Indeed, Tanner, you never disappoint! Your ingenious presentation lacks nothing! All the facts associated with a countless succession of gods, goddesses, rituals, beliefs, stories immersed in utter nonsense, all flow from your analysis with truth not to be minimized, misinterpreted, or denied. And where would it all land without your input of humor! No one does it better, and I always, always, can’t get through it all without a chuckle or two, and many more.
Anyway, to get to the serious stuff of the matter, it must be emphasized that Judaism does not hide, cover-up, or attempt to deny in any way the pagan roots that weave their way through the fabric of the Jewish religion. On the contrary Israel’s transformation from a cult of polytheistic worship to a monotheistic religion is prominently displayed throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, and no King, Judge, Prophet, Proverb, Psalm, or, above all, Torah, will ever dispute the facts therein.
The one God emerged from a pantheon, but crucial to understand is that He did so because He was the authentic and only true Deity from the very beginning, just difficult to recognize in a culture rampant with a motley-crew of pre-Judaic pagan worshippers fixated on the gods of the culture from where they roamed and eventually settled. The Scriptures detail this transformation, and does so without embarrassment or apology, tracing its evolution from belief in the many, culminating to a belief in the One.
So be it, I guess. Let the history stand as is. Paganism served its intended purpose, a preparation for the next and final chapter on the long journey forward in a steadfast and unyielding search for the one true God, eventually found.
What a flattering comment, especially from someone who knows his Bible.
Mainstream Christians and practicing Jews are usually reasonable and realistic about these matters. With fundamentalists on either side, the inerrancy claims and the literalism kick in, and the conversation stops meaning anything because intellectual honesty is gone.
As you probably know, I write critically about the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, but I've never told anyone to trash their copies. If they have answers that satisfy them and keep their faith intact given the evidence we have, fine by me. What people believe or disbelieve isn't my business. With fundamentalists, though, raising any of this counts as waging war on their beliefs. As far as they're concerned, only an angry and aggressive atheist who has a grudge against God would bring it up.
I agree, Tanner, and fundamentalism is a stubborn thing not likely to disappear from the mindset of those who embrace it. Maybe it’s necessary for those whose faith just isn’t strong enough to accept alternative views of their religious beliefs.
I certainly don’t mind the intrusion into the Bible, Old or New Testament. For me, the Old Testament is a history book detailing the journey of a people as their ideas and knowledge about God evolved from an eclectic mix of previous deities. Lots of error, lots of confusion along the way, some outlandish sentiments to be sure, but in the end, it’s simply a story of faith and a belief in a God who set it all in motion, true or not.
Non-fundamentalists, atheists, and agnostics have every right to question the veracity of it all. Who knows, in the end, they could be right.
Indeed, Tanner, you never disappoint! Your ingenious presentation lacks nothing! All the facts associated with a countless succession of gods, goddesses, rituals, beliefs, stories immersed in utter nonsense, all flow from your analysis with truth not to be minimized, misinterpreted, or denied. And where would it all land without your input of humor! No one does it better, and I always, always, can’t get through it all without a chuckle or two, and many more.
Anyway, to get to the serious stuff of the matter, it must be emphasized that Judaism does not hide, cover-up, or attempt to deny in any way the pagan roots that weave their way through the fabric of the Jewish religion. On the contrary Israel’s transformation from a cult of polytheistic worship to a monotheistic religion is prominently displayed throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, and no King, Judge, Prophet, Proverb, Psalm, or, above all, Torah, will ever dispute the facts therein.
The one God emerged from a pantheon, but crucial to understand is that He did so because He was the authentic and only true Deity from the very beginning, just difficult to recognize in a culture rampant with a motley-crew of pre-Judaic pagan worshippers fixated on the gods of the culture from where they roamed and eventually settled. The Scriptures detail this transformation, and does so without embarrassment or apology, tracing its evolution from belief in the many, culminating to a belief in the One.
So be it, I guess. Let the history stand as is. Paganism served its intended purpose, a preparation for the next and final chapter on the long journey forward in a steadfast and unyielding search for the one true God, eventually found.
Hi Ariel,
What a flattering comment, especially from someone who knows his Bible.
Mainstream Christians and practicing Jews are usually reasonable and realistic about these matters. With fundamentalists on either side, the inerrancy claims and the literalism kick in, and the conversation stops meaning anything because intellectual honesty is gone.
As you probably know, I write critically about the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, but I've never told anyone to trash their copies. If they have answers that satisfy them and keep their faith intact given the evidence we have, fine by me. What people believe or disbelieve isn't my business. With fundamentalists, though, raising any of this counts as waging war on their beliefs. As far as they're concerned, only an angry and aggressive atheist who has a grudge against God would bring it up.
I agree, Tanner, and fundamentalism is a stubborn thing not likely to disappear from the mindset of those who embrace it. Maybe it’s necessary for those whose faith just isn’t strong enough to accept alternative views of their religious beliefs.
I certainly don’t mind the intrusion into the Bible, Old or New Testament. For me, the Old Testament is a history book detailing the journey of a people as their ideas and knowledge about God evolved from an eclectic mix of previous deities. Lots of error, lots of confusion along the way, some outlandish sentiments to be sure, but in the end, it’s simply a story of faith and a belief in a God who set it all in motion, true or not.
Non-fundamentalists, atheists, and agnostics have every right to question the veracity of it all. Who knows, in the end, they could be right.