"I believe we're in End Times," he said, "and that we're being prepared
as a body for a time when the Antichrist is going to appear on the scene
and the Mark of the Beast is going to be something that all believers
are going to be presented with this challenge. It seems that the issue
of homosexuality and the way that it's being addressed in society and in
the church is kind of a dress rehearsal for that."
Scott Lively: Acceptance Of Homosexuality Is A 'Dress Rehearsal' For The End Times | Right Wing Watch
Welcome to H&C,,, where I aggregate news of interest. Primary topics include abuse with "the church", LGBTQI+ issues, cults - including anti-vaxxers, and the Dominionist and Theocratic movements. Also of concern is the anti-science movement with interest in those that promote garbage like homeopathy, chiropractic and the like. I am an atheist and anti-theist who believes religious mythos must be die and a strong supporter of SOCAS.
Showing posts with label End Times. Show all posts
Showing posts with label End Times. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Saturday, September 26, 2015
Remembrance of Apocalypse Past: The Psychology of True Believers When Nothing Happens - CSI
So depending on which kind of nut you follow, the end of the world is once again upon us. Like the numerous predictions of doom prior, I expect this one to fall by the wayside as well.
As is fairly obvious by now, the much-heralded end of the world in 2012 didn’t happen. Quetzalcoatl didn’t return on his raft of snakes. The earth was not torn asunder. Alien overlords did not materialize. It didn’t even rain very much that week.Remembrance of Apocalypse Past: The Psychology of True Believers When Nothing Happens - CSI
We were privileged to publish an article in the Skeptical Inquirer last year (Sharps et al. 2013) concerning the psychological factors that made it possible for modern human beings, even with modern access to scientific information, to believe in this type of baseless nonsense. We found that disturbingly high numbers of university students either believed in or entertained the likelihood of the “Mayan end of the world.” We found curious incoherencies in their patterns of belief: for example, many believers in the Maya “prophecies” did not believe in what those prophecies predicted. The idea expressed is completely illogical, but this illogical incoherency was in the minds of a great many people who were attempting to think about the 2012 apocalypse before it didn’t happen. Whether the believers expected world peace and a new age, or world destruction and apocalyptic doom, logical inconsistency was very commonly observed.
This type of incoherency didn’t die with the nonexistent apocalypse; it’s still there, ready and waiting, in the minds of enormous numbers of True Believers.
Sunday, September 13, 2015
Blood moon has some expecting end of the world - CNN.com
I have briefly posted concerning the "Blood Moon" craze, but as the alleged date of doom draws closer, I thought it be interesting to shed some light on this money making shtick.
Long before John Hagee, the current well-heeled purveyor of this crap, there was Hal Linsdey's (the list is quite long actually but these are two I am most familiar with) Late Great Planet Earth?. To borrow from Wiki, Late Great Planet Earth? was a "premillennial, dispensational eschatology, comparing end-time prophecies in the Bible with then-current events in an attempt to broadly predict future scenarios leading to the rapture of believers before the tribulation and Second Coming of Christ to establish his thousand-year (i.e. millennial) Kingdom on Earth." During Lindsey's run of popularity, only three books of the Bible existed, or so would think, "focsing on key passages in the books of Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelation,"
So End-Time predictions are not new, they have been with a long time (like, first century long time). But what many may not be aware of, is that Hagee's "Blood Moon" bullshit isn't new either. In 2008, Mark Biltz was interviewed on Prophecy in the News by the late J. R. Church and Gary Stearman; Later that month WorldNetDaily.com did an article summarizing the interview.
Besides the obvious that Bob Seidensticker points out,
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FYI: Biltz also has a book, released in 2014,on the tetrads called Blood Moons: Decoding the Imminent Heavenly Signs.
Blood moon has some expecting end of the world - CNN.com
Long before John Hagee, the current well-heeled purveyor of this crap, there was Hal Linsdey's (the list is quite long actually but these are two I am most familiar with) Late Great Planet Earth?. To borrow from Wiki, Late Great Planet Earth? was a "premillennial, dispensational eschatology, comparing end-time prophecies in the Bible with then-current events in an attempt to broadly predict future scenarios leading to the rapture of believers before the tribulation and Second Coming of Christ to establish his thousand-year (i.e. millennial) Kingdom on Earth." During Lindsey's run of popularity, only three books of the Bible existed, or so would think, "focsing on key passages in the books of Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelation,"
So End-Time predictions are not new, they have been with a long time (like, first century long time). But what many may not be aware of, is that Hagee's "Blood Moon" bullshit isn't new either. In 2008, Mark Biltz was interviewed on Prophecy in the News by the late J. R. Church and Gary Stearman; Later that month WorldNetDaily.com did an article summarizing the interview.
