When the end of the world comes. Apocalypse Prophecy Begins to Come True

Humanity has already once experienced a terrible catastrophe that destroyed almost the entire population of the Earth. Scattered tales and legends about how a civilization that reached a fairly high stage of development, overnight as a result of a monstrous cataclysm, have come down to us. The most famous and widespread myth among various peoples is the myth of the Flood. In some legends, the Flood is a huge wave that swept over the highest mountains, in others it is gradually water that flooded a vast territory. In all legends, one pious family survives, which the gods warned in advance. For all other people, the Flood was the end of the world.

Eschatology paints a monstrous picture of the beginning of the end: giant tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and for those who survive - long winter, famine and epidemics. Believers of any denomination perceive the apocalypse as an inevitable but necessary procedure before moving on to better world. There are people who are waiting for Armageddon with interest as the biggest spectacle and plan to take their seats in the front row, while alarmists look with horror at the next predicted date.

Over the past 2000 years, there have been a huge number of supposed ends of the world, and since the end of the 19th century they have fallen on the heads of people in a continuous stream: 1874, 1900, 1914, 1918, 1925, etc., and in In 1999, 13 pieces were expected to end the world. The 21st century does not lag behind the previous century in terms of the number of apocalypses. There are about 30 Armageddons in the first decade.

The next one is expected to take place in December 2012. This is the most publicized end of the world for eschatology. On the day of the winter solstice (12/21/2012), the next cycle of the Mayan calendar ends, which began in 3114 BC. e. and lasted 5125 years. According to the ideas of the ancient Maya, on this day the end of the "Fifth Sun" will come. It will be marked by global cataclysms that will wipe out all mankind from the face of the Earth.

In 2018, the Apocalypse should come due to nuclear war(Nostradamus). 2036 - a collision with the Earth of Apophis, an asteroid with a diameter of about 300 meters. 2060 - the calculation of Isaac Newton according to the book of the prophet Daniel. 2892 - the prediction of the monk Abel.

The rest of the world do not have more or less exact dates. In the next 50 years, a supervolcano is expected to awaken. As a result of the eruption, smoke and ash will hide the Earth from the sun's rays for several years, which will lead to the death of the entire flora and fauna.

During the same period, a sharp change in magnetic, and, possibly, geographic poles may occur, as a result of which the planet will lose its magnetic field for some time. Inversion is dangerous because during the absence of the cosmic field it can reach the surface of the Earth and kill all life on the planet.

Another prediction is related to global change: warming or cooling. In case of warming, glaciers and polar caps can completely melt, and most of the land will be flooded. In the event of a cold snap, a new ice age will come, many species will disappear, and humanity, if it survives in such conditions, will be thrown back in development. stone Age.

After 5 billion years, the Sun will turn into a red giant, increase in size several times and swallow the first 3-4 planets. Thus, according to scientists, the Apocalypse is inevitable, one can only hope that it will happen in a very distant future.

As a result of a collision with asteroid TC4. But we still survived this date, and the asteroid flew by, albeit at a dangerous distance from the Earth, which was one third of the distance to the Moon.

But what does the future hold for us? Will there be an end of the world?

Will there be any other dangerous situations that could lead to global catastrophes and the further end of the world?

Let's see what else scientists predicted for us and clairvoyants, psychics and saints predicted.

November 13, 2026, according to the calculations of the famous mathematician Heinz, von Foerster, will be the day when the end of the world comes. It is on this day that the population of the planet will reach a level at which it will not be able to feed itself.

The next disappointing forecast for the Earth is April 2029. At this time, the approach of the huge 400-meter asteroid Apophis is expected.

The asteroid will approach the Earth at a close distance, as a result of which the asteroid may change its trajectory and crash into the Earth in 2036.

Although after the January passage of the asteroid past the Earth in 2013, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory specialists stated that the possibility of a collision with the Earth in 2029 is excluded, and in 2036 it is extremely unlikely.

In 2035, the end of the world will occur according to one of the predictions of Nostradamus. It will be the outcome of a long war of 27 years, which, in theory, should already be going on. What kind of war Nostradamus had in mind is not clear.

Isaac Newton, who studied the text of the book of the Prophet Daniel, was sure that the end of the world would come in 2060. What it should be is also not clear.

Optimists believe that neither they nor their children and grandchildren will catch the end of the world. Just for them - a few dates of the end of the world quite distant from today.

In February 2622 year there will be another end of the world “according to Nostradamus”. A researcher from Syktyvkar A.V. Fotiyev “transferred” the end of the world predicted by Nostradamus to this date.

2666 seems dangerous, since it contains the number of the devil (something similar was apparently expected in 1666).

There are also opinions of some figures that in the year 3000 a meteor shower of Tauris will pass through the solar system. What might happen as a result can only be guessed at.

A 3797 is the last date in the prophecies of Nostradamus, so if none of the ends of the world predicted by him until this moment happens, then this year there will certainly be an Apocalypse.

However, the forecast of the end of the world, predicted by many scientific realists, looks the most truthful.

However, we ourselves are just witnessing why the end of the world will come - painful and long, it has already begun.

The reason for this is not asteroids or floods, but reckless human activity.

Global warming will lead to severe water shortages, famine, droughts, hurricanes, and incurable diseases. Well, the third can complete the case World War preconditions for which there are already many.

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Judgment Day - Armageddon - End of the World

New Noah
A note about the flood, which will become a universal tragedy, was posted on the net on many sites a few years ago. Type in the search engine "Aida Ter-Karapetyan" and you can read the full text. I retell briefly. The famous Armenian clairvoyant Aida Ter-Karapetyan assures that civilization will soon perish from a global flood. This will happen, according to her, in 2015. Where will tens and even hundreds of millions of people from all over the Earth run in the hope of salvation? To Russia! It will become a new ark for the lost humanity. But Russia by that time (2015), the soothsayer claims, will become a completely different country. It will be a free, prosperous, new state, into which all the former Soviet republics will again join.

Summary

Today is June 6, 2017. The flood did not happen, instead of prosperity in Russia - a crisis, none of allied states etc., etc. did not return to its composition.

Conclusion: carefully her you have to be with, and do them at least a hundred years ahead, so that there was no one to check.

Expert commentary

The real clairvoyant is my mother. If at 22.00 dad is not at home, she looks at her watch and declares that in half an hour there will be a global flood. Then he goes to the kitchen, fills a pot with water and puts it on the wardrobe near the front door. At 10.30 p.m., dad appears in the "state of the coat", without fail on four limbs. He says as usual: “You can’t calmly walk down the street, all hands surround you,” and immediately gets five liters of water on his bald head. The flood, though not universal, but mother never made a mistake. We must ask her to make predictions about humanity.

