Left Behind (series)

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Left Behind is a series of novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, dealing with Christian dispensationalist End Times: pretribulation, premillennial, Christian eschatology viewpoint of the end of the world. Left Behind is also the title of the first book in the series. It is published by Tyndale House, a firm with a history of interest in dispensationalism.

Contents

[edit] Books

Note: The books are listed in story-line (chronological) order but numbered in order of publication.

  1. The Rising: Antichrist is Born: Before They Were Left Behind (ISBN 0-8423-6056-5) |(All Libraries)
  2. The Regime: Evil Advances: Before They Were Left Behind #2 (ISBN 1-4143-0576-1) |(All Libraries)
  3. The Rapture: In the Twinkling of an Eye: Countdown to Earth's Last Days #3 (ISBN 1-4143-0580-X)
  4. Left Behind: A Novel of the Earth's Last Days (ISBN 0-8423-2912-9)
  5. Tribulation Force: The Continuing Drama of Those Left Behind (ISBN 0-8423-2921-8)
  6. Nicolae: The Rise of Antichrist (ISBN 0-8423-2924-2)
  7. Soul Harvest: The World Takes Sides (ISBN 0-8423-2925-0)
  8. Apollyon: The Destroyer Is Unleashed (ISBN 0-8423-2926-9)
  9. Assassins: Assignment: Jerusalem, Target: Antichrist (ISBN 0-8423-2927-7)
  10. The Indwelling: The Beast Takes Possession (ISBN 0-8423-2929-3)
  11. The Mark: The Beast Rules the World (ISBN 0-8423-3228-6)
  12. Desecration: Antichrist Takes the Throne (ISBN 0-8423-3229-4)
  13. The Remnant: On the Brink of Armageddon (ISBN 0-8423-3230-8)
  14. Armageddon: The Cosmic Battle of the Ages (ISBN 0-8423-3236-7)
  15. Glorious Appearing: The End of Days (ISBN 0-8423-3237-5)
  16. Kingdom Come: The Final Victory (ISBN 0-8423-6061-1)

There are also graphic novels, CDs, and a Left Behind series for teens. Audio dramatizations based on the first thirteen titles have also been produced for broadcast on Christian radio. A series written for teens has also been written, called Left Behind:The Kids or The Young Tribulation Force Series. The plot of this series is the same as the adult series, but the main protagonists are teenagers. Several of the main books have also been turned into movies by the Canadian motion picture studio Cloud Ten Pictures, including Left Behind: The Movie, Left Behind II: Tribulation Force, and Left Behind: World at War.

Two spin-off series have been written; a political series by Neesa Hart, and a military series by Mel Odom.

A video game, Left Behind: Eternal Forces was released for the PC on November 6, 2006.

[edit] Graphic Novels

In 2002 a series of graphic novels was launched that comprised the first two books in the series, Left Behind and Tribulation Force. The original idea was to release sets of 3 to 5 novels for each book in the original series. However, after the 5th and final novel for Tribulation Force was released, the graphic novel series was apparently discontinued and the novels that were released are now (as of December 2006) said to be out of print.

[edit] Franchises

Fans of the series have been repeatedly disappointed by franchises that are released based on the books, such as the films and the graphic novels, as in each case only the first two titles are produced and the rest seem to be always ignored.[citation needed] There are rumors that a fourth film is in the works by Cloud Ten Pictures, and fans can only hope that this film will be truly based on "Nicolae".[citation needed] The third movie in the series had so many plot differences from the book, that to fans it seemed that they were watching an entirely different story.[citation needed]

[edit] Spin-Offs

  • Left Behind: Apocalypse[5]
    • Apocalypse Dawn
    • Apocalypse Crucible
    • Apocalypse Burning
  • Left Behind: End of State[6]
    • End of State
    • Impeachable Offense
    • Necessary Evils

