Immanentize the Eschaton

A concept created by political philosopher Eric Voegelin, “Immanentize the Eschaton” has become for some a sort of rallying point for the cynicism of the post-modern age. Whether one believes the Powers-That-Be are conspiring to bring about the End of the World, believes fervently in a religious prophecy or other eschatology, or simply enjoys the references to The Illuminatus! Trilogy (or perhaps even William F. Buckley, who popularized the phrase); one must admit, it does have its relevance nowadays.

Voegelin used the term in reference to what he saw as a Gnostic influence on modern politics. He recognized various political movements, particularly communism and Nazism, were set forth by an elite group of people who believed they possessed special, secret knowledge and even attempted to ‘create heaven on earth’ – or immanent-ize the eschaton. A grab for power based on totalitarianism and social alienation, as he saw it.

From the back cover of my book, “A secretive and selfish elite has kept spiritual knowledge as well as Earth’s true history and science hidden from the masses for centuries. Today, technology, religion, politics and apocalyptic scenarios continue to serve their agenda of ultimate global control.”

End Times scenarios are scattered liberally across our cultural landscape. Are we simply reacting to a growing sense of unease in our Orwellian nightmare, or is our subconscious trying to tell us something? 2012 and the end of the Mayan calendar cycle has brought other prophecies, Earth-shattering weapons technologies and astronomical warnings to the forefront. I devote a chapter in my book to such concepts, because I find them all strangely synchronistic. Aside from galactic alignment, devastating solar flares and the possibility of Planet X making its swing by our solar system and hastening a polar shift, our own weapons technologies are perhaps among the scariest to fathom. From Tom Beardon’s Fer-de-Lance, “If significant scalar effects are produced on Earth in a ‘pulse’ mode…the coupled resonant response from the Sun could be disastrous. The simplest Doomsday simulation would be for a violent expulsion of solar electromagnetic energy and particles…In that case, the fiery destruction of the Earth, strongly indicative of Biblical prophecy, would result. Particularly sensitive are the resonances of Sun-Earth, Sun-Moon and Earth-Moon systems.” Interesting to note the recurrence of such a fiery doomsday in over a dozen books of the Bible, the Koran, Zoroastrian scripture, Native American prophecy, and others. If such weaponry were the cause of our ultimate destruction, I would say someone has indeed done a very good job immanentizing the eschaton. Tesla would be mortified.

And there are other prophecies to be aware of. Christian End Times prophecy predicts Israel becoming a nation again and Hebrew returning as a spoken language; we take this for granted now, but this might have seemed impossible to our grandparents in their youth. Another prophecy involves rebuilding Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem, which is tricky since the Temple Mount is currently occupied by the Muslim Dome of the Rock. But you can be sure, there are groups ready with the blueprints. Also the rise of a great peacemaker/Anti-Christ figure; popular nominees include Maitreya (and more recently, Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda) who will unite the world in one government and one religion. Back to Herr Voegelin and the Powers-That-Be; some point to certain US foreign and internal policies as being generated by the “New World Order”, the as-of-yet unrealized goal (?) of the world’s leading politicians and businessmen. I touch on this in my book too – make Machiavelli proud; manipulate the masses into misery and chaos, then offer to fix it. They’ll never know the difference. Fnord.

Lao Tzu wrote, “The master observes the world, but trusts his inner vision.” From my book, “Be aware of these forces, but never give in to fear. The battle is not fought in the outer world, but in our minds and spirits…Learn to create a new reality in harmony with the Tao. Just by changing our minds, we can change the world.” Whatever happens, this is the Way to peace. It’s Surfing the Tao. Immanentize the Eschaton? Bring it on, I’m ready!

The End of the World As We Knew It

The world we knew ended long ago.

Didn’t we know a place of peace before?

Perhaps it was only a dream.

Our planet suffers now

As a child left alone in the wilderness

Ignorance leads to starvation.

I cannot grieve for this doomed existence,

Yet I will know the sound of its final demise.

Not World War III.

Not a giant asteroid.

Not another ice age.

Not the anti-Christ.

Not the Battle of Armageddon.

Not the slaying of the dragon.

When every child’s tears turn to laughter,

This is the beginning of the world as we knew it.

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