Let us consider the Rapture Index. This is a real thing prepared by serious people. If it makes you laugh, you have not gotten the memo. You probably have not read any of the 12 volumes of the "Left Behind" series, the best-selling books in America today.
Those Left Behind are those who did not experience the Rapture, which is an instant in time when all the truly holy people are taken directly to heaven, leaving their clothes in small neat piles behind them. The rest of the ungodly losers are left to deal with natural disasters and wars and the armies of the Antichrist, after which they die in various colorful ways while the ranks of the saved watch with compassion tempered with an understandable sense of satisfaction.
The Rapture Index, as of this writing, stands at 153. Anything over 145 is labeled by the Rapture Actuaries as "Fasten your seat belts." In other words: Repent for the End Is Near. You may see all this for yourself at www.raptureready.com/rap2.html should you think I'm making it up.
The Rapture Index is based on 45 prophetic categories, things like drought, plague, floods, liberalism, beast government and mark of the beast. "Beast government" is apparently the European Union; the news that the EU is looking for a new president is seen as a sign that the end time is drawing nearer. The latest "mark of the beast" is a plan by the Antichrist that will result in said mark being implanted in the right hand or forehead of unbelievers. The relatively high number of this indicator is explained thusly: "Wal-Mart is falling behind in its plan to bar code all products with radio tags." There are some parts of this belief system I have not yet grasped.
The Rapture is a good thing, and therefore floods, famine, drought and all that are also good things because they portend the coming of end times. Even liberalism is a good thing, because there need to be a lot of Christ- deniers for the end times to come. (Among the prophesied Christ-deniers: the pope. That part is pretty much played down in the pamphlets.)
The end times begin when Russia (also known as the ancient nation of Gog) and Iran join forces to attack Israel. Before this can happen, however, the old temple must be rebuilt. Peace between Israel and the Palestinians is necessary for that to happen, so the Rapture Index sees the peace talks as a good sign. Not as a good as the tsunami, but definitely positive.
I am not the first one to notice this. The environmental Web site www.grist.org has been covering it; Bill Moyers also wrote a column about it (preserved by truthout at http://www.truthout.org/). Alas, the quote attributed to James Watt, the secretary of the interior under Ronald Reagan ("after the last tree is felled, Christ will come back"), is not verifiable, although it's been reported many times. Probably the liberal media again, taking time out from promoting the homosexual agenda.
So read the Rapture Index. Consider its implications: One of George Bush's core constituencies is actively praying for environmental degradation. Its members are in fact praying for the end of the world, because the end of the world is the beginning of the fun part of salvation.
Let's look at the new budget through this lens, which is (I emphasize) neither fanciful nor satirical. Money for clean water: down. Money for the cleanup of old nuclear sites, including the massive job at the Hanford (Wash.) Nuclear Reservation: way down. Number of Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management acres open for logging: up. Amount of territory in Alaska declared OK for oil drilling: way up.
You might even consider the impact of the Rapture on deficit financing. Who cares how much debt we accrue? Christ will come and forgive it all. Why not borrow against the future to pay for the present? The future is gonna be a whole different deal. We're just placeholders for God's own totalitarian state.
For us secular humanists, us gay-marrying, porn-reading, prayer-mocking harbingers of doom, all this seems incredible. We are still in the reality- based paradigm; we have not yet crossed over into the faith-based paradigm. In the faith-based world, the apparent inconsistencies within the Bush administration fade into nothingness.
Millennial Christians have somehow convinced themselves that the founding fathers would have approved of all this because they were all old-time Christians following that old-time religion. Because Rapture theology was mostly cobbled together in the 19th century based on very selective readings from parts of the New Testament, it is unlikely that the founding fathers believed anything of the sort. Not important: Once again, I'm indulging in reality-based thinking.
Like the prophet said: Fasten your seat belts. The thing about the Rapture Index is this: If you're part of the problem, you're part of the solution, because it's no good smiting sinners if there are no sinners to smite.
posted
The guy who wrote that is a moron. I do however like the effort put into the rapture meter... Read revelations and then look around... seems the bible was right about atleast one thing.
-------------------- Spend Word For Word With Me And I Shall Make Your Wit Bankrupt.
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quote:Originally posted by 4Art: In that case you had better repent before it's too late, RiescoDiQui.
quote:Originally posted by RiescoDiQui: seems the bible was right about atleast one thing.
You first. Besides I don't believe in the prediction of the end times... I believe it to be a self fulfilling prophecy. People all over the world for centuries have been obsessed with the "end"... so much so that they are walking like good little lemmings to that end.
-------------------- Spend Word For Word With Me And I Shall Make Your Wit Bankrupt.
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posted
i agree totally with the self-fullfilling prophecy issue....
people are working hard to bring the pocky-lips....
Christian churches and groups raise money to transplant more Hebrews into Israel with that intent.. politicians use it to get votes.... the media uses it to get and keep viewers...
does anybody know which references in the bible support the rapture?
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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quote:Originally posted by 4Art: [qb] The Left Behind series? It was two guys. Some have said that they are lovers.
