 |
|
|
|
|
May 18th, 2011
05:00 AM ET
Tick tock goes the doomsday clockBy Jessica Ravitz, CNN (CNN) - For months they’ve been spreading the word, answering the biblical call of Ezekiel 33 to sound the alarm and warn the people. Their message, which they say the Bible guarantees, is simple: The end of the world is near. And now, it’s suddenly really near - so near that if these folks are right, you should probably pass on buying green bananas. Perhaps you’ve already noticed, what with the billboards and signs dotting the landscape, the pamphlets blowing in the wind and the RVs plastered with Judgment Day warnings weaving through cities. Or maybe, as the birds chirped outside and you sipped your morning coffee, a full-page newspaper ad for the upcoming mass destruction caught your eye. May 21, 2011, according to loyal listeners of Family Radio, a Christian broadcasting network based in Oakland, California, will mark the Day of Rapture and the start of Judgment Day (which, they say, will last five months). Those who are saved will be taken up to heaven, and those who aren’t will endure unspeakable suffering. Dead bodies will be strewn about as earthquakes ravage the Earth, they say. And come October 21, they’ll tell you, the entire world will be kaput. It’s the kind of belief that riles up churchgoers who insist no one can know when Judgment Day will come, and the sort that many say does a disservice to Christianity. And it’s the kind of message that delights the types who are planning tongue-in-cheek End of the World parties and are responding to a Facebook invitation to attend a post-rapture looting. Rapture events, including one at a tiki bar in Fort Lauderdale, are being hosted by American Atheists. News outlets, comedians and even Doonesbury can’t seem to resist a good end-of-the-world prophecy. Billboard battle over Judgment Day Earlier this year, CNN traveled with a team of believers - all of whom had walked away from friends, families and jobs - as they set out to share this serious message aboard a caravan of Judgment Day RVs. These ambassadors or co-laborers in God’s work, as they see themselves, let us into their world. Along the way we met other supporters, as well as a sea of skeptics, many of them drunken pirates gathered for an annual festival in Florida. Read about that journey and the roots of this doomsday message With only days to go, we wanted to know how the ambassadors are feeling now. Are they making special plans and saying goodbyes? Have their convictions stayed strong, or have doubts crept in? Are they at peace, excited or maybe afraid? “We’ve been a little busy, as you can imagine,” said Fred Store, the team leader on our journey. Reached at a motor home park in Providence, Rhode Island, Store spoke of the surge of support he’s seen in recent months – the 60 like-minded people (including someone who works for Homeland Security, he boasted) who joined his small crew on the Mall in Washington, and the hundreds who gathered in Times Square in New York. But at the same time he said resistance from those who don’t believe has grown, too. The more people heard about the May 21 warning, the more they discussed it with their pastors and came prepared to argue. Learn about doomsdays throughout time And the media, while they’ve helped spread the message, will be turned away in the coming days. CNN hoped to be with Store and his team on doomsday, but the members said they needed that time to focus on their relationship with God. Perhaps that’s just as well, as an official at Family Radio headquarters pointed out: “What makes you think you’ll be able to get to them? The roads will be a mess," he said, referring to the expected earthquakes. Plus, Store said, even if we got there, there would be no time to edit and publish, so what's the point? Store’s faith remains unwavering. Come Saturday, he and his team will be in Boston, standing in a spot with heavy foot traffic, passing out their pamphlets – which they call tracts – and doing what they believe God called them to do until the very end. No longer with the team is Darryl Keitt, who ditched his caravan on May 6. He said his time on the RV was a “gift from God,” but he decided he needed to spend the last couple of weeks focusing on his non-believing family and friends in New Jersey. It was a decision he prayed about for several weeks. His Elizabeth, New Jersey, apartment is pretty sparse, seeing as he gave away most everything before hitting the road. “I was able to get my old place back,” he said. “But we only have four days to go, so I don’t need much.” He’s reaching out to old friends and hoping his family will come around and believe what he says he knows to be true. “I have not seen any signs that they are believing the message,” he said. “But I can’t read anybody’s heart; only God can. And I’m still praying for them. All I can do is continue to share my convictions.” Tisan Dawud may not share his older half-brother's beliefs, but he supports the positive nature of what Keitt's doing and is awestruck by his dedication. "He's trying to spread what he believes is the word of God, and I can't knock him for that," Dawud said Tuesday evening. "I became Muslim when I was very young, and he remained Christian. But I've always had respect for his beliefs, and he always had respect for my beliefs." And rather than criticize or ridicule his brother, who he said isn't hurting anyone, Dawud