This post is Part 3 of a three part series. You may wish to go back to read Part 1 & Part 2 first.
If some of the doomsayers about the potential for an epic catastrophe in the gulf turn out to be correct, me thinks it will represent the irony of ironies. We live in a nation in which a great many fundamentalist Christians believe in a literal Armageddon and rapture. They study the Book of Revelations incessantly and are more than willing to share with you and me their predictions and depictions of the end times.
Of course, this last book of the New Testament doesn't paint its tale in straightforward language. It is filled with all sorts of fantastic symbolism -- much of which may have made a bit more sense nearly 2,000 years ago. But despite its cryptic messages, lots of people seem to think they know the time and the arc of humanity's final days on earth.
When I was growing up in the 60s (no, not the 1860s, the 1960s), it wasn't uncommon in certain conservative Christian circles to believe that Khrushchev in Russia and Castro in Cuba represented two of the symbols (a bear and something else) that were signals that the end days would soon commence. Unfortunately, before these two men could lead us into the war to end humanity, Khrushchev died, the Berlin Wall came down and Fidel Castro has "retired" or, maybe, died. So, it turns out that all those predictions were dead wrong!
In the current generation, the fundamentalists have new precursors that they will tell you are setting the stage for Armageddon today. For some, it's the widespread use of drugs, promiscuity, pornography and the icky d-r-e-a-d-e-d homosexuality. Yes, boys and girls, according to these homophobes, the push for same sex marriage is leading us toward the point of no return.
For others, they point at those murderous Islamic jihadists. Since many of the terrorists would like nothing better than to wipe the "Christian" United States and the Jewish state of Israel off the face of the planet, it's more than obvious that the final battle for the soul of humanity is just around the corner. Of course, in this analysis, one key fact repeatedly is ignored: the Christian and Jewish "jihadists" (hawks) have spent a good deal of the past 60 years trying to wipe anyone who looks remotely Arab off the face of the earth!
For me, it would be the irony of ironies if the catalysts for the end of the world as we know it turns out to be the leaders -- both secular and religious -- of this "great" Christian nation. If a few of the doomsayers re the gulf oil crisis turn out to be right on, there won't be a final war at all; we will all disappear via supersonic tsunamis, unleashed earthquakes, massive methane-induced explosions and/or poisons of our own making raining down from the skies.
It's almost enough to make a person chuckle...except for the fact of our own extinction.
No rapture. No Jesus riding down on the clouds. No heaven. Oh, but there will be hell. For those who survive the initial cataclysm, they will die off slowly and painfully, all the while knowing that we brought this on ourselves.
I genuinely hope that the doomsayers have it all wrong. I hope that, while we are creating unknown horrors in the Gulf of Mexico, those horrors don't come anywhere near what several are predicting. I mean it. I have my fingers crossed. Heck, I might even say a prayer or two!!
If some of the doomsayers about the potential for an epic catastrophe in the gulf turn out to be correct, me thinks it will represent the irony of ironies. We live in a nation in which a great many fundamentalist Christians believe in a literal Armageddon and rapture. They study the Book of Revelations incessantly and are more than willing to share with you and me their predictions and depictions of the end times.
Of course, this last book of the New Testament doesn't paint its tale in straightforward language. It is filled with all sorts of fantastic symbolism -- much of which may have made a bit more sense nearly 2,000 years ago. But despite its cryptic messages, lots of people seem to think they know the time and the arc of humanity's final days on earth.
When I was growing up in the 60s (no, not the 1860s, the 1960s), it wasn't uncommon in certain conservative Christian circles to believe that Khrushchev in Russia and Castro in Cuba represented two of the symbols (a bear and something else) that were signals that the end days would soon commence. Unfortunately, before these two men could lead us into the war to end humanity, Khrushchev died, the Berlin Wall came down and Fidel Castro has "retired" or, maybe, died. So, it turns out that all those predictions were dead wrong!
In the current generation, the fundamentalists have new precursors that they will tell you are setting the stage for Armageddon today. For some, it's the widespread use of drugs, promiscuity, pornography and the icky d-r-e-a-d-e-d homosexuality. Yes, boys and girls, according to these homophobes, the push for same sex marriage is leading us toward the point of no return.
For others, they point at those murderous Islamic jihadists. Since many of the terrorists would like nothing better than to wipe the "Christian" United States and the Jewish state of Israel off the face of the planet, it's more than obvious that the final battle for the soul of humanity is just around the corner. Of course, in this analysis, one key fact repeatedly is ignored: the Christian and Jewish "jihadists" (hawks) have spent a good deal of the past 60 years trying to wipe anyone who looks remotely Arab off the face of the earth!
For me, it would be the irony of ironies if the catalysts for the end of the world as we know it turns out to be the leaders -- both secular and religious -- of this "great" Christian nation. If a few of the doomsayers re the gulf oil crisis turn out to be right on, there won't be a final war at all; we will all disappear via supersonic tsunamis, unleashed earthquakes, massive methane-induced explosions and/or poisons of our own making raining down from the skies.
It's almost enough to make a person chuckle...except for the fact of our own extinction.
No rapture. No Jesus riding down on the clouds. No heaven. Oh, but there will be hell. For those who survive the initial cataclysm, they will die off slowly and painfully, all the while knowing that we brought this on ourselves.
I genuinely hope that the doomsayers have it all wrong. I hope that, while we are creating unknown horrors in the Gulf of Mexico, those horrors don't come anywhere near what several are predicting. I mean it. I have my fingers crossed. Heck, I might even say a prayer or two!!
You will be happy to learn that this methane story is typical doomsday hogwash. I've just read this link yesterday.
ReplyDeletehttp://io9.com/5585294/methane-bubble-doomsday-story-debunked
Ronnie Lee,
ReplyDeleteWhile I appreciate the link, it doesn't prove anything. All it indicates is that some scientists see it one way, while others see it another. I'm certainly not qualified to say which scientists ultimately will prove to be correct.