Thursday, August 23, 2012
A change in schedule and intensity.
I know not many people read my blog, but this post is more a written reminder to myself that I still want to continue this project, but I cannot do it at the pace I've been doing so going into the school year. I am a university student, and I will be taking 15 credit hours in the coming semester. Realistically, I'll have to find time during the week to read the bible, and so I will be slowing down my pace to 1 book a week. I still ardently desire to finish the book, but mandating myself to 1 book a Day is very taxing, especially with the looming school year upon me. I thank everyone who has supported me in my efforts. I will not be stopping my read, but I will slow it significantly to deal with life.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Samuel Books 1 and 2.
I did not skip a day of reading the bible. As you can see by the title of this post, Samuel was divided into 2 books. I decided then that I should read both and then put my thoughts on it since it seemed like they were two parts of the same book. In a sense they were and in a sense they were not.
The titular character, Samuel, was only alive for the first, but the second continued the story that he had started. I shall give my thoughts on each book individually and then give my thoughts on the book as a whole.
Samuel 1: The people of Israel are just a bunch of morons. One could say this about Humanity in general, and they would be correct; however, I focus specifically on the Israelites for one reason: they act like God does not have any control over them until they need his help. The crazy has continued on from Judges. They even make the excuse that they need a king to rule over them, but when God gives them a King, namely Saul, they trample all over God's authority and bend Saul to their will. This is the second time God has regretted doing something.
I know I have angered people with the idea that God is learning since he supposedly knows everything that has, is, and will be all at once. I would love them to explain to me, that if God knew that Saul was going to be a disappointment, why would he feel regret? I mean he knew it was going to happen, just like the flood. So how does an all knowing being even make a mistake, let alone feel regret over it?
My answer is in two parts First, he is all knowing in the sense that he can look into what different path's bring, Such as he knows how once choice will be different from another, but to claim that there is a set path that everyone would follow would deny the idea of free will. Free will has been evident in the bible because people have had the choice to be morons, and God every so often has to test people. If the outcome was already known, why even bother with the test?
The second part to my answer is what I've asserted before, God is learning about humanity and how best to deal with them. There are no cataclysmic events in this book. God acted with subtle specific control of people in this book, like sending and evil spirit to only deal with Saul, and actually in a way he made Saul kill himself so that the new king, David would not have the blood of an anointed King of God on his hands.
Samuel 2: Samuel 2 was a good read. It was about David, and David was a fascinating person. He was truly a holy man, but he was a man. I mean he's the most human human in the bible thus far, but this could because he was flushed out properly in the 2 books.
Most people only really know about David through Goliath, that's how I knew him. I did not know the true amount of well, goodness that was in this man. David was just, David was kind, He would straight up end you if you were an enemy of God, but the most part he would not end you unjustly. I did say for the most part.
David was very much a man who enjoyed sex. He had plenty of it counting all the concubines and wives he had. It's actually one of his more human traits. One of his few sins was that he slept with a man's wife, and then sent her husband to die. God did not like that one bit, and god took their son that came from that affair.
I know I have not justified my previous compliments of him with that story so I shall make up for it now. Saul tried to kill David. Several times. Saul was very jealous of David, especially since Saul knew that god was on David's side. Saul did horrible things to try and kill David. David would not lay a single hand on him. David tried everything he could to make peace with Saul. David till the end respected that Saul was God's anointed and even mourned for his death. David was a man undying in his faith and for that I have to give him my respect.
So both books were just fun. It was nice reaching a well known biblical landmark. It's also good that we have God being less fire and brimstone, and more person specific punishments. I will not post tomorrow for the same thing has occurred with Kings. it is again split into two books and I'll be reading both before I post my thoughts.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Ruth.
Thus far, this is the shortest book of the Bible that I have come across. There are only four chapters. There is not much to say; however, there are two things of worth in this book.
The first thing is that it is a pleasant break from Judges. It is about good people coming out of their tragedy and finding redemption. Ruth is a wonderful young lady who is a prime example of someone who has an incredible amount of faith. I have avoided giving summaries up to this point, so I will not start now. In place of a summary, I give the suggestion to go read it. It was three pages in the bible so it is very manageable.
The second and more important thing of worth is that this is the start of Jesus's genealogy. I have to interject a bit of outside knowledge here. One of most important little facts about Jesus was that he was descended from the house of David. David you might recall was the slayer of Goliath. David also one day became the king of the Jews. So it is a very big deal that Jesus descended from the house of David. Ruth was the grandmother of David. It is interesting that the line of Hebrew royalty began with a WOMAN who was strong in her faith.