wishes people would focus on those who deserve examination and condemnation - those selling drugs, molesting children, raping women or embezzling money, for example. Keitt spends his days in prayer, reaching out to people on Facebook, listening to Family Radio and walking around his neighborhood in his Judgment Day cap and T-shirt. He ran out of tracts some time ago, and at this point it’s too late to order any more, he said. As for where he’ll be on Saturday: “It’s a good question," and one he's still considering. He doesn’t like goodbyes, he said, and only told two people in his caravan team of 10 that he was leaving. He gave those two men, one of them Store, a quick hug and that was it. “Preferably we’ll meet each other again,” Keitt said, “in heaven.” Dennis Morrell was driving through Jacksonville, Florida, pulling his Judgment Day billboard trailer, when we reached him on his cell phone. He wasn’t part of the caravan of RVs but was among the Floridians who joined in to help Store’s team when they were in the city. Morell and his wife quit their jobs to focus on warning others, a move that’s left their four kids – ages 17 to 24 – thinking “Mom and Dad are crazy,” he said. He still hopes God will “open their spiritual eyes,” he said. “But they’re at an age where they love their lives. They don’t want this world to come to an end.” His faith, though, is as firm as ever, and he wishes others would open their minds and hearts to this possibility. “Why would you wait to see if this is actually going to happen? You have that option to cry out for mercy,” he said. “I don’t want to die and go to hell. Do you?” He plans to spend the last days praying, up until the early hours of Saturday - when he’ll both pray and wait for 16 hours. Why 16 hours? Morrell explained that the massive doomsday earthquake will start at the International Date Line before moving west. New Zealand, he said, will get hit first – at 6 p.m. local time. And then that wave of destruction will roll around the world, wreaking havoc at 6 p.m. in each time zone. While Morrell expects he’ll reserve Saturday for private time, Benjamin Ramrajie of Ocala, Florida, doesn’t have any special plans. We met Ramrajie in Tampa after his 7-year-old daughter issued a doomsday warning about how the sun would “turn red like blood.” He stood by and nodded his approval as she spoke about dead bodies and her fears of dying. “Most of my family doesn’t agree 100 percent, and I don’t blame them because it is far-fetched,” he said. “I strongly believe it’s going to happen. But I just figure I’ll relax, maybe watch TV. If that’s the day we get raptured, great. If not, we’ll move on.” soundoff (6,292 Responses)1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 Next » |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
|
|
|
Damn!!! I thought it was May 21, 2012?
Look at how may posters come out to embrace or decry this. Must be BELIEF BLOG's greatest moment. When will CNN install an astrology page or have a fortuneteller with a regular commentary page. Both would be a step up from B.B. - for room temperature IQs.
Tell me about it. A 138-page Threadnaught in just two days. The MMO forums wish they could achieve that with all the drama llamas about. XD
I'm stuck at 00:58 on this video.
saddly no, get your dooms days not so mixed up!
A year late for the rapture?!?!??!!!
Remind me not to arrange to meet you for lunch...........
The man is how old ? ! Really old ! Maybe he wants the world to end,cause he's closer to his grave sight....give me a break man ! What a rude awakening they're getting,on Sunday morning ; )
I wonder how many guys will be telling their Christian fundie girlfriends that Friday and Saturday will be the last time to experience earthly pleasures...so let's get it on!!
doomday is not yet. we dont know when,where, what time but accurding to islam religion we know that it will happen on friday but we dont know which friday is that? we can see that the day of judgement is around us.
Revelation 9:5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
Can it be talking about May 21, 2011 thru October 21 2011
Sounds like Voodoo to me. Do you know how folks lived back then? Do you know what their level of scientific knowledge and understanding of our world was like? These ancestors were one step beyond the caveman. Anything myth that they believed should be discarded along with their lifestyle of stoning people to death and engaging in animal and human sacrifice.
I've been stocking ammo for my old Russian sniper rifle for a while now... bring them scorpions on, buster! I'll show 'em what a sting is!
I Believe!!,
That this prediction is just one more false prophecy built upon a man-made book that is nothing more than bad fiction. ANYONE that believes in the literal truth of the bible or any other book of supernatural superst!tion is mentally ill.
That being said, Camping is doing society a great favor by bringing light to the stupidity of religion. He should be thanked on May 22.
hotairace, you might want to go back and check your history, dead sea scrolls? and by the way do you know the diference between bad and good? Can that be what we call a conscience? One last comment , if you find there indeed was a man that existed 2000 years ago and his name was jesus and that he was crusified on a cross for our sins, you well might want to check his grave because his bones are are not there?
