ARCHIVE NUMBER FOURTEEN
Winter 2002
On The Brink?
(all spelling and phraseology is UK English)
Moving Into the New Age
I've titled this new flash "On The Brink". Why? After all, we feel like we've been living on the brink of something for years. There's that sense of something impending, something coming, something the Lord requires of us all, even if it's just more fortitude and less wavering.
And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. Rom 13:11-14
Things seem to be coming to a head in every way. Many seemingly insignificant and minor happenings, taken individually, seem to add up to a larger picture when taken together. So let me try to list some of my present concerns:
War With Iraq
Since the world turned a corner on September 11th we have seen a continuing escalation of tensions, and not just between different cultures and religions. The morning newspaper brings talk of another major crisis almost every day.
At the moment there's a rush to provide anti-contamination suits, smallpox vaccinations and (yes) body bags ahead of an expected chemical or biological attack in the UK.
On the other side of the world, America is gearing up to a major war with Iraq, starting perhaps in a few week's time. What will be the outcome, and the consequences. None of us really knows, but the world is on the brink of something, for sure!
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Matt 24:6-8
Climate disturbances
The weather continues to do inexplicable and devastating things to us all. In some countries there is prolonged drought, in others floods and hurricanes, and volcanoes and earthquakes add to the misery. Despite all that is done to assure us this is well within normal parameters, talk on the street is of changes in the weather that defy explanation - and it's not getting better.
Scientists agree that we are overdue for a massive impact by some kind of space body, whether a rogue comet or a piece of man-made space litter that is presently circling the globe. And there have been reports that the sun "will explode in less than six years" taking the solar system with it. (!!) Hmmm. I'm tempted to say good riddance, but for the sake of the many who do not know the Lord I have the mercy to pray that they will make their minds up which side they are on before anything so drastic occurs.
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness... Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless" 2 Peter 3:10-18
And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2:17
Onward march of Federal Europe and the Single Currency
Despite any amount of common sense, the UK still bows the knee to its European overlords, and hands ever more national sovereignty to Brussels daily. See this summary. What will we see disappear next? We've already experienced massive erosion in our transport industries, coal-mining, ship-building, banking, fisheries, farming and numbers of other UK interests and we continue to witness the lunacy of laws imposed on us "from above", laws and regulations to which we have no legal redress.
The system of justice that has served us well for centuries is about to be steamrollered by "Corpus Juris" which ends the separation of the judiciary from the state, which then becomes both judge and jury, responsible for the prosecution and sentence. Under this Napoleonic system, British citizens could be held guilty before being able to prove themselves innocent. Furthermore, we may be sent overseas to answer to foreign courts for crimes which do not exist under British law, such as "xenophobia" which is an excessive love of ones's own country (aka patriotism!). So don't turn your nose up at frog's legs and horse meat any more!! Or else. ;-))
Although we are being protected from the Single Currency at the moment by a lack of "convergence" and some antagonism in Government circles, it seems inevitable that we will see the Pound replaced by the Euro in the course of time. If Blair had his way we'd be part of the Single Currency system already. The shock to the British will be even worse when, as a consequence, we go down the same road towards debt, an unstable economy and massive unemployment like the rest of Europe.
Once again, we are on the brink. The visionaries of the great Federal Europe dream will not stop until they have achieved their goals. New and secret proposals drawn up by the European Commission President, Romano Prodi, recently called for the total abolition of the national veto! Thus Britain in a couple of year's time would lose what little hold it still retains over the EU's decision-making process.
This newspaper report spells it out:
"New proposals, secretly drawn up by Romano Prodi, the European Commission president, call for the total abolition of the national veto to prevent policy paralysis after the arrival of 10 new states in 2004.
Utter confusion reigned in Brussels yesterday after Mr Prodi astounded his own top lieutenants by unveiling the plans alongside a separate, less radical text approved by all 20 Commissioners, including Neil Kinnock and Chris Patten. Britain could be expelled from the European Union if it refuses to accept a fully-fledged European government with powers to launch military or police actions on British soil, according to a draft constitution unveiled by Brussels yesterday.
