Writing the Rapture: Prophecy Fiction in Evangelical America

by Crawford Gribben

For the past twenty years, evangelical prophecy novels have been a powerful presence on American bestseller lists. Emerging from a growing conservative culture industry, the genre dramatizes events that many believers expect to occur at the end of the age - the rapture of the saved, the rise of the Antichrist, and the fearful tribulation faced by those who are "left behind."
Seeking the forces that drove the unexpected success of the Left Behind novels, Crawford Gribben traces the gradual development of the prophecy fiction genre from its eclectic roots among early twentieth-century fundamentalists. The first rapture novels came onto the scene at the high water mark of Protestant America. From there, the genre would both witness the defeat of conservative Protestantism and participate in its eventual reconstruction and return, providing for the renaissance of the evangelical imagination that would culminate in the Left Behind novels.
Yet, as Gribben shows, the rapture genre, while vividly expressing some prototypically American themes, also serves to greatly complicate the idea of American modernity-assaulting some of its most cherished tenets. Gribben concludes with a look at "post- Left Behind " rapture fiction, noting some works that were written specifically to counter the claims of the best-selling series. Along the way, he gives attention not just to literary fictions, but to rapture films and apocalyptic themes in Christian music. Writing the Rapture is an indispensable guide to this flourishing yet little understood body of literature.

Genres: Religion

258 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2009

About the author

A cultural and literary historian whose work concentrates on the development and dissemination of religious ideas, Crawford Gribben is Professor of History at Queen's University, Belfast.

Reviews

[Virginia Weir · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book. I enjoy reading the non-fiction of Jerry B Jenkins but would never read his Left Behind series because of its faulty theology. I don't read much Evangelical fiction because it doesn't appeal to me. I prefer reading non-Christian work for the simple reason that even as a (comparatively) right wing Evangelical Christian, I don't like being told what to think on any issue. I'm from the UK and regard pretty much any development in the US church as antinomian if not downright Satanic. There are just too many missed opportunities and it's the home of 95% of the Christian heresies in the world.

[Mitch S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gribben, a former Plymouth Brethen, did outstanding objective work on the history of Dispensationalism and pre-wrath tribulation rapture prophecy fiction. As a former dispensationalist myself, it was eye opening to me the connections with dispensationalism and the culture surrounding it. I do not want to spoil the read for you, so check it out!