Prophets and Prophecy

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The actions of prophets and their prophecies have been around since the dawn of civilization. So, just what is a prophet? Very generally speaking, a prophet is one who takes stock of the world around them and then offers predictions on what will happen

in the world in the near or long-term future. This is true in both a religious and secular sense.

George Orwell was considered a secular prophet when, in the 1940s, he wrote his books “1984” and “Animal Farm.” In these books, he warned of the dangers of authoritarian rule, unchecked power, the potential for surveillance and for propaganda. Looking around the world today, it does seem that George Orwell was on to something.

Rachel Carson was another prophet of sorts. In 1962, she published her book “Silent Spring.” This book warned of the dangers of chemicals such as DDT. The book also called for radical environmental change. She questioned the prevailing idea that humans can control nature which is what humans had been thinking for over a hundred years. Her book was a major factor in the rise of environmental awareness, and it greatly contributed to the establishment of many environmental movements. (As an aside, Rachel Carson wrote this book when she was dying of breast cancer.)

So yes – there are secular prophets. There are, of course, many secular prophets who predict things that do not happen. This list is very long. People like the famous and accomplished Thomas Edison who despite his brilliance predicted that AC electricity would never power cities and homes. He promoted DC electricity. He launched a smear campaign against his former employee, Nikola Tesla, who invented and advocated for AC electricity. In the end, Tesla was correct and because of him, we have electricity throughout America even though most people do not even know who Tesla was.

So, what about religious prophets? They’ve been around for thousands of years and contributed to the establishment of many of the world’s religions. What are their characteristics? In general, religious prophets are a kind of “messenger” to human beings. In some cases, they claim their insights come from a god.

Usually, they are described as a person of impeccable character, a person of discernment and justice, a person who has a connection with the sacred which is defined by a particular religion. Prophets do not focus on themselves but rather, they seek, experience and speak of religious and spiritual truths.

It is common for religious prophets to experience persecution and even rejection during their life. Many prophets are considered mystics whose life and words become not only special but sacred. I think to be considered a prophet, a person needs to have not only a following but a lasting recognition over time that they were or are, indeed, a prophet. Many people have claimed to be a prophet, but they did not develop a long-

term following.

Perhaps the earliest religious prophet in recorded human history is Abraham. He lived sometime around 2000 BCE in what is now Iraq. He is considered the founder of Judaism, of Christianity and of Islam. His life and beliefs are recorded in Hebrew scripture (the Old Testament) and in the Qur’an. He is considered a messenger of God. (Yahweh, Elohim, Allah). Did Abraham exist? Well – we have no proof one way or the other, but scholars generally acknowledge the stories and myths about him had a profound impact on the establishment of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Abraham, like all the early Jews, was a henotheist – meaning he acknowledged that there were many gods worshipped by the people of the middle east. It was just that Yahweh was the primary and most powerful God and the God of the Jews.

Then we have Zoroaster who lived around 1000 to 1500 BCE. He was the founder of the Zoroastrian religion which was the main religion of the Persian Empire (Iran) around 550 to 330 BCE. It was during this period that Persia controlled the lands of Israel and the Jews. Zoroaster claimed to have received his wisdom and teaching from the one true God which in Persian was called, “Ahura Mazda.” He is considered by many scholars to be the original monotheist. What I find fascinating is that Zoroaster preached beliefs in one true God, the idea of heaven and hell, angels and devils, and a judgement day when the world would be destroyed in a cataclysmic battle between God and the devil. None of these ideas, at the time, were part of Judaism.

Keep in mind, the Persian Empire controlled the lands of Israel and the Jews. Most scholars are convinced these Zoroastrian ideas found their way into Judaism, then into Christianity and eventually Islam.

To be sure, there are many prophets in the Hebrew Bible, what Christians call the Old Testament. Many of these same prophets are also in the Qur’an – prophets such as Abraham, Moses, Noah, David, Solomon, Joseph, Issac, Jacob, Lot, Aaron, Job and many more.

Of course, Jesus is considered a prophet in both Christianity and Islam. According to scriptures, he meets all the characteristics of a prophet. For Christians, he was also the Messiah and the son of God. Jewish prophets had predicted the coming of a Messiah who would be a descendant of King David. He would be an earthly king who would restore the lands of Israel and establish peace in the world.

Christians excerpt certain passages out of the Bible (Hebrew scripture) and claim they point to the coming of Jesus. These passages from the Book of Isaiah include his birth as the Messiah from a virgin, and his role to die for the sins of humankind. However, Jews point out the passages referred to by Christians as predictions do not say what Christians think. The word almah in Book of Isaiah which Christians claim means “virgin” actually mean “young woman” in Hebrew. (So, the word was mistranslated). Also in Isaiah is mention of a suffering servant. Christians claim this refers to Jesus dying for humanities sins. However, Jews say the suffering servant refers to Israel.

