The end of the world is 11 years late... and counting :)
I drive past this particular poster once or twice a week -- it's near where I work. I just drove past it again today.
I finally decided Google around and see if I could find out more about what happened to this group after their big let down. Someone else was as amazed as I was about the paradoxical durability of these warning of The End Time:
Why did they use such long lasting poster material?
These posters were at one time plastered all over the area where I live, and there are still a fair number of places where you can find anything from tiny scraps to nearly complete copies of these posters.
I never got up close enough to one to read the small print. I suppose these must have been the people behind the posters:
Looks like Lee Jang Rim stayed behind to be convicted of fraud rather then being miraculously transported to Heaven:
So apparently this movement was a big thing in Korea... and Southern New Hampshire???
This is a bit more that I could find about the aftermath: One More End-Time Scare Ends with a Whimper. (The article is about half way down the page -- I didn't want to quote that much text.)
Of course, some people think that The Rapture of 1992 did, in fact, happen:
Rocket Car
I finally decided Google around and see if I could find out more about what happened to this group after their big let down. Someone else was as amazed as I was about the paradoxical durability of these warning of The End Time:
Why did they use such long lasting poster material?
These posters were at one time plastered all over the area where I live, and there are still a fair number of places where you can find anything from tiny scraps to nearly complete copies of these posters.
I never got up close enough to one to read the small print. I suppose these must have been the people behind the posters:
Quote:
From http://www.christianitytoday.com/his.../twich/44.html:
October 28, 1992: The Korean Hyoo-go (Korean for "rapture") movement, led by prophet Lee Jang Rim, predicts that this is the day of the rapture (see issue 61: The End of the World).
From http://www.christianitytoday.com/his.../twich/44.html:
October 28, 1992: The Korean Hyoo-go (Korean for "rapture") movement, led by prophet Lee Jang Rim, predicts that this is the day of the rapture (see issue 61: The End of the World).
Looks like Lee Jang Rim stayed behind to be convicted of fraud rather then being miraculously transported to Heaven:
Quote:
From http://www.abhota.info/end3.htm:
Oct 28, 1992: Lee Jang Rim, leader of the Korean doomsday cult Mission for the Coming Days (also known as the Tami Church), predicted that the Rapture would occur on this date. Lee was convicted of fraud after the prophecy failed. Lee's cult was part of the larger Hyoo-Go (Rapture) movement, which took Korea by storm in 1992. (Thompson p.227-228, McIver #2747)
From http://www.abhota.info/end3.htm:
Oct 28, 1992: Lee Jang Rim, leader of the Korean doomsday cult Mission for the Coming Days (also known as the Tami Church), predicted that the Rapture would occur on this date. Lee was convicted of fraud after the prophecy failed. Lee's cult was part of the larger Hyoo-Go (Rapture) movement, which took Korea by storm in 1992. (Thompson p.227-228, McIver #2747)
So apparently this movement was a big thing in Korea... and Southern New Hampshire???
This is a bit more that I could find about the aftermath: One More End-Time Scare Ends with a Whimper. (The article is about half way down the page -- I didn't want to quote that much text.)
Of course, some people think that The Rapture of 1992 did, in fact, happen:
Rocket Car
Comments
*ducks out of thread*
Originally posted by Fran441
I live one town over from Merrimack (actually, I live right on the border of Hollis, Amherst, and Merrimack) and I have *never* seen a poster like that before.
*ducks out of thread*
Where've you been hiding?
11 years later the posters are harder to find, but if you lived around here 11 years ago as I did, you'd have had a very, very hard time missing them. They were particularly popular on telephone poles and street light poles near major intersections in Nashua.
*(Post valid until one day prior to event.)
Originally posted by audiopollution
It's happening tomorrow.*
*(Post valid until one day prior to event.)
Damn. I had plans for the weekend.
I think what makes religion so compelling is the wackiness of it all. If it was based on simple, mundane facts, you wouldn't see the same kind of devotion. No one gets excited about the existence of gravity. But if the tenets are wacky and unbelievable, it takes more work on your part, and that work - the cognitive dissonance reduction - is what makes it powerful.