A minister who promotes the Old Testament roots of Christianity suggests a rare string of lunar and solar eclipses said to fall on God’s annual holy days seven years from now could herald what’s come to be known as the “Second Coming” of Jesus.What is rather odd, in that same article Lindsey is quoted as saying that Biltz's theory is “pure speculation.”
“God wants us to look at the biblical calendar,” says Mark Biltz, pastor of El Shaddai Ministries in Bonney Lake, Wash. “The reason we need to be watching is [because] He will signal His appearance. But we have to know what to be watching as well. So we need to be watching the biblical holidays.”
In a video interview on the Prophecy in the News website, Biltz said he’s been studying prophecies that focus on the sun and moon, even going back to the book of Genesis where it states the lights in the sky would be “be for signs, and for seasons.” [The URL provided does not appear to be working, but I did find this, which I believe is the original interview. Biltz is also interviewed here in 2013.]
,,,
Gary Stearman of Prophecy in the News noted, “When we think of the sun being darkened and the moon not giving her light, we usually think of some astronomical catastrophe – perhaps the sun sputtering and the moon being affected by all this. But maybe it’s time to rethink this a little bit and think of it as a natural cycle, the cycle of the eclipses.”
Thus, Biltz began focusing on the precise times of both solar and lunar eclipses, sometimes called “blood moons” since the moon often takes on a bloody color. He logged onto NASA’s eclipse website which provides precision tracking of the celestial events.
He noted a rare phenomenon of four consecutive total lunar eclipses, known as a tetrad.
He says during this century, tetrads occur at least six times, but what’s interesting is that the only string of four consecutive blood moons that coincide with God’s holy days of Passover in the spring and the autumn’s Feast of Tabernacles (also called Succoth) occurs between 2014 and 2015 on today’s Gregorian calendar.
“The fact that it doesn’t happen again in this century I think is very significant,” Biltz explains. “So then I looked at last century, and, believe it or not, the last time that four blood red moons occurred together was in 1967 and 1968 tied to Jerusalem recaptured by Israel.”
“In my 50-something years of studying prophecy, to me the greatest indication of the time of Christ’s return is based around the general things of prophecies coming together in the same time frame.”
He mentioned not only Israel’s birth as a political state in 1948, but the increase in tensions with Muslims, the rise of Russia, China and the European Union, which he says is even “calling itself the revived Roman Empire.”
“I see the whole sweep and panorama spinning together in a precise scenario,” he said.What is interesting to note, we have the same event(s) but varying degrees of "what it all means". While Blitz focused on the "return of Christ" in 2014/15, others like Hagee, now have the idea that the "Blood Moon" shtick may herald the Great Tribulation or a war involving Israel or persecution against Israel. On the flip-side, others outright refute the idea because it contradicts their view as to the timing of the rapture.
Besides the obvious that Bob Seidensticker points out,
Hagee’s four blood moons refer to eclipses at the start of the Jewish festivals of Passover and Sukkot (also called the Feast of Tabernacles), twice each, all in a row.With the caveat,
You might think that this is an incredible coincidence, but remember that these two holidays start on the day of a full moon by definition, and lunar eclipses can only happen during full moons. There are 2.3 lunar eclipses per year out of 12.4 full moons per year. (If more than two eclipses per year sounds high, remember that they don’t last long. If the eclipse is happening during the day in your part of the world, you obviously won’t see it.)
That any particular Passover or Sukkot begins with a lunar eclipse isn’t surprising, though four of these eclipsed holidays in a row is much less common.There are many more issues that "need" to be dealt with.
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Blood moon has some expecting end of the world - CNN.com
Friday, June 26, 2015
Anne Graham Lotz Says Terrorist Attacks Are Just God's Way Of Demonstrating His Love | Right Wing Watch
According to Lotz, God “allows the terrorists to strike or a tornado
to rip through our city” to get our attention, “because, for whatever
reason, we don’t seem to give him our attention until we’re desperate.
