Every Wednesday, from 01/15/2020 to 05/07/2020, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Effective March 11, 2020 Revelation will not meet in person. The class will be video recorded and posted to St. Bartholomew's Facebook and YouTube channel.
Join us as we dive deep into Revelation. Class meets for 15 weeks with breaks for Ash Wednesday, Lenten events, and Holy Week. Come to all classes or as many as you are able to attend.
Class dates:
January 15, 22, 29
February 5, 12, 19, 26
March 4, 11, 18, 25
April 15, 22, 29
May 6
Revelation (known as the Apocalypse or insight) is one of the most engaging and disputed books of the Bible. It has inspired great works of art and music, and it has fed social upheaval and speculation about the coming end of the world. This course will ask what Revelation is, why it has played such a volatile role in Western culture, and how it continues to be meaningful to contemporary readers.
The first part of the course places Revelation in context by exploring the intellectual and social currents that lie behind it.
The second part of the course provides an overview of Revelation’s images of the four horsemen, the red dragon, and the seven-headed beast. As we get a vivid sense of the struggle of God versus evil, we can see that Revelation offers a compelling vision of hope.
The third part traces the impact Revelation has had on Western history. We explore the idea of the Antichrist and the 1,000-year period of peace on earth. We explore the reasons that Revelation was included in the New Testament when other apocalyptic texts were not. We trace the way Revelation was used in conflicts among popes, emperors, and church reformers. We explore why some religious groups have used Revelation to set the dates for the end of the world, while others have used it as a call for a better society. Finally, we turn to the modern interest in Revelation (and other apocalyptic literature) and its significance for readers today.
All are welcome!