Prepare, for the end is near . . . again!
Radio personality Harold Camping gives dire predictions of judgment

By Nick Locke · The Mainstream
Published April 12, 2011

In a mere month and a half, the world will experience a mass exodus of the saved, at least according to the billboard put up on I-5 in Sutherlin near exit135.The billboard, dedicated to the coming of Judgment day, was funded by Harold Camping’s organization, Family Radio. The passionate millionaire and president of Family Stations, Inc. wishes to warn the people.

Camping authored the self-published book “We are almost there!” in which he describes his view on eschatology, the Christian belief of the second coming of the Lord and savior. Using his research, he says he found “abundant biblical evidence that the end of the world is almost here,” as he states in his book. The date? May 21, 2011.

While Camping has developed a following, not everyone agrees with his methodology, whether it be either the date, techniques of persuasion or the ideology all together.

“Date setting is either ignorance or abuse,” says Chris Black, a youth pastor from Sutherlin and a current UCC community education student. “In the scripture, it says Jesus will come like a thief in the night. No one will know when [Judgment Day] will come.”

While the ominous billboard is one way to spread the message, Camping has a few others. He is the host of the Open Forum program on Family Radio. While his show is not solely dedicated to the coming J-Day, he often fields questions from concerned listeners in regards to the predictions. Family Radio is comprised of 164 stations across the country including 88.5 FM in Roseburg.

Camping also hosts Project Caravan and Project Jonah. These projects are mission trips to “sound the trumpet,” according to the Family Radio website. Project Caravan, based in the U.S., recently visited Oregon while Project Jonah is an international trip. Both projects conclude on May 21.

“Family Radio desires to provide whatever information it can to help the media worldwide understand what the Bible is teaching about the coming end of the world,” Camping’s website states. His motivation to spread the word is derived from a quote within the Bible itself from Ezekiel 3:33 which says “blow the trumpet . . . warn the people.”

This, however, isn’t the first attempt to predict the date that Camping has made. In 1992, he published the book “1994?” in which he predicted that Jesus’ second coming was to take place between September 15 and 27 in the year 1994. The year 1994 came and went without Camping’s retraction or acknowledgment of the failed prophecy. Camping continued broadcasting in 1994.

However, this time, according to Camping’s book “We are almost there!” Family Radio will be shutting down on May 21.