NEWS FEATURE: As `Left Behind’ Series Winds Down, Final Book Off to Strong Start

c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Just weeks after hitting bookstore shelves, the final book in the amazingly successful, 12-volume “Left Behind” series is “No. 1” on national best-seller lists. “Glorious Appearing,” the last progeny of a prodigious partnership between conservative minister the Rev. Tim LaHaye, and Christian writer Jerry Jenkins, was released March 30. […]

c. 2004 Religion News Service

(UNDATED) Just weeks after hitting bookstore shelves, the final book in the amazingly successful, 12-volume “Left Behind” series is “No. 1” on national best-seller lists.

“Glorious Appearing,” the last progeny of a prodigious partnership between conservative minister the Rev. Tim LaHaye, and Christian writer Jerry Jenkins, was released March 30. In less than a month, the book reached No. 1 on the USA Today best-seller list and continues to do well in other national rankings.


The series, a fictional tale built on LaHaye’s understanding of the New Testament book of Revelation, has been wildly popular since it began in 1995.

In this new book, Jesus returns and defeats Satan, thus establishing Christ’s 1,000-year reign on Earth. Though the authors have said this is the last in the Left Behind series, there could be a prequel to outline the background of the Antichrist and one more book describing the final battle between God and Satan as Christ’s millennial earthly rule ends.

Both authors remain a little astounded at the books’ overwhelming success, pointing to the series’ popularity in secular circles and the number of conversions and rededications to the faith reported among Christian readers. Critics of the books worry “Left Behind” teaches an inaccurate theological interpretation of Revelation.

The critics argue that the Left Behind books promote a view of the end times not shared by all Christians. In such religious circles, Revelation may be described as a book replete with symbolism and poetic imagery, which is designed to depict the consummation of the Bible’s story of redemption and not designed to be read with wooden literalism.

But LaHaye believes his understanding of Revelation is correct, even though he never envisioned Left Behind would be such a success.

“It’s just been a fantastic ride, above and beyond anything I ever dreamed,” LaHaye said in a telephone news conference. He further attributed the series’ success to Americans’ strong interest in the Bible and Christians’ interest in prophecy.

“I think people are vitally interested in prophecy,” LaHaye said. “We have a much higher percentage of Bible-believing Christians in this country than the media has ever dreamed.”


Over the past nine years, more than 40 million Left Behind novels have been sold. Five of the first 11 made No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list. The books have been translated into 34 languages and the series has also been spotlighted on national cable and network news shows.

In addition, the series has spawned a series for children, a Web site (http://www.leftbehind.com), biblical study guides linked to the original books, CDs in which the graphic stories are performed, gift items and other merchandise.

According to research from Tyndale House Publishers, the books are most popular with women, who comprise 57 percent of the series’ readers. The core buyer is: female, married, between 25 and 54, a born again Christian, evangelical, lives in the South, graduated from college, attends church weekly, prays and reads the Bible more than the average person.

While 84 percent are born again, 16 percent of readers are non-Christians, including 4 percent who are self-described atheists.

As “Glorious Appearing” was released, bookstores already had purchased 1.9 million copies.

“I think one of the reasons for the big crossover success is that whether people would call it this or not, I think there is a God hunger on the part of society,” said Jenkins, co-author with LaHaye.

“People may not consider themselves religious or even spiritual seekers,” Jenkins said in the telephone news conference he did with LaHaye.


“But we can tell from sales and from what publishers are offering in the general market, books by the pope, the Dalai Lama, the inner-healing gurus, the Eastern religion leaders, that people are looking for something beyond themselves,” Jenkins said.

(OPTIONAL TRIM FOLLOWS)

A decade ago, LaHaye had no notion where his idea would take him. He has served as a pastor. And back when he began the Left Behind series, he had written 45 nonfiction books and established Christian schools and colleges.

He also had been a major player, along with other conservative Christian leaders, in politics and social concerns. He worked with Lynchburg, Va., pastor Jerry Falwell in the Moral Majority. His wife, Beverly LaHaye, founded Concerned Women of America, a Christian conservative group.

Yet LaHaye says he has been fascinated with prophecy ever since college. He graduated from Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C., well known among conservative and fundamentalist Christians.

While Left Behind was his first attempt at fiction, LaHaye says he tried it because it helped him reach people with a crucial message.

“I saw that fiction was a wonderful avenue into the hearts and minds of people. I realized I could not write good fiction and I didn’t want to schlock the story. Inferior fiction would be no asset. That’s when I started praying for a partner who would be a good fiction writer and that’s when the Lord gave me Jerry Jenkins who was above and beyond anything I could have expected,” LaHaye said.


The apocalypse had begun for nonbelievers, or those left behind.

(Cecile S. Holmes, longtime religion writer, is an assistant professor of journalism at the University of South Carolina. Her email address is: cholmes(at)sc.edu.)

DEA/JL END HOLMES

Donate to Support Independent Journalism!

Donate Now!