I have to say something to all who might be wondering how I knew some of the above information before I even reached the New Testament: Please allow me to remind you that I am a practicing Catholic who does listen in church.
On that line I am reminded how Catholic my entire family is. The next book is the First Book of Samuel, and of course I have a relative who shares that name.
The first thing is that it is a pleasant break from Judges. It is about good people coming out of their tragedy and finding redemption. Ruth is a wonderful young lady who is a prime example of someone who has an incredible amount of faith. I have avoided giving summaries up to this point, so I will not start now. In place of a summary, I give the suggestion to go read it. It was three pages in the bible so it is very manageable.
The second and more important thing of worth is that this is the start of Jesus's genealogy. I have to interject a bit of outside knowledge here. One of most important little facts about Jesus was that he was descended from the house of David. David you might recall was the slayer of Goliath. David also one day became the king of the Jews. So it is a very big deal that Jesus descended from the house of David. Ruth was the grandmother of David. It is interesting that the line of Hebrew royalty began with a WOMAN who was strong in her faith.
I have to say something to all who might be wondering how I knew some of the above information before I even reached the New Testament: Please allow me to remind you that I am a practicing Catholic who does listen in church.
On that line I am reminded how Catholic my entire family is. The next book is the First Book of Samuel, and of course I have a relative who shares that name.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Judges.
Judges for me is the first time I've come up with a case of writer's block for a book of the Bible. It's not that it's a bad book, It's just that it is very hard to write about it without coming across as a condescending prick. I know as a man of my faith I should not be afraid of going out and speaking on it, but I still want to be respectful to people who do not share my views. I do not want to become another example of a religious extremist that is so blinded by his faith that I ignore the goodness of people who may differ in beliefs. Jesus was crucified on the cross to save everyone, and I extend that to all people who are well in truly good at heart. That is the belief that I have been raised to follow.
Judges is really about the stupidity of humanity. There is no beating around the bush on that statement. Even one of the Bible's legendary heroes, Samson, was just an idiot in this book. I'll go into greater detail, but the long and short of it is that without some sort of leader to lead them, the people of Israel just straight up ignored all the rules and agreements they made to God. I mean it is not like this is the being that could straight up wreck people if he wanted, oh wait yes he is.
After the death of Joshua, God began appointing Judges to act as his steward in dealing with the people of Israel, thus the name of the book. The more logical of you might think this to be normal, after all there has to be line of succession in leadership, otherwise things will fall into chaos. Aristocracies has family lines, and democracy has it's elections. This is not the case in Judges. Judges were not appointed to take over the lead of Joshua as you would normally expect, instead they were appointed each time Israel began falling out of line.
It is very apparent that God had intended to let Israel be after Joshua. He already given all of his rules through Moses, and he had secured a foothold for them in the promised land with Joshua. I mean what else did God have to do? It's not like the Israelites would be foolish enough to start breaking the covenant with the being that delivered them from slavery and performed great miracles for them. Did I mention that this book was about Humanity's stupidity?
So we have the cycle of Isrealites forget God, God reigns hot vengeance on them, they pray and remember God, God feels sorry and sends them a Judge to lead them, Judge dies for some reason (normally old age but there is an exception), Israelites forget God. I do concede that the people that forget God are probably younger generations that did not first hand witness the glories of God, to which I have to say: YOU DARN BRATS. (I try to leave cussing out of these posts due to the nature of the content it is covering.)
I have to say though, even the Judges were not exempt from the plague of stupid that has occurred in the book. The most famous of the Judges, Samson, was by no doubt a man whose brain bowed to his loins. I mean what other reason did he let Delilah live after she tried to kill him twice? It's not very common knowledge, but Delilah was a skilled prostitute. So obviously, she had worth to the man she tried to murder twice, and for some reason she finally got his secret. The worst part of it all, was that God specifically created Samson. Yup, Samson was directly made by God. It is so good to see he turned out to be a wise ruler of his people.
I apologize for all the Sarcasm I have here, but as I said, this is a hard book to write about without sounding condescending. The big point of all this though is to point out all the problems God had in dealing with a singular group of people. I mean we have the great, wise ruler of all the cosmos trying his hardest to do everything right for his chosen people, and all they do is the normal human crap of ignoring him till they need him. That's what Judges is all about, sharing the frustrations God had dealing with the Israelites.
