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PHVSICS OF THE IMPOSSIBLE
tion will accompany the arrival of the Antichrist and the final Second
Coming of Christ, fundamentalists have tried to predict the precise
date of the End of Days.
One of the most celebrated of all Doomsday predictions was made
by astrologers who predicted a great flood that would end the world on
February 20, 1524, based on the conjunction of all the planets in the
heavens: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Mass panic swept
across Europe. In England, twenty thousand people fled their homes
in desperation. A fortress stocked with food and water to last two
months was built around St. Bartholomew's Church. Across Germany
and France, people furiously set out to build large arks to ride out the
flood. Count Von Iggleheim even built a huge, three-story ark in preparation for this momentous event. But when the date finally arrived,
there was only a slight rain. The mood of the crowd suddenly swung
from fear into anger. People who had sold all their belongings and
turned their lives upside down felt betrayed. Angry mobs began to run
amok. The count was stoned to death, and hundreds were killed when
the mob stampeded.
Christians aren't the only ones who feel the lure of prophecy. In
1648 Sabbatai Zevi, the son of a wealthy Jew in Smyrna, declared himself to be the Messiah and predicted that the world would end in 1666.
Handsome, charismatic, and well versed in the mystical texts of the
Kabbalah, he quickly assembled a group of fiercely loyal followers,
who spread the news across Europe. In the spring of 1666 Jews from
as far away as France, Holland, Germany, and Hungary began to pack
their bags and heed the call of their Messiah. But later that year Zevi
was arrested by the grand vizier in Constantinople and thrown in
prison in chains. Facing a possible death sentence, he dramatically
cast off his Jewish clothes, adopted a Turkish turban, and converted to
Islam. Tens of thousands of his devout followers left the cult in utter
disillusionment.
The prophecies of seers still resonate even today, influencing the
lives of tens of millions of people worldwide. In the United States,
William Miller declared that Doomsday would arrive on April 3, 1843.
As news of his prophecy spread thoughout the United States, a spectac-
PHVSICS OF THE IMPOSSIBLE
tion will accompany the arrival of the Antichrist and the final Second
Coming of Christ, fundamentalists have tried to predict the precise
date of the End of Days.
One of the most celebrated of all Doomsday predictions was made
by astrologers who predicted a great flood that would end the world on
February 20, 1524, based on the conjunction of all the planets in the
heavens: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Mass panic swept
across Europe. In England, twenty thousand people fled their homes
in desperation. A fortress stocked with food and water to last two
months was built around St. Bartholomew's Church. Across Germany
and France, people furiously set out to build large arks to ride out the
flood. Count Von Iggleheim even built a huge, three-story ark in preparation for this momentous event. But when the date finally arrived,
there was only a slight rain. The mood of the crowd suddenly swung
from fear into anger. People who had sold all their belongings and
turned their lives upside down felt betrayed. Angry mobs began to run
amok. The count was stoned to death, and hundreds were killed when
the mob stampeded.
Christians aren't the only ones who feel the lure of prophecy. In
1648 Sabbatai Zevi, the son of a wealthy Jew in Smyrna, declared himself to be the Messiah and predicted that the world would end in 1666.
Handsome, charismatic, and well versed in the mystical texts of the
Kabbalah, he quickly assembled a group of fiercely loyal followers,
who spread the news across Europe. In the spring of 1666 Jews from
as far away as France, Holland, Germany, and Hungary began to pack
their bags and heed the call of their Messiah. But later that year Zevi
was arrested by the grand vizier in Constantinople and thrown in
prison in chains. Facing a possible death sentence, he dramatically
cast off his Jewish clothes, adopted a Turkish turban, and converted to
Islam. Tens of thousands of his devout followers left the cult in utter
disillusionment.
The prophecies of seers still resonate even today, influencing the
lives of tens of millions of people worldwide. In the United States,
William Miller declared that Doomsday would arrive on April 3, 1843.
As news of his prophecy spread thoughout the United States, a spectac-