Steve, considering that the history of misogyny and slavery in the United States is steeped in biblical tradition, I'd have to say your argument was poorly thought out. Without heavy redaction the bible tends to be a poor guide for moral living. Our sense of right and wrong comes from experience, not god. What we can do to better ourselves (as a society) is to teach our children values based on the consequences of their actions rather than from an ambiguous and self-contradicting religious text.
SB, if you really believe that then thats fine. Its your choice weither you believe or not. But the Bible says to honor God with all your and believe in him. If we could see God then there would be no reason for faith. Thats why we have to trust in him and live by the ten commandments. I think im going to believe in a book the was wrote over two thousand years ago. And my God told all the people what to write.
You know, i will agree with you on one point. I can't stand RELIGION either. All these different nuances and man-made dogmas have muddied the waters and confused people for years. But I do know this, both through physical proof and through spiritial truth, that the Almighty God is more real and more omnipotent than any religion can describe, and his son Jesus walked this earth around 2,000 years ago, and was brutally murdered on a wooden cross, and was buried. But being of GOD and being ABOVE the world and its constraints, he rose and left that tomb. Now, I don't know if he busted out of the burial linens and flew off, or rolled away the big rock or how he got out, but he rose. And why did he rise? To PROVE that he was the Son of God, to BEAR the burden of man's sins, and to SAVE a fallen world from the hell we all deserve.
The WORLD doesn't make us who we are, our sin-nature has created this WORLD. There's a reason the Holy Bible is the number ONE selling book of all time, and it isn't because we're mentally ill and living a pipe dream. It's the ONLY book that can truly breathe TRUTH and LIFE into a mortal man. If you haven't tried it and experienced it, I can't explain it any better.
Wow, now we are going back to the Dead Sea Scrolls? Old Test vs New? Apples and Oranges? Hope you people don't follow it too closely or you will (by commandment) kill your children for being disobedient and of course kill everyone you see working on a Sunday. I'm off tomorrow luckily. If you bring up the "good" parts of the bible, don't forget that book also contains many travesties.
Didn't they say the dooms day was May 31 a few months ago? Anyway, now we know nothing major will happen on May 21.
Well, I wouldn't say that. I mean, the Yankees are playing the Mets. Big crosstown rivalry there.
Most of this is hilariously funny, until it comes to thinking about the kids. Parents who involve their kids in this nonsense need a visit from social services.
Here, Here!!! First sane person all day! And I follow the teachings of Jesus....
Will Family Radio reimburse all of the people who they duped into quitting their jobs and their lives to spread this silliness for lost wages, or at least help them get their lives on track, after the inevitable completely normal day that comes on Saturday? I doubt it. These quacks and charlatans love lying for attention and money, and they won't have to answer for their lies because they were just doing "the Lord's work." Meanwhile, the real life implications of their fantasies are that people will be hurt, and they don't care one bit.
why do you waste our time with this nonsense? alot of your topics are either misleading (suck up to Obozo for screwing the country) or just plain stupid like this one here. heres to your network getting a clue about reality.....
Yet here you are.
Takes two to tango Tool.
what are you doing here then?
As somebody who studies the bible, I have 3 problems with this
Personally, I can't wait to see the swarm of tiara wearing, armour clad locusts with the face of a man, the hair of a woman, the mouth of a lion and the tail of a scorpion that Revelation says will be one of the first things to come forth during the Rapture.
Atheist entomologists will have a field day!
@Doc: They wear tiaras?! Well there's our economic recovery right there! Everyone grab some locusts and head to your local pawn shop.
When these things do occur, not this Saturday, these will be demons, probably not seen. They will sting people and caused them to be paralyzed for 5 months. People will wish they were dead and want to die, but they won't be able to.
Re: "Personally, I can't wait to see the swarm of tiara wearing, armour clad locusts with the face of a man, the hair of a woman, the mouth of a lion and the tail of a scorpion that Revelation says will be one of the first things to come forth during the Rapture."
Pfft. Walk down Hollywood Blvd. on an average weekend and you should see three of those.
hahaha Frogist! GOOD ONE
I'm a Christian, and I do certainly believe Jesus Christ will return someday. However, there is no reason to believe it will be this Saturday:
1) Most importantly, Jesus Christ Himself said "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:32). This article says it best: "If God has not even revealed to his own son the date the world will end, I doubt he has revealed it to Harold Camping".