In all the books up to now, we have seen God experiencing an ever growing range of emotions, joy over his creation, lots of anger over various things, regret over the flood, and now frustration. I've wondered before, why doesn't God just wipe us all out? Why does he make such efforts for beings that just end up betraying him. It's not over any sense of duty due to the Israelites and all the other people constantly breaking covenants. Now as I read further, I can think of only one thing that could possibly be the answer, Love. God well and truly loves the world and his creation.
Obviously he hasn't been the best at expressing it yet. But if we take all of his actions in the context of a new love, it all begins to make sense. The garden of Eden would be akin to starting a new relationship. Everything is paradise up until you start truly learning about one another. Then the fights begin, some of them may turn violent as we learn to deal with these new emotions. and sometimes you ignore each other until you realize you need them again. It sure explains why god does not just wipe our minds into robots that just follow his every whim.
I believe that is what God has been learning through the books I have been reading. God is learning how to best love humanity. I know my words sound preachy and stereotypical of any religious person in these modern times, but upon thoroughly reading the bible, that is what makes sense to me. I am 1/5th of the way through the bible. I am looking forward to reading the rest. The next book is special to me. My Grandma name is Ruth, and that is my next book to read.
Judges is really about the stupidity of humanity. There is no beating around the bush on that statement. Even one of the Bible's legendary heroes, Samson, was just an idiot in this book. I'll go into greater detail, but the long and short of it is that without some sort of leader to lead them, the people of Israel just straight up ignored all the rules and agreements they made to God. I mean it is not like this is the being that could straight up wreck people if he wanted, oh wait yes he is.
After the death of Joshua, God began appointing Judges to act as his steward in dealing with the people of Israel, thus the name of the book. The more logical of you might think this to be normal, after all there has to be line of succession in leadership, otherwise things will fall into chaos. Aristocracies has family lines, and democracy has it's elections. This is not the case in Judges. Judges were not appointed to take over the lead of Joshua as you would normally expect, instead they were appointed each time Israel began falling out of line.
It is very apparent that God had intended to let Israel be after Joshua. He already given all of his rules through Moses, and he had secured a foothold for them in the promised land with Joshua. I mean what else did God have to do? It's not like the Israelites would be foolish enough to start breaking the covenant with the being that delivered them from slavery and performed great miracles for them. Did I mention that this book was about Humanity's stupidity?
So we have the cycle of Isrealites forget God, God reigns hot vengeance on them, they pray and remember God, God feels sorry and sends them a Judge to lead them, Judge dies for some reason (normally old age but there is an exception), Israelites forget God. I do concede that the people that forget God are probably younger generations that did not first hand witness the glories of God, to which I have to say: YOU DARN BRATS. (I try to leave cussing out of these posts due to the nature of the content it is covering.)
I have to say though, even the Judges were not exempt from the plague of stupid that has occurred in the book. The most famous of the Judges, Samson, was by no doubt a man whose brain bowed to his loins. I mean what other reason did he let Delilah live after she tried to kill him twice? It's not very common knowledge, but Delilah was a skilled prostitute. So obviously, she had worth to the man she tried to murder twice, and for some reason she finally got his secret. The worst part of it all, was that God specifically created Samson. Yup, Samson was directly made by God. It is so good to see he turned out to be a wise ruler of his people.
I apologize for all the Sarcasm I have here, but as I said, this is a hard book to write about without sounding condescending. The big point of all this though is to point out all the problems God had in dealing with a singular group of people. I mean we have the great, wise ruler of all the cosmos trying his hardest to do everything right for his chosen people, and all they do is the normal human crap of ignoring him till they need him. That's what Judges is all about, sharing the frustrations God had dealing with the Israelites.
In all the books up to now, we have seen God experiencing an ever growing range of emotions, joy over his creation, lots of anger over various things, regret over the flood, and now frustration. I've wondered before, why doesn't God just wipe us all out? Why does he make such efforts for beings that just end up betraying him. It's not over any sense of duty due to the Israelites and all the other people constantly breaking covenants. Now as I read further, I can think of only one thing that could possibly be the answer, Love. God well and truly loves the world and his creation.
Obviously he hasn't been the best at expressing it yet. But if we take all of his actions in the context of a new love, it all begins to make sense. The garden of Eden would be akin to starting a new relationship. Everything is paradise up until you start truly learning about one another. Then the fights begin, some of them may turn violent as we learn to deal with these new emotions. and sometimes you ignore each other until you realize you need them again. It sure explains why god does not just wipe our minds into robots that just follow his every whim.
