No empire, no Bible? Aspects of the relationship between biblical texts and current anti-empire views

Abstract

In both popular and academic writing recently on Christianity and the historical and contemporary phenomenon of imperialism, a strong current of negative sentiment is to be found on the latter. Such sentiments are both understandable and valid, but as a generalised outlook on the phenomenon of empire, it is too simplistic: an overview of examples from the Bible, one of the most important constituent elements of the Christian missiological dynamic, illustrates a more nuanced view. This is done by indicating four examples from recent Old Testament research: • Nuances of Prophetic reactions to empires • Pro-empire stances in the Historical Books • Associating with the powerless for the own sake • Textual reception of imperial decrees These four aspects caution towards, on the one hand, appropriating the Bible too simplistically in favour of a cause and, on the other hand, judging the empire phenomenon too one-sidedly. The entirely valid enterprise of exposing the vagaries of empire, in the search for ways of sociopolitical organisation of societies more aligned to traditional Christian values of peace and love, will be better served by such more sensitive valuations.