Glorious Appearing (Left Behind) Reviews

• Following the Mad Hatter down Hate-Mongers Lane

  
  By APZGPCMD4H05O on 2004-10-29
  I want to start off by saying that the character named 'Jesus' in the book "Glorious Appearing" bears no resemblance to the Jesus I feel is the Lord and Savior.
  
  That said: let me see if I understand this book.
  It is the End Times. Jesus returns. He slaughters millions upon millions of human beings, giving no mercy, and taking no prisoners.
  Then, he murders the horses these people rode in on. And the blood runs in deep rivers.
  
  He accomplishes all this killing by speaking Bible verses. These Bible verses are taken out of their scriptural context and placed in Jesus' mouth in order to advance the plot.
  
  Jesus kidnaps every remaining human being on the planet and brings him or her to Jerusalem for judgement. They are judged, not for their sins, but for each person's personal religious choice. The ground opens up and the followers of "aberrant" religions fall, screaming, into an eternal Lake of Fire. The earth closes over them. (The Jews, Hindus, Muslims, and Buddhists, and I dare say the Unitarians, and possibly even the Quakers, Catholics and Greek Orthodox are all consigned to the flames.)
  
  The remaining survivors, called "believers" (allegedly Fundamentalist Christians and Messianic Jews) cheer Jesus on and call his actions "righteous". They now enjoy their Messianic Era eating free food; residing in a freshly scrubbed Jersualem; and praising Jesus.
  
  So, in this book "Jesus" is portrayed as doing some pretty awful things, sometimes to some very decent people (and horses). And the "believers" are portrayed as beings without compassion, remorse, or love. They don't even care about each other.
  
  And this is the Messianic Era?
  
  Not a chance.
  
  From a Christian point of view, this book was a terrible disappointment.
  
  

• Oh God! When will it end?

  
  By A3DAOZAWVB0M6X on 2004-04-15
  No, not when will the end of the world come, but the end of this series. Put succinctly, reading the Left Behind series is like reading books which intentionally throw out all rules of hermeneutics and exegesis. This series is the epitome of eisegesis: reading into the Bible what one wants it to say. This series is the epitome of literalizing clear apocalyptic Scriptures. I won't run on about the fact that they ignore every single time reference in Scripture concerning "the last things" (eschatology is not the study of end-times, but the study of last things; there is a huge difference).

  I could never write what all needs to be said here to expose this series, but for starters, read "Last Days Madness." If you can't figure it out from reading this book, there is nothing else that can be said to open the eyes of the mind.

  I find it agonizing to think of the millions and millions of people who have been deceived by Lahaye, Jenkins, Van Impe, Lindsay, Darby, Scofield, and others.

  All this hoopla over a doctrine that didn't exist until 1830, the result of a woman speaking in tongues. Truly, it doesn't take much to convince the weakminded when sensationalism rather than truth is the goal.
  
  

• Book #12 grabbed my heart like none of the others.

  
  By A16F1PDFT5CL6 on 2004-03-31
  When I first discovered the LB series, books 1-4 were already out. I loved them, passing them on to friends and family. We have all eagerly awaited each new book, but none more than this one. Usually, I stay up all night when I get the latest book and devour it. With this book, I couldn't. Several times throughout, I had to put the book down as I was crying so hard. If you know Jesus and hunger to be with him, and with other loved ones who have gone ahead, you will have the same experience. Yes, these books contain fictional characters, but they are built on very real Bible prophecy. You may not agree with LaHaye's and Jenkins' interpretations, but neither of them put these books out as gospel. And their love of God, His Son, and His Word, come through on every page, which is what they're really trying to share with their readers. I don't know if their interpretations are all correct. But their message of God's love and redemption will speak to any reader who wants to open their heart and mind to Him. One problem. I don't want to pass this book around, so I must get another one to share!
  
  

• What a letdown

  
  By A27950GV5XJ1T5 on 2004-09-28
  Sorry, this book made me regret reading the whole series. It may be biblical but it's not the Jesus I've come to know in my heart.
  
  

• Fails a difficult task

  
  By A1IOJE0W1NXOSE on 2004-05-10
  Writing about the Glorious Appearing of Christ and the cataclysmic events which led up to it is truly a daunting task.
  Words alone cannot describe the terrible warfare which will take place, nor the glory of the Lord at that time. Among the authors' goals seems to be to translate the words of Revelation into a story that modern people can understand and to encourage people to search in their Bibles for the truth. In these two things the authors have been hugely successful, as evidenced by the sales of their books. As for this particular book, it is not one of their best. The authors try to include as much Bibical knowledge as they can, and as a result they lose the human element. Some of the events seem too simplistic and the characters do a lot of joking around about the single most important event in history. The book seems shallow and anti-climactic after the buildup of the previous 11 books. I hope that this series will encourage the writing of better fiction, based on the Bible, in the future.
  
  
• Glorious appearing: Hitler returns!
  By A2ICW5OUWX2A2V on 2005-11-21
  Oh dear, where to start?...
  
  Best to say it up front. This book is garbage. Pure, fear based Christian propaganda. And it's garbage.
  
  I should say right now that I am not a Christian. I do admire and respect Jesus very much. I love his teachings of love, forgiveness and acceptance. I look to him as an elder brother who lived his life as an example of how we all can live if we really want to know God. I admire his teachings that love, not worship of him, is the way to heaven (I am the way, the truth, and the life is really, "If you want to know God as I know God, then live your life as I have lived mine")
  
  Imagine my disgust to find out that the Jesus in this book isn't Jesus.
  