I believe that is what God has been learning through the books I have been reading. God is learning how to best love humanity. I know my words sound preachy and stereotypical of any religious person in these modern times, but upon thoroughly reading the bible, that is what makes sense to me. I am 1/5th of the way through the bible. I am looking forward to reading the rest. The next book is special to me. My Grandma name is Ruth, and that is my next book to read.
Friday, August 17, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Joshua.
I totally called it. This book in the way it is presented is very different from the books of Moses. I will say that the spiritual tales of God's wonders has not diminished, but the repetitive chapters have.
I made comment in Exodus about God's design of the Tabernacle. I failed to mention that Moses wrote out them following the instructions. I'm not going to bother writing all of it here, but it went something like this. "God said that there should be curtains, We made the curtains. God said the table should be made from this kind of wood and should be this tall, this long, and this wide. We made the table from this kind of wood, and we made it be this tall, this long and this wide." Every instruction was repeated as it was carried out in Moses's books. There is much less of that in Joshua, and honestly it makes the Bible a bit easier on the eyes and mind.
I do want to make note that God seems to be getting a better grasp of his "powers." In the books of Moses, whenever God first exercised his powers, something grand and Earth shattering/creating occurred. I mean, flooding the entire earth, the complete destruction of a city, large plagues and pestilences on Egypt. The first two real quiet acts of God that I can remember are the burning bush, and the turning of rod into a Snake. In Joshua, God became more subtle with his techniques.
The biggest thing he did here was making the wall of Jericho fall, but the rest of the destruction of the city came from the Israelites. Another thing he did was when he removed his "battle blessing" because someone had taken some silver and gold idols of Jericho. There was also the rain of stones from the Heavens, but it was more focused on a retreating army than it was on an entire area.
I know what some naysayers will say about how , Oh god only targeted the Egyptians with plagues,
The Israelites were easily spared, so God could control his powers already. My counter to that is that the land of Egypt was a large place, so it was still a massive scale endeavor. I also point to the last plague. The plague of the first borns. The angel of death indiscriminately killed the first born of each house, unless the house was marked with blood. So it stands to reason that any Israelite that had missed the warning also had their first born killed. Here the Israelites had to protect themselves against the wrath of god, whose wrath was not even targeted at them.
The events in Joshua are more precise, and less massive in scale, but no less wonders of our Lord God. I shall let everyone who reads my works, be the Judge of it. I however need to to on to Judges.
I made comment in Exodus about God's design of the Tabernacle. I failed to mention that Moses wrote out them following the instructions. I'm not going to bother writing all of it here, but it went something like this. "God said that there should be curtains, We made the curtains. God said the table should be made from this kind of wood and should be this tall, this long, and this wide. We made the table from this kind of wood, and we made it be this tall, this long and this wide." Every instruction was repeated as it was carried out in Moses's books. There is much less of that in Joshua, and honestly it makes the Bible a bit easier on the eyes and mind.
I do want to make note that God seems to be getting a better grasp of his "powers." In the books of Moses, whenever God first exercised his powers, something grand and Earth shattering/creating occurred. I mean, flooding the entire earth, the complete destruction of a city, large plagues and pestilences on Egypt. The first two real quiet acts of God that I can remember are the burning bush, and the turning of rod into a Snake. In Joshua, God became more subtle with his techniques.
The biggest thing he did here was making the wall of Jericho fall, but the rest of the destruction of the city came from the Israelites. Another thing he did was when he removed his "battle blessing" because someone had taken some silver and gold idols of Jericho. There was also the rain of stones from the Heavens, but it was more focused on a retreating army than it was on an entire area.
I know what some naysayers will say about how , Oh god only targeted the Egyptians with plagues,
The Israelites were easily spared, so God could control his powers already. My counter to that is that the land of Egypt was a large place, so it was still a massive scale endeavor. I also point to the last plague. The plague of the first borns. The angel of death indiscriminately killed the first born of each house, unless the house was marked with blood. So it stands to reason that any Israelite that had missed the warning also had their first born killed. Here the Israelites had to protect themselves against the wrath of god, whose wrath was not even targeted at them.
The events in Joshua are more precise, and less massive in scale, but no less wonders of our Lord God. I shall let everyone who reads my works, be the Judge of it. I however need to to on to Judges.
Thursday, August 16, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Deuteronomy.
So at last I finished reading the Moses Books. I know the bible has plenty more books for me to read, but this does mark a special occasion. It feels like the books are going to be different from now on. Comic book fans know the feeling. You have a wonderful series; but as soon as the author changes, small little things start to change. That's the feeling I get for the coming books, but I will have to wait and see what more the Bible has in store for me.
