Agnostic.com

12 2

Earthquakes Signal the End Times

Earthquakes are one of the alleged signs of the End Times according to Matthew 24: 7; Mark 13: 8 and Luke 21: 11. Unfortunately of modern End Times pundits, there are thousands of earthquakes that take place every year (albeit most quite minor), year after year after year after year. That’s been the case since before Methuselah was conceived of in anyone’s philosophy and certainly when those gospel passages were thought up. In fact there have been myriads of earthquakes annually even millions and billions of years prior to monotheism being conceived of in anyone’s philosophy. So, there’s nothing to distinguish earthquake frequency and severity today from those of 1000, or 10,000 years ago, or a million or a billion years ago for that matter. So earthquakes as a sign of the End Times are a furphy and a total fabrication. Still, that hasn’t stopped extreme right-wing fundamentalists from advocating same and in the process making complete and utter fools of themselves as the following stories culled from the “Right Wing Watch” website illustrate.

*[Tim] LaHaye: Japan Earthquake A Sign of the End Times. (Posted 11 March 2011)

*[Joseph] Farah: God Sent Earthquake to Punish America for Moral ‘Lawlessness’. (Posted 9 March 2012)

*Religious Right Activist [Jan Markell of the Minnesota-based Olive Trees Ministries]: Japanese Must “Turn and Repent” After Earthquake. (Posted 18 March 2011)

*[Glenn] Beck’s Favorite Prophesier Says Japan Earthquake Signals the End Times. (Posted 14 March 2011)

*[Pat] Robertson Calls Oklahoma Earthquake A Sign of the End Times. (Posted 7 November 2011)

*Rick Joyner: Natural Disasters [like Earthquakes] Are the Result of Kicking God out of America. (Posted 22 September 2017)

*[Rick] Joyner: An Earthquake Is Coming So Stockpile Bibles. (Posted 22 April 2011)

*[Cindy and Mike] Jacobs: The DC Earthquake Is A Sign From God To Share The Gospel. (Posted 25 August 2011)

*Jim Bakker: God Will Send Earthquakes To Punish Counties That Voted For Hillary Clinton. (Posted 22 November 2016)

*John McTernan: Gay Pride Events Cause Earthquakes, Abortion Causes Hurricanes. (Posted 30 July 2015)

johnprytz 7 Dec 2
Share

Enjoy being online again!

Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.

Create your free account

12 comments

Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.

0

The Doomsayers of Religion have spouting their 'End of Days' twaddle for almost time immemorial in the sole and vain hope that they just MIGHT be right once and only once so they can re-deem the cash they've tithed to the churches for their seats on the Express Flight of J.A.L. ( Jehovah's Air Lines) to Heaven.
Well, I won't be holding my breath that's for certain.

@johnprytz Oh, it'll be just as the same as every one before it, " Ooops, we made a miscalculation."

@johnprytz Yep, I agree with you there, so I'll make a prediction that somewhere in around 4.5 to 5.5 BILLION years from now that humungous Thermo-Nuclear Fusion Reactor approx. 93 Millions miles away from our planet ( the Sun) will have converted all of its Hydrogen to Helium, its core will begin to expand exponentially outwards and slowly, but surely envelope Mercury and Venus first before its corona either incinerates the Earth or simply sears off the atmosphere turning Earth into a blackened cinder OR engulfs the Earth as it did with Mercury and Venus.
A darned sight better chance of that occurring, probably 100 to 1 % odds on that, than some Invisible, Imaginary Sky Daddy sending down the Seven Horsemen of some totally ridiculous and arcane prophesy of an Apocalypse as found in the Goat-herders Guide to the Universe, aka the Bible.

0

For some reason I'm fascinated by the 2nd-to-last citation. Here Bakker makes a very specific prediction that individual counties that voted for Clinton will be punished with quakes. It's been 2 years. Has this happened? No.

