Episode 10: The Late Great Planet Earth

Christian Rightcast

Over the course of our series on End Times and Apocalypse narratives in the Christian Right, one name has come up over and over. Hal Lindsey’s breezy 1970 book The Late Great Planet Earth repackaged the broad strokes of Dispensationalist theology for the post-Woodstock world, framing Bible Prophecy as the more accurate version of popular “new age” pursuits like astrology and palm-reading — and the key to unlocking an increasingly frightening modern world.

Looking very 70s, Hal Lindsey explains his ideas in a scene from the film adaptation of his book.

In this episode we take a closer look at Lindsey’s book, the new elements it introduced to the Dispensationalist playbook, the effect its success had on both Christian fundamentalism and American pop culture… and the careful rhetorical games Lindsey plays to frame his idiosyncratic views as The Simple Truth of Scripture. We also answer questions from listeners about the evolution of “rapture media,” the Christian Right’s relationship to Israel, and more. If you have questions about this series — or additional subjects you’d like to see explored, jump into the comments here on Substack or reach out to us on Twitter!

Mentioned in this episode

• The Late Great Planet Earth, by Hal Lindsey

• The Late Great Planet Earth, film adaptation, narrated by Orson Welles

• Superchurch: The Rhetoric and Politics of American Fundamentalism, by Jonathan J. Edwards (Table of contents and summary)

• Evangelicals Incorporated: Books and the Business of Religion in America, by Daniel Vaca