Deuteronomy starts of with a romanticized summary of all the events that occurred from Egypt. I mean hopefully some of the original people who came from Egypt survived the 40 years of wandering, the wars, the various plagues brought by sin, and some other questionable deaths. I mean not even Aaron survived till Deuteronomy. So there is a good chance that old man Moses was summarizing to the kids and grand kids of the original Israelites.
Deuteronomy also gives the last set of Moses's rules from God. I won't list them all, but I will list a few of my favorites. 1. Cross dressing is an abomination, and people that do it must be put to death. 2. A man who has his testicles crushed/cut off may no longer join the assembly and worship god. 3. If a woman is raped in the city, she and the rapist will be put to death, but if she was raped in the open country, she will not be killed. 4. A man get's a year off from war or work after he is married to his wife.
I like number 1 simply because of something I mentioned back in Leviticus, lesbians are still not mentioned. Cross dressers must die; gay men must die, people who have sex with animals must die; Lesbians are fine and dandy in the eyes of God. I looked over all 5 books of Moses, no mention of lesbians, at all.
Number 2 amuses me because it just seems so bizarre that God would punish a man for an injury he sustained. Now I know if it was self inflicted, that's a different story. However, if a man jumps on his donkey the wrong way, he's no longer favorable in the eyes of God.
Number 3 just baffles me. I mean it bases innocence based on location not circumstance. The basis is on the woman cries for help, in the city she can, in the country there is no one to hear her. There is some truth to the matter, unless of course the rapist does the smart thing and gags the woman before he rapes her. Mind you in both scenarios the male still dies, but depending on where she was at the time she was raped, the woman may be killed as well. I think God is still slightly miffed at Eve. Just saying.
Number 4 just appeals to the guy in me. I mean US citizens draft dodge with college, imagine draft dodging with getting married.
Now I want to make comment with growth of God here. It's very clear that God has made some very obvious psychological choices for his people. He has been opperant conditioning to get them to do what he wants, and has a rewards if they do and punishments if they don't. The punishments themselves are no longer just death or exile, but pry on the fears that men have. My favorite of the bunch is in Chapter 23 line 30. In modern translation means, If you do not follow my commandments, Your finance will have sex with another man.
This is also the book the God finally no longer takes direct control, as he did through Moses. He finally has faith in his children to take care of themselves. He appoints Joshua to take the lead, but in the last chapter, it admits that no man with direct contact with God has been seen since Moses. It feels like a parent sending their children off into the world. They are not completely ready, but ready enough to make decisions for themselves. I am now curious as to what the children of Israel will do with their new found freedom. Maybe Joshua can fill me in on what they did .
Deuteronomy starts of with a romanticized summary of all the events that occurred from Egypt. I mean hopefully some of the original people who came from Egypt survived the 40 years of wandering, the wars, the various plagues brought by sin, and some other questionable deaths. I mean not even Aaron survived till Deuteronomy. So there is a good chance that old man Moses was summarizing to the kids and grand kids of the original Israelites.
Deuteronomy also gives the last set of Moses's rules from God. I won't list them all, but I will list a few of my favorites. 1. Cross dressing is an abomination, and people that do it must be put to death. 2. A man who has his testicles crushed/cut off may no longer join the assembly and worship god. 3. If a woman is raped in the city, she and the rapist will be put to death, but if she was raped in the open country, she will not be killed. 4. A man get's a year off from war or work after he is married to his wife.
I like number 1 simply because of something I mentioned back in Leviticus, lesbians are still not mentioned. Cross dressers must die; gay men must die, people who have sex with animals must die; Lesbians are fine and dandy in the eyes of God. I looked over all 5 books of Moses, no mention of lesbians, at all.
Number 2 amuses me because it just seems so bizarre that God would punish a man for an injury he sustained. Now I know if it was self inflicted, that's a different story. However, if a man jumps on his donkey the wrong way, he's no longer favorable in the eyes of God.
Number 3 just baffles me. I mean it bases innocence based on location not circumstance. The basis is on the woman cries for help, in the city she can, in the country there is no one to hear her. There is some truth to the matter, unless of course the rapist does the smart thing and gags the woman before he rapes her. Mind you in both scenarios the male still dies, but depending on where she was at the time she was raped, the woman may be killed as well. I think God is still slightly miffed at Eve. Just saying.
Number 4 just appeals to the guy in me. I mean US citizens draft dodge with college, imagine draft dodging with getting married.
