Will the Second Coming be livestreamed?

Many people believe we are living in the end times. Of course as Catholics we know these are the 'end times'. We are in the last age of the Spirit and the Church beginning with Pentecost. But are these the end of the end times? If so, how will people around the world see Jesus returning in glory? If he were to return to Jerusalem at the location of the ascension how would people who live on the opposite end of the earth see him? The world is not flat or concave, shaped like a giant stadium, so how will this work? 

Popular depictions of the 'End Times' in books, media and entertainment usually devolve into sensationalism.

Imagine for a second if Hollywood made a film titled, 'The Second Coming'. It might begin with people being required by a global government to download an app on their phones. So that when the big day comes they would simply open their 'Parousia App' and watch the events unfold via livestream.

It would cut to a scene where a panel of CNN 'experts' will do their best to explain what is happening. "We see some sort of human figure breaking through the clouds now. Is that Jesus? Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it appears to be a luminous Jesus". Just then, a lone skeptic walks in front of the CNN truck and yells, 'Fake News!'.

It would then flash to scenes of people running scared and other people on their knees, phone in hand. I think it could rival Jurassic Park or Independence Day in its epicness. While it might be entertaining, let's be honest, it would in the end be like most attempts by Hollywood to make a religious themed film...a flop. 

The thing is, when Christ returns, it will not just be one among many historical events. Rather, it will be the consummation of history. Therefore, it will be awesome and wondrous, something that our technology will be unable to capture.

Perhaps it will unfold as a divine infusion of knowledge into our imaginations but definitely not imaginary. It might be a super-real, vivid 'dream' shared by all in real time. It would have to be more real than reality. Our ability to percieve the events would require some kind of infusion of knowledge harkening back to something we lost in the Garden of Eden. It will be a real event and it will be communal. So a bunch of individuals watching the Good Shepherd separating the 'sheep' from the 'goats' on their iphone is actually a dumb guess as to how it will work.

Will the Second Coming be livestreamed? No. 

We must not think as the world thinks. "So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer"( 2 Cor 5:16). 

We must be careful to avoid a hyper-literal interpretation of the scriptures when it comes to the end times. We have seen Protestants get caught up in 'millenialism' (a literal 1000 year reign) or the rapture of bodies being vacuumed up into the air (promoted by the "Left Behind' book series). However, each Sunday we Catholics recite the Creed we proclaim that Christ 'will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead'. 

What does it mean to say, 'He will come in glory’? Obviously, this is in contrast to his first coming which was humble and hidden: a newborn in a cave. In describing the Second Coming the Gospel of Luke uses cryptic symbolism and imagery. "The Son of Man in His day will be like the lightning that flashes from one end of the sky to the other" (Lk 17:24). 

St. Peter predicts, "The day of the Lord will come like a thief and on that day the heavens will vanish with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire and the earth and all its deeds will be made manifest" (2 Pt 3:10).

St. Paul said, "He will give a new form to this lowly body of ours and remake it according to the pattern of His glorified body..." (Phil 3:21).

The dead will be raised and souls will be united to their spiritually transformed bodies to stand before the Just Judge and have their thoughts and deeds exposed. What will we be doing when the deepest secrets of our souls will come to light? Probably begging for mercy. 

Jesus said, "As to the exact day or hour, no one knows it, neither the angels in heaven nor even the Son, but only the Father. Be constantly on the watch! Stay awake! You do not know when the appointed time will come" (Mk 13:32-33).

Jesus indicated that various signs would mark the event including war, persecution, apostasy, famine, pestilence and natural disasters. There will be deceptive and popular false prophets who claim to be the Messiah. Evil will run rampant under the influence of the Anti-Christ but  "God's triumph over the revolt of evil will take the form of the last judgment after the final cosmic upheaval of this passing world" (CCC 667). People have made a convincing case that our current times seem to be replete with these signs. But the event itself will nevertheless be unexpected by most.

There will be no Parousia App and no scheduled programming but there will definitely be a parousia event. It will be somewhat unexpected. Whether we are alive or already dead when it happens we all will have a role to play as the ones who stand before our Judge and behold his awesome and glorious might.

To this prospect we confidently say, ‘Come Lord Jesus. Maranatha!’