That document, entitled "Peace, Freedom, Solidarity", was the Commission's formal set of proposals for the Convention on the Future of Europe, which is drafting an EU constitution for an enlarged Europe of 25, 30 or even 35 states. A federalist wish-list that will alarm Downing Street, it includes an EU foreign secretary operating from the Commission headquarters, a powerful European Parliament with a full say on all EU laws, and a Commission president elected by MEPs.
But the document pales beside the revolutionary 145-page text thrown into the mix by Mr Prodi.
Codenamed "Operation Penelope", it was drafted in total secrecy by a five-man cell under François Lamoureux, the former deputy chief of staff of Jacques Delors, the former Commission president. Mr Patten and Mr Kinnock were not told about it until late this week, and were said to be fuming at the attempt to slip through proposals for a fully-fledged European superstate, ostensibly under the Commission imprimatur, without their assent.
The text, billed as the "Constitution of the European Union", proposes abolishing the national veto in every area of policy including foreign policy, the setting of "European taxes", and future constitutional amendments. The only exception would be the admission of new member states.
A new "Secretary of the European Union" based at the European Commission headquarters would take charge of foreign policy, representing the EU at the United Nations in an attempt to turn the EU into a "world power". It envisages a military alliance with a mutual defence guarantee along the lines of Nato's Article V, and able to "launch and conduct military operations" beyond its territory.
Brussels should have powers to intervene with force in the domestic affairs of member states in cases of "serious internal disturbances affecting the maintenance of law and order", as long as it was done in a spirit of "solidarity".
The Charter of Fundamental Rights, viewed by the Government as a serious threat to Britain's legal system, should be fully incorporated as a legally-binding text under the jurisdiction of a new "Supreme Court". Those states "not able to accept the new constitutional system" would face expulsion from the Union under a "special status". The aim is to prevent a repetition of the first Irish referendum on the Nice Treaty, when one state was able to block advances towards greater integration.
...Mr Prodi said his secret text, which was released on the Commission website last night, was just a "simulation exercise" to help people understand what an EU constitution might look like. It had "no official status".
But EU diplomats suspected that a hard-core group of federalists around Mr Prodi was trying to force the pace. While they are unlikely to win many of their key demands, there are signs that the Convention is moving much further in the federalist direction than Britain had originally predicted." ["Britain could face expulsion from EU under Prodi plan" By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, Daily Telegraph, 06/12/2002)
Institutions Called Into Question
The Royal Family have taken a beating in the Press recently, as if there's a concerted effort to damage them in the public eye (leading the field is the Republican Guard at the BBC) and at the same time we are reading reports about the Government and Prime Minister that shake what little confidence we had left in those institutions.
Discontent Everywhere
England has never been a place where jubilation reigned supreme, what with the drizzle, cold and dull weather most of the time. But now we seem to face irritation and setbacks wherever we turn.
Little that we buy is delivered on time or in working order, and the service in many shops is surly and uninterested. Prices for eating-out, travel, hotels, cars and houses in particular have moved beyond the means of many. The education system is a joke, with more illiterate youngsters than ever before; hospitals struggle to keep up basic standards and never have enough beds to go around, television (at least the terrestrial kind) is filled with endless repeats or liberal propaganda; transport is grinding to a halt everywhere with trains that rarely run on time and roads gridlocked for miles. The police don't even bother to investigate petty crime any more, and the justice system seems biased towards the criminal rather than the victim; soft drugs are about to be legalised, gays have been made "equal" by law to heterosexuals, and immigration policies fail to stem the enormous tide of illegal immigrants. And so on.
In a recent newspaper poll, 50percent of British people had thought of emigrating, myself amongst them. But is it better anywhere else? Every nation is facing problems such as we have never seen before, problems for which there is no solution.
