Do you ever think . . .

[TygressVirgo]

Hi there everyone,

I have spent countless hours in soul searching and such, and as always there are several questions that really nag me. One of the questions that I have come across is the "When will the world end, and are we living in the end times now?". Through out this search I have come across many different viewpoints that range far and wide. Yet, I still have yet to find a happy medium. so, I put the question to you in order to get an even broader understanding of this world and how one thinks.

As for my opinion of when the world is going to end, I have yet to come to any conclusion except that we do not know for certain when it will happen, regardless of prophcies and books. In addition, I also don't belive that there will be people left behind and that those who don't believe in my version of God will go to an eternal fire. And lastly, I do believe that there might be clues as to when it might happen, but the bigger problems is will we regconize them and can we prevent it.

I look forward to any response or any thought that one might have. I welcome everyone to participate and only hope to further my understanding of others and this wolrd.

Respectfully,
Ty

[Anubis Nine]

As I really don't believe in God or much of an afterlife, I believe that this world will end when we, as parasitical humans, desroy it (Ie: Make it inhospitable for our kind). As it stands, Hurricanes and global natural disasters get worse and worse. Temperatures have been rising and as most fish we eat (Salmon, cod) need cold, oxygen rich waters to survive, it shows our food sources are going to go down.

It was said to me by a man I trust as very intelligent (High geological geek of them all) that ten years ago, he would have given us ten years to get our act together before we rape the planet until it will not support us. And of course, most animals being less adaptable than we, shall be the first to go. If it were just humans suffering. I may not be so opposed to the situation at hand.

When it comes to God, and the afterlife. I think it's hooey and of course because of that, if it is not in fact 'hooey' I'll be suffering for my ignorance. It's a bet I'm willing to make.

We are the sentient beings and we're doing a bad job of it.

[Loc]

Hmm stuff like this interests me quite a bit, big mysteries and all that :D

I'd like to think they're gonna find some ancient tablet or whatever showing when we'll all die, I don't know why really :/ Maybe so we can stop it. :confused:

I heard the Sun was gonna crash into us in a billion years or something like that...guessing I won't be here then so no point worrying about it is there? :)

Maybe I'm too laid back though. Saying that, I would like to find out about all of this kinda stuff so I guess I'm more curious than anything.

edit - yeah I believe in an afterlife I guess, hope it's nice ;x

[Myrsilus]

I really haven't sorted out all my thoughts on this yet, but I do believe humans will be the cause of the downfall of civilization and the world as we know it. Whether it be by war, environmental instability, or whatever... The planet is already in dire need of help since humans have badly raped the land and thinned the atmosphere.

Life is still being sustained, but we are so close to ruining the planet beyond repair. The main cause of this is technology, of course... But I believe what we have created, what has been destroying the planet, can also save us. At this point, it is probably the only thing feasible. In the end, if we do need use technology to right the wrongs, the planet will take the task itself and most likely eliminate everything... Just as it has many times before (dinosaurs and the ice age, etc...).

Eh the afterlife and God thing... My family is Catholic, and excluding my mother and I, are very loyal to the beliefs. I can't help but question the rules, the so-called "historical evidence", the denying the theory of evolution, and basically the inflated egos of humans. I won't get into that here, but I will say that I believe there is some sort of governing force out there, just not sure what to call it. Nor am I sure of what power this force holds... whether to call it purely scientific or also spiritual in nature.

I imagine that somehow energy is redistributed to where it must be, and after death we may become a part of something greater or simply be reborn as another life form. That's my little theory of reincarnation.

Those are just my little theories...

Edit: Oh and yes, the earth is supposed to be demolished by the sun after it begins the last cycles of its life.

[Treayn]

Well, nobody knows when the world will end for sure, what will cause it, and will it end now. Maybe humans will destroy the planet. Maybe aliens will come and destroy us (hehe, it's possible). Other shit might happen.

Don't worry too much about life. Cause, if you do worry about dying, it'll only make your life shorter.

