Arguing the Apocalypse: A Theory of Millennial Rhetoric

325 Pages·1994·21.2 MB·English

by  Stephen D. O’Leary

ARGUING THE APOCALYPSE
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ARGUING
THE
APOCALYPSE
A Theory of Millennial Rhetoric
STEPHEN D. O'LEARY
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York Oxford
Oxford University Press
Oxford New York
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Berlin Ibadan
Copyright © 1994 by Stephen D. O'Leary
First published in 1994 by Oxford University Press, Inc.
198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016
First issued as an Oxford University Press paperback, 1998.
Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without the prior permission of Oxford University Press.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
O'Leary, Stephen D.
Arguing the apocalypse : a theory of
millennial rhetoric / Stephen D. O'Leary
p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-19-508045-9; ISBN 0-19-512125-2 (pbk.)
1. Apocalyptic literature—History and criticism.
2. Rhetoric.
3. Discourse analysis.
I Title.
BL501.044 1994 291.2'3-dc20
93-17563
135798642
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
Acknowledgments
Many people contributed support and encouragement to the development of this
study. First and foremost, I thank my wife, Mary Rose, who patiently supported
me through years of writing and rewriting and tolerated my quirks and demands
when it must have seemed as if the end would never come. To her I dedicate these
words of another student of prophecy who sought to understand its proper place in
our lives: "Love will never come to an end. Are there prophets? their work will be
over. Are there tongues of ecstasy? they will cease. Is there knowledge? it will vanish
away; for our knowledge and our prophecy alike are partial, and the partial vanishes
when wholeness comes" (1 Cor. 13:8-10). This book is for Mary Rose, for our
children, Lucy and Rachel, for our children's children, and for all those yet to be
born.
My parents, Paul and Helen O'Leary, provided me with every kind of support
from earliest childhood through the most difficult days of graduate school. Without
their love and guidance, this project would never have been begun, let alone
completed.
A great debt of gratitude is due to my teacher, mentor, friend, and critic, Tom
Goodnight, who guided me through a critical portion of my education and intro-
duced me to many concepts that are incorporated in this study. Though the con-
clusions are my own, the whole work bears the stamp of his creative insights and
suggestions. This book would not have been possible without him.
David T. Arthur, curator of the Orrin Roe Jenks Collection of Adventual
Materials at Aurora University, Aurora, Illinois, provided invaluable assistance with
the Millerite periodicals quoted in chapters 4 and 5. I am grateful for his historical
insights and encyclopedic knowledge of early Adventism, which contributed im-
measurably to my work.
I wish to thank Henry and Vergilia Dakin and Susanna Dakin, whose material
and technical support, in the form of computer equipment and grants for travel
and study, facilitated the production of the manuscript and made possible some of
my most fascinating research.
My teachers and colleagues at Northwestern University and the University of
vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Southern California have provided all kinds of assistance. Among those who helped
me work out key portions of my analysis, provided expert editorial guidance and
proofreading, or simply were willing to listen as I talked incessantly about the
Apocalypse, are Walter Fisher, Stephen Toulmin, Bernard McGinn, Robert Jewett,
David Zarefsky, and Leland Griffin. Finally, there are many other friends, teachers,
colleagues, and critics who cannot be named here, but to whom I owe a hearty
"Thank you!" To all of you I say, with a sigh of relief, "The end is here. What
shall we do next?"
Los Angeles S. D. O'L.
May 1993
Contents
A Note on Sources and Translations, ix
ONE Toward a Rhetorical Theory of Apocalypse, 3
TWO Time, Evil, Authority, 20
THREE From Eschatology to Apocalypse: Dramatic
and Argumentative Form in the Discourse
of Prophetic Interpretation, 61
FOUR Millerism as a Rhetorical Movement, 93
FIVE Millerite Argumentation, 111
SIX Hal Lindsey and the Apocalypse o
the Twentieth Century, 134
SEVEN Apocalyptic Politics in the New Christian Right, 172
EIGHT The Apocalypse of Apocalypses, 194
EPILOGUE Waco and Beyond, 225
Notes, 229
Bibliography, 28
Index, 305
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A Note on Sources
and Translations
When analyzing and discussing scriptural texts, I have generally employed the New
English Bible (NEB); however, since this is a study of biblical interpretation, I have
also frequently referred to the translations selected by the authors under scrutiny.
Chapters 4 and 5 use the King James Version (KJV) exclusively, since this was the
text used by the Millerites; chapters 6 and 7, which deal with Hal Lindsey and
other contemporary apocalyptic arguers, employ at various points the New Inter-
national Version (NIV), the Revised Standard Version (RSV), and occasionally other
translations, since Lindsey switches back and forth between these at will. I apologize
for any confusion this may cause the reader, but internal consistency seemed to
me to be less desirable than fidelity to the authors and arguments analyzed here.
Abbreviations are used to indicate the source of the translation in question; if a text
is otherwise unmarked, the reader may assume the NEB as the source unless it is
found within a direct quotation from another author.
The bibliography provides complete reference information for all subst tive
works mentioned in the text or in footnotes. However, for the sake of brevity, I did
not attempt to list every article from prophecy newspapers or magazines. Sources
not listed in the bibliography will usually include complete reference information
in a footnote. The Millerite periodicals and newspapers quoted in chapters 4 and
5 are all located in the Jenks Collection at Aurora University; Hal Lindsey's Count-
down newsletter, quoted in chapter 7, is available from his ministry, located in
Palos Verdes, California.