popular myths of evangelicals: the eschaton = the "pre-trib rapture"

For other posts in this series, see here.

Pre-tribulational premillennialism is (in a nutshell) the idea that Christ will return first for his Church in a secret "rapture," snatching believers from the earth before the outpouring of God's wrath on the earth during a specific period of "tribulation," after which Christ will return again with his Church to establish the "millennial kingdom" of Revelation 20 on earth. Because this idea is normally part of a larger hermeneutical and theological system, I'm not going to attempt to dismantle it in this short blog post. However, that's not really my intention here anyway; rather, I'm more concerned about the exclusivity with which many evangelicals view this idea, such that many evangelicals are ignorant of any other eschatological view, and even such that any other eschatological view (if known) is often deemed to be beyond the pale of doctrinal orthodoxy.

The reason for the persistence of the "pre-trib rapture" idea is both easy and difficult to discern. Originating in 19th century British Darbyism, the idea gained a foothold in North American fundagelicalism through its association with many prominent Fundamentalists of the early 20th century, becoming part of the package of conservative Christian doctrine in contrast to the liberalism of the day. Since then, there has arguably been more publicity for this distinctive fundagelical idea than for any other, from the bestselling Scofield Bible of the past to the bestselling Left Behind books of the present. But in spite of all this its continued existence is difficult to fathom, given that evangelical New Testament scholarship by and large abandoned the idea years ago, or at least abandoned its claim to be the only possible interpretation of the biblical witness. Yet, at a popular level, it continues to survive and even thrive within North American evangelicalism.

It seems to me that the two points I made regarding a popular evangelical myth related to the beginning (see "creation" = "creationism") apply equally well in general terms to this popular evangelical myth related to the end. First, any evangelical interpreter of the relevant eschatological biblical texts must take seriously the fact that other evangelicals - evangelical in both faith and life - read these texts differently. The only passage that provides a direct witness to a "rapture" (1 Thess 4:13-18) is not interpreted by most evangelical scholars within a pre-tribulational framework. The passage gives no account of what happens after this "catching up in the clouds" - an event that is not very secret, by the way, with victory trumpets blaring and herald angels shouting - and the follow-up passages to this one (1 Thess 5:1-11; 2 Thess 2:1-12) would seem to suggest that Paul believed this event, this "gathering" of believers at the return of Christ, will happen after a time of tribulation and not before. Other eschatological passages either provide not even a hint of a secret "rapture" (e.g. Revelation), or the hints that are sometimes discerned are almost always interpreted differently by evangelical and other scholars (e.g. Matt 24:40-41). Again, these observations are not intended primarily to persuade "pre-trib rapture" believers to think otherwise, but rather to emphasize that the relevant passages are interpreted differently by many if not most evangelical scholars. Indeed, the four main historic eschatological views of Christianity - historic premillennialism, amillennialism, postmillennialism, and dispensational premillennialism - all find representation within current evangelical scholarship.

Second, like the biblical witness to creation, the consistent themes and most significant emphases throughout the diversity of biblical eschatological texts relate much more to the "who" and the "why" of the eschaton than to the "when" and the "how." The "who" can be seen in the consistent New Testament emphasis on Christ's role as God's eschatological agent, the one through whom God brings about the complete fulfillment of his promises. It is in Christ alone that all the facets of salvation will find their fulfillment at the eschaton; thus, his parousia or royal arrival is the hub around which all eschatological events spin. The "who" can also be seen in the repeated biblical emphasis on the vindication and blessing of God's people, and conversely the condemnation and destruction of all God's enemies, the last of whom is death itself. At the eschaton, the true people of God will be revealed just as Christ will be revealed, sharing in his eternal glory. These realities point to the "why" of the eschaton: it is the time when all that is wrong in creation and humanity will be made right, when all the threads of salvation in Christ will be woven together. These recurrent eschatological themes of faithfulness, righteousness, justice, and vindication are vitally connected to the eschatological events most consistently presented in Scripture spinning around the hub of Christ's return: the resurrection of the dead, the judgment of all people, and the blessed life of God's people in the coming age.

It is for these reasons that the early Church showed much wisdom in advocating a minimalist eschatological position in its universal creeds, affirming 1) the personal return of Christ, 2) the bodily resurrection of the dead, 3) the final universal judgment, and 4) everlasting life in the age to come - but not outlining a particular view on the "when" and the "how" of all this. North American evangelicals today would do well to follow the wisdom of this doctrinal humility.

Image: Rembrandt, The Supper at Emmaus (Olga's Gallery)