The Approach of 2012

Bigger than any previous doomsday following

Watching the ideas around the 21st December 2012 is something that fascinates me. This is probably the first major “doomsday” prediction to experience propagation via the internet. I don’t have the facts or figures, but from the availability of websites, articles, YouTube videos, a major movie, books and so forth, I’m pretty sure that any other date set for doom or glory would be hard put to beat this one for general awareness in the developed world.

I am intrigued by the way other predictions have blossomed and followed suit: predictions that nine tenths of humanity will be wiped out or that we will somehow be altered to become transcendent beings. There are predictions that include a polar shift, alien intervention, a returning rogue planet and the usual biblical focus on wars, rumours of wars, disease and dying out of species.

Creating a myth for our time

It’s easy to take a scientific stance and analyse and examine each prophesy in order to reveal its flaws and half-truths. However there is something bigger happening here. We are witnessing the creation of a myth.

Within the layers of ideas presented as predictions there are themes. One such theme is that of the search for some sort of external salvation. Humanity has a long history of looking to one or other god for some sort of rescue from the vagaries of nature and our own darker side.

We can see this theme in the ideas of a sudden transformation that will launch those who are ready into a transcendent, and unified, way of living in harmony with all things. Then there is the idea of alien DNA being implanted in humans to improve the human race and make it more empathic. This is spoken of by many who report alien abduction experiences. In this case it is not a god, but some sort of alien being that represents the source of external salvation or rescue. Meanwhile, the prophecies of our imminent destruction seem ever closer to fulfilment with each passing newspaper bulletin.

How will we respond?

What concerns me most is how large portions of the population choose to respond to the sense of impending doom, combined with the hope of an external source of rescue. For some who are very literal interpreters of the Bible, there will be nothing much to do except let the old earth pass away and hale the return of Jesus. It’s his task to create a new earth, not ours. This line of thinking is possibly among the most dangerous. In the extreme it leans towards not just sitting back and doing nothing, but hastening the demise of this world in order to achieve the next one sooner. (http://www.religionnewsblog.com/15024/end-times-religious-groups-want-apocalypse-soon)  

There is also a theme of great hope. Many of the groups that believe various prophecies that hold hope for a transformation are also ardent proponents of living gently on the earth and being far more careful with how we use resources and treat the biodiversity around us.

It’s our responsibility

The story we are creating through belief, unbelief or scepticism around the significance of 2012 has the power to change how we behave. Ultimately whether or not we believe in an external source of salvation, we need to believe in ourselves and our own ability to do what is needed to change our impact on our planet. We need to embrace a story of our achievement in finding ways to store energy that don’t destroy the environment. We need to have faith in our ability to take further steps forward in learning to live in a way that sustains and promotes biodiversity – a balance rather than dominance. Will we be able to make the changes in time? Perhaps it depends how well we construct the story of our success and survival and tell it to our children as we begin to live it out. Perhaps we will only know the answer beyond the 21st December 2012.

Links of interest:

http://www.2012predictions.net/index.htm

http://www.lawoftime.org/home.html

http://www.2012hoax.org/jose-arguelles

Dragonwyst is a Registered Nurse, experienced in working with people facing life-threatening illness. She has training in basic counselling and Logotherapy (meaning-centred counselling) through the University of South Africa (UNISA) and is furthering her studies in counselling in Australia. She is a member of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD).