The last novel in the Left Behind series, Christian fiction that has made publishing history, is on store shelves. But that may not be the end of the story.
By SHARON TUBBS
Published April 19, 2004
ST. PETERSBURG - John McNeil was home for a visit from his Marine post about five years ago when his father handed him a black paperback novel with a picture of the Earth in shades of fire. Left Behind was the title.
"I think you'll like it," he told him.
It was Christian fiction, a story about the apocalypse.
McNeil's dad was a preacher. But as a Marine stationed in Washington, D.C., McNeil had drifted away from religion. He slept in on Sundays, his Bible collecting dust.
"I just kind of put church and the Bible and that stuff on the back burner, was kind of doing my own thing," he said.
Sometimes he worked security in Washington bars like other Marines. One night, he was flipping through Left Behind to pass the time. "I read that," some guy told him, drunk and half falling off his stool. "It's good."
Later, McNeil learned that a friend of his had read it, too. Then another friend, and another. One after the other, McNeil breezed through Left Behind and the succeeding entries in the series: Tribulation Force, Nicolae, Soul Harvest, Apollyon. . . .
Last month, 24-year-old McNeil and Left Behind fans nationwide bought the series' 12th and final installment, Glorious Appearing, the climax to an evangelical phenomenon that has kept both critics and fans rapt for nearly a decade.
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Jerry B. Jenkins started writing the Left Behind series in 1995 with Tim LaHaye, an evangelical and former church pastor. Interestingly, it has taken longer to release the novels than the seven-year time frame the series covers.
Based on the book of Revelation, Left Behind opens as Christians dramatically ascend to heaven, leaving the clothes they were wearing, and even their shoes and eyeglasses, behind during what some believers call the rapture. In time, some nonbelievers left on Earth realize what has happened: Christians have gone to heaven. Non-Christians remain to endure seven years of tribulation, a period when an evil Antichrist rises to power and rules the world.
In Glorious Appearing comes the climax, when Jesus Christ returns to set up an earthly kingdom that will last 1,000 years.
The series, published by Christian publisher Tyndale House, has sold more than 58-million copies and been translated into 34 languages over the last nine years. Five of the 12 books were No. 1 New York Times bestsellers, with fans reserving copies at stores before they were released. When Glorious Appearing went on sale March 30, bookstores had already bought the initial print run of 1.9-million copies.
But even this is not the end of the series. Writers are discussing a prequel or sequel to the Left Behind story line, which has become its own industry of sorts. There's the Left Behind Greeting Card Collection, kids series, worship CD, dramatic audio collection, newsletter and, of course, Web site.
According to Left Behind's own statistics, its core buyer is a married woman with kids, average age of 44. She identifies herself as a born-again Christian, is a college graduate and lives in the South. About 60 percent of Left Behind buyers have read seven or more of the books. Among Christian publishers, it is considered among the biggest crossover hits in history, with books sold not just in Christian bookstores, but also in grocery stores and chains such as Wal-Mart.
But Left Behind has its critics, some of whom contend that the series is theologically bankrupt.
Within Christian circles, several theories exist concerning when the rapture and the second coming of Jesus will take place. Some say that believers will go to heaven before the tribulation period; others say they will have to endure the tribulation and receive their heavenly crowns thereafter. Still others say Christians will live through 31/2 years of tribulation, then go to heaven for the second half. As for Christ, Christians continue to debate whether he will come to Earth at the time of the rapture or some later date.
The Left Behind series takes the "dispensational premillennialism" viewpoint, which says Christians will ascend to heaven before seven years of tribulation, then Christ will return and establish his kingdom on Earth for 1,000 years.
Andrew Corbett, a pastor in Australia, posted the article "Why Left Behind Should Be Left Behind" on his Web site, www.andrewcorbett.net
"For Left Behind to be true it has to invent its own set of rules for Bible interpretation," Corbett wrote before going into an extensive analysis of a chapter in the Gospel of Matthew.
Catholic bishops in Illinois issued a statement last year saying the books are anti-Catholic: "Overall, these books reinforce an unhealthy and immature belief in a harshly judgmental God whose mercy we earn by good behavior. In response to reading them, Catholic catechists have been observed confusing and even frightening children in religious education programs by teaching the "rapture' as if it were an article of Catholic faith. There is also real danger that Catholics persuaded by this agenda may judge other people on spiritual fitness for the "rapture.' "
The series also made headlines in 1999 when LaHaye sued producers of a movie starring Kirk Cameron based on the book series. Cloud Ten Pictures of Toronto made Left Behind on a $17.4-million budget. LaHaye, who had originally agreed with the project, later contended that it was a misrepresentation of his work. The case was dismissed.
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John McNeil kept up with the book series, reading chapters when he had time off from his Marine duties in the nation's capital. He was unimpressed with the film, although churches embraced it when it was released on video in 2000 and in theaters in 2001. By the time McNeil saw it, he had read about six books in the series. The movie left out several parts and lacked the quality of some big-ticket Hollywood flicks, he said. "It was terrible. It was really bad."
He related to the books, especially the character Buck Williams, a young journalist and skeptic who gradually becomes a Christian, marries and has a child. With each book, Buck grows spiritually as he fights against the Antichrist while maintaining his new family.
McNeil, serving four years' active duty, said he related to Buck's adventurous personality and spiritual growth.
As Y2K approached and people in the nation anticipated the end of the world, McNeil was reading about Buck and the others in a battle between good and evil. As a member of the president's honor guard, he went to funerals, parades and other official ceremonies.
For him, the draw of the Left Behind series wasn't connecting the Bible with world events. The books were just exciting. "My dad knows a lot more about Revelation and the end of the Bible and the prophetic, you know, yada yada yada. I don't know that, I read that and I'm like, whatever," McNeil said. "I'll leave that to the professionals. I don't even pretend to be a theologian. That stuff (end times) really isn't that important to me. . . . I worry about me and like what's going on today."
After his tour in the Marines was over, McNeil moved back to Pinellas Park in 2001, enrolled as a full-time student at the University of South Florida in Tampa and got a job at an athletic store to pay the bills.
He wants to be a high school math teacher and hopes to graduate next year.
On a recent day, one of the main things on his mind was reading Glorious Appearing. A stack of other paperbacks sat on top of his refrigerator, including Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Love in the Time of Cholera and Walden Two by B.F. Skinner for his behavioral management class. Not too long ago, he finished Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis and The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel.
It has been a year since he read Armageddon, the 11th in the Left Behind series. That book ended with major characters Rayford Steele and Buck near death. Would they die?
It took another year before Glorious Appearing came out. Within a week of its release, McNeil had picked up a copy. He chipped away at nearly 400 pages by reading a bit each night before going to bed.
By the time he finished, he noticed that this novel has more Scripture and preaching than the others. He also learned more about LaHaye's and Jenkins' theory of the end times.
"No one really knows exactly how it's going to play out," McNeil said. "I hope it doesn't end like this. There's a lot of pain and suffering for everyone."
One thing McNeil says he knows for sure: "When it's raptured, oh yeah, I'm going."
