Why am I bothering to blog; after all, the world ends tomorrow

According to elderly evangelist and radio broadcaster Harold Camping, God is putting paid to the earth's existence tomorrow via the medium of a worldwide earthquake. Apparently this apocalyptic event will begin on the other side of the earth from us North Americans; therefore, Brother Camping will be keeping a close eye on CNN to watch the events unfold.

Camping's confidence in his prophecy is not shaken either by his mistaken previous prediction along similar lines in 1994, nor by Jesus' own words:

Mark 13:30-32

30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. 32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

Camping and his followers have posted over 2000 billboards around the U.S., warning people of the end to come, presumably so that individuals can make peace with their Maker before being consigned to Hell along with at least two-thirds of the world who are not part of nominal Christianity. The last word in dissing this silly sort of seering (a new word I just made up for alliterative purposes) comes from the British comedy troupe Beyond the Fringe at http://www.youtube.co/watch?v=lSZ2by7M9NI.

Scaring the Hell out of people, as it were, is a long-time evangelistic approach to effecting conversions. Much of the Christian message has been fear-based, for reasons of both getting folks into the fold, and then keeping them on the straight and narrow once they're in. A speaker at neXus called this approach to spreading the Gospel, somewhat mockingly, 'sort of good news'.

Yet it is on this point more than any other (or at least that is my perception) that the emerging church gets called names by mainstream evangelicals--for suggesting that God does not intend to leave the vast majority of his creatures as company for Satan for all eternity. Why is this such a sore point with those who preach the God of love?

Putting the best possible complexion on it, I guess the emerging church critics believe that the Bible teaches that most people are going to end up in Hell because they have not made a conscious moral choice for Christianity. Therefore, to be faithful to Scripture, of which they hold a high view, they must believe and preach this.

But could they be wrong? Is it possible to hold just as high a view of the Bible and come to another conclusion that takes more of God's love and mercy, and less of his retributive justice, into account?

Stay tuned.