Armageddon It

Been very busy as of late. Working over 60 hours a week plus finals. But now that school is done for a few months, I should have time to blog more often.

Randy "Macho Man" Savage

I'll start of this blog on a sad note: the untimely passing of pro wrestling star Randy "Macho Man" Savage. In proof that you never know when your time will come, Savage apparently had a hear attack while driving, resulting in an automobile accident. He was 58 years old.

He is not the first wrestling star to die too young (Curt Henning, Rick Rude, etc.) But this one is the biggest loss of them all. While I no longer follow pro wrestling, I watched it at a regular basis in the 1980's and 1990's. He was one of the biggest stars of that era. First emerging in the WWF, he quickly became one of the biggest stars in the company. He would also wrestle for WCW and TNA. Lets us not forget about the Slim Jim commercials. What I most remember about him was what a great entertainer he was. Whether he was a face (good guy) of heel (bad guy) Savage always did a good job playing his role and performing in the ring. He will be missed. But there's no denying the Savage is one of the all time wrestling greats.


The Rapture That Did Not Happen

Back in January, I posted a blog on Poets and Madmen about end of the world predictions, past and present. I also spent a portion of the blog talking about the apocalyptic predictions for yesterday made by California based evangelist Harold Camping. Camping's prediction was two pronged. He predicted that the Rapture would occur on May 21, 2011 followed by Armageddon five months later on October 21. Well May 21 came and went and The Rapture did not happen.

I was confident that Camping's prediction would not come true. Why? The vast history of missed end of the world predictions. Also, Camping himself was responsible for one of those missed predictions, back in 1994. I wish I could bet on football games in the same way and matter I can predict the outcome of end of the world predictions.

I do consider myself to be a Christian. I very much believe in God. I even think that a Biblical type Apocalypse described in the Book of Revelations is possible. But I'm dismissive of those who claim to know the exact date of the end of the world. The Bible itself says no one knows the day or hour of the end of the world (Matthew 24: 35-36). That verse alone tells me that anyone who claims to know the exact day of Armageddon is probably a B.S. artist.

Then there's those who actually believed Camping's predictions. Some gathered outside of his Oakland headquarters of Family Radio International. Others drained their savings accounts. It'll be interesting to see how Camping explains away this. He blamed his missed 1994 prediction on a mathematical error. If there is a hell after you die, I'm sure there's a part of it reserved for charlatans like Harald Camping. But we are not done with end of the world predictions. More are on the way. December 21, 2012 is not too far away.

Lights... Camera... Apocalypse

From Book of Matthew 24: 35-36."Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone." Matthew 24: 35-36.

Ever since they have been organized religion, they have been end of the world predictions. This website (a religious based one) lists end of the world predictions dating back to 44 A.D. Predictions that obviously did not come true. One of the more prominent ones was by William Miller who predicted that the end would come in 1843 or 1844. Some of his followers predicted a more exact date: October 22, 1844. When that date came and went, not only did Miller's followers (known as he Millerites) have to deal with disappointment. They also had to deal with grief and in case cases, violence from the public.

More recently we had to deal with a series of end of the world predictions from the years 1999-2000. American Evangelist Hal Lindsey was among many who predicted the end would come in 2000 (it should be noted he also predicted Christ's would return in 1988. Many other religious and New Age personalities echoed Lindsey's belief. Well It's 2011, I'm writing this and you're reading this. So I don't think I'm saying anything shocking by saying none of those predictions came true.

Now, with the Mayan calender due to end in 2012, we are once again being deluded with end of the world predictions. How the end of an ancient calender has to do with apocalypse I don't know. But a lot of people believe in it. But before we deal with 2012, we have to deal with this year, since there's some people who believe the end will come in 2011.

The most prominent of the 2011 apocalypse preachers come from Family Radio, a Christian radio network lead by Harold Camping. Camping is predicting that the Rapture will occur on May 21, 2011. Following the Rapture will be the apocalypse which will occur on October 21, 2011. It should be noted that Camping also predicted the end of the world would come in 1994. Of course, 1994 came and went without the apocalypse, but Camping's ministry lives on. His miss on 1994 has not discouraged him from making more predictions. If anything, Camping has become more bolder. In the past he said that the end might come in 1994. According to the Family Radio website Judgment Day will come on May 21, 2011 saying that the Bible guarantees it.

In the likely event that Camping's 2011 predictions are wrong, we'll have to deal with 2012. They are various beliefs on what will happen in 2012. The most common belief: a series of cataclysmic events will happen during the year. It will all lead to the apocalypse. The date that most are predicting: December 21, 2012. The date that the Mayan calender ends.

I was confident that the would wouldn't end in 1999 and 2000. I'm also confident that the world will not end in 2011 or 2012. Why? First of all, a vast history of missed predictions. Secondly, the Bible itself. The Bible clearly states that no one will know the exact day and hour. That leaves very little wiggle room.

Will the world end? Yes, when the sun die dies some 5 billion years from now. Is a apocalypse described in the Book of Revelations possible? Despite my skepticism of people like Camping, i do believe in God and the Bible. But a series of events has to happen before the end comes. Most predominately, the rise of the anti-Christ, who will claim to be God and demand people got "the Mark of the Beast as an oath of loyalty to him. Many of the world leaders and politicians may have god sized egos, but as far as I know, none of them have claimed to be God. As far is I know, neither Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin or Sarah Palin has plans to have the number 666 affixed to our foreheads.

I'm confident that we'll all be around on January 1, 2013. I'll probably be at the gym dealing with the New Year's resolution crowd. In the mean time, they'll be a lot of people left to explain why their predictions did not come true.