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As I come to the end of the Book of Proverbs, I must reflect on one of the books most often used figures (aside from those evil and dangerous women, of course); the fool. Throughout the book, “wisdom” is contrasted with the pitiable, wicked fool. The “Fool” seems to be interchangeable with the term “scoffer,” which I take to be synonym for unbeliever. As an agnostic, one who does not accept the wisdom handed down by Solomon, I quickly came to see myself in these undesirable figures. One bit particularly struck me, 18:2 “A fool does not delight in understanding. But only in revealing his own mind.” Ouch! That hits a bit close to home, eh? Yes, I do admit that I did not understand everything in the book, being just a “scoffer,” though I persist with this project; 14:6-7, “A scoffer seeks wisdom, and finds none, but knowledge is easy to him who has understanding. Leave the presence of a fool, or you will not discern words of knowledge.” As I read through the, to me, questionable ideas explored by the Book, attempting to grasp knowledge that I could not obtain I again reflected on my project. Don’t get me wrong, there were messages of charity and generosity, being kind and giving to the poor expressed;I especially liked 13:23, “Abundant food is in the fallow ground of the poor, but it is swept away by injustice,” but the very next passage is “he who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently,” implying love is violence (but I talk more about that later). The rampant sexism in these pages came off even stronger than its teachings against “fools,” which I found surprising.
In the end, to me, the Book of Proverbs was a very strange section of the Old Testament, repetitive and obtuse. Most of the chapters appear to have been compiled by the legendary Solomon, that most apparently “wise” of Hebrew Kings, and seem to be simple lists of the pithy phrases that this fellow seemed to like, many of which he liked so much he repeated them several times (including the hilariously appalling “it is better to live in a corner of a roof, Than in a house shared with a contentious woman,” seen at both 21:9 and 25:24). Well, that, and the child abuse (okay, maybe it might not have been considered abuse back in the Bronze Age to beat your children with “rods” when they angered you, but today? I think that should be considered “wicked” in any circumstances. There has been much violence in the Bible so far, but this one seems the most personal, the closest to our own experiences. That brings up a final thought; rod beating appears at 13:24, 23:13-14 “although you beat him with the rod, he will not die.” Well, probably not, anyway. In other words, I have to question the use of these words of wisdom in the modern world. I have to admit, I would be cautious around someone who took these words to heart. I do not believe most Christians beat their children with sticks when they disobey, but Solomon states in Proverbs very clearly, numerous times, that its okay, indeed, a good thing to do. Most people, Christians and non-Christians alike, love their children and do not beat them with sticks and if they do, they should be stopped. How do faithful people who do not beat their children with sticks reconcile this in the Bible? If they do, could it be considered a religious freedom? As a fool in the eyes the Book of Proverbs and people who might agree with the worlds, I perhaps cannot appreciation this idea of wisdom in any perceptible way at all, and perhaps I even would not want to. So, how am I qualified to discuss this at all? All I can reply upon is my own judgments, developed through my own experiences. This book definitely struck a bit closer to home for me than earlier books, I think, being tied less into ancient mythology and stories that could be interpreted in many different was, but in simple aphorisms of how people should interact, that drew me into how this is seen by various Christian denominations today. This website, ReligiousTolerance.org, has an interesting discussion on what exactly the “rod” is mentioned in Proverbs, including two interpretations that did not occur to me, that illustrate how many ideas can exist about a single word; is the rod a physical beating stick used to chastise the young with pain, or a figurative item of guidance and comfort? I must say, the latter seems much more appealing to me. I’m not really sure how to end this one. Hmm. Well, Proverbs is over! On to the next adventure, the Book of Ecclesiastes! Yay!
Wow, what happened? How long has it been since I last updated? How many months? Six!? Really? Half a year sure doesn’t seem that long. Well, I don’t want to make it look like the project is dead. I still have great plans for the future. The last few months have been very busy, I guess, I did not want to sacrifice what passes as my “full attention” off on Proverbs. Bah! Enough excuses. January is the time for “New Years Revolutions” and what not, but I think I will leave that old canard alone and stay away from easily lost “schedules” and just say that, regardless, new entries will be much more forthcoming in 2012. I shall be reigniting my blog with a long delayed entry on Proverbs, the latest book of the Old Testament that I have been reading over the last week, up to chapter 10, anyway.
