When running for reelection, United States President Donald Trump faced off against a host of domestic enemies: Democrats, of course; journalists; analysts; professors; executives; actors—just about anyone who could be classified as elite.

But he was also battling a host of foreign enemies, including Germany, the European Union and the pope.

None of these foreigners are legally entitled to vote, of course, and there is only so much they can do to influence an election outcome. But you have to understand the influence they exerted in both campaigning against President Trump and in claiming he lost to Joe Biden—the lengths they went to reveal just how much Europe has turned against the United States.

Typically, Americans think in terms of “the West vs. the rest”—the English-speaking nations plus Europe versus the rest of the world. This election has proved that Europe and America are enemies, especially if Donald Trump is in charge.

Pope Campaigns for Biden

Europeans’ dislike for President Trump is well known. There is little that most European leaders can do to persuade Americans to change their minds. Except for one leader.

With 51 million self-identified Catholics in America, what the pope says carries weight. In the run-up to the election, he worked hard to boost Biden, who is a Catholic.

In October, he published his longest encyclical, which the Guardian’s Catherine Pepinster said “waded right into some of the key issues dominating the U.S. presidential election” (Oct. 6, 2020). She noted that “the Democrats may well be cheered” by much of what the pope wrote and concluded, “This clarion call from across the Atlantic could well be an election clincher.”

This encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, makes clear what the pope thinks about President Trump and about the foundations of America’s political and economic systems.

The pope makes the case for migration and condemns “[c]ertain populist political regimes, as well as certain liberal economic approaches” that “maintain that an influx of migrants is to be prevented at all costs.” He singles out Latino immigration into the U.S. for praise, saying these people bring “values and possibilities that can greatly enrich the United States.”

The pope took an even more direct shot at a specific Trump administration policy by writing, “those who raise walls will end up as slaves within the very walls they have built.”

But his criticism goes deeper than the Trump presidency. It targets the foundation of the American republic.

“Certain economically prosperous countries tend to be proposed as cultural models for less-developed countries,” he writes. For other countries to copy the United States would be a “shallow and pathetic desire to imitate others,” which “leads to copying and consuming in place of creating, and fosters low national self-esteem.”

Chapter 3 of the letter doesn’t specifically mention the U.S. Declaration of Independence or the Constitution, but it clearly mirrors many criticisms made by American leftists. Equality, the pope writes, is not “achieved by an abstract proclamation that ‘all men and women are equal.’” Believing that the government should stand back and allow individuals freedom to pursue happiness in their own way leads to “radical individualism,” which is “a virus that is extremely difficult to eliminate.”

“Some people are born into economically stable families, receive a fine education, grow up well nourished, or naturally possess great talent,” he writes. “They will certainly not need a proactive state; they need only claim their freedom.” Everyone else, though, needs something more “proactive.” “Words like freedom, democracy or fraternity prove meaningless,” Francis writes, unless “our economic and social system no longer produces even a single victim, a single person cast aside.” That could have come from a speech by Kamala Harris, who asserts that a just system “means we all end up at the same place.”

The pope’s letter throws the weight of his nearly 2,000-year-old office behind America’s radical Democrat faction. He shares that movement’s belief that the U.S. is not a force for good.

It promotes a radical view of World War ii. After condemning the Holocaust, the next paragraph says, “Nor must we forget the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki”—implying that America’s use of atomic weapons to end that war was as evil as Nazi Germany’s murder of 6 million Jews. American soldiers were fighting, not to free the world from tyranny, but merely for one empire that was as flawed as its enemy.

Catholic journalist Damian Thompson wrote, “Francis dislikes the United States in general and its president in particular.” Little surprise, then, that when U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wanted to meet with the pope in September, he was denied. The Vatican said the pope wanted to avoid giving the impression that he supported any particular candidate before the election.

The Catholic Church may not preserve its alliance with the radical leftists for the long term, but as Thompson wrote, “All that matters to the successor of Peter and vicar of Christ [as he believes] is that, come Tuesday, Donald Trump receives a good kicking.”

Donald Trump the Dictator

Other European leaders had nothing to gain and a lot to lose by openly campaigning against President Trump, so they declined to do so. Instead, they took it for granted that Biden would win, and worried about Trump cheating.

“What happens if Donald Trump simply refuses to leave the White House, even if he loses the election?” wrote Der Speigel. “Should that happen, the stability of democracy in the United States would be put to the test. It could even call into question the future of democracy as a form of government” (Oct. 16, 2020).

Martin Schirdewan, a leader for Germany’s Left Party, called on the European Union to send in election observers the way it does in Third World countries with dubious democratic legitimacy.