[Kusoyaro]

The world will end through human action, or inaction, as it may be. If you come from a God angle, then one can presume that since one of the tenets that God "lives" by is that by no direct means shall it allow humanity to acknowledge its' existence, meaning that it wil always work through things which we can guage. Supposing that to be a fact, then the world (ie, this planet, not al of creation) will end as soon as humanity destroys itself. According to many mythologies, specifically the judeao-christian/islamic, mayan/aztec/egyptian, and indian (i don't know much about far eastern mythology to talk), this "Age" is the final one. Almost all civilizations have used cosmology and such to equate what era they are in and when the world will end. The Mayan belief was that we are currently in the fifth era of existence, and the judean belief is that this is the third universe. The indian belief is that this is the fourth. All these basically rely on the Zodiac, so when looking at them in terms of such we can deduce that they all believe that we are in the Age of Aquarius (which JUST began, the old age was the age of pisces, which was represented by the fish...interesting? hell yes), and that THIS is the final age of man. While I usually don't hold much stock in most prophets (as in people who make prophecies) those of Nostradamus (and certain others) aren't even dsiregarded by sceptics, they hold that much merit. He says that most of us will die after the third world war, which was supposed to have taken place during the Gulf War (apparantly it was supposed to escalate into a worldwide conflict). However, it seems that our preconcieved notions of "man-made" effects are a bit skewed. We usually think that we will die by war, which may be the case, however I have noticed a significant decrease in worldwide violence the past year. The SouthAfrica conflicts are actually subsiding, the IRA has miraculously decided to call a cease-fire and are actually folowing-through, Tibet has also decided to accept China, and the Palestine-Israel War is resolving itself (in a manner os speaking). However, natural phenomenon are becoming FANTASTICALLY more destructive and frequent. I don't know how many people have noticed this, but the scale of hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanoes, etc, have increased in magnitude from about 97, and have REALLY supersaiyan'd since '00.

My 2 cents

Edit: The sun going nova is the least of our worries, that'l happen in 4-8 billion years. I SERIOUSLY doubt that homo sapien sapien wil still exist (as in, we WILL evolve, and then we will leave this place, i can almost guarantee it if I lived long enough). Also, it really doesn't matter too much to the planet how much we decide to fuck it up, unless we COMPLETELY destroy the atmosphere and leak off al oceans and shit into space, or crumple the fucking mantle into itself, the planet will survive. It's just that WE wont. And since everything runs on money, I seriously doubt that, if the planetary shift moves up (it's scheduled in another 3k years), we can actually do anything about it.

[Invictus]

I am absolutely convinced that man will be the arbiter of his own doom. Personally, I give humanity another, oh, 200 years max. Probably less.

[Anubis Nine]

On the subject of earthquakes, everyone on Vancouver Island is screwed, chewed and barbequed. Literally. Currently the plates off our coast are locked and have been locked for quite some time. (I believe we are 45 - 90 metres behind schedual in the movement department but I can't quite remember.) Which means Hawaii and Japan are screwed too.

On the subject of other planets, the circumstances that make Earth hospitable are very unique and we're not likely to find another hospitable planet in the universe even if we *could* get there.

In raping the planet we're butt raping ourselves and the veils of profit and money keeping our eyes shut to this are not helping.

The only reason I would believe in an Apocolypse would be to hope that it comes to save us from the despondancy and despair in the future as the areas near the equator become B-climate deserts and the north becomes our refuge, while our worlds fresh water supplies (Glaciers, polar icecaps) melt, it's a sucky situation indeed.

Not that I mean to doom and gloom you all, but it's a soap box I believe in.

[Bobbybirdtree]

The world could end at any moment. It's all a matter of chance. One rock could change the way a volcano erupts which could result in the demise of us all. A meteor could out of no where strike the earth killing every living being on it.

