The End of the World
In a newsletter from the band Calabrese, I was reading a while ago they linked to this page in reference to some predictions the world will end this year. There are also many other predictions for the period of late 90s to 2010 or so. I remember to a day some 15 years ago or around that time, there was a lot of talk on this particular day about one such prediction, so much so that I was petrified. I remember a period of the day quite clearly. I was shopping at Grace Bros on Broadway with my family at the closing down sale or some other huge sale and I think it was overcast weather. I remember upon leaving the store and heading home the sick feeling I felt. I thought it was really going to happen. In later years when I was a born again Christian, I believed another of these predictions would come true but I wasn't so scared that time because I was fairly confident I'd be saved. Now I'm an Agnostic and don't think much about these things but some of the predictions I found interesting. In between reading this stuff I've been using the thesaurus to get possible names for my clothing label. Whereas prior to that I had only a few (but good) ones now I have heaps too many to choose from.
Overview:
"Predictions have been made of several events that some Christians believe are related: the second coming of Jesus, the war of Armageddon, the arrival on earth of the Antichrist, the Tribulation, the Rapture, some horrendous natural disaster, etc. Jewish, Islamic, psychic and occult predictions have also been offered as well."
"We have listed over 7 dozen past predictions of the end of the world which have one factor in common: none ever came true. There is every likelihood that most (perhaps all) of these future predictions will not materialize either."
"We have been criticized by some of our readers for whipping up hysteria about the end of the world. Our intent is the exact opposite: we want to dampen the level of panic. We hope that by listing many dozens of past predictions all of which have failed, that people will realize that some very important individuals have been totally wrong when they predicted the end of the world. End of the world predictions have been common throughout Christianity and other religions for almost 2000 years. Thus, the public has little to fear from prophets who predict a particular date for the world's end."
"Tyndale House Publishers have created the "Left Behind Prophecy Club." In early 2004-JAN, they noted five events in the year 2003 that they feel are "compelling signs of the End Times" in our near future:"
"Israel is constructing a 320 mile barrier to separate itself from Palestinian controlled land."
"The removal of Saddam Hussein from power may result in the rebuilding of Babylon."
"French President Jacques Chirac suggested that a "pioneer group" of nations within the European Union (EU) separate from the main EU group and progress towards a reunited Europe. This could be the ten kingdom prophesized in the book of Daniel."
"By moving towards equal rights for everyone, they feel that the Episcopal Church (USA) is abandoning parts of the Bible. Apostasy was one of the defining characteristics of the end times, according to the Bible."
"They feel that the election of Vladimir Putin and his party may lead to a rebuilding of Russia as a dominant player on the world scene, as is allegedly prophesied in Ezekiel."
21st century:
"Thomas Chase 4 predicts that when the world's population reaches 6.66 billion, the war of Armageddon may occur. In early 1999, it reached 6.0 billion."
2006:
"Michael Drosnin predicted in his book "The Bible Code II" that "the Bible code clearly states the danger in modern terms- 'atomic holocaust' and 'World War' are both encoded in the Bible. And both are encoded with the same year, 2006." Amazon.com visitors who review the book give it a rather low rating: 2.5 stars out of 5."
"According to an E-mail that we received, the writer believes that "666," the number of the beast mentioned in the biblical book of Revelation, is really a date: 06/06/06 or 2006-JUN-6. He expects the rapture and start of the tribulation on that date."
"According to the Weekly world News for 2001-FEB-13, hydrogen bombs hidden in London, Washington and Tel Aviv will be detonated. This will be the start of the war of Armageddon."
I also read the description of The Rapture which I found interesting and don't think I've read before.
"What is the rapture?"
"The Rapture is believed by many -- perhaps most -- born-again Protestants. They are certain that they, alone, will engage in a mass migration in the near future. They believe that those born-again Christians who have died will have their bodies reconstituted and will ascend through the air, and meet Jesus Christ in the sky. This will be followed by a second mass migration of the born-again who are currently living."
"The word "Rapture" comes from the Latin word "Rapare" which means to take away or to snatch out. This would be a remarkable event. Pilots would disappear from planes, truck drivers from their trucks; people from automobiles, etc. Some born-again Christians believe that a family will be eating dinner, when some of the members will rise from their seats, pass through the roof and keep rising through the air."
"An associated event is Christ's imminent return (also known as the "second coming" and "parousia"). This has been expected by many Christians for almost 2 millennia. It was described by the Greek word "parousia" (coming, arrival, presence) during the 1st century CE. Justin Martyr introduced the term "second coming" in the 2nd century."
"Ever since Christ's death, many Christians have been expecting the second coming in their immediate future. Most Fundamentalist and other conservative Christians believe that The Rapture will occur when Christ first returns towards earth. Most believe that Christ will not actually land or stay on earth at this time; the "real" second coming will occur later, when he returns on a horse leading an army on horseback who will exterminate one third of the earth's population in a massive genocide. It will be numerically the largest mass extermination of humans in history. In terms of the percentage of humans to be killed in a genocide, it will be second only to the flood of Noah."