VIDEO: 10 must-haves for a zombie apocalypse

Some people do not think about when the world will end, while others, on the contrary, are waiting for a new predicted date. Often this is due to different attitudes to the issues under consideration, greater or lesser awareness, religious preferences, but any point of view has the right to exist, and which one to adhere to, the person decides for himself.

What is the end of the world?

There is no exact definition of this concept. In a sense, the end of the world is the end of life on Earth, various civilizations and their achievements. Sometimes this phrase is understood as a threat to the life of all living beings on the planet. The phraseological unit under consideration can denote a fictional and real picture of future events. Many researchers and ordinary citizens interpret this concept in different ways. can occur not only as a result of predictions or fictitious ideas, but also really possible events:

• political conflicts;
• nuclear wars;
• environmental disasters;
• natural disasters;
• overpopulation of the planet, hunger;
• the spread of epidemics and

end of the world bible

In Christianity, such events are described by John the Theologian, a disciple of Christ. This is the book of the Apocalypse of John, the title of the last part of the New Testament. The end of the world in the Bible is not mentioned by the exact date, but by the events that will precede it. The main one is the arrival of the Antichrist, who will be destroyed, as well as his supporters, and true believers will live in the Kingdom of Heaven, where evil will be eradicated. It is important to remember that sooner or later everyone will appear before the Judgment of God, and, perhaps, the end of the world will consist in the death of a person and condemnation for their sins.

What does the end of the world look like?

The question can be answered only when the end of the world comes. There is no single description of the picture described above, there are some theories and assumptions. Most of them depict sad events - deserted, destroyed cities. Such an effect may be nuclear explosion, volcanic eruption or any other possible and real reason for the apocalypse.

The process itself, as well as its consequences, has a considerable number of descriptions. It can be:

• bright flashes;
• explosions;
• the onset of darkness.

Is the end of the world a myth or reality?

Any person decides for himself whether it is worth waiting for the apocalypse or not. It will depend on his prejudices, literacy, religious preferences. The main thing is not to impose your opinion on someone else about when the end of the world will be. There are many points of view on this matter, and in order to answer the question under consideration, one should recall the features and put forward theories of the apocalypse:

1. Currently, the problems of the ecological state of the planet and climate change are relevant. Already now we see the result of modern activity. Its aggravation can have unpleasant consequences.
2. Believers will say that the apocalypse in the Bible is not a myth, only the exact date is unknown.
3. For the modern developed world, the issue of deadly diseases remains unresolved. The aggravation of this situation can lead to the death of mankind.
4. In the era of the introduction of the latest developments in the military industry, any international conflict can adversely affect the security of the entire planet. Unable to solve problems peacefully, a person takes up arms, and if it is nuclear, then the apocalypse is not ruled out.
5. If we talk about global causes, then solar system lives according to its own laws, and any violation of them will affect our planet in different ways. A person here is deprived of the right to choose.
6. Another reason is the desire to modern technologies and creation of artificial intelligence. A computer can be made so smart that it will find a way to control people.

When will the world end?

When answering the question - when is the end of the world exact time and the date is not always known. Again, this question depends on the cause of the given event. According to some theories, the corresponding dates have already passed, and according to others - even in the future. Therefore, when thinking about the day of the apocalypse, it may be necessary to choose the basic material on the basis of which to build guesses and the timing of the end of the world.

End of the world - predictions

The problem of the apocalypse has been relevant for many centuries. During this time, a large number of theories have been put forward that answer the question - when will the end of the world happen. Which one to choose, the person decides for himself. It is believed that the apocalypse will affect most of the planet Earth.

End of the world - Vanga's predictions

The Bulgarian clairvoyant Vanga did not give a definite answer to the question of whether the world would end, but among her prophecies there are those that may come true.

1. She spoke about a world conflict, a third world war that could start after hostilities in small countries.
2. Another prophecy was an assassination attempt on high-ranking officials of several states.
3. Actual prediction - about the death of animals due to exposure radioactive substances. The issue of nuclear weapons, along with the tense world situation, can draw public attention to the issue of the end of the world.

End of the world - Nostradamus

The prophecies of the French alchemist and predictor Nostradamus are considered to be one of the theories of when the end of the world will begin. The basis of his prediction is military-political clashes in modern times - a world war can begin with several local conflicts. In our time, the situation in the world is very tense, and no one knows what it can lead to. Nostradamus spoke of several antichrist figures in world history:

1. A native of Atilla, who will be the founder of modern Babylonia.
2. An Antichrist who can provoke a war in the European part of the world.
3. The one who will voice information about the unification of the northern and eastern states before the end of the world.
4. Another prediction that deserves attention is “The Great of Rome will perish,” and after seven days, all living things will perish.

Doomsday Maya

Many people talk about the existence of the Mayan calendar - it includes three components:

1. Solar calendar - 365 days.
2. Religious - 260 days.
3. Calendar of weeks - 13 days.

A common date 12/21/2012 - the day of the apocalypse according to the Mayan calendar, was supposed to be the day of the end of the world. Since the appearance of life on Earth, four cycles have already passed, it follows that four races have already changed. Each of them died due to natural factors:

• earthquakes
• hurricane
• eruption;
• flood.

The fifth cycle was supposed to end on December 16, 2016 for such phenomena as the parade of the planets. Interested people have made conclusions about these days in the calendar of the apocalypse. Who knows, maybe they will starting points for new assumptions. Answering the question of when the end of the world will come, the exact time may be indicated, and we will look forward to fresh predictions and look.

End of the world - predictions of the saints

In religious ideas, predictions about the end of the world also take place. Such prophecies are united by a single thought - you need to live with a clear conscience before God. Find the strength in time, repent and confess the impurity of your actions and thoughts, realize that when the end of the world comes, you will have to answer for your sins before the judgment of God. Information on some prophecies has been preserved:

• according to the prediction of the Matrona of Moscow, 2017 will be a period when people can die without war, this will happen at night, and in the morning all living things will disappear underground;
• the Monk Seraphim of Sarov in the 30s of the 19th century predicted the fall of tsarist power and the fate of the sovereign, which played a huge role in the fate of Russia - it was a kind of end of the world and the flowering of a new government;
• in the book of John the Theologian, the death of a person and retribution for sins committed is comparable to the end of the world.

How to survive the end of the world?

