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Eschatology
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Look up eschatology in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Eschatology (from the Greek??????? meaning "last" + -logy) is a part of theology(End Times) and philosophyconcerned with the final events in the history of the worldor the ultimate destinyof human kind, commonly phrased as the end of the world. In many religions, the end of the world is a future event prophesiedin sacred textsor folklore. More broadly, eschatology may encompass related concepts such as the Messiahor Messianic Age, the afterlife, and the soul. The Greekword ???? means "age"; some translations may read "end of the age" instead of "end of the world". The distinction also has theological significance, for the "end times" in many religions may involve the destruction of the planet (or of all living things), but with the human race surviving in some new form, ending the current "age" of existence and beginning a new one. Most Western monotheistic religions have doctrines claiming that 'chosen' or 'worthy' members of the one true faith will be "spared" or "delivered" from the coming judgement and wrath of God. They will be ushered into paradiseeither before, during, or after it depending upon the end-time scenario to which they hold. As well as the wrath of God at the end of the age there is the wrath of man.
Buddhism
Buddhapredicted that his teachings would disappear after 500 years. According to the Sutta Pitaka, the "ten moral courses of conduct" will disappear and people will follow the ten amoral concepts of theft, violence, murder, lying, evil speaking, adultery, abusive and idle talk, covetousness and ill will, wanton greed, and perverted lustresulting in skyrocketing povertyand the end of the worldly laws of true dharma. During the Middle Ages, the span of time was expanded to 5,000 years. Commentators like Buddhaghosapredicted a step-by-step disappearance of the Buddha's teachings. During the first stage, arahatswould no longer appear in the world. Later, the content of the Buddha's true teachings would vanish, and only their form would be preserved. Finally, even the form of the Dharma would be forgotten. During the final stage, the memory of the Buddha himself would be forgotten, and the last of his relics would be gathered together in Bodh Gayaand cremated. Some time following this development a new Buddhanamed Maitreyawill arise to renew the teachings of Buddhism and rediscover the path to Nirvana. Maitreya is believed to currently reside in the Tusitaheaven, where he is awaiting his final rebirth in the world. The decline of Buddhism in the world, and its eventual re-establishment by Maitreya, are in keeping with the general shape of Buddhist cosmology. Like Hindus, Buddhists generally believe in a cycle of creation and destruction, of which the current epoch represents only the latest step. The historical Buddha Shakyamuni is only the latest in a series of Buddhas that stretches back into the past. Christianity
Christiansin the 1st centuryAD believed the end of the world would come during their lifetime. Jesusin Mark13:8 compared the end of the world with a mother's birth pain, and the image implied the world was already pregnant with its own destruction, but no one but God knows when it will happen. When the converts of Paul in Thessalonicawere persecuted by the Roman Empire, they believed the end was upon them. However, doubt rose when as early as the 90sChristians said, "We have heard these things [of the end of the world] even in the days of our fathers, and look, we have grown old and none of them has happened to us". In the 130sJustin Martyrdeclared God was delaying the end of the world because he wished for Christianityto become a world religion. In the 250sCyprianwrote that Christian sinsof that time were a prelude and proof that the end was near. However, by the 3rd centurymost Christians believed the End was beyond their own lifetime; Jesus, it was believed, had denounced attempts to divine the future, to know the "times and seasons", and such attempts to predict the future were discouraged; yet the End was given a date with the help of Jewish traditionsin the Six Ages of the World. Using this system, the End was fixed at 202, but when the date passed, the date was changed to AD 500. After AD 500 the importance of the End as a part of Christianity was marginalized, though it continues to be stressed during the season of Advent. Some current Christians place the end of the world within their lifetime or shortly thereafter. As evidence to support these ideas, many point to the prolific news coverage of tragedies around the world, sometimes "Biblical" in proportion, and offer interpretations of various passages from the Bible. Also, some Catholics believed that the third part of the Fatima message, which was to be disclosed by the Vatican in 1960 but finally was published under the pontificate of John Paul II, was a prophetic message from the Blessed Mother about the end times, but it turned to be a symbolic message closely related to the assassination attempt of the late Pope. The issue of whether the true believers will see the end causes division in evangelicalcircles. Hinduism
Hindutraditional prophecies, as described in the Puranasand several other texts, say that the world shall fall into chaos and degradation. There will then be a rapid influx of perversity, greed and conflict, and this state has been described as: "When deceit falsehood, lethargy, sleepiness, violence, despondency, grief, delusion, fear, and poverty prevail ... when men, filled with conceit, consider themselves equal with the Brahmins...that is the Kali Yuga." This is followed by the appearance of an avatar, "The Lord shall manifest Himself as the Kalki Avatar...He will establish righteousness upon the earth and the minds of the people will become as pure as crystal...As a result, the Sator Krta Yuga(golden age) will be established." Islam
