Book of Revelation expert to speak at Holy Trinity Orthodox

CANTON − One of Orthodox Christianity's foremost experts on the New Testament will lead a program on the Book of Revelation on Nov. 12 at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, 4705 Fairview St. NW.

Theologian Eugenia Constantinou taught biblical studies and early Christianity for 20 years at the University of San Diego and at four graduate schools of theology, including Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and the Patriarch Athenagoras Institute in Berkeley, Calif.

She has attracted an international following through her podcasts on Ancient Faith Radio, “Search the Scriptures” and “Search the Scriptures LIVE!” They can be found at ancientfaith.com and orthodoxbiblestudy.info.

She recently retired from undergraduate teaching at the University of San Diego, but still teaches at the Franciscan School of Theology and the Saints Athanasius and Cyril Coptic School of Theology.

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The last book of the New Testament, the Revelation of St. John the Divine has been an object of fascination − and misinterpretation − for 2,000 years.

"I think it's because it's so mysterious because its written in symbolic language," Constantinou said. "And also because part of it is about the future, and people are very curious about the future."

Written in Greek, Revelation is attributed to St. John, Jesus' last living disciple, who was sentenced to life in exile on the island of Patmos, Greece, for preaching the gospel.

A Greek world

"Though most scholars don't think so, part of my research was into the earliest commentaries and references to the book, and I found consistently that it was regarded as being written by John by people who should know; people who came from that part of the world, and people who lived not long after the time of John," Constantinou said. "All the evidence points to John the Apostle of Jesus as the author. "

Constantinou said John would have known Greek because he lived in a "Greek world."

"Greek is not especially difficult to read so John, having come from Galilee, probably knew some Greek already," she said. "Palestine was a very mixed world, especially in the north, in Galilee where the disciples were from. So, just as most people in the world know some English, it was the same way in the Roman Empire. Very few people spoke Latin."

John also is credited with writing the Gospel of John and three additional letters in the New Testament.

"When it comes to the gospel, we know John had people helping him" Constantinou said. "Revelation was written in a cave when he was in exile, so it's going to be less polished than the gospel, but that doesn't mean he didn't write it."

Constantinou said the biggest mistake many people make in reading Revelation is that they try to conflate it with current events.

"Almost since the book was written, people have said we were in the end times," she said. "Now we may be, because as time goes on, when we look at what's happening in the world, especially things like apostasy in the church, you have to ask yourself whether we're getting closer. But the point of Revelation is not to serve (as confirmation)."

Constantinou said second-biggest mistake people make is in seeing Revelation as some kind of guide for when the world will end.

"We're not supposed to live our lives trying to discern it like it's a roadmap to the end of the world because it was never written for that purpose," she said. "If we want to respect the Bible, the first thing we should do is try to understand why the author wrote it, so we can interpret his world correctly.

"John did not write to try to tell people in the future how to figure out when the end of the world is going to come, and that's what most people are trying to do. Instead, he wrote it to encourage the Christians of Asia Minor not to worship the emperor."

Thirdly, Revelation was not written to frighten people, Constantinou said.

"It's not some of kind of mysterious code that, if you simply decode it, you're gonna know when Jesus is coming back," she said. "That was never the intent and it can't possibly serve that function because that's never how it was intended."

She stressed that the book must be read within the context of the entire Bible, "and the whole revelation of Jesus Christ."

"Jesus said there would be false prophets and false Messiahs," Constantinou said. "There have been numerous antichrists in the past and there are today, and there will be in the future. So, exactly who will that person be in the future who will be that final antichrist? I don't think we can say."

'It's not a road map'

Constantinou said the figure described in Revelation 13 as "The Beast," identified with the numerals "666" was referring to a specific person.

"But that doesn't mean that there isn't a future antichrist to come who will lead the world astray and encourage us to do things contrary to God," she said.

Constantinou said that when she teaches about Revelation, she first presents it in a historical context.

"And then we consider the message that it has for us today, which it does have a message for us today," she said. "It has a spiritual message like all of the books of the Bible, so we have to look for that."

Constantinou earned bachelor’s and master's degrees in religious studies and practical theology from the University of San Diego, a law degree from the Pepperdine University School of Law, a master's in theology from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, and a master's in theology from Harvard Divinity School, where she specialized in the New Testament.

She earned her doctorate from Université Laval in Quebec, Canada, where she specialized in the Apocalypse in the ancient Church of the East, and produced the first translation in any modern language of the oldest Greek patristic commentary on the Book of Revelation by Andrew of Caesarea.

Movies and books about Revelation have fostered a boon industry. Some, including Hal Lindsey's "The Late Great Planet Earth" first published in 1970, and the "Left Behind" series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have sold millions of copies.

"The early church never did that, so people now shouldn't," Constantinou said. "Everybody who has ever created a scenario has been wrong. I personally think people write these books and make programs to alarm people. I don't think that they're necessarily insincere; they might really believe what they think, just like Harold Camping."

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Camping, a Christian radio host, gained worldwide attention when he predicted that the end of the world would occur on May 21, 2011. He later claimed he miscalculated the date by five months, then eventually admitted he was wrong. Camping died in 2012.

A message of endurance

"He was completely wrong but utterly convinced," Constantinou said. "People can be very sincere, and still be very wrong. When the end comes we might not recognize it. With all due respect to Mr. Lindsey, he keeps publishing it and keeps changing it, still feeding on the desire of people to predict the end."

Constantinou proposes that humankind isn't supposed to know when the end will occur.

"But we can be prepared," she said. "I'm not negating the prophetic reality of Revelation; however, because it is prophecy, it isn't easily interpreted. The reason why is because prophecy operates on more than one level. There is an immediate message to the people of God, but there's also a future component that we will not fully understand until it happens."

The Very Rev. Nick Halkias, host pastor, notes that if Revelation is read out of context, "It'll scare you to death."

"It's obviously a very powerful message," he said. "It's definitely a message of encouragement and endurance. We should want to be among those who can endure to the end. For those who are trying to live the life of Christ, it encourages us to eagerly participate in the coming of the Lord."

Constantinou said that while the Revelation does indeed contain components about the future, the Bible must be read with respect and humility.

"That means we shouldn't be so arrogant to think we can describe exactly how the world is going to play out because I think that will remain a mystery. God doesn't think the way we think, so with our little human minds, we can't understand," she said. "If we are close to Christ, we don't have to be looking for the signs − we just have to be faithful."

Constantinou is the author of four books, including her most recent, "The Crucifixion of the King of Glory: The Amazing History and Profound Mystery of the Passion," and numerous articles. She and her husband, the Very Rev. Costas Constantinou, a retired Greek Orthodox priest, have an adult son.

The program, which is free, begins at 10 a.m. with coffee and refreshments, followed by an hours service at 10:30 a.m., with the first lecture at 11 a.m. It ends with an hours service at 4 p.m. Lunch is included. Reservations are required by calling the church office at 330-494-8770 by Nov. 7.

Reach Charita at 330-580-8313 or charita.goshay@cantonrep.com. On Twitter: @cgoshayREP.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Holy Trinity Orthodox to host program on Book of Revelation