We have no way of knowing how or when we will all be destroyed. Therefor we must not worry about such things. If the world was to end today, we probably wouldn;t have to worry. Why? Because we would be dead anyway so no worries. eh?

I understand that some people may believe in a god or whatever. I'm not here to tell them it doesn't exist. It's just that there is no scientific evidence of it being so. Until it is proven there is no viable reason for believing in an afterlife for me.

So in conclusion I say.....LIVE. That is all we can do. If we stood around all day wondering about what might be, nothing would ever get done. ;)

[Myrsilus]

I agree with the statement that we should not worry so much and just live our lives. Living for the moment, as it is called. But saving the human race will not be possible without people willing to worry and wonder what can be done. Sure many catastrophic occurances could come into play at any moment... We may have little to no control over a thing like that. But it is because humans worry and at least TRY to figure out how to solve the problem that they can lengthen their time on Earth.

It's very easy to just say "Don't worry, if shit happens, it happens." Yeah one should not worry so much about freak occurances that will end our lives... but nothing wrong with worrying about how we can do anything possible to survive in the most apparent and bizarre situations.

[Treayn]

If there is no god.. youll die from natural causes.
If there is.. Youll still die, maybe from natural causes, maybe from something else

best not to fret about it.

Living for the moment, as it is called

I believe in latin the word is Carpe Diem.

[koku]

if this world is real, and you are real and I am real and he is real and she is real, and you're not all a figment of my imagination/view of the world or some crazy conspiracy


The world will end with Nukes. Some iditot will launch one, and it will be a "everyone who has nukes get in your last shot."

Either that or an entire country will get nuked and the rest of the world learns their lesson from that.

I want to move.

[raevyn]

if this world is real, and you are real and I am real and he is real and she is real, and you're not all a figment of my imagination/view of the world or some crazy conspiracy


The world will end with Nukes. Some iditot will launch one, and it will be a "everyone who has nukes get in your last shot."

Either that or an entire country will get nuked and the rest of the world learns their lesson from that.

I want to move.

I have this feeling that I should like one day...Suddenly I became obsessed with Russia and I keep getting this nagging feeling that I NEED to go there not because im obsesed with the country but because I NEED to be there..if that makes any sense

[CannonFodder]

I don't really think about this stuff because its to depressing.

But what I do know is that every generation so far has believed that they are the last one and so far they've all been wrong. This could mean that the world is overdue for a biblical apocalypse.

[Mr.Babalo]

As it stands, Hurricanes and global natural disasters get worse and worse. Temperatures have been rising and as most fish we eat (Salmon, cod) need cold, oxygen rich waters to survive, it shows our food sources are going to go down.
.

Right there you stated the 2 predictions of Revelations(final book in the bible), of the signs before the world will end. Aids, Cancer, the homosexuals becoming mainstream are also some predictions as well. Another interesting point: people of the far east will be the leading superpower, before the 2nd coming.



basically my belief is:


Jesus will come for the second time. All eyes will be upon him on judgement day. There will be 4 types of people: 1. living good, 2. living bad, 3. dead good, 4. dead bad. The good people will "go to the stars" for a thousand years, meanwhile the bad people will burn on earth(aka hell). The bad people will be judge accordingly for their sins and will be burn for longer, the greater their sins are. After they burn, they will die forever(the bible does not support the myth that one has to burn forever in hell), even their souls (souls are not immortal) will die with them. After a thousand years passes, the good people will be brought unto a new world, void of sin. This is heaven and it IS eternal.



**edit: the only sign that hasn't been finished yet is the gospel being preached or at least offered to every place in the world.

[Pierrot le Fou]

Yes, and in Revelation, 7 seals are broken, and a frickin' dragon rises out of the ocean.

Revelation was written when the Romans were coming after the Christians hardcore. The Christians believed that they were going to get wiped out. This is much the same as the Jews wrote apocalyptic literature in Daniel when they were getting smacked around by the Greeks. It isn't to be taken literally. If it were, then why would we be paying any more attention to Revelation than the few verses in Mark, II Esdras, the books of Enoch, Daniel, or Isaiah and the desert of bleached white bones?