"The rapture concept is essentially ignored by most other Christian faith groups. It does not form a part of any other religion. It is dismissed by essentially all liberal Christian theologians. Many Bible handbooks, commentaries, dictionaries and encyclopedia do not even list "rapture" in their indices."
Food for thought...
Overview:
"Predictions have been made of several events that some Christians believe are related: the second coming of Jesus, the war of Armageddon, the arrival on earth of the Antichrist, the Tribulation, the Rapture, some horrendous natural disaster, etc. Jewish, Islamic, psychic and occult predictions have also been offered as well."
"We have listed over 7 dozen past predictions of the end of the world which have one factor in common: none ever came true. There is every likelihood that most (perhaps all) of these future predictions will not materialize either."
"We have been criticized by some of our readers for whipping up hysteria about the end of the world. Our intent is the exact opposite: we want to dampen the level of panic. We hope that by listing many dozens of past predictions all of which have failed, that people will realize that some very important individuals have been totally wrong when they predicted the end of the world. End of the world predictions have been common throughout Christianity and other religions for almost 2000 years. Thus, the public has little to fear from prophets who predict a particular date for the world's end."
"Tyndale House Publishers have created the "Left Behind Prophecy Club." In early 2004-JAN, they noted five events in the year 2003 that they feel are "compelling signs of the End Times" in our near future:"
"Israel is constructing a 320 mile barrier to separate itself from Palestinian controlled land."
"The removal of Saddam Hussein from power may result in the rebuilding of Babylon."
"French President Jacques Chirac suggested that a "pioneer group" of nations within the European Union (EU) separate from the main EU group and progress towards a reunited Europe. This could be the ten kingdom prophesized in the book of Daniel."
"By moving towards equal rights for everyone, they feel that the Episcopal Church (USA) is abandoning parts of the Bible. Apostasy was one of the defining characteristics of the end times, according to the Bible."
"They feel that the election of Vladimir Putin and his party may lead to a rebuilding of Russia as a dominant player on the world scene, as is allegedly prophesied in Ezekiel."
21st century:
"Thomas Chase 4 predicts that when the world's population reaches 6.66 billion, the war of Armageddon may occur. In early 1999, it reached 6.0 billion."
2006:
"Michael Drosnin predicted in his book "The Bible Code II" that "the Bible code clearly states the danger in modern terms- 'atomic holocaust' and 'World War' are both encoded in the Bible. And both are encoded with the same year, 2006." Amazon.com visitors who review the book give it a rather low rating: 2.5 stars out of 5."
"According to an E-mail that we received, the writer believes that "666," the number of the beast mentioned in the biblical book of Revelation, is really a date: 06/06/06 or 2006-JUN-6. He expects the rapture and start of the tribulation on that date."
"According to the Weekly world News for 2001-FEB-13, hydrogen bombs hidden in London, Washington and Tel Aviv will be detonated. This will be the start of the war of Armageddon."
I also read the description of The Rapture which I found interesting and don't think I've read before.
"What is the rapture?"
"The Rapture is believed by many -- perhaps most -- born-again Protestants. They are certain that they, alone, will engage in a mass migration in the near future. They believe that those born-again Christians who have died will have their bodies reconstituted and will ascend through the air, and meet Jesus Christ in the sky. This will be followed by a second mass migration of the born-again who are currently living."
"The word "Rapture" comes from the Latin word "Rapare" which means to take away or to snatch out. This would be a remarkable event. Pilots would disappear from planes, truck drivers from their trucks; people from automobiles, etc. Some born-again Christians believe that a family will be eating dinner, when some of the members will rise from their seats, pass through the roof and keep rising through the air."
"An associated event is Christ's imminent return (also known as the "second coming" and "parousia"). This has been expected by many Christians for almost 2 millennia. It was described by the Greek word "parousia" (coming, arrival, presence) during the 1st century CE. Justin Martyr introduced the term "second coming" in the 2nd century."
"Ever since Christ's death, many Christians have been expecting the second coming in their immediate future. Most Fundamentalist and other conservative Christians believe that The Rapture will occur when Christ first returns towards earth. Most believe that Christ will not actually land or stay on earth at this time; the "real" second coming will occur later, when he returns on a horse leading an army on horseback who will exterminate one third of the earth's population in a massive genocide. It will be numerically the largest mass extermination of humans in history. In terms of the percentage of humans to be killed in a genocide, it will be second only to the flood of Noah."
"The rapture concept is essentially ignored by most other Christian faith groups. It does not form a part of any other religion. It is dismissed by essentially all liberal Christian theologians. Many Bible handbooks, commentaries, dictionaries and encyclopedia do not even list "rapture" in their indices."
Food for thought...