In the understanding of most people, the apocalypse is the death of all life on the planet. Therefore, the question of how to survive it is sometimes called a fantasy problem. If mankind could learn to predict such events with a certain accuracy, then everyone would know how to prepare. In this situation, you can morally set yourself up for some probability of the end of the world, whether it be a nuclear apocalypse or a flood, because if such an outcome is inevitable, then humanity is unlikely to be able to prevent it.

Announcements about the date of the end of the world do not correspond not only Orthodox tradition they are not biblical. Christ said that “about that day, or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13, 32).

“Just as every man faces death, so the whole visible world faces a kind of death or destruction. This is clearly shown in Holy Scripture; but the human race knew this truth without even knowing the Scriptures. Both philosophers and the common people believed in the non-eternity of the world and even knew the ways how the end of the world would come about, speaking of the destruction of the earth by fire. Ovid in his poems speaks thus: mare ardibit (the sea will burn). Seneca also speaks of the destruction by fire of everything that exists: omnia uno igne ardebunt (everything will be burned by fire).

« end of the world, the end of this world, the Apocalypse or the doomsday - as a qualitative change in the entire existing cosmic order, has occupied the minds of people for many centuries.

This question worries both people who truly believe in Christ and those who have not yet come to conscious faith. The first - because they know for sure that the Word of God cannot fail to come true, that the Second Coming of Christ and the Last Judgment are inevitable; secondly, the subconscious fear of death, the inner feeling of the immortality of the soul, the possibility of the existence of an afterlife push to search for an answer to questions that have not yet been resolved for oneself. But, one way or another, most people yearn to know - when will the doomsday come? When will the Lord come to judge this world, steeped in sin?

For almost two thousand years since the coming of Christ, people have repeatedly expected the end of the world, appointed various dates, indicated certain signs of the closeness of this terrible day. The simple arithmetical end of every age and the beginning of a new one was marked by the strengthening of such expectations.

“Despite the fact that the time of the end of the world is not indicated in the word of God, people always make attempts to accurately determine this great moment, “followed by the general resurrection of the dead and the Last Judgment of Christ. Social disasters like famine, war, epidemic diseases - cholera, plague, pestilence, have always contributed to the spread among the masses of the belief that our world is living out its last days.But hardly ever was there such a strong and universal expectation of the end of the world in the West, as at the end of the first millennium of our Christian era, the basis for which was the following words of the Apocalypse: "After a thousand years the devil will come out of his prison and seduce the nations that are in the four countries of the earth. The book of life will be opened; the sea will vomit up its dead; each one will be judged according to his deeds by Him who sits on the great shining Throne. And it will be new heaven and new earth.

Bernard of Thuringia (about 960) even appointed the day of the end of the world: the universe, in his opinion, should collapse when the Annunciation coincides with Good Friday. This coincidence happened in 992 - and nothing extraordinary followed from it.

“But the first year of the beginning of the second millennium from the Nativity of Christ seemed special in this series: in the year 1000, fear, apathy, despondency swept almost the entire population of Europe, Asia, Africa, where there were states that called themselves Christian, where peoples who professed religion lived New Testament. Unprecedented panic seized Europe. And no wonder. For a thousand years, many Christians have so far removed themselves from the standard of Christian life, become so worldly, indulged in carnal pleasure and other sensual pleasures, that the prospect of an immediate Last Judgment, and hence punishment for committed sins, horrified millions of believers. The idea of ​​retribution so captured the minds that a great panic began: all over the continent they stopped building huts and palaces, the rich, mired in gold and vices, donated huge sums to temples, distributed their property, trying to propitiate God and avoid righteous retribution. The poor people offered unceasing prayers to the Creator, many malicious sinners repented.”

During the 10th century, royal charters began with the following words: “Since the end of the world is approaching ...” “A different mood prevailed at the end of the 10th century in Russia. Having accepted holy baptism, the Slavic peoples looked to the future with hope, built temples, monasteries, incessantly praised God for his great mercies. It was at this time that Russia began to form into a single state. Enters the international political arena no longer as a territory consisting of various, often warring among themselves, not united in any way, specific principalities, but as a monolith Slavic peoples united by a single faith, language, culture.

“In 1186, astrologers frightened Europe by announcing that in the month of September great storms would break out, earthquakes would occur, mortality would appear between people, indignation and strife, revolutions in all states, the destruction and death of all living things. But nothing justified their predictions.

A few years later, in 1198, rumors spread about the end of the world. But this time the world was to be destroyed without the mediation of celestial manifestations; predicted that the Antichrist would be born in Babylon, and through him the human race would perish.”

“But the doomsday didn’t come. And Europe, having recovered from the religious upheaval and not accepting the deserved punishment of the Lord, with even greater fury set off into debauchery, money-grubbing, theft, robbery, robbery ... This went on for more than five centuries. Even the plague of 1332, which killed about half of the inhabitants of the cultural cradle of the West, did not enlighten the sinners.”

“At the end of the 13th century, the alchemist Arnaud de Villeneuve announced that the Antichrist would be born in 1335.

Vincent Ferve, the famous Spanish preacher, assures that the world will last as many years as there are verses in the psalter, that is, about 2537 years.

“At the beginning of the 16th century, the mathematician and astrologer Johann Stofler, having carried out his calculations, told the scientific world that supposedly in 1524 he should there will be a global flood. Some of the scientists found indirect confirmation of Stofler's data in their scientific research, and this news spread like thunder throughout the earth.

In 1524-1525. there was a real commotion. The panic began! The most practical alarmists built "arks" and kept them in their yard, while being hundreds of miles away from any kind of water. Many writers of that time report that the inhabitants of the coastal provinces of Germany decided to sell their lands at the lowest price, and that people who had money and did not really trust predictions bought these lands. Each stocked a boat in the manner of an ark. A doctor from Toulouse, named Orion, ordered for himself, his family and his friends an ark, which was distinguished by its large size. Similar precautions were taken in most of Italy. The richest people stopped making wealth and scattered it. Debtors "forgave" their debts to creditors, but they did not ask them. Many peasants ceased by the sweat of their brow to get their daily bread and in great sorrow awaited the hour of death and the Last Judgment. Many food warehouses were created in the highlands. But the hungry from the plains rushed there and plundered these warehouses. In contrast to the "waiting" of the year 1000, the "waiting" of 1524-1525. accompanied by unheard-of drunkenness and depravity. Human life itself has ceased to be worth even a broken penny. Europe refused to believe in the Savior!

