In our first of a six-week series on “Revelation and Resistance,” we step - with some well earned fear and trembling - into the wild, the wondrous, the terrifying, the evocative world of apocalyptic literature. With so much to UN-learn about the book of Revelation, Pastor Megan invites us to begin again. What IS this ancient genre of literature, why and how was it written, and for whom and what purpose? As a revelation of Jesus the Christ, named in just the first few verses of the book as the ruler of all earth’s kings, we find that we’ve stepped directly into perhaps the original “No Kings” rally and march. The book of Revelation will take down its dominant empire (Rome) and all those who were being persecuted or seduced by the imperial cult. As we carry forward, perhaps we’ll find inspiration for how to live in relationship to our own imperial cult… U.S. Christian nationalism.
Sermon begins at minute marker 4:49
Scripture: Revelation 1.1–20
Resources
- BibleWorm podcast: Episode 646 - Revelation and Resistance - Lifting the Veil, Amy Robertson and Robert Williamson, Jr
- “A view of resistance to oppression rather than judgement,” by Alison Forster, January 21, 2025, https://medium.com/counterarts/the-book-of-revelation-8935ac647b32
- Anabaptist Community Bible, MennoMedia, 2025, including introduction to Revelation by J. Nelson Kraybill.
- “The Intimate Apocalypse,” hand-bound booklet by artist and writer, Jan Richardson.
- Left Behind (terror-inducing!) book series: wiki page.
- Image: by Pastor Megan, at Seattle’s ”No Kings” rally and march, June 2025
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