A Ukrainian View of the Apocalypse

Episode Outline:
0:00 Bart introduces Ukrainian theologian Mikhail Abakumov
2:22 Mikhail’s background: Donetsk, war, depression, and finding hope in Christ
5:54 Health-and-wealth Christianity in Ukraine and why Mikhail rejected it
9:41 What the religious landscape looks like in Ukraine today
13:53 How war changed religious feeling in Ukraine after 2022
17:47 Mikhail’s studies, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and theology in wartime
25:00 Why the Book of Revelation matters in the context of war
27:12 End-times calculations in Ukraine: 2012, 2021, 2028, and the rapture
35:47 Who gets cast as the Beast, Babylon, or Antichrist in local interpretations
39:40 Why Poland’s religious situation is so different from Ukraine’s
51:22 Mikhail’s volunteer work helping Ukrainian refugees in Poland
59:12 What “love your enemies” means in the middle of war
1:01:01 Final reflections on hope, repentance, and solidarity with Ukraine

Episode Description

In this episode Bart interviews Ukrainian theologian Mikhail Abakumov, in exile in Poland and involved with humanitarian efforts dealing with other refugees, about how the book of Revelation is interpreted by conservative Ukrainian Christians, who believe that "the prophecies are now being fulfilled." That, of course, has long been the view of American evangelicals and fundamentalists, but standard Ukrainian understandings of what the "signs" are and where they are leading to (and America's role in the coming End) are radically different from what anyone would expect over here. This is fascinating material, coming from someone deeply affected by the Russian invasion and intimately familiar with the religious response of the Ukrainian church.

Also watch these episodes:
Does the Book of Revelation Predict our Future?
Does the Book of Revelation Predict our Future?

Is the Christ of Revelation Out for Blood?
Is the Christ of Revelation Out for Blood?

Is the God of Revelation the Same as the God of Jesus?
Is the God of Revelation the Same as the God of Jesus?