Anthropologist Comments on 666 Superstition

Tomorrow is, of course, 6/6/06. The number 666 is often referred to as the number of the beast (the devil).

This belief comes from a passage in the Bible from the Book of Revelation 13:18. "Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the numbers that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six."

Phillips Stevens, Jr., Ph.D., associate professor of anthropology at the University of Buffalo, says that the interpretation that the number itself is evil is incorrect. Here is part of the press release from the University of Buffalo.
And, like many superstitions, the one regarding 666 is based on incorrect data: the "beast" referred to in the chapter is not Satan, but, in fact, several other entities.

"Revelation is a complex and confusing book, and is rarely read closely by lay people. Biblical scholars have pointed out that there are several 'beasts,' in Chapter 13 and elsewhere, and they all refer variously to Rome, Roman emperors and Roman cults of god- and emperor-worship," Stevens says.

"Revelation" author, John of Patmos, traditionally believed to be St. John the Apostle, was writing to other persecuted Christians in code, according to Stevens, so "many of the strange elements in 'Revelation' signify events, people or institutions familiar to first-century Christians.

"The mark of the beast, 666, signifies those in thrall to the emperor and thus opposed to Christianity, and is most probably the numerical equivalent of the Hebrew letters for Nero," Stevens says.

"Many perceived enemies of Christianity have been labeled the Antichrist, and Nero was one of the first," Stevens says, adding that there is an ever-growing, ever-changing list of persons considered the Antichrist that features "a long string of mostly historical figures -- Saladin was on the list, as was Hitler, and Saddam Hussein. The list varies according to who compiles it. Early Reformation-era Protestants had some popes on their list."

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