“Rapture theology” orients itself around the second coming of Christ and its adherents find in the Book of Revelation the prophetic delineation of the events surrounding the end of the world and the rapture of Gods people from the earth. In her book, The Rapture Exposed: The Message of Hope in the Book of Revelation, Barbara R. Rossing explores many of the theological and eschatological assumptions of this fast growing and powerful stream of Christian biblical interpretation and attempts to illustrate its fallacious and harmful character. Rossing takes this biblical interpretation quite seriously and aims to reverse some of the damage that it has had on popular perception, personal theology, and wide-spread socio-political philosophies. It is theologically bankrupt, she argues, and completely fabricated. It hijacks the true message of Jesus whose teachings and message of hope and justice are not portrayed. In this book, the author dissects the theology of dispensationalists, examining the scriptural framework which upholds them, and adroitly argues for a more rigorous and scripturally sound interpretation.
The stimulus for Rossing’s book was the extraordinary success of Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins recent Left Behind series of Christian fiction. The book fictionalizes the “rapture” of God’s people off the earth and the seven years of tribulation which follow for those left behind. LaHaye and Jenkin’s fictionalization is not constrained to fiction or allegory but finds its roots in the 19th century movement of dispensationalism propagated by John Nelson Darby. Briefly, this movement espouses the belief that the events surrounding the final days of the earth can be extracted from the Bible. That is, that the Bible foretells and clearly illustrates the conditions under which Jesus will return. These events, in most depictions, are essentially quite violent and deal particularly with unbelievers, exposed to the wrath of God.
Rossing provides a brief history of dispensationalist theology and its distillation in Left Behind, and then moves to criticizing dispensationalists’ and Christian Zionists’ support for Israeli expansion into the West Bank and Gaza, and their stark opposition to any form of peace settlement in the Middle East. The establishment of Israel and the rebuilding of the Temple are essential components of the prophetic vision of dispensationalists. Rossing’s exposure of the caveats of rapture theology is timely and necessary. She does not make moral judgements from the perspective of leftist liberal ideology but rather engages scripture and hermeneutics to battle her opponents. She explores, for example, how these policies for the Middle East contradict biblical standards of justice. (67) Christian Zionists have a specific agenda in Jerusalem which is to undermine the Palestinian cause, to bring about the physical removal of all non-Jews, and to destroy the Dome of the Rock, with the intended purpose of creating the conditions under which Jesus will return to earth. It is believed that their actions are demanded by the Book of Revelation. Furthermore, their biblical interpretation requires that God unleash plagues and suffering upon the earth, years of tribulation and violence, pain, and death.
The second aspect of Rossing’s book, and the most essential part, addresses the re-examination of scripture and the formulation of a new narrative which supports the central teachings of Jesus, particularly in regards to social justice. Rossing articulates an alternative prophecy premised on the story of Jesus, and focuses on him as a symbol of peace and healing. (77) The dark world described in Revelation is not a description of the future, but an allegory and an admonition of possible outcomes of certain actions. The “vision” is intentionally terrifying, encouraging the reader to repent, changing his actions and the course of his life. This, Rossing proclaims, is the purpose of Revelation. It is to be “life-changing”, “exhort[ing] us to faithfulness”, and encouraging of repentance of past actions. It is a call for the redemption of the oppressed, the emancipation of the poor, and the awakening to the urgency of social justice. (85)
It is also important for Rossing to put the Book of Revelation in its historical context which she ably does and effectively demonstrates how it was shaped by its author, John, and his experiences under Roman rule in the first century. She tells the story of John, a refugee from Jerusalem, who wrote this book in an attempt to awaken the world, “pulling back the curtain to expose Rome’s brutality and illegitimacy” (87). The end depicted in Revelation describes the eventual fall of Rome and not God’s destruction of the world. John’s goal was to lift up the image and teachings of Jesus as a force for liberation in face of oppressive systems. (108) Her ability to contextualize this story is a strength of the book and assuredly places doubt on the claims of rapture theology.
A central and powerful motif in this narrative is “Lamb Power”, described as the “power of non-violent resistance and courage in opposition to injustice; it is the power of solidarity and forgiveness”. (112) John’s writing, in which he elevates the status of the Lamb is meant to inspire the confrontation of injustice and bring about the establishment of a just society on earth. Furthermore, while Revelation includes holy war imagery it does not promote war; the weapons are “the word”, the war is against God not by God, and conquest occurs only through testimony and faith. (121) Revelation therefore, is a testimony to the ideas of justice and healing.
