Will the World End in 2012?

You probably would have to be living under rock not to have heard the predictions of planetary destruction that the planet faces in 2012.  For years, I have been fascinated with Biblical prophecies of the end times, starting with Hal Lindsay's "Late Great Planet Earth" and others.  So I was very excited when I saw that I could have the opportunity to review Raymond C. Hundley's newest book "Will the World End in 2012" for BookSneeze.com.

Dr. Hundley is a former pastor and seminary professor, so his treatise of the subject matter is from an evangelical Christian viewpoint.  He tackles ten possible scenarios for the end of the world in the year 2012.  Among these are the predictions of the Mayan calendar, possible solar storms, the eruption of a super volcano, the predictions of Nostradamus, and prophecies of the end of the world from a number of different religions.

Given Hundley's background, not surprisingly, the longest chapter in the book is the chapter on the religious predictions of the end of the earth.  The Old and New Testament prophesies get the most ink.  However, Hundley does an adequate job of including prophesies from the Muslim faith, the I Ching, the Hindu faith, and the Hopi Indian tribe.  In the chapter on the Mayan calendar, he does a great job of quoting multiple sources, several of which conclude that 12/21/12 is an end of the world event, and several that quote it as a "changing point" in the world order.

Hundley also addresses some of the predictions of world doom from scientific possibilities.  In these areas, I felt a little shortchanged as a reader.  It would be the one complaint I would have against the book.  For instance, the chapter on possible solar storms in 2012, a subject I am very interested in, contained a mere 3 pages.  Other chapters that harbor potential peril for the fate of the planet  based on scientific fact are not quite as short as the solar storms, but are among the shorter chapters in the book.

All in all though, I enjoyed reading "Will the World End in 2012?"  The subtitle to the book is "A Christian Guide to the Question Everyone's Asking," and as such has the expected evangelical call to acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior.  The epilogue calls for Christians that have read the book to live their lives as if the world would end in 2012 or tomorrow and live a life in honor of Christ.  Even if you are not a religious person, or interested in Christianity, this book does have a lot of information about the possible "end of the world" in 2012.  The author reaches his conclusion.  It could, but you will have to read the book for the details.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com's book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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