11 September and the millennialist discourse: an order of words?

• Author: Shaban, Fuad
• Position: Part II: myths: framing the problem

I have not sent these prophets, saith the Lord, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, and yet they prophesied.

Jeremiah (23:21)

THIS PROPHETIC VERSE PROVIDES a proper starting point for the thesis of this article, namely, that a clash of cultures has been going on for centuries between the West and the Arab World; that this clash was started and has been continuously perpetrated by those "prophets of doom" who could easily be the object of the verse from Jeremiah; that the horrible terrorist attacks of 11 September served to intensify the millennial discourse and to provide it with more fuel. The 11 September attacks did not start this discourse; and that one serious result of 11 September has been the license taken by many to demonize Islam and to establish new intolerant rules of debate and of encounter which would have been difficult to accept before. Two events will help illustrate this argument:

Only three days after the 11 September attacks, and in a rare joint appearance on television, Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson discussed the significance of the event. They decided that "we made God mad" and that in these horrible deeds "God gave us what we deserve." The two old rivals, who have been competing for the leadership of the religious right in the U.S., agreed that Americans have "just seen the antechamber of terror." Falwell elaborated on the theme: "I blame the CL groups, the feminists, the homosexuals, the abortionists, and the federal courts, because they threw God out of the public square ... I put the finger in their face and say 'You helped this happen!'" Pat and Jerry did blame the "terrorists legally and morally," but in their view it was these groups that brought about God's punishment.

This event is relevant to the theme for a number of reasons. First, the two religious preachers have enjoyed phenomenal popularity among the fundamentalists and the religious right constituencies. Secondly, Robertson and Falwell have traditionally been rivals competing for these constituencies. In fact, Falwell had backed George H. W. Bush's bid for the Republican nomination against Robertson in the 1988 Presidential campaign. Both of them agreed that the terrorists were simply tools in the hands of an angry God, used to punish Americans for the sins of liberals, feminists, and homosexuals. That the terrorists may have their own reasons or motives was of no consequence. Finally, and more importantly, both Robertson and Falwell have ardently and unconditionally supported Israel for over forty years. They have consistently cited God's 'purpose and plan' to explain every event that has taken place since the establishment of the state of Israel. Which brings us to the second event.

In 1974 the Bible Believers' Evangelistic Association published the first of a series of pictures and posters graphically describing 'God's Plan' and purpose. One picture in this publication presents the fundamentalist artist's concept of the events which take place (or have taken place?) during the 'Rapture of the saved.' The figure of Christ in the clouds appears at the top center stretching His arms to 'receive up to Himself' those who believed in Him. The 'dead in Christ' rise from the graves, and the 'living in Christ' are 'caught up' or quickly removed to meet Christ in the clouds. The text explains the events of the Rapture which include the sudden and mysterious disappearance of millions of people, and the resulting "world crisis, confusion and panic." Cars, trains and other vehicles have crashed; an airplane slams into a large building complex; there are fires, looting, rampaging, lawlessness, crimes and mobs running out of control; and "families 'Terrified and in Shock' over missing saved family members, while the unsaved family members are still left on the earth." The 'signs of the times' which lead the fundamentalists to believe that the Rapture and the return of Christ are around the comer--if indeed they have not happened already--are indicated by the following events:

* June, 1967--The Israeli "Six day war." Israel regained Jerusalem and old temple site. This was necessary before building of the Tribulation Temple (Rev. 11:1,2).

* The increase of demon activity, homosexuality and drugs (I Tim.4:1; II Tim. 3:1-13; Rev. 9:21).

* 1973--Energy Crisis setting stage for global hunger and starvation of millions during the Tribulation (Rev. 6:5-8).

* 1991--Gulf War in Iraq and world coalition of (new age terms) the "Global Community" and "New World Order." These further set the stage for the world leader (Antichrist) to control world trade and the worship of the world during the Tribulation (Rev. 13:7,8; 13-17).

