As we attempt to move from our Revelation study into Advent, we are given some of the most apocalyptic, Revelation-like words Jesus said. What does it mean to make ourselves at home as if the Kingdom of God were a reality here, now, on this earth? 

Studying alongside the lectionary means learning a new way of telling time centered on the life of Christ. For the next six months, we will study texts that we did not choose alongside one another and faith communities all over the world. We hope to pay attention to ourselves and one another as these texts are read aloud, noticing what resonates and what we feel resistance toward. 

John’s Revelation encourages the Church to endure and hold fast in a world run by dominating Empires. How do we choose to resist? How can we reveal the arbitrary nature of Empire and its limited power? What kind of Church will we choose to be in this world?

We've finally arrived at the final scene of the drama in Revelation. After the destruction and wars, dragons, and chaos, the seas are calm again and John begins drawing a picture of where the whole thing is headed.

In Revelation, John spends a lot of time contemplating God’s justice. How do we account for evil in this world? How do we want it to be dealt with? What was does the Bible discuss it? When is lament more appropriate than certainty?

What if the book of Revelation is like a song being worked on over time, that is never quite finished, but will be covered by later artists who add their own twist to the song? What would our cover of Revelation be like today based on our experiences?

The Great Whore of Babylon is an intentionally derogatory metaphor used to describe people’s attachment to empire. Revelation 17-18 are difficult to read, but communicate something important to all of our interaction with unjust political sysmtems. Namely, it asks, “If and when this empire comes crumbling own, with our faith crumble too, or is there something deeper rooting us?”

Does life, history, and the human condition have a structure of hope and progress or are they as meaningless and arbitrary as they sometimes seem? What can (or should) we do in a world devoid of justice? How can tell a better story that no longer needs seven bowls of wrath?

How can we read the book of Revelation with both a posture of skepticism and respect? How does apocalyptic literature like Revelation reveal the truth about our world and where does its binary thinking present drawbacks? How do we balance Revelation’s imagery with the whole story of God?

Revelation 12-13 introduces us to wild beasts and dragons, and also a pregnant woman with nowhere to give birth. These are familiar stories to John's original audience, and if we pay attention, are familiar stories to us. What happens when the dragons of the empire play pretend-Christian? And how do we respond?