A Classic in Millennial Studies

Norman Cohn's work, The pursuit of the Millennium: Revolutionary Messianism in Medieval and Reformation Europe and it Bearing on Modern Totalitarian Movements (1961), is a classic work in the field of millennial studies. It is also, perhaps surprisingly, relevant to today's contemporary environment of religious terrorism. Cohn was one of the first scholars to identify the phenomenon of apocalyptic violence which he refers to as militant, revolutionary chiliasm (p. 309). Cohn traces apocalyptic violence from the viewpoint of a historian. Concluding his work, Cohn discusses the two major totalitarian movements of the twentieth century, Nazism and Communism, and connects them with medieval apocalyptic movements. This book, according to the Times Literary Supplement, is rank among the 100 most influential books of the 20th century.

Making Progress

My recommitment to the dissertation progress is going well this week. As planned I got up at 4:00 am and wrote for an hour. It really feels good starting the day having finished an hour's work on my dissertation. It's very motivating for coming back to spend an hour in the evening.

So this morning, I finished the section on Aum Shinkiyo. I've included it below for those who are interested. This evening, I began working on a definition of religious apocalypticism. I'll be sharing segments of that work as it comes together.

So, tomorrow my goal is another two hours of work, one in the morning and one in the evening. I will continue to build the definition of religious apocalypticism.

____________________________________________________________________

Aum Shinkiyo and its leader, Shoko Asahara, gained the attention of the world in March 1995 when they released sarin gas into several Tokyo subway trains. According to Lifton (2003) Aum Shinrkiyo was a relatively small cultic group that acting upon its “vision of cosmic purification” (p. 57). The attack was not “apocalyptic” in its scope, killing only 12 persons. This limited loss of life occurred because Aum Shinkiyo knew Japanese authorities were closing in on the group, which caused the rushed execution of the attack. “The group’s plan had been to release enormous amounts of sarin later that year in order to create a major disaster and set in motion a series of catastrophic events and so fulfill its guru’s world-ending prophecies” (pp. 57, 58).

The cult was an eclectic mix of religious belief and practice. Its religious roots were Buddhist, but heavily influence by strains of early Tibetan Buddhism closely tied to Hinduism. In fact, Asahara, claimed Shiva, the Hindu world-destroying and restoring Hindu deity, as his personal god. Nevertheless, Asahara grounded his apocalyptic vision in the Christian concept of Armageddon. In addition, the group practiced high states of mystical experience often associated with New Age spirituality (pp 65, 66). Aum Shinkiyo’s aim was to be the sole survivors of an apocalyptic end of the world, who would “respiritualize a cleansed and vacant world” (p. 71).

Reference

Lifton, R. J. (2003). Superpower syndrome : America's apocalyptic confrontation with the world. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press/Nation Books.