Eschatology is a word that means the study of the end times, the final days. In the secular world we refer to these things as transhumanism, futurism, or the singularity. In pop culture we call it the zombie apocalypse. People love to ponder mankind’s final swan dive and to speculate what it’s going to look like. I’ve always loved sci/fi because there is such optimism there. Hidden even in darkest utopian vision is the fact that we have survived long enough to make it 5000 years into the future.
I often have trouble believing we’ll make it to next week. Given all the evidence on the ground, it’s quite remarkable we’ve survived as long as we already have. Trust me, we are not a happy evolutionary accident. An an accident waiting to happen is more like it.
In Christianity, some people take their eschatology very seriously, men especially seem to love to ponder these things, partly because of the intellectual exercise and partly because of their heightened desire to do everything they can to try and protect their loved ones. Also, it’s probably quite romantic to imagine oneself as a great leader, a Mad Max in a Road Warriors apocalyptic scenario, a zombie hunter.
Doesn’t matter is you’re a Christian or a secular Doomsday Prepper, eschatology is quite fashionable these days. Wal Mart now has an entire section devoted to freeze dried food, canned spam, and survivalism. Those who don’t like too much truth with their truth, politely just call it “emergency preparadness.”
It’s not that I don’t take these things seriously, it’s just that I have been informed that my particular role in the whole scenario involves being along for the ride. Quite simply, Jesus is not my co-pilot, He’s actually driving the car. Doesn’t matter what I think or believe, I’m just a passenger.
I also don’t intend to mock those who make a study of these things, well except perhaps the guy who has just claimed May 24 to be the last day. It would be a bit funny if Jesus returned on May 22 instead, just to really drive the message home that He keeps his own schedule, thank you very much.
Sometimes in the midst of these great theological debates involving pre-trib, post-trib, and raptures, I am tempted to stir up some trouble. It would be somewhat amusing if we were to discover that we’re already nearly through the 7 years of tribulation and that Jesus has already arrived. Perhaps He’s been walking about undercover, doing reconnaissance, introducing Himself to people, gathering intelligence, visiting our blogs and face book pages. Sitting in the back of our churches, quietly observing. I wonder if He’s seen Himself on those teeshirts people wear in malls, the ones that portray Jesus as the Terminator and say, “I’ll be back.” Or perhaps He’s seen the posters of Himself as an Occupy protester, a liberal socialist hippy in sandals saying, “peace man.”
What if we were all so busy studying theology and obsessing over our i-phones, He arrived and nobody even noticed? What if the mark of the beast came upon us many years ago? What if time is not really linear so the sequence of these end time events can come in random order, looping about and repeating themselves beyond our ability to perceive them? Also, if you truly believe in the rapture, why in the world are you hoarding all that bottled water and canned spam??
I’ve always read signs, quite literally “signs” as in words written somewhere, but always containing a rather profound spiritual answer to my questions. They usually come in threes. There are other signs in the world that seem to indicate things are in chaos, so one day I simply asked God if we were there, if we had arrived at the final chapter, and went to get a cup of coffee. On the way I drove past a guy holding a sign, “911 was an inside job,” and than on the back it said, “the end of the world.” Hmm. Then I passed the theater playing At World’s End and took note of it. I got my coffee, opened the newspaper and nearly poured it all over myself. There on the front page were the words, “It’s The End of the World.” It was actually a sad story about a woman who had committed suicide by jumping off a cliff here we all call “the end of the world.” Spooky, just the same. Besides, if you read it in a newspaper, you know it must be true.
The context is irrelevant, synchronicity in threes always get my attention, especially when I have just asked a question. The answer appears to be yes, we have arrived at the end of days. Some people like to try and dismiss these things as confirmation bias. I already knew the answer to my own question and simply went seeking signs to validate it. Oh, but some people so do not live in my world and simply cannot understand.
It brought to the forefront a keen awareness that our days are really numbered. End times or not, all of our days are numbered anyway and we have no idea how much time we have left. That’s how we should be living our lives anyway, deeply appreciative and passionate, letting go of all the small things that really don’t matter, just breathing in life with all it’s mystery and wonder.
See, there's this thing called biology... 
The way things are today, the mark of the beast will be available as an app on your iphone. LOL. A free app.
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I did not even know that there is a word called eschatology. Still, as per Hindu scriptures, we are living in the Kali Yug, close to the end of the current cycle of time
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Personally I find signs from God to be less than easy to interpret. I know that when I have a topic – any topic – on my mind it seems to sensitize me such that I see related sights more frequently. So, for instance, IB, if you said to me: “Paul, have you noticed how much more often the name Bob shows up these days?” , I would then see “Bob” everywhere I looked. However that being said, I have had situations where i absolutely knew beyond any doubt that what I was seeing was a sign. And then there were signs that I completely missed, which in retrospect were very clear messages from God. I just have a hard time getting my signs right. As an addendum, the Bible does say to NOT look for omens – and i’m not clear on the difference between a sign and an omen.
