Evangelist claims that Rapture will happen in 2011

Link

Quote :

Harold Camping lets out a hearty chuckle when he considers the people who believe the world will end in 2012.

"That date has not one stitch of biblical authority," Camping says from the
Oakland office where he runs Family Radio, an evangelical station that
reaches listeners around the world. "It's like a fairy tale."

The real date for the end of times, he says, is in 2011.

The Mayans and the recent Hollywood movie "2012" have put the
apocalypse in the popular mind this year, but Camping has been at this
business for a long time. And while Armageddon is pop science or
big-screen entertainment to many, Camping has followers from the Bay
Area to China.

*headdesks* Oh great.

Quote :

On Sept. 6, 1994, dozens of Camping's believers gathered inside
Alameda's Veterans Memorial Building to await the return of Christ, an
event Camping had promised for two years. Followers dressed children in
their Sunday best and held Bibles open-faced toward heaven.

Annnnnd... no Rapture then, no end of the world then.

Apparently he made a "mathematical error".

Quote :

By Camping's understanding, the Bible was dictated by God and every word and number carries a spiritual significance. He noticed that
particular numbers appeared in the Bible at the same time particular
themes are discussed.

The number 5, Camping concluded, equals "atonement." Ten is
"completeness." Seventeen means "heaven." Camping patiently explained
how he reached his conclusion for May 21, 2011.

"Christ hung on the cross April 1, 33 A.D.," he began. "Now go to April 1 of 2011 A.D., and that's 1,978 years."

Camping then multiplied 1,978 by 365.2422 days - the number of days
in each solar year, not to be confused with a calendar year.

Next, Camping noted that April 1 to May 21 encompasses 51 days. Add
51 to the sum of previous multiplication total, and it equals 722,500.

Camping realized that (5 x 10 x 17) x (5 x 10 x 17) = 722,500.

Or put into words: (Atonement x Completeness x Heaven), squared.

Stuff like this always makes me so... sad. I can't help but think that this guy, sincere and well-meaning as he may be, is missing the forest for the trees, and furthermore, is attempting to delve into an area that Jesus Himself said that "Of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my father only." I mean, if you believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, then those words must have some weight. Which means: YOU DON'T KNOW. Heck, Christians don't even agree on the hows of eschatology, much less the date.

*headdesks again*

Malganis wrote:

Jesus Himself said that "Of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my father only."

Oh, I'm sure Jesus was just fuckin' around when He said that. This guy is clearly right, I mean, he has MATH and everything!

Quote :

On Sept. 6, 1994, dozens of Camping's believers gathered inside
Alameda's Veterans Memorial Building to await the return of Christ, an
event Camping had promised for two years. Followers dressed children in
their Sunday best and held Bibles open-faced toward heaven.

So don't leave me hanging here. Did Jesus come or not?

On the other hand, this nutbar has reminded me of Alma Geddon's site which I will now go look for instead of paying him any more attention.

Lol...Just a few from A Breif History of the Apocalypse

Quote :

The year of the Rapture,
claimed Donald B. Orsden in his book The Holy Bible - The Final Testament:
What is the Significance of 666?. "Take your super computers, you
scientists, and feed the number 666 into them. The output will be the proof God
gives that 1998 is the year Jesus will take the faithful with him...." (McIver
#2986)

Quote :

On September 25, 1997,
Hal Lindsey predicted on his TV show International Intelligence Briefing
that Russia would invade Israel within 18 months. Many fundamentalists believe
from highly questionable scriptural interpretation that Russia's invasion of
Israel is predicted in the Bible and that it will lead to Armageddon. (Abanes
p.286)

Quote :

July 1999 The month made famous by
16th century soothsayer Nostradamus, the month that people have wondered about
for over four centuries, is now at long last a part of history. And guess what?
No King of Terror! Bummer, eh?

No alien battleships crashing onto South Pacific islands, either.

Quote :

The beginning of
Christ's Millennium, according to Tom Stewart in his book 1998: Year of the
Apocalypse. The Rapture was to take place on May 31, 1998, and the Parousia
on October 13, 2005. (McIver #3226)

Quote :

According to Earth
changes prophetess Lori Adaile Toye of the I AM America
Foundation, a series of Earth changes beginning in 1992 and ending in 2009
will cause much of the world to be submerged, and only 1/3 of America's
population will survive. You can even order a map of the flooded USA from her
website!

I somehow fail to be terrified at this.

Either he will be right by sheer coincidence, or he won't. Either way, as a friend of mine would say, bring it on! I know who wins!

KelinciHutan wrote:

Either he will be right by sheer coincidence, or he won't. Either way, as a friend of mine would say, bring it on! I know who wins!

Yeah, but if he's wrong, then he's gonna be leaving a lot of people with (deserved, really) egg on their faces, with himself as the most egg-spattered person of all. And it will just be another incident that makes Christians seem like gullible fools, and, moreover, perhaps people who would rather escape the world than deal with its problems.

If the Rapture doesn't happen in 2011, this guy's credibility will be shot, and so too will his witness. What about all the people who've given his ministry money and time and effort? Won't they be at a risk for a certain loss of faith (though if it's only a loss of faith in this dude, that's not such a bad thing)?

Really, people like this are an embarrassment to my faith. It's why I have no time for them, and to be honest, not much compassion. They're about one step away from false prophets.

KelinciHutan wrote:

Either he will be right by sheer coincidence, or he won't.

SPOILER ALERT: he won't.

Lysander wrote:

KelinciHutan wrote:

Either he will be right by sheer coincidence, or he won't.

SPOILER ALERT: he won't.

NO!!!

I wanted to be surprised.

Here's Alma Geddon's site, which I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

It's the End of the World as We Know It...Again

Malganis wrote:

If the Rapture doesn't happen in 2011, this guy's credibility will be shot, and so too will his witness.

People like this always claim that "oops, just made a slight miscalculation, here's the REAL REAL date guys!" when the day comes and goes with no Armageddon. And some followers will wisen up and realize it's all crock, but he'll surely keep some followers as well.

If they got it wrong once, they'll find an excuse for getting it wrong this time too.

Besides, it's a whole year off.

When I was in high school in the early 90's, there was a group of kids who were convinced the world would come to an end on January 1, 2000, and they were among the select group that would go to heaven. They loved to bully and taunt anyone who disagreed with this idea. One of the people who believed in this happened to be one of my co-workers when the notable date occurred. When she came to work on January 1, 2000, looking shocked and devastated, I couldn't resist rubbing it in by asking how it felt to be in hell with the rest of us.

Nothing new. As a child, I went to more revival meetings to see evangelists than I've had hot dinners, and ministers have been predicting the Rapture since I was too young to know what they were talking about. Basically, to the best of my knowledge, it's supposed to have occurred every year since I was born in 1958. Fifty-one years later, and we're still here.

Don't even get me started on who all's been declared the Anti-Christ.

Mal's right, though. The Bible specifically says that no man knoweth the day nor the hour, not even the Son, only the Father. If God hasn't bothered to tell his own son when he's planning on starting the tribulation, I find it hard to believe he'd tell some garden variety idiot who's decided he's discovered a secret code.

Unfortunately, this is why people tend to think of Christians as being mindless sheep. Most of them aren't, but unfortunately, a lot of people have to have something to believe in, and these sort of ministers tend to be very charismatic.

Rabid Badger wrote:

Mal's right, though. The Bible specifically says that no man knoweth the day nor the hour, not even the Son, only the Father. If God hasn't bothered to tell his own son when he's planning on starting the tribulation, I find it hard to believe he'd tell some garden variety idiot who's decided he's discovered a secret code.

I wouldn't put it past God the Father to change the tribulation start date just because some yahoo thought he had a lock on it. "Thinks he can figure out what My plans are, does he? I'll show 'im. Rapture's off. Not even Job got an answer to that question, and I liked him."

Malganis wrote:

Jesus Himself said that "Of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my father only."

Yes but no.
You need to consider the context and all and who Jesus was talking to, when he said that: They were just not that good at maths!
Hm - That probably means that Jesus himself was not particularly good at maths either. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

rachel wrote:

I wouldn't put it past God the Father to change
the tribulation start date just because some yahoo thought he had a
lock on it. "Thinks he can figure out what My plans are, does he? I'll show 'im. Rapture's off.

I'd like that.


BTW: Good to be back - I discovered the old board was gone only a few days ago. Despite the fact, that it still worked when I checked last time, I was horrified. Then a friendly soul directed me here.
I wonder if anyone remembers me at all. With my total of roughly 6-9 postings on the old board and incredible 57 or so on the orange one...

OK, guess I'd better get ready for some looting, as I'm unlikely to get raptured. What will I need, besides a BFG and a bad attitude?

rachel wrote:

I wouldn't put it past God the Father to change the tribulation start date just because some yahoo thought he had a lock on it. "Thinks he can figure out what My plans are, does he? I'll show 'im. Rapture's off. Not even Job got an answer to that question, and I liked him."

That's more or less what my fiancé says about the whole thing. Without the Rapture-angle, that is. I don't think that idea really caught on, this side of the Atlantic.

I don't like it. This line of thinking always seems to skip what else Jesus has said. He did not exclusively talk about the end of the world!

ZoZo wrote:

OK, guess I'd better get ready for some looting, as I'm
unlikely to get raptured. What will I need, besides a BFG and a bad
attitude?

A bunker. Maybe a tank.

ZoZo wrote:

OK, guess I'd better get ready for some looting, as I'm unlikely to get raptured. What will I need, besides a BFG and a bad attitude?

Are you an animal lover? If so, would you care to sign up for this service right here?

Aggie wrote:

ZoZo wrote:

OK, guess I'd better get ready for some looting, as I'm unlikely to get raptured. What will I need, besides a BFG and a bad attitude?

Are you an animal lover? If so, would you care to sign up for this service right here?

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] I wonder how many people have fallen for that.

It always cracks me up when "sola scriptura" sects keep going on about the Rapture.

I remember reading a review of the Left Behind series where the reviewer said that she knew the rapture was going to happen soon, but she hadn't realized it would be so painful for those not raptured.

Somebody failed to note that those books are fiction.

Well, that was the idea behind the Rapture, after all. Good people get a "get out of life sucking free" card, everyone else has to deal with the shit that comes after. So she really wasn't paying any attention at all.

There's also video games about the series Left Behind. Not that they're very good.

Rabby wrote:

Basically, to the best of my knowledge, it's supposed to have occurred every year since I was born in 1958. Fifty-one years later, and we're still here.

They're going to right sooner or later, dumbass. He who laughs last waited a REAL long time to laugh.

Also, Mally, what part of the headline "Dumbass Cult Leader Says Dumbass Things" says "news" to you, you stupid fuck? My God, there are deluded lunatics spouting nonsense like this all over the place. The only difference about this lunatic is that his website gets more hits per day than most of his peers'.

It will only be news if he convices/tricks his followers into killing themselves.

ZoZo wrote:

OK, guess I'd better get ready for some looting, as I'm unlikely to get raptured. What will I need, besides a BFG and a bad attitude?

Alcohol and a loyal sidekick.