From: rhinoceros (rhinoceros@freemail.gr)
Date: Sat May 29 2004 - 09:18:47 MDT
[Blunderov] Seems Erik's recent speculation is not without foundation.
Best Regards
http://atheism.about.com/b/a/086669.htm?terms=n620c
[rhinoceros]
That would be funny if it was not... apocalyptic. I saw it last week when Jonesey posted the link in the #virus IRC channel.
http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0420/perlstein.php
There was a related story by George Monbiot in Guardian which I posted in the BBS last month. It made me wonder if there are really people that matter who make their decisions in such ways:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1195568,00.html
<begin quote>
In the United States, several million people have succumbed to an extraordinary delusion. In the 19th century, two immigrant preachers cobbled together a series of unrelated passages from the Bible to create what appears to be a consistent narrative: Jesus will return to Earth when certain preconditions have been met. The first of these was the establishment of a state of Israel. The next involves Israel's occupation of the rest of its "biblical lands" (most of the Middle East), and the rebuilding of the Third Temple on the site now occupied by the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa mosques. The legions of the antichrist will then be deployed against Israel, and their war will lead to a final showdown in the valley of Armageddon. The Jews will either burn or convert to Christianity, and the Messiah will return to Earth.
What makes the story so appealing to Christian fundamentalists is that before the big battle begins, all "true believers" (ie those who believe what they believe) will be lifted out of their clothes and wafted up to heaven during an event called the Rapture. Not only do the worthy get to sit at the right hand of God, but they will be able to watch, from the best seats, their political and religious opponents being devoured by boils, sores, locusts and frogs, during the seven years of Tribulation which follow.
The true believers are now seeking to bring all this about. This means staging confrontations at the old temple site (in 2000, three US Christians were deported for trying to blow up the mosques there), sponsoring Jewish settlements in the occupied territories, demanding ever more US support for Israel, and seeking to provoke a final battle with the Muslim world/Axis of Evil/United Nations/ European Union/France or whoever the legions of the antichrist turn out to be.
<snip>
By clicking on www.raptureready.com, you can discover how close you might be to flying out of your pyjamas. The infidels among us should take note that the Rapture Index currently stands at 144, just one point below the critical threshold, beyond which the sky will be filled with floating nudists.
<end quote>
[rhinoceros]
I had a hard time to believe that this is not a mock site. It features analysis of curent politics in the light of "the rupture", instuctions for those "left behind" and, of course, the current "rupture index" which is curently at 144. Are there really such kooks elected in positions of responsibility in numbers that matter?
www.raptureready.com
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