Opposing Viewpoints

After over fifty years of being in an evangelical church, I have to confess that I have just been made aware that, just perhaps, there is no rapture predicted in the Bible. Our spiritual formation class at Trinity Cathedral on Sunday mornings is studying Barbara Rossing's book The Rapture Exposed. Her thesis is in reaction to the incredibly popular books of the Left Behind series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins. Basically, she traces the beginning of the rapture idea to a nineteenth century British evangelist named John Darby who popularized the notion after one of his parishioners had a vision of Jesus appearing not once but twice. The words commonly associated with the end times--rapture, tribulation, and apocalypse--are not found in the Bible.

Rossing very carefully presents a logical argument centering of several key points: Why would God destroy the world He pronounced "good" upon creating it? Would He violate His promise after the flood in Noah's day never to destroy the world again? Would He not also want the animals saved since He was so careful to preserve them for the Ark? The list goes on. The argument is indeed a compelling one, especially to one who has heard just one side her whole life.

Rossing's premise also is that God's message in the book of Revelation is designed to draw people back to God; it is a message of hope, not revenge upon the ones He has created. It is a vision perhaps of what might happen but not necessarily a prophecy of what will happen. Rossing believes in the second coming, but not in the idea of the rapture.

While I am only one half way through our reading, I have to say I prefer her argument over past ones. I have always had trouble seeing God as Anyone other than benevolent and loving, concerned with our own best interests and gently leading us to Him. I remember that my mother was ahead on this argument back in the 1970's. She and I used to argue about the idea that Jesus was the one and only way to God. She believed God would not condemn 90% of the world's population to hell especially if they had never heard that Jesus was the Messiah.

I do not have any answers to the question of whether the rapture is metaphorical only as a warning to humankind or is a literal prophecy of the end times. I find the study fascinating, however. Opposing viewpoints can indeed enlighten our perspectives and keep us seeking Truth.