Half of the population of Europe hid in the mountains until February, experiencing cold and hunger, but “brightening up” the “last days” with a plentiful libation of alcohol. Many fell dead, and no one betrayed them to the ground, because some no longer believed in the sanctity of this Christian tradition, while others did not see or hear anything, deafened by wine vapors. People openly slept with other people's wives and husbands, and this was no longer considered a sin at all. Group debauchery and violence swept European countries.

February, however, turned out to be extremely dry and sunny - as if on purpose proving that no one can anticipate a world event that is subject only to God ... "

Never, in any month, has there been such a drought, and never have astrologers felt such embarrassment. “Somehow, in vice and unbelief, waiting for the first day of March, the people rushed from the mountains back to the valleys and cities and found there complete ruin, committed by their own hands ...

Closer to July, it became clear that the “flood”, which was predicted on the 15th, would occur in Prussia alone, and even then not everywhere. There was an unexpected sobering up. Breathing freely, even the population of Prussia decided that there would be no trouble, and everyone finally got down to business ...

Only the Elector of Brandenburg, accompanied by courtiers, spent the whole day of July 15 on a hill in view of all the people subject to him, and even then because, being carried away by astronomy, he believed his own calculation of the course of heavenly bodies there. In disgrace, to the whistling and hooting, after sunset, he returned to the palace ... "However, these worthy people did not lose heart, and they did not stop believing. The same Shtofler, together with the famous Regiomontanus, again predicted that in 1588 there would be an end to the world, or at least some important events would follow that should shake the earth.

“Stofleur’s death turned out to be very symbolic: a huge shelf of books collapsed on him, most of which were his own creations ...

But this time the “quiet life” did not last long, burdened by the mortification of the spirit, for, having begun once, the sinners could no longer stop. The well-known learned pastor Michael Stiefel (14861567), who was the author of many valuable works on algebra” (introduced the signs + and -, the sign for the root, etc.) at the same time became very interested in numerical mysticism. He figured out that his contemporary Pope Leo X is the beast predicted in the Apocalypse. This thought dawned on the former Augustinian monk as he sat in the bath. He jumped out of it, ran naked down the street, proclaiming: “Woe to you, dad, woe to you!” Luther was delighted with this "discovery".

Stiefel, on the basis of his Kabbalistic research, announced that on October 13, 1533 there would be a flood and the end of the world. In France and Italy, the rich, who believed him, built arks, the peasants sold their property, preparing for the coming of the Antichrist. But when nothing special happened on the appointed day, Stiefel moved the date of the end of the world to 1588 ... People again believed Stiefel, many believed, because heresy is dressed in eloquent words and is seductive to many who are deprived of true hearing. The sale of property for pennies, drunkenness and depravity, the expectation of the punishment of the Lord resumed again ... "

“A new prediction - and a new disappointment! And the year 1588 was not marked by any extraordinary incident. In 1572, however, there was a very strange phenomenon that could justify all fears: an unknown star suddenly lit up in the constellation Cassiopeia, this star was distinguished by its dazzling light and was visible even during the day. Astrologers declared that it was the star of the Magi, which appeared a second time to announce the last coming of Christ. The prediction of the end of the universe in 1840 has long been the subject of universal expectations and fears. The year 1840 was marked by a fatal one. The most formidable and terrible predictions rained down from all sides. The last denouement of the human drama was scheduled for the sixth of January. Quite a few were preparing for the fateful event, finished with all their affairs and with firmness expected final destruction.

“More than once or twice, many thousands of people were seized with indescribable panic in anticipation of floods and earthquakes. While the real death, taking away many, many lives, always came unexpectedly. Wars and epidemics, which no one thought to connect with the end of the world because of their tragic familiarity, claimed tens and hundreds of thousands of lives. The pride and greed of European man was regularly punished: the plague was brought to Europe by rats from the ships of merchants from Genoa, who arrived from Cafa, syphilis was brought from the New World by immoderate conquistadors and spread everywhere by harlots who wandered around Europe, who had neither a corner nor a homeland. The capital of the pirates, PortRoyal, where they did not know not only God's, but also human laws, the Lord overnight plunged into the depths of the sea, washing away shame from the face of the earth.

In the XVIII century, London was waiting for the greatest earthquake. More than once, ancient Moscow believed many astrological predictions ... "

“The Parisian priest Pierre Louis, who lived in 1840, from a peculiar interpretation of the Apocalypse, came to the conclusion that the end of the world would follow in 1900.

As for our fatherland, the idea of ​​the imminent end of the world was especially widespread among Russians in the 15th century. So, we meet her in the annals of Metropolitan Cyprian, Metropolitan Photius and other teachers. In the Sophia Chronicle, under the year 1459, it is written: “Here is fear, here sorrow is great: I skin in the crucifixion of Christ, this circle was 23, the moon 13, this summer appeared to the ends, in which we tea the universal coming of Christ. Oh Lord! Multiplying our iniquity on the earth, have mercy, Lord! Pascha lii was not brought further than 7000 (1492), after this year they put a circle and attributed: “Woe to those who have reached the end of time!”

“Heretical teachings attribute to numbers with several zeros a magical power that is completely not inherent in them, which supposedly shakes the universe to please Satan. At the same time, heresiarchs deliberately instill fear and lack of will among their followers, spread false prophecies about earthquakes and floods, plagues and famines, all-devouring heavenly fire...

In our days, false soothsayers, warlocks, seducing the erring with astrology, foment fear and uncertainty, announcing unheard-of disasters.

“As always at the end of the century, the righteous words of the Orthodox saints have become forgotten, but the former frightening prophecies rise up from the bowels of oblivion. We found that 1998 is the triple number of the beast (666 x 3), and the doomsday should certainly be expected this year. Others believe that the number of the beast (on the contrary) is expressed in the next, 1999 ... And there are no number of forecasts of catastrophes and a global cataclysm ... Michel Nostradamus is not forgotten: Like the great king of Angolmois, Year 1999, the seventh month, the Great King of Horror will descend from the sky, At that time Mars will rule for good, - at a time, as everyone knows; that the prophecies of Nostradamus are written in such a vague demonic language that they can be interpreted (if anyone has a desire to do so) to everyone in their own way. And none of the commentators have read his texts in their original form, but use translations interpreted by the translators themselves in accordance with events that have already happened in the world by the will of God. In addition, history has convincingly shown that most of the so-called "prophecies" of the magician Nostradamus simply did not come true.

