| Introduction
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He (Jesus) is a Sign of the
Hour... (Qur'an, 43:61) |
A world of peace and security in which abundance will replace poverty
and justice will prevail instead of cruelty, conflict, and tension - this
is the longing of humanity. Due to all of the twentieth century's misery
and pain, not to mention the ongoing problems all over the world today,
this longing has become even more intense. A great majority of people
desperately hope for a helping hand and wait for a savior who will save
them from this misery, a person who will eliminate the negative elements
of the current system; ensure justice, peace, and security; and guide
people to the truth and all that is good.
Everyone is waiting for this salvation: the needy who wait for an extended
hand; the well-off who are in pain because of spiritual distress; and
those who long for justice, order, peace, and moral excellence. By God's
Will, this event may be very near. The developments that we see all around
us today are the signs indicating the closeness of this salvation.
The great event that will be a means of humanity's salvation is the
second coming of Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him). His return to Earth,
a belief held by both Christians and Muslims, will end this world's all-pervasive
cruelty and injustice and transform it into a place of peace, abundance,
and justice.
According to the Qur'an, approximately 2,000 years ago God thwarted
the unbelievers' plots to murder Prophet Jesus (pbuh) by raising him up
to Himself. The Qur'an and the related hadiths (sayings of the Prophet
Mohammed (may God bless him and grant him peace) tell us that he will
come back to Earth again in the End Times, the times preceding the Day
of Judgment.
In this book, we will examine the signs of Prophet Jesus' (pbuh) second
coming from the Islamic sources and how the signs that they provide have
come true one by one. People witnessing these signs may, by God's Will,
hope that his return is close.
But before this, we need to emphasize that the world is also getting
sociologically prepared for such a great event. As we mentioned earlier,
the chain of events through which humanity has passed during the last
two centuries has, both covertly and overtly, raised the expectation of
a savior in the minds of people all over the world. People have increasingly
seen that materialistic ideologies and lifestyles cannot save humanity;
rather, they lead humanity closer to disaster and emptiness. This situation
has caused many people to turn to the morality of religion.
Meanwhile, some secular researchers, scholars, or historians who analyze
these developments also think that the world is searching for a Messiah
and that this pursuit will deliver substantial results. For instance,
Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln, the British researchers
who have received worldwide attention with their book Holy Blood,
Holy Grail (Dell: 1983), wrote another book, The Messianic Legacy
(Dell: 1989), in which they examined Prophet Jesus (pbuh) and this expectation.
In their book, they make the following comment:
Different as our modern world may be from the world
of two thousand years ago, it is astonishing how much our own epoch
has in common with what Jesus and his contemporaries regarded as the
Last Times. We may, today, be technologically more adept and endowed
with considerably more knowledge. But, regrettably, we do not appear
to be any wiser, any more intelligent… We are once again living through
an acute crisis of meaning, an uncertainty about our direction and our
goals. The various systems, programmes and ideologies which, less than
a century ago, seemed to promise so much have all, to one degree or
another, proved hollow. As in Jesus's time, there is a pervasive awareness
that something is disastrously wrong. Each new terrorist outrage, each
new air crash, each new natural disaster produces a frisson of panic.
The profound and rapid changes in our civilisation, the dissatisfaction
with our systems of government, the increase use of indiscriminate murder
and terrorism as a means of political protest - all have fostered a
sense of general collapse, a wholesale disintegration of values. Society
feels itself 'held to ransom'… And, disillusioned by materialism's failure
to answer the question, we seek, as in Jesus's time, a response in another
dimension - a spiritual one. http://harunyahya.com/en/works/2684/#dipnot - 1
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The authors add the following:
As in Jesus's time, we live, quite palpably, in the
shadow of an impending apocalyptic event… We are all helpless hostages
to a reality we no longer fully control… And beneath the general anxiety,
the maddening sense of impotence, the disillusionment with inept or
irresponsible politicians, there is a profound longing for a genuine
spiritual leader… who will understand, will take charge and - without
of course violating established democratic freedoms - assume the role
of guide, conferring meaning once again on lives which have grown increasingly
empty. http://harunyahya.com/en/works/2684/#dipnot - 2
These authors, who make this important social analysis, arrive at a
conclusion for the twenty-first century: The return of Prophet Jesus (pbuh)
is also being prepared for in the sociological sense.
And yet our age appears determined to embrace on another
form of Messianic myth in order to obtain a sense of meaning. http://harunyahya.com/en/works/2684/#dipnot - 3
It is no coincidence that this sociological infrastructure has been
established at a time when the signs of Prophet Jesus' (pbuh) second coming
appear one after another. The hadith literature provides us with a detailed
account of these signs. In addition, the signs of this event as revealed
in the New Testament have parallels with those stated in the hadiths.
The great majority of these signs have come true in our day, one after
other and within the same period. That so many signs have come true in
such a manner indicate the closeness of Jesus' second coming. While reading
this book, you will also begin to realize this fact.
Keep in mind that, every portent examined in this book is a reminder
that we are living in a blessed period. This historical good news, for
which people have been waiting for centuries, is, by God's Will, about
to come true. This is a great source of zeal and excitement for all believers.
God promises to the people of sincere faith "to make them successors
in the land, as He made those before them successors." This promise is
related as follows:
God has promised those of you who believe and
do right actions that He will make them successors in the land, as He
made those before them successors; will firmly establish for them their
religion, with which He is pleased; and give them, in place of their
fear, security. "They worship Me, not associating anything with Me."
Any who disbelieve after that, such people are deviators. (Surat an-Nur,
24:55)
By God's Will, Prophet Jesus' (pbuh) return will cause religion's morality
to pervade all over the world and all sincere believers to attain security.
Along with all other believers, we hope that our Lord will honor us by
letting us meet this blessed visitor and enable us to make the best preparations
to meet him.
http://harunyahya.com/en/works/2684/
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