And, so, if we don’t give him our attention then he’s going to allow
things to happen to make us more and more desperate until we do cry
out.”
Lotz suggested that a potential Supreme Court decision legalizing marriage equality may be a sign that the end is near: “I think that Supreme Court decision, and I agree with you that the Enemy is coming like a flood, and that’s one of his tactics. They hit us at every level, at every angle, so that we feel overwhelmed and so we just want to retreat and say ‘just don’t come near me.’” Such a “retreat,” Lotz said, would only hasten the arrival of the End Times, warning that gay people are asking "to join an institution that, actually, by its very definition, they can’t join. So if the Supreme Court changes that legally in America, they are very seriously defying God.”
Anne Graham Lotz Says Terrorist Attacks Are Just God's Way Of Demonstrating His Love | Right Wing Watch
Lotz suggested that a potential Supreme Court decision legalizing marriage equality may be a sign that the end is near: “I think that Supreme Court decision, and I agree with you that the Enemy is coming like a flood, and that’s one of his tactics. They hit us at every level, at every angle, so that we feel overwhelmed and so we just want to retreat and say ‘just don’t come near me.’” Such a “retreat,” Lotz said, would only hasten the arrival of the End Times, warning that gay people are asking "to join an institution that, actually, by its very definition, they can’t join. So if the Supreme Court changes that legally in America, they are very seriously defying God.”
Anne Graham Lotz Says Terrorist Attacks Are Just God's Way Of Demonstrating His Love | Right Wing Watch
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Meet the Christian right’s new doomsday prophet — and his insane, apocalyptic “blood moon” theory - Salon.com
In 2015, there is a United States congressman who believes that the so-called blood moon prophecy determines the fate of the Middle East and, because of some more prophecy, the fate of the world, of all of us. In 2015. Common Era.
“Blood moons,” which is a gussied-up way of naming your garden-variety lunar eclipse, “have preceded world-changing, shaking-type events,” says Rep. Jody Hice of Georgia, a man constitutionally permitted to vote in one of the world’s most powerful legislative bodies. Legislation, accords, Security Council Resolutions, military aid packages — why consider this mere terrestrial ephemera when you can just go out into your backyard and consult the moon?
While the prophecy may seem fringe — like something a hooded Nostradamus type from the Dark Ages would wheeze in dim and flickering firelight — it’s gaining surprising traction in conservative media, and is being adopted as legitimate by prominent figures, including Hice in Congress and the Family Research Council, the powerful social conservative lobbying group in Washington. Mega-pastor John Hagee, the leading purveyor of blood moon prophecy talk, is powerful in Washington, able to command the attendance of influential conservative politicians to his events.
Meet the Christian right’s new doomsday prophet — and his insane, apocalyptic “blood moon” theory - Salon.com
Friday, May 1, 2015
Michele Bachmann Insists Obama And Gay Marriage Will Bring The Rapture (AUDIO/VIDEO) | If You Only News
What fascinates me about this particular "incident" besides the fact the President Obama had a we bit of fun at Bachmann's expense. The "idea" of a so-called Rapture is not biblical; not in the sense that Reich member Bachmann implies which IYON.C aptly notes:
The fact that one man (John Darby) created an entire theology (Dispensationalism) based on one passage of scripture (1Thessolonians 4:16-17) seems to be completely lost on people. Concidering nothing happened on the 10 previous Raptures dates, I am certain we are safe form Bachmann's prognostications as well:
Michele Bachmann Insists Obama And Gay Marriage Will Bring The Rapture (AUDIO/VIDEO) | If You Only News
For those not familiar with the Biblical story of the Rapture, it is the 1st part of the multi part saga that is their fantasy for the end of the world. There are various interpretations of the events within it but basically it comes down to Jesus returning and smiting his (or Michele’s) enemies. In short, it’s the Biblical version of “my dad can beat up your dad.”As IYON.C notes the "Rapture" is based on interpretation. The various interpretations have lead to various Rapture theologies - will the Rapture be pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation, or post-tribulation? Will it be a secret and silent removal of Christians or a glorious return of Jesus? Does any of this really matter?
