I actually, really, specifically studied the history of apocalypticism,
so...basically, no.
If there’s one area of theology that’s uniquely resistant to the
etymological approach you propose, it’s probably apocalypticism.
Pretty much from day one (as it were), the concept — which encompassed
far more than just that one word — had two radically different
aspects. There was no “original sense.” There was the outward
fire-and-brimstone-type stuff, and a quasi-mystical emphasis on
immanence, and lots of variations and mutations in-between. There has
*never* been any broad or stable consensus on the first aspect — what
it means, what it looks like, when it’ll happen, or any other facet of
it. And mystics have a hard time figuring out whether or not they agree
😹 so there was never a consensus about that aspect either.
The reason for this is simple: it depends on how you interpret a handful
of ~biblical texts (or, for some, non-canonical apocrypha and/or
pseudepigrapha). If you interpret them “literally” you can get
material destruction, but if you interpret them figuratively you can get
whatever you want. And what you want can be very slippery indeed.
My favorite example:
Conventional histories report that Charlemagne was crowned Holy Roman
Emperor in the year 800 AD (now more often called CE), but it was
Charlemagne himself who imposed (not ‘invented’) the Anno Domini
calendar as, basically, the “official” calendar of the HRE. Prior to
that, calendrical systems were much more heterogeneous and often
regional (e.g., “the sixth year of the reign of King Abgar the Dark of
Edessa”), and were based on numbers drawn from all kinds of sources,
ranging from the Bible to various monarchic chronicles. Those sources,
particularly biblical texts, were riddled with variations,
discrepancies, etc, so the resulting calculations could be extremely
inconsistent.
To our modern sensibilities, not knowing what year it “really” is
might seem odd, but there is no “real” year — it’s all
imaginary. And why would anyone need to know what year it “really”
was anyway? With a bare handful of exceptions (like Clement of
Alexandria), there was really only one answer to that question: to
predict when the end of the world would come.
How or why would adding up a jumble of numbers tell you when that would
happen? Because a pretty widespread exegesis (at least among millenarian
movements) was based on a Genesis (the Lord created the world in six
days on rested on the seventh) and Psalm 90:4 / 2 Peter 3:8 (a thousand
years is a day in the eye of the Lord). So, the argument went, the world
would last for six thousand years, followed by a “sabbatical
millennium” or millennium of rest. As always, that was interpreted and
presented in wildly different ways, ranging from outward material
cataclysm to inward immanent transformation.
So how does this all fit together? The year 800 AD/CE was, in the most
common pre-AD system, the year 5999. IOW, Charlemagne was crowned ONE
YEAR before the end of the world. Less, even, because his coronation was
on Christmas Day. So, while we don’t exactly have a smoking-gun memos
from his advisor Alcuin to Charlemagne spelling it the pros and cons of
reframing time itself, it seems pretty certain that he did so *in order
to pull the rug out of under millenarians*! Basically, they said
“It’s 5999!” and he was like “Uh, yeah, nah, sorry, it’s
really only 800!” Top-notch liberal social engineering. 😹
Charlemagne’s hack worked pretty well until the year 1000, but
that’s another story, with its own funny history — with some
scholars depicting peasants cowering in fear as not-yet-invented clocks
ticked to midnight, others emphasizing how pietistic movements
restrained warring potentates and laid the basis for various
renaissances.
I agree with Felix: Christian’s comment didn’t really do much for
me, and I don’t see much cause for upset. Though calling people
cryoto-nazis on a list that’s publicly archived should be a no-no. I
hope this digression was interesting, or at least better than people
freaking out on each other. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
Best,
Ted
On 8 Nov 2024, at 20:37, John Hopkins via nettime-l wrote:
Christian --
A deeper etymology of 'apocalypse' is 'apo' (away, to remove), and
'kalupsis' (a veil covering the eyes [of the bride], a covering). That
usage is roughly contemporary with the Book of Revelations of St. John
the Divine documenting his prophetic vision on the island of Patmos.
So 'the apocalypse' is a clearing of vision, that one might see the
world as it is, unencumbered by the limitations of corrupt
incarnation.
Seeing things 'as they are' is, of course, an idealistic and
unobtainable vision, given that the nature of reality is very much
indeterminate. However, clearing ones vision is possible, though the
way to do so is itself not so clear.
So, 'apocalypse' in its original sense is more a personal process of
(positive) evolution versus a societal fabrication of wide
destruction.
Cheers,
John
On 11/8/24 12:34 PM, Christian Swertz via nettime-l wrote:
thanks for the precise overview. I also like apocalyptic
perspectives. The apocalypse is - according to the Wikipedia -
translated to revelation in Christianity. Apocalypse describes the
revelation of divine knowledge. In other terms: Your description
promises the approach of the final truth. Didn't we pray for this all
the time? Redemption is near! And we will see it happen. That's
great! We should storm parliament to get more momentum to the
movement. See you Sunday after coffee at the Parliament?
On the other hand: Governments have been collapsing since I remember
political events. That makes me a little suspicious. But maybe this
time it will work. To be on the safe side, I will pray to god and ask
for speedy salvation. I just have to choose the god to pray to. One
moment please - I think I have to google that briefly ...
--
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