Will the Rapture occur tomorrow?

The gold seal makes it official.

If you've been following the news lately, or seen one of the numerous billboards, you would know a small Christian group is claiming that the Rapture will occur on May 21, 2011. Which happens to be tomorrow.

The group is based out of Oakland, CA (where I saw several billboards last week) and is an independent church founded by a Harold Camping. According to Camping he was able to figure out the a "code" in the bible and claims it's basically a cosmic calendar of sorts and was able to pinpoint the Rapture based upon the founding of the state of Israel in 1948.

Camping has a radio network and has been able to spread his message through that as well as utilizing bus bench ad space and the previously mentioned billboards. I think the billboards have to be my favorite part as they have a gold seal on them stating "The Bible guarantees it". As if having a cheesy gold seal on here makes it official.

Let me also say that I believe in God, that I'm a Catholic. But I think what this guy is claiming is ridiculous. This isn't the first time he's claimed to "know" when the Rapture is going to occur or knowing when world is going to end. This isn't the first time he's done this. Camping also claimed that Christ would return on September 6, 1994. Obviously that day came and passed with no incident. Just as May 21, 2011 will.

As I had stated in a post I did back in February, I have several friends who's birthday is on May 21. Local derby grrl Karma Kaze, wife of blogfather Mike Osegueda, Tanya, and President/Ceo of Storyland & Playland Barry Falke all celebrate their birthday tomorrow. So if the Rapture does indeed come I will be out there looting to get them each a present. But most likely I will be at home playing Call of Duty or something. I really need to get a girlfriend.

Christian group claims The Rapture will occur on May 21, 2011

Artists impression of what The Rapture will look like

Image courtesy of Logos Christian Center

Ask any conspiracy theorist when the world is going to end and more likely than not they will respond that it will be on Dec. 21, 2012 (based on the fact the Mayan calendar ends on that day). But not everyone is in agreement. Some say the rapture will actually happen this year, and the date is May 21, 2011.

There is a small Christian movement based out of Oakland, California that is independent of churches whose founder, Harold Camping, is convinced from reading the bible and making several calculations that the end of the world is less than three months away.

Camping believes the bible functions essentially as a cosmic calendar of sorts and all his calculations come from reading the bible but that the foundation of the state of Israel in 1948 is what confirms the date.

From his radio network, Family Radio Worldwide, Harold has been able to get his message out there to those who would believe. His followers are using everything billboards and bus stop benches to a traveling caravan of RVs and volunteers handing out pamphlets to spread his message that the rapture is coming. Some are even planning on going overseas to Africa and the Middle East (not the best time to do that in my opinion) to spread their message even further.

This isn’t the first time (nor the last) that a religious group has predicted end times. One of the most famous was by the Baptist leader William Miller who predicted the end would fall on Oct. 22, 1844 and came to be known as the Great Disappointment among his followers and some of those founded the Seventh Day Adventist church.

So is the world going to end soon? It’s hard to say. I remember when I was in Catholic school (explains a lot doesn’t it) reading in the bible (specifically in the books of Mark & Matthew) that no one can know the date or even the hour it will occur. But this doesn’t stop these groups from trying to convince their followers for whatever reason that they know when the rapture will occur. Most are harmless and when the date passes. Then there are groups like Heaven’s Gate that perform a mass suicide thinking that is the only way to safe themselves. Let’s hope when May 21 does come nothing like that will happen.

Personally I plan on spending that day differently. Several friends’ birthdays are on that day (local derby grrl Karma Kaze, wife of blogfather Mike Osegueda, Tanya, and President/Ceo of Storyland & Playland Barry Falke) so I know something will be going on. Besides knowing my luck the world will end on my birthday, August 23.

Source: The Star