Elmar Brok, one of Germany’s senior members of the European Parliament, gave a similar warning, saying, “If it is blatant, the EU would have to quickly take a position. It couldn’t act differently than it does in other instances.” He was saying that the EU should get ready to treat the U.S. the same way it treats countries like Belarus: refusing to recognize its leader as the legitimate head of state, imposing sanctions, and so on.

The EU is using the same rhetoric the American left uses in attempting to delegitimize President Trump.

The day after Americans voted, President Trump held the lead. As the sun rose in Germany, journalists and politicians went a bit crazy. Even more extreme than their colleagues in the American media, German reporters claimed America is no longer the land of the free and is now ruled by its own Robert Mugabe-like dictator.

That day, Spiegel and Bild, the largest magazine and the largest newspaper in Germany, published stories they had ready that imply Mr. Trump is a mentally deranged psychopath. “Psychologist Analyzes the U.S. President: Trump Shows Three Personality Disorders at the Same Time,” declared Spiegel, promising to discuss “which characteristics make Donald Trump dangerous.” Bild quoted a “communications scientist” who claimed that in President Trump’s behavior “the mentality of a dictator reveals itself, not that of a democratic politician.”

When President Trump spoke of voting fraud and said he probably won the election, Saskia Esken, leader of Germany’s Social Democrats party, said Trump’s claim means, “More than ever, … we have to defend our democratic achievements against populist and nationalist agitation.” Martin Schulz, another senior member of the party, said, “We in Europe are one of the last bastions of parliamentary democracy.”

Manfred Weber, a senior member of the Christian Social Union party, wrote that the divisions in America are “a warning for Europe” and that Europe is failing to realize that “our democracies are in danger.”

“Democracy in the United States has long been regarded as the great, shining example for many countries around the world,” wrote Spiegel in its post-election coverage. “No longer. That U.S. President Donald Trump would prematurely declare himself the winner of the presidential election and accuse his political opponents of fraud, even though hundreds of thousands of ballots still haven’t been counted, is grotesque, absurd—and anti-democratic. … Trump doesn’t care one iota about adhering to the norms that constitute a functioning democracy. Since becoming president, he has piece-by-piece destroyed faith in his country’s democratic institutions” (Nov. 4, 2020).

German leaders insist that a Trump victory would leave Europe as the only home of freedom and democracy. And to carry that burden, Europe will have to grow stronger.

“Should Trump stay in office for another four years, Europe would have to unite,” said Schulz. Dutch Member of European Parliament Sophie in ‘t Veld tweeted, “Whatever the final outcome of #USAElections2020, Europe needs to grow up, and grow up fast.”

Intervening in a Foreign Election

After vote counting paused, key states swung toward Biden, and after four days, major American news networks were ready to call the election in his favor. Just 15 minutes after cnn became the first major network to call the result, Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin sent his congratulations to Biden. Germany Foreign Minister Heiko Maas followed suit. Very soon, every EU leader had sent their congratulations.

“[M]any European leaders cast aside caution and diplomatic protocol to swiftly send their good wishes to Biden,” wrote Politico (Nov. 7, 2020). Standard protocol says European leaders wait for an official announcement or for the incumbent to concede defeat. Not this time.

Politico cited an anonymous EU official who said European leaders deliberately coordinated their congratulatory statements to legitimize the American media’s pronouncement with international recognition. EU Observer wrote that it “looked like a coordinated effort to stop outgoing President Donald Trump from challenging the result.”

“European allies who regularly clashed with Trump over defense spending and trade were among some of the first to congratulate President-elect Biden,” noted Foreign Policy. How much did Europe’s fulsome support push other world leaders to offer swift congratulations?

But even the supposed Biden victory didn’t change Germany’s view that democracy in America is dead. Spiegel wrote that “the U.S. has often been the anchor and guiding light of the Western world. However, the United States has renounced that claim to leadership” (Nov. 7, 2020).

“The old certainty that the U.S. is an ally Germany can count on in times of need, regardless of any differences, no longer exists,” it continued. “As such, Germany and the rest of Europe need to use this next American presidency as a time to prepare for a world in which they themselves exhibit strength. They need to learn to speak with one voice on important foreign policy and to consolidate their power in a common defense policy. …

“Trumpist forces could return to power as soon as four years from now. And this polarized, unpredictable America is likely to be focused on itself and China for some time to come.”

A Multipronged Attack

Britain and America descended from ancient Israel. Both have received great blessings and power not because of the particular merit of their people, but because of God’s plan for mankind. Our free book The United States and Britain in Prophecy, by Herbert W. Armstrong, proves this from the Bible and explains this plan.

