the great multitude in white robes
Roughly 60 percent of Americans believe the prophecies of the Book of Revelation will unfold as actual events on this planet. I've poked fun at these beliefs before -- but I wanted to understand exactly what these Christians believe will transpire in "the end times", so I recently read the Book of Revelation.
Growing up Catholic--with 12 years of Catholic school, Sunday mass, and the sacraments uber alles--we never really covered the Book of Revelation. Catholics don't take every word in the Bible literally. Most moderate-to-liberal Catholics view John's Revelation as symbolic literature (personally I think it is one of the first ever recorded acid trips). That said, Catholics don't really bother reading or studying Revelation--so I never really got a taste of it during my 20 year bout with Catholic hegemony.
The book is filled with epic battles, blood, fire, and suffering. The symbolism is heavy--the number seven plays a prominent role: seven churches, seven seals, seven angels, seven plagues. Jesus first appears as a door, then a lamb, then finally the guy from the Gospels. God is the old man with white hair and long, flowing beard. Everyone on the planet--accept for the blessed Christians and 144,000 virgin male Jews--are slaughtered by God, Jesus and the armies of angels and the faithful. At the end of the book everything is hunky dory when Jesus returns to Earth and rules from the throne in Jerusalem. It's a nice good vs. evil parable, but that's all.
. . .
As I mentioned previously, the media is all over this end times stuff like Paris Hilton on a Carls Jr. burger. Newspeak consulted Tom LaHaye, author of the Left Behind series, to answer their life-shattering question: Are these the end times?
LaHaye has made millions writing books and producing movies based on the prophecies of Revelation. Apparently he forgot the warning John conveys in Revelation 22:18-19:
I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of
this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the
plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from
this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the
tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
Oops. Sounds like LaHaye will be cast in the lake of fire when Jesus returns. His crime: adding to John's prophecy (Kirk Cameron is nowhere featured in any of the 22 chapters of John's original work).
It's funny. All this debate has gotten me thinking about religion again. I abandoned Catholicism for the most part due to my doubts about the divinity of Jesus. I'm not even sure he existed in the flesh either. I also can't stomach the inherent authoritarianism of Catholicism. That's not to say I don't believe in God (or whatever you want to call it). I'm just been a roving agnostic for the past few years trying to avoid all the questions in my head. more on that later...
|