| LIST OF TABLES, DIAGRAMS AND FIGURES |
xi |
| ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
xiii |
| FOREWORD by Elizabeth McAlister |
xv |
| INTRODUCTION |
|
| Reading Revelation |
xix |
| The purpose of This Book |
xix |
| What's Different about Our Approach? |
xxi |
| An Outline of the Book of Revelation |
xxv |
| Revelation's Author |
xxvi |
| How to Use this book |
xxviii |
| 1. "BEHOLD, A DOOR WAS OPENED IN HEAVEN" Seeking Wisdom from on High |
1 |
| A Brief History of the Rapture in the United States |
3 |
| Why is Premillennialism Attractive? |
15 |
| Near-Death Experiences, UFOs, Marian Apparitions, and the New Age |
19 |
| Some Recent Alternative Readings of Revelation |
39 |
| Two Contrasting Approaches to the Astrological Symbolism in Revelation |
40 |
| Reading Revelation from within a Context of Political Oppression |
42 |
| Feminist Readings of Revelation |
42 |
| First World Political Readings Of Revelation: William Stringfellow and Daniel berrigan |
43 |
| Reflection Questions |
45 |
| 2. THE ROOTS AND BRANCHES OF APOCALYPTIC WRITINGS |
46 |
| Resisting the Seleucid Empire |
47 |
| The "Holy War" Ideology of Maccabees |
47 |
| Daniel's Apocalyptic Call for Nonviolent Resistance |
50 |
| The Roots of Daniel's Apocalyptic Vision |
53 |
| Jewish Apocalyptic Branches after Daniel |
75 |
| Christian Apocalyptic Branches in the New Testament in Addition to Revelation |
81 |
| Reflection Questions |
86 |
| 3. READING REVELATION IN CONTEXT Imperial Rome and Christianity in the First Century |
87 |
| Imperial Politics |
91 |
| Imperia Economics |
96 |
| Imperial Culture |
101 |
| Imperial Myth |
113 |
| The Christian Ekklesiai and the Empire |
115 |
| Reflection Questions |
119 |
| 4. REVELATION'S "BIFURECATED" SENSE OF TIME AND SPACE |
120 |
| Time |
123 |
| Space |
126 |
| Reflection Questions |
135 |
| 5. "VENGEANCE IS MINE!" SAYS THE LORD Revelation's Language of Violence and the Practice of a Discipleship of Nonviolence |
136 |
| "At Once I Was in the Spirit": Understanding John's Visionary Experiences |
137 |
| The First Scroll: Unseiling the Plagues That Call for Repentance |
139 |
| The Second Scroll: From Plagues to Faithful Witness |
145 |
| The Bowl Plagues: Destroying Those Who Destroy the Earth |
151 |
| Reflection Questions |
155 |
| 6. THE CITY OF OUR GOD Babylon or New Jerusalem? |
157 |
| Prelude: Men Talking about Women as Whores and Brides |
161 |
| Babylon |
162 |
| New Jerusalem |
184 |
| Reflection Questions |
195 |
| 7. "THE EMPIRE OF THE WORLD HAS BECOME THE EMPIRE OF OUR LORD AND OF HIS MESSIAH" Liturgy and Worship in Revelation |
197 |
| "Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty!" |
202 |
| "Worthy Is the Lamb That Was Slaughtered!" |
207 |
| "Who Are These, Robed in White, and Where Have They Come From?" |
209 |
| "The Empire of the World Has Become the Empire of Our Lord and of His Messiah!" |
211 |
| "They Worshiped the Dragon.. And They Worshiped the Beast" |
213 |
| "In Their Mouth No Illusion Was Found" |
217 |
| "Just and True Are Your Ways, King of the Nations!" |
219 |
| "Let us rejoice and Exult, for the Marriage of the Lamb has come!" |
220 |
| Reflection Questions |
222 |
| 8. THE WAR OF MYTHS BETWEEN REVELATION AND ROME |
223 |
| Myth: Empire |
224 |
| Counter-Myth: The Empire of Our God |
224 |
| Myth: The Roman Pax |
226 |
| Counter-Myth: Babylon, the Shedder of Blood |
227 |
| Myth: Victoria |
228 |
| Counter-Myth: The victory of the Lamb and His Followers |
229 |
| Myth: Faith |
230 |
| Counter-Myth: Keeping the Faith of Jesus |
232 |
| Myth: Eternity |
233 |
| Counter-Myth: They will reign forever |
233 |
| Reflection Questions |
235 |
| 9. COMING OUT OF EMPIRE TODAY |
236 |
| Examining Global Capital through the Lens of Revelation |
237 |
| The Vices of Global Capital |
251 |
| Global Capital as Already Fallen |
259 |
| New Jerusalem Today: Seeds of the New Being Born amid the Shell of the Old |
260 |
| "Holy, Holy, Holy": Prayer and Worship |
262 |
| "Blessed Is the One Reading Aloud and Listening to These Words": Bible and Cultural Study |
264 |
| Oikonomia: Recovering Divine "Economics" |
265 |
| Conclusion: How do we take a step away from Empire and toward New Jerusalem? |
267 |
| Reflection Questions |
277 |
| BIBLIOGRAPHY |
278 |
| Commentaries and Works on Revelation |
278 |
| Roman Empire |
283 |
| Apocalyptic, Jewish, and Related Hebrew and Christian Scripture |
285 |
| Apocaliptic and Millennialism Generally |
288 |
| Globalism, Economics, and Other Cultural Studies |
289 |
| Methodology |
291 |
| Reference Works |
294 |
| ABBREVIATIONS |
294 |
| IN DEX BIBLICAL AND OTHER ANCIENT TEXTS |
295 |
| GENERAL INDEX |
297 |
| |
|
Tác giả: LM. JB Hoàng Văn Khanh
Tác giả: William Barclay
Tác giả: Phan Văn Cử
Tác giả: Alfred Lappele
Tác giả: Peter S. Williamson
Tác giả: Vô Danh
