God Blesses Israel
The neighborhood in which I grew up was very middle class. We had all types living there from professionals to laborers but everyone got along, at a distance, and it was “safe.” There were no drugs or serious mischief of any kind and the parents let us kids romp freely without worry. We rode bikes in the street (very little traffic), played baseball or football, depending on the season, and we even had woods and a creek nearby that gave us many opportunities to do a bit of safe exploration.
Our street was a long slow curve the ends of which attached to a moderately busy throughway but we always felt comfortably isolated from the mainstream. From our neighborhood we could see the world without being in it and yet we were very close to every possible amenity. Within two minutes “walk” we had a drive-in theatre, a children’s hospital, a church, a community hall (we had Cub Scout meetings there) and just a bit further away was an orphanage (with a dairy farm), a well developed shopping center and most of the kids could ride bikes to the local elementary school. It was a nice neighborhood situated close to everything you might need.
From the age of 8 to 16 I lived some of the most formative years of my life in this neighborhood. It was there that I developed some of the closest friendships I ever had and experienced many personal firsts: kiss, smoke, caught a fish, fight and there are a few I won’t mention. That neighborhood molded the perspective I have on life and the world. Even today, many years later, my experiences there are still the reason for many of my idiosyncrasies.
The one interesting thing about this neighborhood was the presence of several Jewish families. I recall at least six but there may have been more. Of the six, two lived on either side of us. The Rothenbergs lived on the left and the Aptakers lived on the right. We were close to these families. The kids from all three houses played together. The adults talked across the fence. My dad and Mr. Aptaker often discussed their common interest in gardening. From my youthful point of view I thought they were the only two people in the world who could enjoy gardening. I’ve since learned there are many other people with this same affliction. Read more
Who’s The Terrorist God or Pharaoh
Filed under: Abraham, Answering an Atheist, Political Issues
Answering An Atheist
Original arguments are found in the post “Top Ten Worst Bible Stories”
On the web site “Not A Potted Plant” (NAPP)
In a previous post I began responding to an atheist’s (TL) criticisms of certain Bible stories and the first one focused on Jesus’ response to the Pharisees and Herodians when they queried him about Roman taxation. TL suggested Romans were the enemy and Jesus’ response was collaboration. You can read his arguments here and my response here.
Since atheists are not believers and usually judged as indifferent by those who are, some might wonder why I bother responding. It might seem like a waste of time. But, the truth is, an atheist will often ask openly what believers only wonder about quietly. And these questions need to be explored.
It is only the fearful and insecure that react defensively and run. So, we should be thankful the criticisms are made and diligent in our efforts to think through them.
The next criticism (number 2 on his list) involves God’s handling of the Egyptians during the Exodus, particularly in the matter of the Passover. You are probably familiar with the story.
At midnight on the evening of the Passover any family who failed to comply with the ceremony (evidenced by no blood on the door post) suffered the death of their firstborn child as well as the first born of all cattle.
Cattle were included because the bull was the Egyptian symbol of deity and owning cows was a symbol of status. In response, TL accuses God of terrorism. His words…
Terrorism is good if God says it is
In developing his argument he makes several observations some of which are misaligned with the facts and others just plain miscalculated. The arguments are: Read more
Abraham Committed Adultery Got Divorced
Some people make the assumption that Abraham’s relationship with Hagar did not constitute adultery because the biblical text refers to her as his wife. The actual text reads…
“And Sara, Abraham’s wife, took Hagar her maid…and gave her to…Abraham to be his wife.” Genesis 16:3
And the presentation of Hagar to Abraham even has an official tone:
“Sara…gave Hagar to her husband Abraham to be his wife.”
Sounds like a wedding ceremony.
Sara’s suggesting the arrangement in the first place followed by her official presentation of Hagar to Abraham lead us to assume this was genuinely a marriage. Or was it? A superficial reading might imply this but a thorough consideration of the text suggests otherwise.
There are actually several things to consider: adultery, marriage and divorce. Read more
Abraham’s Adultery
Did Abraham commit adultery? Yes, sort of. He had conjugal relations with his wife’s handmaid, Hagar, and fathered his first child, Ishmael. It isn’t the worst case of adultery but adultery it was. Here are the facts:
Abraham, prompted by God, moved to Canaan from Haran when he was 75 years old. A part of the enticement to move was the promise that Abraham would become, not an average nation, but a great one, a tacit promise of children.
Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael, his first child, was born. This was anything but usual. For the previous eight generations his predecessors began having children in their early 30’s. By normal standards, Abraham’s first child was fifty plus years late.
That means Abraham’s paternal instincts were already frustrated when he left for Canaan and it was eleven years later before he had his first child, which, unfortunately, was not the child God promised. Read more
What The Bible Says About Tithing?
Abraham Paid Tithes
There are several times in Scripture when tithing was practiced but the most important of all is the first time it is mentioned. Abraham was the one who paid the tithe and he paid it to a priest by the name of Melchizedek. The incident is recorded in Genesis 14:20. There are several things which make this situation very interesting. Read more
Tim Pepper - Beautiful Frustration