Patrick Comerford
Going around the Acropolis Museum in Athens some years ago, I overheard a tourist in one guide, who was gazing on the displays of the frieze, exclaim out loud, in wonder and awe: ‘Look, the Four Horsemen of the Acropolis.’
This is not an apocryphal story. But I can only imagine how difficult it must be for any tour guide to explain to someone so knowledgeable and informed as that man the difference between the words Acropolis, Apocalypse and, perhaps even, Apocrypha … and apoplectic.
The English word apocalypse comes directly from the Greek word ἀποκάλυψις (apokállipsis), derived a combination of απο- (apo-), a prefix used like ‘un-’ in English and meaning ‘away from’ or ‘not’; and καλύπτω (-calypto) meaning to cover, veil or hide. So, an apocalypse is something hidden that is unveiled, uncovered or revealed.
In Greek mythology, Calypso (Καλυψώ) was a nymph who lived on the island of Ogygia. Her name comes from καλύπτω (kalyptō), ‘to cover’, ‘to conceal’, or ‘to hide’, so her name means ‘she who conceals.’ She was believed to conceal vital knowledge and was a reclusive character on her island.
Homer says in the Odyssey Calypso she detained Odysseus for seven years against his will and promised him immortality if he would stay with her. But Odysseus preferred to return home and eventually, after the intervention of other gods, Calypso was forced to let Odysseus go.
Imagine a new sculpture or work of art about to be unveiled in a town square. It is still under wraps while people gather and the speeches are made. After the ceremonies, a chord is pulled, the cloth falls off, and the statue, which has remained unseen, is unveiled and revealed. This quite simply is an apocalyptic moment. It is a dramatic moment, but without being melodramatic.
But the word apocalyptic has melodramatic significance because many of us associate these words with the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament. Many years ago, I caught a ferry from Kos to Patmos, and climbed halfway up the mountainside to the Cave of the Apocalypse (Σπήλαιο Αποκάλυψης), between the villages of Chóra and Skala. The cave marks the place where Saint John received his visions recorded in the Book of Revelation.
The opening verse introduces the book as: Ἀποκάλυψις Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ‘The revelation of Jesus Christ …’ Indeed, some translations give Apocalypse as the title of the book. Its many revelations, often horrific, are typically regarded as apocalyptic, including the four horsemen in Chapter 6.
The four horsemen ride on white, red, black, and pale horses, and all save for the figure of Death are portrayed as human in appearance. The first horseman rides a white horse, carries a bow, and is given a crown as a figure of conquest. The second horseman carries a great sword and rides a red horse as the creator of war and slaughter. The third rides a black horse symbolising famine and carries a pair of scales. The fourth horse is pale, and on it rides Death, followed by Hades.
These revelations have given the word apocalypse negative connotation, similar to Armageddon, the final cataclysmic battle (see Revelation 16: 16) and the end of the world.
But apocalyptic literature is a literary genre originating in Judaism in the centuries following the Babylonian exile (597-587 BCE). In this genre, a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically involve symbolic imagery drawn from the Hebrew Bible, cosmological and pessimistic historical surveys, the division of time into periods, esoteric numerology, and claims of ecstasy and inspiration.
Almost all examples are written under pseudonyms, claiming as their author a hero from the past, as with parts of the Book of Daniel (7-12), composed during the 2nd century BCE but bearing the name of Daniel from the 6th century BCE.
Elements of apocalyptic literature are also found in Ezekiel 1-3, 37 (the vision of the Valley of Dry Bones) and 38-39; and Zechariah 1-6, and in apocryphal works such as 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch. There are apocalyptic themes too in Isaiah (24-27, 33, 34-35), Jeremiah (33: 14-26), Joel (3: 9-17) and Zechariah (12-14).
The Book of Revelation is the only apocalyptic book in the New Testament. But the account of the baptism of Jesus in Saint Matthew’s Gospel (Matthew 3: 13-17) could be considered apocalyptic, for the heavens open for the presence of a divine mediator, the dove representing the Holy Spirit, and a voice communicates supernatural information, although there is no eschatological element.
The Gospel accounts foretelling the destruction of the Temple and predicting signs of the end times and the second coming (Matthew 24: 1-51; Mark 13: 1-37) are apocalyptic narratives that draw extensively on Daniel 7. The account of the Last Judgment, with the separation of the sheep and the goats is also apocalyptic in nature (Matthew 25: 31-46).
In addition, there are apocalyptic passages in some Pauline passages (see II Thessalonians 2: 1-12, the vision of the Man of Lawlessness), as well as II Peter 3 and Jude 14-15.
Previous words: 46, ‘Αρχή, beginning, Τέλος, end
Next word: 48, ‘Απόκρυφα, Apocrypha
Previous words in this series:
1, Neologism, Νεολογισμός.
2, Welcoming the stranger, Φιλοξενία.
3, Bread, Ψωμί.
4, Wine, Οίνος and Κρασί.
5, Yogurt, Γιαούρτι.
6, Orthodoxy, Ορθοδοξία.
7, Sea, Θᾰ́λᾰσσᾰ.
8,Theology, Θεολογία.
9, Icon, Εἰκών.
10, Philosophy, Φιλοσοφία.
11, Chaos, Χάος.
12, Liturgy, Λειτουργία.
13, Greeks, Ἕλληνες or Ρωμαίοι.
14, Mañana, Αύριο.
15, Europe, Εὐρώπη.
16, Architecture, Αρχιτεκτονική.
17, The missing words.
18, Theatre, θέατρον, and Drama, Δρᾶμα.
19, Pharmacy, Φᾰρμᾰκείᾱ.
20, Rhapsody, Ραψῳδός.
21, Holocaust, Ολοκαύτωμα.
22, Hygiene, Υγιεινή.
23, Laconic, Λακωνικός.
24, Telephone, Τηλέφωνο.
25, Asthma, Ασθμα.
26, Synagogue, Συναγωγή.
27, Diaspora, Διασπορά.
28, School, Σχολείο.
29, Muse, Μούσα.
30, Monastery, Μοναστήρι.
31, Olympian, Ολύμπιος.
32, Hypocrite, Υποκριτής.
33, Genocide, Γενοκτονία.
34, Cinema, Κινημα.
35, autopsy and biopsy
36, Exodus, ἔξοδος
37, Bishop, ἐπίσκοπος
38, Socratic, Σωκρατικὸς
39, Odyssey, Ὀδύσσεια
40, Practice, πρᾶξις
41, Idiotic, Ιδιωτικός
42, Pentecost, Πεντηκοστή
43, Apostrophe, ἀποστροφή
44, catastrophe, καταστροφή
45, democracy, δημοκρατία
46, ‘Αρχή, beginning, Τέλος, end
47, ‘Αποκάλυψις, Apocalypse
48, ‘Απόκρυφα, Apocrypha
49, Metamorphosis, Μεταμόρφωσις
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