Ah, yes: shades of Darby, Scofield, and Hal Lindsey. My childhood and youth were filled with such: "In case of rapture, this car will be unmanned".
Then there is the "Catholic" version, featuring "three days of darkness" and other such horror show fantasies.
What does Catholic eschatology look like? I've had a surprisingly hard time finding any resources on it.
CJ, I recommend Brant Pitre as a great source on Catholic eschatology.
Mark,
Scratching a familiar itch, you refer to "the not-a-few in our ranks who routinely buy into Protestant theories about Israel as the fulfilment of biblical prophecy".
If you say so.
In my experience it is at least as easy to find Catholics who are perfectly willing to throw Israel, or the Jews, under the bus for the sake of political expediency or out of moral and intellectual cowardice, or merely to avoid the ire of Muslims or their leftwing apeasers. Part of the problem, what tempts people to accord the secular state of Israel some special significance, is that it is hard not to, when its identity and that of the Jews in general is so often and so tightly linked --especially by people who would happily destroy both. Before they destroy the Christians.
Under the tenants of leviathan and modern positivism, since positive law calls it "Israel" it necessarily means it is "revealed by God Almighty, and as a basis for broad political action that can (and has) gotten quite a number of people killed." Why? All you need is an impoverished understanding of Romans 13, and Ceasar can do whatever the hell it wants.
And Mike Walsh, what about the secular European socialists who run Israel? They, like many palestinian Muslims have literally thrown many palestinian christian homes under the bulldozer. Further, the Israelis have continually reneged on its commitments with the Vatican, usually while drumming up some nonsense on Pius XII. Make no mistake, Israel is a secular leviathan state which operates under Machiavellian methods.
Helpful comparison of ludicrous flights of fancy masquerading as "unknown unknowns" Donald Rumsfeld's pithy way of refering to a non-existant category of defence policy (that escalation of fears of known knowns, unknown knowns, and known unknowns) that falls into divining by tea-leaves, an insult to the many dedicated intellectually alert public servants laboring to keep our homeland secure) but sadly I was at a retreat and this same schema was used to illuminate us on "communication theory" as a path in the spiritual life in the Catholic Tradition - the soul's natural reason can handle known knowns without need of supernatural assistance, the soul cooperates with grace to resolve unknown knowns, requests intercession in facing known unknowns and surrenders in humble impotence to God in the face of unknown unknowns. For developed (to use BXVI sense of the term) souls, advanced in the spiritual life it makes sense, its the truth, but for most of the rest of us it would be utter folly to blithely go where no man has gone before on the basis of phantasms of one's imagination, and pure evil to conscript others to join you...
What does Catholic eschatology look like? I've had a surprisingly hard time finding any resources on it.
Catholic eschatology has been, tradtionally, an examination of conscience and a good "Act of Contrition."
That is to say, traditionally, Catholics have never been encouraged to delve into questions about the end of life as we know it here on Earth; our concern instead has been with keeping in mind the day of one's own death, and making the preparations necessary for it.
Memento mori. Remember, you shall die.
It was once a pious custom to spend one day per month preparing oneself for death. Not in giving things away or paying off credit cards, but in prayer and reflection on how one has lived one's life.
That's what Catholic eschatology boils down to, I think: Memento mori.
~~~~~
Mark, why do you hate Israel so much?
For old-time Catholic eschatology--ancient and medieval--see the works of Bernard McGinn (and on a popular level, Fr. Gerald Culleton). It featured the Angelic Pope, the Last World Emperor, and the Antichrist. This scenario began to shift in the 19th C to the Three Days of Darkness, a process accelerated by 20th C. apparitionism. Books by Ted Flynn, Thomas Petrisko, and Michael Brown are prime summaries of such views. I don't lose sleep over any of it, just one's own spiritual condition.
Thanks for the info everyone!
GKC:
Because I'm putrid scum.
I'm not much of an Israel booster but I'm not so sure it's something wildly dangerous to have opinions--even convictions--about the role of the Jews in the Latter Days.
Catholics have strong opinions about lots of things. It may be wise to avoid confusing them with magisterial teaching, but it seems to me it's a healthy sign.
Why is it a healthy sign to elevate a personal theory with no grounding in the Tradition to the status of a Revealed Doctrine of the Faith?
And, by the way, "The state of Israel" =/= "the Jews".
Some forms of eschatology are totally contrary to humility. Like conspiracy theories they are a way of claiming "special" knowledge in order to make oneself feel smarter then the average M&M eater. Who can know the mind of God? For Him one day equals a thousand years, and He is not in any hurry.
One can hold an opinion and be convinced of its truth without "elevating it to the status of a Revealed Doctrine".
The Faith as a living thing includes a lot of stuff besides Revealed Doctrine.
Roy Schoeman, very much a Catholic, sees a role for Israel in the End Times. I don't think it's at all impermissible for a Catholic to think in such terms. No one's claiming it's defined dogma or anything. 
if you would like an interesting read on the theme of false prophets , have a look at my blog. i warn you , it is long , but i think worth getting to the end of..........>
http://punctured-false-prophets....s.blogspot.com/
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