Ask  the  Author:   Rev.  Ed  Townley,  Author  of  Kingdom  Come  

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Ed Townley has been a Unity minister for more than 20 years, after an earlier career as an actor, director and playwright. He has served congregations in Beaverton, Oregon; Chicago, Illinois, and Dallas, Texas. He most recently served as senior minister at Unity of

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Hartford in South Windsor, Connecticut. Townley is the author of Meditations on the Mount (later released in paperback as The Secret According to Jesus). He is the host of The Bible Alive! on Unity Online Radio. He lives in Manchester, Connecticut, with his partner in ministry,

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a Welsh corgi named Bentley. Townley responds to requests for Bible interpretation on Unity’s website, www.unity.org.

 

QUESTION  AND  ANSWERS  

What  makes  Revelation  so  scary?  Aren’t  most  of  us  beyond  believing  in  giant  locusts,  seven-­‐headed  dragons,  and  other  monsters?  

I  am  passionate  about  the  Bible  as  a  practical  and  positive  metaphysical  guide  to  the  spiritual  journey  each  of  us  is  here  to  accomplish.  Charles  Fillmore  [co-­‐founder  of  the  Unity  movement]  described  it  as  our  spiritual  textbook,  which  must  mean  that  all  of  it,  properly  understood,  is  intended  to  encourage  our  creative  spiritual  progress.  But,  by  allowing  conservative  Christians  to  interpret  the  Book  of  Revelation  as  an  affirmation  of  their  own  negative  and  judgmental  beliefs,  many  others  are  discouraged  from  venturing  anywhere  near  the  final  book  of  the  Bible.  However,  to  be  fearful  of  any  part  of  the  Bible  is  to  turn  its  positive  message  into  an  energy  of  darkness  and  punishment.  So  I  think  it’s  important  that  we  examine  the  apparent  negativity  and  fearful  imagery  of  the  Revelation  so  that  we  can  appreciate  how  solidly  it  aligns  with  the  universal  spiritual  principles  common  to  all  spiritual  paths—principles  that  are  loving  and  creative,  not  judgmental  and  punishing.  

Well,  there  are  certainly  many  people  who  still  believe  in  a  literal  interpretation  of  the  Revelation—as  could  be  seen  in  the  phenomenal  success  of  the  Left  Behind  series  of  novels.  But  beneath  the  scary  imagery,  I  think  it’s  an  underlying  assumption  of  painful  and  eternal  punishment  if  we  fail  to  live  perfect  lives  that  frightens  anyone  who  knows  how  complicated  our  life  choices  can  become.  It  seems  as  though  the  God  of  Love  that  Jesus  expressed  and  taught  becomes  a  God  of  anger  and  vengeance  in  the  Revelation,  and  that’s  a  scary  concept  indeed.  

The  Book  of  Revelation  seems  like  an  unusual  subject  for  a  progressive  minister  to  tackle.  What  motivated  you  to  write  this  book?  

Well-­‐known  scholar  Elaine  Pagels  recently  wrote  a  history  of  the  Book  of  Revelation.  Is  it  possible  to  truly  understand  or  appreciate  Revelation  without  studying  John  of  Patmos  and  his  times?  

In  the  course  of  interpreting  the  22  chapters  of  Revelation,  you  share  your  personal  story  of  addiction  and  recovery.  Why  did  you  decide  to  combine  these  elements?  Was  it  difficult  to  reveal  this  part  of  your  life?  

You  present  Revelation  as  a  guide  to  spiritual  progress,  saying  that  the  spiritual  journey—like  Revelation  itself—is  nonlinear.  Can  you  explain?  

Our  mortal  minds  like  to  “understand”  everything  by  placing  it  all  on  a  linear  path.  We  start  off  at  one  place—birth,  the  Garden—and  we  trudge  along  until  we  arrive  at  another  place—death,  heaven,  hell,  whatever.  But  time  is  strictly  an  invention  of  our  humanity;  it  has  no  reality  in  the  realm  of  Spirit  in  which  we  truly  exist.  So  a  time  line  cannot  be  of  any  great  spiritual  use.  The  Bible  truly  began  to  come  alive  for  me  when  I  realized  that  it  describes,  not  a  linear  journey,  but  an  expansion  in  consciousness.  This  means  that  we  don’t  leave  earlier  stages  behind  as  we  move  forward;  we  contain  it  all  as  our  spiritual  understanding  expands  to  encompass  more  and  more  of  the  infinite  Oneness  of  which  we  are  both  collective  and  unique  expressions.  I  may  achieve  flashes  of  Christ  consciousness  as  my  spiritual  awareness  unfolds;  but  given  a  new  and  unwelcome  challenge,  I  may  quickly  revert  back  to  victim  consciousness,  wondering  why  this  is  happening,  and  whose  fault  it  is.  It’s  all  within  me,  and  the  I  AM  of  my  being  is  the  master  of  it  all.  Recognizing  that  it  is  my  personal  belief  that  decides  how  the  Revelation  unfolds  in  my  consciousness  is  absolutely  key  to  using  it  as  a  positive  guide  instead  of  a  terrifying  threat.  

