Sickle Swinging

I, John, looked and there was a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud one who looked like a son of man, with a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. Another angel came out of the temple, crying out in a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud, “Use your sickle and reap the harvest, for the time to reap has come, because the earth’s harvest is fully ripe.” So the one who was sitting on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.

Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven who also had a sharp sickle. Then another angel came from the altar, who was in charge of the fire, and cried out in a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Use your sharp sickle and cut the clusters from the earth’s vines, for its grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and cut the earth’s vintage. He threw it into the great wine press of God’s fury. (Revelation 14:14-19)

Sitting on a white cloud was the son of man with a gold crown and sickle to be swung for harvesting the earth.  Too many people take Revelation seriously as events to come.  And, they become afraid.  Too many people use Revelation as a way to fill their coffers with money taken from those duped by false promises of special treatment by God at the expense of those who won’t believe the “right” things.  End-time prophecies are especially useful for religious charlatans taking advantage of people prone to fear and conspiracy theories.  

By the way, conspiracy theories are not “theories.” They are simply fanciful tales told to take advantage of people, especially to make them followers.  A theory is a “carefully thought-out explanation for observations of the natural world that has been constructed using the scientific method, and which brings together many facts and hypotheses.”  Otherwise, it is a conjecture or supposition not born out by facts but only supported by often uninformed opinion.  

The only sharp sickles I see are those wielded by cruel and unthinking people on social media used to hurt and wound other people.   They often join a crowd of foolish people seeking to scapegoat the other person or group.

Jesus doesn’t wield a sickle to harvest the earth.  He is about love, compassion, and justice.  Those who portray him otherwise do so for their own good and profit.  There is no great wine press of God’s fury.  We are the ones who press other people out of our own fury, hate, and anger.

Deacon David Pierce