Is the 'falling away' a defection from truth? Why would a defection from truth 'within the church' create the conditions that would reveal the man of sin and cause people to accept him?
So the big question is, "what makes people think that this apostasy has anything to do with the church?" The word apostasy is used in relation to the man of sin...
not the church! And what makes people think apostasy has something to do with heresy, backsliding, or being lukewarm?
The only people who define the word apostasy as heresy or backslidding are Protestant's who have long held the view that the Catholic church is heretical and backslidden. In Strong's where one interpretation is "a defection from truth," they warn that those definitions are the opinion of the interpreter. In other words. The word apostasy in no way implies a defection from truth though the Protestant's would like us to believe it does. Their opinion was influenced by Rome's horrible past. For this reason Christianity has adopted an incorrect definition of apostasy. The word apostasy has the same meaning across all religions today...except Christianity because of these well meaning 'prophecy experts. The Catholic church has influenced Protestant Christians to believe that it's a defection from truth. There's no reason for the word apostasy to have a different meaning when applied to christians or the church than it does elsewhere. Christian's have been misled to believe these things for so long it's hard for them to break out of it. It's no different than the experts teaching us about a global dictator and one world religion. They've taught it for so long that they just can't believe the "prophecy experts" could be wrong.
I think it's a shame that the "prophecy experts" link the church into this apostasy and call the harlot that sits upon the beast...."the apostate church!" Why would people want to convert to Christianity when the 'experts' within it slander it to the point of associating it with the harlot and accepting the man of sin!
The rebellion or revolt that's taking place in the Arab world could very well be the apostasy because
the word does mean a political or religious revolt. This apostasy which is taking place as we speak in the Arab world will result in a power vacumn and create the perfect conditions for the revelation of the man of sin. The common people in the Arab world want political and religious unification. They want one currency and less borders.
RJP posted this on a thread...
Apostasy - (noun)
1. The act of abandoning a party or cause.
2. The state of having rejected your religious beliefs, political party, cause or sports team in favor of opposing beliefs, causes or teams.
3. A defection, renunciation, disaffiliation, abandonment or revolt from a previous association.
4. (Islamic definition) Rejection in word or deed of one's former religion.
5. (Christian definition) To fall away from the truth.
I told him I agree with all the above except #5.
#5 is the opinion of Christian's. A defection from truth is not the definition of the word. Why would it mean one thing for the church and something else for everyone else?
This is what Bakers Dictionary of Theology has to say's this about apostasy.
"A word of increasing interest found twice in the NT. (
Acts 21:21;
2Thes. 2:3 It comes from the Greek apostasia a late form of apostasis,
originally to desert a post or station in life. It is used of Plutarch of political revolt and is found in the OT in the sense of revolt against the Lord. (
Josh. 22:22) Antiochus Epiphanes enforced an apostasia
from Judaism
to Hellenism (
1 Macc 2:15)
In the AV it is translated "falling away"
in relation to the man of sin or antichrist. In this sense the thought is of religious revolt. Cremer states that apostasia is used in the absolute sense of
"passing over to unbelief," thus a dissolution of the "union of God subsisting through Christ." Amdt adds rebellion or abandonment in the religious sense. On the nature of apostasy there are lengthy articles in both the JewEnc and the CE developing an extensive doctrine of apostasy.
In the NT.
2 Thes 2:3 is part of a prophetic passage of apocalyptic character. The falling away invites conjecture about whom and from what. The event seems future and thus related to antichrist. The implication is that the apostates will welcome the man of sin."
Notice that Cremer says that apostasy is to pass over to unbelief and
a dissolution of the "union of God subsisting through Christ."
That's not heresy or backsliding, that's a complete abandonement of your religion.
Entire kingdoms have gone into apostasy when it's ruler or king called for one. And it was always to change the "national religion."
Here is a list of apostates that have gone
from one religion to another.
Notice that apostates go from one thing to another. You can't remain within the same religion and become apostate.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Apostasy (
Greek απο, apo, "away, apart", στασις, stasis, "standing")
is the formal renunciation of one's religion.
Noted apostates
This is a list of notable persons that have followed a religion and then publicly abandoned or publicly criticized it and attracted notable attention by this defection, or had a notable influence on society with their defection; or if the person has been notably been referred to as an apostate by other groups or people regardless whether the person accepts this label or not.
Ambedkar an ex-Hindu who became a Buddhist
Karen Armstrong ex-Roman Catholic nun who became an atheist
Julian the Apostate ex-Christian and
Roman emperor
Aurelius Augustine (Augustine of Hippo) Former adherent of
Manicheism who converted to Christianity and criticized Manicheism in his book called
Confessions, though generally not labelled as an apostate because the term is originally used for people who leave Christianity, not for people who convert to it
Marjoe Gortner ex-Christian
Ayaan Hirsi Ali ex-Muslim
Maria Monk Sometimes considered an apostate, though little evidence exists that she ever belonged to the religion she supposedly fled
Taslima Nasrin born in a Muslim family who became an atheist
Friedrich Nietzsche grew up in a
Lutheran family and became a
confirmed Christian in his teens but later became a staunch atheist
Salman Rushdie Accused of being an apostate of Islam by
Ruhollah Khomeini due to the publication of his book
The Satanic Verses
Baruch Spinoza excommunicated from the Jewish community
Ibn Warraq ex-Muslim
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I would like to add Walid Shoebat. A former Muslim and Palestinian terrorist converted to Christianity.