Why would we only listen to Revelation?

The concept of the Apocalypse, and the end-times, is really a Jewish creation that resulted with the creation of the Messiah somewhere in the inter-testamental times. The culmination of the conception of an Apocalypse is Revelation, as it combines both the earlier Jewish concepts of an Apocalypse and the Messiah with Christian beliefs created through the couple hundred years it had been around at the time of the writing of Revelation, post-Paul.

[kensei]

According to Christians, the end of days is really going to suck for me. After riding on my pale horse for a bit, I get tossed into a lake of fire T.T

[Scimitar]

If the world ends, we'll be the ones to have brought it about. As far as the biblical apocalypse goes...I think not..

I respect every persons need for, not to mention right to, find something to believe in.....but the fact that people blindly go along with a 2000 year old secondhand tale that, if constructed today would be considered downright farsical, blows me away.

[Pierrot le Fou]

Apocalypse does NOT mean the end of the world.

Apocalypse comes from the Greek Apos, and Calypso, meaning 'reveal' and 'mystery' respectively. Just to clarify. The Apocalypse, while it could be the end of the world, means the revelation of mystery. The theory being attached to the Christian concept that all will be revealed in the end times, therefore the Apocalypse is equivalent to the End Times in Christian theology.

[koku]

WARNING: DO NOT ARGUE WITH PIERRO ON THIS ONE.

His normal abrasive nature is one thing, but he majored in religion. Needless to say, his know it all style is exponentially more dangerous during this topic. Advise all Children 12 and under to stay 10 meters away. If you value being respected, I advise you stay away too.

[Snake eyeS]

I havent read a single post as this subject doesnt intrest me that much. i WILL however show you howmany ways this world can find its end, its probably one of the most entertaining sites to read if you have nothing better to do!
ENJOY! (http://www.exitmundi.nl/)

ps: no use discussing apocalypse etc. just read the site.

[Trump]

When I try to think about the end of the world but when I do something in my mind says "that's dumb, why think about that?" It really has no bearing on me. If it ends because of something people are doing, I'm sure someone will be able to predict it and let us know. If it ends for some other reason there won't be anything anyone can do about it. And once it happens, we're all dead so there is no reason to worry about it.

And as far as the afterlife goes, again I don't even think about it. I live my life to try to balance my own happiness and the happiness of the people around me. Given the chance I'd try to help make a better life for any children I might have. Beyond that, all else is insignificant.

[Dead Sexy Vocab]

In my mind, it's either an Asteroid, or an H-Bomb Explosion.

[PopCulturePooka]

I don't think the world will end.

I think homo sapiens has a very good chance of driving itself into extinction, but we give ourselves WAY to much credit if we think we can eradicate all life and make the planet unliveable for any organisms.

[Myrsilus]

WARNING: DO NOT ARGUE WITH PIERRO ON THIS ONE.

His normal abrasive nature is one thing, but he majored in religion. Needless to say, his know it all style is exponentially more dangerous during this topic. Advise all Children 12 and under to stay 10 meters away. If you value being respected, I advise you stay away too.
I won't argue with him... I know he knows his stuff in this area. I wish I had the opportunities he had, though. I can't find many classes dealing with this subject. Okay, I can't find any at all at my community college. Until I head to a university, I have to rely on my own research.

It's interesting how many advanced civilizations formulate their own theories on the "end of times". I sort of wish we could know for sure if all these things were true, but it's hard to believe a trumpet will sound and the Four Horsemen will come down on us. I'll admit, however, that is fascinates me to no end. Whether it be somewhat true, absolutely true, or simple fantasy these figures and events that are supposed to become known are interesting.

