World to end on August 22Well, now, isn't that special?
Better cancel those holidays. We now have a date for Armageddon, and it's a week on Tuesday - August 22.
This information comes from no lesser source than the Wall Street Journal, where Bernard Lewis, President Bush's favourite historian, provides the details.
"In Islam, as in Judaism and Christianity," the professor writes, "there are certain beliefs concerning the cosmic struggle at the end of time - Gog and Magog, anti-Christ, Armageddon, and for Shiite Muslims, the long-awaited return of the Hidden Imam, ending in the final victory of the forces of good over evil, however these may be defined.
"Mr Ahmadinejad [the Iranian president] and his followers clearly believe that this time is now, and that the terminal struggle has already begun and is indeed well advanced. It may even have a date, indicated by several references by the Iranian president to giving his final answer to the US about nuclear development by August 22. This was at first reported as 'by the end of August', but Mr Ahmadinejad's statement was more precise."
Lewis continues: "What is the significance of August 22? This year, August 22 corresponds, in the Islamic calendar, to the 27th day of the month of Rajab of the year 1427. This, by tradition, is the night when many Muslims commemorate the night flight of the prophet Muhammad on the winged horse Buraq, first to 'the farthest mosque', usually identified with Jerusalem, and then to heaven and back (cf, Koran XVII.1). This might well be deemed an appropriate date for the apocalyptic ending of Israel and, if necessary, of the world."
There's an eschatology (in case you were wondering where Atrios gets the name of his blog) inherent in all religions, but right wing Christianity seems to be filled with crackpot loons who believe that Armageddon and the End Times are just around the corner, based on the writings of a loony drunk Christian "prophet" whose work is included in the Bible, even tho he wrote Revelations some three hundred years after Christ was killed and his, um, hypothesis flies directly counter to any of Jesus' teachings (who, presumably, being omniscient, might have spent a bit of time talking about the end of the days, but apparently chose not to).
When I read stories like this, I'm always reminded of William Miller, a direct moral and philosophical ancector to the Jehovah's Witnesses, who in 1843, posited not less than three times the end of days.
In one year. Sheesh. And people were stupid enough to believe him the third time!
If the world really does end today, I'll die doing what I love doing, scuba diving (unless, you know, it happens while I'm at the bar, but hey, that's OK too!)
Anyway, in the spirit of this blog, some Simpsons: