Unveiling Empire

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

"Superb both in its historical study of the antecedents and contexts of the Book of Revelation and its analysis of our own contemporary preoccupation with apocalyptic. . . .Unveiling Empire maintains a sharp edge of critical discipline and obedience that belongs to the truth of the gospel."--Walter Brueggemann

Confused by "end of the world" readings or put off by the dense and mysterious imagery, many readers hesitate to explore the Book of Revelation. Unveiling Empire offers a new entrée into this troubling and controversial book of the Bible by examining the roots and social purposes of apocalyptic literature and Revelations own use of traditional imagery. In this way the authors provide readers with the tools for deciphering the texts message--and its urgent applications for Christians today living amidst a new kind of "empire."

Wes Howard-Brook, a former attorney for the US and Washington State, has been teaching the Bible at the intersection of church, academy and the street since 1988. He is recently retired from Seattle University and continues to collaborate in the ministry, Abide in Me with his wife, Sue Ferguson Johnson. He is author most recently of Creation and Empire as well as "Come Out, My People": God's Call Out of Empire in the Bible and Beyond, Empire Baptized: How the Church Embraced What Jesus Rejected, 2nd-5th Centuries) and (with Anthony Gwyther) of Unveiling Empire: Reading Revelation Then and Now.

Activist Anthony Gwyther holds a masters from Sidney (Australia) College of Divinity, and has worked at the Brisbane Catholic Worker community and participated in the Mamre Community for disabled people and their families.