Now I want to make comment with growth of God here. It's very clear that God has made some very obvious psychological choices for his people. He has been opperant conditioning to get them to do what he wants, and has a rewards if they do and punishments if they don't. The punishments themselves are no longer just death or exile, but pry on the fears that men have. My favorite of the bunch is in Chapter 23 line 30. In modern translation means, If you do not follow my commandments, Your finance will have sex with another man.
This is also the book the God finally no longer takes direct control, as he did through Moses. He finally has faith in his children to take care of themselves. He appoints Joshua to take the lead, but in the last chapter, it admits that no man with direct contact with God has been seen since Moses. It feels like a parent sending their children off into the world. They are not completely ready, but ready enough to make decisions for themselves. I am now curious as to what the children of Israel will do with their new found freedom. Maybe Joshua can fill me in on what they did .
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
The Casual Catholic's View on Numbers.
I had no expectations that the Bible was going to be sunshine and lollipops when I started this little venture, and I was already grossed out by Exodus. I was not however, ready for Numbers.
Numbers of course is a proper nickname for the fourth book of Moses. It's the book where the people of Israel were counted. So plenty of census taking and lots of numbers concerning various tribes and animals. What got to me was not the mundane reading of all of god's accounting of his chosen people, but some oddly specific killings.
Now I am already aware of all the death's God has on his hands up to this point, and of course I am aware of all the crimes that the lord God has punishable by death, which means people were put to death. I'm not so concerned about those because, technically they were against God and well, God wasn't the super loving God who gave his only son to us yet. However two deaths specifically caught my eye and seriously raised some questions for me.
The first is the death of Korrah. Korrah was the first man to oppose Moses. The reason Korrah's death bothers me is because I am like him in a way. He's the guy who asked, why the heck is God only giving orders to Moses and Aaron, are we not all his chosen people? He's the first one to really challenge Moses authority on God. And how did God prove to Korrah Moses was the lead boss? He killed Korrah and his family by opening up the earth and burying them alive. God didn't mess around in those days, I'll give him that much, but the second specific death raises alarms even to a religious man such as myself.
God has Aaron executed. Aaron was the original head priest; Aaron was the spokesperson for Moses in Egypt; Aaron was Moses's number two; Aaron was Moses's brother in-law, and he was killed. The circumstances around his death are even more alarming. Aaron was killed because the people of Israel complained for water again. It should be common sense that people need water to survive, however God got really annoyed to the point it of "Oh come on, I did all this crap for you already, you should all just worship without question, fine have water." Aaron was executed because he didn't stop the people from complaining about water. I won't type it all here but it is Numbers Chapter 20 lines 23-29. Aaron did not question God; Aaron was not to blame for the lack of water; Aaron was not even the true spiritual leader on whom something like a rebellion would fall upon. He was killed because God was angry at people. I have to ask: or was he? I guess he was another example like Korrah, since people really loved him. It is just so convenient that the people who opposed Moses are dead, and his biggest threat to power is now dead. I am a man of God, I have faith in the bible, but that does not mean I will skip something this blatantly suspicious.
I do however think that this all ties in to the over arching theme of God's growth. Here we have God so very focused on one group of people, in so that his choices are all in an attempt to make his "children" grow up and fend for themselves. He's very parental with many of his decisions. He finally takes account of everyone. His punishments or rewards are very "did you do what I want" specific. We even have God starting to get fed up with his children's complaints and grievances just like a real first time parent would.
Numbers of course is a proper nickname for the fourth book of Moses. It's the book where the people of Israel were counted. So plenty of census taking and lots of numbers concerning various tribes and animals. What got to me was not the mundane reading of all of god's accounting of his chosen people, but some oddly specific killings.
Now I am already aware of all the death's God has on his hands up to this point, and of course I am aware of all the crimes that the lord God has punishable by death, which means people were put to death. I'm not so concerned about those because, technically they were against God and well, God wasn't the super loving God who gave his only son to us yet. However two deaths specifically caught my eye and seriously raised some questions for me.
The first is the death of Korrah. Korrah was the first man to oppose Moses. The reason Korrah's death bothers me is because I am like him in a way. He's the guy who asked, why the heck is God only giving orders to Moses and Aaron, are we not all his chosen people? He's the first one to really challenge Moses authority on God. And how did God prove to Korrah Moses was the lead boss? He killed Korrah and his family by opening up the earth and burying them alive. God didn't mess around in those days, I'll give him that much, but the second specific death raises alarms even to a religious man such as myself.