  It's downright frightening to see how popular the "Left behind" book series is. It's frightening because these books preach fear, seperation, threats, Chrisitan exclusivness, etc. The final (thank God) book in the series is the atrocity called "Glorious appearing." After reading the book, it became clear that the authors left out an important subtitle: "Hitler returns".
  
  I have absoloutly no interest in this series, yet I was curious to see how the authors portrayed the return of Jesus. Afterwards I found myself thinking, "How can anyone want the Jesus in this book to come back?" It should be said that the Jesus in this book is an unholy monster, who has no qualms about butchering millions, makes it so that one group of people survive, and wants to take over the world. Does that sound like a certian German dictator to you?
  
  The portrayal of Jesus Christ, one of the most peace loving beings in history, one of the most forgiving and accepting people who ever lived, is blasphemous. I'm sure that Christains are aware that their bible says "The devil can appear as an angel of light". Well guess what folks! The devil returns in this book as Jesus!
  
  The first half of the book is strictly Christian propoganda. It's almost laughable how often charachters say things along the line of, "What's going to happen?" "Well, according to Mark 12: 13, Jesus will..." or "I'm frightened!" "You shouldn't be, because Luke 25: 10 says that...". And don't forget that lots of charachters continuosly talk about how forgiving and loving Jesus is. After ten minutes I was laughing at how pathetically obvious the Christian propoganda was. This is obviously a series designed to get people to join Christianity by scaring the crap out of them.
  
  The problems start showing up when the main charachters (all ten of them) start going on about how Jesus is kind, loving, caring, how he's here to save the world, save sinners, etc. But when Jesus actually shows up, he goes completely against everything that is said about him.
  
  How so? Well, he loves buthering millions of non-believers by making them explode, ripping out eyes, organs, etc. At one point the book describes how the blood of millions of dead people congeals together to form a swamp (I really wish I was making that up!). Does that sound like the loving, caring Jesus that the majority of the Christians know and love?
  
  And what is absoloutly awful and unforgivable is that "Jesus" uses bible quotes as an excuse for his unforgivable actions of horror and terror. One part of the book basically goes like this:
  
  (Jesus goes across a battlefield)
  
  Jesus: And he who walks in love knows God. He who is love has been born of God
  
  (As he talks, millions of people scream and die, blowing up from the inside and dying horrific deaths that only a sadist would do)
  
  Jesus: He who knows love, knows my father. If you know love, you know me
  
  (Millions more die. Blood gushes everywhere.)
  
  Wow. Prince of peace indeed.
  
  It gets really awful when "Jesus" starts judging people. When he sentences people to an eternity in the lake of fire, even when they were pleading for mercy, I was ready to jump in there and shout, "Hey big J! Why aren't you following your own teachings on love and forgiveness?!" I would never want to condemn anyone to the fires of hell for all eternity, even the main bad guy of the series. And yet Jesus, one of the masters of peace and forgiveness, is chucking these pleading men into the fires of hell. If I want to save and forgive them, and Jesus doesn't, then I think something is seriously wrong with this book.
  
  And the final judgement, where "Jesus" symbolically seperates the sheep from the goats, is downright offensive. "Jesus" says that God does not judge, and has placed that duty with the son. Well folks, I hope you're ready to be judged by an egotiscital fundamentalist murder who demands that you worship him, and won't hesitate to condemen you to hell for all eternity even though he loves you completly (doesn't that make so much sense? *smile*).
  
  Non-Christians will be thrilled to find out that they are f***ed, as "Jesus" sends every non-christian screaming into the fires of hell, even when, you guessed it, they are pleading for forgiveness and mercy. People are judged on thier faith, not what they have done. Absoloutly unacceptable.
  
  I can go on and on. Jesus in this book is not Jesus. This is not the peace loving, all forgiving being in the bible. None of the main charachters are interesting. The rebels are a bunch of Christ worshipping, brain dead morons who perfectly fit the steryotype of diehard fundamentalists. "Jesus" forgets almost all of his teachings when he's busy butchering and damning millions. He forgets about mercy, he forgets about acceptance and forgiveness.
  
  Even Archangel Michael and Gabriel show up, and guess what? They are a bunch of unbelivably annoying bullies! They are both apparently christians, since they constantly shout, "Bow down to Jesus!" and "Aknowledge Jesus as lord!" In fact, most of what they say has "!" at the end of it.
  
  I love doing Jesus's tree test on this book ("By your fruits you shall know them"), because it fails miserably, getting a grade of "F -". It's fruits are exclusivness, fear, uncertianty, ego boosting statements, rejection, damnation, etc. And bearing in mind that the fruits of the spirit are joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, it becomes very obvious very quickly that this book is none of those things. This book fails Jesus's tree test completely.
  
  The biggest, most unforgivable error that the book gives is teaching that God and Jesus's love, forgiveness, and acceptance have an expiration date. If you don't accept the "Jesus" from this book as your ego-filled maniac "savior" and become a Christian before the second coming, then you can pretty much kiss your ass goodbye.
  
  According to this book, Jesus and God love you with all thier hearts, but have no problem casting you into hell if you don't give in to "Jesus"'s ego filled demands that you accept him as your lord and savior.
  
