Commentary on Revelation

Sudani

I found this nice commentary on revelation written by a member of the EOC at the following website in case anyone is interested.


http://www.orthodoxchristianbooks.com/downloads/5_THE_BOOK_OF_THE_END.pdf

Oh, and I think we should add a new category to the forum specifically for bible study.

andrew8345

Thanks for the commentary and I second your suggestion  ;)

peterfarrington

I would not recommend the works of Vladimir Moss to ordinary Coptic Orthodox. He is not a member of any canonical Eastern Orthodox Church but belongs to a Greek Old Calendarist schismatic group.

I would also STRONGLY oppose Coptic Orthodox youth studying the book of Revelation. Read the Gospels. This particular document seems filled with many of the usual Protestant Evangelical interpretations of this Book. It is NOT for youth. It almost always leads to deception.

The danger always lies in taking the universal message of the triumph of God and the Church over Satan and particularising it. This is a temptation that most do not resist.

I would propose and urge those who wish to study the Bible to do so with the Fathers. Do not dare to read the Bible and decide for yourself what it means. That is Protestantism. It is error. There are lots of commentaries of the Fathers available in English. Choose a Gospel and study it with the Fathers.

Father Peter

aidan

The book of Revelation is not used for liturgical worship in the EOC and the Fathers offer warnings against private interpretations. I believe the Copts read it in its entirety at Pascha. Is this correct and why such differences?

peterfarrington

Dear Aidan,

It is read on Holy Saturday. I have a recent academic paper which describes the Blessing that is to be prayed before it is read in Church, and the earliest manuscript referenced is 1345 AD. So that indicates it is not a modern practice.

The author of this paper suggests that the existence of the Blessing indicates some caution in the use of the Apocalypse in a liturgical context, since it is not read at any other time.

It would seem from this paper, and from other notes in other volumes, that a likely period for the beginning of this tradition was at or just after the time of Bishop Bulus al-Bushi, a notable theologian, who wrote a commentary on the Apocalypse. He reposed in 1250 AD. It does seem likely that an interest in the Apocalypse at this time might have allowed for the development of the tradition of reading the book during the morning of Holy Saturday, and the author of the paper on the Blessing states that the evidence points to the practice beginning in the decades after al-Bushi's death.

Father Peter

Smirser

Dear friends,if you know the comments on Relevetion of bishop Averkiy he refuged in USA after communist revolution in Russia,what is your opinion about this book?

peterfarrington

I think you should not be studying the Apocalypse.

geomike

[quote author=Father Peter link=topic=11464.msg138162#msg138162 date=1305720423]
I think you should not be studying the Apocalypse.



Why shouldn't we be studying the book of Revelation? I don't mean to argue Father, but I want to understand why you say this.

Ioannes

geomike, as one who does study eschatology and the book of the Apocalypse, I side with Abouna Peter very strongly on this. Many heresies in the early church have sprung from a misinterpretation of this book. We should be cautious in reading any scripture that we do not misinterpret scripture, but more so with the Apocalypse. The difficulty in this book lies in the fact that some things have come to pass and others have not, some things are literal and some metaphorical. Being able to understand the difference is a blessing from God that not all people possess.

Without a proper understand or introduction to this book, one can easily be led to heresy. This book is not for all laity, and this is one of the major reasons it is read only one day of the whole year. Jumping face first into this book without the church fathers and a clear understanding of it is just plain foolish, and potentially harmful to ones salvation. I would recommend speaking with your FOC first, getting his approval and then reading commentaries, all commentaries you can find, then reading the book. It is not to be taken lightly. Unlike the rest of scripture there is a very specific way in which the Apocalypse is to be read.

Sudani

[quote author=Father Peter link=topic=11464.msg138152#msg138152 date=1305701867]
I would not recommend the works of Vladimir Moss to ordinary Coptic Orthodox. He is not a member of any canonical Eastern Orthodox Church but belongs to a Greek Old Calendarist schismatic group.


Thanks for pointing that out, Father. I had no idea.

But what do you think about adding the new category?