Many scholars suggest Jesus believed he was the Messiah and sent by God to establish a new Jewish kingdom on earth – not a kingdom in heaven. So, the references in the Old Testament that seem to refer to Jesus do not actually do this according to most scholars. But he was a prophet.

There are prophets in many eastern religions as well. A big exception is Hinduism which does not have a prophet or founder. And Hinduism is the oldest living religion in the world with its origins going back roughly 5000 years.

Broadly speaking there is a big difference with prophets and prophecy between the eastern religions and the western religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The western religions and their prophets are rather “exclusive” meaning they maintain their prophecies, beliefs and practices offer “the correct religion” and other religions are false or less than true. The eastern religions are more “inclusive,” meaning they suggest there are many ways to spiritual and religious truth. Along these same lines, Judaism, Christianity and Islam all conclude that the “age of prophets” is over. There have been and will not be any more prophets. For the Jews this would be those prophets described in Hebrew scripture (the Old Testament). For Christians this would be the prophets in the Old Testament and Jesus and for the Muslims, this would be the Old Testament, Jesus and Muhammad. The eastern religions contend that prophecy and spiritual truths can appear and reappear in the endless cycles of the death and rebirth of the universe.

Just to give you an example of how western religions and western culture have very different views than those of Asian countries, consider time. In the west, when most people think about time, they think of a linear scale – time moving in a straight line from the past to the present to the future. In Asia, time is viewed as a circle and cycle, moving in a circular direction from past to present to future. (Try thinking about how you view time.)

Buddhism which originated around 500 BCE with its founder “The Buddha” is a prophetic religion. Buddhism borrows heavily from Hindu ideas such as samsara – the cycle of life through reincarnation – a belief in karma, the potential for moksha or nirvana, and the belief the universe is created and destroyed in endless cycles.

However, the Buddha said there is no creator god. What is the universe simply exists and always has. Hindus worship millions of gods and goddesses but believe all of them are merely manifestations of the one true God or Brahman which is beyond the ability of humans to describe or explain. Brahman according to Hindus is imbedded in all things in the universe, including you and me.

There are other eastern prophets such Lao Tsu – the probably mythical founder of Taoism. Lao Tzu is said to have lived around 500 BCE. His teachings speak of the importance of achieving inner peace by living in harmony with “The Way.” The Way according to Lao Tzu is a kind of force that guides the existence and natural harmony imbedded in nature and the universe. (It’s actually similar to the Hindu idea of Brahman). For true happiness, a person must maintain a peaceful existence in harmony with the flow of nature. This is described as “Wu Wei” or non-action. To exert personal ambitions such as egotism, greed, power, and attempts to control others or nature causes disharmony and leads a person to unhappiness, stress, and suffering.

Even though western religions suggest they have been but won’t be any more prophets after those described in the various holy scriptures - there actually have been more prophets in the west. There were Jews throughout the common era who claimed to be the Messiah. Some but not all Christian saints were considered prophets.

This brings us to modern history. It is true that throughout history, there have been many people who have claimed to be prophets, but their prophecies either failed to attract followers or their prophecies lacked staying power. They faded over time. I want to offer a few examples of modern prophets who were more successful.

A truly remarkable prophet is Joseph Smith – the founder of Mormonism. Joseph Smith was born in Vermont in 1805, but his family soon moved to upstate New York in an area often called “the Burned Out District.” This was an area that saw a heavy religious fervor when Joseph Smith was very young. Smith claimed he had been

visited an angel who asked him if he was a good Christian and read the Bible. He answered he was and he did. The angel then told him there was another sacred scripture on par with the Bible buried in upstate New York. Eventually he found it and claimed it was written in ancient Egyptian which he was then able to translate

with a seer stone. This is the Book of Mormon – what the Mormons call “”Another Testament of Jesus Christ.”

What the Book of Mormon says is there were no humans in the Americas until in 600 BCE. It was then that God sent a number of Jews to America on a ship.

Unfortunately, hundreds of years later they split in warring factions – the Nephites and the Lamanites. Eventually the Lamanites won out, and the Nephites were killed off. It was the Angel Gabriel who instructed Mormon and his son Moroni (who were Nephites) to write down this story, and then bury it in upstate New York where it was found by Joseph Smith more than 1800 years later. According to the Book of Mormon, the Lamanites who remained are the native Americans. The Book is Christian because when Jesus was crucified and died, he came to America before going to heaven in order to preach to the Nephites. Then he went to heaven.

Smith went on to produce two more scriptures, the Pearls of Great Price and the Book Doctrines and Covenants which contains Mormon beliefs and practices. There are over 17 million Mormons throughout the world and for decades, the Mormon religion was one of the fastest growing religions in the world.

Then we have Charles Taze Russell who fits at least many of the characteristics of a prophet. He is the founder of the Jehovah Witnesses – although the Witnesses do not consider Russell a prophet. Still, he predicted the world would end in 1878. When this didn’t happen, he extended it to 1888, then 1918 and eventually to 1920. Despite all of these predictions failing, Russell maintained a strong following. There are over 9 million Jehovah Witnesses in the world today.

