Does Revelation 12:4 refer to an Apostasy of Bishops (for Orthodoxy)?

[TheLostCoin]

I am not one who has the authority nor spiritual necessity to speculate on the End Times - and I should be very, very careful when it comes to interpreting this.

However, I believe that the Book of Revelation is typological in many points - it refers to not only events that have happened in the past (the Gospel, the Pagan Roman Empire, etc.), but also events that will happen in the future. It's a living, breathing document.

During my Traditional Catholic days, when I went to some "fun" (spiritually toxic) places of End-Times prophecy (to which I obviously still have a lot of baggage to get rid of, which I accumulated in a short span of time), I was taught by some Priests and laypeople that this particular verse refers to not only the War in Heaven with Saint Michael and Satan, but typologically also refers to a mass apostasy of Bishops, because during the time of the Book of Revelation, the stars had a specific symbolism for navigation and guidance, as sailors had to use the stars to tell time and to what direction they had to go in - which parallels what the job of the Bishops is to do, to guide the laypeople to eternal salvation.

Saint Gregory the Great during his discussion even explicitly makes this connection during his discussion with Saint John the Faster about Universal Bishop controversy, who says this:

"For what are all thy brethren, the bishops of the universal Church, but stars of heaven, whose life and discourse shine together amid the sins and errors of men, as if amid the shades of night? And when thou desirest to put thyself above them by this proud title, and to tread down their name in comparison with thine, what else dost thou say but I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of heaven? Are not all the bishops together clouds, who both rain in the words of preaching, and glitter in the light of good works? And when your Fraternity despises them, and you would fain press them down under yourself, what else say you but what is said by the ancient foe, I will ascend above the heights of the clouds?"

So, when we see the verse of "the Devil swinging a third of the Stars of Heaven away," is this in reference to an Apostasy of a major part of the Church by the Bishops, much like the devils themselves?

 

[ArmyMatt]

it could be, we'll find out.

 

[mark kennedy]

I am not one who has the authority nor spiritual necessity to speculate on the End Times - and I should be very, very careful when it comes to interpreting this.

However, I believe that the Book of Revelation is typological in many points - it refers to not only events that have happened in the past (the Gospel, the Pagan Roman Empire, etc.), but also events that will happen in the future. It's a living, breathing document.

During my Traditional Catholic days, when I went to some "fun" (spiritually toxic) places of End-Times prophecy (to which I obviously still have a lot of baggage to get rid of, which I accumulated in a short span of time), I was taught by some Priests and laypeople that this particular verse refers to not only the War in Heaven with Saint Michael and Satan, but typologically also refers to a mass apostasy of Bishops, because during the time of the Book of Revelation, the stars had a specific symbolism for navigation and guidance, as sailors had to use the stars to tell time and to what direction they had to go in - which parallels what the job of the Bishops is to do, to guide the laypeople to eternal salvation.

Saint Gregory the Great during his discussion even explicitly makes this connection during his discussion with Saint John the Faster about Universal Bishop controversy, who says this:

"For what are all thy brethren, the bishops of the universal Church, but stars of heaven, whose life and discourse shine together amid the sins and errors of men, as if amid the shades of night? And when thou desirest to put thyself above them by this proud title, and to tread down their name in comparison with thine, what else dost thou say but I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of heaven? Are not all the bishops together clouds, who both rain in the words of preaching, and glitter in the light of good works? And when your Fraternity despises them, and you would fain press them down under yourself, what else say you but what is said by the ancient foe, I will ascend above the heights of the clouds?"

So, when we see the verse of "the Devil swinging a third of the Stars of Heaven away," is this in reference to an Apostasy of a major part of the Church by the Bishops, much like the devils themselves?

It's most likely the third of the angels that are cast out of the heavenly realms along with the dragon that is cast down to the earth. Making these stars into bishops is allegorizing, not a sound interpretation.

 

[ArmyMatt]

while I have more often than not heard that it is a reference to the angels who fell, it's not a bad allegory.

and allegory is historically a sound interpretation.