[edit] Summary

Based on dispensationalist interpretation of prophecies in the Biblical books of Revelation, Isaiah and Ezekiel, Left Behind tells the story of the end times, in which many have vanished, leaving the world shattered and chaotic. As people scramble for answers, a Romanian politician named Nicolae Jetty Carpathia rises to become secretary-general of the United Nations, promising to restore peace and stability to all nations. What most of the world does not realize is that Carpathia is actually the Antichrist foretold from the Bible. Coming to grips with the truth and becoming born-again Christians, Rayford Steele, his daughter Chloe, their pastor Bruce Barnes, and young journalist Cameron "Buck" Williams begin their quest as the Tribulation Force to help save the lost and prepare for the coming Tribulation, in which God will rain down judgment on the world for seven years.

[edit] Response

The books have sold very well in the United States, many topping The New York Times list of bestsellers. Nick Parmley, a charismatic Baptist minister from Portland, Oregon, has called on Evangelical Christians to adopt this series as "required reading". In other areas, such as continental Europe—where dispensationalism is largely non-existent—the books have been far less successful.

The popularity of this series has spilled over beyond the Americas and the English-speaking world. It has been translated to many languages including Chinese and Japanese. There is, however, a protracted lag in translation. (As at September 2005, the Chinese version of Book 11 is in the press and the Japanese version of Book 6 has been published.)

[edit] Criticism

In an article enquiring into the series' popularity, Salon magazine writer Michelle Goldberg described what she believed was one of the series' attractions: "On one level, the attraction of the Left Behind books isn't that much different from that of, say, Tom Clancy or Stephen King. The plotting is brisk and the characterizations Manichean." [7] However, she considered the books to be an attack on Judaism and liberal secularism, and pointed out that the near-future "end times" the books are set in seem to reflect the actual worldview of millions of Americans, including many prominent conservative leaders.

The series presents a very obvious religious bias against religions other than Christianity, but this is only to be expected as the purpose of the books is that of Christian eschatology. However, it has been criticized for the bad depiction of the pantheist and universalist belief that the Enigma Babylon World Religion indicates, which has overtones of Hinduism and Buddhism.

In 2004, Penn & Teller's TV show Bullshit! devoted an episode to the "end of the world" phenomenon, following centuries of incorrect prophecy. The show explained that Bible prophecy is nothing new, and that the vague descriptions in the book of Revelation can apply to almost any location at any time. The Left Behind series was featured, and Jerry B. Jenkins was interviewed. Jenkins stated, "In my mind, in a way, we are sales people for the Gospel." He continued, "People say money is the root of all evil, and actually it's the love of money that's the root of all evil. So there is nothing wrong with money if you use it right." The host, Penn Jillette, responded in voiceover, "What's the story on money if you get it by creating an irrational fear in people?"

The blog slacktivist.typepad.com is notable for analyzing these books at a rate of a few pages every week. Written from the perspective of a non-dispensationalist evangelical Christian, it generally criticizes the books as poorly written, based on bad biblical scholarship, and for presenting an unflattering view of God.

[edit] Christian criticisms

Some practicing Christians, evangelical and otherwise, have shown concern that the social perspectives promoted in the Left Behind series unduly sensationalize the death and destruction of masses of people. In addition, some Christians deny the key eschatological beliefs underpinning the plotline. For instance, amillenial and postmillenial Christians do not believe in the same timeline of the Second Coming as premillennialists, while preterist Christians do not interpret the Book of Revelation to predict future events at all. Brian McLaren, a self-appointed spokesperson of the Emergent Church, compares the Left Behind series to The Da Vinci Code, and states, "What the Left Behind novels do, the way they twist scripture toward a certain theological and political end, I think [Dan] Brown is twisting scripture, just to other political ends. But at the end of the day, the difference is I don't think Brown really cares that much about theology." [1]

Along with some other rapture fiction novels, the Left Behind series demonstrates a different understanding of the gospel and the Christian life than that taught within the historic orthodoxy of evangelical Protestantism. This issue is explored in Rapture Fiction and the Evangelical Crisis by Crawford Gribben.

