The words of the prophet Isaiah come ringing down the centuries like the chime of a vesper bell after a storm: "And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more."
This majestic statement of prophecy of a coming peace was uttered by a great and holy man between seven and eight hundred years before the Christian era began; and now, after more than twenty-five centuries have intervened, by what are we confronted today? A war-torn world with many nations brought into subjection and slavery through relentless invasion and domination.
Perhaps one question we most frequently hear concerning the war clouds that hang so ominously over the entire world is, How can such diabolical conditions possibly occur in this enlightened age? Those who understand the depths of wickedness of which mortal mind is capable can in a measure grasp the cause of the present turmoil.
