What does the 2008 Israeli Prime Minster contest have to do with a 2500 year-old prophecy? Who is Ms. Tzipi Livni? And, what are the real prospects for middle east peace, whether led by Ms. Livni, Ehud Barak, former general Shaul Mofaz, Benjamin Netanyahu or others who wish to lead Israel into 2009?

If you are reading this commentary, it means that the world did not end on September 10, 2008.  Why that date?  It's the day that European Organization for Nuclear Research switched on the Large Hadron Collider under the border of France and Switzerland.

While we prayed for God's protection for those being battered by Hurricane Ike, another storm was tearing through Wall Street the weekend of September 13-14.  And, while the full impact will not be understood for months, there is no doubt that a devastating financial hurricane ripped through the heart of US financial systems that weekend.

As one who has walked through the aftermath of many disasters – having represented insurance companies for decades as a claims adjuster – my attention was really grabbed by the pictures of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Ike, and other recent storms.

The third week of September 2008 may well prove to have been the axis of the shift from an American/Anglo centre of world financial influence to one centred on the sovereign funds of the Middle East and China. New powers are rising around the world. A resurgent Russia and a dynamic India are vying with Europe and China for their "place in the sun."