Some Catholics also believe the books are anti-Catholic, noting that the book mentions that many who thought of themselves as Catholics were not "raptured." The book says that many who called themselves Catholics but did not truly believe in Jesus were not raptured, but it does not mention the proportion who were. While the fictional Pope, John XXIV, was raptured, he is described as having greatly differing views from the rest of the church and this is implied as the reason he was raptured. His successor, Pope Peter II, becomes Pontifex Maximus of Enigma Babylon One World Faith, an amalgamation of all remaining world faiths and religions.

Other Christians describe problems with prophetical teachings in the Left Behind series. It is noted that "in Books 8 & 9, LaHaye and Jenkins teach that recipients of the mark of the beast can still be saved. However, in The Mark, "The Chang scenario" is developed, whereby a character receives both the mark of the beast and the sealing of the Lord. In Desecration, Chang's dual-marking was justified in the storyline. This has led some readers to wonder how a Christian can have the mark of the beast and still be saved, which many readers voiced on the Left Behind messageboard, and which was answered on the FAQ page at LeftBehind.com. [2]

[edit] Parody

Satirical takes on the Left Behind series include:

[edit] Influences on the authors

LaHaye and Jenkins cite the influence of Russell S. Doughten, an Iowan film-maker who directed a series of four low-budget feature-length films in the 1970s and 1980s about the Rapture and Second Coming. The films' popularity among Christian fundamentalists have led to increased study and speculation as to the events described in the Book of Revelation.

Crawford Gribben has shown that there were successful rapture fiction novels as early as 1913, with some earlier works identified as dating from 1905. Of the former, Sydney Watson's Scarlet and Purple (1913), The Mark of the Beast (1915) and In the Twinkling of an Eye are cited as examples of the genre.

[edit] Movies based on the series

DVD cover of Left Behind: World at War.
DVD cover of Left Behind: World at War.

The success of the Left Behind books have led to the release of three motion pictures based on the series so far. The movies have been produced and released by Cloud Ten Pictures, a Canadian Christian movie studio.

In 2000, the studio released Left Behind: The Movie, based on the first book of the series. In a very unusual marketing scheme, the studio released the movie on video and DVD first, and then released it to the theatres. The movie fared poorly in theaters. [3]. The movie starred former Growing Pains star Kirk Cameron as Buck Williams. Cameron, who finds the series inspiring, is a practicing evangelist (and co-host with Ray Comfort on the TV show The Way of the Master).

In 2002, the sequel, Left Behind II: Tribulation Force, based on the first four hundred pages of the second novel, Tribulation Force, was released. The film debuted at #2, behind Spider-Man, on the home video charts [4], and was #1 in terms of overall sales for two days on Amazon.com [5]

In October 2005, the second sequel, Left Behind: World at War was released first to churches on October 21, 2005 for church theatrical viewings, and was released to DVD and video on October 25, 2005. The new movie is based very loosely on the final fifty pages of Tribulation Force, and features Louis Gossett Jr. playing the President of the United States, Gerald Fitzhugh. The third movie was the least identifiable with events in any of the books. Recognizable events were the marriages of Buck with Chloe Steele, and Rayford Steele with Amanda White, the death of Bruce Barnes, and President Fitzhugh heading an attack, resulting in World War III, with Great Britain and Egypt, against the Global Community. Major parts of the movie, however, were not in any of the books, including the poisoning of Bibles by Global forces, and an attempt by Fitzhugh to assassinate Nicolae Carpathia. Buck's meeting with the President in the books makes it into the movie, but in a totally different form.

It is of special interest to note that in 2004, Cloud Ten Pictures made a deal with Sony Entertainment to release all of its pictures under the Sony banner, and has been doing so ever since.

