Food For Thought: The End Of The World

Nostradamus had predicted that the world will meet the end, soon enough for the mankind to collapse and lose the civilization. The Mayan said that this year will be the tick-tock for the apocalypse. 20 or 21-12-2012 will be the deadliest date. As the Hollywood is busy making movies of their own imagination of destruction, History and Discovery Channel is arguing about how it will be? When it happens? What the effects? Where it begins? And for sure, where is Jesus, the Devil, the archangel and God? 

For now, the clever men said that the causes of the doomsday are by war, natural disaster, diseases, economy failure or extraterrestrial forces. But first, let us think the definition of the  doomsday according to two holy-books:

According to Bible- Matthew 24:4-14, 

• Jesus said watch out for doomsday deceivers [4], 
• many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming 'I am Christ, the Messiah' [5], 
• when reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end [6], 
• nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in end [7], 
• this is nothing compared to what is coming [8], 
• they are going to throw you to the wolves and kill you, everyone hating you because you carry my name [9], 
• and then, going from bad to worse, it will be dog-eat-dog, everyone at each other's throat, everyone hating each other [10],
• in the confusion, lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people [11], 
• for many others, the overwhelming spread of evil will do them in- nothing left of their love but a mound of ashes [12], 
• staying with it-that's what God requires. Stay with it to the end. You won't be sorry, and you'll saved [13], 
• all during this time, the good news- the message of the kingdom- will be preached all over the world, a witness staked out in every country. And then the end will come [14]

According to Al Quran- Surah Al Qiyamah,

• He questions: "when is the day of resurrection?" At length, when the sight is dazed and the moon is buried in darkness, and the sun and moon are joined together that day will man say; "where is the refuge?" [75.6-10]
• In that is a sign for those who fear the penalty of the hereafter; that is a day for which mankind will be gathered together: that will be a day of testimony. Nor shall we delay it but a term appointed [11.102-7]
• we will show them our signs in all the regions of the earth and in their own souls until they clearly see that this is the truth [41.53]
• And Isa (Jesus) shall be a sign (for the coming of) the hour (of judgement: therefore have no doubt about the hour), but follow ye me: this is a straight way [43.61]
• Verify in this is a message for any that has a heart and understanding or who gives ear and earnestly witnesses (the truth)...and listen for the day when the caller will call out from a place quite near. The day when they will hear a (mighty) blast in truth: that will be the day of Resurrection [50.37-42]
• And on the day when the Hour riseth the guilty will vow that they did tarry, but an hour- thus were they ever deceived. But those to whom knowledge and faith are given will say: "the truth is, ye have tarried, by Allah's decree, until the day of resurrection. This is the day of Resurrection, but ye used not to know" [30.55-57]

The end of the world is obviously will be happened, both religions had confirmed that the final day will be come in a matter of time. However, this final day is not a day for us to easily predict and expecting that we can survive by preparing foods, underground bunkers, weapons and hiding golds. It is all about your faith to God. And God has given the sign to warn us, to remind us that the promise of the last day is real. This whole universe and our world will be off in service when the exact time is come. The end of the day is far more frightening.

The day they called as 'The Apocalypse'.

The world had witnessed the tragedy and the dark history of repetition of events that people called as 'the apocalypse". Most of civilization had collapsed and extincted by a widespread disease, man made failure and the most unexpected alarm; natural disaster.  For examples: 

By natural disaster

Aleppo eartquakes-1138, Syria (apprx. death: 230, 000)
Indian ocean earthquakes and tsunami-2004, Indian Ocean (apprx. death: 230, 000)
Banqiao Dam Failure-1975, China (apprx. death: 231, 000)
Tangshan earthquakes- 1976, Hebei: China (apprx. death: 242, 000)
Kaifeng flood- 1642, Henan: China (apprx. death:300, 000)
India cyclone- 1839, India (apprx. death: 300, 000+)
Shaanxi earthquakes- 1556, China (apprx. death: 830, 000)
Bola cyclone- 1970, Bangladesh (apprx. death: 500, 000-1000, 000)
Yellow river flood- 1887, China (apprx. death: 900, 000-2000, 000)
Yellow river flood- 1931, China (apprx. death: 1000, 000-4000, 000)

By diseases
Smallpox (431 BC-1979)- killed more than 300 million people worldwide in the 20th century. 60 millions people died in Europe.
Spanish flu (1918-1919)- killed 50 to 100 million people worldwide less than 2 years.
Black death or the Black Plague (1340-1771)- killed 75 million people worldwide. 20 millions people died in Europe.
Malaria (1600-today)- killed about 2 millions people per year.
AIDS (1981-today)- killed 25 millions people worldwide.
Cholera (1817-today)- 8 pandemics; hundred of thousands killed worldwide.
Typhus (430 BC-today)- killed 3 millions people between 1918 and 1922, and killed most of Napoleon soldiers on Russia.

