week 14
765 words by gonayiga
To answer the question of why Christians believe that the world will end in their lifetimes, you would have to know the story behind why and what would lead them to come up with such things. Armageddon is the Greek pronunciation of the Hebrew words har megiddo, a location in the Jezreel Valley of northern Israel. According to Revelation 16, between good and evil will be fought there. Revelation also says that God unleashes His wrath in the form of seven angels who pour out their bowls upon the earth. Bowl one inflicts sores upon those who bear the mark of the beast and worship its image. Bowl two is poured into the sea turning it to blood and killing all the sea creatures. Bowl three turns all the world’s rivers into blood. Bowl four is emptied on the sun creating intense heat that scorches people. Bowl five is poured upon the beast (Rome), and turns it dark. Bowl six is dropped into the Euphrates River, which causes it to dry up. This allows kings from the east and their armies to cross this natural barrier. A demonic spirit comes from the dragon, the beast from the sea, and the false prophet the beast from earth. Together they create a large army for the battle at Armageddon. Bowl seven is poured into the air, causing lighting, earthquakes, and resulting in the total destruction of Rome. Next God begins to defeat satan in two stages. The first time he is defeated there will be peace on earth for 1,000 years. The second time he is defeated for good and thrown into the lake of fire for eternity. Christians througout history tend to take things that they read in the Bible too literally. And, at the same time whatever major events that occur, they believe that it coincides with the order of events that Book Revelations predicts. Some Christians of today believe that the world is going to end because of the recent events that have taken place. They include the big Tsunami that killed thousands of people and caused all kinds of destruction, the attack on the world trade centers, the war on Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, and George W Bush being accused of being the Anti-Christ. While there is a coincidence that these horrible events could somehow indicate that the end is near, it’s still highly unlikely as proven throughout history. The book of Revelations describes a series of events that will supposedly occur which will lead to the final battle between good and evil. People can try to translate the scriptures and try to convert what they translate into facts but it will always be “their” translation which has a chance to wrong because of human error which is proven throughout history that things written in the Bible can be exagerrated or questionable because it does not agree with scientific facts.
The grade that I feel I deserve for my project is a B. The criteria for a B grade is, “Project had a large scope and lasting duration. Writing showed that the student did all of the reading and understood the lectures and discussion topics. Writing showed the student’s ability to think critically and to clearly communicate. Quality writing was free from grammatical errors. Student blogged more than the required 1000 words every week.” I feel extremely confident that the implementation of my project made the world a better place. I have volunteered my time throughout the week to tutor and mentor the students of St. Augustine High School. I can honestly say that the whole experience has broadened my horizons and made me become more of a mature adult. I now have people who look up to me and look to me for advice and guidance in life. I also have learned from the students at the same time. I have developed a passion for helping those in need and becoming a big brother to those who need someone to talk to. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. I became so involved in the program that I thought of it as more than just for a project in theology class, but something that I want to continue participating in. I also feel that I have answered all the questions from the readings to the best of my ability and I feel that I have shown a strong understanding of what was being taught. Even though this class has caused me a lot of stress, especially being behind during finals, I would have taken this class again during registration. Thank you Dr. Homan.