Are these the End Times? Here’s what the Catechism says...

[Michie]

The Catholic approach to the end times is different from that in certain (but not all) Protestant circles, especially the Evangelicals, who have a strong and often vivid preoccupation with signs of the Second Coming of Christ. Many of the notions that are expressed there are either erroneous or extreme. Some of these notions are rooted in a misunderstanding of the various genres of Scripture; others are caused by reading certain Scriptures in isolation from the wider context of the whole of Scripture; and some are rooted in reading one text while disregarding others that balance it.

The Catholic approach to eschatology is perhaps less thrilling and provocative. It does not generate movie series like “Left Behind” or cause people to sell their houses and gather on hillsides waiting for the announced end. It is more methodical and seeks to balance a lot of notions that often hold certain truths in tension with one another.

What I offer here I do not propose to call a complete eschatology, only a sketch of basic principles rooted in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

While we cannot know the exact time of His coming, there are things that both remind us of and signal His approach—if we have eyes to see them. These signs give indications only. The presence of such texts cannot be seen to overrule that He will come “on a sudden” and that many will be caught unawares.

Here are some notes from the Catechism (in black, the Blue and Red texts are my additions/comments).

1. Soon and Sudden – Since the Ascension, Christ’s coming in glory has been imminent (Rev 22:20), even though “it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority”(Acts 1:7). This eschatological coming could be accomplished at any moment, even if both it and the final trial that will precede it are “delayed” (Mat 24:44; 1 Thess 5:2; 2 Thess 2:3-12) (CCC # 673).

Continued below.

Are These the End Times? What the Catechism Says - Community in Mission

The Catholic approach to the end times is different from that in certain (but not all) Protestant circles, especially the Evangelicals, who have a strong and often vivid preoccupation with signs of the Second Coming of Christ. Many of the notions that are expressed there are either erroneous or...

blog.adw.org

 

[Gnarwhal]

It's hard not to get caught up in the feeling that they are, what with the ever-increasing spread of disbelief or rejection of the gospel and the knowledge that technically it has spread to every nation in the world, especially in the historical Christian safe havens.

But it's always been the end times somewhere in the world because Christians have been fatally persecuted around the globe since the beginning. The Romans before Constantine, the Saracens, the Ottomans, all of the various primitive tribes in both the old and new world from Africa to South America to Southeast Asia. Our people have been legislated against, abused, and put under the knife since 33AD.

So yeah, maybe this is it. Maybe this is finally the moment God the Father sends His Son back to put an end to all of this, I would absolutely LOOOOVE for that to be the case and finally be rescued from this perverted world we're living in. Or maybe it's not and the world will keep on spinning for another 8,000 years and our bones will be dust by the time it happens.

I will say this though: Come Lord Jesus!

 

[mourningdove~]

Bottom Line? We must be ready to die at any time.

For somebodies today, somewhere in the world, maybe even in the world near to us ... it will be their "end time".
The wise person will live "ready" ...

"Memento mori"