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In the mid-Sixties Barry McGuire wrote and performed a song that was to become the mantra of our Apocalyptic times. The first verse of McGuire’s hit song is as follows:

It will come as no surprise that the title of McGuire’s 1965 hit song was Eve Of Destruction . I remember my high school English teacher was incredulous about the popularity of this song. He could not envision chaperoning a high school dance and watching students twisting and turning to McGuire’s words of doom and gloom.

In June of 1967 Israel was engaged in a military confrontation with several surrounding Arab nations. At the time I was attending Conard High School in West Hartford, Connecticut. Half the student body was Jewish. It was most interesting for me to watch my Jewish friends as they reacted to the first of what was to become a long list of “Middle East Crises”. I remember walking down the hallways at Conard High and witnessing groups of my Jewish friends huddling around small transistor radios. What they were doing was listening to the outcomes of different battles that were being reported on the news. My Jewish friends would cheer as Israel appeared to be victorious in battle after battle. If it had been October and not May one would have thought they were listening to the World Series. In the school’s cafeteria there were sign-up lists for those students interested in going over to Israel to help with farming and other labors since the Israeli farmers and workers were caught up in battle. The town of West Hartford (affectionately known as little Israel) was able to raise in a short period of time over four and one half million dollars to aid in Israel’s efforts. Never in my life had I seen such cohesion and determination among a group of people.

Israel’s amazing victory and the ongoing crises in the Middle East have been the inspiration for many of the “prophecy pundits”. First, in the early 70s there was Hal Lindsey and his book Late Great Planet Earth. Then there was the Left Behind series of novels by Tim F. LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. More recently John Hagee has written a book entitled Jerusalem Countdown: A warning To The World. Hagee notes that Iran’s current president has demanded, “Israel must be wiped off the map of the world.” Says Hagee, “It is nearly impossible to pick up any nationally syndicated newspaper today or watch any national morning news broadcast without hearing about the escalating unrest and impending conflict in the Middle East.”

Truly, both the Old and New Testaments are replete with end-time scenarios. According to Christian author Hal Lindsey, “The Bible contains clear, specific prophecies that detailed - thousands of years in advance - the events we see taking place all around us.” However, for many of Lindsey’s critics, the prophecies contained in the Bible are neither ‘clear’ nor ’specific’.

Despite the tremendous impact and popularity of Apocalyptic books, there appears to be a growing legion of critics who dismiss Lindsey and other “prophecy pundits” with a contemptuous wave of the hand. For example, some of the reviews of Lindsey’s book at Amazon.com contain comments like “Biblical Terrorism” and “paranoia, fear and inaccuracy”. A reviewer by the name of “Johns” ends his review by stating, “I hope ‘the rapture’ does happen soon. The sooner that people like Hal Lindsey are whisked off the face of the Earth, the greater the likelihood for peace in the world!”

It is not the intent of the Armageddon Factor to vituperate or condemn the “prophecy pundits”. The extreme popularity of their books suggests that they struck a raw nerve with their attempts to correlate apocalyptic symbolism with events of the day. My late Uncle Danny thanked me, just prior to his death, for lending him my copy of Late Great Planet Earth. According to my Uncle, Lindsey’s book was the catalyst that activated him in a Christian faith and brought him closer in his relationship with Jesus Christ.

On the other hand the sensationalism of these type of books can be a huge turnoff for many. The other day I read a blog entry of an internet marketer. She wrote, “Have you noticed this past year of disasters, one after another? Whether it’s a Tsunami or an Earthquake or Hurricanes or Flooding or Mining Disaster or Shrinking Polar Ice or Riots or Duck Flu, this seems like a year straight from the Bible. . . Too much misery and death is going on and people feel it in their souls. Something is wrong and they want some answers. So we see an increasing upsurge in Apocalyptic material. . . .” The writer then continues, “I just saw a bid at Elance for an e-book on the Bird Flu. Personally, I would not touch such a product with a ten foot pole. People are hurting and are scared.”

Apparently world events coupled with prophecies of doom and gloom have caused us to become paralyzed; have instilled in us a desire to bury our heads in the sand in hopes that the world events that scare the hell out of us will somehow magically go away. Is this really the answer? I have always been taught that “people with their heads in the sand usually end up getting their butts kicked”!

So what is the solution? But wait. Before I attempt to answer that question I would have you know that I am a believer. Yes, I do believe that Armageddon is imminent. However, I do not believe that spinning my wheels with the prognosticators of doom and gloom in an attempt to correlate apocalyptic symbolism with current world events serves any useful purpose. As implied above, engaging in magical thinking is not the answer either. What is the answer then?

The answer to the question of how we should address the cataclysmic events, which I hope might be satisfying to both believer and nonbeliever, was given by Jesus Christ himself. The Lord spoke about his return and the events surrounding his second coming. In the parable of the wise and foolish virgins he spoke about how a group was awaiting the arrival of the bridegroom. Five of the virgins had their lamps filled with oil in anticipation of the Bridegroom’s arrival. The other five were not prepared. One of the many things we can learn from the parable is that prudent people should keep adequate supplies on hand (Matthew 25:1-13). The unwise virgins who were not prepared were not allowed to participate in the Bridegroom’s marriage. This parable can be simply summarized in four words – watch and be prepared.

It is my hope that everyone, regardless of beliefs, will become more observant of the escalating turmoil in the world, and take proper precautions to ensure the safety of their families and loved ones. If we do this in a rational and cooperative manner, we can come together to give meaning to the events of our time and deal effectively with the cataclysmic events that in my opinion shall surely occur.