When I was a student at Michigan State University in 1970, I took a social anthropology class in what was then called “Millenistic Cults.” More recent terms are “millenarianism” and closely related “messianism” (T. Flanagan, T. De Bruin, 2023, Canadian Encyclopedia). These terms, along with “eschatology”, all relate to small, insular groups and their expectations of “end- times” transitioning into a changed era and the appearance of a messiah saving a chosen few believers from cataclysm. As Christians, we are taught such things, but the concept is surprisingly widespread across cultures. Judaism and Islam join the Christians in these beliefs. Hinduism and Buddhism have similar religious teachings. The Pacific Islanders’ “cargo cults” of WWII and the Native American “Ghost Dance” in the late 1800s also represented end- time transitions into a better world. My thought on the universality of such a belief system is that humans experience endings in the natural world they live in, so “time” as we know it would have an end also, or at least a transition. The spiritual nature of end-time belief systems indicates a relationship to something greater than our physical humanity.
The course I took at MSU focused on Christian cults expecting the immediate Second Coming of Christ. The first group formed approximately seventy years after Christ was crucified. There are numerous examples since. Many were in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, resulting in some familiar groups like the Shakers. Philip Jenkins published a book on messianic movements in America titled “Mystics and Messiahs: Cults and New Religions in American History”. There was even a Christian messianic movement in China (1850-1864).
Most of these movements were started by a single individual who professed to have been given the actual time (and sometimes the place) of Christ’s return. The charismatic leader gathered believing followers together for the “Rapture,” where the chosen would join Jesus in Heaven. In preparation, the leader instructed the followers to surrender all earthly possessions, all relationships with non-believers, and gather into a tight, insular cult. Eternal damnation in hell was the threat for disloyalty to the leader. When the specified time passed without Christ and the Rapture occurring, the followers were left confused and without earthly resources. Sometimes the charismatic leader left enriched. The end days prophecies include the AntiChrist, causing a war between good and evil, resulting in the Armageddon (Revelations 16:16).
The current messianic cult in America is quite different from previous cults. Historically, the followers would prepare and then wait for the prophesied cataclysmic event to happen. They did not have the resources to make the apocalypse happen. But the current American cult has the American nuclear weaponized military and Legislative branches of government, who are abdicating their constitutional oaths out of fear and loyalty to the US president. The American Millenarian Cult is actively preparing for and instigating the Apocalypse. Pentagon officials hold prayer meetings in high offices, preparing leadership for the “holy war” in the Middle East. Religious leaders preach the sacred duty of our military to prepare and fight in Armageddon with all the resources of American military might. Professional career military leaders who are not “believers” have all been fired or relieved of duty.
Historic charismatic leaders encouraged their followers to disavow all earthly trappings. The current “charismatic leader” is encouraging his followers to enrich themselves as fast as possible by any means possible. We are seeing gilded statues of the leader being erected and names changed to glorify Donald J. Trump. Buildings and monuments are destroyed and resurrected to glorify the cult leader.
Another difference of the modern cult is how the “non-believers” are treated. Historically, the cult believed the “others” would simply descend into hell when the sanctified rose into heaven with Jesus. But America’s current cult leaders are actually creating “hell on earth” for non-members here and around the world. Cutting off AID (Agency for International Development) funding for food, agriculture and medical resources has left millions starving for lack of promised help. Many more are dying from a lack of medical necessities traditionally supplied by America. The current cult is selling American publicly owned lands into the private ownership of wealthy believers. This is a forced divestment of average American citizens who have limited resources to stop the theft of public lands. The reduced funding for Medicaid, food supplemental programs, and education creates deepening poverty. Housing, clean air and water policies are abandoned by the cult, threatening the health and well-being of citizens by the millions. Legal and social safety nets protecting the vulnerable are being erased with impunity.
Failed millenistic cults left a lot of economic and social damage in their wake. But nothing compares to the damage being done today. Domestic and international mistrust, chaos, fear, pain and suffering are allowed and even promoted by individuals sanctimoniously following the “chosen one” who builds golden temples to himself and enriches his followers. Do you believe end times are upon us with Armageddon, the Rapture, and Donald Trump as the “chosen one”? If so, that puts you as the most recent addition to a long, long list of failed cult followers since the crucifixion of Christ. An associate many years ago proclaimed, “The last true Christian died on the cross.” I didn’t believe him then, but now I wonder at his words.
Remember what Christ said in Matthew 25:40 “….whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” His teaching is that serving the poor and vulnerable is the same as serving Him. In Matthew 25:45, Jesus implies that neglecting or ignoring the marginalized is ignoring Him. In His parable of the sheep and goats, the “goats” are not condemned for active malice but for failing to help the hungry, thirsty, naked, and sick. The “goats” of today would include modern-day political and civic leaders who turn their backs on the basic needs of their community members while securing their own wealth and power. It would also include good people who don’t speak up. I think cowardice is the hallmark of a failed faith in the Divine despite professing belief. So while we wait for the prophesied return of Christ (or any cultural story of end-times), let us tend to the basic needs of people of any race, creed, or color, so Jesus will know who to elevate.
