Antichrist Part 7, Rapture and the Triple Catch 22

In Part 1, I related the history of the development of the idea of Hell in Persia. The creator God Marduk defeated the monster and exiled him. The “place of exile” idea was transmitted to the Hebrews, to Christianity, and to today. This concept of Hell was greatly modified between AD 1000 and AD 1600 by “embellishments”, lurid paintings, and the invention of the printing press.

The printing press allowed two major works of FICTION to generate widely accepted ideas about Hell that are not contained in scriptures. This is an illustration of the real power of mass marketing and good advertising.

In Part 2, I explained how some few people find Hell to be useful and do things for them like provide employment, or sustain one’s position. I explained how this is done. I also explained that war is as close to Hell as it is possible to get. General Sheridan said it correctly, “War is Hell.” War is an excuse for violence. There has never been an end to war because for male humans, war is “fun”. War is addictive. War provides a wonderful adrenal “rush”. Like coke, crack, and meth heads, we endlessly spend huge sums to “do” war just one more time.

In Part 3, I explored the aspect of the concept and portrayal of Hell, the Devil, Lucifer, the Antichrist. My dictionary says that the Antichrist is Christ’s great antagonist expected to cause chaos in the last days before the Second Coming. That same book calls the Devil, the foe of God. The Antichrist is the Devil, or his minion. What we are really talking about is one of those great delusions that transfix humankind. A fantasy in which people gladly immerse themselves for escapism entertainment. A warm water spa with extra bubbles and perfumed water-air jets.

In Part 4, I attempt to suspend judgment to attempt to learn the basis of such a belief in fantasy.
The story of the Antichrist and the Second Coming of Jesus continues. People will be able to tell when His Appearance is Nigh. The Antichrist (the Bad Guy) will lead off the tale, do his “thing”. He will create havoc and chaos around the world. Then Jesus (the Good Guy) will lead the cavalry charge of the angels (the rest of the posse) over the hill and save the day.

The key in this story is in the creation by the Antichrist of havoc and chaos when he “arrives”. There will be the “signs”. Just what these signs are, is widely unclear and open to lots of highly fallible interpretation. Some are said to be natural occurrences of Nature. Other “signs” are supposed to be particular calendar dates. Other “signs” are more obscure at best.

Some supposed “signs” kind of drift and change and are often just something “new”, “strange”, and “irritating”. Some supposed “signs” can be anything the person wants it to be. The most important of the supposed “signs” is the actual coming of “the Antichrist”. No one is supposed to be able to identify him / her. It is said that he may have only one eye, which puts anyone with an eye patch, a glass eye, and the one-eyed, flying, purple, people eater at a huge disadvantage.

In Part 5, I attempt to examine what is supposed to happen when Jesus comes again. First, its a little confusing. According to some, certain events are supposed to occur, and others leave it “cloudy” at best. As I understand the timeline, it works something like this: during the period when the Antichrist is in charge, there will be world wide peace. No wars. However, there will be more and more restrictions on personal freedom. Yet, things will appear to be going well.

Suddenly, “all Hell will break loose”, perhaps as a revolt against diminished personal freedom? Perhaps for freedom of religion? This is unexplained. The “events” escalate into wars that escalate into the “final battle” at Armageddon, the battle at the “end of the world”.

The question is, why would Early Christians develop such a belief system? Twelve related ideas are explored

In Part 6, I attempt one more time to examine what is supposed to happen when Jesus comes again. I also examine what belief in such events might actually means. For early Christians, persecution lasted for centuries. It lasted until the reign of Roman Emperor Constantine. Until then there was no deliverance, no relief from constant tension, terror, anxiety, and deadly fear. Despite hope, deliverance never came. All that was left was pallid hope, and in the meantime there was a constant searching, a desperate searching for “signs” of the Second Coming. Deliverance has never come. What is left at the end is an enclosed circular argument. Also known as, Catch 22. It is also called bigotry.

