Seven Epistles

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Seven Epistles to the early Christian seven churches of Asia Minor, located in the then Roman province of Asia on the territory of present-day Turkey, are, according to the account of the Apocalypse of John, dictated to the Evangelist John by the Christ to encourage and admonish them. According to Rudolf Steiner, the seven churches represent the seven cultural epochs of the post-Atlantean period.

The seven Christian communities at a glance

Seven Epistles (Turkey)
Seven Epistles (Turkey)
Ephesos
Ephesos
Ephesos
Smyrna
Smyrna
Smyrna
Pergamon
Pergamon
Pergamon
Thyatira
Thyatira
Thyatira
Sardes
Sardes
Sardes
Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Laodicea
Laodicea
Laodicea
Patmos
Patmos
Patmos
The seven Christian communities in Asia Minor

During the seven great cultural epochs of the post-Atlantean period, humanity continues to form its non-physical members. This development follows the great cosmic rhythms of the Platonic World Year. Each cultural epoch lasts about as long as it takes the sun to advance 1/12 of the zodiac, i.e. exactly one sign of the zodiac, in the course of this world year. Four cultural epochs are already behind us. At present we are in the first third of the fifth cultural epoch and two more will follow. A total of seven cultural epochs will thus follow one another before a completely new development cycle begins after a major break (the "war of all against all" in the sense of John's Apocalypse).

Communites Cultural epochs Members
Ephesus Ancient Indian culture (5067 - 2907 v. Chr.) etheric body
Smyrna Ancient Persian culture (5067 - 2907 v. Chr.) astral body
Pergamon Egyptian-Chaldean culture (2907 - 747 v. Chr.) sentient soul
Thyatira Greco-Latin culture (747 v.Chr. - 1413 n. Chr.) intellectual or mind soul
Sardes Anglo-German culture (1413 - 3573 n. Chr.) consciousness soul
Philadelphia Slavic culture (3573 - 5733 n. Chr.) spirit self
Laodicea American culture (5733 - 7893 n. Chr.) life spirit

„What develops from period to period in post-Atlantean culture, the apocalyptic imagines as expressing itself in smaller communities, and so these smaller communities, which are distributed in space on the outer earth, become for him representatives of these cultural epochs. When he speaks of the congregation or church at Ephesus, he means: I suppose that at Ephesus there lived such a community, which in a certain respect may well have adopted Christianity. But because everything develops gradually, there is always something left over from each cultural epoch. In Ephesus we have a school for initiates, but we have coloured the Christian teaching in such a way that one can still recognise the old Indian culture everywhere. - He wants to show us the first epoch in the post-Atlantean period. This first epoch in the post-Atlantean period is thus represented in the Ephesian congregation, and what is to be proclaimed is to be proclaimed in a letter to the congregation of Ephesus. We must think of it something like this: The character of that distant Indian cultural epoch remained natural, it continued in various cultural currents. In the church of Ephesus we still have something of this character. Christianity was grasped by this congregation in such a way that it was still determined by the typical character of ancient Indian culture.

So in each of these letters we have addressed a representative of one of the seven post-Atlantean cultural epochs. In each letter we say: You are like this and like that! This and that side of your being corresponds to what is in the spirit of Christianity, the other must become different. - Thus the apocalyptic says to each cultural epoch what can be retained and what is no longer true and must become different.“ (Lit.:GA 104, p. 77f)

Literature
References to the work of Rudolf Steiner follow Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works (CW or GA), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach/Switzerland, unless otherwise stated.
Email: verlag@steinerverlag.com URL: www.steinerverlag.com.
Index to the Complete Works of Rudolf Steiner - Aelzina Books
A complete list by Volume Number and a full list of known English translations you may also find at Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works
Rudolf Steiner Archive - The largest online collection of Rudolf Steiner's books, lectures and articles in English.
Rudolf Steiner Audio - Recorded and Read by Dale Brunsvold
steinerbooks.org - Anthroposophic Press Inc. (USA)
Rudolf Steiner Handbook - Christian Karl's proven standard work for orientation in Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works for free download as PDF.
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