The enemies of the literal interpretation of the Revelation are already debunked by Jesus in Matthew 24:36-44. Historicism and Preaterism try to transform the incredible matter of the last book in a matter of daily life, and historical chronicle. They try to present the prophecies of Revelation as only exaggerated allegories of common events in human history, common events like the ones of those men who "were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark" (Matthew, 24:38). As clearly exposed by the following document, of which we present an excerpt, the lie of the "Jesuit Futurism" is another attack to the blessed word of our Lord and an attempt to divert many souls from the eternal salvation:
7. CLAIM – The Pre-Trib Rapture is Rooted in the Teachings of the Jesuits
Joe Schimmel claims that Roman Catholic Jesuit priest and theologian, Francisco Ribera (1537-1591),
developed a theology of the end-times strikingly similar to that of John Nelson Darby. Schimmel
nevertheless concedes that Ribera was an amillennialist, and that “a direct line” cannot be drawn to the
nineteenth century – quite a contradiction. Why, then, has Schimmel introduced the viewer to the Jesuits?
Rebuttal 1
As I wrote in Chapter 6 of Understanding Christian Zionism,
“…any claim that Protestant futurists in general, and Darby in particular, adopted and adapted
Ribera’s futurism is absolutely groundless. Ribera’s amillennial and Augustinian theology of
replacement, and the absence of a pretribulation Rapture position in his eschatology, completely
separates him from Darby on a theological level. This, coupled with the ‘ample and varied arsenal of
anti-Catholic polemic’ which Darby employed in his liberation of Irish peasants from the Church of
Rome, is evidence enough to destroy the artificial link critics have forged between Darby and the
Jesuits.”10
Undeterred, Schimmel devotes an entire chapter of his DVD to another Jesuit priest, Manuel Lacunza
(1731-1801), this time drawing a direct line to the nineteenth century and to Edward Irving and John
Nelson Darby, despite asserting that Lacunza’s eschatology “appears to have been influenced by…
Francisco Ribera”. Schimmel seeks to discredit Lacunza from the outset owing to the fact that Lacunza
wrote under the Jewish pseudonym, Rabbi Juan Josafat Ben-Ezra. Schimmel refers to “the deceptive pen
name” and “bogus rabbinical title,” failing to acknowledge the fact that Lacunza was on the run in exile
after being expelled from his native Chile by King Charles III of Spain, and that Lacunza’s opponents
denounced him and his book (which, among other things, addressed the corruption within the Roman
Catholic priesthood) before the Spanish Inquisition, his book being placed by Pope Leo XII on his Index of
Prohibited Books. The fact that Lacunza speaks throughout the book with great compassion about the
Jewish people may also explain his choice of pseudonym. Schimmel states that “there’s no doubt that
Irving was quite influenced by Lacunza,” even though one of his experts, Mark Patterson, who wrote his
doctoral thesis on Irving, contradicts Schimmel by stating that Lacunza’s influence on Irving is “uncertain”.
The above excerpt comes from a document entitled “Left Behind or Led Astray?” – Exposed, but let the introduction of the document talk for itself:
A new DVD documentary has just been released
by Good Fight Ministries entitled, “Left Behind or
Led Astray? Examining the Origins of the Secret
Pre-Tribulation Rapture.” Good Fight Ministries is
run by post-tribulationist Joe Schimmel, the
senior pastor at Blessed Hope Chapel in Simi
Valley, California. Schimmel’s documentary is
endorsed by evangelist Ray Comfort and Kirk
Cameron, star of the original “Left Behind”
movies. The following write-up appears on the
back cover: “Take a fascinating journey with us as
we examine the shocking origins of the secret,
pre-tribulation rapture doctrine…. Featuring expert commentary from David M. Bennett, Dr. Mark
Patterson, Jacob Prasch, Joel Richardson, and Dave MacPherson.”
The truth of the matter is that the 4½ hour film seriously distorts the historical evidence and is full of
false accusations, unsubstantiated myths, and lies.
Finally a source which put under the light of the honesty a long time lasting lie, that the Jesuits developed the Futurist reading of Revelation in order to "infiltrate the Protestant world"! The truth is that Futurism is exposing Historicism and Preaterism as human opinion and an attempt to use the Bible for worldly goals!
Download the whole document at the URL: http://www.pre-trib.org/data/pdf/Rebuttal-statement-Left-Behind-or-Led-Astray.pdf
Or go directly at the home page of the PreTrib Resarch Center website and click on:
British Scholar Exposes "Left Behind or Led Astray"
Dr. Paul Wilkinson rebuts many of the errors in recent video attack of the pre-trib rapture.
http://www.pre-trib.org/
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