Christian Understandings of the Future: The Historical Trajectory

Amy Frykholm

Oct 2016 · Fortress Press

About this ebook

Throughout the two-thousand-year span of Christian history, believers in Jesus have sought to articulate their faith and their understanding of how God works in the world. How do we, as we examine the vast and varied output of those who came before us, understand the unity and the diversity of their thinking? How do we make sense of our own thought in light of theirs? The Christian Understandings series offers to help. In this crisp and engaging volume Amy Frykholm offers a tour through more than two millennia of Christian thought on the future. Starting with the contexts of the Hebrew Bible and moving forward, Frykholm outlines the enduring fascination believers have had with future events and the myriad ways they have articulated their beliefs about what the future holds. From the imperial contexts of the book of Revelation to the end times prophecy of Harold Camping, Frykholm presents a thoughtful and insightful tour.

About the author

Amy Frykholm is an award-winning writer, scholar, and journalist whose nonfiction works cover the territory of American religion from apocalyptists to saints. A senior editor for The Christian Century magazine, she appears frequently on television and radio programs as an expert in American religion. After receiving her PhD from Duke University, she went on to write several books, including Rapture Culture: Left Behind in Evangelical America and Julian of Norwich: A Contemplative Biography. She lives in Leadville, Colorado, with her husband and son.