Advent Hope for Human Hopelessness / Bacchiocchi, Samuele

There is a boom today in Christian literature dealing with biblical prophecies on the end of the world. Much of this literature treats the prophecies with either skepticism or sensationalism. The result is that many ordinary Christians are either abandoning their hope in the return of Christ or becoming excessively preoccupied with watching for imminent events that are supposed to bring about Armageddon. Advent Hope for Human Hopelessness endeavors to meet the dual challenge of skepticism and sensationalism by presenting a balanced Biblical analysis of many vital topics related to the Second Advent. Some of the significant questions examined are: How did the Advent Hope originate and develop in Biblical history? What is the nature and function of the Advent signs? Which Advent signs are finding an unprecedented fulfillment in our times? Can the 1948 establishment of the State of Israel be legitimately viewed as a major Advent sign of our times?

About the Author

Samuele Bacchiocchi's background is rather unique. He was born and brought up in Rome, Italy, a stone-throw from the Vatican wall. For his college education, he went to England where he earned a bachelor's degree in theology at Newbold College. From England he came to America for his graduate studies and earned a bachelor's and master's degrees at Andrews University Theological Seminary. Upon completing his training in 1964, he and his wife, Anna, went to Ethiopia where he served as a Bible and history teacher for five years.

In 1969 he returned to his native city of Rome to study at the prestigious Pontifical Gregorian University, where he was the first non-Catholic to be admitted in more than 450 years of its history. At the Gregorian, he spent the next five years working toward a doctoratus in church history. He was awarded a gold medal by Pope Paul VI for attaining the academic distinction of summa cum laude for his coursework and dissertation "From Sabbath to Sunday."

After completing his doctorate in 1974, he was invited to teach at Andrews University, a Seventh-day Adventist institution located in Berrien Springs, Michigan. For the past 23 years, he has served at Andrews University as professor of theology and church history. To be able to pursue more fully his ministry of research into vital Biblical truths, for the past 26 years he has only taught from January to May of each year. From June to December, he dedicates himself fully to research timely biblical truths. The result of this ministry has been the publication of 15 volumes that have helped thousands of people around the world to better understand and experience biblical truths.