Putin – Times 2007 Man of the Year

Dr. Michael L. Ford

            No sooner than Vladimir Putin was announced as Time’s “Person of the Year,” the politically correct “newspeak” substitute for what once called Man of the Year, did a couple of friends ask me if he might be the Man of Sin known as the Antichrist? I replied that in my opinion he did not fit the Biblical profile that has been agreed to both by Christian Eschatologists and ancient rabbinical scholars. But he certainly has the character needed to fulfill Bible prophecy needed in a Russian leader to bring to pass the predictions related to the coming invasion of Israel lead by the coalition spoken in passages such as those found in Ezekiel 38.

            When the USSR collapsed I put together materials about the realignments of relationships between Russia and other nations indicative of progress being made toward fulfillment of Bible prophecy and presented what I learned in churches. Briefly interest in such things was high, but modern Christians are notable for the rapidity with which they lose interest in what is going on about them. This did not mean that I stopped watching current events, but opportunities to expound on what was going on diminished.

When Boris Yeltsin came to power I made a calculated assessment that the invasion of Israel would likely not occur during his time in office even though I knew the Bible indicated God would put a hook in their jaws and drag them forth. One of the reasons I initially thought an invasion would be unlikely was because Yeltsin had not only been baptized by his parents (and almost drowned by the drunken priest) but he had once remarked of the faith of his grandmother in such a way that made me think even though he was a member of the atheistic communist party and a heavy drinker he still retained some semblance of belief in God. This is not the kind of basis for unbiased political assessment the world applauds but I have learned not to discount such things. He rewarded my assessment by implementing many democratic reforms between 1991 and 1999, so time proved me right.

            Putin is a far different character than was Yeltsin. For one thing he did not grow up in the hard years of transition from Czarist Russia to the communist State and see his family singled out for persecution because they had been middle class landowners under the old system and were therefore to be punished under the new, as private ownership of land became a thing of the past. He grew up with his heroes being intelligence officers, characters depicted in Soviet movies. His paternal grandfather, Spiridon Putin, had been both Vladimir Lenin's and Joseph Stalin's personal cook. That might not seem to us a very high position, but it says something about the amount of trust vested in him, particularly by Stalin. People often found being too close to him a fatal position.

            Putin, the KGB operative, unlike many others, never resigned from the Communist Party, though he did resign from the state security service when it attempted a putsch of Gorbachev in August of 1991. But he kept his hand in the business and in 1998 Yeltsin appointed Vladimir Putin head of the FSB, one of the successor agencies to the KGB. His tough handling of Chechen rebels increased his position and in spite of what President Bush said about him there is plenty of evidence he has remained a die hard communist with Soviet attitudes about how to deal with problems. He has pretty effectively undone most of Yeltsin’s reforms.

            With historic disregard of deaths connected with past Men of the Year, The Times has also been willing to overlook those connected with Vladimir Putin. There is no detailing of his elimination of dissenting journalists and politicians as Putin attained power. Overlooked is the fact Lt. Colonel Litvinenko, former member of the Russian Security Service, who became a Russian dissident and writer, accused Putin of directing his assassination as he lay dying from radiation poisoning in 2006. These details must be pointed out in questioning The Time’s judgment. After all, their interest is in recognizing his accomplishments. Historically they have been a bit shortsighted in considering the ultimate goals their Men of the Year might truly have. Eighty percent of people responding to a questionnaire about Time’s choice of Putin agree their judgment is faulty at best.

             We can see with Putin’s dealings with Iran, supplying them nuclear resources, he is continuing the progression of events that can bring Russia to the point there will be no backing away from their axis of evil coming against Israel. Some have wondered if that event might be the very thing that sets up the real Antichrist and allows him to begin his evil work.