Danielle Parisi's Thesis Project
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Antichrist
The figure who acts as Satan’s lead agent on earth during the end times. Most Christian scenarios predict the Antichrist — a sort of evil twin of Jesus in many ways — will forge a one-world government through promises of peace. When Jesus returns, he will expose the Antichrist as an impostor, defeat him in the battle of Armageddon, and reign with the Christian martyrs for a thousand years on earth.
(A false Christ who is supposed to rise to power during the Tribulation.)
Apocalypse/Apocalyptic
Referring to the belief that the end of the world as we know it is approaching, usually through a sudden, catataclysmic transformation. Comes from the Greek word apokalypsis meaning “the lifting of a veil,” or a revelation. Also the name given to a specific genre of prophetic literature, of which the book of Revelation is best known. Western apocalyptic traditions tend to be dualistic, in that they view this end as the final outcome of an ongoing battle between good and evil forces, usually represented by God and Satan.
(Actually meaning “unveiling” or “revelation,” this word is frequently used to describe the end of the world as we know it. Though many apocalyptic scenarios depict a terrifying, destructive end, some are rather gentle, having to do with the enlightenment of the human race or the dawning of a New Age. This term is also used to refer to the Book of Revelation.)
Armageddon
The geographic location given in the book of Revelation (16:16) for the climactic battle between Christ and Antichrist, with Christ’s victory ushering in his thousand-year reign on earth. Named after the hill near the town of Megiddo in Palestine, which due to its strategic location overlooking major military and trade routes was the site of many ancient battles.
(The final battle between the forces of good and evil, mentioned in Revelation 16:16. The word is a corruption of Har Megiddo, the Mount of Megiddo, near Tel Aviv, a place where many battles were fought ages ago. Many wars have been deemed Armageddon by contemporaneous doomsayers, including the English Civil War, Crimean War, World War I and the Gulf War.)
Chiliasm
The belief that the righteous will enjoy their rewards here on earth. In Christianity, this has meant belief in the millennium, Christ’s thousand-year reign on earth. From the Greek word chilioi meaning “thousand.”
(The doctrine of a thousand-year Earthly reign of Christ.)
Book of Daniel
The book of Daniel, the most famous of the Jewish apocalypses, and the source of many of the ideas and symbols in Revelation. Likely written in the 2nd century B.C. as a response to the desecration of the Temple by Antiochus IV of Syria, although the author is cast back to the time of the Exile and “predicts” events back to the present. In Daniel, one sees many of the elements of the apocalyptic world view coming together for the first time in a single work. In it, God’s chosen rise up and overthrow their oppressors, thus inheriting “the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven.”
Dispensationalism
A theological system which breaks history down into discrete epochs, called dispensations, in each of which God has offered humans a different means of salvation. First developed in the mid-19th century by English theologian John Nelson Darby, dispensationalism found its most popular expression in the “Scofield Reference Bible” of the early 20th century. See premillennialism, below.
Earth changes
Sudden, large-scale, catastrophic changes in the geography, geological activity, rotation or climate of the Earth. Pole shifts and the rising of Atlantis from the sea are two common Earth change scenarios. Such ideas have been popularized by people like Edgar Cayce, Gordon-Michael Scallion, Lori Adaile Toye and Richard Noone.
Eschatology
The study of “last things,” or the end of human history. Although specific interpretations vary widely, most Christian eschatologies center on the belief that the just will be rewarded when God triumphs over Satan in the last days.
(The theological study of the end of things, especially the end of the world.)
Feast of Trumpets
Another name for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, so called because trumpets were traditionally sounded on this day. This is a favorite date for doomsayers, because of the Biblical reference to the “last trumpet” that is to signal the Rapture (1 Corinthians 15:52).
Gog and Magog
A nation and its leader that are deceived by Satan into invading Israel during the End Times (Ezekiel 38:2, Revelation 20:8). Gog is generally considered the leader of the nation Magog, but this is not always the case. For many centuries Gog and Magog were considered to be the Huns, Goths or Turks, but in modern-day fundamentalist pop culture they usually represent Russia.
Great Week
The doctrine that the seven days of Creation correspond to seven 1000-year periods of human history, and that Christ’s thousand-year reign is to take place during the millennial Sabbath — the seventh millennium since the Creation. Also known as the millennial week, 6-day or 6000-year theory.
Kali Yuga
The “age of iron”; the dark age of materialism and ignorance, according to Hindu mythology. We are currently living in the Kali Yuga, which, depending on the source, has a duration of anywhere between 1200 and 432,000 years. At the end of the Kali Yuga, the present world will be destroyed and cleansed, and a new era of peace and enlightenment will dawn.
Messianism
The belief that a chosen individual holds the key to a higher truth which will lead to salvation for his followers. Extreme forms of apocalyptic belief have tended to manifest themselves through messianic figures, from Montanus in the 2nd century to David Koresh in 1993. Messiahs tend to be highly charismatic individuals prone to megalomania and violence.
Millennium/Millennial
Referring to a period of 1000 years, such as the end of the second Christian millennium in the year 2000. In religious terms, anything referring to the expected thousand-year reign of Christ on earth after the events of the last days have brought an end to this world. Such a radical transformation could come at any time, although expectations tend to increase at round markers such as the year 2000. Related to chiliasm, above.