2) I've read the "proof" that the Second Coming will be on this day, but it is less-than-convincing. Essentially, Camping took a couple random verses with dates, added the numbers up, and it came out to May 21, 2011. He essentially did the same thing with the "September 1994 end-of-world predictions".
3) If God actually wanted us to know the day when His Son would return, He would have made it obvious. God would not "hide" it in the Bible and leave us to figure it out. Even some of Paul's Epistles deal with this subject: worry more about being a good person than the exact day Christ will return.
4) I'm sure Camping is a friendly guy and all, but he seems to think that he is some sort of "prophet". Due to his false prediction that the world would end in September 1994, he is already deemed a false prophet by Biblical standards (Deuteronomy 18:22)
5) Ths article also brings up another good point: "My hunch is that the date God ultimately has chosen is one that will not be plastered on billboards around the country". It is true. When asked "What would you do if you knew that you were going to die tomorrow", most Americans will reply with "Eat all the junk-food I want", "Get drunk", "Break laws", etc. In other words, they will participate in actions that the Bible does not approve of. If God revealed the date His Son would return, people would do these immoral things.
In short, there is no reason to believe that this Saturday will be the end of the world. Jesus Himself did not know the date, so why would this guy? You can't just smash Bible verses together that reveal some sort of date and expect the world to end that day. The day the world is going to end is less important than being a good person. We have no reason to trust a, although friendly, false prophet. Lastly, end-of-the-world prophecies tend to have a negative effect.
This article sums it up: "Similarly, when next Saturday passes without a Rapture, some will say, “See, the Bible was wrong again,” when, in fact, it will have been Harold Camping who was wrong — again".
In short: let's concentrate on being a good person today. Worrying about what will happen in the future to the point where we neglect doing good today is something the Bible frowns upon.
Lastly, I must admit, people that do things like this give our faith a bad name.
Evan..if god, the son and the holy ghost are the same person.. then as has been asked before, does the son not know when he will have his next road trip?
Christianity = polytheism
The claim that three enti-ties is actually the same being is ridiculous. That is unless God has multiple personality disorder.
@EvolvedDNA: Jesus voluntarily emptied Himself of a knowledge and certain attributes of God while on earth 2,000 years ago, for our sake. God is eternally One in Three distinct Persons. You care for Christians too much you should become one. Just accept the free gift of God's love for you, Evo-. By the way, I wrote to you on the news site of a Catholic priest who collects tales of Holocaust.
Well written, Evan. As for the trinity; Even Billy Graham once said that he didn't fully understand the trinity. What we have to do is imagine ourselves outside of this simple three dimensional world that we live in and into the world of an unconfined God. That makes it easier for me to understand the marvelous and awesome God that I worship. Someday it will all be revealed to us, but not in this confined world. I can't wait!
Thanks for the post. Your insight is phenomenal. Don't be discouraged by the naysayers... "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet." It is true that no man knows the date of the lords return, but I can promise you, it will happen some day and you won't know what hit you!
It sure was smart to include the whole thing about Beware False Prophets in the Bible. This enabled every moron on the planet to "predict" a date and then when it doesnt happen, it was just a "false prophet" but this also conveniently makes it IMPOSSIBLE to PROVE without a doubt the bible is nonsense because its open-ended.
Everything ends. I can predict the end to the world. EVENTUALLY it will end. Could be BILLIONS of years. But eventually it will end. So one day it will and then, wow the bible was right.
How ridiculous everything about religion is.
Doesn't it say somewhere in the Bible that He (Jesus) will come back LIKE a thief in the night? Since "Radio Likes French Fries" can predict when that happens,someone should hire that retard to do security for banks. Maybe ADT has a spot for him. All jokes aside, here is the even funnier part of all of this. "Radio" has all of us talking about it. LOL.. Too funny!
evan , good summary, lets concentrate on doing the will of abba.
I don't see much difference in believing in an invisible spirit directing people to write books, which are supposedly perfect, ordering the actions of man to inspire people to do good things to get to a magical kingdom or else go to a world of demons, and believing that the world is going end in a couple of days. It's all paranoid fantasy.
We all have to be very careful. I have checked independently and done all the calculations using only information from the Bible and May 21, 2011 comes out as the date of the end of the 3rd Great Tribulation. The first Great Tribulation was when Jacob left Canaan for Egypt and the second Great Tribulation was when Nebuchadnezzar’s troops conquered and razed Jerusalem to the ground. God told Daniel the intervals between the great tribulations will be 1290 days (years) and that the Abomination of Desolation will last 2300 evenings and mornings.