As to the end of times – as far as I am concerned the days have always been numbered, our own personally, and humanity’s and the world’s and the universe’s. It is pretty clear that God has created this little bubble of space/time where we live by dis-integrating a part of Himself and that this has an end as it had a beginning. I suspect that whenever anyone asks if it is the end of times, it always has been and always will be. Time has been ending since it started.
Great post IB. Love the line about “…just breathing in life with all it’s mystery and wonder.” Well said.
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That’s perfect, thank you 😉
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Ah,yes,Christianity, that great Death Cult that promises the grass is greener on the other side.
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I’m sorry Ark, but the grass really is greener on my life affirming side of the fence. If your own grass was green, you wouldn’t invest so much time complaining about mine.
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LOl …your post is about eschatology, dear, I was referring to your death cult belief in the afterlife. The ”other side”
My grass is very green at the moment, it being summer down her in the Southern Hemisphere. Over 30 today, in fact. I should actually get the mower out.
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Yes, I was also referring to the other side, the life affirming other side. The “life” that exists on the other side of death. Since you don’t believe in the afterlife, it is actually your side that is a death worshiping cult.
You really should go mow that grass, Ark. It’s also just above 30 here, but in my case, we are speaking about degrees. Context really is everything, isn’t it?
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No, dear, I cherish life, unlike you Death Cult Crispyians why can’t wait for the clock to run down so’s you can be with your maker in his house with many rooms while all us uneducated heathens are roasting in the hell your loving god made for us. I can hardly keep a straight face when I type that, it’s just so much diatribe.
Tough that you’re not part of the 144,000 is it not?
Although if you have any verifiable evidence I will gladly look at it?
I too am talking degrees. Even ‘such a country in Africa has been able to advance beyond pounds and ounces and Fahrenheit. Whats taking you lot so long?
Waiting for Jesus to ”okay” it, are you?
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Well Ark, I would be more likely to believe you cherish life if you would get about the business of actually cherishing it, rather then simply criticizing and complaining about those you believe are doing the cherishing all wrong.
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You misunderstand – as always – I don’t care one iota ( and neither does any atheist) what you as an individual adult believe and from this perspective, although your ridiculous beliefs are outrageously funny, you are perfectly entitled to them.
It’s the fact you proselytize that is the problem.
That normal people have to put up with the BS you and every evangelical religion punts about global floods, dinosaurs walking around with humans and your white skin blue-eyed Lake Tiberius Pedestrian and that you wish to inculcate children with this garbage.
I really dont care that you believe I am going to be roasting in that invented place call hell either.
Once again, I will gladly issue a full blown apology if you care to produce a single scrap of verifiable evidence for a single foundational tenet of your god belief.
Any time you’re ready, IB, I will be all ears,
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Ooops, forgot to close the bracket. You can oblige if you fancy?
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Very cool observation about the ‘passenger,’ and a good one at that. You have no doubt heard ‘God is my co-pilot.’ Well, get the heck out of the drivers seat… (I’m talking to myself…)
Imagine though, there really will be a generation who will witness the last grain of sand sifted through the hourglass. But like you say, no worries, He who sees time as a thousand years as a day, or a day as a thousand years has it all covered.
Redeem the time…yep, that’s enough.
good read here.
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I have to agree with your thoughts. The signs are there that the end is here/near. One thought I had while reading this, was that maybe Jesus has returned, and like the disciples, we don’t recognize Him for who He is. But then, I also think, the Bible says that He will return in some grand way that I can’t recall the specifics right now, as I have MS and thus, memory issues. But I try to live each day as though it were my last, because I certainly don’t want to be left behind.
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What a fascinating thought that is though… if Jesus had already returned and was undercover. 🙂
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“Also, if you truly believe in the rapture, why in the world are you hoarding all that bottled water and canned spam??” It took about 10 seconds for me to start wondering how end times prophecy = survivalism. Giving us the inside track on future events is far down the list of the purposes of prophecy or possibly not on the list at all. It’s never coupled with “therefore, I say unto you, store freeze-dried food and board up the windows.” Our hope and conduct is to remain the same, regardless of the circumstances God ordains.
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Buffy the vampire slayer, of course, had to ask: What’s the plural for apocalypse?
Dunno.
Having grown up in a very Christian home obsessed with the apocalypse (Hal Linsdey, 1980s Countdown to Armageddon, and all that stuff), I was told the end is nigh. Yet, here I am, a middle aged man happy that the end never came.
The end not being nigh led to questions, and the realization that 2,000 years of end times predictions resulted in a collection of colossal failures. Which led to valuing the critical thinking discouraged by my Christian upbringing, and critical thinking to atheism.
This is not to say everyone should adopt my views. I’m not an evangelical for anything. One is responsible for one’s own path, but leave me out of it.
For what it’s worth, my conclusion is that things are cyclical rather than linear. The 1960s was the beginning of the end of one cultural cycle, and we are now in a transition as a new cultural cycle begins. It takes time. Decades. Perhaps the Millennial’s grandchildren will be the first generation to see the new synthesis, one which retains functional traditionalist mores combined with counter-cultural revisions that are equally functional (rather than outdated traditionalism or bat shit crazy counter-culturalism).
I may not be around then due to advanced age, but I expect to live past 2050 and at least have a good guess as to what it might look like.
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