Apocalyptic in a Time of Pandemic

Twenty-second Wednesday after Pentecost

Today is theology day on the blog. Generally I don't write things that are directly related to the current news, but today is an exception. 

 

It strikes me as odd that modern day apocalyptic doomsayers usually flourish in times that are not all that troubling. The '70's and '80's saw tremendously popularity of the Left Behind book and movie series. Mikael Gorbachov was a convenient anti-Christ, his birthmark on his head being the mark of the beast. Less popular as anti-Christ was Ronald Wilson Reagan, the only US president with six letters in his first name, six letters in his middle name, and six letters in his last name--666. Yet it was a time of relative peace and prosperity. 

Perhaps I'm just not tuning in to the right radio channels, but I'm hearing a lot less apocalyptic now in our present time of coronavirus, national division, hurricanes, floods. And what could be more apocalyptic than the massive wildfires of California and Colorado To my mind we are in the midst of the most apocalyptic situation in my lifetime. 

Here are a couple of significant facts: The United States has 4% of the world's population and 20% of the world's coronavirus deaths. Coronavirus has been virtually eliminated in several countries which were plagued with it, but which took strong measures to stop it--shutting down, mandatory masks, and social distancing, etc. These countries include South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and New Zealand. All of these are democracies. All of these have a strong sense of social responsibility in their tradition and values. The United States is plagued with a "rugged individualism," that considers mask wearing to be tyranny, medical care to be a free market enterprise, and personal ownership of assault weapons to be a God-given right. When rugged individualism and social responsibility are at odds, the former too often wins and people too often die. 

While Jesus was to some extent an apocalyptist, he was also a strong advocate of social responsibility--Do unto others... He was also a powerful advocate for the poor, the poor in our time being the group hardest hit by Covid.

If there is to be a soon end-time (and I don't think there will be), it is not our responsibility to make it happen. All of the apocalyptic sayings and scenarios in the NT are God's doing, not humanity's. Our duty is to preserve the world that God created for us from anything that would destroy it. Think of Noah's ark. 

Wear a mask!

Faithfully,

Christian