Who is feeling rapturelicious? Will this cull the herd of the 2012'ers?

[Safetykitten]

I am thinking a big no.

[arcane1]

1. The credulous are invincible n/t

[digonswine]

2. This one is clearly a big fake.

2012 is the real deal. When this day passes into night, the 2012'ers will probably be more confident than before.

[GreenStormCloud]

3. Only a very, very tiny (less than a fraction of 1%) of evangelical Christians...

...believed the loon that set today as THE DATE. Almost all evangelical Christians are familar with the verse that says that no one can know the date in advance. So they automatically dismiss loons like this guy.

[ZombieHorde]

4. If they believe Jesus is ever "coming back," then they are just as loony.

THE DATE is not what makes this so funny. Well, maybe THE DATE makes this a little more funny.

[jberryhill]

6. And which verse would that be, exactly?

[GreenStormCloud]

7. Matthew 24:36

In context:

36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

Based on that, and other similar passages, almost all Evangelical Christians reject attempts to set a date.

[jberryhill]

8. Ah... But that's just a statement of present knowledge...

It could also say "about atomic theory, no one knows" or "how to prevent smallpox, no one knows".

Sure, nobody knew THEN... I mean, Jesus also said to the woman at the well that he was thirsty. That doesn't mean he was perpetually thirsty either.

That's how these dipwads get around that.

[GreenStormCloud]

9. Nevertheless, mainstream Evangelical Christians reject any attempts at date setting.

It it only the weird cult-like groups that do that stuff. Even Pentecostals won't set a date.

[jberryhill]

10. I wouldn't say all Pentecostals, but

...you seem to know enough to know that a lot of the Rapture Ready crowd is recruited from those ranks.

When Hal Lindsey started beating this horse in the 70's with The Late Great Planet Earth, and then that other whackadoodle came along with the Left Behind books and movies to scare the bejeebers out of kids on Youth Group Movie Night, they were just plowing the field for guys like Camping.

[GreenStormCloud]

12. I am speaking to the doctrine of those churches.

Obviously some individual members will stray from doctrine.

Sadly, many misunderstand the message of those passages. St. Augustine (I think) was hoeing his garden one day when he was asked what he would do I he could actually know that Jesus would return the next day. He replied, "Continue hoeing my garden." The point being that we are to live doing whatever is right for us to do on any particular day.

[jberryhill]

15. That is fine if you are a gardener and living under a monarchy

However, in a modern democracy you are called to participate in politics. As politicians and supporters, evangelicals are pro-war because they don't want to be "fooled by a false prophet of peace".

They reject community with unbelievers, and it drives their social isolation into their own educational institutions and animus toward public education.

They have as much care for the rest of us as they will in heaven - NONE. They look forward to the day when most people around them will be cast into eternal torment.

[GreenStormCloud]

16. I was speaking specifically of date setting.

You have changed from that topic and are now just posting your generalized hatred of Christians. My participation in this thread is over.

[quinnox]

5. 2012 date has nothing to do with christianity n/t

[joshcryer]

11. Um, the 2012'ers make the rapture people look marganilized.

[dynasaw]

13. they got mixed up

. . .given the fact most of them are miserably under educated maybe they meant raptor.

[GreenStormCloud]

17. Find a better picture. Raptors had feathers.

[RegieRocker]

14. You obviously are confused about 2012 like many others.