Fellowship
http://www.religioustolerance.org/end_wrl2.htm
All in all a very powerful meme:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontl...ws/apocalypse/
As for the Rapture, what floors me is how these people seem to think they (and whoever wrote that left behind series) are the only people worthy of being raised from earth... even among other Christians. Amazing the lengths people will go to convince themselves that their lives aren't as meaningless as they seem to be.
IOW, why must they derive meaning from some, far-fetched exclusory event, that only they and a very few others like them will benefit from? Why can't they derive meaning from more simple things like a friendly gesture from a neighbor or a good song or whatever happens to be around them at the time.
I wonder if they'd still find all the perfect sunsets and art (and even people!) to be "beautiful", were they to find out there is in fact, no God. Not saying that is the case, but some people seem to derive their opinion of things and vision of things through religion only. Not directing this at anyone here, but more towards the rapture-happy types.
Madness!
Originally posted by Moogs
I watched this show on the Big Dig last night on Discovery... and so they go through the process of describing the whole thing, and then neglect to mention when it's supposed to be completely done (parks and all). Madness!
As for the Rapture, what floors me is how these people seem to think they (and whoever wrote that left behind series) are the only people worthy of being raised from earth... even among other Christians. Amazing the lengths people will go to convince themselves that their lives aren't as meaningless as they seem to be.
IOW, why must they derive meaning from some, far-fetched exclusory event, that only they and a very few others like them will benefit from? Why can't they derive meaning from more simple things like a friendly gesture from a neighbor or a good song or whatever happens to be around them at the time.
I wonder if they'd still find all the perfect sunsets and art (and even people!) to be "beautiful", were they to find out there is in fact, no God. Not saying that is the case, but some people seem to derive their opinion of things and vision of things through religion only. Not directing this at anyone here, but more towards the rapture-happy types.
Madness!
You make great points here and I agree 100% with your thoughts.
Fellows
Originally posted by BRussell
There's a famous study of this phenomenon in psychology by Leon Festinger, who came up with Cognitive Dissonance Theory. He studied a cult in the 1950s who believed the world was going to end. When it didn't, he wondered if they would all dump their religion due to the dissonance of the inaccurate prediction. Instead, they all believed that they had saved the world through their faith, and thus became even stronger in their religious beliefs. It's fascinating how people can take a fact that contradicts their beliefs and turn it into a reason to believe even stronger.
I think what makes religion so compelling is the wackiness of it all. If it was based on simple, mundane facts, you wouldn't see the same kind of devotion. No one gets excited about the existence of gravity. But if the tenets are wacky and unbelievable, it takes more work on your part, and that work - the cognitive dissonance reduction - is what makes it powerful.
*Cough* Mac users *Cough*
Originally posted by BRussell
No one gets excited about the existence of gravity.
Sure, but turn it off, and wow, all the fussing.
Originally posted by Existence
*Cough* Mac users *Cough*
What could you possibly mean? I think we should sit down like civilized people, discuss this over a nice cup of Kool-aid, and get to the bottom of your lack of Mac faith here.
Originally posted by Existence
*Cough* Mac users *Cough*
And we have been saying the end for Windows is nigh (and this time we mean it!). But at least we got over it and now that mentality has been assumed by Linux Desktop users.
It's fascinating how people can take a fact that contradicts their beliefs and turn it into a reason to believe even stronger.
Originally posted by Moogs
As for the Rapture, what floors me is how these people seem to think they (and whoever wrote that left behind series) are the only people worthy of being raised from earth... even among other Christians.
*cough* Jehovah's Witnesses *cough*
http://www.machall.com/index.php?strip_id=225
Originally posted by BRussell
When they couldn't see the space ship behind the comet, they returned the telescope for being faulty.
That's too funny.
Kinda like some folks see politics (if the theory doesn't fit, EVERYONE ELSE must be wrong). Or it might be a "vast Left Wing conspiracy." Another example of people seeing what they want to see.
Larger Image of Marc Nozell's old Rapture Poster
Please don't burn my bandwidth by displaying the image
inline here -- just hit the
above link instead.
Permalink to original blog entry.
I forgot to look on the way home today, but the poster
may have come down now...
Thanks!
-marc
(Visit my mini-blog)