Prosperity and power always breed resentment. But if you believe the Bible, then you must also believe in an evil spirit power who works to oppose God. If God has been blessing Britain and America as part of His plan, you can be sure Satan is working to tear them down.

“Believe it or not, Satan the devil is unleashing a multipronged attack on what has until recently been the most powerful single nation in history,” wrote Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry in “Why Is the Pope Meddling in American Politics?” “He is working within the population by encouraging sin and perversion. He is turning factions within our people against one another, stirring hatred and violence that are tearing us apart. He is working from within the nation through leaders that are destroying America’s values and embracing lawlessness and corruption. At the same time, he is fomenting hatred among America’s enemies, empowering them to aggressively work against the nation’s interests.”

In this election, we saw that multipronged attack come together.

“If you look at the whole story in biblical prophecy, you see that Satan has a three-pronged attack,” Mr. Flurry writes in America Under Attack. “First, he attacks God’s Church. Second, he tears down the values within the nations of Israel. Finally, he will bring the Holy Roman Empire to destroy those nations in the Great Tribulation. That is Satan’s master plan for destroying spiritual and physical Israel!”

That Holy Roman Empire refers to a united European power, led by the Catholic Church—exactly the power now saying publicly that it must strengthen itself in response to President Trump and America in general.

The radical left is dividing America. The nation’s collapse in moral standards and integrity has made that popular. And the Holy Roman Empire is participating in that attack.

All these trends will worsen. The Bible specifically prophesies about the destruction this violence will cause.

But we have also warned that the most destructive aspect of that unrest will come from how other nations respond. Mr. Flurry writes in his booklet Great Again: “The rioters and violent protesters may think they will come out of this as the victors, but God says no. Your enemies from without are going to exploit the division, violence and anarchy within your nation! There won’t be any winners from within the nation! That is what God is saying.

“Bible prophecies make clear that even worse and more violent protests and riots are going to erupt in American (and British) cities. This will fatally weaken the nation and lead to curses of a far greater magnitude!”

Isaiah 1 is directed against a “sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers” (verse 4). Its correction is aimed directly at the modern descendants of ancient Israel, including the United States and Britain. God says, “Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers” (verse 7). God warns that America’s cities will burn. We have already seen this happening on a small scale, but it will get far worse unless we listen to Him.

If we do not, God says we will “be devoured with the sword” (verse 20). It won’t just be internal violence. Other nations will attack from without.

Ezekiel 5 describes the same time period, specifying that destruction comes on the modern nations of Israel stage by stage. Destruction begins within the nation: People die in the middle of cities. Then other nations attack, first by a starvation-inducing siege—cutting America off from world trade and aggravating the violence within the cities.

How could Europe be capable of such an attack? Because America trusts it. In a deadly irony, President Trump has pressured Germany to spend more on its military and to stop drawing close to Russia, and has pulled some troops out of Germany. But he has never really threatened to pull out of nato. And he, like all other American presidents, allows nuclear bombs to remain in German hands, ready to fly on German planes.

Biblical prophecy warns that Israel will trust in “lovers”—foreign allies—that will destroy it. “All thy lovers have forgotten thee; they seek thee not,” warns God in Jeremiah 30:14.

“They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom,” says God in Ezekiel 16:33. Could this apply to any modern nation better than the United States? America has given away some of the most powerful weapons ever created. Despite all the gifts, these powers are turning against the U.S.

Germany’s attitude toward President Trump shows it is already turning against America. But America hasn’t even come close to realizing this yet.

The “multipronged attack” Mr. Flurry warned about years ago is coming together. This election revealed the extent of the danger, both within and without.

As Mr. Flurry wrote in “Why Donald Trump Will Remain America’s President” (page 1), God is using President Trump to save America, temporarily. He is giving the nation one more chance to repent and turn to Him without suffering horrendous domestic destruction and catastrophic foreign destruction. The book of Revelation and dozens of other prophecies show that a reckoning is coming as a result of rebellion against God: the Great Tribulation. But even as God allows Satan to destroy our sinful nations, He promises He will measure that destruction precisely for the purpose of bringing us to repentance—in this life or in the resurrection.

Whether you’re watching American news or world news, you can see the destruction coming. But make sure you see God in it all and repent sooner rather than later.

Why? Repenting and turning to God is the only way possible for America, Britain, or you, individually, to receive permanent blessings and prosperity. God wants to use as little punishment as necessary to bring about that repentance. If we won’t listen, it will get severe. God is preparing for that severe punishment right now. But ultimately it will lead to a world that listens to God and is finally full of joy and happiness.