And actually it’s not a story, per se. It’s more of an interpretation of verses from at least 4 different books of the Bible. Carefully lifted to create this narrative of Jesus’s return. Some people think that Jesus will be teleporting all the “good American Christians” while others contend Jesus will be walking around vaporizing all that doubted leaving a utopia of homogeneous perfect “Christians” to play with Jesus forever and ever.
Interesting sidenote: This is one area where the evangelicals don’t mention the Jewish people, whom they normally look out for like an over protective older brother would his little sister. But it’s not because all the radical right wing “Christians” think the Jews will be killed in the Rapture.
The fact that one man (John Darby) created an entire theology (Dispensationalism) based on one passage of scripture (1Thessolonians 4:16-17) seems to be completely lost on people. Concidering nothing happened on the 10 previous Raptures dates, I am certain we are safe form Bachmann's prognostications as well:
- 1843, March 21st - William Miller predicted Christ would return on this then changed it to 1844, October 22nd
- 1981 - Chuck Smith in Future Survival, 1978
- 1988, September 11th-13th - Edgar C. Whisenant in 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988, 1987
- 1989 - Edgar C. Whisenant in The Final Shout: Rapture Report 1989; Whisenant continued to predict the end of the world in 1992 and 1995, among other year
- 1992, October 28th - prediction from Korean group Mission for the Coming Days.
- 1993 - multiple predictions put 1993 as the Rapture date as seven years before the millennium to allow for the seven years of Tribulation before the Second Coming in 2000
- 1994, June 9th - a prediction from Christ Church pastor John Hinkle
- 1994, September 6th - Harold Camping. 1994 was apparently not a good year for Rapture believers
- 2011, May 21st - Harold Camping after reviewing his botched former prediction
- 2011, October 21st - Harold Camping again.
Michele Bachmann Insists Obama And Gay Marriage Will Bring The Rapture (AUDIO/VIDEO) | If You Only News
Sunday, April 26, 2015
Bachmann: God Punishing US With 'Economic Disasters, Natural Disasters' Due To Obama Presidency | Right Wing Watch
“If the United States turns its back on Israel, as our president is doing today, in my opinion, we cannot continue to indulge in the fantasy that the United States will be free from receiving the negative blowback, or curses, in biblical parlance, that could come our way and they could be severe,” Bachmann said.
After Markell pointed to economic troubles, the California drought and “unprecedented snowstorms on the East Coast” as signs of such divide punishment, Bachmann told her that such occurrences “are only the threshold or down payment.”
“If we actually turn our back on Israel, as we are seeing Barack Obama do today, if that happens then I think we will see a scale and a level of pushback in the United States, negative consequences. I don’t know what they are, but I believe that the Bible is true and I believe that what the Bible says is that our nation and the people of our nation will reap a whirlwind,” Bachmann said. “We could see economic disasters, natural disasters. The United States does not want to be in that position and unfortunately the people put into office Barack Obama, not only once but twice, and the people have to rise up against his actions and demand their leaders take steps accordingly.”
Bachmann: God Punishing US With 'Economic Disasters, Natural Disasters' Due To Obama Presidency | Right Wing Watch
After Markell pointed to economic troubles, the California drought and “unprecedented snowstorms on the East Coast” as signs of such divide punishment, Bachmann told her that such occurrences “are only the threshold or down payment.”
“If we actually turn our back on Israel, as we are seeing Barack Obama do today, if that happens then I think we will see a scale and a level of pushback in the United States, negative consequences. I don’t know what they are, but I believe that the Bible is true and I believe that what the Bible says is that our nation and the people of our nation will reap a whirlwind,” Bachmann said. “We could see economic disasters, natural disasters. The United States does not want to be in that position and unfortunately the people put into office Barack Obama, not only once but twice, and the people have to rise up against his actions and demand their leaders take steps accordingly.”
Bachmann: God Punishing US With 'Economic Disasters, Natural Disasters' Due To Obama Presidency | Right Wing Watch
Sunday, January 4, 2015
ADDENDUM::Is Homosexuality Worse than Mass Murder in the Bible? | Scott Lively Ministries
I have so much more to say concerning Lively's defense but I can't seem to string together 3 coherent sentences. What I will leave you with is this bit of a teaser,,,
Here is what gets my goat, I have stated it before in regards to Steven Anderson, one verse doth not a theology make. That also holds true for Rabbinical literature as well.
