As Georg notes, I never refer to the “Roman Catholic Church” in my book. One reason is that the term is problematic in certain ways, although I don’t really have a serious issue with it when used in a general, non-polemical fashion. The other reason I avoid the term is that although I, as a former Evangelical Protestant, entered the Catholic Church via a Western-rite parish (in 1997), my family and I have attended a Byzantine Catholic parish since 2000. I am very familiar with the various rites in the Catholic Church and have written some articles about the differences between the Western and Eastern Catholic Churches (go here for an example).

Anyhow, I appreciate the very thoughtful and serious nature of the analysis offered here of my first book. It is hardly a perfect book and I actually agree with some of the criticisms. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to produce a revised edition, but it’s something I’d be open to doing down the road.

The Roman Catholic doctrine of the Assumption of Mary is also a distinctive (Roman?) Catholic doctrine that is irrelevant to Revelation. I would question whether there is Biblical evidence for this doctrine, but further discussion must take place elsewhere.

Regarding the title question “Will Catholics Be “Left Behind”? “

We hope so, because in the two prior examples in the Bible of people being taken, the people taken were destroyed. I prefer to stay and persevere in my faith.

Another way to look at the question is to reply that we already were left behind. There is much evidence that the “rapture” took place 1900 years ago and only one known person was raptured – Mary. She vanished and left no trace. (There could have been others lost to history.) Unless dispensationalist have some special charisma of infallibility, there’s a good chance that their timeline is in error.

God bless…

+Timothy