I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red … Revelation 6:12

Today’s Scripture Reading (April 25, 2018): Revelation 6

Friedrich Nietzsche argued that “All things are subject to interpretation and whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth.” The power to place a particular interpretation on any belief is incredibly important. Hitler’s power over the German people in the first half of the Twentieth Century depended greatly on his interpretation of the penalties and restrictions that had been placed on Germany following World War I. His ability to commit atrocities against Jewish people was dependent on his ability to place his interpretation onto the subject of racial history. His interpretation with regard to race was not in any way based on truth, but rather a reality of the power that he held.

The horror of what happened in the Second World War is not an isolated incident. As Christians, I believe we need to understand that it is possible that some of what we believe is only because of the power of interpretation, and not the truth of interpretation, and that his holds true for even some of our most strongly held beliefs. For instance, while some might argue that our belief with regard to same-sex sexual conduct is clearly laid out in the Bible and has been consistent over time, that is not quite true. Those who have had power have interpreted the biblical restrictions in very particular direction. In the early centuries after Christ, the predominant interpretation of the biblical same-sex attracted restrictions were in the direction of condemning the practice of pederasty, the predilection of some married men for having sex with young boys, often inviting them into their households and educating them as a payment for sex. Later, the prohibitions were in the direction of the celibate priesthood, who somehow believed that having sex with a male partner was not a violation of the vows of chastity, which, unfortunately, is a practice that the priesthood seems to have chased into our contemporary experience. Today, it is a total prohibition of same-sex sexual conduct. But we need to be careful that we recognize that even this may be an interpretation placed on the appropriate passages by those in power. (And, no, while I recognize the problem, I do not have an answer.)

The same is true of our interpretation of much of Revelation. Those in power often rule what it is that we believe. In today’s environment, it seems that power resides with those who believe that Revelation is to be interpreted literally, and is about future events. Books about the “Blood Red Moon” have been written and red as an indication that Jesus will soon return. But that is not the only way to interpret these passages. Some, not in power, argue that much of what is in Revelation should fall into the category of fulfilled prophecy, and still others argue that Revelation speaks more about the world in which John lived then it does about what we, in our century, are still waiting to happen sometime in the future. All are actually viable interpretations, and what we believe about them says more about who has the power of influence in our churches than it does about truth.

So in the current passage, some argue that John recorded exactly what he saw and that this event is yet to come. Others spiritualize John’s words and take them in a different direction. Adam Clarke, a pastor who wrote an extensive commentary in the early nineteenth century, actually argues that John’s vision of an earthquake may have been fulfilled in the early fourth century when Emperor Constantine came to power. He argues that this earthquake was “A most stupendous change in the civil and religious constitution of the world. If it refers to Constantine the Great, the change that was made by his conversion to Christianity might be very properly represented under the emblem of an earthquake.”

The important thing here, as it is through much of Revelation, is that we hold our conclusions lightly because what we believe the words are meant to signify will often speak more about the power voices in our lives than they do about what is true.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Revelation 7

Personal Note: Happy Birthday, Kenzie.