Practical Christian Mysticism

Growing up in the evangelical community, I was inundated with end-times and prophecy related media.  Even before the infamous “Left Behind” series, there was plenty of activity around the deciphering and prediction of future and end-time events.  Even before I joined the Catholic Church I realized there was kind of madness behind the end-times culture, so I decided to leave IT behind.  While I firmly believe in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, I have no interest in trying to guess when it will be.  More importantly, obsessing over trying to understand prophecy often leads us to miss the point of the prophecy all together… hope.

End-Time Insanity

“But of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” - Matthew 24:36

Jesus told us even He didn’t know when the day and hour of the end would be, but for some reason, there are people who think they can figure it out anyway.   While there is genuine harm in their behavior, I can’t help but laugh a little at the absurdity of end-times enthusiasts.  They dissect and study obscure passages of scripture like a monkey trying to squeeze juice from the left over rinds of an orange.  The search in vain for some hidden message or meaning that will provide definitive proof that (insert contemporary world leader here) is the Antichrist.  

Once they find their “evidence”, their actions become even more asinine.  I have noticed that once people are convinced that God’s wrath is at hand, many of them start constructing home-made bomb shelters, stock-piling water and food, buying ammunition, and planning “apocalypse” proof financials (like sticking gold under the mattress).  I can’t think of any amount of preparation one can undertake to survive the END OF THE WORLD… nor would I want to.  I wonder if God is insulted by people thinking they can hold His wrath at bay with an electric generator and bottled water.   

Putting aside the additional inconsistency this behavior holds with the popular Protestant teaching of the “rapture”, the belief God removes all believers from the world just before things get REALLY bad, it shows a kind of craziness behind the whole thing.  I hear many evangelicals defend the popularity of end-times propaganda (like the “Left Behind” series) because they believe it brings people to God.  First of all, I don’t think that is the kind of fear God is looking for us to come to Him with.  Second, that kind of conversion is not a true conversion of repentance, and often fades away as soon as the individual starts feeling… well… stupid (like after Y2K).

Hope and Sanity

“…waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved in flames and the elements melted by fire.  But according to his promise we await new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” - 2 Peter 3:12 -13

The prophecies given to us in Scripture are given for the sake of hope and perspective.  When the end really does come, we will be comforted knowing what we endure is only temporary, and something much better is waiting on the other side.  It is also given to us to help us maintain perspective and not become too attached to this temporary world. 

Even those who accept the inevitability of death often try to achieve some sort of perceived immortality through power and legacy.  “To be remembered” is often the only hope of man for eternal life, but we know Christ offers so much more.  We lay up our treasures in heaven knowing the work we do for Jesus will be work that bares fruit in this life as well as all eternity. 

It also helps us keep a sane grasp on the concept of “building the Kingdom”.  The Kingdom of God is not a series of buildings or organizations, but a community of souls.  We can get so materialistic, even in our religion.  By keeping the end of the world in our minds, we become less interested in real estate we claimed “in God’s name” and more interested in the souls we have claimed.

There are many reasons to look forward to a new heaven and new earth.  The idea should fill us with hope and wonder, not fear and dread.  The truth behind the obsession over end-times prophecy is that people are afraid of the end, so they obsess over it to give them a feeling of control when they are helpless to stop it.  If we would be honest with ourselves, we would not be so obsessed with the details and deciphering of end times prophecy if we were at peace with it.

My Two Cents

I would also like to throw an idea out there for all you eschatologists (people who study end-times).  Did you ever consider the possibility the day and hour of the end is optional?  The end will happen, that is certain, but what if the time is not set in stone?  

There have been several periods in time when people thought the end was eminent.  Most obvious in recent history was World War II when people thought Hitler was the Antichrist.  Well… maybe he was.  What if we keep coming close to the end only to pull back from destruction?

Scriptures tell us the Church is the salt of the world, salt is a preservative.  Perhaps our behavior as a Church body determines the endurance of the world.  In every end-time “close call”, the Church has played a major role in healing the world.  While the end will come someday, maybe we should just get back to work and see if we can’t do some more good in the meantime.  

I have had several discussions as of late concerning the relationship between religion and philosophy (like here). Chiefly, the topic of debate is whether or not philosophy and religion can be separate. Here is a post on the Catholic Answers Forum that caught my attention:

It seems to me that studying the connection between philosophy and theology is a philosophy itself.

Here’s one.

A logical contradiction implies nonexistence. For example, an apple that is not an apple is nothing at all (or, A + (-A) = 0).

Therefore,

If true philosophy seeks to be logical,
And that which is logical seeks existence,
And, as St. Thomas argues, existence is God himself,
Then, true philosophy indirectly seeks God.

So, a philosopher indirectly seeks God, his natural end, as much as he rejects logical contradiction and accepts God as the principle of his logic. (i.e. faith and reason are inseparable).

As Pope John Paul the Great said, “faith without reason is superstition.” However, reason without faith is rationalism. Superstition and rationalism allow us to create our own truth and accept error.

After reading this I realized that what really shapes the argument, that philosophy and religion are inseparable, is considering what the two would be without one another. It is hard to think of any serious philosopher going out of his way to avoid all theories of God, he would be left with only a handful of shallow remnants to ponder. Likewise, any serious religious pursuant, who avoids all philosophy, would have no context for his faith or spirituality whatsoever.

While I realize that joining the Catholic Church means I pretty much have to turn in my “spiritual maverick” club card, I still carry a heavy bit of cynicism against much of Christian culture.  I role my eyes at the “American-Idol-Wannabe” CCM (Contemporary Christian Music) music industry, groan when I see a little fish on the back of someone’s car as they cut me off in traffic, and have a strong urge to light the “Inspirational” book section at Wal-Mart on fire.  Because of this, Chick-fil-A, the overtly Christian fast food chain, found itself in my sceptic pile very quickly.  However, I am here to say that Chick-fil-A has both won me over, and given me a renewed positive attitude toward old-fashioned religious sensibilities. Continue Reading »

Evolution vs. Intelligent Design has been a hot topic for decades, and is still just as hot as ever. I tend to stay away from “fad” issues just because I feel they are distracting to the pursuit of real Truth (which is timeless). However, the nature of this debate is “science vs. religion”, which IS a common problem to man. I do not believe in “check your brain at the door” religion, Truth is always found where our hearts and minds meet together. So if you will indulge me, I would like to make a interject a few guidelines for how and why science and religion should play nicely together. Continue Reading »