Millenarian Movements

The terms millenarianism or millennialism are used by scholars to refer to movements expecting an imminent transition to a collective salvation (i.e., a condition of permanent well-being enjoyed by a group), which may be believed to be earthly and/or heavenly. Millenarians believe that the transition to the collective salvation will occur as the result of the intervention of a divine or superhuman agent, perhaps using human assistance. Many millenarians expect the transition to occur via a cataclysmic destruction of the current order so that the “millennial kingdom” can be created—this pattern can be termed catastrophic millennialism. Other millenarians have a strong belief in “progress” and therefore believe that humans working under divine or superhuman guidance can create the millennial kingdom—this pattern can be termed progressive millennialism.

Millenarian movements have been found all over the world and in all historical periods. Protomillenarian ideologies as far back as the second millennium BCE supported the authority of Egyptian and Mesopotamian rulers in consolidating their power and extending their kingdoms. The global dissemination of the Christian Bible has contributed to the formation of millenarian movements in different parts of the world. Millenarian movements have inspired oppressed peoples to revolt against colonial governments and socioeconomic forces. Millenarian movements can provide hope that injustice will be corrected, the perpetuators of injustice will be punished, and the faithful will be vindicated and rewarded with permanent well-being. Millenarian movements can stimulate social work to create the millennial kingdom on earth. They have motivated people to migrate to new locations to build their millennial kingdom by creating new communities, settling new territories, and founding new nations. They can also inspire millenarians to commit acts of terrorism (when the movement is not socially dominant) or fight revolutions and even world wars (when the movement has gained a sufficiently large number of adherents). All millenarian movements seek a condition of permanent well-being (salvation) for a designated group of people, often called “the Elect” by the believers or by scholars.