Prophecy and the Performance of Metaphor

In 1975 the movement known as the Catholic Charismatic Renewal held its annual conference in Rome for the first time. In this symbolically charged setting, "prophecy" was uttered by prophets from The Word of God, the largest and most highly organized of charismatic covenant communities. These Rome prophecies were deemed a direct message from God and revealed that the role of the Charismatic Renewal was to protect the church. The prominent metaphor in subsequent prophetic utterances was that of the alliance of covenant communities as a "bulwark" for the church against the apocalyptic onslaught of the forces of darkness.