Wholeheartedly agree, Tanner, the God who demands justice, right action towards both stranger and slave, lectures on the duty to maintain high standards of moral integrity, is the same God who leads His worshippers into the killing fields of outright mayhem and violence.
Today, being perfect and the pinnacle of justice and morality is built into the definition of God. In early Judaism, though, the Israelites saw Yahweh more as a figure to fear and obey, executing his orders the way you'd follow a general's, without judging their morality. He was more human, with regrets and mistakes of his own. This is why the earlier texts often clash with modern ideas of what God should be like.
I agree, the early, primitive Judaic mindset viewed God as a hard taskmaster, one to be feared, lest disobedience invite severe consequences. Could it be, I wonder, a carry-over from their pagan beliefs when the gods were ultimately responsible for everything that happened in their lives. Their very survival depended upon the whims and actions of a fickle group of divine beings, quick to anger, and all demanding blind worship and obedience.
So, as you pointed out, fear dominated, only much later did the changes in God’s character evolve into a more just and moral Deity, however slowly the process unfolded.
Ecclesiastes' "vanity of vanities" and its insistence that chasing wealth, pleasure, and achievement all end the same way (dust, forgetting) do indeed reflect Buddhist ideas about impermanence and the futility of craving.
That's a reasonable read, and it lines up with critical scholars' assessments. The conquest stories in particular look far more like retroactive theological justification than history. Israel likely didn't wipe out Canaanite populations the way Joshua describes, archaeology doesn't back a violent conquest on that scale, and the text reads more like a later generation explaining and sanctifying what was probably a slower, messier process of settlement and assimilation.
Nice read. Obviously, human nature hasn't changed; the same hate, bigotry, and hypocrisy remain. One would assume that after 10,000 plus years of religious history, there is no God.We are creatures of greed and contemp of others with a scattering of self aware prophets that are never followed correctly. ( love thy neighbor as you would love yourself,cast the first stone,ect ) . I'm still open to the possibility of a supreme being who created the heavens and earth, but my resolve weakens daily as I watch how my fellow humans treat each other.
Thank you for such an honest and thoughtful reflection. It's completely understandable to feel worn down when looking at the heavier parts of history and humanity. But the fact that you still care, notice the hypocrisy, and value those core teachings of empathy shows that kindness hasn't vanished either.
We are creatures of greed and contempt for others, but that's been a serious part of human evolution, just like they have been for chimps, well-known psychos in their own right. I'd say we're doing better than them, don't you?
Wholeheartedly agree, Tanner, the God who demands justice, right action towards both stranger and slave, lectures on the duty to maintain high standards of moral integrity, is the same God who leads His worshippers into the killing fields of outright mayhem and violence.
So go figure. I can’t.
Today, being perfect and the pinnacle of justice and morality is built into the definition of God. In early Judaism, though, the Israelites saw Yahweh more as a figure to fear and obey, executing his orders the way you'd follow a general's, without judging their morality. He was more human, with regrets and mistakes of his own. This is why the earlier texts often clash with modern ideas of what God should be like.
I agree, the early, primitive Judaic mindset viewed God as a hard taskmaster, one to be feared, lest disobedience invite severe consequences. Could it be, I wonder, a carry-over from their pagan beliefs when the gods were ultimately responsible for everything that happened in their lives. Their very survival depended upon the whims and actions of a fickle group of divine beings, quick to anger, and all demanding blind worship and obedience.
So, as you pointed out, fear dominated, only much later did the changes in God’s character evolve into a more just and moral Deity, however slowly the process unfolded.
Ecclesiasties essence is much like Buddhism.
Ecclesiastes' "vanity of vanities" and its insistence that chasing wealth, pleasure, and achievement all end the same way (dust, forgetting) do indeed reflect Buddhist ideas about impermanence and the futility of craving.
I'm sorry, but I suspect the morally dubious stuff was invented to justify to later generations what the Israelites did of their own accord!
That's a reasonable read, and it lines up with critical scholars' assessments. The conquest stories in particular look far more like retroactive theological justification than history. Israel likely didn't wipe out Canaanite populations the way Joshua describes, archaeology doesn't back a violent conquest on that scale, and the text reads more like a later generation explaining and sanctifying what was probably a slower, messier process of settlement and assimilation.
Right down to today.
No mention of the story of Job?
There are certainly plenty more on both sides of the ledger.
https://substack.com/@jt913/note/c-299018200?r=19ia12
Nice read. Obviously, human nature hasn't changed; the same hate, bigotry, and hypocrisy remain. One would assume that after 10,000 plus years of religious history, there is no God.We are creatures of greed and contemp of others with a scattering of self aware prophets that are never followed correctly. ( love thy neighbor as you would love yourself,cast the first stone,ect ) . I'm still open to the possibility of a supreme being who created the heavens and earth, but my resolve weakens daily as I watch how my fellow humans treat each other.
Thank you for such an honest and thoughtful reflection. It's completely understandable to feel worn down when looking at the heavier parts of history and humanity. But the fact that you still care, notice the hypocrisy, and value those core teachings of empathy shows that kindness hasn't vanished either.
We are creatures of greed and contempt for others, but that's been a serious part of human evolution, just like they have been for chimps, well-known psychos in their own right. I'd say we're doing better than them, don't you?