Cherry-picking one, single sentence from Rabbah Genesis, "[t]he generation of the Flood were not blotted out from the world until they composed nuptial songs in honor of pederasty and bestiality," (26.5) is absurd.
Is Homosexuality Worse than Mass Murder in the Bible? | Scott Lively Ministries
Here is what gets my goat, I have stated it before in regards to Steven Anderson, one verse doth not a theology make. That also holds true for Rabbinical literature as well.
Cherry-picking one, single sentence from Rabbah Genesis, "[t]he generation of the Flood were not blotted out from the world until they composed nuptial songs in honor of pederasty and bestiality," (26.5) is absurd.
Is Homosexuality Worse than Mass Murder in the Bible? | Scott Lively Ministries
Sunday, December 21, 2014
ADDENDUM::Scott Lively: Homosexuality Is Worse Than Murder | Right Wing Watch
As I figured, Lively did go there with the Noah reference, according to Right Wing Watch. These guys are getting so predictable but yet dangerous at the same time.
I have mentioned the Diane Benscoter's TEDTalk numerous times as well as the "Us vs Them" mentality. Minus the specific link to the Nephilim, it also holds for the "general" End-Times garbage many within the Dominionist realm hold.
I have mentioned the Diane Benscoter's TEDTalk numerous times as well as the "Us vs Them" mentality. Minus the specific link to the Nephilim, it also holds for the "general" End-Times garbage many within the Dominionist realm hold.
,,,[a]nd the most dangerous part of this is that is creates "us" and "them," "right" and "wrong," "good" and "evil." And it makes anything possible. Makes anything rationalizable.In a blog post Benscoter talks further in regards to memeplexes.
This concept gives us a means to view, from an evolutionary perspective, how and why we have tended to clump together into groups with highly polarized ideologies. We can start to understand the pull to view the world from a “Us” versus “Them” perspective,,,.Rationalizing his hatred and creating polarized groups is exactly what Lively is doing.
Lively said that homosexuality is a Satanic attack “on the very essence of who we are” that God has deemed a more offensive abomination than mass killings: “When you look in the Bible, there are sins that you would think of as worse, you know, murder or mass murder, but what does it come down to? Leviticus 18 tells the Hebrews exactly what it is that God identifies as the most rebellious behavior, the behavior that causes the land to actually vomit out its inhabitants and every item on that list, except for child sacrifice, is sexual perversion, and child sacrifice is often a form of sexual perversion. So that’s where we are.”Scott Lively: Homosexuality Is Worse Than Murder | Right Wing Watch
“Homosexuality is not just another sin,” he added, “it is the sin that defines rebellion against God, the outer edge of rebellion against God and it is the harbinger of God’s wrath, that’s why the Scripture gives the warning, ‘as in the days of Noah.’”
Saturday, December 20, 2014
Scott Lively: Homosexuality An 'Infection' That Kills Society | Right Wing Watch
Wow!! Lively actually went there with the Mystery Babylon reference (Rev 17:1-18, specifically v5::“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” ). Briefly, this ties in to what some refer to as the Apostate Church, Battle of Armageddon and the Mark of the Beast. For shits and giggles you can also add Matt 24:37::As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. I will have more on this later,,,,
Scott Lively, an activist notorious for pushing anti-gay policies in countries like Uganda and Russia, appeared on “Trunews” yesterday, where he told host Rick Wiles that gay rights and the growing acceptance of homosexuality are going to destroy the U.S.Scott Lively: Homosexuality An 'Infection' That Kills Society | Right Wing Watch
Lively called homosexuality an “infection” that society can only tolerate in small doses: “Society has an immune system also and we can allow a certain amount of this infection without collapsing.”
However, he warned, now America is experiencing the “forced participation in gay culture” and “punishment of all dissenters” is looming.
“The infrastructure of Judeo-Christian civilization in America has all but disappeared and we are in the end game, the radical left, the cultural Marxists are mopping up at this point,” he lamented.
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Stacy Swimp: Supreme Court Marriage Ruling Would Bring About Last Days | Right Wing Watch
Anti-gay activist Stacy Swimp, a Michigan pastor, claimed last month that a Supreme Court ruling legalizing marriage equality throughout the country would bring America into the biblical Last Days.
