Apocalyptic? #15: An Apathy Sandwich—The Seven Churches (Rev. 2:1-7 and 3:14-22)

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus . . . Smyrna . . . Pergamum . . . Thyatira . . . Sardis . . . Philadelphia . . . Laodicea write . . .” 

(The full text of the Letters to Ephesus and Laodicea is printed in the RSV at the conclusion of this blogpost.)

 

A sandwich is a mirror image.  If one took a mirror and laid it flat, then, placed a slice of cheese in the middle of the mirror, then placed a thin cooked hamburger patty on top of the cheese, then, placed a half bun on top of the hamburger patty, then, looked at the appearance of this concoction above and through the mirror, one would see the appearance of McDonalds’s McDouble sandwich.  In other words, the McDouble sandwich is a mirror image, with 2 bread products on the outside, 2 meat products next inside and a cheese product in the middle.  Another way of saying mirror-image is to say “symmetrical” or “chiastic,” as I discussed in my earlier blogposts Apocalyptic? #2 and #3.  John sees things in mirror-image.  He sees things symmetrically.  He sees chiastically.  To understand Revelation, one needs to see things chiastically, along with John.  So, now, we see John using chiasm in his presentation of Jesus’ letters to the angels of the seven churches.

1.      The first church, Ephesus, and the last church, Laodicea, both had the same problem:  APATHY.

2.      The second church, Smyrna, and the second to last church, Philadelphia, had NO CRITICISMS, but both were spoken of as having to deal with “the synagogue of Satan.”

3.      The three middle churches—Pergamum, Thyatira, and Sardis—were all identified as having to deal with the problem of PORNEIA in, at least, a spiritual, metaphorical sense.

We will consider the “bun” layers (the first and last churches) in this blogpost.  We will consider the second and next to last churches in the next blogpost.  In two blogposts from now, we will consider the middle three churches.

The APATHETIC Churches:  Ephesus and Laodicea                 

Looking, first, at the problem with Ephesus and Laodicea, we see that they have become apathetic.  Apathy is the absence of what the Greeks call PATHOS.  Aristotle suggests that there are three primary means of persuasion that humans develop.  These are ethos, pathos, and logos.  The English word ethics comes from the word ethos.  Ethos means credibility or trustworthiness.  It is the persuasion element that is active when you simply “trust” the person telling you something.  The English word "logic" comes from logos.  Reasoning or logic is of two varieties--inductive reasoning and deductive reasoning. 

PATHOS:

I write in my book Making Offers They Can’t Refuse (pp. 19-20):

From the Greek word pathos come such English words as sympathy, empathy, apathy, and antipathy.  The "-pathy" element means "emotion," as does the term pathos.

     "Sympathy" adds the element "sym," which means the same as the English word "sum" (the total resulting from mathematical addition).  So, "sympathy" means adding your emotion to someone else's emotion.  For example, if my friend's dog dies, I express sympathy:  "I'm sorry to hear that your dog died.  Although I didn't know your dog, I know that he was very special to you.  I know that you are feeling bad and that makes me feel bad."

     "Empathy" adds the element "em," which means the same as the English word "in."  "Empathy" denotes the situation in which two people have the same emotion in both.  Returning to the example of the death of the dog, I might empathically comment:  "I'm sorry to hear that your dog died.  I remember the day my dog died.  I was in my house when I heard the screeching tires, the dull thud, and my dog's yelping.  I ran as quickly as I could.  She died in my arms.  I know just how you feel."

     "Apathy" adds the element "a," which means the "absence" of something.  Atheism means the absence of a god/theos.  "Apathy" means the absence of emotion/PATHOS.  If I have "apathy," I might comment to the grief-stricken pet owner:  "Your dog died?  Get over it!  There are plenty of dogs in the world.  Go to the pound!  Get another one and quit complaining!"

     "Antipathy" adds the "anti" element which means to be "against" someone or something.  If I hold "antipathy" towards someone whose dog has died, I might say:  "Your dog died?  Good!  I hope your cat dies!  I hope your car dies on your way to work!  I don't like you!"