Therefore, these prophets were not taught to prophesy by God, but by Satan. In the meantime, the true revelation is deliberately forgotten by these "wise men", for it is said in it that false prophets, servants of Satan, will appear and take on the form of an angel, and the Antichrist will appear in the world, and only after that will the powers of the prince of this world cease to hide behind the mask of goodness and show the true animal face."

« A PREDICTIONAL EPIDEMIC AND THE BIBLE

Announcements about the date of the end of the world not only do not correspond to the Orthodox tradition, they do not correspond to the Bible. Christ said that “about that day, or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13, 32). Of the sects, the “7th Day Adventists” became most famous for this, which, in fact, began this “predictive epidemic in the first half of the 19th century. And one had only to start... Of the modern totalitarian sects, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Mother of God Center, Vissarionists, Mormons, some movements within the Roerichians, the "Universal and Triumphant Church", etc., like to announce the dates of the end of the world, etc. this very announcement is already taking all these groups and their followers out of the confines of Christianity because they show a startling distrust of the words of Christ.

From a human point of view, this desire is somewhat understandable: people always have a very strong desire to know their future accurately. This desire to “look beyond the line” is probably one of the characteristic features of the fallen human consciousness. But it contradicts the whole logic of Christianity: no one knows the date, and therefore one must live in such a way as to be always ready for a meeting with Christ and strive for it. Remember that Christians pray every day for the coming of the end of the world. In the words of the most common prayer "Our Father" there is such a line: "Thy kingdom come." This is a call to God to come soon. This is a call to Him to hasten those events about which the Apocalypse is written in symbolic language.

As for this book itself (the Apocalypse), it does not give a single date. This makes it impossible to talk about the historical inconsistency of the Bible (say, the predictions did not come true!), As modern atheistic criticism likes to do. This is a book of symbols. She talks about the end of the world in veiled, figurative language. In the same way, in the language of images, the very first book of the Bible, the book of Genesis, speaks of the creation of the world. This does not mean that the British picture of the origin of the world is contrary to science. The Bible is not a textbook on physics, chemistry or biology. It says the most important thing - the world was created by God, He is the Source of all living things. Equally, the Bible is not a textbook of history, not a book of fortune-telling and predictions, and also not a guide to futurology. It talks about the main thing, that history will come to an end, and this finale will be accompanied by a 3.5-year reign on the earth of the Antichrist, who will unite all states, become a world emperor and open a period of severe persecution of those who remain faithful to Christ. Eventually world history will end with the direct intervention of God. There are very important words of Jesus Christ in the 24th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew. The end will come only when the gospel is preached throughout the earth, to all nations (Matthew 24:14). This means that as long as there are people on earth who are ready to hear the Gospel and accept it, but as long as they do not have such a physical opportunity, there will be no Second Coming. Moreover, God Himself can change His prophecies, because the God of the Bible is not a faceless Fate or an inexorable fate, but a Living, Personal God. In the Holy Scriptures there is a book of the prophet Jonah. In the 8th century BC, the Lord sent a prophet to the city of Nineveh to tell its inhabitants that if they did not repent of their sins, the city would be destroyed. The Ninevites repented and God's prophecy was changed. Fast forward to our era, we can assume the same thing: perhaps God is pushing back end of the world for the sake of those people who can still hear the gospel and turn to Christ.

The word "prophecy" is perceived by many as a prediction of the future. However, this is not quite true. In the Bible, prophecy is primarily the pronouncement of the will of God. It can be projected both on the future and on the past or present. And any prophecy of the Bible must be evaluated precisely from the point of view of God's will about man, which consists in the fact that God wants the salvation of man, wants people who once fell away from Him to return again. And when the Apocalypse speaks of terrible disasters, then, first of all, you need to understand - this is an opportunity for people to come to their senses and repent and return to God. Although the Apocalypse itself says that the reaction of many will be just the opposite... God keeps the action of evil in our world, but at some point before the end of the world He stops doing it, and evil falls on humanity, so that at least at the last moment people feel the need in repentance. At this moment, the suffering of Christians plays a special role: they lay down their souls for their neighbors. I recall a story that is recorded in one of the Egyptian patericons about a monk who was tormented by the passions of lust and anger. He took upon himself various ascetic feats, but nevertheless these sinful thoughts did not depart from him. In the end, the ascetic despaired and decided that he was a lost man. The monk went to the capital of Egypt - Alexandria, visited pubs, brothels, etc. One day he got drunk, got into a fight and killed a man. At night, he woke up in some kind of ditch above the body of a man he had killed, and at that moment he understood the full horror of the situation in which he found himself, prayed to God, and suddenly the passions that had tormented the monk before left him. Such power was the penitential prayer of this monk! When I was a student at the theological academy, we discussed this case in a Christian anthropology class, and one student asked: “What happened to the one who was killed?” The teacher replied: “We don’t know what kind of person the monk killed, but if he was a Christian, then now in heaven he is immensely happy that at the cost of his life he saved the soul of the perishing one.” Why does modern humanity see only catastrophes in the Apocalypse and do not notice the most important thing - the meeting with Christ? I think this meeting goes beyond the interests of our civilization. Since she lives autonomously from God, then from the Apocalypse there remains some kind of horror story of various future catastrophes. Interestingly, if we talk, for example, about modern cinematographic culture, then there end of the world always manages to stop human forces, a heroic deed. This is essentially the emasculated content of the Apocalypse, from which God has been removed and humanity is fighting only for its eternal physical existence in a godless world. In my opinion, such a bad infinity is hell, from which God delivers us, appearing at the end of time to his beloved creation - to Adam. Alexander Dvorkin, Doctor of Philosophy, Candidate of Theology, Head of the St. Irenaeus Lyons Center, Thomas magazine, No. 2 (19), 2004.

Nowhere in the Bible is there an exact date for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The announcement of any date for the end of the world is a thing that is completely out of character. Orthodox Church. There is not a single Council decision, not a single epistle of a church hierarch or a recognized theologian, which would be expressed in such a spirit. Nevertheless, there is evidence in the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament that the coming of Christ is understood as an event of a rather near future. The main sources of Orthodox teaching about the end of the world are the eschatological speech of the Savior set forth in chapters 24-25 of the Gospel of Matthew (with parallels in the Gospels of Mark and Luke) and the book of Revelation by St. John the Evangelist (Apocalypse). Important in this regard are also some passages from the apostolic epistles, for example, 1 Thess. 5, 110; 2 Thess. 2, 112; 1 Cor. 7, 2931; 2 Pet. 3, 318; 1 In. 2, 18.

