Eschatology of the Bible and Xi Jinping's Keynote speech July 2016

 

Koot van Wyk (DLitt et Phil; ThD) Visiting Professor, Department of Liberal Education, Kyungpook National University, Sangju Campus, South Korea, Conjoint lecturer of Avondale College, Australia

 

The 1st of July 2016 Xi Jinping, president of China held for their party congress celebration of 95 years of history, a speech outlining with Chinese “wisdom” and Chinese “proverbs” the Chinese “eschatology” for the future. Ever since the beginning of the party, said Ping, the Chinese people were dreaming of rejuvenation. What Ping was saying is that it appears that this dream is ever elusive since he said that he does not think that they have reached “rejuvenation” in 2016 but that he will try his best. He also talked about the fight against corruption in the party that should be fought in all its forms. They all should pledge allegiance to a socialism with Chinese characteristics. Of course the “machine-like” appearance of the congress sitting totally silent, with no motion and in boxes of carefully packed arrangements clustered together appearing very similar to what one finds in Pyungyoung’s DPRK congress. Only now and then hands are all raised to clap as if someone was asking all to do so in a practice before. Cameras of CCTV role over the faces and no one blinked an eye but displayed alert of the highest form. Something that in my practical life as a teacher not a single class of mine has ever given me. What is the difference? What is there in their chief’s meeting and ours that are different? Are they afraid of the cameras? Are there consequences if you seem disinterested? Everyone grabbed their pens to underline when he said: “everyone in the party should be appointed because of ability without discrimination of race or where they come from”. Fundamentals of any democracy. It is been said in every government all over the globe and yet one finds cronyism and other –isms when it comes to the appointments. The main point is that the Chinese “Bewusstsein” expects a time in future when all will rejuvenate. All will be freshened-up. One can call this elusive goal in Chinese Communistic rhetoric “the already that is not yet” as Christians are describing the Kingdom of God to come in the present world. There is a “cultic” swinging of the camera over the hammer and sickle plated in the front of the hall every now and then. It is almost political religion. Their enemy is described by Ping as those in Taiwan that want to be separatistic, an attitude and move that Chinese mainland and the CPC will not accept at all. They call it “one country, two systems-policy”. Ping mentioned that.

The European “Bewusstsein” is an amalgamation of Roman, Christian, European cultural elements and religious jargon always around a future time when all will be united and live happily ever after. E. Otto described this situation in his article in 2014 “Das Christliche-Judische Erbe” (see Academia online). Brexit happened just seven days before this keynote speech. While the Chinese partymembers sits quietly up straight in their machine-like appearance, the European congress with the Brexit game-changers attending could stand up and criticize the move of their members. A war of words between Euro ministers and British parlamentarians. England imploded and like a turtle suddenly retreated back to England causing 1.3 trillion dollars to be lost in the USA on Friday and another 2 trillion dollars to be lost elsewhere on Monday. The game-changers made reckless choices since the Referendum was not suppose to be called in the first place, since it is not necessary to ask and secondly, the activists of the Referendum to leave did what Confucius, the Chinese philosopher said should not be done: “Do not burn a bridge unless you have built another”. The problem is: the game-changers in Brexit have no post-Brexit agenda, no bridge after they burnt that one.

Eschatology is a knowledge of what is going to happen in the future based upon embedded texts in the Bible helping one to see it. Knowledgeable about future predictions does not make one saved, it only helps one to understand and not get worried. Even if one knows how to predict future events and one does not have agape (Godly love) one is nothing. So the eschatological prophet Isaiah in the Hebrew fame said in Isaiah 24:4 that leadership will fade away in the endtime: “the exalted of the people [their leaders] of the earth fade away”. Cameron faded away Friday 23rd of June 2016 before everyone’s eyes. Layministries will be important (Isaiah 24:2) “people will be like the priest”. Debtors and creditors will be equal in status (Isaiah 24:2). Pollution will be over the earth (Isaiah 24:5). Global warming is at stake (Isaiah 24:6). Migrations are in place (Isaiah 24:1 “scatters its inhabitants”. Terror confronts the people of the earth (Isaiah 24:17). Cities of chaos are broken down (verse 10) and desolation is in the city (verse 12). Signals of the endtime. In verse 15 the Lord will come in future (Isaiah 24:15ff.).

But the Roman Catholic church banned any form of eschatological scenarios just the same as the Romans did since it led people from time to time to take eschatological actions in their own hands to “make prophecy happen”. This is not correct and not biblical. Both for the Romans and Catholics and also those who take prophecy-activism in their own hands, except if it is the prophecy to preach the gospel all over the earth and then the end will come as Matthew 24 said in in Jesus' own words. Eusebius, Jerome and Augustine, to name a few were anti-eschatological thinkers. They favored a quietist approach and silence over future events. Fact of the matter is, in the great vision of Daniel 2 we see that the different kingdoms were following one after the other: Babylonian empire, then Medo-Persian empire followed by the Greek and Roman empires (the last in two forms: Pagan Rome between 61 BCE-538 BCE and the Holy Roman Empire between 538-1798). It was Napoleon’s general who arrested the pope bringing an end to the religious power of the Middle Ages and inaugurated the secular power concept. The “clay” and “iron” period arrived in 1798 and was to continue until Christ comes in future as the Rock to strike the image at the clay and iron section. Clay countries could be western democracy style and iron countries is probably the image of the Chinese CCTV image in their government sitting up straight without a move or emotion like dolls in a toyshop.

Dear God

We are living in the End-Time and while only a few notice it, keep us ready in our hearts for Your soon appearance on the clouds of heaven. Amen.