Movie goers throughout the earth shelled out $225 million over the weekend to watch the 162-minute thriller “2012” based on a purported prophecy by the Mayans that the world will end on Dec. 21, 2012.

People enjoy scaring the bejesus out of themselves with this kind of nonsense as witnessed by the success of previous apocalyptic movies by the same director. Roland Emmerich has brought movie watchers “Independence Day” and “The Day After Tomorrow.”

The new release coincided with this Sunday’s Gospel, according to Mark, that deals with the coming of Jesus and the need to be ever vigilant for The End.

“But in those days after that tribulation the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light and the stars will be falling from the sky and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

“But of that day or hour, no one knows �- only the Father.”

The Rev. Father Francisco Maldonado at the Church of the Most Holy Nativity in Rio Rico, recounted during Mass on Saturday how he had to reassure his young niece who has not seen “2012,” but merely heard him read the passage from Mark.

“What do you think she asked me?” Maldonado quizzed the congregation. “When,” many answered in unison. “No one knows except the Father,” he said he told the 10-year-old.

Well that’s not very comforting to young ones and sinners alike, even though Mark also says that on that day we will see “the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory” to gather those who remained right with God.

For believers, it is that last detail �“ the part about remaining right with God �“ they should be worrying about and not some rattling cataclysmic end to life as we know it. The 2012 forecasts are based on hocus pocus archaeological/astronomical speculation, interpretations of mythology, alleged prophecies by extraterrestrials, and numerology.

Not the Mayans nor Nostradamus, nor even Jesus Christ knows when the end will come. Wouldn’t it be nice then if all of us lived as if today were our last? After all, it just could be.

(Write us at 268 W. View Point Dr., Nogales, Ariz., 85621 or manuel.coppola@nogalesinternational.com.)