What is the most important thing in the biblical testimonies about the Second Coming? A significant part of them is devoted not to stating the fact that end of the world will happen soon, but a deep, colorful and many-sided description of previous events. That is, on the one hand, end of the world is thought of as very fast, and on the other hand, this day should be preceded by events of world historical importance. The very content of these testimonies, in view of the extraordinary scale of the events described, reveals the full depth and complexity of the Orthodox teaching about the end of the world. Even a cursory glance at them shows that it will not be so easy and fast.

Some people point to the gospel eschatological speech as an undoubted testimony of Christ Himself about His soon coming, especially to the words of Jesus: “This generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (about the tradition of interpreting these words a little later). However, for some reason, they don’t notice that there is another phrase there that balances the burden of the seemingly really undoubtedly soon Second Coming: “About that day, or hour, no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). This means that no one can accurately indicate the year, month or day of the end of the world. Even Christ, the Son of God, ascribes ignorance to himself. Why? This is a complex theological question, however, something else is important for Christians here: the Savior emphasizes the absolute mystery, the insubordination of “times and dates” to an exact human definition.

In the eschatological speech of the Savior there is one important detail: Christ prophesies of two events: the end of the world and the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. Moreover, it is very difficult to separate them: the historical event of the destruction of the Temple in the year 70, which, as we already know, was not the end of the world, and the event that takes us beyond the scope of human history - end of the world- closely intertwined. Christ in His sermon addressed the Jews, therefore, according to the Gospel, a catastrophe on a global scale, the destruction of the main Jewish shrine, which is the basis of the religious life of Israel, is a prototype of a common end.

And then the words, "This generation will not pass away until this happens," can literally refer to the fall of Jerusalem. Because many of Jesus' listeners had the opportunity to live to the age of 70 and witness the destruction of the Temple. But there is another interpretation of these words, referring them directly to the end of the world. The expression "this generation" in this sense can mean not only a specific generation, but also a certain timeless class of people. Under this class, St. John Chrysostom understood all those who believe in Christ: “all this will certainly come true, and the generation of the faithful will continue and will not be interrupted by any of the above disasters.”

The Apocalypse, regardless of its correlation with the event of the destruction of Jerusalem, puts modern people before the question: if end of the world did not happen in a short time, why was all this expressed already in the 1st century, and in such a peculiar “incomprehensible” form? For Christians of any age, the indication of the imminent nature of the coming of the Savior becomes a fact that determines their lives from the moment they heard this message.

Suppose Christ would say that the Second Coming would be, but not very soon. According to the psychological law, this would incline people to relaxation. An exact indication of the date would also lead to it. Even if the coming of Christ would be during the life of the generation that listened to Him, and Jesus would say that he would come in the year 70, this would lead to the fact that until the year 70 everyone would live as usual, and then, looking at the calendar would start getting ready. An indication of the imminent coming of Christ has the meaning of a stimulus that determines the entire human life, it keeps Christians in a state of constant wakefulness, which is much talked about in the New Testament.

Of course, the mood of humanity periodically changes, because people are increasingly aware that the world is imperfect and transient. Taken to an absurd extreme, these notions result in slogans that end of the world should come immediately. Or, conversely, there is another extreme when it is said that "Christianity does not keep its own promise." The Apostle Peter, back in the mid-60s of the 1st century, gave a direct and rather harsh answer to this: “In the last days, impudent scoffers will appear, acting according to their own lusts and saying: “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers began to die, from the beginning of creation, everything remains the same. . The Lord does not tarry in the fulfillment of his promise, as some consider it slackness; but is patient with us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:3-9). This means that the onset of the end of the world depends on the life of each of us: it moves away or approaches, depending on our spiritual dispensation.

Orthodox St. Tikhon Theological Institute, magazine "Thomas", No. 2 (19), 2004.

SIGNS OF THE END TIMES

“The end of the world will be preceded by signs. The Savior pointed to these signs when he prophesied about the fate of Jerusalem, but in such a way that some refer to Jerusalem and some to the end of the world. From the 3rd verse of the 23rd chapter of the Evangelist Matthew to the 26th - the signs that were at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem. Then those signs that the sun will grow dim, the moon will not give light, the Gospel will be preached to everyone, there will be great sorrow, false Christs will appear, vices and calamities will multiply, love will dry up - they go to the end of the world. This shows that Jesus Christ acts here in the same way as the prophets did, that is, with some visions or events he connected others similar to them. Predicting one close event, they talked about another, more distant and more important. That all this will follow at the end of the world can and must be expected without fail.

“While the day of the Lord is unknown, some signs of its approach are still revealed to us, two predictions in Holy Scripture clearly stand before us. One is that the gospel must be preached to the whole world, and all Gentiles and the people of Israel must enter the Church. The second speaks of the great falling away of those who entered, from which the final image of sin develops. There can be no question that Christianity will become a world religion. However slowly the work of the mission proceeds, a feeling passes through all pagan religions that their hours are numbered. Although the fire of ancient fanaticism still burns in Mohammedanism, it is precisely this excitement against everything Christian that shows that the Gospel endangers it. Of course, the victory of the Gospel does not always come from the conviction of its truth, but what the mission does not do, the dominance of European civilization will do. With him, Christianity will enter everywhere, as the religion of the ruling peoples. Thus, in the hand of God, secular interests will also serve as a means to gather peoples into a union Christian Church so that the ends of the earth become the boundaries of the Church. The strangest thing may seem to be the hope that Israel, too, would bow before the Crucified One; but we must say that the very existence of this wonderful people shows that God has reserved them for the future; if the future belongs to Jesus Christ, then Israel belongs to him.

This future of Israel, according to the prophet, will coincide with the era of the spread of godlessness throughout the earth. This year, unfortunate in all respects, unprecedented in the strength and ubiquity of the spread of atheism, unprecedented in the severity, duration and breadth of the spread of disasters that will afflict humanity, will come before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, before the end of the world. It is directly and clearly stated: When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth (Luke 18:8)? In Holy Scripture, this year is called: the last days (2 Pet. 3:3), the last times (1 Tim. 4:1), the end times (Dan. 11:4 and 9). Its duration is not specified in Scripture. Its end coincides with the coming of Jesus Christ and the end of the world; but its beginning will come gradually, and therefore it is difficult to distinguish it from the previous time, it is impossible to indicate a specific moment in time from which it will begin. From the book of the prophet Daniel and from the Apocalypse it is clear that the last and most terrible period of this year will last three and a half years, the time of the reign of the Antichrist. But the unfortunate time of terrible disasters and the extraordinary spread of wickedness and godlessness will begin before the beginning of the reign of Antichrist, as can be seen from the speech of Jesus Christ about the end of the world, from the Second Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians and from the Apocalypse. The reign of Antichrist will only be the end and end of this year, its last period. But how long the period of this year preceding the reign of Antichrist will be is unknown.

