 |
| |
| |
|
Unveiling Empire: Reading Revelation Then and Now (Bible & Liberation Series)
|
|
|
Average Rating:  out of 6 Reviews
|
Price: $29.00
|
|
Sale: $13.65
|
| |
|
Manufacturer: Orbis Books
|
|
EAN (European Article Number): 9781570752872
|
|
Number of Items: 1
|
| |
|
|
|
Binding: Paperback
|
|
Author: Wes Howard-Brook::Anthony Gwyther
|
|
Publisher: Orbis Books
|
|
Dewey Decimal Number: 228.06
|
|
Publication Date: 1999-10
|
|
Reading Level: 313
|
|
|
| |
|
Description: The two authors of this volume--both committed Christians and social activists--are not interested in the idea of apocalypse as an end-of-the-world phenomenon. Rather, they conclude, St. John's book was a call to "the followers of Jesus in the cities of Roman Asia [the audience for the Revelation] to continue the nonviolent witness practiced by Jesus. This is how the disciples were to live in the midst of empire." In short, "Revelation is a call to have faith in God rather than empire." Beginning with a chapter connecting the contemporary enthusiasm for apocalypse to such events as UFO sightings, near-death experiences, New Age spirituality, and even the current visions of Mary, the writers then explore the origins of apocalyptic writing in (among other places) the book of Daniel, Isaiah, and the gospels, and place John's vision in the historical context of first-century Rome. From there the book devotes itself to a close study of Revelation itself, concluding with a chapter that returns to the question of the relevance of John's vision to the current global economic empire, which is, the authors suggest, "simply the air we breathe." The deepest goal of this exciting and challenging book--like John's own Revelation--is to challenge that. --Doug Thorpe
|
| |
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
Customer Reviews
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
Review Summary: Best social commentary book I've read on revelation |
Date: 2007-01-10 |
|
| |
|
Details: This book does a great job of delving into the text of revelation and trying to understand it through a similar framework of the first readers. The first time I read it, I thought they spent two much time talking in the first chapter about alien encounters and such. Then one of my friends led a bible study on revelation and the first comment was that it was an alien encounter/out of body experience. The authors were thinking ahead. Great book. |
| |
|
Review Summary: Resisting Empire's Embrace |
Date: 2003-12-23 |
|
|
| |
|
Details: This is a thematic rather than verse-by-verse commentary. An underlying premise is that the churches of Asia Minor who originally received this letter were not under the severe persecution from Rome that has long been assumed. The authors assert that it was in fact a time of peace and affluence, and the churches in Asia Minor were succumbing to assimilation. The parallels with churches in the West are therefore more exact and evocative than previous interpreters have understood. The authors are not shy about drawing out the similarities between Babylon (as depicted in Revelation) and contemporary global capitalism (the incarnation of Babylon that surrounds us today). Drawing inspiration from Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker movement, as well as the interpretive and prophetic work of Daniel Berrigan and William Stringfellow, this is a provocative reading of a consistently neuralgic but unavoidable part of the canon. The political implications are drawn out in a final chapter dialogue between the authors. |
| |
|
Review Summary: Don't Get Left Behind |
Date: 2002-07-29 |
|
|
| |
|
Details: Howard-Brook and Gwyther unpack what Revelation really means. Studying the book in its original context - remember, Revelation was written for the first century, not for us! - the authors still connect the concerns of John of Patmos' day to our own. They see Revelation's message of faithful resistance to the surrounding patriotic culture and how John warned the early Christians to resist it and preach the good news instead. And they uncover what the "beast" really is in modern society. A thoughtful and passionate understanding of this fantastic book's true message to both its time and our own. |
| |
|
Review Summary: Solid liberation theology |
Date: 2000-11-13 |
|
|
| |
|
Details: Wes Howard-Brook and Anthony Gwyther have written an excellent commentary on Revelation. Like most mainstream scholars they believe that John of Patmos was writing about the Roman empire of his day. What I found especially unique about this book, was its very fascinating account of the imperial court and imperial worship. The authors make a very good case that Revelation's message to its Asian Minor audience was not to compromise with the deadly - both to soul and body - Roman imperial culture. Furthermore, the authors also discuss applications of Revelation to current social justice issues. I really learned a lot form this book. I also used Unveiling Empire to teach an adult education class at my church. The class seemed fairly well received, and part of the reason was due to this book. |
| |
|
Review Summary: Endpiece for Christians |
Date: 2000-09-01 |
|
|
| |
|
Details: Every truly great read has an exciting ending. The last chapter is where it all comes together. Yet most who daily read the most popular book in the world, have never comprehended the last chapter, the Book of Revelation. "Becoming Empire" identifies hundreds of 'hyper-links' in the text of Revelation to the preceding books of holy scriptures. The veil lifts, and the reader begins to see and hear not fictions of starwars, but God moving through history and pointing to the here and now. Today is the battle, and God's children are in the front lines. The whole Bible, understood, is their map to victory. |
| |
|
| |
Similar Products
|
|
|
| |
This Product is similar to and may be found in the Following Categories:
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
