Dispensationalism or belief in the Rapture.

This is the religious philosophy that many of us here in the South were brought up to believe. The more one studies it the more mystifying it truly is.

Wikipedia definition:

A current theology among many Protestant and other Conservative Christian groups, Dispensationalism is a form of premillennialism which teaches biblical history, the present, and the future as a number of successive "administrations" or "economies" (from the Greek word oikonomia) called "dispensations", each of which emphasizes aspects of the covenants God made with His various peoples.

It's growth in North America:

Dispensationalism was first introduced to North America by John Inglis (1813–1879), through a monthly magazine called Waymarks in the Wilderness (published intermittently between 1854 and 1872)[citation needed]. In 1866, Inglis organized the Believers' Meeting for Bible Study, which introduced dispensationalist ideas to a small but influential circle of American evangelicals. After Inglis’ death, James H. Brookes (1830–1898), a pastor in St. Louis, organized the Niagara Bible Conference to continue the dissemination of dispensationalist ideas. Dispensationalism was boosted after Dwight L. Moody (1837–1899) learned of “dispensational truth” from an unidentified member of the Brethren in 1872. Moody became close to Brookes and other dispensationalists, and encouraged the spread of dispensationalism, but apparently never learned the nuances of the dispensationalist system.

Dispensationalism began to evolve during this time, most significantly when a significant body of dispensationalists proposed the "pre-tribulation" Rapture. Dispensationalist leaders in Moody's circle include Reuben Archer Torrey (1856–1928), James M. Gray (1851–1925), Cyrus I. Scofield (1843–1921), William J. Erdman (1833–1923), A. C. Dixon (1854–1925), A. J. Gordon (1836–1895) and William Eugene Blackstone, author of the bestselling book of the 1800s titled, "Jesus is Coming" (Endorsed by Torrey and Erdman). These men were activist evangelists who promoted a host of Bible conferences and other missionary and evangelistic efforts. They also gave the dispensationalist movement institutional permanence by assuming leadership of the new independent Bible institutes such as the Moody Bible Institute (1886), the Bible Institute of Los Angeles—now Biola University (1907), and the Philadelphia College of the Bible—now Philadelphia Biblical University (1913). The network of related institutes that soon sprang up became the nucleus for the spread of American dispensationalism.

As you can see this theological development did not occur until the mid 19th century. Catholics along with mainline Protestant Churches continue to reject the belief. Yet many in this country continue to blindly follow the rapture doctrine as if it was the 11th commandment. It is frightening that so many choose to hold on to sketchy belief systems with out any research into what the history of what they believe. Furthermore, believing in a rapture is a dangerous road that can lead one to nihilistic beliefs. Some seem to enjoy and look forward to death on massive scale through natural disasters, disease and warfare. Any why not? To many it means the coming of the end where they will be raptured. Unfortunately they pass these beliefs onto their own kids and the cycle of misinformation continues. When one in is brought up in the Fundamentalist mindset the ability to reason is severally curtailed. Reasoning comes to be seen as a symptom of doubt which is rejected by Fundamentalists. This hardline mindset leaves one vulnerable to whichever way the winds are blowing. Without reason one has no defense against the whims of demagogues and spinsters. There is no doubt books like "Left Behind" have had a big impact on popularizing the doctrine of rapture. And many have become Christians based of those books. Many churches do not dare dive too deeply into this issue as they could see a decrease in tithing. It is a good way to get people in their seats. Anyways this rant is over.........