If the Supreme Court were to issue a favorable marriage equality ruling, Swimp told Cleveland anti-gay activist Molly Smith in a September 23 interview, “I see America looking like what Jesus said the world looking like. He said, ‘As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be when the Son returns.’”
“You see,” he continued, “in Noah’s day, you had complete lawlessness, men did what was right in their own eyes, according to the Bible, and there were no moral boundaries that men respected. And so we are at the threshold in our global society.”
“If this happens to become law, you’re going to see complete chaos and lawlessness,” he said, adding that such a ruling would lead to “broken families” and “escalated crime.”
Stacy Swimp: Supreme Court Marriage Ruling Would Bring About Last Days | Right Wing Watch
If the Supreme Court were to issue a favorable marriage equality ruling, Swimp told Cleveland anti-gay activist Molly Smith in a September 23 interview, “I see America looking like what Jesus said the world looking like. He said, ‘As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be when the Son returns.’”
“You see,” he continued, “in Noah’s day, you had complete lawlessness, men did what was right in their own eyes, according to the Bible, and there were no moral boundaries that men respected. And so we are at the threshold in our global society.”
“If this happens to become law, you’re going to see complete chaos and lawlessness,” he said, adding that such a ruling would lead to “broken families” and “escalated crime.”
Stacy Swimp: Supreme Court Marriage Ruling Would Bring About Last Days | Right Wing Watch
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Hagee: It Is Not Climate Change; It's The Imminent Return Of Jesus Christ | Right Wing Watch
The other day when I posted concerning Barney Frank and his decision to stay closeted concerning his atheism, I hypothesized concerning the Reich's anti-science stance: Dominionists deny Climate Change because they want the "world to end" so they can all go to heaven.
Now I know some of my dear readers are thinking I have lost my marble or I was sensationalizing. To wit I present to you Matthew Hagee.
A favorite passage when discussing not only unadulterated End-Times bullshit but also heavily relied upon in regards to Nephilim eschatology as well (which falls under what I call Nephilim Scripted and it ties directly into the Dominionist ideology and the 7 Mountains Mandate.)
Hagee: It Is Not Climate Change; It's The Imminent Return Of Jesus Christ | Right Wing Watch
Now I know some of my dear readers are thinking I have lost my marble or I was sensationalizing. To wit I present to you Matthew Hagee.
As Hagee explained, the views put forth by scientists and experts on any subject are not to be believed if those views are at odds with what the Bible teaches. As such, the extreme weather events that the climate has been experiencing are not the result of climate change but are rather signs of the End Times and the imminent return of Jesus Christ.A prime example of the (why of the) Reich's anti-science stance in regards to Climate Change which is grounded in their interpretation of Matthew 24:37: "And as were the days of Noah, so shall be the coming of the Son of man." (ASV)
,,,So we have a decision to make: do we believe what an environmentalist group says and choose to live in a world where we're attempting to make everything as clean in the air as possible, or do we believe what the Bible says, that these things were going to happen and that rather than try to clean up all of the air and solve all of the problems of the world by eliminating factories, we should start to tell people about Jesus Christ who is to return?":
A favorite passage when discussing not only unadulterated End-Times bullshit but also heavily relied upon in regards to Nephilim eschatology as well (which falls under what I call Nephilim Scripted and it ties directly into the Dominionist ideology and the 7 Mountains Mandate.)
Hagee: It Is Not Climate Change; It's The Imminent Return Of Jesus Christ | Right Wing Watch
Monday, April 21, 2014
Pat Robertson: Jesus said an asteroid could destroy Earth next week
Televangelist Pat Robertson warned on Monday that Jesus had said that an asteroid would destroy the Earth — and it could happen as soon as next week. On Tuesday, three former NASA astronauts are expected to present their findings that the Earth had…
Monday, August 5, 2013
Christian Zionism: The New Heresy that Undermines Middle East Peace
At least one in four American Christians surveyed recently by Christianity Today magazine said that they believe it is their biblical responsibility to support the nation of Israel. This view is known as Christian Zionism. The Pew Research Center put the figure at 63 per cent among white evangelicals. Christian Zionism is pervasive within mainline American evangelical, charismatic and independent denominations including the Assemblies of God, Pentecostals and Southern Baptists, as well as many of the independent mega-churches. It is less prevalent within the historic denominations, which show a greater respect for the work of the United Nations, support for human rights, the rule of international law and empathy with the Palestinians.
