By David Daniels

It was bitterly cold. King Henry stood barefoot, shivering in the snow, nearly freezing to death. Together with his wife and baby son, they had crossed the Alps in the dead of winter, just so he could stand here today, begging forgiveness.

This was no mean man. This was Henry IV, the King of Germany and "Holy Roman Emperor" (1056-1105 AD). So what could have caused him to do such a crazy thing? That's easy. He had dared to question the authority of the pope! And now pope Gregory VII showed Henry who held the reins of power in Europe. In 1076 he excommunicated Henry from the Roman Catholic religion and told his German subjects they didn't have to serve him anymore. No more power, no more luxury. He'd be a dead duck in a cold grave if he didn't act fast.

That's why he stood there, freezing and humiliated in the snow for three days. He had to prove that he had learned his lesson. He had learned the hard way who was the real boss in world affairs: the Roman Catholic pope.

But Gregory couldn't assume that power overnight. For over 600 years the perverted Roman Catholic religion had blended with pagan superstition to create a fearful people. They believed their eternal destiny lay in the hands of their priest and his ability to pull Jesus out of heaven and turn him into a wafer, so they could eat him. And if they couldn't eat Jesus, they couldn't go to heaven. Once people believed priests had that power, they could do nothing but fearfully submit to them. Without that lie the popes cannot rule the world.

The new pope, Benedict XVI, was recently in Germany for World Youth Day 2005. He urged Europe to return to its "Christian roots." What does that mean? It means a time when kings lived in fear of the pope. This new Roman Catholic leader was formerly the Chief Inquisitor, head of the "Holy Office" of the Inquisition. Is it any coincidence that this German pope is still referred to by his colleagues as "Der Panzerkardinal?" The Bible says Roman Catholicism "reigneth over the kings of the earth" (Rev 17:18). Get ready, folks, and hang onto your Bibles. What this new pope really wants is a 21st century version of the Dark Ages.