No one has said that. Tim Lahaye's wife is Beverly Lahaye, who is or was in charge of Concerned Women For America. Attempting to slander the author by implying that he is gay is beneath contempt.
posted
Did you actually read the books, 4Art? I have all of them, and they follow the scriptures to the letter! The bad things happening in the end times, comes from mans sin, not because God is making them happen! According to the Word of God, I will be going, and for those of you who want to stay with your friends, it isn't going to be a party! You will be ALL aloneeeeeeeee in the end! The scripture says wailing and nashing of teeth, and eternal burning! Not a fun thing to do, for all eternity!
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posted
I have malice toward no man, woman, or beast and if that ain't suitable enough, I never relished the notion of spending that much time with so many dullards and preachers and following their rules no how.
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Don't follow the preachers bdgee, follow God's Word! It is the only reliable source for what God wants us to do! So many pastors fail to tell the truth!
-------------------- As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!
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Since I only have it via translations or interpretations by preachers and other humans claiming an inside track, I can't be too sure what it is.
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posted
The King James version, is in English! I KNOW you can read it! It is inspired by God! I could give you many many scriptures, saying so, but I know you don't want to read them! Read the Bible for yourself! God can help you to understand it! You can't depend on any man to be completely, totally accurate in it's interpretation, including me! But it does say in the Word, that pastors will be responsible for leading people the wrong way, so they have to be very careful on how they teach the Word! There are some pastors that preach, that aren't Christians! I am fortunate to have a pastor, that loves God with all of his heart! He would do anything for anybody, and has prayed with many dying people, that became Christians before they died, because God reaches their souls, through my pastor sharing the Word with them, and loving them! What you have to look for in a pastor, is one that puts God and his Word first! Not the World or himself! Someone that loves you!
-------------------- As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!
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posted
yeah but Kate? i read the passages that rapture is based on, and i get multiple possible interpretations.... as usual.... i still firmly believe that there is no "rescue" planned..
it's up to us to make it all work out... and sitting around waiting for "help from above" seems to me to be a "sin omission" the omission being that of taking ultimate responsibility for ones own actions....
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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quote:Originally posted by glassman: yeah but Kate? i read the passages that rapture is based on, and i get multiple possible interpretations.... as usual.... i still firmly believe that there is no "rescue" planned..
it's up to us to make it all work out... and sitting around waiting for "help from above" seems to me to be a "sin omission" the omission being that of taking ultimate responsibility for ones own actions....
posted
Going...but won't pretend to know when. By the way...you can't just pull passages out of context and hope to understand their meaning.
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posted
I've read the whole thing and, considering it as a whole (now that eliminates that "out of context" excuse), I find that on almost everthing it says, one way or another, within the next ten pages and in reference to the same thing, it will say the opposite. All-in-all, the Bible contradicts itself over and over.
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posted
i've read it several times (altho i do admit i skip thru the begats)...
i also re-read passages to try to figure out why people seem to "latch onto" certain lines more than others.... the psychosis underlying snake handling has always fascinated me. i've handled poisonous snakes, but not in any sort of religious context, just for the thrill of it.... and no, i'm not trying to say the Pentecostals are wrong to do it, just that i don't get the connection they do....
the Puritans for instance were persecuted by none other than King james the first.( the guy who odered the bible named so) and then by Charles....
some versions of the history even include puritan prophecies that God was ready to destroy England, which in a sense? Cromwell did..... Cromwell was a puritan, but he too was "ruthless", just like a lot of religious fanatics still are today.... it's really amazing how many Christian wars there have been.... if you follow history , you'll see how many Christian "sects" have seized power from each other over and over again......
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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posted
Yes, that's how Koresh(sp?) came to be in the "conclave" south of Waco and why he kept guns there. He "took" it from the previous group with guns and expected to have to defend it. One group of devouts ousting another.
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posted
I tend to look at the book of Revelation more as a message to all peoples over time. If you go back through history, every Christian culture had a nation with the potential to destroy them, a potential anti-christ, etc.
While I believe that the potential is there for a rapture as depicted by some movies and books, I consider it to be a more individual thing that every person must go through upon their physical death.
A lot of people want to read prophecy from the book, yet ignore the important statement of God which proclaims no one but He will know when the "end" will come. Basically, it's a message to be prepared at all times.
So perhaps the end times will not come until Israel rebuilds the temple. If that's the case, the rapture is a long ways off. I don't believe that God ever intended for man to have an idea of when Christ would return, that's why I favor the individual judgement and rapture at time of death.
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It is inspired by God! I could give you many many scriptures, saying so, but I know you don't want to read them! Read the Bible for yourself! God can help you to understand it! You can't depend on any man to be completely, totally accurate in it's interpretation, including me! But it does say in the Word, that pastors will be responsible for leading people the wrong way, so they have to be very careful on how they teach the Word! There are some pastors that preach, that aren't Christians! I am fortunate to have a pastor, that loves God with all of his heart! He would do anything for anybody, and has prayed with many dying people, that became Christians before they died, because God reaches their souls, through my pastor sharing the Word with them, and loving them! What you have to look for in a pastor, is one that puts God and his Word first! Not the World or himself! Someone that loves you!![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