  The "Jesus" in this book looks like Jesus, talks like Jesus, and walks like Jesus, yet it's actions are nothing like Jesus.
  
  I could go on and on, but I have this to say. Don't read this book. Stay far, far, far away from this piece of fear based trash. It's not worth your time, it incorrectly portrays Jesus as a scitzophrenic monster, it incorrectly portrays God as the big cop in the sky who waits to bust you at any moment, it says that Jesus's and God's love and forgiveness have an expiration date.
  
  I am not a christian, but I would think that all Christians would be crying "Blasphemy" at this fear based book.
  
  Instead of reading this, go read something more uplifting, such as the US tax code.
  
  
• who would Jesus bomb?
  By on 2004-04-12
  get real. I tolerated reading this because I fear that millions of gullible people will actually believe Tim LaHaye's view of the world. I felt a need to try to understand what they are expecting out of life.

  I learned that this view is self-righteous, arrogant, and horribly violent. It portrays Jesus as brutally unforgiving, and incapable of even tolerating anybody who disagrees with him. In the end, he humiliates his enemy.

  All of these actions are in opposition to my belief that Jesus was a man of TOTAL and ABSOLUTE peace and NON-VIOLENCE. Jesus not only turned away from violence, but healed his enemy in the Garden of Gethsemene on the even of his death.

  Only violence can come from a group of people who refuse to tolerate anybody unlike themselves, pass judgment on them, feel the need to change them, and condemn them to some kind of hell. If they believe in God, I can't picture what kind of god it is. If they believe that ALL people are children of God, they have no business passing such judgments.

  People have been praying for and expecting Armageddon since 50 A.D. IF this is actually going to happen, no human can possibly determine when. In the meantime, I don't understand why the followers of Jesus do not follow Jesus' teachings. In the meantime, we need to show our love for our fellow human beings by working to improve their lives, NOT by attempting to impose our will on them.

  Does this kind of book explain why the group of people with the strongest support for the war in Iraq are the evangelical Christians? (last I heard, 87 percent support this massacre)

  I have posed the question, "Who would Jesus bomb?" to several of these "christians." Not suprisingly, none of them has been willing (or able!) to answer. I think it forces them to consider the hypocrisy of their belief, and they are not willing to face this challenge.

  As a piece of pure fiction, this book was lively. But it should not be given the slightest credit for having any hint of truth in it. Which Bible are these people reading, anyway?

  I do not accept the hateful, violent god that is portrayed in this book.
  
  

• Whose side is Jesus on, any way?
  By on 2004-04-03
  Jenkins and LaHaye have Jesus, like a monster in a bad horror novel, do the following to the antichrist's army:

  "Men and women soldiers and horses seemed to explode where they stood... It was as if the very words of the Lord had superheated their blood, causing it to burst through their veins and skin... Even as they struggled, their own flesh dissolved, their eyes melted and their tongues disintegrated."

  First of all, why zap the horses? They aren't morally responsible for their riders' actions.

  Secondly, why couldn't Jesus just have all the bad guys die quickly and painlessly, instead of putting them through the gratuitous dismemberment? Or better yet, temporarily incapacitate them so that they have to surrender, reconsider their untenable position and possibly qualify for amnesty?

  Indeed, this portrayal of a returning Jesus would make conscientious converts wonder if they've unwittingly sided with the wrong deity. LaHaye and Jenkins present a Jesus that sounds like something the Ghostbusters, Buffy or Hellboy would have to fight!
  
  

• A comic book supervillain
  By on 2004-03-31
  I don't see how anyone could take these novels' worldview seriously. The "antichrist" is like a supervillain from a comic book. He wouldn't seem out of place as the arch-enemy of the Justice League or the X-Men. People who think that Jesus is going to drop from the sky in their lifetimes to solve their problems are going to die disappointed just like previous generations of simpletons who got caught up in this Dispensationalist nonsense.
  
  
• A glorious ending...
  By A8LT66GHJAOQY on 2004-03-30
  Glorious Appearing is the 12th and final book in the "Left Behind" series. For those not familiar with the series, Left Behind is based on the book of Revelation- it is a fictionalized account of the end times, loosely based on scripture. Prior knowledge of the series is a must before attempting this book- but I must confess, that I read only some of the series (books 1/2/4) and skipped a bunch of the middle ones. I got the last book this week and couldn't put it down, it concludes the series brillantly.

  In Glorious Appearing, the earth looks like it is at its end. Nicholas Carpathia, the anti Christ, has taken over and amassed the largest army, the Global Community's Unity Army.

  This Unity Army is laying siege on Jerusalem, where the last of the Jews and believers have sought refuge. Other Believers, including the Tribulation Force, have sought sanctuary in Petra-a fortified place. But Rayford Steele and Buck Williams are missing; Tsien Ben Judah has been killed. It seems dire for the Tribulation Force and the rest of the believers, but God has his own plan. He again sends Jesus to return to earth and defeat his enemies.
  
  Glorious Appearing is a superb ending to this series. Longtime readers wil not be disappointed to find out that the 7 years of Tribulation ends with the return of Christ. It is great to read the ending chapters and get reacquainted with past characters like Chloe, Bruce,Hattie, Albie and even Irene. Even casual readers, like myself, will find satisfaction and triumph in the ending of the book.

