Although my research paper ended up showing that media developed for Fundamentalist Christian Children is far more complicated than my initial reaction to the pieces provided, it’s difficult not to take a first look at such work and be overwhelmed by its literary shortcomings. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Book of Revelation
Book of Revelation and the Fundamentalist Mindset
Strozier makes an interesting argument regarding time in Chapter Ten. According to Strozier, there are two kinds of time: chronological and kairotic. Kairotic is a qualitative measure of time, which is uneven and weighted in value and marked by one’s experiences. Strozier argues that the Book of Revelation marks time kairtoically because time switches back and forth from past to present.
One quote in this chapter that really stood out to me was: “An important consequence psychologically but also politically is to free fundamentalists from an obligation to the actual past and present, that is, the world as we know it. They are defined spiritually and ethically only by their relation to an imagined future.” This quote made me think about our past discussions on born-again Christians and how it was possible for them to live a pure life, even if their past life had been full of sin. With a kairotic mindset of time, the past becomes irrelevant when there is only the future to think about.
Another interesting dualism that Strozier presents in this chapter is the dualism behind evil: Evil is something that fundamentalists condemn but also embrace. They condemn sin and lead pure lives, but according to Strozier it is something that they also embrace because “it confirms their persecution and certainty of redemption.” It seems really un-Christian for a group to wish for sin and evil among others just so that it will cement their standing of purity. Furthermore, it was even more disturbing to hear a lack of sympathy for sinners.
I think that the most powerful section of Strozier’s tenth chapter is “Seven: Redemption”. In this section, Strozier has presented a dualism that the Book of Revelation can be used for good but it can also be used for evil. It was surprising to me that it has inspired others to promote positive social change. I guess when I think about the Book of Revelation, I always think of fundamentalists groups. I think that Strozier makes such a powerful statement when he says: “But it is frankly disturbing to witness the current uses of the text by privileged white Americans. There is great potential for violence when the ruling class feels victimized.”
The Rapture: Weekly Response #6
The Rapture is not the best example of an apocalyptic film, but I still did see some familiar themes that we have previously discussed during class in the film.
For example, like John in the Book of Revelation, the main character Sharon abandons her life full of sex and sin and claims it dirty. She goes through purification to cleanse herself by washing her sheets and taking a shower. When she gets out of the shower, she clothes herself in clean white linen, just as some of the pure characters dressed in the Book of Revelation (examples: 19.8 & 19.14).
There is also the theme of waiting for the Apocalypse to come throughout the film. Like in the Book of Revelation, there is no distinct date of the Apocalypse. Sharon and her daughter are constantly waiting in the desert for the Apocalypse to come. Their prophet had not given them an exact day of judgment.
Of course, while there are some themes that resonate throughout the film, The Rapture, like most of my classmates pointed out, there are even more inconsistencies. For example, John’s dislike of women in the Book of Revelation made me question the use of a female protagonist instantly. If this film was based on the Book of Revelation, I saw no hope at all for Sharon. Despite the fact that she renounced her old lifestyle, I do not think that John would think her worthy of being saved because of her previous promiscuity. John already does not favor women, but the fact that Sharon is neither pure nor a virgin does not put her in an agreeable position. Though there are some apocalyptic themes in The Rapture, it is still not the best example of a film that uses themes from the Book of Revelation.
Weekly Response #2: Interpretations of the Book of Revelation
One thing that struck me as surprising in the reading is the romanticism of the book of Revelation among women. Previously in class, we had discussed that there are only negative portrayals of women in the book of Revelation, so it was surprising to hear that many women read the book of Revelation for spiritual reasons or self-improvement. Despite the horrific images in the book of Revelation, it was interesting to hear that some women still found a romantic element to the text. Continue reading
Weekly Response #1: The Book of Revelation and 666
What interested me most in the first three chapters of Jonathan Kirsch’s A History of the End of the World is what was referred to as St. John’s cryptogram. While reading the Book of Revelations, it was difficult not to notice the abundance of numerical references throughout the texts. Not just to be taken literally, I knew that the numbers had other meanings. The number 666 was most interesting because it is referred to as the number of the beast. Beyond that, many have tried to decipher the value behind 666, which corresponds to a name in Latin, Hebrew, or Greek. The number can be deciphered in so many different ways so there is not necessarily one right answer. Several names fit the puzzle, but varieties in spelling must also be put into account. Furthermore, the number of the beast is sometimes depicted as 616 in earlier manuscripts, which adds to the dilemma of solving the puzzle.
St. John’s cryptogram is only an example of one of the many ways that different people can interpret the Book of Revelation as a whole. Based solely on one example, I can finally understand why the Book of Revelation would be the inspiration of so many who predict the apocalypse. There is so much material in the Book of Revelations that can be interpreted in so many ways. If one prophet’s interpretation of the apocalypse turns out not to be true, another prophet can easily come by and interpret the text in a novel way.