When we use these figures in our calculations the end of the third great tribulation falls on May 21, 2011. Jesus said IMMEDIATELY after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light .......
It is left with whether Jesus will honor that promise to come at the end of the great tribulation.
There is however a verse in Deuteronomy 32:8 that states God will end the world IMMEDIATELY the last of the Elect of God, the true children of Israel, is born and saved. Because of the practice of contraception over the last 40-50 years, the world's population at this time is estimated to be short by at least 2 billion individuals. If God has factored this in already then MAY 21 IS THE DATE! Otherwise so far as there is even 1 elect of God not yet born and saved God will issue a stay of execution as he did in the case of King Hezekiah in 2Kings 20:15.
Whatever the case, the end of the world cannot be far away. It has to be in our generation. Jesus said when we see the fig tree in leaf we should know that it is near at the very door. The fig tree is the nation of Israel and it became a nation again in 1948 so we are in the time frame set forth by God. It is going to be May 21 or very soon.
"@EvolvedDNA: Jesus voluntarily emptied Himself of a knowledge and certain attributes of God while on earth 2,000 years ago, for our sake. God is eternally One in Three distinct Persons."
Hahahahahaha. Haha. People will find magical stories to justify ANYTHING. He's one, he's three, he's god, he's not, he's part-god, he's human, blah blah blah blah. What's that I smell? BS.
This type of thing does do a dis-service to Christianity. We can however know the season. I personally believe we're in that season. What is happening in the middle-east, when complete, I believe will end up in a muslim coalition which will attack Israel as described in Psalm 83. Right now Jerusalem is that "burdensome stone" described in Zechariah 12:3. Tomorrow Obama will pre-empt Netanyahu's Friday visit to the White House apprarently laying out "the One's" plan for a Palestinian state. If Obama "burdens" himself with this issue, it is going to be us as a nation that will suffer the consequences for it. Hillary's anncouncement on this subject in April was followed by the tornadoes and rain which is causing the flooding still today. Let's see if Obama will try to divide up the land (Joel 3:2). God will not tolerate this and He won't be mocked. We will all see how Genesis 12:3 is still very much in effect to this day. "And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee..." Will Obama bless or curse Israel tomorrow?
And you're wrong, too. Bzzzt. thanks for playing.
> God will not tolerate this and He won't be mocked.
God is mocked. Every day. If he doesn't tolerate it why am I still here?
Keith, how many times has a "muslim coalition" attached Israel in the past?? You can believe that the authors of the Bible predicted this, but even at that time, these types of events were history that had repeated itself over and over. Does this mean it is prophecy, and it is about to come to pass, OR does it mean such an event is predictable based on current events?? This is another in a long line of "prophecy" predictions that may well not come to pass (including this May 21 garbage).... and maybe not a very accurate prediction in this time of democratic revolution (NOT theologically based) in the middle east that could reduce the chances of such an attack. We need to quit predicting, hoping for, and even encourage war in hopes of making prophecies true!
i want to know what sort of drugs your on because they must be amazing.
Jesus also said that you could literally move a mountain with the tiniest bit of faith. So, can you move a mountain? I guess you have no faith at all then do you?
Not really... seeing how Jesus Christ said clearly that... wackos would come in His name and decieve..so-called christianity is FULL of that
Keith I'm as Republican as they come but did you just blame Hillary Clinton for the floods in the Mississippi area? Wow, you Sir need some medication.
keith, your right on, will go when the last jew or gentile says yes to the lord , the fullness of the gentiles come in , then we'll go, anyone with a conscience should know the difference between right and wrong?
The Palestinian state is something many U.S. presidents have worked for, including George W. Bush. President Obama is not the "one"...... you are insulting, Christians and you likely say you are one! Shame on you!
After Ja-pan gave tens of millions of dollars to the PA and officially called for a Palestinian state WITH Jerusalem as its capital, the earthquake/tsunami hit them. Check it out for yourselves. In case cnn hasn't reported to you...the reactor did meltdown. It now has the same rating as Chernobyl. What will happen if Obama pushes for the same thing Ja-pan did?
Christianity does a disservice to christianity.
To pick up on Frogist's comment. Many of these kids are no doubt totally traumatized and terrified at their impending deaths. What sort of sick parent does this to their child – causing them severe emotional trauma based on their sky-fairy superst-itions. Isn’t Christianity marvelous.
Do you even know what Christianity is? Please read the Bible before speaking of something you know nothing about. The way this group of Harold Camping cultists are handling things, I agree, it's wrong. But if you actually look into Christianity and not denominations, you will find it's different.
