Desecration

It comes as a surprise to my friends when they learn that I have been reading the Tim LaHaye/Jerry Jenkins series of End Times novels known as the Left Behind series. This is surprising, mainly, because I don't have any religious fealty, and because I fancy myself a sort of artsy-fartsy literature loving intellectual. Typical fans are deeply religious and not usually very sophisticated in their choice of reading material. The series has grabbed my attention though, because it is somehow astonishingly popular and it reveals quite a bit about the mindset of the far-right religious automoton. In 2001, the volume that came out was the best-selling book of the year. And I believe that most of them have reached the #1 spot on the bestseller lists, though they have tappered off in popularity in recent years.

You can get some basic criticism of the books just by visiting the amazon.com webpage, and I agree with much of the negative commentary that is leveled at the series there. While Left Behind has its rote defenders, even many fundamentalist Christians take issue with the quality of the writing and the shallow character development. But as you might imagine, the politics of the books are where the real rancid quality emerges. Early on in the series (and I should mention, I have not yet finished them all--I'm on number 9 currently), I found more or less the kind of politics that I thought I would--anti-abortion, extreme antipathy toward any kind of global governing effort and arms control deals, distrust of the media, and suspicion of the overly educated. There are some truly hilarious sequences, as when Rayford Steele, one of our heroes, begs Hattie Durham (those names!) not to have an abortion, even as God kills millions around the globe, Old Testament style.

But as the series has trudged toward its pre-ordained conclusion, the authors have begun to insert their characters into violent situations whereby they must confront and kill non-believers. They do this with extreme prejudice, and with nary a thought as to what Jesus would have them do. This has really come to the fore in book 9, Desecration. The believers arm themselves and face off with the forces of the Antichrist with bullets flying and with God giving his flock his protection, even as they pull the trigger on hapless Global Community peacekeepers. I'm not foolish enough to expect a warm and fuzzy resolution, where everyone solves their problems peaceably and forms a functional society, but I am caught off-guard by complete lack of reflection by the authors/characters on the meaning and consequences of their violent turn. I suppose that since God behaves like a child in the book, it would be too much to ask for the characters to do otherwise.

Still, I am troubled that there are those who get a sense of joy or satisfaction by seeing unbelievers killed. There is a segment of the population that literally believes this is what is going to happen, and finally they will be able to take their revenge. In fact, there are those who might want to use this type of literature to encourage believers to start taking revenge, regardless of the status of the second coming. Though I haven't played the video game based on the series, the reviews seem to indicate that more of the same is in store in that department, perhaps even to a greater degree. It may seem paranoid, but those of us who do not desire the creation of a theocratic state need to keep close tabs on propaganda like the Left Behind series, and be sure to air our objections vocally, espcially since these books appear to have substantial crossover appeal.