The origins of the movement can be traced to the early 19th century when a group of eccentric British Christian leaders began to lobby for Jewish restoration to Palestine as a necessary precondition for the return of Christ. The movement gained traction from the middle of the 19th century when Palestine became strategic to British, French and German colonial interests in the Middle East. Proto-Christian Zionism therefore preceded Jewish Zionism by more than 50 years. Some of Theodore Herzl's strongest advocates were Christian clergy.
[,,,]
Burgeoning Christian Zionist organizations such as the International Christian Embassy (ICEJ), Christian Friends of Israel (CFI) and Christians United for Israel (CUFI) wield considerable influence on Capitol Hill, claiming a support base in excess of 50 million true believers. This means there are now at least ten times as many Christian Zionists as Jewish Zionists. And their European cousins are no less active in the Zionist Hasbarafia, lobbying for Israel, attacking its critics and thwarting the peace process. The United States and Israel are often portrayed as Siamese twins, joined at the heart, sharing common historic, religious and political values.
Pastor John Hagee is one of the leaders of the Christian Zionist movement. He is the Founder and Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Church, a 19,000-member evangelical church in San Antonio, Texas. His weekly programmes are broadcast on 160 TV stations, 50 radio stations and eight networks into an estimated 99 million homes in 200 countries. In 2006 he founded Christians United for Israel admitting,
[,,,]
Christian Zionists have shown varying degrees of enthusiasm for implementing six basic political convictions that arise from their ultra-literal and fundamentalist theology:
The origins of the movement can be traced to the early 19th century when a group of eccentric British Christian leaders began to lobby for Jewish restoration to Palestine as a necessary precondition for the return of Christ. The movement gained traction from the middle of the 19th century when Palestine became strategic to British, French and German colonial interests in the Middle East. Proto-Christian Zionism therefore preceded Jewish Zionism by more than 50 years. Some of Theodore Herzl's strongest advocates were Christian clergy.
[,,,]
Burgeoning Christian Zionist organizations such as the International Christian Embassy (ICEJ), Christian Friends of Israel (CFI) and Christians United for Israel (CUFI) wield considerable influence on Capitol Hill, claiming a support base in excess of 50 million true believers. This means there are now at least ten times as many Christian Zionists as Jewish Zionists. And their European cousins are no less active in the Zionist Hasbarafia, lobbying for Israel, attacking its critics and thwarting the peace process. The United States and Israel are often portrayed as Siamese twins, joined at the heart, sharing common historic, religious and political values.
Pastor John Hagee is one of the leaders of the Christian Zionist movement. He is the Founder and Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Church, a 19,000-member evangelical church in San Antonio, Texas. His weekly programmes are broadcast on 160 TV stations, 50 radio stations and eight networks into an estimated 99 million homes in 200 countries. In 2006 he founded Christians United for Israel admitting,
"For 25 almost 26 years now, I have been pounding the evangelical community over television. The Bible is a very pro-Israel book. If a Christian admits ‘I believe the Bible,' I can make him a pro-Israel supporter or they will have to denounce their faith. So I have the Christians over a barrel, you might say."
[,,,]
Christian Zionists have shown varying degrees of enthusiasm for implementing six basic political convictions that arise from their ultra-literal and fundamentalist theology:
- The belief that the Jews remain God's chosen people leads Christian Zionists to seek to bless Israel in material ways. However, this also invariably results in the uncritical endorsement of and justification for Israel's racist and apartheid policies, in the media, among politicians and through solidarity tours to Israel.
- As God's chosen people, the final restoration of the Jews to Israel is therefore actively encouraged, funded and facilitated through partnerships with the Jewish Agency.
- Eretz Israel, as delineated in scripture, from the Nile to the Euphrates, belongs exclusively to the Jewish people, therefore the land must be annexed, Palestinians driven from their homes and the illegal Jewish settlements expanded and consolidated.
- Jerusalem is regarded as the eternal and exclusive capital of the Jews, and cannot be shared with the Palestinians. Therefore, strategically, Christian Zionists have lobbied the US Administration to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem and thereby ensure that Jerusalem is recognised as the capital of Israel.