Rossing continues in this way, making numerous comparisons between the language and symbolism of Revelation and that contained in other Old and New Testament books. It is her intention to illustrate that her conclusions are more closely aligned with other prominent teachings, and that rapture theology is a perversion of scripture and has no substance when placed in context of the rest of the Bible.
Finally, Rossing calls the Book of Revelation “God’s vision for renewing the world”. (141) Revelation reveals for Christians a roadmap, or guidelines for establishing God’s vision on earth in the present times, and for living a life in accordance with the social teachings of Jesus. This, she states, is what is meant by establishing “New Jerusalem”. (142) Rossing offers up the possibility and hope for alternative and positive voices from within the tradition and which may help to mediate or moderate the extreme voices. Her interpretation is essential for Christians who have come to believe that end-times theology is a normal or standard part of biblical teaching. There is something in the “rapture” story that is accessible to the mainstream who find the Book of Revelation esoteric and difficult; Rossing combats the tendency to accept this story by offering a different version that is equally accessible and relatable and this is a significant strength of the book.
This book, in essence is written for Christians and particularly those struggling to reconcile end times theology with their other understanding of Christianity and biblical teachings. Rossing’s strength is exhibited in her articulation and specification of exactly where scripture is extracted and what process of hermeneutics occur in order to find certain conclusions. Her epilogue engages with her interlocutors, anticipating objections and criticisms, by illustrating specifically the passages under discussion and the variety of interpretations that exists. This book should also be reassuring to the outsider in that it illustrates the complexity and flexibility of tradition, the possibility of hermeneutical variance, and ambivalence towards the sacred which offers hope that this harmful form of theology can be mitigated.
Rossing’s claims are equally as premised on faith as those made by her opponents, her language in many ways exclusive, and yet this is what makes her interpretation competitive. It should be understood that the book has as its primary objective the transformation of the tradition from within. Rossing’s strength is her ability to engage with scripture and her command of the New Testament. She demands from her readers a level of deference which bodes well considering her attempt to persuade. Her ability to call on historical and scriptural criticism, command of biblical languages, and nuanced understanding of the allegorical language only works to strengthen her case. She offers a solid, nuanced, and emotionally charged alternative for Christians which I can only imagine will be very effective.
This is an important book for anyone who is concerned with issues of the Middle East, because, although she is writing for a religious audience, everyone has something to learn regarding how Middle East policies are being shaped through biblical interpretation. Rossing’s book arms readers with the knowledge to combat what can only be described as a danger to the world, Christian and otherwise. While it is up to Christians to combat this theology from within, it is important for everyone else to understand the tension and battle that is occurring and how this plays out in our public and social spheres. So, while she is offering a seed of hope to Christians, she also illustrates hope for the secular world that something is being done to combat injustice and extremism.
ejsparkles
maffersalmon
A Return From Exile 
Mary
December 7, 2008
Historian Dave MacPherson is the only person who has spent more than 30 years researching the long-covered-up embarrassing history of the 178-year-old “pretribulation rapture” view merchandised by Lindsey, Swaggart, LaHaye, Hagee, the late Falwell etc.(No one else has spent 30 months or even 30 weeks focusing on this escapist, British-invented view.) His 300-page book THE RAPTURE PLOT (which I obtained at Armageddon Books) uncovered hitherto unknown evidence that the same “rapture” fantasy rests on an anti-Jewish foundation, plus evidence that since its birth in Scotland in 1830 it has been riddled with dishonesty including massive plagiarism, daring revisionism of early documents, phony doctorates bandied around, scandals galore, etc.! Re the anti-Jewishness of it, if some clever Jews were to share this book’s bombshell documentation with some media heads, the widespread publicity could seriously cripple the traffickers who have long used “rapture” millions to fund political agendas. MacPherson’s books have been banned from many evangelical bookstores even though top evangelical scholars are among those who have endorsed his research (Google “Scholars Weigh My Research”)! Anyway, I thought you’d like to know that the glorious “any-moment” rapture isn’t, and hasn’t been, what it appears to be! Mary