The extraordinary spread of unbelief and wickedness throughout the earth; general mutual enmity between people and nations, which, long before the end of the world, will intensify to the point that nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, that people will betray each other and hate each other, so that even brother will betray brother to death, and father children, and children will rise up against their parents and kill them; great earthquakes in places, and famine, and pestilence, and terrible phenomena, and great signs from heaven; great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, and will not be when people die from fear and expectation of disasters that are coming to the universe; the multiplication of lawlessness and the cooling of love for people that accompanies it; Tradition to torture and death of Christians and hatred towards them from all nations for the name of Christ; the abomination of desolation, spoken through the prophet Daniel, standing in a holy place - all this will cause the end of the world, just as hell, poisoning all the juices of a living being, causes death to the latter. The Lord Jesus Christ directly said that if those days had not been shortened, no flesh would have been saved. This means that if Jesus Christ had not come then to carry out the final judgment on the human race, to destroy and renew heaven and earth with fire, the existence of the human race would still have ceased.

Before the end of the world, dominion, audacity and prevalence of atheism, the depth and prevalence of moral corruption and physical decrepitude in the human race will be just as unusual and extraordinary as many physical phenomena and other events that will then take place will be extraordinary, as the very end of the world will be extraordinary. This will be an era in all respects, and in particular in relation to godlessness, exceptional, unique, unparalleled, terrible and unfortunate.

Equally exceptional are the reasons for the unusual spread of atheism before the end of the world. Based Holy Scripture and the teachings of the Fathers of the Church, we can express partly an assumption, and partly positive judgments about the causes of the terrible spread and extraordinary dominion of godlessness before the end of the world; Let us also note the characteristic features of the godless spirit of that time.

There are some indications in Holy Scripture that the immorality, wickedness, and godlessness of the last year will be prepared gradually, perhaps over a very long time. The Evangelist John the Theologian already said about his time: “As you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and now many Antichrists have appeared, we also know from what is the last time” (1 John 2:18). At the same time, the apostle Paul wrote that the mystery of iniquity is already at work, only it will not be completed until it is taken out of the midst, which now restrains (2 Thess. 2, 7).

However, many centuries have passed since those and other words were spoken, and the end of the world has not yet come. But, on the other hand, the apostles, as divinely inspired writers, could not express erroneous thoughts in their epistles, accepted into the canon of Holy Scripture, and, moreover, about such an important subject. How should these words be understood? They do not express the fact that in the time of the apostles the end of the world was approaching, but they point out the similarity of the events of civil and church life of that time, the spirit of the time of that time with what will happen before the end of the world, and the contemporary time for the apostles is depicted by them as the beginning of a sad and terrible end, - the beginning is not according to the proximity of time, but according to the similarity of the phenomena of life. The words of the apostle Paul make this very clear. He did not say at all that the end of the world was coming. Quite the contrary: he writes his own epistle to the Thessalonians with the main purpose of dissuading some of them, who were expecting the imminent end of the world, of this opinion. He agrees with this and affirms that the mystery of iniquity—that iniquity that will be revealed in all its strength and nakedness before the end of the world—already operates, but it acts precisely as a mystery, hardly noticeable, how little a sprout is noticeable, which only after many years becomes visible to everyone, a huge tree. Similarly, the end of the world will not come until the mystery of iniquity, which has already begun, is completed, that is, until it is revealed and realized in fullness and in all its power. When this happens, the apostle points out, only not directly, but mysteriously: it will be when the one who restrains now is taken from the midst; but what the one who restrains is, and when he will be taken out of the midst, the apostle does not explain. Without clearly indicating when the end of the world will follow, he, however, convinces the Thessalonians not to believe the rumors spread by ill-intentioned people that the end of the world is already coming.

Explanation of the true meaning of the above words of the Apostle Paul gives the key to understanding the words of John the Theologian, which, in turn, shed light on the words of the Apostle Paul, the words of both apostles are parallel and corresponding; the thought in them is approximately the same, and only it is expressed differently. the Evangelist John the Theologian calls antichrists people who reject the Father and the Son (1 John 2:22); he also says that every spirit that does not confess Jesus Christ who has come in the flesh is not from God, but it is the spirit of the Antichrist, about whom you heard that he will come and now is already in the world (1 John 4, 3) , about the Antichrists, he also says that they came out of us, but were not ours (1 Jn. 2, 19). It is clear that by antichrists he means the heretics of his time — the Gnostics, who rejected the incarnation of God and did not recognize Christ as God, the Ebionites, who recognized Christ only as a man, and other heretics, and perhaps also false Christs (“many false prophets have appeared in the world” — 1 John 4, 1). Attributing to all such people the spirit of Antichrist, who will come before the end of the world, the Evangelist John says that he, that is, the real Antichrist, is now already in the world. But since there was no real Antichrist in his time, and he knew this, it is clear that John the Theologian speaks about the appearance of the real Antichrist in his time, and about the coming of the last time, in the same sense as the Apostle Paul about the mystery of lawlessness, as having begun to act, but not yet accomplished, not fulfilled, i.e., he indicates the predecessors of the coming Antichrist, but the predecessors not by immediate, but by distant succession, not by time, but by spirit. The heretics rejected Christ as the God-Man, and at the same time, if they did not reject God, then at least they inevitably distorted the teaching about him, put their own false Christianity in the place of Christianity, and the real Antichrist will reject Christ and seduce Christians into his faith.

Only he will far and beyond measure surpass the heretics in degree, audacity, strength and success in denying Christ and Christianity: he will exterminate Christians, blaspheme, call himself God and rule over all the earth. While heretics depict the seductions and temptations with which Antichrist will tear Christians away from Christ (2 Thess. 11:10-11), the persecutors of Christianity from Jews and Gentiles were and are the forerunners of Antichrist in his war of extermination against the saints (Rev. 13:7). ). Therefore, not without reason under the mystery of lawlessness, which, according to the Apostle Paul, is already in operation, some church fathers, for example, St. Chrysostom, implied Nero, as a prototype of the Antichrist. “For,” says the ecumenical teacher, “he (i.e., Nero) wanted to be considered God.” And other Church Fathers also mean heretics by the mystery of iniquity, and in this case, the similarity and parallelism of the two explicated places - from the first epistle of the Evangelist John the Theologian and from the second epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians - will be even closer. Thus, Blessed Theodoret says: “Some have argued that Nero was called by the apostle the mystery of iniquity and the doer of wickedness. But I think that the apostle meant by this the heresies that were born; because by them the devil leads many to apostasy from the truth. He called them the mystery of lawlessness because the net of lawlessness is hidden in them, and the devil himself clearly leads people to apostasy. That is why the apostle called his coming a revelation. For what he has always prepared in secret, he will then proclaim openly and clearly.