     . . .  Aristotle suggests that emotions are powerful means of persuasion:

• anger,
• love,
• fear,
• shame,
• goodwill,
• pity,
• confidence,
• kindliness,
• envy,
• emulation,
• enmity,
• friendship,
• shamelessness,
• being indignant, and
• shame

 

Jesus would like the church at Laodicea to be SYMpathetic or EMpathetic towards him.  He would even prefer that they were ANTIpathetic towards something—as the Ephesians were antipathetic toward the works of the Nicolaitans, rather than to be what they are: They are Apathetic.  Jesus says: “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth.”  Jesus is willing to be their BFF, in the common vernacular.  He says to them: “Those whom I love, I reprove and chasten; so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

Likewise, Jesus faults the church at Ephesus for their apathy--their lack of PATHOS, specifically, the emotion LOVE, from Aristotle’s list.  He says to the Ephesians: “I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.  Remember then from what you have fallen, repent and do the works you did at first.”  For some other possible identifications of the specific “love” the Ephesians had forsaken (besides that missing love which was similar to the Laodiceans’ apathy), refer back to my blogpost Apocalyptic? #10.  However, as opposed to the Laodiceans, the Ephesians are actually praised for having a different PATHOS:  Hate.  Jesus EMpathizes with the Ephesians, saying that both he and they hate the works of the Nicolaitans.  He says: “you hate the works of the Nicola′itans, which I also hate.”  The Nicolaitans fit in the same bin with the PORNEIA of the middle three churches.  I will address the issue of the Nicolaitans, when I discuss those three churches, but it is significant that the problem with this specific PORNEIA does not affect the churches of Ephesus and Laodicea.  Besides the PATHOS of hate, the Ephesians are also praised for being indignant (from Aristotle’s list).  Jesus praises them, thus: “you cannot bear evil men but have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not, and found them to be false.”  Note that, while the Ephesians lacked PATHOS when it came to their “first love,” they probably strongly relied on LOGOS and ETHOS when being critical of the Nicolaitans and the False Apostles.  How does one “test” someone claiming to be an Apostle?  On pages 202-203 of my book The Logic of Christianity:  A Syllogistic Chain, I answer:

 

Requirements for Becoming an Apostle

 

According to the Revelation to John, Jesus praises the church at Ephesus for testing “those who claim to be apostles but are not” (Revelation 2:2).  Revelation, however, does not spell out how false apostles are detected.  Luke’s writings identified . . .  the method by which spiritual gifts were conferred—by the laying on of apostles’ hands.  It is suitable, then, that we turn to Luke for information regarding how men became apostles.

 

In Acts 1:12-2:4 . . . Luke details the choosing of a new apostle to take the place of Judas Iscariot.  He quotes Peter in listing the qualifications for the office:

 

Therefore, it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us.  For one of these must be a witness with us of his resurrection. (Acts 1:21-22)

 

If, in order to be counted an apostle, one must have been a personal disciple of Jesus for at least three years and an eye witness of his resurrected body, it seems impossible that a modern-day apostle could exist. 

 

The Ephesians’ refusal to “bear evil men” (false apostles) was credited to them by Jesus as their “toil and . . . patient endurance”—they “have not grown weary.”  For those who, like the First Century Ephesians, are now “testers” of those claiming to be modern-day apostles, but are not, Jesus would most likely praise such (LOGOS-related) behavior, as well.  Because of that, I strive to be like the Ephesians and “test” those claiming to be modern-day apostles, but are not.  I have even written a book with that goal in mind—Psychotic Entelechy:  The Dangers of Spiritual Gifts Theology. 

I encourage others to join me in continuing this same toil and patient endurance, without growing weary.  Nevertheless, hating the works of evil men is still no substitute for the PATHOS of loving.  We need to have empathy with God—who so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes on him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16).  As Jesus encouraged the Laodiceans, we need to let Jesus be our BFF (LITERALLY, “BEST FRIEND FOREVER).  When he stands at our door and knocks, we need to hear his voice and open the door so that he will come in to us and eat with him, and he with us . . . to conquer and to sit with him on his throne, as he himself conquered and sat down with his Father on his throne.

The Message to Ephesus . . .

2 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.

² “‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear evil men but have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not, and found them to be false; ³ I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. ⁴ But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. ⁵ Remember then from what you have fallen, repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ Yet this you have, you hate the works of the Nicola′itans, which I also hate. ⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

The Message to Laodicea

¹⁴ “And to the angel of the church in La-odice′a write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.

¹⁵ “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! ¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing; not knowing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. ¹⁸ Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, that you may be rich, and white garments to clothe you and to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. ¹⁹ Those whom I love, I reprove and chasten; so be zealous and repent. ²⁰ Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. ²¹ He who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²² He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”