Читать книгу Catholicism For Dummies - Rev. Kenneth Brighenti - Страница 66

The Latin Vulgate Bible of Saint Jerome (400 A.d.) uses the word rapiemur in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. Many Bible translators translate this as “being taken up.” But no one coined the word rapture until the 17th century, and the belief that some people would be removed from earth and taken to heaven prior to the Second Coming was not well-known until the late 1950s when it was popularized in evangelical Christian magazines. These days, popular Christian books and movies have spread the idea of the rapture far and wide, as have so-called “prophets” who claim to know the precise date and time it will occur. Catholics don’t ascribe to belief in the rapture, and they also don’t claim to have any inside scoop on when the Second Coming will occur. Plus, the Bible passage itself does not explicitly state that those who are “taken” necessarily go to heaven while those “left behind” are doomed to damnation. Only the living can repent and be forgiven, so maybe being left behind isn’t such a bad thing anyway if it gives you another chance.