The end of the world will be billboarded
Posted at 2:30 PM on March 7, 2011
by Bob Collins
(12 Comments)
Filed under: Marketing and advertising, Religion
I'm going to have to start a new News Cut category -- billboards. People in the Twin Cities, especially, are adept at spotting the more interesting ones.
Take today, for example. This was spotted by occasional News Cut contributor Eric Ringham, who spied it on Central Avenue NE in Minneapolis.
This is the work of Harold Camping, who says the second coming will take place on May 21, 2011 and that God will destroy this world on October 21, 2011. He must have people who believe it; he's got 29,000 "likes" on Facebook, which also will be destroyed if you're looking for the silver lining here.
His Web site contains plenty of Bible passages, but none that says that May 21 is the day. Camping, 88, says he has a mathematical formula that proves his assertion. But he doesn't provide it.
But the Website, ReligiousTolerance.org, says this is at least the second time Camping has pinned down our demise:
Harold Camping, president of Family Radio predicted on his radio programs that the end of the world would happen sometime between 1994-SEP-5 and SEP-27. He said that he did not know the precise day because Matthew 24:36 of the Christian Scriptures says that "no man knows the day nor the hour." He interpreted a reference in John 21:1-14 to the disciples being 200 cubits from the shore in the Sea of Galilee as meaning that there would be 2,000 years between the birth and the second coming of Jesus. He estimates that Jesus was born on 0007-OCT-4 BCE. 5
Comments (12)
wouldn't that put the end of times right around final exam time for most schools?
sounds like no students need to study this semester!
The same one is at Marshall & Snelling in St. Paul.
"says he has a mathematical formula that proves his assertion."
Derived, no doubt from information in the bible. It contains many true things, but little that would pass MPR standards for fact checking. Hidden messages, no doubt.
Well hidden, perhaps.
"But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."
Bob, my 30th anniversery is on May 23rd. Does this mean I don't have to splurge on a gift?
Duke -
After 30 years of marriage, have you learned nothing? You need to celebrate BEFORE May 21st. You have been forewarned of the potential conflict!
the same one is 2 blocks away from my job in St. Louis Park... at the Jewish Community Center.
classy!
As a journalist, Bob might be excited about a chance to interview the Son of God personally.
IMHO, Satan would be a much more interesting interview. Him, or Charlie Sheen.
In his defense, it is now widely known that Jesus was a Gemini (i.e. the shepards watched over the fields at night...), which just so happens to start on May 21st.
Many also speculate that the original year counters were off by 7 or 8 when we switched to AD (but people had already printed next year's calendar so it was too late to do anything, I would guess). So, if they happened to be off by 11 years (or was Jesus born in 1?), then the billboards could be spot on.
Someone better go tell Stephen Hawking...
Oh CRAP! I ordered a new plasma TV. It's scheduled to arrive May 23rd. I wonder if I can get a refund?
Everyone says this will happen at 6:00pm May 21st.
Well, if it will happen at 6:00pm, exactly where are they referring to? It won't be 6:00pm everywhere if this happens. there is a thing called "Time zones"
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