will end? I have heard 2012... but that was from a friend, so I don't really know.
2007-02-09 04:03:00 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
"Q: As a Catholic teenager, I have started to read my Bible very seriously. My Protestant friends speak about the “Rapture” when Jesus Christ will return for the people who have lived their lives for him, have accepted him into their hearts and are “saved.”
My Confirmation teacher and my priest say that the Rapture is not a Catholic belief. The Gospel of Matthew (Chapter 24), the Book of Revelation and other New Testament books present Jesus as speaking about the end times and his second coming.
Why don't Catholics believe in the Rapture when it is so clearly stated in the Bible? Also, why don't Catholics use the word "saved" more often? The Bible uses it. And isn't salvation granted by "faith alone," as the Bible says in numerous places?
A: Jesus wants his followers to be prepared for his coming again in glory. That's why he tells so many stories about being prepared at all times (for example, parables of the 10 bridesmaids and the servants entrusted with their master's money—Matthew 25:1-30).
Over the centuries, some Christians have not heeded Jesus' advice to avoid trying to pinpoint the day or the hour (Mark 13:5-7). St. Paul had trouble with a few Christians in Thessalonika whose interest in Christ's second coming led them to become troublemakers in that Christian community (2 Thessalonians, Chapter Two). Wilfrid Harrington, O.P., comments on this in our November 1999 Scripture From Scratch article "Understanding the Apocalypse," which you can read at www.AmericanCatholic.org.
Every few years someone will convince a group of Christians that Jesus is coming soon, that they should quit their jobs, leave their families if necessary, sell their belongings and gather at some prearranged spot for a front seat on the Last Judgment. Thus far, such incidents have usually ended only in embarrassment that the predicted Second Coming did not occur at that time. In 1997, the Heaven's Gate cult left 39 people dead—most through group suicide as they prepared for the Lord's return.
Salvation is possible only because of the death and resurrection of Jesus. But it also involves a person's being open to God's grace and cooperating with it. Jesus specifically warns against those who say "Lord, Lord" but fail to do God's will (see Matthew 7:21). Non-Christians can share in this salvation.
People cannot "earn" salvation through good works. The Catholic Church accepts James 2:14-26 as the proper explanation of how "faith" and "good works" are related. St. Paul speaks of the importance of "faith working through love" (Galatians 5:6).
The expression "faith alone" is not found in the Bible; it comes from some theologians interpreting the Bible. Please allow the Catholic faith community to help you understand the Scriptures, which were, after all, given to a faith community.
In the Mass, after the Our Father, the celebrant prays, "In your mercy keep us free from sin and protect us from all anxiety as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ."
Your study of Scripture and your daily decisions should help you to "wait in joyful hope.""
2007-02-09 04:17:47 · answer #1 · answered by Giggly Giraffe 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
The only thing the Bible says about when the world will end is that no-one will know the time in advance. The Bible does mention certain conditions that will be present upon earth before the end occurs. And based on those very conditions, various groups of people have been saying the end is imminent in every generation from apostolic times to the present. So obviously the biblical statement is correct - no-one will know the time.
2007-02-09 12:21:27 · answer #2 · answered by PaulCyp 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The Bible says that we can not know that. No one knows really. If we knew , many people would be likely to do just whatever until the day before the last day. 2012 is the year that a Mayan calendar ends. It is also common teaching in our Church that the Book of Revelation (Apocalypse in some translations) is referring to things that already happened( during the reign of Nero) and not things yet to come or the end of the world as we know it. The rapture and end times teachings began in the mid 1800s in the Protestant sects. These teachings are not part of Catholic theology. Please ask your parish priest to verify what I told you. Most of these people attempting to help you here are not giving you Catholic answers, they are telling what they were taught in other churches.
2007-02-09 12:15:15 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
no there is no reference to an actual date in the book of revalations. But is does refer to the fact that the world was previously destroyed by water ( referring to the flood) and that now it will be destroyed by fire. Hope this helps!
2007-02-09 12:06:52 · answer #4 · answered by MOT-XJ 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
The day and the hour is known to none except the Father.
Christ also warns us against those who incite us to panic over these things.
At the end of the day, the world will end and so will I. Either we go together or I will go first. My judgement will be the same in either case.
Worry not about the end of time, be concerned only for the end of YOU.
2007-02-09 12:08:31 · answer #5 · answered by palaver 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
All Christians (Catholic and non-Catholic) agree that no one knows the day or the hour of the 2nd coming of the Lord.
To learn what the Catholic Church teaches on this subject, read the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It has many references into Sacred Scripture (the Bible).
Start with paragraph 1038. It's online here:
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art12.htm#1038
Email me if you want more sources.
2007-02-09 12:23:37 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
First off, no one knows when the world will end, but God. 2012 is just when the Mayan Calendar ends, it signfies "rebirth". Yet, There will be increasing signs though of Jesus' return, increased wars, earthquakes, plague, etc. As Christians, we need to pay attention as the signs begin to unfold and be ready to meet our savior!
2007-02-09 12:06:39 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
It is very clear in Revelation 6:9-11;
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9 ¶ And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
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The rapture will happen as soon as the last person that is to be martyred for their faith has been martyred.
Then there is seven years of Gods wrath on this earth, and then a thousand years of Jesus kingdom on earth.
Then the world as we know it will end.
There will be judgment of all who are still in the grave, and a new heaven and a new earth.
grace2u
2007-02-09 12:14:54 · answer #8 · answered by Theophilus 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The book of Revelations is almost entirely metaphorical (if not entirely).
Only God knows, and no mathematical equation, secret code, or literal interpretation will yield an answer or exact date.
2007-02-09 12:14:21 · answer #9 · answered by ndrw3987 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
when jay leno retires?
when lite beer start tasting better?
when north korean's kim junk whatever combs his hair
2007-02-09 12:08:28 · answer #10 · answered by willow 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