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| 1. | any doctrine concerning the end of the temporal world, esp. one based on the supposed prophetic passages in the Revelation of St. John the Divine. |
| 2. | the millennial doctrine of the Second Advent and personal reign of Jesus Christ on earth. |
apocalypticism
eschatological (end-time) views and movements that focus on cryptic revelations about a sudden, dramatic, and cataclysmic intervention of God in history; the judgment of all men; the salvation of the faithful elect; and the eventual rule of the elect with God in a renewed heaven and earth. Arising in Zoroastrianism, an Iranian religion founded by the 6th-century-BC prophet Zoroaster, apocalypticism was developed more fully in Judaic, Christian, and Islamic eschatological speculation and movements. See also eschatology.
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