The Apocalypse - Letter by Letter: Salvation is from the Jews Indeed...
The Apocalypse - Letter by Letter
Blog to discuss the book "The Apocalypse - Letter by Letter: A Literary Analysis of the Book of Revelation" and current events that point to the events described therein.
In The Apocalypse Letter by Letter - A Literary Analysis of the Book of Revelation by Steven Paul, numerous references are made to the important role the Jews have played in past times as God's chosen people and will play in the future of the Church. First, the Jewish prophets, major and minor, heralded the coming of the Son of God and the Kingdom He would establish. Steven Paul opens the book with an interpretation of the Book of Daniel which speaks of an everlasting kingdom that was to come.
Then Paul deciphers the first chapters of the Apocalypse and shows how the destruction of Israel and Jerusalem was foretold by the Lord Himself.
At times it seems as if the Jewish people will disappear, sometimes at the hands of Christians. But the Apocalypse indicates that Jews will exist side by side with the Church for all time until God's mysterious plan comes to fruition. Israel likewise is often referenced directly in the Gospels, Letters and the Apocalypse. Some might say that Israel in these prophetic passages is merely a metaphor for God's chosen people and his promise but Jerusalem and Israel as actual places is clearly intended.
Instead of a total disappearance through assimilation and annihilation, Israel and the Jewish people seem destined to continue to fight for their existence until such a time as God Himself calls her to fullness. At the end of the Book of Revelation, a new Church with 12 "foundations" and 12 "gates" is depicted. Paul explains that this new Church is founded on both the 12 Apostles and the 12 Tribes of Israel. In fact, the foundation stones are the Jews.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church also anticipates a time when the Jews and Christians will be one. Despite a checkered history of relations with the Jews, this has always been so. As a Jew recently remarked, "If Jesus were to come back today, where would he feel more at home, in a synagogue of in a church?" My response was that He is already in His Church but the historical person of Jesus would feel more at home in a synagogue.