  I have read alot of criticisms of the series because it does not adhere strictly to scripture, but it is Fiction..and should be read as such. The book of Revelation itself is symbolic and open to interpretation and is available for everyone to read and interpret on their own. The Left Behind series is a great work of fiction...that can inspire its readers to explore their faith further and pick up their own Bible.
  
  

• now read a good book...
  By on 2004-04-10
  As Neil Pollack says "OK, folks. We've had our fun with these wacky, lurid, Christian thriller novels that one review called "unbelievably vomitous badness." But let's keep in mind that "Left Behind" novels have sold more than 60 million copies in this country and that Tim LaHaye is one of the most influential leaders of the Christian right. The Council For National Policy, an organization that he founded, was an important driving force behind the first candidacy of George W. Bush. There's more scary information about LaHaye and the CNP than I can relay here, but this excellent Rolling Stone article by Robert Dreyfuss can fill in the details of his frightening apocalyptic worldview and of his connections to Bush and his attorney general John Ashcroft.

  You may not have heard it here first, but you're hearing it now. These are not people of faith, or true Christians. These are lunatics bent on the destruction of civil society by using us as pawns in their Armageddon passion play. And our President is one of them".

  It's frightening that there are so many Americans are hooked on these awful books. Read The Good Book and when you get to the Book Of Revelations, try to understand it in historical perspective, that was it was written by oppressed Christians who were dreaming of being in a better place and damning their oppressors to a time of tribulation. The Bible is heavy on symbolism, not to be taken literally, like the evangelicals "interpret" it today.
  
  

• Glorious Appearing
  By A3F1OI69BK1AW0 on 2004-04-03
  I couldn't put this book down, especially at the physical appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. Reading how these characters each react to his coming is a humbling and inspiring to me.

  Reading this series has helped me with understanding the Book of Revelation and has encouraged me to walk in the Spirit.

  I would recommend this book to anyone and encourage everyone to read it.
  
  

• move over charles manson and jimmy jones!
  By on 2004-04-20
  A new cult is in town!

  It's not a question of "Who is this guy kidding?", because he's obviously suckered millions of people into his alternate reality.

  I am a Christian, and this book could make me want to convert - to ANY other religion. Muslim. Buddhist. Paganism, anyone? Fortunately, I have enough intelligence to know that LaHaye has written a piece of trash to make himself millions by tapping into our society's current fascination and ENJOYMENT of ultra violence (btw - I have refused to go see the Gospel According to Mel Gibson, who has also made millions on Christian violence.
  Gross - $354 million to date!)

  Is this a cult, or what?
  cult - Noun - 1a. A religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader. b. The followers of such a religion or sect.
  2 Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing.

  At the end of La Haye's ultra-violent portrayal of Jesus, the King of Peace, only those who meet the cult criteria set by Jesus are allowed to live. He first murders all of those who refuse to bow down and worship him. And then, to make it worse, he murders all of those who don't worship him the "right" way. All that remain are those who have allowed their brains and souls to be programmed identically to each other, to the point where they all hear Jesus talking to them personally. They all hear the same words, except their own names are used, and they hear in their native tongue.

  This is the reward for worshiping Jesus the "right" way. Plug me in and tell me what to do next! Their individuality is gone -the thing that makes our world so incredibly interesting.

  Besides the violence, this book portrays the single most intolerant society in the history of the world. This kind of genocide makes Hitler look like a peace loving person, since he was only going after one group of people. In Tim LaHaye's view of the future, Jesus goes after EVERYBODY BUT one group of people. Hitler wanted to murder 15 million or so Jews. Jesus decides to murder billions, and maybe only allow 15 million or so to live (these are all my estimates, by the way).

  I do believe that Jesus will forgive Tim LaHaye for using His name to spread such disgusting, violent misrepresentations of His peace loving teachings. After all, the CORE of Jesus' teaching includes "LOVE YOUR ENEMY", peace, and forgiveness. NOT - "Hate and murder all of those who disagree with you."
  
  

• Jesus and Jihad-
  By A18IF4RXLD1CI6 on 2004-07-20
  Jesus and Jihad
  By Nicholas D. Kristoff
  New York Times
  
  Saturday 17 July 2004
  
  If the latest in the "Left Behind" series of evangelical thrillers is to be believed, Jesus will return to Earth, gather non-Christians to his left and toss them into everlasting fire:
  
  "Jesus merely raised one hand a few inches and a yawning chasm opened in the earth, stretching far and wide enough to swallow all of them. They tumbled in, howling and screeching, but their wailing was soon quashed and all was silent when the earth closed itself again."
  
  These are the best-selling novels for adults in the United States, and they have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide. The latest is "Glorious Appearing," which has Jesus returning to Earth to wipe all non-Christians from the planet. It's disconcerting to find ethnic cleansing celebrated as the height of piety.
  
  If a Muslim were to write an Islamic version of "Glorious Appearing" and publish it in Saudi Arabia, jubilantly describing a massacre of millions of non-Muslims by God, we would have a fit. We have quite properly linked the fundamentalist religious tracts of Islam with the intolerance they nurture, and it's time to remove the motes from our own eyes.
  
  In "Glorious Appearing," Jesus merely speaks and the bodies of the enemy are ripped open. Christians have to drive carefully to avoid "hitting splayed and filleted bodies of men and women and horses."
  
  "The riders not thrown," the novel continues, "leaped from their horses and tried to control them with the reins, but even as they struggled, their own flesh dissolved, their eyes melted and their tongues disintegrated. . . . Seconds later the same plague afflicted the horses, their flesh and eyes and tongues melting away, leaving grotesque skeletons standing, before they, too, rattled to the pavement."
  
