Religion occupies a significant position in our daily life. Of course, one can deny religious dogmas, not believe in the existence of the Absolute, which is called God. However, it is reckless and ignorant to deny the influence of religion on the formation of modern culture, worldview and way of thinking. So, for example, European culture is saturated with religious postulates. Even the very idea of equality between man and woman arises and develops directly in the peasant environment. Christianity has significantly influenced the formation of the mentality of the peoples. For example, the father of the founder of the theory of evolution, Darwin, was a deeply religious person and even more than that, he combined his scientific research with the activities of the head of the parish. And today, most of the superstitions, signs, folk customs are based on the Christian worldview.
Christianity is inherent in the idea of the finitude of being. Followers of this cult believe that the end of the history of mankind was associated with a person who is called the Antichrist in religious texts. Now we will try to figure out who this person (or creature) is, what preconditions will be before his coming, and how this character is perceived in a religious environment.
Substantiation of the idea of the finiteness of the world
Already in the early polytheistic religions, there are beliefs that the world will be destroyed. The origin of this idea, scientists associate with the understanding of man of the finitude of all material. Thus, the person suffered a harmful vision of the everyday reality that he faced. Further from pagan cults, this belief migrated to Judaism.
Christianity becomes the successor of the Jewish religious tradition. Therefore, there is nothing strange in the fact that the mention of the end of the world appears in the sacred Christian texts. The gospel clearly states that the end of the world will be a clear historical fact. When the apostles turned to Jesus Christ with a question regarding the time of coming, they received a rather vague answer.
In the most mystical and mysterious book of the New Testament, the apocalypse of John the Theologian, signs are directly indicated that will accompany the completion of human history. Thus, in the Christian sacred texts, it is said directly about the apocalypse, which will begin with the advent of man - the Antichrist.
Promotional video:
"New Testament" - the source of the teaching about the Antichrist
In the texts of the new testament there are several points dedicated to the Antichrist. First of all, the mention of this man can be found in the epistle of the Apostle Paul and the Apostle John the Theologian. Also, a special role for understanding the church tradition in relation to the personality of the Antichrist is a book called the Apocalypse.
So, based on these facts, we can conclude that in the first centuries of the existence of Christianity, the understanding of the personality of Antichrist becomes rather vague.
In his first epistle, the Apostle John the Theologian writes that at the moment a huge number of antichrists have appeared who pretend to be God. However, in all the surviving manuscripts, the word "antichrist" was written with a small letter. The situation is completely different when the Antichrist is mentioned in the book of the Apocalypse. Here, this name of a person is always written with a capital letter, which gives rise to the conclusion that there is a certain gradation in understanding the meaning of the word antichrist. Any person who fights against the church, but does not have special power can be the Antichrist. Antichrist in the understanding of the Apocalypse is a real person with tremendous power and capable of great miracles. It is he who will complete the history of all mankind.
Preconditions for the coming of the Antichrist
In the Apocalypse, signs are given that will precede the appearance of the Antichrist. One of the main signs is the complete moral decay and degradation of humanity before the arrival of the Antichrist. This will be followed by a terrible war that will destroy more than 90 percent of the entire population of the planet. The apocalypse says that during the last war various technical achievements of mankind will be used, in particular, fire will fall on the ground. Some modern scholars of Scripture believe that this part of the book talks about the use of nuclear weapons.
After all this, humanity will move on to the opinion that it is necessary to choose the only leader who will rule the planet's population. The strength of this person, his intellect will many times exceed the capabilities of an ordinary person. With his coming to power, religious texts associate another terrible disaster that will befall the planet. Natural disasters will begin, which will lead to crop failures and, as a result, to hunger. All available foodstuffs will be concentrated in the hands of the Antichrist. Therefore, he will want the remaining inhabitants of the planet to recognize him as a god. Otherwise, all those who refuse will starve to death. There will also be various persecutions and oppression of Christians who will refuse to worship this person. The reign of the Antichrist will be three and a half years …
Description of the Antichrist
In the books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, there is no mention of the appearance or origin of the Antichrist. However, in the church tradition there are such monuments of literature, which are called apocrypha. The origin of most of the apocrypha is unknown to modern historical science. Perhaps these are the fables of some madman who wrote them down, and they have survived to our time. However, among the apocrypha, there are quite interesting monuments that were written by educated people and express opinions that were inherent in Christians of past centuries.
So, in ancient times there was an opinion that the Antichrist should be born from a prostitute in the 14th generation. In one of the apocrypha, it is even described that his mother should be no older than 14 years old and have been engaged in prostitution for a long time. In another apocrypha, the author expresses the belief that this person will be born into a royal family. It is also believed that a wild wolf will give birth to him. Regarding the appearance, there is a teaching that this person will be very beautiful, his height will be more than 2 meters, his voice will be pleasant and melodic. His intellectual qualities will allow him to take a leading position in the future united state. A distinctive feature of this person from all others will be animal claws and fangs.
The concept of the Antichrist in history
There have been various situations in the history of mankind when the followers of the Christian cult were confident in the coming of the Antichrist and the end of the world. During the reign of Emperor Nero, there was a severe persecution against Christians. Therefore, it is not strange that Christians identified Nero with the Antichrist.
Further, various calamities led Christians to the idea that the second coming and the end of the world had come. Some historical figures have received a similar honor. Mehmet 2 Giray who seized Constantinople in 1454 was perceived by Christians all over the world as the Antichrist. At one time, the Emperor Napoleon was also elevated by Christians to such an "honorable" status. Oddly enough, but Emperor Peter I was also able to be awarded such a high rank. Thus, Peter I began to carry out church reform, which caused an even greater split between the official church of the Russian Empire and the so-called Old Believers. Likewise, Lenin, Stalin and Hitler received this "title." During the beginning of the reformation in Europe, such a flattering title was given to the pope. Until now, Protestant Christians are sure that the Pope will be the Antichrist.
Thus, let's summarize a small excursion into the church doctrine. Most opinions about the Antichrist are not based on the main book of all Christians, that is, the Bible. It turns out that parallel to the official doctrine of the church doctrine there is a teaching that has no substantiation in the books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. Such dualism leads to the fact that people form a wrong understanding of the religious concept regarding this phenomenon.
In addition to the official doctrine, there is a semi-legal idea of the personality of the Antichrist. This doctrine has nothing to do with the official doctrine and is valuable as a historical monument of attempts to comprehend this issue.
Recommended for viewing: Ecumenism - the religion of Antichrist, the culmination of the NWO
