A recent article about a “Left Behind” service for non-raptured relatives left my husband and I chuckling.
I didn’t read “Left Behind,” but trace my interest in end-times prophesy to the 1970s, when my Mormon uncle became fascinated by Hal Lindsay’s “The Late Great Planet Earth.” Like “Left Behind” author Tim LaHaye, Lindsay was influenced by Cold War ideology that perceived the United Nations and Communism as evil.
Biblical prophesy can be interpretted to suit one’s worldview. Uncle H. once told me the Revelations’ description of the dark horse of the apocalypse meant that black people were evil, a doctrine the LDS Church had since abandoned. Unfortunately, my uncle wasn’t a churchgoer.
“Pre-tribulation rapture” is a recent doctrine. Prior to the mid-1800s, Christians didn’t believe they’d escape the tribulation. Liberal theologians believe Revelations described events that occurred during the Roman Empire. But I see allusions in Revelations to current events, and to America as the fulfillment of end-time prophecy.
The first beast could describe American money: “In God We Trust” the blasphemous name on the heads of our seven coins. Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy suffered mortal blows to the head. Like the second beast, a military submarine emerges from the ocean and fires missiles into the sky. Babylon is modern-day Iraq.
The Fourth Century Counsel of Nicea considered leaving Revelations out of the Bible. Catholic Church founder Saint Augustine feared the book would lull Christians into a false sense of complacency, leading them to lose objective engagement in the world.
It turns out, Augustine’s concerns were prescient. Former EPA head James Watt, a member of George W. Bush’s cabinet, said it wasn’t necessary to preserve the environment, as Christ’s return was immenent. Liberal Jews and Christians have expressed concern over how the “Left Behind” worldview may influence foreign policy in the Middle East. Many Americans were dumbfounded by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s “God damn America.”
By lulling Christians into a complacent belief in pre-tribulation rapture, “Left Behind” may fulfill Christ’s prophesy of the foolish bridesmaids, who fell asleep instead of obtaining oil for their lamps.
I didn’t read “Left Behind,” but trace my interest in end-times prophesy to the 1970s, when my Mormon uncle became fascinated by Hal Lindsay’s “The Late Great Planet Earth.” Like “Left Behind” author Tim LaHaye, Lindsay was influenced by Cold War ideology that perceived the United Nations and Communism as evil.
Biblical prophesy can be interpretted to suit one’s worldview. Uncle H. once told me the Revelations’ description of the dark horse of the apocalypse meant that black people were evil, a doctrine the LDS Church had since abandoned. Unfortunately, my uncle wasn’t a churchgoer.
“Pre-tribulation rapture” is a recent doctrine. Prior to the mid-1800s, Christians didn’t believe they’d escape the tribulation. Liberal theologians believe Revelations described events that occurred during the Roman Empire. But I see allusions in Revelations to current events, and to America as the fulfillment of end-time prophecy.
The first beast could describe American money: “In God We Trust” the blasphemous name on the heads of our seven coins. Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy suffered mortal blows to the head. Like the second beast, a military submarine emerges from the ocean and fires missiles into the sky. Babylon is modern-day Iraq.
The Fourth Century Counsel of Nicea considered leaving Revelations out of the Bible. Catholic Church founder Saint Augustine feared the book would lull Christians into a false sense of complacency, leading them to lose objective engagement in the world.
It turns out, Augustine’s concerns were prescient. Former EPA head James Watt, a member of George W. Bush’s cabinet, said it wasn’t necessary to preserve the environment, as Christ’s return was immenent. Liberal Jews and Christians have expressed concern over how the “Left Behind” worldview may influence foreign policy in the Middle East. Many Americans were dumbfounded by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s “God damn America.”
By lulling Christians into a complacent belief in pre-tribulation rapture, “Left Behind” may fulfill Christ’s prophesy of the foolish bridesmaids, who fell asleep instead of obtaining oil for their lamps.
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