Anagogy in Modernity

Last updated on: January 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Medieval biblical scholars read Scripture through the lens of the quadriga, fourfold sense of Scripture. Texts had a literal sense, an allegorical or Christological sense, a tropological or moral sense, and an anagogical sense. In his recent study of de Lubac, Between Apocalypse and Eschaton, Joseph Flipper focuses on the last of these. Referring to Origen’s understanding of anagogy (as explained by de Lubac), he writes, “The Word of God, by entering into time, bestows a new meaning to temporal existence... Read more

The Great City

Last updated on: January 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

G. Biguzzi asks whether the city “Babylon” (Revelation 17-18) represents Rome or Jerusalem. The first option was presented early, by Victorinus. He “(i) gives the circumlocution, ‘city of Rome,’ as toe equivalent of Babylon: . . . ruina Babylonis, id est civitatis Romanae, (ii) identifies the seven mountains of Rev 17,9, on which the Harlot is seated, with the seven hills of Rome: Capita septem [sunt] septem montes, super quos mulier sedet: id est civitas Romana, et reges septem sunt,... Read more

Superheroes and Modernity

Last updated on: January 13, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

“Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.” The comparisons are not random, argues Aldo Regalado in Bending Steel: “By measuring Superman’s powers against those of the bullet, the train, and the skyscraper, these phrases offer clues that hint at the cultural, social, and historical origins of this uniquely American phenomenon.” Bullet, train, and skyscraper were symbols of modern achievement, and the comparison meant that “Superman of the late 1930s... Read more

Two Idolatries

Last updated on: January 13, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

In a 1998 article in VT, Giancarlo Biguzzi argues that John describes two different forms of idolatry in the book of Revelation. The first is the traditional idolatry of idols; the second is the beast idolatry that is the focus of the book. John “speaks explicitly of that given to idols only in two verses, while, through the septet of the cups, explicit and multiple references are made to the Beast-idolatry and to its image, its mark, the adorers of its... Read more

City of Gems and Song

Last updated on: January 13, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

In her contribution to Envisaging Heaven in the Middle Ages, Beverly Mayne Kienzle summarizes Hildegard of Bingen’s understanding of heaven and of the new Jerusalem. For Hildegard, “Jerusalem represents the vision of peace and salvation, the final resting place for those who perform good works in this life.” She “retains the traditional exegesis of the heavenly Jerusalem as the vision of peace and salvation, glossing the word Jerusalem in that way” (38-9). She also develops various aspects of the vision of... Read more

Writtenness

Last updated on: January 12, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Near the end of her book on The Heavenly Book Motif, Leslie Baynes notes the “negative attitude about writing that Plato’s Socrates expresses in the Phaedrus” is absent from early Christianity. For early Christians, “Words are ephemeral and disappear as soon as they are spoken, but writing remains. Under ideal circumstances, writing is permanent, and surely heavenly writing is stored under ideal circumstances. Writing is considered a worthy form in which to store the most portentous information conceivable: lists of the... Read more

Rodin and Tradition

Last updated on: January 12, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

The last time we had a Rodin revival was during the 1960s, writes Jed Perl. He seemed to capture the revolutionary 60s “ambiguous, contradictory, and conflicted” relation to tradition. Rodin is enjoying something of a revival again today, and Perl thinks it is for much the same reasons.” Despite his reputation among “sophisticated museumgoers” as an “armored and ostentatious” sculptor, a representative of tradition, he was aware of “all tradition’s dangers—the prepackaged emotions, the schematic thinking, the programmatic solutions.” And his ambivalence... Read more

Christless Worship?

Last updated on: January 12, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

In a recent article, Loren Stuckenbruck makes this striking comment about the heavenly worship of Revelation 4: “John’s vision of a ‘Christ-less’ worship in chapter 4 is so different from chapter 5; indeed, it is different from the visions described in the rest of the book in which Jesus plays more of a central role” (237). He quotes Christopher Rowland in support: “This chapter shows no evidence what- soever of Christian influence, and . . . it is entirely Jewish in its... Read more

The Church in Britain’s Future

Last updated on: January 11, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

The Economist reports on “an immigrant-led surge in London churchgoing. Weekly participation in Christian services in the capital has grown by 16% since 2005. Most devout Londoners (88%) worship outside the ranks of the established church whose spires pierce the skyline; about a third are Pentecostal.” It is the same story in New York and other cities where not so long ago the church seemed tired. But the growth isn’t all from immigrants, in London or New York. Christianity is declining in... Read more

Culture and Biology in Judith Butler

Last updated on: January 11, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Will Rees says in his TLS review of Judith Butler’s Senses of the Subject that the “biggest topic of discussion” has been Butler’s writing style, which he characterizes as “torturous.” It’s not just the style. In her poststructuralist early work, Butler argues that “gender identities are constructed by the machinations of a culture’s ‘juridical systems of power.’ Following Foucault, she argues that power is not wholly negative and juridical (‘Thou shalt not . . .’), but also positive and constitutive (‘Thou shalt... Read more

How many men did Joshua initially send to Ai?