Moral Standards Declining Fast
My reference to gay rights leads me to another concern that seems only to bother Christians (at least that is what the media gives us to understand.) Moral standards are in fast decline - even in churches. I won't spell it out (I have already made you too depressed with everything else) but the recent move to legalise the relationships of same-sex partners is, I feel, like throwing down the gauntlet to God.
It's not as if we expect the world to share with us the moral standards in God's Laws, but when sin is deemed acceptable and legal by act of Parliament, then surely the country is on the brink? How much longer will God go on forgiving us?
Art is No Longer Art
Art too is in a steep decline, with the books, paintings and "installations" that win prizes most often being sick, blasphemous, glorifying of the devil, perverted and lacking in any kind of measurable artistic merit. One "artist" sold packets of his own excrement for thousands of pounds! He must have laughed all the way to the bank.
We have to thank God that the Turner Prize this year did not go to the woman who wrote out a script for a pornographic movie in red pen, but we have to wonder where things will go next. How low can we sink?
The Pullman Trilogy "His Dark Materials" is now to be dramatised for BBC Radio 4 and will be broadcast on 4, 11 and 18 January. The trilogy - Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass - are a fantasy trilogy set in a parallel universe ruled by a senile god and a cruel church. The most recent book, The Amber Spyglass, won the Whitbread Prize, and the books have become internationally renowned.
This can only be news of the worst kind. I have read the books and the anti-God sentiments throughout are astounding, on top of which, the whole drive of the books is to introduce people (not just children) to false spiritual concepts like the power of the will.
If you thought Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter were a bad influence, just wait until the Pullman books hit the airwaves.
The fashion industry is likewise riddled with greed and perversion, with the desire to display as much bare flesh as possible for the largest amount of money. Some creations on the catwalk are ludicrous and totally unwearable, yet are peddled for vast sums. What is happening here? Where will it end?
A couple of reports from "Shock Frocks":
By JANICE BREEN BURNS
Saturday 21 July 2001(1) At her most recent fashion show, models for Melbourne designer Bettina Liano hit the catwalk with breasts and buttocks bouncing, in sheer mesh tops and micro-shorts not much bigger than two sheets of A4.
Liano is renowned for her sexy, high-voltage fashion shows and sexy, high-voltage fashion. But, look for those mesh tops and micro shorts on the racks at her South Yarra shop and you won't find them.
"They're not there," says Liano. "After the show, I'll send something like that to the magazines, and they'll shoot them on some gorgeous girls, but that's about it. You wouldn't want to pay the rent from stuff like that."
See-through tops and frocks and overtly sexy fashions are a regular feature of catwalk shows lately, but they don't sell at retail level. Mark Burnett, of local label Princess Highway, says: "They aren't what I'd call reality pieces. Audiences might look at them and say `hey, beautiful', but they're not going to wear them."But, maybe it doesn't matter. Karen Webster, head of RMIT's fashion department, says sex is part of the catwalk's new purpose and that's not always about sales any more.
"Traditionally, the catwalk was there to sell product to a customer. But it's more aspirational than informative now; it's saying; `If you buy this, you'll get your man.' It's promoting a concept more than a product, and it has to compete using shock tactics and sex."
Less than five years ago, a see-through top could make a fashion show audience gasp. Now, they're commonplace and not an eyelid bats when they appear."
(2) When topless models and other catwalk theatrics don't raise more than a yawn at international fashion shows, an offensive political message is not a bad substitute to stir the crowd. In Rome last week Italian designer Francesco Babaro presented a skirt that flips up to reveal a giant swastika on its underside in his autumn-winter 2002 haute couture collection.
Anti-Christian Media
It's a well-known fact that the media in this country is so anti-christian that they go out of their way to ridicule Christians in every possible way. TV is notorious for broadcasting anti-Christian documentaries and discussions around the time of Christian festivals like Easter and Christmas (while giving lots of sycophantic uncritical airtime to other religions and belief systems.)