Mohammed Ali Ibn Zubair Ali's Signs of Qiyamah discuss the arrival of the Enlightened One, Imam Mahdi, followed by natural disaster, "The ground will cave in, fog or smoke will cover the skies for forty days. That will appear all over the earth which will cause believers to catch something similar to a slight cold, whereas the unbelievers will be hit harder by it. Finally, a cold wind will come and kill all believers, leaving only unbelievers on the earth who will then witness the Last Hour. The angel Israfil will blow a trumpet, and the resurrection of all human beings will begin. The Qu'ran will be lifted from the hearts of the people. The "Imam...will create a world state...He will teach you simple living and high thinking. With such a start he will establish an empire of Allahin this world. He will be the final demonstration and proof of Allah's merciful wish to acquaint man with the right ways of life." Judaism
In Judaism, the end of the world is called the acharit hayamim (end of days). Tumultuous events will overturn the old world order, creating a new order in which Godis universally recognized as the ruler over everyone and everything. One of the sages of the Talmudsays that, "Let the end of days come, but may I not live to see them", because they will be filled with so much conflict and suffering. The Talmud, in the tractate Avodah Zarah, page 9A, states that this world as we know it will only exist for six thousand years. The Jewish calendar(luach) functions completely on the assumption that time begins at the Creationof the world by God in Genesis. Many people (notably Conservativeand Reform Jewsand some Christians) think that the years of the Torah, or Jewish Bible, are symbolic. According to the ancient Jewish teachings continued by today's Orthodox Jews, the years are literal and consistent throughout all time, with 24 hours per day and an average of 365 days per year. Appropriate calibrations are, of course, done with leap years, to account for the difference between the lunar calendarand the solar calendar, since the Jewish calendaris based on both. Thus the year 2005equals 5765 years since creation on the present Jewish calendar. According to this calculation, the end of days will occur in the year 2240. According to Jewish tradition, the end of the world will see:
Native AmericanSeveral Native Americantribes have similar beliefs concerning the end times. HopiTribal leaders of the Hopitribe, such as Dan Evehama, Thomas Banyacaand Martin Gashwaseomaprophecize that the coming of the white mansignals the end times, along with a strange beast "like a buffalobut with great horns that would overrun the land". It is prophesized that during the end times the earth would be crossed by ironsnakesand stonerivers, and the land would be criss-crossed by a giant spider's web, and seas will turn black. It is also prophesized that a "great dwelling place" in the heavens shall fall with a great crash. It will appear as a blue star, and the earth will rock to and fro. White men would then battle people in other lands, with those who possess wisdom of their presence. There would then be smoke in the deserts, and the signs that great destruction is near. Many would then die, but those who understand the prophecies shall live in the places of the Hopi people and be safe. The Pahanaor "True White Brother" would then return to plant the seeds of wisdom in people's hearts, and thus usher in the dawn of the Fifth World. MayansThe Mayansbelieve that earth would be destroyed by several catastrophes (i.e. earthquakes, volcanoes, floodsetc.). Civilizationswould then collapse, and the Indian godKulkulcan- the Mayan equivalent to the AztecQuetzalcoatl- a feathered serpent deity, who represents forces of good and light, would then appear. According to The Mayan Prophecies "The end of artificial time signals and the return to natural light, a time in harmony with the Earth and with the natural cycles [would] hold the potential to reinstate a balanced, positive love and unity cycle." The current Mayan calendarcycle ends on December 21, 2012, thus this year is predicted to be the end of the world according to several prophecies. SiouxAccording to an Ogalala- or Siouxmedicine man - "darkness would descend over the tribe...the world would be out of balance. Floods, fires and earthquakes would then ensue." A "White Buffalo Calf Woman" will then purify the world. She will then bring back harmony and spiritual balance. A white buffalowas born in 1994, and another in 1995. Many tribal leaders thus feel that the prophecy is being fulfilled. Norse mythology
In Norse mythologya strong winter called the Fimbulwinterwill seize the earth and bring disorder and fighting between the people of Midgardjust before Ragnarok. Ragnarok ("fate of the gods") is the battleduring the end of the world waged between the gods (the Æsir, the Vaner and the Einherjar, led by Odin) and the forces of Chaos (the fire giants, the Jotunsand various monsters, led by Loki). Not only will the gods, giants, and monsters perish in this apocalyptic conflagration, but almost everything in the universewill be torn asunder. Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism eschatology is the oldest eschatology in recorded history. By 500 BC, Zoroastrianshad fully developed a concept of the end of the world through a divine devouring in fire. According to Zoroastrian philosophy, redacted in the Zand-i Vohuman Yasht, "at the end of thy tenth hundredth winter...the sunis more unseen and more spotted; the year, month, and day are shorter; and the earth is more barren; and the crop will not yield the seed; and men ... become more deceitful and more given to vile practices. They have no gratitude." At the end of the Battle between the righteous and wicked, a Final Judgementof all souls will commence. Sinners will be punished 3 days, but are then forgiven. The world will reach perfection as poverty, old age, disease, thirst, hunger and death are halted. Zoroastrian concepts parallel greatly with those of Jewish, Christian, and Islamiceschatological beliefs, largely due to the influence Zoastrianism exerted on Judaism whilst the Levant was under Achaemenidcontrol and the subsequent emergence of Christianity and Islam from Judaism. Prophetic movements
Other religionsMany Neopagansand Wiccansbelieve that the entire Universe continues in endless cycles of birth, death, and rebirth.
PhilosophyEschatology has also been a belief shared, sometimes theorized, by philosophers. Saint Augustinehas been one of the most famous eschatological thinkers, followed by Hegel's philosophy of history, and, some have argued Marxists– as a secularreligion. Theodicyhas gathered together most Enlightenmentthinkers, among whom are Kantand Rousseau. See also
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