Except for Clarence Gilyard, the entire cast of Left Behind and Left Behind II: Tribulation Force reprised their respective roles for Left Behind: World At War. Clarence Gilyard, who played Bruce Barnes, was unable to return for the third movie, due to a scheduling conflict with a play in New York.

As of December 2006, Cloud Ten has announced that the fourth film in the series is now in development, to release in late 2007.

[edit] Video game based on the series

The video game Left Behind: Eternal Forces was developed by a publicly traded company, Left Behind Games. The game is a real-time strategy game where the player controls a 'Tribulation Forces' team and allows the player to "use the power of prayer to strengthen your troops in combat and wield modern military weaponry throughout the game world." The game was released in the United States on November 14, 2006 and received mixed reviews. Distribution was initially planned to work through churches and megachurches.

The game has drawn criticism from some quarters (notably the renowned anti-violent videogame campaigner, Jack Thompson) for giving the player the choice of who to play as (Trib Force or Global Community) and for rewarding the player for killing non-Christian characters.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Brian McLaren on the Da Vinci Code"; Sojourners Magazine
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ [2]
  4. ^ [3]
  5. ^ [4]

[edit] Secondary literature

  • Forbes, Bruce David and Jeanne Halgren Kilde (eds.), Rapture, Revelation, and the End Times: Exploring the Left Behind Series. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004. ISBN 1-4039-6525-0
  • Frykholm, Amy David. Rapture Culture: Left Behind in Evangelical America. Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-19-515983-7
  • Shuck, Glenn W.. Marks Of The Beast: The Left Behind Novels And The Struggle For Evangelical Identity. New York University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-8147-4005-7
  • Gribben, Crawford, Rapture Fiction and the Evangelical Crisis. Evangelical Press, 2006. ISBN 0-85234-610-7.
  • Snow Flesher, LeAnn, "Left Behind? The Facts Behind the Fiction". Valley Forge, Judson Press, 2006. ISBN 0-8170-1490-X
 v • d • e Left Behind
Original Book Series:
Left Behind · Tribulation Force · Nicolae · Soul Harvest · Apollyon · Assassins
The Indwelling · The Mark · Desecration · The Remnant · Armageddon · Glorious Appearing
Prequels:
The Rising · The Regime · The Rapture
Sequel:
Kingdom Come
See also: Left Behind: Eternal Forces
 v • d • e Major Characters in Left Behind Series
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Original Tribulation Force Members:
Rayford Steele | Cameron "Buck" Williams | Chloe Steele | Bruce Barnes
Other Tribulation Force Members:
Tsion Ben-Judah | Chaim Rosenzweig | Albie | Mac McCullum | Abdullah Smith | David Hassid | Chang Wong | Ming Toy | Ree Woo | Ken Ritz | Lionel Whalum | George Sebastian | Priscilla Sebastian | Amanda White | T. M. Delanty | Lukas Miklos | Floyd Charles | Hattie Durham | Steve Plank | Razor | Otto Weser | Naomi Tiberias | Eleazar Tiberias | Gustaf Zuckermandel, Jr. | Hannah Palemoon | Leah Rose | Annie Christopher | Marcel Papadopoulos | Georgiana Stavros | Bernadette Rice
The Global Community:
Nicolae Carpathia | Leon Fortunato | Viv Ivins | Suhail Akbar | Walter Moon | Peter Mathews | Marilena Carpathia | Reiche Planchette | Aurelio Sequoia Figueroa | Jim Hickman | Ramon Santiago | Clancy Tiber | Guy Blod
The Millennium Force:
Raymie Steele | Ekaterina Risto | Kenny Bruce Williams | Bahira Abaneh | Zaki Abaneh
The Other Light:
Cendrillon Jospin | Ignace Jospin | Lothair Jospin | Qasim Marid
Others:
Joshua Todd-Cothran | Jonathan Stonagal | Bo Hanson | Samuel Hanson | Anika Janssen | Gerald Fitzhugh | Alan Tompkins
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