This Christmas is no exception. The BBC is screening, on the Sunday before Christmas Day, a programme challenging the belief that Mary was a virgin when she conceived Jesus. It will suggest three alternatives to the biblical account. One is that Mary had sex with Joseph during their betrothal, another is that she was raped by a Roman soldier and thirdly that she fell pregnant to an unidentified man before marrying Joseph., The programme concludes that Mary was most likely to have conceived Jesus with Joseph before their marriage as Joseph stood by her; an unmarried pregnant woman at that time in Palestine would have been cast out from the community or may even have been stoned to death. [www.sundayherald.com]
This comes shortly after the TV programme questioning Moses and the Exodus, which concluded that a volcanic eruption in the Aegean caused the biblical plagues.
It seems that any old myth or supposition people can dream up, no matter how tenuous or unproven, is preferable to believing the biblical account. Yet the religious texts of other faiths, along with ancient manuscripts from pagan cultures (like the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh) are accepted without question.
An Interfaith Archbishop of Canterbury
Another corner was turned, in my opinion, when the authorities decided to appoint a liberal, ecumenistic pro-gay Archbishop of Canterbury.
"In 2003-JAN, Rowan Williams will be installed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. He brings with him a strong desire to promote equality of persons of all sexual orientations within the Anglican Communion." [Religious Tolerance.org]
This is tantamount to declaring our desire as a country and Church to go our own foolish way - and God will oblige!
Even some Anglican clergy and religious organisations have been spooked enough to protest in public: See Rowan William's beliefs examined including his well-publicised statement about "God as a spastic child who can communicate nothing but his presence and his inarticulate wanting."
But I fear that the religious establishment is, as ever, missing the point. Concerns about ordaining homosexual clergymen are one thing, but the more subtle dangers come from William's beliefs in "spirituality" that play right into the hands of new-agers and all who are set on moving the world into an inter-faith "community" with no god but that of "the spirit".
As one person who knows Rowan Williams confirms, his belief system tends more towards Buddhist than Christian! His emphasis is on mysticism and mediation techniques - see his contribution to a seminar on mantra-chanting "christian meditation" which is not far removed from its new age counterparts: See also this link .
As for his interfaith and ecumenistic activities, they are well known. One report from an Interfaith magazine praises him highly:
"Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury: An ecumenical tribute"
"I have sat at the feet of Rowan Williams on several occasions over the last few years and never ceased to marvel at his extraordinary gift of communication and the depth of his wisdom and spirituality. Whether speaking on the writings of St. Teresa of Avila and St.John of the Cross, about whom he has intensive knowledge, or widely ranging over the Desert Fathers of the Anglican poets, he draws the listener into a special experience of the sacred and helps one appreciate the relevance to one's life" (Sr. Margaret Galvin, of EIC) [ From What Are We Doing About interfaith? which comments acidly "Fundamentalism, distressingly, is still with us".]
Another report shows that the Saviour of Rowan Williams is not the one who know from the word of God:
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Many years ago I was impressed by an article written by Rowan Williams, then a priest theologian at Cambridge. Rowan is now the Archbishop of Wales. The gist of the article by Rowan Williams was that frequently John 14:6 and I quote, "I am the way, the truth and the light. No one comes to the Father except by me" is often used in Christian discourse in a way that would have totally amazed the author of John’s Gospel. Rowan Williams, like the following article by the present Dean of Perth, John Shepherd, asserted that rightly understood, this text in John describes an inclusive welcoming Saviour, not an exclusive one. Rowan Williams focused upon "the way" being that of the Cross a picture of a crucified God, arms wide-open, in a public place, crucified for a blanket refusal to confine access to God the Father, to those who conformed to the Pharisee’s notion of the Law. I commend to you, for meditation, the article INTERFAITH by the Dean of Perth, which follows. [10 July 2001 AD CLERUM now missing from the The Anglican Diocese of Queensland website]
Am I surprised that this piece cannot even manage to quote the bible correctly but copies the common MYTHOLOGY about Jesus being "the Way, The Truth and THE LIGHT" not THE LIFE? (No, I'm not.)