  One might have thought that Jesus would be more of an animal lover.
  
  These scenes also raise an eschatological problem: Could devout fundamentalists really enjoy paradise as their friends, relatives and neighbors were heaved into hell?
  
  As my Times colleague David Kirkpatrick noted in an article, this portrayal of a bloody Second Coming reflects a shift in American portrayals of Jesus, from a gentle Mister Rogers figure to a martial messiah presiding over a sea of blood. Militant Christianity rises to confront Militant Islam.
  
  This matters in the real world, in the same way that fundamentalist Islamic tracts in Saudi Arabia do. Each form of fundamentalism creates a stark moral division between decent, pious types like oneself - and infidels headed for hell.
  
  No, I don't think the readers of "Glorious Appearing" will ram planes into buildings. But we did imprison thousands of Muslims here and abroad after 9/11, and ordinary Americans joined in the torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib in part because of a lack of empathy for the prisoners. It's harder to feel empathy for such people if we regard them as infidels and expect Jesus to dissolve their tongues and eyes any day now.
  
  I had reservations about writing this column because I don't want to mock anyone's religious beliefs, and millions of Americans think "Glorious Appearing" describes God's will. Yet ultimately I think it's a mistake to treat religion as a taboo, either in this country or in Saudi Arabia.
  
  I often write about religion precisely because faith has a vast impact on society. Since I've praised the work that evangelicals do in the third world (Christian aid groups are being particularly helpful in Sudan, at a time when most of the world has done nothing about the genocide there), I also feel a responsibility to protest intolerance at home.
  
  Should we really give intolerance a pass if it is rooted in religious faith?
  
  Many American Christians once read the Bible to mean that African-Americans were cursed as descendants of Noah's son Ham, and were intended by God to be enslaved. In the 19th century, millions of Americans sincerely accepted this Biblical justification for slavery as God's word - but surely it would have been wrong to defer to such racist nonsense simply because speaking out could have been perceived as denigrating some people's religious faith.
  
  People have the right to believe in a racist God, or a God who throws millions of nonevangelicals into hell. I don't think we should ban books that say that. But we should be embarrassed when our best-selling books gleefully celebrate religious intolerance and violence against infidels.
  
  That's not what America stands for, and I doubt that it's what God stands for.
  
  -------
  
  
  
  
• How many of you have read the Bible cover to cover?
  By A3N0UD14NAJAL5 on 2004-04-02
  Not a lot I bet. So if you have time to read bad fiction written by a friend of Oral (Please send me money or I am going to lock myself in a tower because God will kill me if you don't)Roberts, then you have time to sit down with the one true GOOD BOOK and understand what it really means to be a true Christian -- someone who lives their life according to Christ's teaching of love and forgiveness.

  If you don't like reading the Bible, then go work in a soup kitchen or work in an AIDS hospice. We are called to live our lives like Christ not read books, poorly written ones at that, that defile his holiest of teachings for profit.

  I feel truly guilty for having wasted my heartbeats on this book and pray that God will forgive me.
  
  

• What bothers me
  By A24SBBS3BPA7XU on 2004-04-05
  about so many of these books is that so many people actually believe this stuff. That it WILL come true, because Tom LeHay or somebody else told them. Because it's in the Bible, a book written by MEN thousands of years ago for their own political purposes. It is NOT the word of GOD! The Rapture will NEVER happen. It's time for people to please wake up and realize that religions do nothing but DIVIDE people, cause WARS, enslave free minds, etc., etc. That many of the troubles we face as humans today are because of literal interpretations of a biblical phrase that should be rejected by our evolution of knowlege, including anti-semintism, slavery, brutality; these were primitive people describing their times . . . we as humanity need to read the bible and move BEYOND it and IMPROVE upon it with a greater understanding of humanity than they had back then.
  To actually believe this stuff as an adult is to be an adult believing in fairy tales. Do you still believe in Santa Claus? Or the tooth fairy?

  Please HUMANITY, wake up, understand that GOD is loving and caring and not into murdering anybody and maybe someday you won't want all those who don't agree with you to be murdered too.
  
  

• Sounds like good solid, militant, intolerant religionism.
  By A2XTNMW5A92P2W on 2004-07-17
  If a Muslim were to write an Islamic version of "Glorious Appearing" and publish it in Saudi Arabia, jubilantly describing a massacre of millions of non-Muslims by God, we would have a fit. We have quite properly linked the fundamentalist religious tracts of Islam with the intolerance they nurture, and it's time to remove the motes from our own eyes.

  In "Glorious Appearing," Jesus merely speaks and the bodies of the enemy are ripped open. Christians have to drive carefully to avoid "hitting splayed and filleted bodies of men and women and horses."

  "The riders not thrown," the novel continues, "leaped from their horses and tried to control them with the reins, but even as they struggled, their own flesh dissolved, their eyes melted and their tongues disintegrated. . . . Seconds later the same plague afflicted the horses, their flesh and eyes and tongues melting away, leaving grotesque skeletons standing, before they, too, rattled to the pavement."

  One might have thought that Jesus would be more of an animal lover.

  As ... David Kirkpatrick noted in an article, this portrayal of a bloody Second Coming reflects a shift in American portrayals of Jesus, from a gentle Mister Rogers figure to a martial messiah presiding over a sea of blood. Militant Christianity rises to confront Militant Islam.

