Timothy K. Beal Livres

With faith, hope, and compassion, acclaimed religion scholar Timothy Beal shows us how to navigate the inevitabilities of the climate crisis and the very real—and very near—possibility of human extinction What if it’s too late to save ourselves from climate crisis? When Time is Short is a meditation for what may be a finite human future that asks how we got here to help us imagine a different relationship to the natural world. Modern capitalism, as it emerged, drew heavily upon the Christian belief in human exceptionalism and dominion over the planet, and these ideas still undergird our largely secular society. They justified the pillaging and eradication of indigenous communities and plundering the Earth’s resources in pursuit of capital and lands. But these aren’t the only models available to us—and they aren’t even the only models to be found in biblical tradition. Beal re-reads key texts to anchor us in other ways of being—in humbler conceptions of humans as earth creatures, bound in ecological interdependence with the world, subjected to its larger reality. Acknowledging that any real hope must first face and grieve the realities of climate crisis, Beal makes space for us to imagine new possibilities and rediscover ancient ones. What matters most when time becomes short, he reminds us, is always what matters most.

In this unusual and provocative book, Timothy K. Beal writes about the monsters that lurk in our religious texts, and about how monsters and religion are deeply entwined. Horror and faith are inextricable. schovat popis

Few biblical books are as revered and reviled as Revelation. Many view it as the pinnacle of prophetic vision and a key to understanding the past, present, and future, while others criticize it as the work of a disturbed individual whose violent dreams should never have been included in the Bible. Timothy Beal offers a concise cultural history of Revelation and the apocalyptic imaginations it has inspired. He traces the book's origins during the Christian persecutions of first-century Rome to its lasting impact on contemporary popular culture, media, and visual art. Beal examines how figures like Augustine and Hildegard of Bingen integrated Revelation into their mystical worldviews, and how its vivid artistic interpretations kept it relevant despite criticism from later church leaders like Martin Luther. Attributed to a mysterious prophet named John, Revelation possesses a unique voice within the Bible. Beal illustrates how the book serves as a multimedia constellation of stories and images that adapt and transform in new contexts, continually inspiring fresh interpretations of history, fantasies of rapture, and fears of abandonment in each generation.