The Rapture That Didn’t and Mightn’t Happen in the Future

Boy oh boy it was close, but now we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

It was predicted by some evangelical Christians online that the Rapture was going to happen on September 24, 2025. The New York Times reported that some right wing Christians warned on the internet that on that day God’s faithful servants would ascend to heaven, leaving behind the damned on planet Earth.

Predictions about the Rapture and those that would be left behind are not new. But The New York Times reported that the power of social media lifted these warnings to new heights of believability among many around the world.

The idea that September 24 was International Rapture Day originated with a South African preacher, and it was embraced by many, including many so-called Christian Nationalists, as the rumor quickly spread in cyberspace.

The Times says that many people quit their jobs, prepared to ditch their houses, and wrote notes on Bibles for those who they believed would be left behind. Several experts in this area said that this phenomenon was a sign of a culture in distress.

Professor Kim Haines-Eitzin, from Cornell University’s Near Eastern Studies Department, has noted that throughout history, apocalyptic predictions gain traction in times of political and social unrest. “It surfaces and resurfaces in times when there is some sort of crisis,” she explained.

For example in the biblical Book of Daniel, there are prophecies of so-called “end times.” The book was written in the second century BC when Jews were facing intense persecution. The notion of the Rapture, where Jesus returns to save the redeemed, is found in the New Testament. However, there have been many theological disputes about the timing and the detailed mechanics of how this process will unfold.

Of course, Unity has emphasized the metaphysical and not the literal meaning of the Rapture. Professor Haines-Eitzen has noted that apocalyptic ideas have also run rampant during such a historical event as the Crusades, and even in response to September 11. “It’s a very ancient idea and yet it remains potent today,” she notes.

There has been a real increase in apocalyptic language in recent years, according to Matthew Taylor, who is the author of a widely read book on so-called Christian Nationalism. He says it is linked to such issues as the climate crisis, the rise of the far right, the pandemic, the January 6 riots in Washington D.C., and the war in Gaza. “Anytime you have major turmoil in or around Israel, that is a major trigger, especially for Protestant communities that often have these strands of Christian Zionism within them,” he notes.

Analysis by The Times concludes that while the ideas expressed by these notions of the Rapture are not new and go way back in history, “they are spreading faster now that the internet has connected evangelical Christian‘s globally. Apocalyptic thinking is also particularly suited to the internet, which rewards sensationalism.”

The Rapture, of course, has been a hot topic in pop culture for a number of years. For example, The Left Behind series is a bestselling collection of Christian apocalyptic novels written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. It explores the concept of the end times according to a literal interpretation of biblical prophecy.

The story centers on the aftermath of the Rapture, when believers in Christ are suddenly taken to heaven, leaving a chaotic world gripped by the rise of the Antichrist and the struggle of a group called the Tribulation Force to survive and uphold their faith.

Central topics in The Left Behind series include faith, redemption, spiritual warfare, and the epic battle between good and evil, with powerful symbolism and dramatic scenarios that reflect American evangelical beliefs.

I think one response by New Thought, Interfaith, and Unity communities might be to turn the page, close the book, or just thoroughly ignore all this Rapture stuff. One could view it as just primitive thinking dressed up in modern clothing. We could think of ourselves as being so far superior to any need for dealing with the Rapture. I believe this would be a mistake.

It is unwise to give evangelicals and Christian Nationalists a so-called monopoly on important parts of scripture. Instead, we should follow the paths of such thinkers as Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, Ernest Holmes, Emmet Fox, Marcus Borg, Joseph Campbell, and Eric Butterworth. We should boldly state several things:

• There is another way of understanding sacred scriptures from around the world besides just taking them literally.

• It is well worth the effort to apply our metaphysical toolbox, which is full of insights, to help us better understand sacred scriptures.

• It is also well worth our effort to apply the latest findings in archaeology, textual research, linguistics, the neurosciences, the social sciences, and new theoretical approaches (such as spiral dynamics, and integral theory) to find pearls of wisdom in ancient manuscripts.

• The word “myths” is not a dirty word. Sometimes the most profound truths are best expressed as myths and parables.

So in using all of the rich resources mentioned above, how could we benefit and understand stories about the Rapture? Well, let me make several suggestions:

• Maybe the Rapture is really expressing the drive and process for growth of spiritual consciousness in mythic forms and stories.

• Maybe it is really about individuals and societies getting more in touch with what Father Richard Rohr has called the Cosmic Christ. This Divine Spark has been called by many different names in many different cultures. It also has been called Buddha Nature, Hashem, The Eternal Light, Higher Power, Higher Self, or as Aldous Huxley called it, The Perennial Philosophy.

• Maybe when we realize that we are more at one with this Divine Spark what gets “left behind” is small minded ego-centered thinking and actions. And yes it appears hellish to be stuck in a sea of small minded, ego-centered, thinking and actions.

• But there is always a way out. It may sound like a bumper sticker, but this New Thought idea is so true: Change your thinking and you change your life!

This means that in this Rapture business we hold the keys, and everybody can turn the lock and open the door.

Many blessings,

Rev. Rick