Christianity as a whole is a Cult...and not a good Cult like the amazing classic rock band from the 80s and 90s, but a really bad one that spreads hate and fear among the people and whose purveyors are the worst kind of hypocrites and charlatans. Reading the bible does not change the fact that it is a body of lies...
@TheTruth – the worst thing a Christian can do is read the bible. They will certainly lose faith then.
sure..people who live in sin all there miserable lives would think true christianity is a cult... because a religious group help put Him on a cross(The religious jews)..they were afraid that, they would lose there jobs working in the temple and lose there religious statous with the commoners.
I would definetely disagree that the Cult is "amazing"....not even close.
Again people speaking without knowledge. I've read the Bible, I'm a Christian, I haven't lost faith. I know there are others out there besides me that are the same. That disproves that statement. Now onto the next one. The Bible does not promote fear and hate. Actually it's quite the opposite. Man is the one that may teach it that way. I agree that is completely wrong to teach Christianity that way.
And just saying things are lies because you think they are lies doesn't neccessarily make them lies. If saw your mother's name and I said that your mother lived is a lie, without knowing who she is and who you were, is that a lie?
I am thinking of that 7 yr old girl who has to endure these looming portents of death from her parents. I feel sad for her and all the other children caught up in this. I feel sad for the people who will wait to be disappointed too, but less so. They can compartmentalize this in their minds as "oh well". But can you imagine the fear that little girl will be feeling as she watches the clock tick over in the minutes before 6? It's just cruel. I know they think they are doing good by their children, but this just seems sad and cruel.
Actually, this nonsense hurts Christianity as a whole. Anyone who is converted by fear and sees it does not occur will instantly deconvert.
@Bobinator: I would hope that they at least question why they got themselves in that situation. But the children cannot just distance themselves from the fear. They have no choice but to live in it.
BTW I don't think people will just "deconvert". The majority will just find other ways to prop up their belief or justify their actions.
Plus side, she will see how wacky christianity is and turn away from it when she gets older.
The Bobinator
Actually, this nonsense hurts Christianity as a whole. Anyone who is converted by fear and sees it does not occur will instantly deconvert.
-----
I doubt that. If they let fear rule their decision then they are weak and ignorant to begin with. Religion is for the weak, meek and ignorant.
This is why I can't stand reading some of these things. If you are a true Christian then you will believe that No one knows when Christ will come back for His People. All He has asked us to do is believe in Him, live our lives as decent people, avoiding sinful life, love others show compassion and self control, respect each other. If we do that we don't need to worry about all these things because we know when He does come that we will be with Him. Thats how I understood it when reading the Bible.
I completely agree. what kind of sick parent would tell their child they had only days to live before their god destroyed them!? If anyone were to be punished, it would be them, foretelling their own child's death to her. they make me sick!
This is the smartest post here.
@Jase: Two things. I don't think it's quite fair to say these people are not "true" Christians. They obviously believe in what they are doing and are following the Bible to the best of their knowledge. They might look at you as not a "true" Christian because you don't believe Camping's ideas. But you would obviously disagree. You are both using your own interpretations of the same source to come to very different conclusions. In this case how do we determine who is "true"? Them or you?
Secondly, I agree with your interpretations of what Christianity on the whole should be about. I think our positions probably match up quite well. But what exactly is "avoiding a sinful life" according to the Bible? For some other Christians it is discriminating against gays, becoming as wealthy as possible, or even killing other human beings like abortion doctors. These Christians can cite their Bible to justify these IMO considerably un-Christ-like actions. How can we know which Christian is really "avoiding a sinful life" when sin has different interpretations according to which Christian you talk to? This is one of my biggest issues with Christianity, there's no clear cut across the board agreement or even majority consensus on what is right and what is wrong.
My turn to make some predicitons. One, on December 22 we will all wake up and nothing will have happened. Two, this won't peturb these nutjobs in the slightest, they will just claim a mathematical error, reset the date and move on. Three, mainstream Christians will go on believing the same Iron Age myths they always have.
Sorry, May 22
hmm so the Mayan's are wrong? And the movie 2012? Dang it, i had it all lined up to make my predictions. but i was going to toss in some powerful 5th grade calculations!
Uncle Sam's Love Child said: "Sorry, May 22"
That really is, as they say, a distinction without a difference. 🙂
That's exactly what's going to happern. They actually did do errors with their math.
