Dante's Hell (via web)
I’m certainly not one to answer the question of who Harold Camping – twice failed doomsday prognosticator – is but I do have a historical link with him. Before I get to that, allow me to explain why I’m writing this post. Harold Camping is the founder and president – until further notice I would guess – of Family Radio (Family Stations, Inc.) based in my own backyard, Oakland, CA. Click (
Here) to get the whole low down on Wikipedia of the company. The 60 or so FM frequency radio broadcast stations purport to be Christian, Evangelical and Gospel oriented, playing hymns, Bible based programs, and the infamous Mr. Camping being the host of his own show the “Open Forum.” It was on his program that Mr. Camping, employing his numerology fascination, calculated (
Fuzzy Math – Not Endorsing the Content of the Site & via
Chris Rosebrough of Pirate Christian Radio) that the world will end (Biblical Judgment Day or the 2nd Coming of Christ doctrine for most Christians) today, May 21, 2011; rolling timezone of 6 PM of course!
It’s 5:38 PM PDT as of this writing, so I still have about half an hour to go! Well, the world – locations that have already past the 6 PM deadline – is still here, and for the faithful Christians – at least those who believe – “Rapture” (being caught up with Christ in the sky) has not occurred, or at least I don’t think it has. Can anyone confirm this (snicker, snicker)? As of this writing, Mr. Camping has less than half an hour to be “Raptured!” I wonder if he is waiting somewhere in seclusion? But, I digress… Let’s get back to the main reason why I’m writing this post. In 1998, when I was down and out, feeling sorry for myself due to panoply of problems (relationship, law, financial, etc.), and when I was contemplating suicide – actually about to take action – Mr. Camping reached out (figuratively) from the radio. He preached the good news of salvation through Christ (the 5 Solas – I’ll write about these more later but for ref. to Evangelicals). And it was because of his teaching that Christ wanted to offer me a “way out” of my miserable life that I was saved by Grace! I’m not a follower of Mr. Camping or his “End Time” predictions – 2nd time (1994 – 1st failed date & Equip.org 2002 profile). But, because in my nascent Christian walk, his program, for more than a year helped shape my understanding of Christ, I feel a sense of sadness. I will, in the next several days, in my posts try to unravel the mystery of Harold Camping and the peripheral chatter surrounding his controversy.
So I was originally going to post about the aftermath of the failed doomsday + rapture prediction for Evangelical Christians, and how there could exist a silver-lining – opportunities for evangelism – since the “Day of Judgment” is fresh on our minds. Added also to the explosive outcry over Harold Camping’s (see previous post) failed prophecy, not too long ago much discussion (uproar) was generated by Rob Bell’s controversial teaching on “Hell.” The subject of “Hell” and Judgment are tied at the hips. What better time than now to find opportunities to iron out – speak the truth – misgivings and misunderstandings on both subjects to the public! But, at last, Mr. Camping just would not go away! Here he is adjusting (3rd time) his “End of the World” date! More on all this and more to come…stay tune!