Need of the Hour

You know the old saying, "The devil is in the details"? It couldn't be more true of the United Nations gathering taking place right now.

For two weeks each year, world leaders swoop on the U.N. headquarters in New York, where they're given a platform to address their concerns. Media has aired sound bytes from their speeches -- mostly juicy ones about Iran's president -- yet much of the real news is happening on the sidelines, out of the spotlight.

Yesterday, for example, the Alliance of Civilizations Group of Friends held its second ministerial meeting, attended by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and U.N. General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim. The presence of the U.N's top two leaders shows that this meeting was not viewed by them as peripheral.

Quite the contrary, in HIS REMARKS to the Group of Friends, Ban called the AoC's task of healing the divide between Muslim and Western societies "the need of the hour." Ban went on to say that the AoC "can help reinforce the work of the United Nations system."

For those who don't know what the AoC is -- let's just say it's "the U.N. meets religion." The U.N. realized it can't achieve world peace without getting religious people onboard -- those who are the source of so much conflict. So, in 2005, it launched this initiative -- co-sponsored by the prime ministers of Spain and Turkey -- which "hopes to contribute to a coalescing global movement" against religious extremism, according to its WEB SITE. Unfortunately for Christians, it labels as "extremists" all those who claim sole ownership to the truth -- not just terrorists. (LEARN HOW it may play into the end-times false religious system in league with the Antichrist.)

During his speech yesterday, Sampaio enlisted the help of the Group of Friends -- made up of representatives from governments and multilateral organizations -- in fulfilling his vision for the AoC, as outlined in the "Implementation Plan 2007-2009." But, first, Sampaio pointed out how many nations have joined the Group of Friends since late April, from about 40 to over 70. See the list HERE.

This means the AoC now has weight to throw around. Or, in Sampaio's words, "our ever-enlargening Group of Friends has now reached the critical mass of participation." Read his speech HERE. He said it's time to turn the AoC's momentum into concrete action in the form of commitments from governments.

He urged the Group of Friends to go back to their countries and seek suggestions for projects and policies that can be implemented nationally, regionally and locally -- targeting the AoC's four areas of focus: education, youth, migration and media. According to the Implementation Plan, such projects should include programs to train journalists, major-motion films, AoC youth groups, advertisements at cultural and sporting events, and new curriculum on religion for schoolchildren.

As Sampaio said yesterday, the AoC is much more than conferences and lectures: It "needs to be integrated in the domestic agendas of the countries, in the international agenda and indeed in all aspects of the work of the United Nations."

In other words, the AoC is planning some big stuff. If the Implementation Plan is, indeed, implemented, then schools around the world may soon be required to use AoC-approved curriculum. Yes, even religious schools (don't believe me, read the Implementation Plan). Do you want your kids being taught that all religions are equally valid -- that Jesus was wrong and he isn't the only way? Of course, this excludes, for now, the United States, which hasn't yet joined the Group of Friends. But, oh, the difference one election can make!

The participating government's suggestions will be presented at the AoC's first annual forum, Jan. 15-16, in Madrid Spain. Sampaio urged them to view this event as a golden opportunity for the AoC to go public.

You think Hollywood's got a liberal agenda, wait until film directors catch the AoC vision. And don't forget the very real possibility of Super Bowls sponsored by the Alliance of Civilizations.

The good thing is then the media will have to report on it.

Holly and Adam Pivec