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"Christian
broadcast minister Jerry Falwell, who
believes the end is near, sees more than a technological glitch in the year
2000 computer problem. According to his latest videotape, Y2K could well
be a sign from God. 'Y2K may be God's instrument to ake this nation, to
humble this nation,' the Lynchburg, Va.-based preacher proclaims. Predicting
'a possiblity of catastrophe,' he suggests that Y2K could 'start a revival
that spreads [over] the face of the Earth before the Rapture of the Church'"
(Caryle Murphy, The Washington Post, November 23, 1998).
"The Rapture, some evangelical Christians believe, is when a
returned Christ will carry the saved up to heaven, leaving the unredeemed
to the wiles of the Antichrist. Falwell stops short of saying outright that
the Lord will come in 2000. But, he tells his audience, 'I wouldn't be a
bit surprised if He did.' In the pre-Rapture meantime, Falwell's $28 videotape
advertised on the Internet as 'A Christian's Guide to the Millennium Bug,'
is selling briskly: more than 1,900 copies since August, according to a
spokeswoman" (Caryle Murphy, The Washington Post, November 23, 1998).
"Falwell is among a group of conservative Christian figures,
including Ron Graff, Gary North and Jack Van Impe, who are using the Internet,
videos and books to assign apocalyptic visions to Y2K. Also known as the
'millennium bug,' Y2K refers to the possibility that many computer software
prgrams and embedded microchips that use two digits for the year will not
recognize '00' as the year 2000, reading it instead as 1900" (Caryle
Murphy, The Washington Post, November 23, 1998).
"If that happens, Falwell and some other Christian conservatives
suggest, Divine Rapture may be accompanied by Civil Rapture, with dysfunctional
computers causing empty grocery shelves, failed banks, closed airports,
missing Social Security checks and dead 911 lines. While counseling against
panic, Falwell says he intends to stock up on food, sugar, gasoline - and
ammunition. 'Because if I'm blessed with a little food and my family is
inside the house with me,' the evangelist explains in the video, 'I've got
to be sure that I can persuade others not to mess with us.' Falwell adds,
however, that he 'wouldn't want to hurt anybody'" (Caryle Murphy,
The Washington Post, November 23, 1998).
Governments and computer programmers around the world are rushing
to correct the Y2K problem, and U.S. officials have said they are cautiously
optimistic that disruptions will not be major or long-lasting. Y2K's global
reach makes it a more appealing sign of Christ's anticipated return than
the natural disasters like earthquakes and
floods usually cited by modern-day prophets, said Hillel Schwartz, a cultural
historian and senior fellow at the Millennium Institute in Arlington: If
Y2K is believed to be 'the worldwide cataclysm ... then it surely must be
a sign of the second coming'" (Caryle Murphy, The Washington Post,
November 23, 1998).
"'You have these little Elmer Gantrys out there who want to
make a name for themselves,' said Vinson Synan, dean of the divinity school
at Regent University, the Virginia Beach-based college founded by Christian
broadcater Pat Robertson. Christians who spurn alarmist rhetoric about Y2K
are beginning to organize across the country - with a different message.
Any disruptions, they say, can be opportunities to bond communities"
(Caryle Murphy, The Washington Post, November 23, 1998).
"Religious broadcaster Robertson has given Y2K considerable
air time on his Christian Broadcasting Network. A CBN spokeswoman said that
more than 120,000 viewers have requested free information on Y2K offered
by the station. Robertson, who allows Y2K pessimists and optimists equal
time, said, 'There's no question there's going to be serious disruptions.'
Unlike Falwell, however, he has not attached apocalyptic meaning to Y2K,
but simply reminds viewers that a 'time of crisis is oftentimes the great
moment of revival'" (Caryle Murphy, The Washington Post, November
23, 1998).
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