2011 end times prediction

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American Christian radio host Harold Camping stated[when?] that the rapture and Judgment Day would take place on May 21, 2011,[1][2] and that the end of the world would take place five months later on October 21, 2011.

Camping, who was then president of the Family Radio Christian network, claimed the Bible as his source and said May 21 would be the date of the rapture and the day of judgment "beyond the shadow of a doubt".[3] Camping suggested that it would occur at 6 p.m. local time, with the rapture sweeping the globe time zone by time zone,[4][5] while some of his supporters claimed that around 200 million people (approximately 3% of the world's population) would be 'raptured'.[6] Camping had previously claimed that the rapture would occur in September 1994.

The vast majority of Christian groups, including most Protestant and Catholic believers, did not accept Camping's predictions;[7] some explicitly rejected them,[8][9][10][11] citing Bible passages including the words of Jesus stating "about that day or hour no one knows" (Matthew 24:36). An interview with a group of church leaders noted that all of them had scheduled church services as usual for Sunday, May 22.[12]

Following the failure of the prediction, media attention shifted to the response from Camping and his followers. On May 23, Camping stated that May 21 had been a "spiritual" day of judgment, and that the physical rapture would occur on October 21, 2011, simultaneously with the destruction of the universe by God.[13][14] However, on October 16, Camping admitted to an interviewer that he did not know when the end would come,[15] and made no public comment after October 21 passed without his predicted apocalypse.[16]

In March 2012, Camping "humbly acknowledged" in a letter to Family Radio listeners that he had been mistaken, that the attempt to predict a date was "sinful", and that critics had been right in pointing to the scriptural text "of that day and hour knoweth no man". He added that he was searching the Bible "even more fervently [...] not to find dates, but to be more faithful in our understanding."[17]

  1. ^ "A Conversation With Harold Camping, Prophesier of Judgment Day". New York Magazine. May 11, 2011. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  2. ^ Goffard, Christopher (May 21, 2011). "Harold Camping is at the heart of a mediapocalypse". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  3. ^ "End of Days in May? Believers enter final stretch". Associated Press, cited at NBC News. January 23, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2011.[dead link]
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Amira was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Scocca : Countdown to Armageddon: Maybe the World Will End Friday Night (or Sunday Morning)". Archived from the original on June 2, 2011. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference JudgmentDay was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "May 21st, The New Christian Doomsday". ReliJournal. May 6, 2011. Archived from the original on May 19, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
  8. ^ "Letter to Harold Camping (Family Radio) True Prophet or False?" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2010. Retrieved May 10, 2011.
  9. ^ "Billboards Marking Jesus' Return in May 'Misguided,' Says NT Scholar". December 16, 2010. Retrieved May 10, 2011.
  10. ^ McLaren, Brian D. (May 10, 2011). "End times theology: an insider's guide". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 11, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2011.
  11. ^ Marianne Medlin (May 20, 2011). "Catholic scholar dismantles May 21 Judgment Day claims". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved May 20, 2011.
  12. ^ Church Leaders Across Denominations Reflect on Camping's Prediction Archived May 31, 2019, at the Wayback Machine NBC29, May 17, 2011. Retrieved May 18, 2011.
  13. ^ Radio host says Rapture actually coming in October Archived May 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine – Globe and Mail. May 23, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
  14. ^ "Rapture: Harold Camping issues new apocalypse date". BBC News. May 24, 2011. Retrieved September 23, 2011.
  15. ^ "Harold Camping Exclusive: Family Radio Founder Retires; Doomsday 'Prophet' No Longer Able to Work". The Christian Post. October 24, 2011. Archived from the original on October 26, 2011. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference Judgment Day doesn't dawn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Letter from Harold Camping to the "Family Radio Family", reproduced at Charisma News, March 7, 2012