Opinion Editor
On Thursday, May 23, in the Multi-Purpose Room, Galen Norsworthy, the President and CEO of Ducor Telephone Company and a graduate from Western Conservative Baptist Seminary with a Master’s in Pastoral Ministry, presented on the coming apocalypse as prophesied by the Bible. Entitled “The Mayans Were Right; The Just Got the Date Wrong,” Norsworthy quoted passages from the book of Daniel, discussed the coming rapture and emphasized the need for people to seek God’s righteousness.
Norsworthy began his presentation with a comparison of life to a CSI episode. He told the audience that, if we were to take a snapshot of a CSI episode, a snapshot in which we see a moment with no indication of prior happenings and no signs of a resolution, our first reaction would be to ask questions: What happened? How does the episode end? For Norsworthy, that we ask about our end speaks to an underlying truth – there will, in fact, be an end to humanity.
Diving into an analysis of Scripture, Norsworthy referenced the dream of Nebuchadnezzar and the decree of the restoration of Jerusalem in the book of Nehemiah as prophesies regarding the coming of a messiah. Talking about how the kingdoms following Nebuchadnezzar would be destroyed by a kingdom from Greece, Norsworthy then talked about how the name Christ stems from the Greek word christos, defined as messiah.
Showing to the audience a basic timeline, on which humanity’s existence was divided into Biblical segments, Norsworthy discussed how we live in what he calls the “Church Age,” the time in which the body and word of Christ are available to us. Norsworthy also called this age the “Mystery Age,” for this time period was intended to be a secret to humanity.
“Paul says that this time period in which we live right now was never revealed in any prior age,” Norsworthy said. “It was a secret.”
After discussing how believers in Christ would be saved in the rapture and describing the suffering of non-believers during the time of tribulation (the earthly period of frequent natural disasters), Norsworthy concluded his presentation with another analogy. Likening God’s love to a flame, Norsworthy countered the belief that a loving God is cruel for condemning his people. He argued that, just as a fire burns us only if we tamper with its flame, humanity’s approach to God, not God Himself, is what necessitates damnation. He suggested that God remains constant, and humanity’s responsibility is to approach Him correctly by accepting Christ.
Despite dealing with issues of mortality and the apocalypse, Norsworthy’s presentation was well received.
“I liked it,” said Stephanie Hughes, a junior biology major. “I liked that we got to ask questions after the presentation.”
“The end times are always confusing, and there is a lot of debate on it, so I thought Norsworthy’s perspective was interesting,” Hughes added.
Despite the bleak nature of the topic, Norsworthy’s answers to questions regarding the apocalypse were positive.
“Millions and millions of people will be saved during the Tribulation,” Norsworthy answered when asked by a student how one would receive salvation prior to annihilation.
After the event, Norsworthy spoke to the importance of his presentation.
“If a disaster were going to occur, like in Oklahoma this last Monday, whether you are prepared or not, wouldn’t you like to know that a disaster is coming,” Norsworthy said after the presentation.
“We too often are caught up in the events of our lives that we don’t even realize the storm is coming on the horizon, and for our benefit, we need to be warned,” Norsworthy added.