"You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life." (John 5:39-41)
Then of course there's the well publicised incident in Wales in which Rowan Williams was inducted as a druid in a 200-year-old ceremony with pagan roots.
See this excellent piece covering various aspects of William's activities
As the sun rises over a circle of Pembrokeshire bluestones, the Archbishop of Wales, the Most Rev Dr Rowan Williams, will don a long white cloak while druids chant a prayer to the ancient god and goddess of the land.
After a trumpet fanfare and the thrice partial sheathing and unsheathing of a 6ft6in sword, a citation will be read. Dr Williams will close his hands in prayer while the archdruid, wearing a crown and shield over his bardic robes, will enfold them in his own and utter words of welcome.
That will be the moment that Dr Williams, who will adopt a new, bardic name, is accepted into the white druidic order, the highest of three orders of the Gorsedd of Bards, the Welsh body of poets, musicians, writers and artists. The Mistress of the Robes, Sian Aman, will then clothe him in a druidic white headdress, and a steward will lead him to join the other assembled druids inside a sacred circle.
The ceremony will take place “in the face of the sun, in the eye of the light” at the start of the Welsh National Eisteddfod at St David’s, Pembrokeshire, in early August....
The archbishop’s chaplain, the Rev Gregory Cameron, defended Dr Williams. Speaking in Welsh on BBC Wales, he said: “The Gorsedd is not full-blooded paganism, it is an institution making an appeal to the natural universe, to what Wordsworth described as the power of nature.”
All of these things and more are adding to my sense of being "on the brink", as I feel that surely God's anger will "come up into His face" as He witnesses the deliberate destruction of all good order, morality, decency, peace and goodness on the part of those in authority. Ordinary people long for something better, but they no longer have a say in what goes on. Talk to the man in the street and you'll hear the lament that things are going from bad to worse but "what can we do?" and "where will it all end?"
As Christians we KNOW where it will all end. The only question is, how soon? Maybe sooner than we think, for the twin alarm bells of the End are Israel and the Church, both of which are moving quickly towards some kind of climax.
A New Wave?
Way back in 1994 when the first fever of interest in the "Toronto Blessing" began, those of us who saw the writing on the wall said that it was only the start. It was the thin end of the wedge, and it was futile for churches to believe they could adopt a mild form of this delusion (as if to contain it and modify it). Worse would follow, as the TB was only the first indoctrination to prepare the hearts and minds of thousands for the next phase.
So it has become, with the "revival" steadily turning up the heat under the pot so that (as with the world) minds have become immune to the danger.
Just like the fashion world who gasped at the first sight of bare bosoms or bottoms, but now only yawn, many Christian gasped at the spectacle of barking, laughter, bowing, dumbness and so on, but now do not turn a hair if gold dust appears or a blue cloud hangs over the meeting, or spirit beings manifest and join in the singing.
Christians who once would have shown signs of concern at teaching that veered off the scriptures, now don't bother with the scriptures at all, and accept anything they are fed however outlandish and heretical (loudly denouncing anyone who objects as judgemental and having a "religious spirit".)
Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 2 Tim 3:12-15
We have travelled a long way since 1994. In the wrong direction.
The Church has been cursed into a massive sleeping sickness like the Enchanted Princess but unlike that lady, does not respond to the awakening kiss of her Prince, for she prefers to sleep and dream of greatness than wake up and face the reality of what is to come.
