Summary
Millenarianism or millenarism (from Latin millenarius, "containing a thousand") is the belief by a religious, social, or political group or movement in a coming fundamental transformation of society, after which "all things will be changed". Millenarianism exists in various cultures and religions worldwide, with various interpretations of what constitutes a transformation. These movements believe in radical changes to society after a major cataclysm or transformative event. Millenarianist movements can be secular (not espousing a particular religion) or religious in nature, and are therefore not necessarily linked to millennialist movements in Christianity. The terms "millennialism" and "millenarianism" are sometimes used interchangeably. Stephen Jay Gould has argued that this usage is incorrect, stating: Millennium is from the Latin mille, "one thousand," and annus, "year"—hence the two n's. Millenarian is from the Latin millenarius, "containing a thousand (of anything)," hence no annus, and only one "n". The application of an apocalyptic timetable to the changing of the world has happened in many cultures and religions, continues to this day, and is not relegated to the sects of major world religions, both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic. Increasingly in the study of apocalyptic new religious movements, millenarianism is used to refer to a more cataclysmic and destructive arrival of a utopian period as compared to millennialism which is often used to denote a more peaceful arrival and is more closely associated with a one thousand year utopia. Millennialism often refers to a specific type of Christian millenarianism, and is sometimes referred to as Chiliasm from the New Testament use of the Greek chilia (thousand). It is part of the broader form of apocalyptic expectation. A core doctrine in some variations of Christian eschatology is the expectation that the Second Coming is very near and that there will be an establishment of a Kingdom of God on Earth.
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