Another publication of the Bible Believers' Evangelistic Association which came out at the same time (1974) was a poster entitled "A Tribulation Map." In the 'divine plan' according to the Christian fight groups, 'Rapture' precedes 'Tribulation' and prepares for it. The events which take place during the Tribulation seven-year period--especially those which closely follow the Rapture--are of special significance. They include:

* The Return of Jesus Christ in glory (Rev. 19:11-16).

* Conclusion of the Battle of Armageddon (19:17-19).

* Destruction of Antichrist "world leader" (19:20).

* Destruction of the people who followed him (19:21).

The Providential Plan

What Robertson, Falwell, the Evangelistic Association, and hundreds of preachers and religious leaders in the West have been advocating is a 'divine plan' drawn out by God for the universe and for all of humanity, from creation to Judgment Day; a plan with God's signature and seal, that cannot be disputed or altered. The plan, furthermore, presents a number of themes, the most important of which is the central position given to the Arab region, more particularly to the Holy Land and Israel.

Indeed, it has been the singular misfortune of the Arab World to be situated in an area to which the West has laid claim by virtue of a distorted religious ideology, which has been the focus of the activities and statements of Western religious and political leaders for centuries. These activities and statements have gained momentum during the past century, especially after the creation of the state of Israel. They have increased further in intensity and volume shortly before the end of the second and the beginning of the third millennium. The events of the war against Iraq and of 11 September 2001, have given more fuel to these millennial activities.

Western religious claims to this part of the world are based on perceived divine dispensation and consequently they are not subject to negotiation. So strong is the belief in the 'divine plan' that history as written and witnessed by men is faulted in favor of 'history written in advance.' This is how one prophecy advocate presented his concept of history as recently as April 2002: History written by men--described in the title as "Elusive and Fickle Descriptors"--is untrustworthy and subject to change with changes of alliances of allegiances. But, says the writer:

There is, of course, a very interesting exception to that principle. While the world can only tell (albeit imperfectly) which nations are allied at the moment, the Bible reveals which nations will be allied at some point in the future, and it's the interim steps that are, perhaps, vague. Take, for instance, the battle of Ezekiel 38-39. When a great nation from the north (presumably Russia) launches its invasion of the Middle East during the Last Days, it will be accompanied by Ethiopia, Libya, Iran, Egypt and Turkey. Now, we can't say as a certainty how or when those nations will join together in a common goal. But we do know that they will. And so, whereas man writes his version of history after the fact, God wrote history in advance, in the pages of the Prophetic Word, so that we might know what lies ahead and decide how to prepare for the things which are to come. The prophecy writer ends a seven-page explanation of this thesis with the conclusion:

The promises and advantages of studying Bible Prophecy are valuable beyond description. Bible Prophecy is history written in advance, and therefore, it is God who will in the end, write the saga of human history. May we therefore challenge you to look for yourself into the golden pages of the Bible, and discover the light that our 'more sure word of prophecy' (2 Peter 1:19) can shed on your life? I pray that you will. I promise: it will be worth it! This is not an isolated trend of thinking which is held by fringe groups. As shown later, the millions of copies of books and scores of websites advocating this ideology indicate a fairly widespread popularity.

Three main elements make these claims non-negotiable and impossible to reason with. First, they are based on a historical determinism of the kind that is presented by prophecy advocates, as seen in the previous example. This is, after all, history written and predetermined by the Creator and Author of history. Naturally, reading the mind of God becomes the profession and specialty of prophecy advocates. It becomes also an essential part of the millennial discourse.

Secondly, these prophecies are derived from 'sacred texts', another factor which makes them undisputed. This element is also based on absolute faith in the veracity of the sacred texts as they have come down to us and as interpreted by those prophecy advocates. The Creator of history is also the Author of the text, either directly or through the writers of the Bible and the interpretations of these advocates.

The third element is what is perceived as sacred geography transferred into natural and political geography. The 'Kingdom of God' and the 'City on a Hill' become associated with the Holy Land and Jerusalem and subsequently with Palestine.

The 'Chosen People'--the tribes of Israel of old--are then identified with the Jews of today and with the political state of Israel. Thus sacred and...