Bøger udgivet af St. Paul Seminary Press

"This book is a systematic commentary on the Apocalypse of Saint John, examining each chapter and verse based on the original Greek and Latin texts. The underlying hermeneutic is an idealist or allegorical point of view that does not attempt to identify apocalyptic imagery with concrete historical events. Rather, symbols and metaphors are interpreted, with attention to their intertextuality, as paradigmatic of the epic battle between the forces of light and darkness, good and evil, the dragon and the Lamb, playing out not only in the vicissitudes of the world today, but also and especially in one's personal life. Rather than focusing on sterile symbolisms, the book attempts to inspire a more radical discipleship of Jesus by applying the eschatological imagery to the realm of spiritual discernment. John's Apocalypse is certainly considered the grand New Testament theology of history, but here its ethical dualism is mainly taken as a challenge for the interior life, to enter into the worship before the throne of Christ the Lamb, and to realize that where evil makes war against the principles of good, God will remain in control at all times. The author has drawn on two commentators whose work has not been translated and made widely accessible until now, Rupert of Deutz and Adrienne von Speyr. The book aims to relay Revelation's message of Christ-centered faithfulness and perseverance, of virtue and holiness, once addressed to the seven churches in Asia, to a contemporary readership."--

"'Everyone's Apocalypse' attempts to respond to the request of Dei Verbum 22 that 'Easy access to Sacred Scripture should be provided for all the faithful.' In this easy-to-read introduction for beginners, modern scholarship and the Church's tradition meet to help readers understand and pray through this demanding part of God's Word. Following Ugo Vanni's proved structure, the two parts of the Apocalypse (chapters 1-3 and 4-22) are presented in seven chapters. The opening two chapters show John's vision of the Risen Jesus as Son of Man and his words to the seven churches of Asia Minor. Chapter three presents the vital section, full of worship, of the throne vision of God as creator and of Jesus, slaughtered and risen, as redeemer. The opening of the seven seals by the Lamb, the four horsemen, the Risen Jesus, the destruction wrought by the seven trumpets, the three signs of the Woman, the Dragon, and the seven angels with the seven bowls of wrath are dealt with in the next three chapters. The final chapter outlines the climax of the book. Harlot Babylon, the evil city, is judged and falls and, following the intervention of the bridegroom Lamb and the removal of God's enemies, the marriage of the Lamb reaches its fulfillment when the prepared wife becomes the possessed bride. In the imagery of this text, the kingdom has come. Uniquely, this book reads the entire Apocalypse in a nuptial manner. This is a love story. Jesus, the lover, following the pattern of Jewish marriage in the first century, helps his espoused wife, the seven churches, to persevere in their nuptial response of love to him, their first love. After coming through the tribulation, they finally become his beloved, possessed Bride, filled with glory. This eschatological union of love is humankind's destiny."--