God has Aaron executed. Aaron was the original head priest; Aaron was the spokesperson for Moses in Egypt; Aaron was Moses's number two; Aaron was Moses's brother in-law, and he was killed. The circumstances around his death are even more alarming. Aaron was killed because the people of Israel complained for water again. It should be common sense that people need water to survive, however God got really annoyed to the point it of "Oh come on, I did all this crap for you already, you should all just worship without question, fine have water." Aaron was executed because he didn't stop the people from complaining about water. I won't type it all here but it is Numbers Chapter 20 lines 23-29. Aaron did not question God; Aaron was not to blame for the lack of water; Aaron was not even the true spiritual leader on whom something like a rebellion would fall upon. He was killed because God was angry at people. I have to ask: or was he? I guess he was another example like Korrah, since people really loved him. It is just so convenient that the people who opposed Moses are dead, and his biggest threat to power is now dead. I am a man of God, I have faith in the bible, but that does not mean I will skip something this blatantly suspicious.
I do however think that this all ties in to the over arching theme of God's growth. Here we have God so very focused on one group of people, in so that his choices are all in an attempt to make his "children" grow up and fend for themselves. He's very parental with many of his decisions. He finally takes account of everyone. His punishments or rewards are very "did you do what I want" specific. We even have God starting to get fed up with his children's complaints and grievances just like a real first time parent would.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Leviticus
Rules, rules, and more rules should be the title of this particular book. I mean we have rules on what we can eat, rules on what we can wear, rules on what offerings need to be made to the priests, and rules on how you treat the sick. Replace the word rule with regulation and we have the US Government today, zing.
In all seriousness though it started in Exodus, but it's very apparent now, God is giving bureaucracy and Government to the people of Israel in this book. It's a very crude government with very obvious room for exploitation, a man could potentially be banished if he has a long lasting zit, but still for a crude initial government for a wandering people, it does lessen the incidence of people going: OH GOD I HAVE SINNED, WHAT SHOULD I DO? He told them what to do, or what his ruling were on certain situations. I mean we even have difference of punishment. If you eject semen, take a bath and you are unclean. If you have sex with your father's wife, you shall be put to death. Some of things even have exile from everyone, which may be a fate worse than death in those days. This again leads into my assertion back in Exodus that God is growing. It's very obvious in Leviticus that he's learning and making judgements on all the things that have popped up before.
The last thing I want to do with this is make a very special comment on the obvious elephant in the room with this book. This is the book that called gays an abomination. That is slightly misleading. Yes a man having sex with a man is an abomination; yes a man having sex with an animal is an abomination; yes a woman having sex with an animal is an abomination; however, I found no text saying that a woman having sex with another woman is an abomination. So unless I missed something, Lesbians are not an abomination in this book, and are not even mentioned. Take that as you will.
In all seriousness though it started in Exodus, but it's very apparent now, God is giving bureaucracy and Government to the people of Israel in this book. It's a very crude government with very obvious room for exploitation, a man could potentially be banished if he has a long lasting zit, but still for a crude initial government for a wandering people, it does lessen the incidence of people going: OH GOD I HAVE SINNED, WHAT SHOULD I DO? He told them what to do, or what his ruling were on certain situations. I mean we even have difference of punishment. If you eject semen, take a bath and you are unclean. If you have sex with your father's wife, you shall be put to death. Some of things even have exile from everyone, which may be a fate worse than death in those days. This again leads into my assertion back in Exodus that God is growing. It's very obvious in Leviticus that he's learning and making judgements on all the things that have popped up before.
The last thing I want to do with this is make a very special comment on the obvious elephant in the room with this book. This is the book that called gays an abomination. That is slightly misleading. Yes a man having sex with a man is an abomination; yes a man having sex with an animal is an abomination; yes a woman having sex with an animal is an abomination; however, I found no text saying that a woman having sex with another woman is an abomination. So unless I missed something, Lesbians are not an abomination in this book, and are not even mentioned. Take that as you will.
Monday, August 13, 2012
The Casual Catholic's view on Exodus
usts,
and hail the lord hardened pharaoh's heart, even though Pharaoh had
already decided to let the Israelites go. I mean it didn't have to
escalate to the first borns if God had just let Pharaoh be and not
forcibly changed his mind.
What's next is interesting, God starts being more responsible. It's here that he starts fulfilling the covenant he had with Abraham. He feeds the people of Israel, gives them water to drink, and cures their sicknesses. It's also here that God finally puts down the rules and regulations on which to officially live by. Some of which are weirder than the others.
