992
In 960 A.D., scholar Bernard of Thuringia created quite the hubbub throughout Europe when he announced, with all the confidence of a true prophet, that the world was coming to an end in 992 A.D., a mere 32 years hence. Unfortunately for poor Bernard, his end came prior to his pronounced end of the world and, lo and behold, the world kept chugging along.
1033
You may recall that previously I mentioned the fear and loathing that took place in 999 A.D. when everyone believed that Jesus would return in 1000 and *poof* End of Days! Well, when End of Days was not 1000, the prophets of doom decided that, “Oh, wait, we got that wrong. End of Days is really 1000 years after Jesus’s crucifixion, not His birth. Thus, 1033 A.D. became the new date for Doomsday. Well, add humiliation to embarrassment, that date, too, was a misfire.
1537, 1544, 1801, 1814
More was going on in Dijon, France, than fancy mustard. Upon the death of astrologer Pierre Turrel, his prophesies for Doomsday was published. He was certain of his predictions, all four of them, but not so sure that he wanted them published in his lifetime. Telling his readers that he was strictly orthodox in his religious views, he offered 1537, 1544, 1801 and 1814 as potential dates for End of Days. Note that his timeframe was spread over 277 years and that, like a roulette player covering multiple numbers, he gave everyone something to worry about for the better part of three centuries. Needless to say, Pierre was wrong, wrong, wrong and wrong.
1648
It wasn’t just Christians predicting the end of the world, Rabbi Sabbati Zevi deciphered some passages from the Kabala and determined that the Jewish Messiah would appear in 1648. Well, 1648 came, but the Messiah did not. Nonetheless, Rabbi Zevi amassed a large flock of followers and in 1665 he announced to them that the Messiah would arrive in 1666 (I assume the 1666 had some resonance with the rabbi). The good citizens of Rabbi Zevi’s community threw down their plows and shovels and other implements and readied themselves for a pilgrimage to Jerusalem where they expected to witness the Messiah’s arrival along with a slew of miracles. Unfortunately Zevi was captured by the Sultan controlling Jerusalem and accused of plotting a coup. Meanwhile, with Armageddon in the offing, Zevi’s followers from across Europe prepared for the End of Days. Imprisoned in Constantinople, Zevi was undoubtedly confronted with choices. Regardless of what his followers now believed, Zevi found new life by converting to Islam. And, of course, 1666 came and went without the new Messiah appearing or the world ending.
It wasn’t just Christians predicting the end of the world, Rabbi Sabbati Zevi deciphered some passages from the Kabala and determined that the Jewish Messiah would appear in 1648. Well, 1648 came, but the Messiah did not. Nonetheless, Rabbi Zevi amassed a large flock of followers and in 1665 he announced to them that the Messiah would arrive in 1666 (I assume the 1666 had some resonance with the rabbi). The good citizens of Rabbi Zevi’s community threw down their plows and shovels and other implements and readied themselves for a pilgrimage to Jerusalem where they expected to witness the Messiah’s arrival along with a slew of miracles. Unfortunately Zevi was captured by the Sultan controlling Jerusalem and accused of plotting a coup. Meanwhile, with Armageddon in the offing, Zevi’s followers from across Europe prepared for the End of Days. Imprisoned in Constantinople, Zevi was undoubtedly confronted with choices. Regardless of what his followers now believed, Zevi found new life by converting to Islam. And, of course, 1666 came and went without the new Messiah appearing or the world ending.
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