  This matters in the real world, in the same way that fundamentalist Islamic tracts in Saudi Arabia do. Each form of fundamentalism creates a stark moral division between decent, pious types like oneself - and infidels headed for hell.

  (words above quoted from NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF's July 17, 2004
  column in the New York Times. Below, my own words.)

  Well, if rolling back about 1,000 years of progress in religious tolerance is a good thing, then this book must be a blessing to the world. If insisting on the literal truth of ancient myths is the mark of education, then fans of this book must count themselves among the most educated.

  It's positively chilling to find that the sales of a series such as this can consistently become #1 on the three major bestseller lists: the hardcover fiction lists of the New York Times and Publishers' Weekly, and the consolidated list of USA Today.

  If ignorant religious intolerance suits your vision of how to live in the world, you should certainly enjoy this piece of nonsense.
  
  

• More Proof that Americans are Dumb
  By A3OJWZHWPNS4FT on 2004-06-09
  I once read the first volume of this ridiculous sage for a cheap laugh (I found a discarded copy and read it on a London-DC flight, and I also rented the Scripture Force movie or whateer it was called). I was flabbergasted. The writing style is execrable, the storyline of course idiotic, the details laughable, but the overall tone was of really offensive smugness, identical to those "In Case Of Rapture This Car Will be Driverless" bumper stickers. In fact, you can call this whole series a 12 volume version of that bumper sticker, but less entertaining. By the way, the really funny thing about these books is how they portray the people who, more or less, run the world. It's a description of media personalities, UN officials, government leaders, et al as imagined by a couple of clueless hicks. Of course, their target market being other clueless hicks, they at least made some bucks fleecing you readers. PTL.
  In sum, the popularity of this series is exactly why educated Europeans look at Americans with a sense of bewilderment and contempt.
  
  
• A synopsis to save you from hours, days, weeks of dreck
  By A3J0ED60F47JOO on 2005-07-28
  To all of you who are non-Christians and have read this series because you've become involved in the characters and their epic struggle, let me save you some time if you're considering reading this book. In a few lines here is the entire book for you.
  
  1. Guy says "Look, it's Jesus!"
  2. Jesus says "Yes, I am Jesus!"
  3. Guy says "Jesus, you're awesome!"
  4. Jesus says "Yes, I am awesome!"
  5. Guy says "no really dude, you're AWESOME!"
  6. Jesus says "Yes, I AM awesome!"
  7. Jesus expounds with pages of "I am, I did, I will, I have, I etc., etc., etc." amidst echoing choruses.
  8. Repeat items 1-7 for every major, minor, peripheral, oblique and once heard of character in the entire series that still draws breath.
  
  Oh, and somewhere in the book the bad guys lose and are sent to the fiery pit the end.
  
  This is not a criticism of Christianity or the Bible, it is a criticism of authors who took their standard 80% story/20% proselytizing fluff and completely reversed it for this book. Two chapters of story do not a book make.
  
  
• Another Doctrine of Ethnic Cleansing?
  By AWM3G5E4X0JUL on 2004-07-19
  In some ways this book is funny yet profoundly stupid. The writers Tim F. Lehaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have gloriously taken away the essence of Jesus Christ, which is Love. Their version of the bible is a doctrine of fear(almost sounds like the fear tactics of the current American Bush administration). And since when does Jesus like to kill horses? This is an important clue already that this is pure wacko stuff. Have we got another childish and primative interpretation of the bible here by these two silly-billys?

  Yes,people have a right to believe in a God who likes to rip open bodies and melt flesh into bloody messes. But I only hope they can keep their religious intolerance to themselves. If there is a devil, he certainly did a good job on these pious people who claim to love the book.
  
  

• What Can I Say?
  By A32LE4X9MWW9FF on 2006-12-30
  The book says that I die. It literally says that I, someone who has never met Timothy LaHaye in my life, deserve to be KILLED, and not just killed but eviscerated, and it celebrates my sentencing to a lake of fire as "righteous". WTF? This is how it describes my death:
  
  "But even as they struggled, their own flesh dissolved, their eyes melted and their tongues disintegrated... leaving grotesque skeletons standing, before they, too, rattled to the pavement."
  
  These aren't evil people. They're just people who don't believe in Jesus! That's what Jesus does to every single non-Evangelical and non-Christian on the planet in Timothy LaHaye's book. Take a good look, because there's only one type of person who could possibly enjoy reading this book, and if there were a benevolent God those people would be put away in a very distant place where they could no longer be a danger to the rest of us.
  
  
• This is how Christians think of non-Christians
  By A1AMEXLN5RHJR on 2004-04-04
  If there's one thing this series shows is how Christians tend to view nonbelievers. We are the enemy to be killed, conned or whatever they desire to get the job done.

  This series has always betrayed nonbelievers as crule, evil and utterly without any moral character. Anything departing from stric Judo-Christianity is potrayed as evil out to get the innocent Christians. After all even if they lie, murder, cheat and steal there forgiven by Christ so it matters not...

  Often you see reviews for the glorious return in this travesty. The end, all nonbelievers are sent to burn forever and ever and the believers are grateful it's not them and happy to see it happening.

  This is there religion live in fear of hell and do as the Bible says to avoid it, and rejoice in the suffering of those that choose not to be afraid.

  Remember this next time some Bible thumper says they love you.