In this Part 7, I will bring this study of the Antichrist, “the Rapture”, and the Second Coming to a close. To believe in the Second Coming also requires a person to believe that one-half of the human race must die (they must hope that they are not a part of that half). These deaths, an estimated three BILLION people, are just the prelude to, the result of the lead up to, the “last battle”. To believe, is to think, or hope, that three billion people must die to further your own personal “free ride to Heaven”. Some, perhaps many, actually look foreword to this event. They hope it will happen in their lifetime. They hope to experience “Rapture”. There is a one in two chance that they hope you will die.

Some people and groups, go farther, and make plans to try to ensure that they are among the “survivors” and will be alive to be able to experience “the Rapture”. It is at this point, that some cults, and even some main stream religious groups, start to stray from the edges of sanity. They look for ways to survive that enormous “dying time”. They want to retreat from the world.

The more “sure” that they are that the Second Coming is very imminent, the more likely that this is true. They retreat into isolated, out of the way, away from cities, bastions. Sometimes these places are carefully pre-prepared well in advance. There they practice “survivalists” skills, play at war in the woods, and possibly exhibit antisocial attitudes and behaviors. They probably arm themselves well, and practice paramilitary skills.

All the while, they keep a sharp lookout for the “signs” that signal the arrival of the Antichrist. Their plan is to be among the remaining pool of survivors at any cost. Why? Because of “the Rapture”. They want to experience “the Rapture”. They want to experience ecstasy. They want to be “transported”.

What exactly is this “Rapture”? There is some confusion, discussion, and even argument about that. One Possibility is that when Jesus arrives, He will “translate” , or “transform” the “believers”, the “deserving”, the “good”, the “Christians” directly to Heaven. This leaves all the members of other religions to suffer here on Earth.

This is only another way to say, “We are better than you”. You see, theirs is an “exclusive club”. It excludes “others”. It excludes those who are different. It is a position of bigotry. Everyone else is “wrong”, and “we” are “right”.

Possibility Two deals with the question, “When we “translate” to Heaven, will we be alive, or dead?” This reveals an additional level of possible inner conflict for the psyche. Do they really want the “Rapture” to arrive, because then they might die. Do they really want to survive all that goes before the Second Coming, only to die anyway? Heaven would surely be nice. Heaven is Heaven after all, but it is an unknown. The unknown is fearful.

Possibility Three is that when Jesus arrives, He Initiates a thousand years of “Christian” saintliness on Earth. Which means that if you can survive the period of the Antichrist, the wars, and the last battle, you get to live. The question then is, if you have to do what you have to do to survive until that time, are you still a “true believer”, “good”, and “saintly enough” to be in Heaven. Catch 22, again.

Apparently the Antichrist is to be driven off, or disposed of by Heavenly Judgment. Here is the reason to retreat, hide, pull into your shell out of view, away from notice, likely in out of the way places, to be one of the survivors. This gets you into the select group of the saintly. You get to continue to live in “Christian” peace. Again, the problem of surviving non-Christians is not a high priority, or the belief is, that all of “them” will not live through the events.

The whole concept, as elaborate as it is, is a fantasy with built-in incongruities and inner conflicts. It has built in dangers. Among them are the dangers of cults choosing to die to avoid the horrors, and the possibility of slipping into “sin” and therefore missing the ferry boat. I believe that there have been many examples of cult groups taking this “easy way out”.

Another possibility is a general hostility to desirable changes in world conditions, like peace. Another is that it is an excuse to stop thinking. It generates hostility to any development that is an advancement of cooperation among nations.

These would be “signs”. To be seen, but maybe not wanted? Ideas and developments like the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the European Union, the State of Israel, or resolutions of conflicts, or a better world wide economy. Say, wouldn’t that mean that they might be working for the “other” side? Catch 22.

(c) Copyright 2006: George Wallace recently published a book on religion which lashes out at nearly all of the comfortable ideas about God, the trappings of organized religion, and the priesthood. His pithy comments and suggestions for a return to a God-centered personal religion will interest everyone. This article may be freely reprinted so long as all copyright attributions, and the full content of this resource box are included. www.OhGodIsThatYou.com

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