who were antichrist?

1 ANSWERS

1. Amit bang
   

   In medieval Christian mythology, the prodigious tyrant of the last days, the arch-enemy of Christ. It was a notion that combined Persian dualism with Judeo-Christian apocalypse. Antichrist first appeared in Revelation as the pseudo-messiah ‘who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped…. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given to him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.’ In the Middle Ages, however, he was portrayed not only as a world tyrant but also as an airborne beast with a huge head, flaming eyes, a*s's ears, and iron teeth.
   
   The coming of Antichrist was tensely awaited. In 1096 Pope Urban said that, since the tyrant's arrival was imminent and the Holy Land would be the centre of his power, it was crucial that Christians expel the Moslems from Jerusalem. Thus he launched the First Crusade. When the threat of invasion by Saracens, Tartars, or Turks did not fuel the myth, Europe tended to find his supporters within itself. Satan became ‘the father of the Jews’, and bloody persecution ensued. But it most people believed that Antichrist was to be a Jew, there were many who believed that he would be the son of a bishop or a nun. Anticlericalism and Antichrist became strangely entwined. As Pope Boniface VIII wrote in 1296: ‘Antiquity relates that laymen show a spirit of hostility towards the clergy, and it is clearly proved by the experience of the present time.’ During the Reformation it comes as no surprise to discover that Protestants regarded the Pope as Antichrist while Catholics returned the compliment with regard to Luther.

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