  Hail Lord Ingui a God worth worshiping! A God of life!
  (Okay so I'm a Pagan at least my Gods wont go sending people to Eternal Torment for not believeing in them.)
  
  

• Disappointing
  By A1UGTG677863NI on 2004-07-28
  Just as a preface, I found the previous books in the Left Behind series flawed but engaging enough to warrant reading. For a lengthy and relatively faithful rendition of how Revelation might play out in our world, I thought the books were suitable--though I would love to see this story retold more realistically and not in a preaching-to-the-choir sort of way.
  
  All that said, Glorious Appearing was a large disappointment for a variety of reasons, most of which are problems in the writing rather than the content of the source material. The first major problem is that there is zero dramatic tension once Jesus shows up. You know the good guys won't get touched and you know all the bad guys will get what's coming to them. You also know exactly what's going to happen, because all the characters have been studying the Scriptures and talking about the prophecies which will be fulfilled. I know that the fulfillment of prophecy is very important for eschatological writing, but novels need dramatic tension to keep the reader's interest. I think it would have been much more interesting to have the focal point characters NOT always in the know, and have them struggle through these experiences without knowing all the answers before hand.
  
  The second major problem is how Jesus and the angels speak: almost entirely in passages lifted straight from the Bible. I'd imagine Lahaye and Jenkins wanted to err on the side of caution here, not wanting to ascribe to Jesus anything that he might not say. That was a mistake for two reasons. From a dramatic standpoint, it made Jesus and the angels dull, their dialogue stale and tedious because we've heard it before (and in this very book series, too). From a theological standpoint, it's troubling because it feels like it's limiting Jesus. A better solution would be to have Jesus speak original, modern dialogue that fits with who he is (as presented in the Bible) and is tied closer to the context of the book.
  
  The third problem is that individual perspective is all but obliterated. Very often there will be a six-page section during which the focal character's name is mentioned once... and then somehow he or she is able to witness things such as mountains splitting in two and entire cities raised hundreds of feet. This book is written like a summary rather than a personal experience. If I wanted the broad picture from a distant point of view I would read Revelation or one of the hundreds of commentaries written on that book. When I'm reading a book--particularly one labeled as FICTION--I want to know and feel what the characters are going through. To this extent, I would rather the characters and myself know less about what's going to happen, so I can experience a much richer and less predictable drama.
  
  There are other problems with this book but those are the primary ones. If you've read most of the previous books in the Left Behind series, then you should definitely read through this one just to complete the story. If you haven't read any of the series or you've only read a book or two, you might want to reconsider before you invest your time in 12 books with a disappointing payoff.
  
  The books are based on worthwhile material (Revelation--which I'd recommend over these books any day) and the authors seem to have good intentions (though I question why they had to stretch this out over so many books if not for money-making reasons), but the execution really falls short in the end. Hopefully the financial success of this series will pave the way for another, better fictional rendering of Revelation.
  
  
• A 6. A magnificent end to this one-of a -kind series
  By AFVQZQ8PW0L on 2004-03-30
  Earth has been torn apart as the Anti-Christ has taken control of the world politically, economically and religiously. The believers who have not taken the Mark of the Beast have been deprived of their freedom, gone into hiding or fought against Nicolas Carpathia's preaching and the powers he possesses from Satan. Jews have been the victim's of the Anti-Christ's hatred and many have been martyred for their beliefs. God's chosen people are supernaturally protected in Petra while the remaining Jews in Jerusalem try and hold the city against Carpathia's forces.

  Fed up with opposition to his regime, Carpathia amasses the biggest army the world has ever seen to kill the remnant in Petra and take control of Jerusalem. The ultimate battle between good and evil is about to take place and though foretold in Revelations how it will end and who receives just awards, remember that the victors write the history books.

  This is the twelfth and last book in the Tribulation series and it is the most rewarding tale of all to read because the theme is explicitly and unusually explored. No matter how powerful are the forces of darkness, one knows that the power of goodness will always defeat them. Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have created a once in a lifetime storytelling extravaganza, one that will be a classic in the years to come.

  Harriet Klausner
  
  

• Sorry, this one is an embarrassment
  By on 2004-04-02
  I was so looking forward to GA, really I was. I've read all eleven previous books in the Left Behind series, and enjoyed them all for the most part. The earlier books are clever and fascinating reads; the later ones begin a downward spiral of superficial characterization and cartoonish plotting. GA is waaaaaaaaay over the top, and the preachiness overwhelms and makes totally ineffective the characterization of Christ's opponent, Satan. Nick Carpathia is no more than a caricature in a slapstick cartoon; so are his bumbling henchmen. The grand battle is not only not a battle, it's not even a rout--the 'enemy' hasn't a single chance to prevail, so there is no drama inherent in a potentially very dramatic biblical scenario. Blood, destruction, revenge--at God's hands. Page 336 capped it for me, when the butcher, in his bloodstained apron, happily complains that all the cattle and sheep seem to volunteer themselves to be slaughtered; apparently the man has too much meat to keep fresh. SO WHY INDULGE IN A SLAUGHTER FEST? Offensive, really, and ridiculous. Does the God of these books revel in the blood, butchery and slaughter of His creations? I don't think so. I certainly hope not, because if so, He's not a god I can worship.

