rapture

Rapture refers to a future event in Christian eschatology in which believers are bodily or spiritually gathered to meet Christ, typically described as occurring prior to or during the end-times. The term derives from the Latin raptus, used in translations of the Bible to render the Hebrew and Greek ideas of being seized or caught up. The classic scriptural basis is found in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, which speaks of the Lord descending, the dead in Christ rising, and living believers being caught up together to meet the Lord; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 speaks of the change in the twinkling of an eye.

Within Christian thought, the rapture is interpreted in various ways. In dispensationalist and many evangelical circles it is often placed before a period of tribulation (pre-tribulation). Other traditions emphasize a mid-tribulation or post-tribulation scenario. Some theologians distinguish the rapture from the Second Coming of Christ: the former as a gathering of the faithful, the latter as the visible return of Christ to judge and reign on earth. The term itself is not found as such in most classical creeds and is more developed in 19th-century Protestantism, associated with John Nelson Darby and later popularized in works like the Scofield Reference Bible and left-behind novels.

Interpretations vary across denominations. Many Catholic, Orthodox, and some Protestant theologians do not accept a separate pre- or mid-tribulation rapture, interpreting the relevant passages as describing a single, sequential end-time event or symbolic language. In secular discussions, the concept sometimes appears in popular culture as a dramatic escape event. The rapture remains a point of substantial debate within Christian eschatology, illustrating broader disagreements about biblical prophecy, the timing of events, and the nature of Christ's second coming.

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