Antichrist Part 4, Over the Hill Came the Cavalry Charge of the Angels

By: George Wallace

In Part 1, I related the history of the development of the idea of Hell in Persia. The creator God Marduk defeated the monster and exiled him. The “place of exile” idea was transmitted to the Hebrews, to Christianity, and to today. This concept of Hell was greatly modified between AD 1000 and AD 1600 by “embellishments”, lurid paintings, and the invention of the printing press.

The printing press allowed two major works of FICTION to generate widely accepted ideas about Hell that are not contained in scriptures. This is an illustration of the real power of mass marketing and good advertising.

In Part 2, I explained how some few people find Hell to be useful and do things for them like provide employment, or sustain one’s position. I explained how this is done. I also explained that war is as close to Hell as it is possible to get. General Sherman said it correctly, “War is Hell.” War is an excuse for violence. There has never been an end to war because for male humans, war is “fun”. War is addictive. War provides a wonderful adrenal “rush”. Like coke, crack, and meth heads, we endlessly spend huge sums to “do” war just one more time.

In Part 3, I explored the aspect of the concept and portrayal of Hell, the Devil, Lucifer, the Antichrist. My dictionary says that the Antichrist is Christ’s great antagonist expected to cause chaos in the last days before the Second Coming. That same book calls the Devil, the foe of God. The Antichrist is the Devil, or his minion. What we are really talking about is one of those great delusions that transfix humankind. A fantasy in which people gladly immerse themselves for escapism entertainment.

In Part 4, I attempt to suspend judgment to learn the basis of such a belief in fantasy. The story of the Antichrist and the Second Coming of Jesus continues. People will be able to tell when His Appearance is Nigh. The Antichrist (the Bad Guy) will lead off the tale, do his “thing”. He will create havoc and chaos around the world. Then Jesus (the Good Guy) will lead the cavalry charge of the angels ( the rest of the posse) over the hill and save the day.

The key in this story is in the creation by the Antichrist of havoc and chaos when he “arrives”. There will be the “signs”. Just what these signs are, is widely unclear and open to lots of highly fallible interpretation. Some are said to be natural occurrences of Nature: earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, landslides, hurricanes, droughts, tornados, avalanches, forest fires, Arctic lemmings, blizzards, lightning strikes, Egyptian locusts, bee stings, animal attacks, polio, snake bites, accidents, illness, Utah crickets, wrinkles, Australian rabbits, varicose veins, red algae fish kills, and old age. Just one problem with this list is that natural disasters are just that, natural. They are the result of our living on a “living and dynamic”, ever changing planet.

Other “signs” are supposed to be particular calendar dates, the Year 1,000, and remember the hoo-rah around and leading up to the Year 2,000?

Other “signs” are more obscure at best: the internet, bar codes on products, the voting right’s act for women, global warming, radios, the modern State of Israel, credit cards, exploding volcanoes, the Bill of Rights, atomic power, skate boards, nuclear threats, drug addiction, nuclear accidents, wars, birth control pills, gun control legislation, hula hoops, pestilence, the voting rights act, computers, epidemics, television, civil service, gay marriage, debit cards, abortion, social security, the Erie Canal, pornography, universal national health care (socialistic medicine), Hoover Dam, the United Nations, stem cell research, the World Trade Organization, cloning, rock and roll popular music, the European Union, civil liberties, shipping containers, large chain stores (Sears, Wal Mart, K-Mart), trade and industrial unions, HIV-Aids, Swine Flu, and Avian Flu.

When you read this list above, does it occur to you that the supposed “signs” kind of drift and change and are often just something “new”, “strange”, and “irritating” that someone somewhere does not like? Do some sound like the ravings of paranoid conspiracy theorists?

When you read this list, does it occur to you that the supposed “signs” can be anything the person wants it to be? Maybe something he / she doesn’t like? Maybe something he / she is afraid of? Worried about? Might it be job threatening? Difficult to learn about, or deal with on a personal level?

Any of us could add any number of items to such a list. College boards, computer software, VCR’s, cell phones, freeway signs (at least they’re really signs), escalators, multi-purpose remotes, roller coasters, voice mail, e-mail, pop-up ads, horses, stick shift transmissions, high heel shoes, strip clubs, elevator music, tele marketers, door to door sales persons, under the skin pet ID chips (people will be next) , insurance agents, automated answering machines, robot phone directories, high gas prices, and traffic lights.

Are you beginning to “see” the “which fuzzy wuzzy wuz he?” syndrome?

Wait until you see just a partial list of some of the people who have been labeled “the Antichrist” by someone, sometime: various Popes, Protestants, Jews, Japanese, Muslims, American Indians, the Knights Templar, Masons, Gnostics, modern industrialists, politicians, musicians, singers, actors, King George III, Napoleon, F.D.R., J. F. Kennedy, Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin, George W. Bush, Howard Stern, Benito Mussolini, Martin Luther King, Saddam Hussein, Pol Pot, Mao tse Tung, the Taliban, George C. Wallace, Larry Flint, Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Regan, and George Washington.

Are you beginning to “see” a common theme? A common thread?

The most important of the supposed “signs” is the actual coming of “the Antichrist”. No one is supposed to be able to identify him / her. Which is even more curious, given the number of people who have already been called “the Antichrist”. There is obviously considerable confusion about this figure. He may be human. He may be a demon in human form. He may be “possessed”.

He will “look good”. He will be “charismatic leader”. He will be “a peacemaker.” He will lead “the world” to peace. Some will call him “a” or “the messiah”. The peace he creates will last about seven years. It is said that he may have only one eye, which puts anyone with an eye patch, a glass eye, and the one-eyed, flying purple people eater at a huge disadvantage.

Given our human propensity and love of war, this is a “gimme”. Any peacemaker is automatically behind the eight ball, cast under a cloud of suspicion, and must expect to labeled “the Antichrist”. This plays directly into the hands of the warmongers, the international arms dealers, the malevolence of greed inherent in humans. Hell does not exist. War does exist. War is as close to Hell as it is possible to get.

War is an excuse for violence. There has never been an end to war because for male humans, war is “fun”. War is a glorification of sexist ideals. War is a glorious time for destruction, pillage, murder and rape. Constant wars mean constant opportunities for pillaging, casual murder, and rape. War provides a wonderful adrenal “rush”. It is addictive. People seek to repeat that feeling, just like a coke, crack, or meth addict tries to repeat that “rush”. Chemically, the adrenal flood, coke, crack, and meth all affect the brain in the same way.

Like coke, crack, and meth heads, we endlessly spend huge sums to “do” war just one more time. Get another “hit”. Make another “score”. We want a regular and more intense addictive “rush”.

We humans have organized war to make more and better examples of it. To allow us to do war on a national scope. To allow us to rise above tribal war events hardly bigger than a soccer match. Bigger war is better war. Bigger war is more exciting. Bigger war is more thrilling. Bigger war means even more mass destruction, wanton pillage, mass murder and endless rape. Our “habit” continues to grow, and grow. The problem of “hitting bottom” with war, is that it just may be the apocalypse.

Article Source: http://www.religionarticlelibrary.com

(c) Copyright 2006: George Wallace recently published a book on religion which lashes out at nearly all of the comfortable ideas about God, the trappings of organized religion, and the priesthood. His pithy comments and suggestions for a return to a God-centered personal religion will interest everyone. This article may be freely reprinted so long as all copyright attributions, and the full content of this resource box are included. www.OhGodIsThatYou.com

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