At our meeting in April 2010, the members of the VOW Board of Directors found that we could not endorse the 2010-2011 Horizons Bible Study, Journeys Through Revelation: Apocalyptic Hope for Today, despite several good aspects of the study. For those who will use Journeys Through Revelation, however, we will be offering lesson-by-lesson notes to supplement the study.
Below are a summary of some of the flaws, and some of the good points, that we found in this study.
Flaws in the Study:
The most important flaws we found in the study were the following.
1. The study's apparent view of the authority of Scripture
The position of VOW is that the whole Bible is the inspired Word of God and is more than just the words of human beings in which we can sometimes find God's word. And on p. 9 Dr. Rossing, the author, does say that "John makes clear that he is not writing for himself but on behalf of God, who gave him the revelation of Jesus Christ."
However, Dr. Rossing contradicts herself in other places. We will give a few examples.
First, on p. 19, she attributes the words of Jesus to John's own invention. She says that "John uses sexual innuendo and terrifying threats." and then says, "Though we are still able to find God's word in this portion of Scripture, we can be sure that John's practice of threatening violence" is not praiseworthy. Here she is saying that God's word is found within this portion of Scripture, but the entire portion of Scripture is not God's word, and furthermore, that this portion is not laudable.
Another example comes from p. 17, where she says that a part of the Bible is "rhetoric that should never be supported."
And on p. 55 Dr. Rossing gives arguments for why the Book of Revelation might actually be acceptable, as if the fact of its being in the Bible would not automatically make it acceptable to Christians.
2. The study's apparent political agenda
Throughout the study, Dr. Rossing writes as if the whole point of Revelation is to decry unjust empire, and to give the people of God hope for resisting unjust empire in a nonviolent way. Such a viewpoint can be found in Revelation if one looks for it, but it is by no means the only point of Revelation.
Revelation gives a larger, more cosmic vision of liberation not only from human unjust empire, but of liberation from sinful life without God, and of hope for the people of God for a future in his Kingdom, free from sin, evil, and persecution.
Dr. Rossing does emphasize that our allegiance belongs only to God. However, she constantly reduces the interpretation of Revelation to references to the Roman Empire and, by analogy, to political and economic empire in our day. For example, on p. 35, she writes, "We may learn from important insights found in John's apocalyptic visions of the Roman Empire, as it gallops toward destruction. We can challenge ourselves to see the injustice of global economic inequality today in light of the seven seals of Revelation." While there is some truth in this, she has left out other sins, such as those mentioned in Revelation 21: murder, sexual immorality, lying, lack of faith, etc.
In addition, she turns all charges of fornication and prostitution, often seen as accusations of worshipping other gods, into indictments of empire. For example, on p. 65, she says, "this charge of 'fornication' against Babylon/Rome has nothing to do with sex; rather, it is an economic charge...." And on p. 18 she says that fornication is "probably a metaphor for worship of the empire."
And the hope Dr. Rossing says that Revelation offers is only for resistance against empire. For instance, on p. 51, she says, "we conquer by putting the unjust empire on trial and telling the truth about it." She continues, "the message from God to John was that the injustice of the Roman imperial system would not last much longer."
Instead, Revelation actually offers us this hope, but beyond this, it offers us hope for redemption of all that is wrong with the world, both corporate and personal. It offers us hope for eternal life with God in fellowship with all the saints, living in peace and goodness.
3. The study's apparent non-Reformed viewpoints
There are several points on which Dr. Rossing's writings contradict Reformed theology. One of them has to do with salvation by grace alone rather than by works, a key Reformed doctrine. On p. 74, Dr. Rossing writes, "John wants to wake us all up to be faithful to the vision of God and the Lamb, so that our names will be written in God's book of life, so that we can enter as citizens into the holy city" (emphasis added).
But the Biblical witness says something different. In Ephesians 2:8-9 we find this: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God 9not the result of works, so that no one may boast."
In addition, Revelation 20:15 says that "anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire." And preceding verse 21:8, which Dr. Rossing calls a "threat", is verse 21:6, where Jesus says "It is done." This clearly indicates that our salvation is accomplished by God's grace alone and not by our own efforts.
4. Other details
Dr. Rossing says on p. 76 that Revelation "is a book not of judgment but of justice." Yet justice cannot be obtained without judgment. Orthodox Christian theology does include the concept of judgment.
There are also some places where there is a tendency toward seeing everyone as included in God's promises of salvation, whether or not they acknowledge (or even deny) Christ. An example is found on p. 75, where Dr. Rossing writes of a river of life that flows through our cities on earth today, renewing and healing the nations.
There is a somewhat uncharitable attitude toward Christians who believe in the Rapture. This is a theological interpretation upon which salvation does not hinge, and it is something about which Christians of good will may differ without maligning each other. The uncharitable attitude also is extended toward Christians who hold the Church's traditional stance that the John who wrote Revelation is the Apostle John.
Good Points in the Study
There are some specific points that we would like to commend.
1. Dr. Rossing is careful continually to emphasize that Revelation is good news of liberation and hope. She shows how Christians should not react to Revelation with fear. This could bring help, comfort, and freedom to many women.
2. A very important characteristic of the study is that Dr. Rossing stresses that God is the only one who deserves our worship and allegiance. All the prayers are in Jesus' name.
3. The emphasis that Dr. Rossing places on the connection between Revelation and Christian music is a bonus. It's valuable for Presbyterian women to learn about the origin of the words of so many of the hymns and songs that they sing, and for us to be able to sing them in the future with new understanding.
4. Dr. Rossing's guiding principles are for the most part helpful. There are minor parts of them that are slightly influenced by some of the flaws mentioned above, such as the fact that for Dr. Rossing, the historical context may mean that Revelation is only about empire. But in general these guiding principles can be useful for Christian learners.
5. We are pleased to see that in this Bible study, some of the terminology is less divisive. Terms such as "B.C.E." are not used. In addition, we have noted that Dr. Rossing refers to the Kingdom of God, instead of God's reign. This is helpful in unifying Christians of different theological backgrounds.
6. We applaud Dr. Rossing's suggestion that the book of Revelation be read aloud in circles or Bible study groups. This honors what is actually said in Revelation 1:3: "Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy." In addition, this could be helpful to women who are auditory learners, and could help forge a sense of community in study of the Bible.