Mother of Gods, Mother of Harlots: The Image of the Mother Goddess Behind the Depiction of the "Whore of Babylon" in Revelation 17
One of the primary interpretive challenges in the study of Revelation 17 has been to ascertain the identity of an historical personage or entity evoked by the description “Whore of Babylon.” This paper explores a previously neglected figure, Cybele the “Great Mother” Goddess. Through an examination...
| Published in: | Novum Testamentum |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
2017
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| In: |
Novum Testamentum
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| Further subjects: | B
Revelation 17
Whore of Babylon
Mother Goddess
anti-Imperial rhetoric
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | One of the primary interpretive challenges in the study of Revelation 17 has been to ascertain the identity of an historical personage or entity evoked by the description “Whore of Babylon.” This paper explores a previously neglected figure, Cybele the “Great Mother” Goddess. Through an examination of the artistic, archaeological, and literary evidence relating to the Mother Goddess during the time of her greatest flourishing in the Roman periods, several elements of the description of the Harlot in Rev 17 can be understood to evoke Cybele. Insofar as the Mother Goddess was closely associated with Roman socio-political-religious systems, this scene constitutes an attack on the Roman Imperial apparatus. |
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| ISSN: | 1568-5365 |
| Contains: | In: Novum Testamentum
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15685365-12341556 |