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There is a silly notion that a prophet is someone, like Madame Sosostris-the famous clairvoyant, who has supernatural powers to foretell the future. This has come down to us, no doubt, from generations of Biblical teachers who showed how the Old Testament prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus. This is a superstitious understanding of prophecy.While it is true that the prophecies have come true, the Old Testament prophets were not old timey versions of Nostradamus. The prophets are simply men and women who can read the signs of the times and predict what will happen.
Jesus spoke this common sense, “When you a cloud rising in the West, you say ‘A storm is coming.’ Locked within this simple forecasting of events by reading the signs of the times are deeper signs and symbols of what will happen in the future. This comes from the fact that the prophets who are inspired by God are able to read the signs of the times very deeply and understand the pattern of God’s work in the world. Through this deeper insight and inspiration they are also able to predict, in general terms, what will take place in the future.
So, for example, the prophet Micah foretells that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem. In the context he is speaking to the political and religions crisis in Judea in his time. The town of Bethlehem was the city of David, and Micah is looking for a good king–a son of David who will rescue the people from their apostasy and danger of destruction. However, the prophecy from his time also has a future dimension which Micah could not have seen in detail, and that aspect of the prophecy is fulfilled in Jesus’ birth.
I say all that to say this: Rod Dreher’s new book Live Not By Lies – A Manual for Dissidents functions like a prophecy in our time. The book’s basic emphasis is, like the message of all prophets–“Wake up people. See what is happening all around you. Destruction is at hand.” Dreher’s book was published earlier this year. He warns that America is on the brink of “soft totalitarianism”. Drawing from the experience of people who lived though communism in Eastern Europe, Dreher says the increasing “woke” and cancel culture is a sign of the rise of intolerance and persecution. He begins by asking a question, “Have you ever felt you had to shut up and not speak your mind because you might get into trouble? Maybe it was just the trouble of a family argument over religion or politics, or maybe you kept quiet in the workplace because you knew your conservative opinions–no matter how balanced or mild mannered–would be attacked by your colleagues. Maybe you paused before you posted on Twitter or Facebook because you weren’t sure if your comment would cause a storm of aggression and anger.”
Continued below.
Dreher and Martin: Two Prophets for Today | Fr. Dwight Longenecker
Jesus spoke this common sense, “When you a cloud rising in the West, you say ‘A storm is coming.’ Locked within this simple forecasting of events by reading the signs of the times are deeper signs and symbols of what will happen in the future. This comes from the fact that the prophets who are inspired by God are able to read the signs of the times very deeply and understand the pattern of God’s work in the world. Through this deeper insight and inspiration they are also able to predict, in general terms, what will take place in the future.
So, for example, the prophet Micah foretells that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem. In the context he is speaking to the political and religions crisis in Judea in his time. The town of Bethlehem was the city of David, and Micah is looking for a good king–a son of David who will rescue the people from their apostasy and danger of destruction. However, the prophecy from his time also has a future dimension which Micah could not have seen in detail, and that aspect of the prophecy is fulfilled in Jesus’ birth.
I say all that to say this: Rod Dreher’s new book Live Not By Lies – A Manual for Dissidents functions like a prophecy in our time. The book’s basic emphasis is, like the message of all prophets–“Wake up people. See what is happening all around you. Destruction is at hand.” Dreher’s book was published earlier this year. He warns that America is on the brink of “soft totalitarianism”. Drawing from the experience of people who lived though communism in Eastern Europe, Dreher says the increasing “woke” and cancel culture is a sign of the rise of intolerance and persecution. He begins by asking a question, “Have you ever felt you had to shut up and not speak your mind because you might get into trouble? Maybe it was just the trouble of a family argument over religion or politics, or maybe you kept quiet in the workplace because you knew your conservative opinions–no matter how balanced or mild mannered–would be attacked by your colleagues. Maybe you paused before you posted on Twitter or Facebook because you weren’t sure if your comment would cause a storm of aggression and anger.”
Continued below.
Dreher and Martin: Two Prophets for Today | Fr. Dwight Longenecker
