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| War in Iraq: The beginning of the
end? |
Jusitn Boulmay
Multicultural Beat
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Today the 11th book
of the Left Behind series, “Armageddon,” will be hitting
bookshelves nationwide.
The Left Behind series is a fictional series based on biblical prophecy,
specifically the prophecies that relate to the end of the world
and the series of events that will lead mankind to that end.
The Bible itself states someday, at a time that no one knows except
God himself, all the Christians of the world will be taken by Jesus
Christ to heaven, leaving everyone else here on earth. This is what
scholars refer to as the “rapture.”
The next big event is what is called the “tribulation,”
a seven-year period of war, famine, disease and other numerous disasters.
During this period, a one-world government arises under the leadership
of one man, known as the Antichrist, who puts to death anyone who
does not worship him as God.
Once the seven years are up, Christ returns to earth, with his church
this time, defeats the forces of evil and sets up his own kingdom.
It is that event where the Left Behind books start. The main character,
Rayford Steele, is a married pilot who uses his disagreement of
his wife’s religious beliefs as an excuse to start an affair
with a pretty flight attendant aboard his plane.
No sooner does he go looking for a date does Rayford find out people
all over the world have vanished. Some planes have crashed, since
the pilots flying them disappeared. Mass hysteria grips the planet
in a split second as riots break out and crime rates skyrocket.
Many people speculate it was the Russians or a terrorist attack,
or maybe aliens zapping the earth with a laser beam. However, Rayford,
all too familiar with his wife’s views on the end of the world,
guesses what has happened the moment people disappear.
This leads to his own conversion to Christianity, and eventually,
his daughter, Chloe, becomes a Christian too. They, along with a
new pastor, Bruce Barnes, and international journalist, Cameron
“Buck” Williams, prepare together for what will be the
final, and worst, years man will ever know.
While a lot of what I just said may sound like foolishness to some
of the people reading this, that book series has caused a lot of
people to wonder, “Just how is it going to end?”
Jesus said we could expect wars and rumors of them before the end,
and, with a new war between America and Iraq, it seems more people
are keeping that statement in mind.
Just look at the message boards on the official Left Behind Web
site (www.leftbehind.com). Some people are trying to figure out
whether this war will lead to an eventual reconstruction of the
city of Babylon, another event the Bible says will happen.
The original site of Babylon is in Iraq, and, while I can’t
be sure how true this is, I’ve heard rumors that Saddam Hussein
has spent millions of dollars on the site itself.
It has never been a secret that the state of Israel wants to rebuild
its temple, which was destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. Both Christians
and Jews believe the rebuilding of the temple will hasten the return
of the Messiah (although they disagree on who that person will be).
The Bible says it will happen. The only problem is, the site where
the temple would go is where the Islamic Dome of the Rock (one of
the most sacred places in the Middle East to Muslims worldwide)
exists today, so something would have to happen to broker a deal
between the Jews and Arabs.
Is this humankind’s final act? I believe it is, and while the
Bible says things are going to get worse, a verse that President
Bush quoted after 9-11 gives me a little comfort:
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil; for You are with me.” |
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