The Whore of Babylon Metaphor–Permission to Erase Evil?

Abstract

ABSTRACT Christian apocalypticism has found renewal among contemporary theologians and political figures. Within the narrative, the Whore of Babylon, (Revelation 17: 1–18, 18:1–8) is condemned and brutally destroyed as the embodiment of evil. The Whore of Babylon metaphor raises several questions. How liberative can a reclamation of this apocalyptic source be for women marginalized by their participation in sex trades? How does the critique of independent women sanction violence against women who do not comply with a docile model of womanhood? When the “good” are given permission to destroy “evil,” are notions of justice and self-determination lost? What gives United States' political leaders license to claim that they can identify “good” and “evil” with such precision that destruction at their hands rises to a level of a “divine mandate?” The article evaluates the positions of selected feminist and liberationist scholars and asks whether the permission to destroy given in Revelation is in fact dangerous.