architecturecomposed shortly after the outbreak of the Maccabean wars around 165
BCE by a Hasidim (loyal, pious one), whose religious faith demands total
loyalty to the Torah (law) regardless of the consequences. The writer of
Daniel believes that he is living during the last days, and he relates a
series of visions during which he sees four beasts, regarded as antithetical
to God’s creation, arising from a watery chaos, until the last and worst
beast with ten horns appears to him. The book of Daniel also manifests a
trial for the righteous and the wicked along with a mention of the resur-
rection of the dead (12.2).
Jewish apocalyptic speculation influences the Christian book of
Revelation, which depicts the coming of a new heaven and earth at the end
of time. This book is attributed to the apostle John and is composed approx-
imately sixty years after the death of Jesus, during a period when Christians
are being persecuted for not worshiping the Roman emperor. The book
opens with a declaration by Jesus that establishes his power over death. The
book of Revelation is organized according to the number seven in terms of
messages, seals, trumpets, bowls, and visions because it is a number with
cosmic significance and represented reality. The text also refers to a millen-
nium, a reference to the thousand year rule of Christ on earth during which
Satan is bound. At the beginning of the millennium, there is a resurrection
of the righteous or martyrs, according to the book. At the end of this period
of peace, Satan is released and a final battle between good and evil takes
place. Once Satan is defeated, a second resurrection of all the dead occurs
before the final judgment is rendered by God.
Further reading: Cohn (1993); Himmelfarb (1993); McGinn (1979, 1994)ARCHITECTURE
Religious edifices are human creations symbolic of the spirituality of
religious traditions. When a religious structure is constructed it trans-
forms the space it occupies, altering the lives of those living within its
environment and sphere of influence. Architectural structures are equally
expressions and sources of religious experiences. These buildings also
interweave disclosure and hiddenness of their spiritual messages by using
stones and mortar in a symbolic way in which the material gives birth to
the spiritual. In addition to being material symbols of a culture’s religion,
architectural structures stand autonomous in the sense of possessing an
inherent freedom, while simultaneously supporting the social web of
interrelationships within a society.