By human
London killer fog- 1952, London (apprx. death: 12, 000)
The Al-Mishraq fire- 2003, Iraq.
The Nuclear Power Plant explosion- 1986, Chernobyl: Russia (100, 000 fatal cancers)
The Kuwait Oil Fire- 1991, Kuwait.
The destruction of Aral Sea- 1960, Soviet Union.
The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill- 1989, Alaska.
Dioxin pollution-1976, Meda: Italy.
The Love Canal-1940, Niagara Falls: USA.
The Union Carbide gas leak- 1984, India.

Those events were happened in every centuries. It was huge, hazardous, it killed half of human population and it changed the demography, but it doesn't mean that that was the end of the world. Until now, mankind still can survive, evolving, making changes of their countries and rebuilt the new nation. So yes, those apocalyptic events were just wiping the sins and the dirtiness on earth. Just like the cleaning day of Noah's big flood.

The Apocalypse "False Alarm"

Before the apocalyptic prediction of Mayan people became famous, there were so many prediction and prophecy, which was false and changeable. And now, people talked about the end of the world would happen this month. However, the prediction of the end of the world were too many that we should and must remind ourselves that the apocalypse, the Armageddon and the doomsday is not a business for us to interfere and declared whatever we want. No man can say when or where. Only God knows what and how this event will happen.

And this is the list of false prediction of the apocalypse:

• 634 and 389 BC (Romans)- They predicted that the city will be destroyed in 120th year of its founding.
• 1st Century- Albert Schweitzer and Johannes Weiss predicted the apocalypse based on Matthew.
• 2nd Century- Montanist movement claimed that Jesus would return during their lifetime.
• 369 CE- Hilary of Poitiers announced that the end of the year would happen that year.
• 375-400 CE- Martin of Tours stated that the world would end before 400 CE.
• 848 CE- Thiota declared that the world would end that year.
• 1186 CE- John of Toledo predicted that the end of the world based on the alignment of many planets.
• 1284 CE- Pope Innocent III predicted that the world end 666 years after the rise of Islam.
• 1346-51 CE- The world would end because of the black plague.
• 1600 CE- Martin Luther predicted that the end of the world will occur no later than 1600.
• 1694 CE- Four people claimed that the world would end that year and Jesus would return.
• 1874- 1925 CE- The Bible Student Movement claimed 9 times about the world would end and Jesus would return during their lifetime.
• 1988 CE- Edgar C. Whisenant predicted that the world would end that year with his book '88 Reasons Why The Rapture Could Be in 1988'.
• 1999 CE- Seven Day Adventists and Charles Berlitz predicted the world would end (maybe caused by asteroid, nuclear, pole shifts or earth changes).
• 2000 CE- 18 people claimed that the world would end in this millennium year and the Christ would return.
• 2011 CE- 4 people predicted the rapture, nuclear war, natural disaster, the end of the world and the return of Jesus.
• 2012 (May and June) CE- 2 people predicted the economic failure, Jesus would return and the end of the world
• 2012 (December) CE- The Mayan predicted that the world would end. The earth would destroy by asteroid, alien invasion or supernova.

The Sign and The Faith

According to Islam, Muslim have faith about the last day and it included in Pillars of Faith (Rukun Iman). Therefore, Allah SWT give signs before the final day would come. It divided into two signs; small sign and big sign. The small signs are including the manners of mankind had changed, the rise of tall buildings, gender confusion, warfare, evil world leader and lack of devotion to Allah SWT-which is already happened around us and some people still didn't realized it. Even the bigger sign is not yet to come, by developing more warfare, stepping small countries, manipulating weak people, creating lies and false facts, destroying the beauty of God's creation on earth will invite the big signs to come nearer to us.

Human should know better about the meaning of destruction.

But somehow, this not the matter when or where the final day would start but how much do we believe about the final day. Humans can't live forever, the world can't survive forever. People can make a pile of prediction every month and every year but there were no assurance about it. The last day is not like the cleaning day of Noah's big flood. And some people keep asking- why the world won't end? The answer is already upon us; it is the secret of the universe.

Everything is all about faith.

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Referring links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dates_predicted_for_apocalyptic_events
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dates_predicted_for_apocalyptic_events
http://www.disasterium.com/10-worst-man-made-disasters-of-all-time/
http://www.oddee.com/item_90608.aspx
http://listverse.com/2007/09/07/top-10-deadliest-natural-disasters/

http://www.al-qiyamah.org/

http://www.biblestudytools.com/msg/matthew/passage.aspx?q=matthew+24:4-14

or you can search on Google.

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