These divergent interpretations can be reconciled by the assumption that the apostle Paul, by the mystery of iniquity, meant Nero only predominantly, as the most typical and, moreover, contemporary antichrist, but not exclusively of him alone. While writing their epistles in response to the needs of their time, the apostles nevertheless intended them for all times. As the Evangelist John the Theologian, speaking of contemporary heretics - Antichrists, he also meant the heretics of later times as spokesmen for the anti-Christian spirit; so the Apostle Paul, with the words “mystery of lawlessness”, designated the predecessors of the Antichrist of every kind and all times: heretics, atheists, unbelievers and false believers, persecutors of Christianity. The very way of expressing the Apostle Paul makes it clear that the action of the mystery of lawlessness will not be short-term, not one-time, which was the activity of Nero, but constant, having to continue until such time as it is manifested clearly, in all its strength and terrible breadth, until the anti-Christian spirit of all times, incarnating and acting in various opponents of Christ, will not be concentrated in Antichrist until he reaches the completion of the highest degree of development and, at the same time, his end in godlessness, immorality and anti-Christianity before the end of the world.

Not only Nero, but whole line Nero - these proud self-adorers, cruel despots, bloodthirsty like tigers, conquerors, immoral libertines, impious atheists, crazy trampling on the truth and terrible persecutors of Christianity - will pass away, in the course of centuries until the end of the world. Herod, the so-called Great, who beat fourteen thousand babies in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:16); the Roman emperor Caligula, who madly said that if mankind had one head, he would cut it off; Domitian, Diocletian, Julian the Apostate and other cruel persecutors of Christians, Attila, called the scourge of God; Genghis Khan and Tamerlane, who turned crowded cities into piles of garbage and entire kingdoms into deserts and erected huge pyramids of severed heads instead of monuments; Napoleon and other Tamerlanes of modern times, who killed millions of people because of ambition and lust for power - who are they, if not predecessors in spirit, if not prototypes in the life and work of that beast emerging from the sea, who was given the opportunity to wage war with the saints and defeat them, who will given power over every tribe and people, and tongue, and nation, which even the image, animated by the sorcerous power of its helper of the beast coming out of the earth, will speak and act in such a way that anyone who will not worship the image of the beast will be killed? Further, if the Evangelist John the Theologian called antichrists the Gnostics, who denied the Incarnation of God (before the Kets), the Judaizers, who did not recognize Christ as God, the apostates from Christianity, who accepted the true faith but did not stand in it, the false prophets and false Christs, who put themselves in the place of the true Christ, then not Should all later heretics be called antichrists, as well as those who will appear later? Are they not the Antichrists, or the forerunners of the Apocalyptic Antichrist, the Gnostics of the second and third centuries, the Manichaeans, the Anti-Trinitarians, the Arians, the Apollinarians, the Nestorians, the Monophysites and the Monothelites, the Pelagians, the Iconoclasts, the Bogomils and the Paulicians, the Socinians, the Judaizers, the Ancient and New Antinomians, our schismatics? , especially the priestless, our whips and other sectarians, the Irvingians and countless other rumors of mystical sectarianism? Are not the extreme rationalists of the past and our century, like Pavlus, Strauss, Wounded, antichrists?.. Are not the antichrists, deists, pantheists, radical skeptics and agnostics, materialists and atheists? Will not antichrists also be all heretics, apostates from the faith, false believers, deniers, enemies and persecutors of religion and Christianity, enemies of truth and goodness, rooted in sins, blasphemers and atheists? All such have been and will be the forerunners, prototypes and forerunners of the apocalyptic beast Antichrist in those actions of the latter, in which he will be a liar and a deceiver, a clear, strong, impudent enemy of God, Christianity, religion and everything holy, and will demand divine worship only for himself.

Heresy, bloodthirsty cruelty, moral lawlessness, blasphemy and godlessness, and mental decline and physical degeneration associated with them, manifesting themselves over the centuries in different forms, now weakening, now intensifying, but never ceasing, fading in some forms and in some places and kindling with renewed vigor in other species and in other places and peoples, will gradually accumulate in the human race; evil, anti-Christianity, enmity against God, although at intervals, but all the same, will intensify until they grow to an all-consuming flood of evil before the end of the world. This soil will also grow the Antichrist, and most importantly, it will favor the immeasurable, worldwide successes of his godless activity. Certainly, the main reason The extraordinary speed and breadth of successes of his propaganda of atheism will be that although he will be a man, all the power of Satan will be concentrated in him.

His very coming will be according to the action of Satan, and according to the action of Satan, it will be accompanied by all power, and signs, and lying wonders, and every unrighteous deception of the perishing. But both Satan himself and the Antichrist, in whom he will invest all his strength, could not in such a short time, precisely in forty-two months (Rev. 13, 5), to spread godlessness throughout the earth, if the success of their activities had not been prepared by the previous immersion of mankind in evil, the previous spread in humanity of the anti-Christian and God-opposing spirit, if humanity had not already been predisposed to falling away from God and Christ and to the transition to the kingdom of Satan. And such a godless anti-Christian predisposition of the human race, which has to be before the end of the world, before the appearance of the Antichrist, will be prepared gradually, partly by the very historical course of the development and accumulation of evil, partly by the hidden activity of the devil, the tension of which will increase as the earthly history of mankind approaches the end and the devil predicts end of his reign on earth. It is this anti-Christian and godless predisposition of mankind, which has to be and intensify before the appearance of Antichrist and has to begin, perhaps even long before it, and will be the immediate cause and natural source of godlessness, which under Antichrist will spread throughout the earth; and the earliest godless epochs, such as, for example, the godless epochs of the past and current age, as well as all kinds of antichrists and all kinds of antichristianity of all times and places, can be recognized as distant causes of the sad moral and religious state of mankind before the coming of Antichrist and, through the preparation of this state , distant sources of godlessness of the last terrible year.

In this video lecture, at 17 minutes 42 seconds, Academician, Honored Professor of the MDA Alexei Ilyich Osipov answers a question from the audience about the end of the world in 2012.