I have in mind Henry and William James, two immensely creative brothers from Boston back around the turn of the 20th Century. Henry settled down right off to become a very creative and well-known literary author of such books as The Americans, The Europeans, The Portrait of a Lady, Daisy Miller, The Wings of the Dove, and my favorite short stories “The Turn of the Screw” and “The Rocking Horse Winner”.
William, on the other hand, took quite some time to find himself as a first-rate American philosopher. After having spent several years in South America as part of an archaeological team he dove into, and actually helped create the field known today as psychology. He then studied and taught medicine at Harvard University and eventually became the initial professor of philosophy there. He is most well-known for writing the first real textbook in psychology, Principles of Psychology. Finally, James settled down as a professor of philosophy at Harvard.
Indeed, he is even more well-known for his “invention” of the first real American school of philosophy called “Pragmatism”, and for his highly influential book by that name. James drew on the work of one C.S. Peirce and inspired the great American philosopher and educational theorist, John Dewy. James was an outspoken and robust thinker who loved to hike in the mountains of new England. He travelled all over the world spreading his particular American way of doing philosophy.
The heart of James’ philosophical approach was to focus on the meaning of the Greek term “pragma”, which means “things accomplished.” In his view the real significance of any thought is to be found in what it actually leads to in action. If one wants to understand what an idea means one must look to the actions to which it leads. James likened knowledge to a long hallway off of which there are numerous rooms, various fields of study. The hallway itself, however, is simply the search for what difference any given idea makes in any of these fields. Pragmatism insists that the meaning and truth of any idea lies in the difference it makes in life.
If, for instance, one wants to know the meaning of the term ‘hot’, or whether a given item is itself hot, the only way to really find out is to put it to the test of practical experience, namely measure or touch it. If two ideas, for instance, turn out to have the same practical results, then they mean the same thing. If one wants to understand an idea or theory one must put it to the test by experiencing it. If one wants to know if this key is the key to a given door, then one must try it and find out. If it opens the door, if it “works”, then for all practical purposes it is the key, it is “true”, and if not, it is not the key, it is “false.”
James became keenly interested in testing his theory on what we call psychic phenomena, especially those that pertain to the possibility of life after death and religious experience. He helped found and fund organizations which explored such phenomena and did so himself in limited ways. Although ralph Waldo Emerson can lay some claim to being the first American philosopher, it may be more truthfully said that William James was indeed America’s first real philosopher. Indeed, “Pragmatism” is generally thought to be America’s first, and perhaps, its only genuine original contribution to the field of philosophy. Thus, William James would seem to be its first genuine philosopher.

This book appears to have been written around 100 CE, most likely not by the Apostle John on Patmos (island just off Turkey). It is “apocalyptic” (unveiling), written during a time of great persecutions of Christians. The main message is simply that Jesus will conquer all evil (especially the Roman Empire). It continues the Hebrew apocalyptic tradition (cf. Daniel) Full of prophecies and symbolism about the future and would-be rulers. The characteristics of apocalyptic literature are: whole universe as cosmic dualism, good vs. evil, God is King, nonbelievers evil and will be eliminated. God violently punishes non-believers. Preoccupation with “end times”(eschatology), full of cosmic symbolism and code words (NOT LITERAL)
The Roman Emperor cult focused in Domitian time when he exempted Jews from persecution but persecuted Christians. He thought sacramental “eating body” and “drinking blood” were evil. Thousands of Christians were slaughtered by Emperor Trajan and his buddy Pliny. The more that were punished, the more Christians there were. The word “fish” became key symbol since it was spelled IXTHUS an acrostic for: “Jesus/Christ/God’s Son/Savior”. A fish could be drawn with two intersecting arches, one above the other, first one then the other if the first was recognized. If a stranger did not “see” the key meaning then nothing was lost, no danger, but if it was recognized a friend was made.
After the brief Prologue in Chapter 1 there are Letters to the key Seven Churches around the Empire in what is now Turkey (chaps. 2 and 3). Then 7 scrolls and seven trumpets announcing various coming events (cf. Ingmar Bergman’s film “The Seventh Seal”). Then huge symbolic signs will appear in the heavens: a woman, a dragon, a Lamb, and the Great Whore (Rome), a new Heaven and Earth and a new Jerusalem. The writer concludes by affirming the authenticity of this prophecy. The Lamb opens the Seals of the Scrolls for each individual Church. There will be 144,000 saved from the final Holocaust (12×12 tribes of Israel), a 1,000 year “interim” and resurrection then the of the dead and the punishment of the evil ones, and the final Wedding of the Lamb (the Church?)
There is a long tradition of apocalyptic literature (Jewish Old Testament, the Essenes of the Qumran Dead Sea community) and later Christians. In modern times there have been and remain many apocalyptic groups: All those groups that look forward to a “rapture” of believers into the heavens”: eg. Branch Davidians of Waco TX., the group that expected Jesus to meet them in the sky with a rocket ship, and many others. Standard fundamentalists talk of a period of 7 years interrupted by a violent tribulation, followed by another period of 7 years before the final Heavenly Kingdom will be ushered in. They disagree about just how many years will be involved in each stage and just who will be “raptured” when.
The main take-away here should be that this book was originally written for First Century Christians to give them hope in the midst of the persecutions by the Romans. It was not intended as a script for the ”end times.” It’s style is borrowed from the Old testament apocalyptic prophets like Ezekiel and Daniel. Several of the initial efforts to form the “canon” of the official New Testament actually left Revelation out because it was thought to have little or no real spiritual value for either doctrine or church development. It was eventually included in most editions but in my view it has little relevance for modern Christian belief.