Well I"m going to party like it's 1999 anyway...wasn't that the last time the earth was supposed to blow up?
uncle sam's love child Hey are you willing to bet your eternal soul on that last remark?
I am very sad for those who have been following this lie that the rapture will occur on May 21st. Even if they attempt to explain away “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32), they cannot explain away that most every Christian, theologian, scholar, and prophet from the first Century until the Nineteenth Century all believed that the church would go through the Great Tribulation and not escape through some secret rapture that would leave the world paralyzed. I pray that they will take a moment and read my book, “Final Warning” because the hour of is His judgment has come.
How can god the father know, but not god the son when they are one and the same god? Contradiction number 10,000 in Christian theology.
Hey Rev, nice stinky book marketing. Those May 21 rapture folks have a better agent though. Maybe you should seek professional help with expertise in selling junk like yours – an experienced snake oil salesman would be right for the job, or a used priest.
@ The Spider Monkey's Marshmallow
Thats because!..oh, what the hell. Gimme time to make up some sophisticaed bs
NIce book plug Rev...not surprising seeing that your living relies on telling people lies on a regular basis while distracting them from the fact that you are robbing them blind of their time and hard-earned cash by pushing a book of lies a fairy tales on them, their innocent children, and the socially retarded among us. Did I mention that you spew hate for many groups of your fellow humans that seek only to live good lives and love one another, a message that your magical unicorn hunter is credited with on several occasions. So...YOU ARE JUST AS BAD AS THESE JERKS, DONT YOU GET IT?
Sleep well and I will take four bottles of snake oil please...
You may want to re-read your Bible Rev. The Church will not go through the tribulation.... The "Church" will consist of everyone who believes in Jesus Christ and lived their lives according to the Word. Are we all sinners? Yes but we are forgiven and covered by HIs Precious blood and because of that we shall be taken up with him.
Jesus told us when He would return as in the DAYS of noah(not the 120 years) and if we knew the day the tribulation started then we could do the math given in daniel and revelation unto the exact day.....and as for jase...Jesus christ is seperate from sinners...He came to take sin not just cover it up so don't believe the lascivious Gospel lie.
Ummm, Rev. , really....oh you're right....damn I knew somebody was right. It has to be the one selling his BOOK. Yet another book from another one who "knows". You remind me of tool "Christian" who came to my door and stole my no solicitation sign because he was "right" as well. I don't remember how much he had to pay in fines though. Security cameras...priceless.
@Jase....Tell that to the 7 churches that Jesus speaks to in Revelation. Did they escape tribulation? How about the apostles? Did they escape tribulation? Seems to me, that if you're Christian, your going to have to be tried and tested. I'd rather be prepared for the worst, then not be and wonder why later on.
So, since YOU know that the final hour has come then you must be the Father. Glad you cleared it up for us.
I agree, rom 11:25 when the last gentile or the fullness of the gentiles occures, then we'll go>
Dear Reverend, The Book of Revelations, as I'm sure you'll agree, was written during the time of immense persecution of Christians under the Roman Emperor, Nero. At this time, Christians, who were seen as fringe cultists, were being slaughtered and tortured in brutal, horrifying ways. Also during this time, Apocalyptic literature was "all the rage". Countless books were being written in this manner, much like the teeny-bopper Twilight style books today. The author of Revelations was writing a missive of encouragement to suffering Christians in Rome, in a contemporary style that they would understand and gain courage through, in the face of tortuous death. All of the horrible things that happen in Revelations have happened, continually, all over the world, and won't cease to happen until we are, by whatever means, snuffed out. The "Rapture" was not even a topic of discussion in Christian religious circles until the 18th and 19th centuries. Before that, it just wasn't really talked about, It's a modern concept. A sign of a people exhausted with the world and the horrors entailed therein. Just my two cents, after having studied Forst Century Judaism, The Dead Sea Scrolls, the Apocrypha, and the ld and New Testaments for many years. Be well.
PLease, forgive my typos. Typing too fast 🙂
I also feel I need to mention that I did not come to these conclusions on my own. I'm not that awesome. I studied under some of the leading theologians in the US, for whom I have the utmost respect.
1. The Sun will burn out in 3-5 billion years so we have a time frame.
2. Asteroids continue to whiz by us daily.
3. One large hit and it is all over in a blast of permanent winter.
4. There are enough nuclear weapons to do the same job.
5. Most contemporary NT exegetes do not believe in the Second Coming so apparently there is no concern about JC coming back on an asteroid or cloud of raptors/rapture.
Bottom line: our apocalypse will start between now and 3-5 billion CE.
