Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Religious Music and Entertainment
“Apocalyptic themes in movies”: 12/21/12 and the end of the world … again

“Apocalyptic themes in movies”: 12/21/12 and the end of the world … again

Last updated on: December 20, 2012 at 8:52 am by Sister Rose

“Apocalyptic themes in movies”: 12/21/12 and the end of the world … again 2012-12-20T08:52:42-07:00 Sister Rose

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I call this photo “Apocalypse Now” because great powers are at an intersection, nature above, Sony Studios to the left and St. Augustine’s Catholic Church on the right. c. Pacatte 2012

According to the Mayan Calendar the end of the world is to happen on December 21, 2012: 12/21/12.

But it did not happen on all the other dates that have foretold this terrible, cataclysmic event. It is already 12/12/12 and so far, so good. We’re still here.

Earlier this year I was invited to give a presentation at a local parish on “Apocalyptic Themes in Cinema”. I wondered why people are so fascinated by the end of the world and posed the question on Facebook. Angelene Shewfelt, an undergrad student in Religious Studies at UC Davis, posted this insightful comment that I like very much:

“The concept of apocalypse is dramatic eschatology for a clash of the physical mind process (time) versus metaphysical realm (eternity). Naturally we are all intrigued and utterly fascinated with such a mind-blowing topic.”

Eschatology is the science, the theology, of the things to come.

The end of the world in film, mostly inspired by Scripture until recently and reinforced by artists through the ages, is indeed a wild concept to imagine and to which the range of films, overwhelmingly American made, attest. If the early church was fascinated by apocalyptic themes in Scripture, well, so are American and British filmmakers and audiences. They are besotted with it, as are world audiences that may or may not have the fundamentalist evangelical end-of-times worldview understanding that can be traced to the emergence of the Plymouth Brethren movement in 1820 in England. Interestingly enough, the Brethren were started in Dublin but soon moved to Plymouth, UK. The films “Oscar and Lucinda” (1997; based on the novel by Peter Carey) and the coming of age story “Son of Rambow” (2007) depict characters that are Plymouth Brethren.

“Dispensationalism” is a theological system based on Plymouth Brethren founder’s John Nelson Darby’s (1800 – 1882) personal interpretation of scripture. When you read about people turning to scripture to create a time line for the end of the world, especially at millennial moments, their thinking stems from that of Darby. For a very small religious movement the influence of the Plymouth Brethren crosses borders and decades because they go where only Hollywood dares to tread with them: the imagination.

ApocalypticMovies.com is a most comprehensive database for all end-of-times movies and television shows about the end of the world. The titles are divided into decades beginning in 1950 and genres that include nuclear, plagues, humans, comets, zombies, nature, documentaries, aliens, as well as fantasy, comedy and animation. The “post-apocalyptic” category is interesting because these films witness to the fact that optimism prevails or better yet: everyone else may die but I will live to see another day.

The wildly successful “Left Behind” series of 16 novels, less successful three films, video games and graphic novels, are well known in U.S. culture. It would seem that Catholic and mainstream Protestant homilists don’t talk much about the end times, so the fear-based stories that fundamentalist authors Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have devised now fill the void of people’s religious imagination in the U.S. (according to sources their books have not done so well on the world scene.) If God is loving and merciful there is no evidence in these stories; God is the violent destroyer regardless of how a person has lived.

The concept of the “rapture” began with St. Paul’s words in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. The Catholic Church interprets this as speaking of the final resurrection but those who follow the “pre-tribulation” theology of Darby believe that large groups of people will be caught up to heaven and others left behind. This “rapture theology” is not a Catholic Christian belief and dispensationalism is more complex than this; millenarianism, the religious (or other) belief that major changes will occur every thousand years, is part of this belief system devised by Darby. Again, the millennial cycle is important to humans perhaps, but like time it is a human construct. There is no indication that God is terribly interested in time as we humans are. God has no need of time; all is present to God.

Then we come back to the Mayan Calendar and the end of the world. The belief that the world will end, or be transformed through a series of cataclysmic events based on astrological readings, on 12/21/12, is mostly a New Age interpretation. 12/21/12 is supposedly the date on which the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar comes to an end. The disaster film “2012” (2009) and Lars von Trier’s “Melancholia” (2011) were both influenced by the idea that the world would end on this day.

