced he was stepping down and that the bank will shut down businesses in secret havens such as the Cayman Islands, but those offers did not blunt the senators' allegations that the bank sacrificed propriety for profits.
The hearing by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations came a day after it released a 400-plus-page report detailing how the British bank acted as a financier to clients routing funds from the world's most dangerous corners, including Mexico, Iran and Syria.
While money laundering problems at HSBC have been flagged by regulators for nearly a decade, the criticism comes at a sensitive time for the banking industry.
Banks are facing accusations of greed tied to allegations that international banks for years tried to rig the global lending benchmark rate Libor and other scandals, including a trading bet gone awry at JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The hearing brought HSBC's own scandal squarely into the political spotlight.
Senator Carl Levin, who chairs the panel, read what he said was a 1993 statement from HSBC that asked its group members to comply with the letter and spirit of laws, and said it sounded similar to the commitments offered by HSBC on Tuesday.
"Do you agree, given past commitments have not been kept, that the bank has a heavy burden of proof that they mean what they say?" Levin asked one panel of witnesses consisting of HSBC's top legal officer and the head of HSBC's U.S. operations.
Levin later added that others would judge HSBC's accountability. "We are not in the prosecution business here, we are in the oversight business."
The bank is still facing a Justice Department investigation, with a potential fine that dwarfs the record $619 million that ING agreed in June to pay to settle similar claims.
Reuters own investigation into HSBC found persistent lapses in the bank's anti-money laundering compliance since 2010, after years of being scolded for lax practices.
Levin, who suggested the bank's charter could be at risk if it did not do better, pressed HSBC officials on whether they looked the other way on suspicious activity if it meant profits.
"Your test apparently for opening an account is first, how much revenue it would produce. But what about the second test Mr. Lok?" Levin asked former executive Christopher Lok. "What about a test of, is the bank involved in wrongdoing?"
NOT CONSISTENT
David Bagley, the outgoing compliance executive, told the hearing that while reforms had been made, it was time for him to go. "I recommended to the group that now is the appropriate time for me and for the bank, for someone new to serve as the head of group compliance," he said.
Bagley also told the panel the bank would close thousands of Caymans accounts as part of its renewed compliance efforts.
The Senate report said HSBC had little oversight of client accounts housed in a shell operation in the Cayman Islands, well known for offering secret accounts and a limited tax regime. By 2008, the Cayman accounts held $2.1 billion.
Bagley was on a panel with other executives, but some of the toughest questions were reserved for Stuart Levey, who joined the bank in January as chief legal officer. He had been the Treasury Department's top official on terrorism finance from 2004 to 2011.
In an August 2007 email, Bagley told his superiors that he had seen Levey at a conference and Levey had "expressed concern" that the bank had accounts for an entity that ultimately served as a conduit for Iranian government funding.
"Levey essentially threatened that if HSBC did not withdraw from relationships with (redacted name) we may well make ourselves a target for action in the U.S.," Bagley told his bosses.
In subsequent emails, Bagley and another HSBC official discussed that while little of the banking relationship remained, "it would have been inaccurate to tell Levey there was nothing," Bagley wrote in an email.
Levin battered Levey with questions about whether the bank would follow U.S. law or Cayman law in cases of conflict and whether HSBC would improve its own internal sharing of information to help cut down on illicit activity.
Levey placed much of the blame on HSBC's rapid expansion, but said the bank is now better at spotting risky activities.
To some extent Levey and HSBC Bank USA CEO Irene Dorner were able to deflect the harshest criticism by pointing out that they were relatively new to their jobs, and had taken them up after the worst of the bad acts had happened.
"We've committed within the company ... to maximize the sharing of info for risk management purposes," Levey said. "We've decided that's the value that we're going to pursue, we need to share information."
The changes Bagley and Levey talked about are coming at a significant cost to the bank, as spending on anti-money laundering systems and staff have increased substantially. Dorner said the bank now has 892 full-time anti-money laundering compliance professionals.
FAILED TO MEET STANDARDS
HSBC shares closed 1.7 percent lower in London trade. Analysts warned that the bank faced huge financial penalties but said political risk may be a greater threat.
"(The) most important consequence is that the bank is now under the microscope ... at a very bad time where banks are used as scapegoats by politicians globally," analysts at Italian bank Mediobanca said in a research note, adding that they expect HSBC to face a $1 billion fine as well.
The Senate report alleged that HSBC did regular business in areas tied to drug cartels, terrorist funding and tax cheats.
It detailed how between 2007 and 2008, HSBC's Mexican operations moved $7 billion into the bank's U.S. operations. Both Mexican and U.S. authorities warned HSBC that the amount of money could only have reached such a level if it was tied to illegal narcotics proceeds, the report said.
It also examined banking HSBC did in Saudi Arabia with Al Rajhi Bank, which the report said has links to financing terrorism.
HSBC had company in the Senate's harsh spotlight -- the report was also highly critical of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a major U.S. bank regulator.
The OCC took enforcement action against HSBC in 2010, more than seven years after the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the New York State Banking Department issued their own criticism of HSBC's money-laundering detection systems.
Levin pounced on Grace Dailey, the former deputy comptroller for large bank supervision at OCC, demanding to know why more action had not been taken and sooner.
"We probably did not appreciate the systemic nature of some of those issues," Dailey said. "We could have and should have taken formal enforcement action, with the benefit of hindsight."
Levin was quick to dismiss the notion of hindsight and put one of his sharpest comments of the day to Thomas Curry, who took over as Comptroller of the Currency less than four months ago and who expressed his regrets for the OCC's inaction.
"This is pretty feeble enforcement," Levin said.
(Reporting by Carrick Mollenkamp and Aruna Viswanatha in Washington and Steve Slater in London; Writing by Ben Berkowitz in Boston; Editing by Karey Wutkowski and Tim Dobbyn)

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