- Christian Zionists offer varying degrees of support for organisations such as the Jewish Temple Mount Faithful who are committed to destroying the Dome of the Rock and rebuilding the Jewish Temple on the Haram Al-Sharif (Noble sanctuary of Al-Aqsa).
- Christian Zionists invariably have a pessimistic view of the future, convinced that there will be an apocalyptic war of Armageddon in the imminent future. They are deeply sceptical of the possibility of a lasting peace between Jews and Arabs and therefore oppose the peace process. Indeed, to advocate an Israeli compromise of "land for peace" with the Palestinians is seen as a rejection of God's promises to Israel and therefore to support her enemies.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Belief in biblical end-times stifling climate change action in U.S.: study | The Raw Story
The United States has failed to take action to mitigate climate change thanks in part to the large number of religious Americans who believe the world has a set expiration date.
Research by David C. Barker of the University of Pittsburgh and David H. Bearce of the University of Colorado uncovered that belief in the biblical end-times was a motivating factor behind resistance to curbing climate change.
“[T]he fact that such an overwhelming percentage of Republican citizens profess a belief in the Second Coming (76 percent in 2006, according to our sample) suggests that governmental attempts to curb greenhouse emissions would encounter stiff resistance even if every Democrat in the country wanted to curb them,” Barker and Bearce wrote in their study, which will be published in the June issue of Political Science Quarterly.
[,,,]
“[I]t stands to reason that most nonbelievers would support preserving the Earth for future generations, but that end-times believers would rationally perceive such efforts to be ultimately futile, and hence ill-advised,” Barker and Bearce explained.
That very sentiment has been expressed by federal legislators. Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) said in 2010 that he opposed action on climate change because “the Earth will end only when God declares it to be over.” He is the chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy.
Belief in biblical end-times stifling climate change action in U.S.: study | The Raw Story
Research by David C. Barker of the University of Pittsburgh and David H. Bearce of the University of Colorado uncovered that belief in the biblical end-times was a motivating factor behind resistance to curbing climate change.
“[T]he fact that such an overwhelming percentage of Republican citizens profess a belief in the Second Coming (76 percent in 2006, according to our sample) suggests that governmental attempts to curb greenhouse emissions would encounter stiff resistance even if every Democrat in the country wanted to curb them,” Barker and Bearce wrote in their study, which will be published in the June issue of Political Science Quarterly.
[,,,]
“[I]t stands to reason that most nonbelievers would support preserving the Earth for future generations, but that end-times believers would rationally perceive such efforts to be ultimately futile, and hence ill-advised,” Barker and Bearce explained.
That very sentiment has been expressed by federal legislators. Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) said in 2010 that he opposed action on climate change because “the Earth will end only when God declares it to be over.” He is the chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy.
Belief in biblical end-times stifling climate change action in U.S.: study | The Raw Story
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Authorities concerned about "end of the world" warnings from FLDS cult leader Warren Jeffs | God Discussion
Sam Brower, a private investigator who has represented more than one hundred former members of the FLDS church, told CNN, "The consensus seems to be that Warren is indicating that by the end of the year, the end of the world will be here." CNN reports that when leaders of religious sects talk about calamitous ends of the earth, people in law enforcement take careful notice. "Jim Jones, [David] Koresh … history has showed us these things happen when religious zealots take charge of a group of people," Brower said.
Authorities concerned about "end of the world" warnings from FLDS cult leader Warren Jeffs | God Discussion
Authorities concerned about "end of the world" warnings from FLDS cult leader Warren Jeffs | God Discussion
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Jesus returning on May 27? Indiana pastor urges Christians to pray for the well-being of doomsday ‘prophet’
oops,,,missed another one,,,damn missed the calling for my new home,,,,
Jesus returning on May 27? Indiana pastor urges Christians to pray for the well-being of doomsday ‘prophet’
Jesus returning on May 27? Indiana pastor urges Christians to pray for the well-being of doomsday ‘prophet’
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Anne Graham Lotz: The End Times are Coming Soon and God's Judgment has Already Begun | rightwingwatch.org
Wonder what daddy thinks of them apples, he must be so proud,,,
Anne Graham Lotz: The End Times are Coming Soon and God's Judgment has Already Begun | rightwingwatch.org
Anne Graham Lotz: The End Times are Coming Soon and God's Judgment has Already Begun | rightwingwatch.org
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