Bestsellers captivate millions.

U.S. global politics and Left Behind madness

The ever-popular apocalyptic Left Behind series, authored by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, has already sold two million copies of its initial printing of the twelfth volume. The sales of its first eleven novels have now exceeded forty million copies, not including sales of its audio, video and youth versions. The series, based on faulty interpretations of Scripture, is anti-Catholic explicitly and implicitly; it advocates belief in the "rapture" and teaches false eschatology.

Almost one-fifth of Americans believe in the peculiar end-time belief known as "the rapture," with a fair number of them in top government positions. Rapture theology was created in the 1830s in England by an ex-Anglican priest, John Nelson Darby. His ideas spread to North America thereafter, where they were developed by a number of American fundamentalists.

Carl Olson, editor of Envoy magazine, has written a book entitled Will Catholics be 'Left Behind'? (published by Ignatius Press), in order to explain Catholic eschatology and expose the flaws of "the rapture" belief popularised by the Left Behind series.

The rapture doctrine, based on literalist and erroneous interpretations of I Thess. 4:17, Revelation, and other biblical passages, maintains that good people and small children will be taken out of their clothing and up into heaven in "the rapture." They will be seated at the right hand of God, while seven years of tribulation hit the earth, after which Christ will come again to judge those left behind. This doctrine wrongfully entails two final judgements, one at the time of "the rapture," and another after the tribulation, as well as two second comings of Christ, one at the rapture and another one after. Catholics, Orthodox, and many Protestants believe in one final judgement at the second coming of Christ, after which the faithful will be taken into heaven: those living upon the earth have no easy escape into heaven (via "the rapture") before that time.

The rapture theory appears to be biblical, though it is not; it misinterprets the Bible's symbolic passages through its literal interpretations of them, thereby distorting their real meaning. Among other errors, the theory perpetrates false teaching on suffering, proposing that believers can be freed from the end-time trials and "saved" by reciting a verbal formula at the moment. Rapture belie :echoes the Pelagian heresy by suggesting that grace depends on human initiative, not on God's. Moreover belief denies the efficacy of the sacrament of baptism. Poor catechesis and insufficient knowledge of Scripture and its proper interpretation ,account for the popularity of "the rapture" theory.

A precondition of "the rapture," for those who await it, is the establishment of a mighty state of Israel across the entirety of its "biblical lands," which will reach from the Euphrates to the Mediterranean Sea (Gen. 15 : 18; Joshua 1:4-5). That would entail Israeli occupation of vast neighbouring territories, to be acquired by warfare. A war against Israel would in turn lead to the apocalyptic battle of Armageddon.

Proponents of these beliefs, including many Christian fundamentalists, would like to speed up the process leading to "the rapture" which will bring them into heaven; hence they support the driving out of Arabs from the West Bank, unrestricted Israeli combat of "terrorism," and the provocation of a world war.

A fair number of highly influential Americans believe in "the rapture." They include John Ashcroft, the attorney general, and Tom DeLay, the House majority leader. As many as one-third of the Republicans belong to faith communities which espouse the rapture theory.

For those anxiously awaiting a world war, the invasion of Iraq is seen as a warm-up act. Considering that 83% of Americans view Middle East affairs as a foreign issue, and therefore one of secondary importance, while the other 17% favour war as it ensures their speedy entry into heaven, President George Bush is bound to gain more votes by encouraging Israeli aggression than by attempting to restrain it.

The Da Vinci Code

Another American best seller has been captivating millions of souls. Dan Brown s The Da Vinci Code is only a work of fiction, but many readers appear to be accepting it as truth and fact, including Christians with insufficient knowledge of their faith. The controversial novel has already sold over six million copies. An excellent refutation of the work--The Da Vinci Hoax, authored by Carl Olson and Sandra Miesel--was published by Ignatius Press this summer (2004).

The Da Vinci Code presents a strong anti-Catholic bias in its erroneous portrayal of early Christianity and of the Catholic Church. The novel is based on a variety of neo-Gnostic, esoteric and feminist beliefs. It presents Christianity as a lie, and the Catholic Church as a misogynist institution. Moreover, the novel conveys the belief that Jesus was merely a man, and claims that He married Mary Magdalene--something that was "covered up" by the Church for centuries. The novel misrepresents the Catholic faith, Church history and practice.

The opening page of The Code claims that its descriptions of artwork, secret rituals, architecture and documents are accurate. In reality, many of its "facts" are inaccurate (as pointed out even by secular reviewers) and its claims about historical events and persons are often outlandish and unsubstantiated. The book is motivated by a spirit of rebellion and a hatred of institutionalized religion. The Code's gnostic solution to life's big questions is subjective individualism, as opposed to organized religion.

The novel works at once on several levels--as a romance, a mystery, a conspiracy theory, a thriller, and a spiritual manifesto. The Code portrays myth in a way that is entertaining and attractive, rather than demanding. Its relativistic attitude towards religion and truth, its radical feminism, conspiracy theories, and disdain for religious authority--all account for its popularity in the culture of today.

For those who cannot separate fact from fiction or wish to define their faith by anti-Catholic sentiment, the novel may be filling a spiritual void: if one stands for nothing he may fall for anything. The popularity of The Da Vinci Code illustrates that modern society has an aching need for sound catechesis, the Gospels, and the truth.