You Think Antichrist Speculation Is Bad Now . . .

Antichrist speculation was rife at the end of the thirteenth century. A number of those influenced by the noted apocalyptic thinker Joachim of Fiore (b. 1135, d. 1202) expected the Lord to return by 1260. This was a date derived from a misreading of several texts in the Book of Revelation (cf. Revelation 11:2-3; 12:6). When this did not happen as hoped for, those left behind were forced to explain why the Lord had not come back. In previous posts, I considered antichrist speculations of two prominent Franciscan theologians, Gerhoh of Reichersberg, and Adso of Montier-en-Der, who had much to say about an imminent appearance of the Antichrist in the tenth (Adso) and eleventh centuries (Gerhoh). If our own age is dogged by end-times speculation, we have nothing on the medievals when it comes to attempting to identify the Antichrist.

Throughout the thirteenth century, the Roman Church was thoroughly corrupt and made little effort to hide it or do anything about it. A large and influential “reformist movement” (including many Franciscans) lamented the sad state of the church and sought its reform. Some even speculated that a future, evil pope, might even be the Antichrist.

But there were other factors driving the eschatological fervor of the period. One was the influence which Joachim had upon much of the church’s eschatology–although Aquinas and Bonaventure resisted much of this speculation. Famous for his understanding of history unfolding in three stages, Joachim taught that the final stage was to be the age of the “Spirit” which had not yet dawned. The anticipation of a truly “spiritual” age encouraged all sorts of wild speculation about when this age would begin, what things would be like when it did, and what events would occur before it does.

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