We have God the interior decorator in this book. I'm not even joking, a part of me wishes that I was. Chapter 26 was all about how to decorate the first tabernacle. the first line literally reads "Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet stuff; with cherubim skillfully worked shall you make them." Chapter 27 is all about how God wants his priests to dress. I have a hard time not imaging God saying "this will look FABULOUS"
The Casual Catholic Intro (edited)
Hi,
I am The Casual Catholic. Before I go on and post my thoughts on the most powerful book in the world, I'd thought I share a bit about myself: I am a practicing catholic, I go to church, I sing in the choir, and I volunteer my time as a catechist. I recently became vividly aware of how little I knew of my faith, especially considering I had not yet completely read the bible. I did the usual bit and listened to scripture during mass. This is why I call myself the Casual Catholic. I am catholic, but I'm not someone who would dedicate his life to the priesthood. My life has many facets, and not all of them revolve around the Catholic Church. And since there are certain things that a bound to come up in comments, I might as well address them now:
1. I am opposed to physician assisted non-life threatening abortion. I can't say abortion because that can happen naturally through no fault of the mother or the baby may kill the mother and in that case I say save the mother, the term is really a misnomer.
2. I will not let a single homosexual person get married inside the catholic church, but since we are in a country that has freedom of religious practices, if your church/state allows it, enjoy.
3. I'm less about the birth control and more about the actions they tend to create more of. Sex has consequences, treat it with the respect it deserves and don't go screwing everything you see because you won't get someone pregnant/ get pregnant.
So here is how I am going to tackle the world's best known book. I am going to read the American Standard Version, so some slight difference may apply from version to version if I give a verse or two. I am going to read it one book at a time in the order it is presented and post my thoughts on the book I just read. I want to approach this a layman who does not know much about the subject matter he is covering. As a Catholic, I have to work on the premise that everything in the bible is true, in the sense that everything happened as it was written. I may make a joke or two along the way, all just to add brevity to the topic at hand. I know what I will post will more than likely offend someone, so I apologize for that now. It is never my intention to offend anyone, but I will not back down on this project because someone might be offended.
With that last statement in mind, feel free to comment, for I am also trying to expand my limited perspective. I said comment, not attack. Attacks from anyone will not be tolerated very long. I can understand people's strong feeling on this subject, but attacks get us nowhere and in the end just destroy more than help.
That's all i have to say for now, I hope that you all enjoy a Casual Catholics view on the Bible
Best Wishes,
TCC
I am The Casual Catholic. Before I go on and post my thoughts on the most powerful book in the world, I'd thought I share a bit about myself: I am a practicing catholic, I go to church, I sing in the choir, and I volunteer my time as a catechist. I recently became vividly aware of how little I knew of my faith, especially considering I had not yet completely read the bible. I did the usual bit and listened to scripture during mass. This is why I call myself the Casual Catholic. I am catholic, but I'm not someone who would dedicate his life to the priesthood. My life has many facets, and not all of them revolve around the Catholic Church. And since there are certain things that a bound to come up in comments, I might as well address them now:
1. I am opposed to physician assisted non-life threatening abortion. I can't say abortion because that can happen naturally through no fault of the mother or the baby may kill the mother and in that case I say save the mother, the term is really a misnomer.
2. I will not let a single homosexual person get married inside the catholic church, but since we are in a country that has freedom of religious practices, if your church/state allows it, enjoy.
3. I'm less about the birth control and more about the actions they tend to create more of. Sex has consequences, treat it with the respect it deserves and don't go screwing everything you see because you won't get someone pregnant/ get pregnant.
So here is how I am going to tackle the world's best known book. I am going to read the American Standard Version, so some slight difference may apply from version to version if I give a verse or two. I am going to read it one book at a time in the order it is presented and post my thoughts on the book I just read. I want to approach this a layman who does not know much about the subject matter he is covering. As a Catholic, I have to work on the premise that everything in the bible is true, in the sense that everything happened as it was written. I may make a joke or two along the way, all just to add brevity to the topic at hand. I know what I will post will more than likely offend someone, so I apologize for that now. It is never my intention to offend anyone, but I will not back down on this project because someone might be offended.
With that last statement in mind, feel free to comment, for I am also trying to expand my limited perspective. I said comment, not attack. Attacks from anyone will not be tolerated very long. I can understand people's strong feeling on this subject, but attacks get us nowhere and in the end just destroy more than help.
That's all i have to say for now, I hope that you all enjoy a Casual Catholics view on the Bible
Best Wishes,
TCC
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