It’s  important,  in  approaching  any  part  of  the  Bible,  to  understand  something  of  the  times  and  situations  in  which  it  was  written—and  something  as  well  of  its  intended  first  readers.  Elaine  Pagels  has  been  providing  invaluable  guidance  throughout  her  career—from  Adam  and  Eve  and  the  Serpent  through  The  Gnostic  Gospels.  Her  most  recent  book  looks  at,  not  just  the  Revelation  to  John,  but  many  similar  Revelations  written  within  the  first  century  of  Christian  history.  Why  was  one  included  in  the  New  Testament  while  others  were  ignored—or  violently  attacked?  As  always,  her  work  sheds  exciting  new  light  on  longstanding  questions.  

I’m  not  an  academic;  I  don’t  have  degrees  or  other  credentials  that  underlie  my  understanding  of  the  Book  of  Revelation—or  anything  else,  for  that  matter.  What  I  do  have  is  my  personal  story.  I  understand  the  metaphysical  dimension  of  all  Scripture  by  relating  it  to  my  own  experience,  as  I  now  understand  it.  It’s  this  approach  that  makes  Scripture  more  than  a  historical  document,  and  more  than  an  inventive  story  with  a  strong  moral.  At  its  deepest  level,  Scripture  is  like  a  personal  travel  journal.  Unity  co-­‐founder  Charles  Fillmore  taught  that  all  characters  in  scripture  correspond  to  ideas  in  our  collective  consciousness.  And  the  greatest  characters  become  what  Carl  Jung  called  archetypes—touchstones  by  which  we  can  measure  our  own  progress,  and  our  own  situation  at  any  given  point  on  our  spiritual  journey.  Recognizing  how  images  from  the  Book  of  Revelation  have  appeared  and  interacted  in  my  own  life  is  not  difficult—it’s  thrilling!  It  offers  meaning  and  purpose  to  times  and  experiences  that  would  otherwise  seem  like  a  total  waste  of  energy.  

You  write  that  the  positive,  unifying  message  of  Revelation  has  come  to  be  seen  as  just  the  opposite.  Why  do  you  think  its  message  has  become  so  distorted?  

Well,  why  has  the  Jesus  Christ  message  of  unconditional  love,  personal  empowerment,  and  creative  possibility  become,  in  many  cases,  a  repetition  of  the  kind  of  stifling,  limiting,  fear-­‐based  religion  that  Jesus  constantly  warned  against?  The  teachings  and  writings  serve  as  a  kind  of  mirror,  reflecting  back  to  people  whatever  fear-­‐based  beliefs  they’ve  accumulated  from  the  past.  

What  do  you  hope  readers  will  take  away  from  Kingdom  Come?  

I  hope  they  will  finish  my  book  with  a  new  realization  that  the  Revelation  to  John  assumes  and  supports  their  own  Christ  consciousness,  and  that  it  describes  a  creative  process  that  guides  us,  with  infinite  love,  as  we  work,  choice  by  choice,  to  create  the  new  consciousness  that  Jesus  calls  “the  kingdom  of  heaven.”  

 

How  can  ministers  or  study  groups  use  this  book?  

I’ve  done  my  best  to  break  the  Revelation  down  into  manageable  bites,  without  removing  or  ignoring  even  one  word.  Each  chapter  includes  detailed  information  on  each  passage,  as  well  as  a  concluding  essay  that  looks  at  the  bigger  picture.  I’ve  also  added  questions  for  discussion  and  a  closing  meditation  for  each  chapter.  

What  do  you  say  to  the  people  who  claim  we  are  now  at  “end  times”—or  to  those  who  believe  a  cosmic  shift  will  take  place  on  December  21,  2012?  

I  think  all  people  at  any  degree  of  spiritual  awareness  recognize  that  we  are  engaged  in  a  great  shift  of  collective  consciousness.  I  agree  with  Jean  Houston,  Barbara  Marx  Hubbard,  and  others  that  what  we’re  experiencing  is  not  the  end  of  something,  but  the  birth  of  a  new  dimension.  It’s  a  process  in  which  we’ve  been  engaged  for  some  time,  and  it’s  a  process  that  will  continue  into  2013—and  beyond.  Of  course,  if  we  collectively  decide  that  something  dramatic  needs  to  happen  on  December  21,  we  certainly  have  the  power  to  make  that  happen.  But  I’m  very  comfortable  making  plans  for  the  new  year.  

I  have  to  ask:  How  do  you  plan  to  spend  December  21,  2012?  

Well,  I’m  open  to  invitations!  I  think  spending  the  day  in  a  heart-­‐centered  appreciation  for  the  love  and  abundance  already  expressing  on  our  planet  would  create  the  best  possible  energy  for  whatever  may  express.