Are you ready?

Dennie Quill, Columnist

My earliest memories of church recall that the congregation was forever being warned that we are living in the last days and that we should prepare for that time when the faithful will be caught up in the clouds and the wicked shall burn. Many generations before mine were being told the same thing because the signs were all there - famine, wars, plagues, pestilence, earthquakes and tribulations.

But according to those teachings, no man knows the hour or precise time when the world shall end.

However, this has not prevented date-specific apocalyptic prophecy, and they cite the Bible, specifically the Book of Revelation, as the authority. And even persons who are not religious point to spectacular world events and the fact that so many nations are in turmoil as a signal that the Earth may not last for much longer.

There have been close to 200 end-of-the-world specific dates announced over the last 2,000 years, and now we are being told that the sun shall cease to shine on Friday. Yes, December 21, when the Mayan calendar runs out. It is predicted that the Earth will disintegrate, coming to a cataclysmic end when it is hit by the rogue planet Nibiru.

Taken seriously

Maybe because of improved global communication via the Internet, end-of-world predictions are being taken seriously by more people. In May 2011, an apocalypse prediction by American evangelist Harold Camping created frenzy among people who believed his prediction had merit. Now in 2012, the latest end-of-world prediction seems to have plunged the world into apocalypse fever again.

If you live in Japan, you may start feeling nervous as so many have because that country has had 32 earthquakes since December 9. That's about four tremors each day. So far, they have been mostly out at sea.

Over in Russia, many people are caught up in apocalypse preparations. It is being reported that candles, matches, salt and torches are flying off shelves as citizens prepare for Friday, and even though they are told that nothing will happen, this hasn't calmed their fears. Can't imagine how the salt will help, but it is what it is.

And in China, where gas masks and canned food are in high demand, more than 100 persons have been arrested for allegedly spreading doomsday rumours in about seven provinces.

'Ark' in France

So where does one find the proverbial Ark as apocalypse-mania takes hold? Why in France, they say. The only place predicted to survive Friday's apocalypse is Bugarach, an idyllic Pyrenean village of some 176 persons, where there are reputed to be gorgeous wild orchids and no pollution.

Bugarach Mountain is often referred to as a UFO landing pad based on alleged sightings over many years. And this is where the 21st-century Noah's Ark will likely rest.

Whether you are Christian or something else, one is never sure on what structure to hang one's faith these days. I believe it is best to live each day as if it were your last.

Try to reach out and do some good each day. Refrain from evil ways and do all the good you can. If each person were to live by such practice, we would have paradise here on planet earth. So the best thing that could happen on December 21 is for there to be a global resolve against war, violence, poverty and injustice so that we could live in a world where universal peace reigns supreme.

And will I be back next week? You bet.

Dennie Quill is a veteran journalist. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and denniequill@hotmail.com.