The Witnesses call themselves Christian, but they do not believe in the Trinity. Accordingly to them, Jesus is a created being and a Messiah who will preside over a new kingdom, but he is not God. The Holy Spirit is merely a force of God and not separate from him. A main Witness belief comes from the Book of Revelation which

says only 144,000 people will be saved – meaning they will go to heaven. This became a problem when the number of Jehovah Witnesses exceeded 144,000. So now they say only 144,000 will go to the highest heaven. Other people less exalted than the 144,000, but still good people, will go to a lower heaven. They do not believe in a fiery hell. Bad people will simply cease to exist after the judgement day.

A really interesting modern prophet is L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology. Hubbard was a prolific writer of science fiction. In fact, he holds the Guiness Book of Records for the most written works which are over 1000. He’s also in the Guiness Book for having the most books translated into other languages. (65 languages).

The Bible of Scientology is “Dianetics.” This so-called scripture details techniques people can use to move beyond negative thoughts and emotions and find a life of creativity and a higher state of consciousness. This is done by auditing where a trained auditor has a person hold a pair of handles attached to an “emeter.” Then the auditor asks the person questions about their life. As the needle on the emeter moves, the auditor analyzes the person.

Scientology posits that human were not created but have always existed as spiritual beings called the tans. According to L. Ron Hubbard, in Dianetics, “Xenu” was the dictator of a "Galactic Confederacy"; 75 million years ago who brought billions of people to Earth, stacked them around volcanoes, and killed them with hydrogen bombs.” The the tans of these victims were then captured, taken to "implant stations,"

and forced to watch 3D movies that created false beliefs and religious concepts.

This then caused the Thetans to attach themselves to human beings through a cycle of reincarnation. They can never escape until they are “cleared” by a professional Scientologist auditor using an emeter. The so-called clearing is a very expensive process over several levels that require many years. (With some 20,000 to 50,000 members worldwide, the Church of Scientology which is a 501-C3 tax exempt organization has an estimate worth of $4 billion dollars.) 

Let me offer the story of one last prophet – Jiddu Krisnamurti. He was born in India in 1895 and died in America in 1986. He was born into a very poor Indian family who resided in Adyar India which happened to be the city where the Theosophical Society’s headquarters was located. The Theosophical Society was founded in 1875. The Society became a worldwide organization promoting beliefs in the unity of all life, the role of evolution, spiritual knowledge gained from mystics and sages and the potential for a higher human consciousness.

One day, Theosophical member Charles Leadbeater, a self-proclaimed clairvoyant and person of dubious character, found 14-year-old Krishnamurti near the Headquarters of the Society and proclaimed he had an amazing aura and would be a future world teacher. The Theosophical Society indirectly paid his parents to adopt Krishnamurti and his brother. He was given a thorough education and trained to become a sage. He

actually left the Society in 1922 and rejected his title as a world teacher, but he continued his work around the world writing, teaching and educating people on the spiritual path. What is very curious is that Krishnamurti did not believe he spoke with any kind of special authority.

His main message was that seeking spiritual truth was very important for every human being, but finding truth was a personal journey that a person must reach on their own. He rejected religious dogmas, gurus and organizations that claimed to know the truth and offer everyone a particular path to obtain spiritual awareness. Instead, he believed each person should strive to find truth on their own in their own way. I rather think Krishnamurti would have fit in well as a Unitarian Universalist!

So, there we have it. Lots and lots of prophets throughout human history – countless numbers of them and just about all of them offering what they consider religious and spiritual truths. Should we listen to what prophets have said over human history. I think the answer is a cautious yes. To be sure, many, if not most prophets have spent considerable time pondering their understanding of reality, the human condition and our place in the universe. Therefore, I think there is value in learning about what prophets have said throughout history. However, as much as I respect many prophets, I take everything they have said with some skepticism, if not total rejection.

I happen to agree with what Jiddu Krishnamurti came to understand. It is up to each person to find religious and spiritual truth and to be their own prophet. This, of course, is the basis of Unitarian Universalism. Is there value in doing this?

I believe the answer to this is absolutely yes. In varying degrees, we all have a spiritual component in our being. This is different in every person. It usually changes in importance as a person goes through the stages of life. To be a happy and healthy person, I do believe it is very important to engage our spiritual self.

And I believe it is really critical to do this on a personal level by studying and considering spiritual truths that human beings have come upon throughout history. What I think a lot people do is just surrender their spiritual search and just accept one set of religious beliefs and, perhaps worse, there are people who simply ignore the

spiritual part of their being altogether.

Throughout history, in all cultures, human beings have found that their spiritual self is vitally important to health and happiness and a great aid in making a positive difference in the world.

Reverend Christopher McMahon

February 22, 2026

UU Chatham