"It's true that there have been reports of cases in which peoples' laughter and/or drunkenness in the Spirit have become evident in restaurants, and that people have, at times, been stopped by policemen for "drunken" driving while under the influence, not of alcohol, but of "drunkenness in the Spirit."" [Richard Riss, in support of the revival]
Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing. 1 Thess 5:6-11
Tragically, teachings (that don't even mention Jesus) have moved so far away from truth that they now resemble the occult more than Christianity. There are dream journal studies that rival those in the New Age, manifestations that would not disgrace a spiritualist sceance, "healing" techniques that were previously used only by psychics, and teachings that come directly from Gnosticism.
Yet few are alarmed. The great majority of those who attend revival meetings and conferences are so in love with power and glory that they would gladly swallow anything for the sake of another fix of excitement. Such people worship their heros and heroines like idols, bowing at their feet, falling under their spell (literally) and throwing their hard-earned money into the jingling coffers.
To me this resembles nothing so much as the Israelites dancing round the Golden Calf, or the Priests of Baal shouting and cutting themselves with knives to bring down the fire.
What followed those biblical events? Sadly, the rebuke of God, to the extent that he was about to kill all those who participated in the naked cavorting round the Calf until Moses intervened. God has not changed. His word stands true; His standards remain; His promises will never be broken; His judgement will come.
I do not normally write in such terms, (and I'm surprising myself as I write this) but like many I am sickened by the situation in churches today, where the innocent and ignorant are trodden underfoot in a mad rush for pleasure and power. Those who seek out the word of God are treated as pariahs, any anyone who raises a finger to object to what is happening is greeted with derision and slanderous personal attacks.
The "old order" some say MUST DIE to let this "new wine" flow in freedom. To that end, anyone who still looks to the bible for truth is going to meet with strong objections.
It's not now possible to compromise. People will be not allowed to participate in the popular faith of the future Church without abandoning all they previously knew and cherished about God's ways and His truth.
If you value your faith and sanity, I counsel you to GET OUT before it's too late, no matter what the sacrifice to your personal vanity or friendships. I do not underestimate the pain and anguish you might suffer in making that decision but that is preferable to allowing the cancerous growth of a false and demonic doctrine to eat away at your spirit until you no longer care, and submit because it's easier than fighting it.
If you have doubts, if God has been speaking to you lately, if you are disturbed by what is going on and what is being said, then LEAVE NOW without any more delay, because when a powerful NEW WAVE strikes, who knows if you will escape this time around?
Anyone who truly knows and loves God and who has an ear for the truth should consider their position right now, without hesitating for a moment longer. As Jesus said "Remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it." (Luke 17:32-34)
Lot was preserved by coming OUT of his situation, not by staying in Sodom and trying to change things, which in fact God knew was a futile hope.
I believe (and pardon me if I'm wrong) that the next wave to hit the Church will not be as obvious as the first. It will seem GOOD and ACCEPTABLE and many will REJOICE in it. We will struggle to understand why God is warning us about this - only those who are determined to serve GOD FIRST will know and understand the delusion. Only those whose spirits are in tune with God's Spirit and whose hearts are set on loving God will notice that something dreadful is upon us.
The time is fast approaching when God will turn his face away from the apostate churches and, as in the days of the Old Testament Temple, His Spirit will move away from what causes him to grieve. Then God will turn to his Remnant people who have - quietly, without fuss, humbly and at great personal cost - remained true to God and his eternal word and refused to bow the knee to Baal.
It is time for God to raise up and comfort his own dear ones who have all these years struggled to keep their feet on the narrow path of life in Jesus. When the spiritual light goes out in the megachurches (not that they or anyone in the world will notice!) at that time light will dawn for the Remnant.
God is moving "outside the camp"! (Ex 33:4-7)
Hear the word of the LORD, you who tremble at His word: "Your brethren who hated you, who cast you out for My name's sake, said, 'Let the LORD be glorified, that we may see your joy.' But they shall be ashamed." Isa 66:5
As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. When you see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like grass; the hand of the LORD shall be known to His servants, and His indignation to His enemies. Isa 66:13-14
God Bless, and may you enjoy a peaceful Christmas and New Year celebration.