And what about the people in those counties who didn't vote for Clinton? I notice he makes no prediction they'll be miraculously spared. And small wonder, as he subscribes to the Old Testament notion of familial and tribal and national guilt. That's an especially pernicious doctrine designed to keep people in ideological lockstep. It explains a lot of the motivation for trying to force people outside their group to adhere to their group norms. If a majority do not, then the righteous perish along with the wicked.

The last one is weirdly interesting too. How does he decide gay pride events cause one type of disaster, and abortion another? He pretty much pulls it out of his ass.

1

Standard-issue apocalyptic eschatologies always seize upon events most people find frightening, like earthquakes, tsunamis, mega-storms, vast flood and mudslide events, huge fires ... there's a reason these are called "Biblical" disasters. If you emphasize things humans have minimal control over, you create a perceived need for divine protection and favor and dependence.

We have pretty good documentation of earthquakes in the modern era, and since the invention of the seismograph there's no statistical evidence of progressively increasing seismic activity. Even if there were, the first place to look would be plate tectonics and related sciences, and the last place to look would be supernatural woo.

1

I’m going to help you here a little bit ok.
When these boogie men tell everyone that it’s the end of times they’re usually just trying to sell you something like I don’t know “ books “ or other guides to prepare you for the hereafter.

The end of times is a subject that predates the biblical times and will continue even after religion is no longer socially acceptable.

But this planet is way way older than we are and will also out last us so the end of times that these people speak of is our time. So unless one of those earthquakes actually split our planet in half they will not be the result of our demise nor are they an actual premonition of doom it’s just the planet doing it’s thing.

Anyway thank you for the entertainment and I hope that you don’t take yourself out prematurely because your jello started shaking but if you do then well more air for the rest of us. And good day

2

It’s the end of the world as we know it. And I feel fine.

0

Just another example of Magical "thinking".......

1

Earthquakes or Global Warming/Climate Change or any other absurdity to signal an end to human existence translates into faith-based garbage that people desperately grasp at straws to make real in the here and now. It only gets more than annoying when fanaticism is allowed to influence public, secular law.

@johnprytz The Right has no monopoly on blind, fanatical sycophants. They are on the fringes of all political/religious groups. They also only see the lunatics in opposing groups; never themselves.

0

How do I know an "end times" earthquake from any other earthquake? BTW, we were in the "end times" when Jesus was talking to the 12 before he was crucified and none of this had anything to do with Japan or the Americas. The bibble just doesn't support anything happening in these places. The televagelists today are pretty close to insane.

0

They’d be sacrificing humans if allowed to. I can certainly understand those once having believed ‘something beyond them’ was calling the shots; a lighting & thunder storm alone is still hard to comprehend. It creeps me out assuming, in order to have survived in ancient times ..my ancestors surely believed whatever crap everyone else did … but there’s no excuses now.

Some former neighbors of mine in the hills lived from one ‘pending end-times disaster’ to another … I actually lost track.. Y2K, the Mayan Calendar ..right on to Chemtrails - with their bibles by their side! The resources they squandered in ‘preparation’ were horrendous; like breading a herd of horses because they’d “be so valuable when other forms of transportation were gone.”

I’ve come to think such End Times BS is a tactic of cults (large & small) to rally their troops, circle the wagons - and dig in against both nature and society.. Then they’re disappointed when the world doesn't end, and the birds begin to sing as the sun comes out… A sad and creepy lot ~

Varn Level 8 Dec 2, 2018
0

Hi John, whats a furphy?

@johnprytz ooooh

1

So, once again, religion is based on fear. Why do people choose to be scared all the time? It is a choice.

1

Nothing to do with fracking, of course.

I enjoyed reading about the origin story of the Latter Day Adventists, the other day. It seems some people will always believe that the end is nigh.

Individually it is. Its a good way to live one's life

Write Comment
You can include a link to this post in your posts and comments by including the text q:235469
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.