Apocalypse, Rapture, Judgment Day, Armageddon, Doomsday, Tribulation – whatever you want to call it, many people believe in an end-of-days scenario lurking on mankind’s horizon.

Thanks in part to last year’s blockbuster film “2012,” most are familiar with the theory that the ancient Mayans, an advanced and sophisticated society, foretold that the world would end in December 2012 and sent us a warning in the form of the end of their calendar system.

However, as close and gloomy a December 2012 date of the arrival of the four horsemen may seem, a new theory is becoming more and more popular among Christians predicting that the end of the world is to arrive much sooner. The arrival of Judgment Day, according to these religious theorists, is set for May 21, 2011 and followed by the end of the world on Oct. 21.

Although the majority of the Christian community still generally believes in an unknown, un-foretold date of the Rapture and second coming of Christ, some have come to different conclusions based on multiple deeply-analyzed scriptures from the Bible.

Scrutinizing Biblical scripture with the help of newer, lesser-known translations of the original language as well as speculations of the meanings or possible codes behind phrases used in the Bible, theorists have formed a time line in which they claim Judgment Day and the End of Days are clearly marked for the coming months

While this Christian minority of theorists sits and prepares for the rapidly approaching end of days, the majority remains content in the belief that no man knows when the end of days will occur, and that said theorists are merely grasping at straws and have dug through scripture until they found a pattern that doesn’t actually exist.

Whoever is right, if either, the fact remains that a type of pre-Y2K panic and debate is going on within the Christian community.

Whether you believe in Jesus Christ descending from the heavens to wage battle with Satan on earth in the coming weeks or that mankind’s depleted resources and thoughtless pollution will result in epic natural disasters across the planet wiping out all of mankind, all of the doomsday forecasts are equally terrifying.

Editor’s note: As this is a very complex topic, a complete overview of this theory can be found by visiting: http://www.ediblefellowship.com/may21/.