History of the Apocalypse

History of the Apocalypse 

Lecture for English 1102--Georgia State Univ.

Text quoted and paraphrased from PBS Frontline Apocalypse! Series Chronology of the End

1500 BCE

Origins of the apocalypse traced to Persian prophet Zoroaster 

  • Themes: "coming of a savior, an imminent 'putting things to right,' dualism, individualism, resurrection, determinism, and Millenialism" 

592-586 BCE

  • Book of Ezekiel written following exile of Jews by Nebuchadnezzar
  • Tells of the return of the Jews to homeland & defeat of enemies
  • God says exile resulted from "lack of faith and trespassing against Him"

Book of Isaiah (485 BCE)

  • early book of prophetic tradition
  • "Cosmic symbolism and introduction of the resurrection of the dead"

First Enoch (250 BCE)

  • Books written during Greek rule over Jewish people
  • Motifs of apocalyptic myths start appearing here 
  • "Book of Watchers": 1st judgment of the dead

The Book of Daniel (167 BCE)

  • Written following Jewish Maccabean revolt "against persecution by the Syro-Greek dynasty of the Seleucids"
  • Revolutionary eschatology

Roman Rule (63 BCE)

  • Judea becomes outpost of Roman Empire
  • Rome--evil kingdom until reign of Constantine I

Jesus of Nazareth

  • Born in 3 BCE
  • Executed by Roman officials
  • use of apocalyptic framework to predict return

Essene Sect

  • mid-to-late 1st century
  • looked forward to judgment & apocalypse
  • Dead Sea Scrolls--"War Scroll" recasts history of Israel 

Book of Revelation (90 CE)

  • primary source for future apocalyptic prophecy believers
  • scholars doubt authorship 

Four Horsemen of Apocalype--Viktor Vasnetsov (1887)

Book of Revelation

The Fall of Rome (410)

  • Conquered by Visigoths
  • Lacked previous apocalypticism

St. Augustine's The City of God (426)

  • Millenium as allegory 

Death of Muhammad (632)

  • Muslims flee to Medina, return to take Mecca
  • Muslim armies conquer much of Middle East, North Africa, and spain  

End of 1st Christian Millenium (999/1000)

  • Pope Sylvester at Basilica

Schism (1054)

  • Splitting of Christianity 
  • Weaponizing of apocalyptic rhetoric

The First Crusade (1096)

Siege of Jerusalem (1099)

  • Difficulty holding onto crusader states
  • slaughter of Muslims 

The Third Crusade (1190)

  • Richard the Lionhearted meets Joachim Fiore in Messina 

1260

Apocalypse NOW!(?)

The Black Death (1348)

1492

  • Expulsion of Muslims
  • Inquisition
  • Columbus' path to the Last Days

Part 2--to be continued...?

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