‘You are the watchman. Warn the people for Me’

thus says the Lord: You, son of man, I have appointed watch man for the house of Israel; when you hear Me say anything, you shall warn them for Me .... if you warn the wicked, trying to turn him from his way, and he refuses to turn from his way, he shall die for his guilt, but you shall save yourself.

—the book of ezekiel, 33:7, 9

WAtCHMAn is a designation widely used by Christian denominations for preachers and believers, who tell of coming events in the end times before the prophesied Second Coming of Jesus CHRIST AND THE fiNAL JUDGMENT OF all humanity, both living and dead.

these pandemic days, watchmen and women are emerging thick and fast, interpreting bible texts or their own dreams as prophetic pointers to coming eschatological or end-times events.

Among the most widely watched and shared is Kentucky pastor Dana Coverstone, whose dreams since December seemed to have visions of what transpired in America in succeeding months, including the deadly coronavirus disease 2019 or Covid-19 pandemic and the city protests and riots over police killings of African-Americans.

of late, Coverstone has had increasingly Apocalyptic dreams of the united States, especially in the months before and after the november uS elections. He recalls visions of violence, destruction, anarchy, economic and government collapse.

Plus: the entry of foreign forces, including those from the united nations, and even russia and China. Also the widespread despondency among Americans, even as Christians blazed with the light of faith. And in every dream, the repeated warning from heaven came: “brace yourself.”

What adds to Coverstone’s credibility is his humble admission that he does not know if his dreams portend coming events, but merely recounts them for the millions watching him on Youtube and facebook to be forewarned and decide for themselves what they would do. that’s precisely what watchmen looking afar from sentinel towers around ancient cities in biblical Israel were supposed to do for the nation.

Is the end soon?

future columns will recap the most widely followed of these reputed visionaries, especially those with ample Scripture bases for their messages. for now, it behooves this writer to explain how the Catholic Church, to which most readers of this column belong, views the end times.

A good summary of Church teaching comes from taylor Marshall, a popular Catholic educator, whose new St. thomas Institute brings orthodox doctrine to the Catholic faithful, especially in America.

In his video “Catholic View of the end times and tribulation” ( https://youtu.be/IVxdKudvYvs), HE LISTS fiVE MAJOR SIGNS THAT THE SECond Coming of Christ will happen soon, based on Catholic readings of Scripture as well as Church tradition and teaching, or Magisterium.

His Catholic views are good to keep in mind, even as one ponders the Apocalyptic messages of today’s watchmen and women recounting visions and interpreting the bible. Many of those pronouncements assert that heavenly manifestations are happening very soon.

not yet, counters Marshall and several other Catholic preachers, certainly not before five major signs of the Parousia or “divine manifestation,” as the Second Coming is also called.

Marshall says the end times, while marked by distressing global events, should be welcomed by the faithful, for Jesus Christ’s return will bring salvation to the world: “the true believer has joy and peace in the Parousia.”

Five signs to watch for

Citing Catholic interpretations of SCRIPTURE, MARSHALL LISTS fiVE MAJOR signs, among many minor ones, that must happen before Christ returns.

first, the Gospel must be preached to the whole world and all nations, as Jesus himself predicted as a condition for the end times. He declared in the Gospel of St. Matthew, 24:14: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, as a testimony to all nations; and then the end will come.”

this would seem to be a necessary condition for divine justice. for if all humanity would be judged by

God in the end, then everyone living should at least have heard the Christian message of salvation in order that he or she can decide to believe or not to believe.

Second and a sure sign that the end is not anytime soon, there should be the full universal conversion of all Israel to Christ and, in Marshall’s view, the Catholic Church. He cites the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, 11:2U-26, which predicts that “all Israel will be saved.”

Moreover, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph CCC 674 states: “The glorious Messiah’s coming is suspended at every moment of history until his recognition by ‘all Israel’ …” In short, until that conversion of the Old Testament chosen people, there will be no Parousia.

Third sign is the so-called Great Apostasy, prophesied by Jesus, who warned about the end times, “false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonder, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect” (Matthew 24:24).

St. Paul in his Second Letter to the Thessalonians is more explicit: “Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our assembling to meet him … Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come, unless the rebellion [or apostasy] comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition …” (2 Thessalonians 2:1, 3).

That same verse cited the fourth sign of the end: the revelation of the Antichrist, “who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.”

This most evil of men, possessed by Satan and seemingly working miracles that mesmerize the world, is expected midway through the seven-year preparation for the Second Coming.

Fifth among leading signs before the Second Coming, there will be a great tribulation, with calamities both natural and man-made, as warned in Matthew’s Gospel, chapters 24 and 2U, which is sometimes called “the little Apocalypse” for its end-times prophecies.

This final sign is perhaps the reason many today think the Parousia is coming soon, especially with global pandemic, economic dislocation, and war fears. But not until four other signs appear.

And for millions of Christians, there is even a sixth sign before the end: the Rapture of the Church. That’s for next Sunday.