Actually the end started with the beginning... So technically....
Yeah and this comet Elenin is not a comet and it Huge..better do more homework space guy because it will be between us and the sun on sept. 27 of this year.
A large asteroid knocking the moon off its orbit will do just as much damage as hitting the earth.
Gravity owns u
@Chris
The comet Elenin is going to pass by earth, and it will pass by it pretty close at 21,700,000 miles from Earth.
Yup...that's about it.
oh nos!!! *builds bomb shelter*
But how awesome would it be to see Jesus descend from the heavens on a cloud of raptors? That's an epic visual.
What rubbish.
Religion? Yes I agree.
What's funny is that other christians are going "wow, these guys are nutters". The problem is, and they don't want to admit it, I don't think, is that these people's belief has just as much evidence as their own.
@Bobinator: You're right. The evidence for all of it comes from the same source and is based on conjecture anyways. It's ironic.
Do they get to beat the crap out of the old man on May 22nd?
I don't agree with this misguided Christian that is professing to know something that no man will know and I can assure you it may happen the day before that date or the day after that date but it WILL NOT HAPPEN ON THAT DATE!. I do have one question to ask you. Point out one point of rubbish in the Bible that is attributed to God or Jesus?
Watchtower Jehovah’s Witnesses have little credibility with their own fairy tale primary doctrine of Jesus ‘invisible’ second coming October 1914
Watchtower society false prophets declare end of world in 1874, 1878, 1881, 1910, 1914, 1918, 1925, 1975, and 1984....
-–
Danny Haszard been there!
this is good, show how u can mislead people in the USA easily. this guy is a nut job. from genesis to revelation, the bible
DO NOT gives u a date about Jesus coming or the END OF TIME.! THIS GUY NEEDS TO BE LOCK UP.
Jehovah's Witnesses aren't behind this one. Why attack them just because they tried to jump the gun just like many other Christian religions?
Denominations. Christianity is a religion.
@John Doe.
Correction. It's a disorder.
Hey end of worlders! I've got a nice spread down in S. America you all can come and hide out at to avoid the ridicule. It's an all inclusive private resort surrounded by lush jungle forest. heck we even have our own airport! I think you would all love it! We have a mass gathering for orientation planned on the 21st where free drinks will be provided to you by helpful and friendly staff members. So rapture yourself on down to J's town, it's like a little piece of heaven on earth!
MEMO to all Christians: the Bible is a fairy-tale! Time to wakeup from your brainwashing lies.
These nutbags are a compound away from mass suicide. Heaven's Gate, Jim Jones, David koresh- it's no wonder that religion draws out the psychotic and the delusional. Anyone who thinks they need to be "born again" in order to do good and buy their way into the afterlife needs to have their head examined. Don't believe it? Just ask any "christian" if the Adam and Eve creation myth is a factual historical event.
@Daniel –
I do declare that you have no idea what you are talking about. If you actually ever researched the Jehovah's Witnesses' material, you would NEVER come across any printed dates of "the end". You need to stop going to apostate, bias websites and books for your information – go to the source (by the way, their source is – guess it...the BIBLE).
So "Reality", you deny that the Watchtower ever published false Apocalypse dates?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jehovah%27s_Witnesses#Failed_predictions
I like your user name; very ironic
i agree with reality, you obviously know nothing about Jehovahs witnesses except for what may be published by their haters. And for the poster who refers to Wikipedia site....are you for real? Wikipedia can hardly be considered a reliable source of info.
Anything can be a religion. Christianity is a FAITH,
John Doe,
Christianity is not a religion. Denominations are a religion. Christianity, true Christianity is a personal relationship with Christ.
21? That is blackjack, it is a winner. I am going to Vegas and hit the blackjack tables. A sign from God.
Pete H
Anything can be a religion. Christianity is a FAITH
And anything can be called anything. FAITH? Why not call it "doughnut"?
and no doubt we'll be seeing the same people with the same sign at next years 2012 "rapture"
What do they mean "end of the world", Ecclesiastes 1:4 says "the earth abideth forever". It better, because what everyone prays constantly is "Thy Kingdom COME they will be done on earth, as it is done in heaven". The Kingdom of God must be restored on earth, which will be when Jesus saves Israel and sets up the Kingdom of God in the land promised to Abraham. If Christ comes back on Saturday, why will everyone be leaving to go to heaven, where no man except Christ has EVER gone to?
Hopefully the CIA is taking down all the names of these wackos as they pose a national threat as a 2 year old could talk them into doing something stupid