  Some people complain about the brutality of Christ's ordeal in "The Passion." At least Christ was not **committing** that brutality. In that movie, violence was used as a statement against violence, and to show the love of Christ in sacrifice, IMHO. The Christ of this book is as brutal and vengeful as could be conceived, and the authors even make the senseless painful slaughter of sinless animals a God-given right. (As Ghandi said, the character of a nation (and of a person) is revealed by how it/they treat animals.) But enough of about that.

  I don't know this GA version of God, thank God. And I don't think I'll be reading any more of the Left Behind books, sad to say. I'm so disappointed--GA could have been uplifting, and instead I found it disturbing and depressing, and overall a poor read.
  
  

• Surprise, surprise...
  By A10RSL3ZILONIO on 2004-11-07
  It is unfortunate to see what the Left Behind series has been turned into. What started out as a gripping, exciting work of fiction through the first six books or so became an overblown vessel of religious ranting and raving...sort of a soapbox for psychotically devout Christians. I remember a time when children were performing acts of witchcraft, satanism, and sacrifice in the belief that the world of Dungeons & Dragons was somehow real, and the seriousness in which some people have taken the fantasy-filled world of Left Behind is even more terrifying, spawning religious cults that would make David Koresh look like a lame duck. These books are an interpretation of the authors' true religious beliefs, or at least I haven't seen any evidence from them indicating otherwise. Thousands of readers are following, as books enhancing the series are spinning off left and right. The brutal finale of "Glorious Appearing" might not be much of a surprise, then, after looking back at the series as a whole and realizing it was page after page of religious propaganda, with an almost medieval approach toward terrifying readers into "believing". With millions upon millions of people remaining on this planet who have never heard the name of Jesus Christ and have developed their own spritual beliefs that date back thousands of years (long before Christ's birth), it is hard to believe that these people would be punished for worshipping such "false" idols. I don't feel that God and Jesus Christ are as jealous and vindictive as these books (and the King James bible itself) would have us believe...but, if this does happen to be an accurate portrayal of how Christ will be after his return, I could only hope that I have the chance to spit in his face before being cast into hell.
  
  
• This Story should have ended 5 books ago.
  By on 2004-04-01
  The first few books in the series were good, fast paced, things seemed to happen.
  Then i think the publishers realized that they had money making machine going, so they made the authors stretch it out.
  This book is one of the worst offenders of the 12. Without giving too much away, this story could have been told in 150 pages, not 400. The characters just wonder around worrying about when Christ will return for what seems like forever. And it becomes very obvious that there are too many characters as the author bounces back and forth between them to let us know what's happening, well..... it's pretty much the same for everybody "When is he coming? Won't it be great when he does?" This goes on and on for pages.
  The "ending" doesn't drag as badly as the rest of the book, and I admit that the images portrayed gave me chills as i invisioned myself seeing Jesus for the first time (although i don't plan on being around after the rapture)
  But since Jenkins has admitted that this ISN'T THE LAST BOOK, there will be another sequel, and another prequel for a total of 14 books, i have to admit that i will not be spending my money on anymore in this series.
  I can't see what is left to write about for 400 pages (and i seriously don't care) but of course they will find a way to do it, there's money to be made after all!

  but of course, that's just one man's opinion.
  
  

• Spare me that "old-time religion"
  By A8F2AZWB20X1H on 2004-07-18
  Now let me see if I got this right: Jesus returns to earth on a bloody rampage in which he lifts his left hand, a chasm opens in the earth, and every non-Christian on the planet tumbles howling into Hell.

  Wow, Jesus isn't even content with that. He has to start a bloody massacre with humans and horses "splayed and filleted" like so much meat in a butcher's shop.

  The Jesus in the New Testament is the God of Love. The Jesus in these pages is more like a murdering Moloch.

  One can only imagine that if Jesus actually read intolerant, bigoted rant that passes itself off as a book, He might come storming back down to earth yelling, "I said WHAT?!!?"
  
  

• God is Love
  By AV4GSTTTCIT05 on 2005-07-27
  "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?"
  
  When I read the New Testament, I find a God of love and compassion. In these books I find a message of hate and fear. Why are you so eager to condemn those around you who don't believe exactly as you do? The history of early Christianity isn't one of a uniform understanding of Christ's message. If even those right after Christ couldn't get is right, why, on earth, do you believe that you understand the exact message of God? I would suggest that you work on bringing yourself closer to God's love and spend less time imagining the punishment of those who don't conform to your idea of how God wants us to live.
  
  
  
• This book is an embarrassment
  By on 2004-07-18
  I'm sorry, but after reading a few pages of this book, it is apparent that the authors are merely cloaking their brand of racial and ethnic intolerance as pseudo-pious narrative.

  The book's depicitons of violence and bloodshed are shocking to say the least. Far worse are the predications of violence based on differences in faith.

  Christianity teaches to "love thy neighbor," yet the story we have in this book says that if your neighbor is of a different religion or ethnicity, then they will die an agonizing death at the hands of the Messiah. This is not why God made us all different. This is not what the United States stands for.

  I seriously question the authors' intent in writing this piece. Also at question are the hearts and minds of those who blindly accept this dribble.
  
  

• Armageddon (Left Behind #11)
• The Remnant: On the brink of Armageddon (Left Behind)
• Kingdom Come: The Final Victory: The Final Victory (Left Behind Sequel)
• Desecration: Antichrist Takes the Throne (Left Behind No. 9)
• The Mark: The Beast Rules the World (Left Behind No. 8)