Reading Gender in Revelation: A Conversation with Dr. Lynn Huber

What Matters Most

Welcome to the second episode of the third season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Lynn Huber. Dr. Lynn Huber is Maude Sharpe Powell Professor, Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University in North Carolina and author of the new Wisdom Commentary on Revelation, published by Liturgical Press. Apart from her Wisdom Commentary, co-written with her late mentor Gail O’Day, Lynn has written:

Thinking and Seeing with Women in Revelation. London: Bloomsbury T and T Clark, 2013;

“Like a Bride Adorned”: Reading Metaphor in John’s Apocalypse. New York: T and T Clark, 2007.

She has also written numerous articles and encyclopedia entries which you can find on her website at Elon University.

Lynn is a true expert on the text. She takes the polyvalent images and language of the text and reads it through a feminist and queer lens. This might challenge people, but it also opens up new horizons and new ways to understand Revelation. This episode is in many ways about reading gender in Revelation. Lynn refers to her work as idiosyncratic, in that she references and engages with reality TV, the Olympics, including the great Simone Biles, current music and concerts, as well as all the ancient context and history.

We also discuss at the end of the podcast how much power Revelation has been assigned in our culture, but Lynn also turns that discussion of power upside down, as does Revelation itself: what does it mean to see victory based upon the lamb who was slain? Why are male virgins seen as the ideal in Revelation 14 when in Roman culture, as Christian Laes says, they were basically unknown and certainly not acclaimed. This positive role of male virgins though is coupled with a presentation of sex with women as inherently defiling. This sort of misogynistic portrayal renders women as separated from salvation. In addition, there is a lot of sexual violence portrayed in the text, such as with Jezebel and with the portrayal of the whore of Babylon, language which Lynn says is a correct translation but troubling too.

But there is also the presentation of the woman in chapter 12 who is pursued by the Dragon and hides her child away. There is also the fascinating image that Lynn describes of girls as the victors, of the image of conquering basically being an image of female conquering. The lamb who was slain is both victim and victor. Finally, there is the image of the male virgins as the bride of Christ. Does this only include men? Or are these only those who are presented in revelation 14 as part of the redeemed and righteous community?

Lynn finally discussed an image of inclusivity that she sees as a positive message of Revelation. What does full inclusivity in the people of God mean? When we are inclusive of some who have been marginalized does that inherently exclude others?

Some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Jenny Martin of Notre Dame discussing theology and gardening.

In the coming weeks we will be hearing from Dr. Adele Reinhartz of U of Ottawa, Dr. Daisy Vargas of the University of Arizona, and many more excellent scholars and thinkers.

Also, and this is big news for us, we are expanding the sorts of podcasts we do under the umbrella of What Matters Most. We are not changing the bi-weekly format of what you have just heard here today with Margaret MacDonald, but we are adding more. We are adding a Pop Culture Matters podcast, in which music, movies, novels, etc. with religious themes are added to the mix. Martin Strong and I will start off the series by discussing Ry Cooder’s Straight Street – go out and listen to it now; I dare you to listen to it just once – and the Danish/Icelandic movie Godland. Please send in your suggestions for Pop Culture that Matters. Don’t be afraid, suggest away. Maybe you could join us as a co-host for an episode. The wonder of Zoom makes this is a possibility wherever you are! Martin also suggested a podcast on religious sites, local and international, which we call Places that Matter. What’s a place that matters to you? St. Peter’s in Rome? Some obscure shrine? Pacific Spirit forest? Let us know.

Finally, I am encouraging my colleagues at St. Mark’s to join me as guest hosts this year, so I hope you will soon hear from Kevin Eng, Fang Fang Chandra, Nick Olkovich, Fr. Nick Meisl and more. More What Matters Most.

Upcoming Events:

On September 13, CCE is presenting a film on AI with Regent College and VST in which we screen The End of Humanity followed by a panel discussion. This event is now sold out, but pay attention for news of a livestream and join the waitlist in case a ticket comes open.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent who I can now tell you is Dr. Jane Barter, professor of religion and culture at the U of Winnipeg. She teaches and does research on Christianity, Religion and Gender, and Religion and Political Theory.

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at [e-mail]. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC