Faith? Or Fear?: The "Last Days" Syndrome

So much of fundamentalist and evangelical Christianity is wrapped up in an emotional wave. I always find it humorous how people in the Christian community talk about "the Last Days" as if they were communicating a campfire horror story, all fear and dread, all pestilence and famine and blood up to a horse's bridle, and then talk about how anxious they are for "the Lord's return", i.e., the "Rapture of the Saints".


I find it humorous for several reasons. For one, the "Last Days" syndrome makes for a convenient, and hokey, Jesus-juke. After my ex disappeared, and I was still pressing the issue trying to get answers for the masterclass of dysfunction and idiocy I was being trampled by, in the limited communication from people in her family and circle came a common theme - "Let this go! It's the Last Days!!! There's work to be done!", or some variation thereof. That would always leave me thinking, {CLA} "What the hell does that have to do with anything?" First of all, in hindsight, I'm not even sure we were all on the same team. I thoroughly and completely reject their version of God. But the disturbing thing was that their decree of "the Last Days" struck the people in my world as pretty much a concession of the wrong done to me, but represented what one close friend tabbed as a pattern of "deception and diversion." In other words, "The wrong we did to you isn't important, cause it's the Last Days! It's the Last Days, dude! Get your priorities straight!"


If I ever get pulled over for speeding, I think I'll revert to "Last Days" syndrome...


Me, to the police officer as he hands me a ticket: "Are you kidding me?! Come on, man! It's the Last Days!!! There's more important work to be done than enforcing the highway laws and holding me accountable for breaking them! It's the Last Days!!! Geez! Where's your head, dude?!"


Somehow I don't think he'd be impressed, nor would the judge at traffic court.


All of the Last Days syndrome is wrapped up in the idea of "the rapture". Most of you know that the word "rapture", or any original language word from which you can derive "rapture", is nowhere to be found in the biblical canon. The idea of a pre-tribulation rapture was basically unheard of until about 4 centuries ago,  really caught steam in the 1800s, and then again with the rise of fundamentalism about a century ago. An entire theology is now built (and is the dominant end-time belief of mainstream evangelical Christianity) around what's largely a fairy-tale created from doing scriptural gymnastics with a couple of vague proof-texts. Think about it. It's bad enough to draw serious theology from proof-texting. Even worse when the proof-texts are vague. How much worse when scriptural gymnastics are done with the vague proof-texts?


The worst part of it is how most Christians get all energized about the apocalyptic scenario and start in with the "Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus" stuff. They say the Last Days are something to be excited about - and then they go to the polls and cast votes that suggest otherwise. They say they want the end to come, but they'd rather elect officials who'll help "restore America as a Christian nation", which would seem, to me at least, to be a deterrent to the apocalypse. I mean, if we're gonna take the account in Revelation literally as the playbook for the "Last Days", the world has to pretty much go to Hell in a handbasket before any of it can start.


Having faith in Jesus Christ, and confidence in my eternity, I'd just as soon all this ish down here go ahead and get wrapped up however it's gonna get wrapped up. It could've wrapped up yesterday, for my part. I see no need to fear an apocalypse that we don't even know for sure will happen. I also have no interest in a selfish, fairy-tale theology which takes ME out before things get bad - and leaves the poor schmucks who don't believe in Christ behind to die in it or suffer through it and then die. Boggles my mind at how much money Tim Lahaye made selling this cheese.


After my experiences with many various Christians, both pastors and lay-people, through my real world experience and through this blog and issues dealing with it, I can see why so much of evangelical Christianity wants to believe they'll be raptured before any bad stuff happens. Much of Christianity folds like the French army at the first sign of difficulty. They'd never survive a "tribulation". I've seen earthworms with more backbone and moral fortitude than a lot of the Christians I've encountered in the last few years. Few people genuinely want to get their hands dirty in living their faith. Lots of people are "sold-out, fired-up, born again believers", and then life demands something of that sold-out, fired-up belief, and their "faith" becomes little more than an emotional planting of the flag, a flag easily toppled by the wind. Saying you have strong faith is pretty cheap. You can find it for a dime a dozen right next to the microwave burritos at 7-11 (and I think some actually do buy it there). Actually living a strong faith - and doing so in such a way as to improve the world and the lives of others (including non-Christians *gasp*) - well, that's a little more pricey.


I'd be curious at the response in the evangelical community if it somehow became known, for certain, what the end times will look like - particularly if it was made clear that things would become apocalyptic, but with no early rapture, and Christians having to suffer right to the end along with everyone else. I mean, they already vote as if that's the way it'll be. Fear is a great motivator of quantity. Terrible motivator of quality, though.


It all reminds me of the old Bluegrass song, "Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven (But Nobody Wants To Die)".


The best way to avoid the Last Days syndrome? Live every day as if it's your last. It might be.