(1. Any period of a thousand years. 2. An epoch of a thousand years in the modern Western calendar. The third millennium will begin on January 1, 2001. 3. The supposed thousand year reign of Christ after his Second Coming.)
Millenarian
Referring to more extreme millennial expectations, in which belief in an imminent apocalyptic transformation tends to spur the faithful into action, often of a violent nature.
New World Order
A phrase first used by Mikhail Gorbachev on December 7, 1988 in an address to the United Nations. It originally meant a world no longer dominated by two great superpowers, in which world peace would be enforced through international efforts, a very positive idea indeed. The phrase was relatively unknown in popular culture until George Bush used it during a speech to Congress on September 11, 1990. Almost immediately, fundamentalists and conspiracy buffs latched onto the phrase, twisting its meaning to represent an evil worldwide conspiracy to form a single body that will govern the world through deception, an iron fist and possible Satanic influence. The phrase quickly replaced the “One-World Government”, “New Order” and “International Jewish Banking Conspiracy” favored by conspiracy paranoiacs. Writings prior to 1990 that refer to a “New World Order” are rare indeed. The Latin phrase Novus Ordo Seclorum as seen on the dollar bill actually means “a new order of the ages,” not “New World Order” as some paranoiacs would have people think.
Parousia
The technical term for the Second Coming of Christ.
Pyramidology
A pseudoscience that teaches that the Great Pyramid of Giza is a divine revelation. Many pyramidologists believe that the future can be foretold by measuring the Great Pyramid’s inner passages.
Postmillennialism
The belief that Christ will return only after humans have established a millennial kingdom on earth through their own efforts. In extreme forms, postmillennial beliefs have given rise to violent theocracies, such as that of Thomas Muntzer in 16th century Germany. But a more typical example is the milder postmillennialism of most New England Puritans, who believed they were building just such a righteous society, a “city on a hill.” This type of apocalyptic expectation has gone hand-in-hand with social reform movements, and has contributed to the notion of divinely ordained progress which has played an important role in American history.
Premillennialism
The belief that God’s millennial kingdom will not come until Christ returns to save a sinful humanity and defeat the forces of Satan. Specific interpretations vary as to the exact timing of the Second Coming — at the beginning, middle, or end of the Tribulation period. But in general, premillennialists tend to be highly pessimistic about the present state of the world, yet anxiously await a perfect world in the near future. By placing the fate of mankind squarely in God’s hands, premillennialism has tended to discourage social action, concentrating instead on conversion and preparation for final judgment.
Rapture
The belief that true believers in Christ will be taken bodily into heaven just prior to or during the Tribulation period, and thus be spared the horrible fate awaiting those left behind on earth. The rapture is an integral part of the premillennial dispensationalist systems which have dominated Christian prophecy belief in the second half of the 20th century, as it proposes faith in Christ as the only route to salvation.
(The sudden transporation of all true Christians to heaven, which is supposed to take place around the time of the Second Coming of Christ.)
Revelation
The book of Revelation, also known as “The Revelation to John” and “St. John’s Apocalypse,” is the primary source of inspiration for Christian prophecy believers. The last book and only apocalypse in the New Testament, it was likely written in the last decade of the first century, during a period of great turmoil after the destruction of the second Jewish Temple by the Romans in 70 A.D. Biblical scholars are skeptical of the historical claim that the Apostle John was its author.
Millions of Christians have taken the events so vividly described in Revelation as a blueprint for what will happen in the last days as God brings an end to this world. But beyond that, many ideas and symbols from Revelation have found a place in the wider culture, including: the Mark of the Beast, represented by the number “666;” the seven seals; the four horsemen of the Apocalypse; the Whore of Babylon; and the battle of Armageddon.
Second Coming
The return of Jesus to Earth, a doctrine believed by many Christians.
Signs of the times
Phenomena occurring that supposedly signal that the end is near. These include self-proclaimed Messiahs, wars and rumors of war, nation rising against nation, famines andearthquakes (Matthew 24). The problem, naturally, is that such things have been happening constantly throughout history, even before the time of Christ. And even Jesus was wrong about the Temple being destroyed such that “there will not be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down.” (Matthew 24:2) The Western Wall of the Temple is still intact to this day.
TEOTWAWKI
Commonly used shorthand for “the end of the world as we know it.”
Tribulation
A period of upheaval, usually seven years in length, during which Satan will exert control over the earth through the antichrist. All but a small remnant of Christian faithful — perhaps numbering 144,000 — will die as a result of wars, plagues, and famine. The Tribulation will end with Christ’s defeat of the antichrist at Armageddon, ushering God’s millennial kingdom on earth.
(A period, generally thought to be seven years, in which the Antichrist comes to power, and the world is destroyed by war, disease, rampant crime, earthquakes, and other nastiness. The Tribulation is supposed to take place immediately before Christ’s Millennium.)
666
The number of the Beast, as mentioned in Revelation 13:18. The Beast is thought to represent the Antichrist. It is generally believed among Biblical scholars that this number represents Nero.