But anyway, many civilizations formulate their own theories... Even the Aztecs had their own ideas. Keep in mind that the Aztecs were also very advanced in comparsion to many Native American tribes existing at the time. They had already formed permanent settlements, practiced agriculture, and had a rich and intriguing culture. They believed the world had gone through four epochs, or as they called them, the Four Suns. Humans exist in the Fifth Sun and in order to keep themselves alive until their time would be over, they had to practice human sacrifice. This came from the belief that a few gods jumped into the newly created sun to keep it burning. So, in order to have a sun, they have to keep feeding the sun with blood.

I already stated it, but I just love the differences in culture in regards to religion. Very fascinating. And I kind of had to learn what I just discussed as I have Aztec descendants and my mother tries to keep that part of our lives important. Even if I find all this stuff fascinating... I can't really believe predictions.

[Ardo Zubairu]

I belief the world would end becouse i am a muslim. muslim belief in destiny and everybody will be call to account of his/her on the Day of Judgement.

[Kragar]

I already stated it, but I just love the differences in culture in regards to religion. Very fascinating. And I kind of had to learn what I just discussed as I have Aztec descendants and my mother tries to keep that part of our lives important. Even if I find all this stuff fascinating... I can't really believe predictions.

Yeah, you start to realize that the people make prediction almost because they want to see things go wrong. It's a strange sort of hubris -- they think that what they're living through has to be the worst that anyone has lived through ever, and that no one can be a worse sinner than they are now. In their pride, they think God (or the gods) have to end the world in their lifetime, because of them.

And people have always thought this way, everywhere.

I can't really believe in predictions, either.

[TygressVirgo]

Wow, I'm kinda surprised at the variety and amount of answers on this topic. Thanks to all, I don't have time now, but I plan to get to all your responses as soon as I can.

- Ty :)

[Mr.Babalo]

Yes, and in Revelation, 7 seals are broken, and a frickin' dragon rises out of the ocean.

Revelation was written when the Romans were coming after the Christians hardcore. The Christians believed that they were going to get wiped out. This is much the same as the Jews wrote apocalyptic literature in Daniel when they were getting smacked around by the Greeks.

First of all, it's not actually a dragon, usually when they say dragon they are talkin' about satan or sometimes the anti-christ. If you're trying to make it sound rediculous then you fail, revelations is obviously very symbolic.

If the christians were being slaughtered, or whatever mumbo-jumbo historic fact, it matters not(on a sidenote if you're looking at history almost 2000 years ago, you can't say with 100% accuracy).All prophets who write in the bible were inspired by God, so it doesn't matter what state the christians or the jews were in. The bible= God's message.


It isn't to be taken literally.
If it were, then why would we be paying any more attention to Revelation than the few verses in Mark, II Esdras, the books of Enoch, Daniel, or Isaiah and the desert of bleached white bones?

yes, some stuff arn't to be taken LITERALLY, like the "frikin' dragon" and the 7 seals.

[Snake eyeS]

i dont want to be a thread killer, but look at the link i posted before.. it will rock your world, anything you might think of as an "end of the world" senario will be in there. that site will stop all the petty argiung about how it really was/is in certain religions.

[Mr.Babalo]

i dont want to be a thread killer, but look at the link i posted before.. it will rock your world, anything you might think of as an "end of the world" senario will be in there. that site will stop all the petty argiung about how it really was/is in certain religions.

the guy is an idiot, he makes a joke out of john/revelations/etc and makes a series of errors. He treats everything literally! im not gonna get into it buy any half-ass who has read the bible before can tell you that. His standpoint is biased, he doesn't believe in it, so why bother explaining it correctly?



to sound funny, and make the bible look rediculous.

[akitaka]

Sounds to me like a lot of people have had a thought on this at one point, often with some sort of dearth feeling. Personally I think it's better not to concentrate so much on future-tense of that degree, and just roll along life as you normally would. Then again, it's pretty interesting to me, as well, to know how differing cultures have decided/speculated their fates, as well as everyone elses. Y2K, anyone?

Ahh and snake... I love the site. Strange Matter got me, the most :)