[Note: I made this post originally in this thread, but since it got completely ignored (and I’m a sucker for attention), I’m starting my own thread on this topic.]
Since the election, I’ve had several people tell me that they fear Obama may be someone sinister, perhaps even “the Antichrist” – yes, some have used the word “Antichrist” without any prompting. And these are non-Christian liberals who VOTED for Obama! My fundie KGSMom does NOT believe Obama = Antichrist (she thinks Obama might usher in the “real” Antichrist, but that’s years off) but she’s hearing the same sort of “chatter” in her church group, most of whom aren’t nearly as fundamenalist as my mother (and she’s actually quite liberal, for a fundie.)
It’s no surprise, really. The common thread of these people I mentioned is that they’ve all been raised in Sunday School classes, where they talk about the End Times and The Apocalypse as if it’s something that will eventually happen. Now these deeply ingrained childhood fears are coming back to haunt us, since this man we just elected just happens to fit the profile of the fictional Antichrist. It’s just coincidence, of course (there IS no Antichrist, there will NEVER BE an Antichrist, the whole concept is fear-based and stupid!) but I’ve been reading the Bible in depth lately, and the synchronicity has never been this strong before.
Here is the dogma commonly preached as who the “Antichrist” will be:
(1) Charismatic. Yup, Obama’s got that in spades.
(2) A Peacemaker. Obama is black, pro-Muslem, and has already promised to end our stupid U.S. wars.
(3) Will come at a time of Great Crisis. Yup, I’m still watching the financial news, the stock market’s down to 8400 today…
(4) Will be hailed as The New Messiah. (And this is the part which makes me scream, “STFU, LOUIS FARRAKAN!!”)
It’s all silly fiction, of course. Turns out, like the Rapture and Hell itself, there is NO Biblical reference for “The Antichrist” in the Bible AT ALL. The word “antichrist” is only used in 2 John, and the actual text clearly refers to false prophets in general:
I’ve underlined the two parts which make it clear, when taken in context, that the Beloved Disciple John was referring only to (a) false prophets, and (b) non-Christians in general. So technically, there are millions of antichrists – all Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, New Agers and agnostics, anyone who denies the divinity of Jesus Christ is an antichrist. The SDMB itself is filled to the brim with antichrists – hey! We should have an Antichrist Dopefest! 
But, there’s more. Traditionally, the “Antichrist” is equivalent to The Beast as described in Revelation 13, which is where things get a little scary:
Clearly, to my mind (plus traditional fundamentalist propaganga such as Hal Lindsey’s The Late Great Planet Earth), this passage predicts some type of One-World Government. And I suspect the topic of the upcoming G20 summit on November 15th will directly address the need for a united one-world economy, eventually leading to some type of one-world government. (Yes, I’m aware of all the “New World Order” conspiracy theories – like Biblical prophecy, these theories are inherently fear-based, due to human’s natural tendency to Fear change and Fear the future.) I think this recent “credit crunch” – in particular the time from September to mid-October when the banks suddenly stopped lending credit to each other – really scared the shit out of a lot of people, especially the top leaders in government, commerce, and finance. We shall see how things play out – especially now that America has a new liberal president, who has promised universal health care and other left-wing ideas which, until now, have often been regarded as pure socialism…except, “socialism” is no longer a dirty word, to most Americans.
Then we get to the next passage:
Oh, shit – this is what we skeptics refer to as a “self-fullfilling prophecy.” :eek: And this is why I’ve been telling people for weeks now: “If someone takes a shot at Obama, it will NOT be a racist, it will be a crazy fundamentalist whackjob who thinks Obama is the Antichrist/Beast.” Everyone’s worried about racism, but most genuine racists simply don’t have the BALLS to try and shoot the President. OTOH, while I’m no longer a fundie Xtian, I was raised under that faith, and I remember exactly how my mind worked during that brief time when I “gave my life to Jesus Christ” – it’s not just faith, or belief. IT IS REALITY TO THESE PEOPLE. And yes, I think many of them are downright crazy enough to try and fulfill Rev. 13:3, just to satisfy the little demonic voices in their heads. And such a person would be “On A Mission”, just like John Hinkley who flew under the radar and attempted to assassinate Reagan – some lonely Xtian whackjob, isolated from most friends & family (except his church, perhaps), bereft of logic and reason, driven by repressed anger and fear, and desperate enough to attempt such a stupid, stupid stunt. And there are MILLIONS of people like that in this country!
That being said, I don’t think Barack Obama’s in any real physical danger now. Now that he’s our new President, he can remain deep behind the veil of Secret Service protection – he doesn’t have to expose himself and pretend to be “A Man of the People” by freely mingling with the Electorate. So, I think he’s safe from an assassination attempt until the next campaign cycle begins, which is at least 3½ years away. Wait…3½ years? OH CRAP! I just read the next verse:
Aw, hell. That’s the problem with playing the Bible Code game…after awhile, it’s starts to seem a little too real.
) I don’t have any insight as to what “666” really means, except that it’s clearly an ECONOMIC number. And what kind of crisis is the world experiencing right now??