Perhaps the family film “The Rise of the Guardians” (2012) says it best (and I paraphrase): “Stop believing in fear!” Some years ago filmmaker Scott Derrikson asked horror film director Wes Craven “Why do people go to scary movies?” Craven responded: “Because they are already afraid.” Experiencing doom, disaster and horror through narrative film, with a beginning, middle and end, allows people to transcend their fear and to some extent, resolve it.

Craven’s statement, however true on a human level, doesn’t address the image of God in these films or the theology that underpins the narratives.

When you think about it we have more to fear from the acceleration of irresponsible human actions such as nuclear war and nuclear weapons laying around, the gross misuse of the environment causing climate change, greed, the manipulation of food and seeds. You name it. We go to see movies to see what “God” will supposedly do when we have only to notice what is going on around us and “the change we can be” in this world. Going to movies, though, is a way to engage the moral imagination and figure out what life and events mean and our response.

To read what the Catholic Church teaches about the end times, click here.

“Do not fear” the angels told the shepherds who were guarding their flock on that first Christmas night. How many times Jesus told the disciples, “Do not fear!”

To access the slide program I created for the workshop, click here: Apocalyptic Themes in Cinema

From Wikipedia; a view of a section of the Mayan Long Calendar noting the dates December 21-23, 2012

December 12 is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. She told St. Juan Diego, “Do not be afraid, for I am your mother.” Wikipedia’s entry is pretty good: Our Lady of Guadalupe . I tried the site of the Basilica in Mexico City but traffic is just too heavy right now. Mary appeared in December 9-12 1531, as a indigenous Mexican to an Aztec Indian and her image on the tilma has been called “The Woman of the Apocalypse” and she is pregnant. How fitting. She represents hope and life, the antithesis to fear, because she is the mother of Jesus, the Savior.

Adult Faith Formation

Spirituality and Media

End of the world December 21

end of the world movies

Juan Diego

Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe end of the world

sr rose apocalypse movies

Woman of the Apocalypse

Previous Post

December 10, 2012

Interview with Mona Golabek on CatholicTV, Boston

Next Post

December 12, 2012 "The Bible" trailer released today

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Adolescent Adult Faith Formation Advertising Analysis Animals Pets Animation art Authors Awards best pope pictures Bible BioPic Blogs Book Reviews Books books into film Catechesis Catholic comedy Catholic Social Teaching Catholic Social Teaching (CST) Catholics in Media Christian genre Christmas movies Church and cinema Cognitive science Comedy Comics Commerntary Communication Cooking Courses Critics and Criticism Dance Daughters of St Paul news Devil movies digital games Documentary Drama Economics Ecumenical Education and Technology Education: Access and Empowerment electronic Environment Events Exorcism movies Eye on Entertainment Faith and film Faith formation Fantasy Film Essays Film Festivals Film History Film Retreat Film Reviews Film TV about Ultra Orthodox Jews Food General Grace Historical thriller History Horror How to Images INNdustry with Sister Rose Internet Interviews jesuits Kindness Lectures Lent Life Lists Literature media Media analysis Media Literacy/Media Mindfulness Music Musical National Catholic Reporter New on DVD Non-violence Nonviolence Obituaries On Faith and Media Oscars Ovis et bovis et universe pecore Parenting Pastoral Communication Pastoral communications Pauline Books & Media pax christi PCMS & Online Courses Peace Philosophy Photos Planning for Communication pope francis Popular Culture Radio RCL Benziger reality tv Reflections on life and grace religion Religious Lif Research Resources Retreat Rosary Sacraments Science and faith Social justice Social Media spirituality Spirituality and Media Sports Sr Rose Faith and Media Sr. Rose movies St. Anthony Messenger Stage & Theater stereotypes story Streaming series Survey Television the bible the bible movie The INNdustry with Sr Rose the voice Theater Themes of Catholic Social Teaching theologizing violence Theology theology of violence TV reviews and notes Uncategorized Video Video games Violence VR Games War War films Women World Film Young Adult YouTube

Select a Month September 2025 March 2025 December 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 December 2022 October 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 May 2021 April 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 December 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 January 2019 December 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What natural event accompanied God's descent on Sinai?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Thunder and lightning Windstorm Earthquake Drought