I have been restarting my reading of Proverbs after being, er, shall we say lax over the past six months. I had been some ways in but I’m finding the rather cryptic nature of Proverbs (not unlike Psalms) to make me desire to devote a little more thought to them. Hey, “cryptic?” Didn’t I use that in my last blog entry on Pslams back in July? It’s been far too long. Ah well. In any case, Proverbs is an interesting word to me, evoking folklore and fables, stories or anecdotes that illustrate certain points. Before I began this chapter, I wondered how many of our commonplace proverbs such as the “rolling stone gathers no moss” arose in the Bible. That’s a biblical phrase, right?* And what religious or cultural background could such a saying have arisen from? It would all go back to the cultural diffusion I find so interesting.
These Proverbs, though, are not really what I expected. As I read the first few chapters, they seem to be more like roughly organized maxims or rules. A good example would be in the first chapter, 1:6 and 1:7 “To understand a proverb and a figure, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” They are quite riddle-like, it is true. They talk much of fools and the wise, but little of actual advice. Generally, the chapters in Proverbs are short, no more than a page in length, and can be, at least where I have read, quite repetitive. I am amused at how different my expectations are from reality. On the other hand, there is some use of allegory and figurative ideas that I associate with folklore and proverbs. I particularly liked 6:6, “Go to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise,” referring to the legendary work ethic of the insect and its ability to work together for a common good. So far, Proverbs also contain some of the strongest condemnations of violence that I have seen in the Bible yet, such as 3:31, “Do not envy a man of violence and do not choose any of his ways.” I certainly find this interesting after some of the scenes depicted in earlier books of the Bible.
However, the deep gender issues of the Bible seem even more noticeable here; many of the proverbs are addressed to “my son” or “sons,” as if precluding women from the wisdom and advice provided. Also, while wisdom itself (at least in this translation) seems to be referred to as a “she,” as in 3:15 in which “she is more precious than jewels; and nothing you desire compares with her.” Wisdom, then, is a “good woman.” “Bad women” in Proverbs, though, seem much more evident as actual humans, rather than an abstract concept, as in 5:3 “for the lips of the adulteress drip honey, and smoother than oil is her speech.” Adulteresses, harlots, and “strange women” appear often in the first ten chapters Beware these treacherous women, my son, as is expressed in Chapter 7, particularly between 7:10 and 7:11, “dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart. She is boisterous and rebellious; her feet do not stay at home.” Yes, beware free-thinking women, they will lead you to Sheol (27). As I continue to read Proverbs, I’ll note if these themes continue or if they change. Perhaps I can have a better idea of what else this book can have to offer and why it was included. I may need to a little extra research on this topic. Ah, it feels good to have another entry on offer!
That is not dead which can eternal lay, and hopefully the stars are coming right for my blog and you won’t have to wait a strange eon for the next entry. Couldn’t resist paraphrasing a geeky quote in there at the end!
*Note: A quick Wikipedia search reveals that this hoary phrase actually comes from the Latin writer Publius Syrus, and refers to figurative nomadic peoples who avoid responsibilities.
Well, I’m still writing! If one did not know better, one might even be forgiven for thinking that perhaps I did disappear after “Judgement Day” back in May. Even if it took a literal end of the world threat to get me to knuckled down an update my blog! So that’s good!
Several weeks ago, in the meantime, I finally completed the Book of Psalms. I feel like this, among the books I have read so far, is one I truly need to put more thought into my interpretations. Sadly, so much time has passed between my starting and finishing the book I feel I would not be able to do it justice. It is such a diverse, yet unified, book that I could easily have written many entries about it, but I think that, in view of moving forward in my project, one will have to suffice (for now, at least). One thing that I might say is that many in Psalms could be considered, to my uneducated mind, cryptic. How much do they lose in their translations from songs in one language to static passages in others?
References to the Psalms are everywhere, probably more than any other book in the Old Testament (at least in general American culture), with such famous passages as Psalm 23 “even though I walk through the valley of death, I fear no evil” being repeated often in popular culture as well as Christian ceremonies. Psalms are referred to everything from bumper stickers to a full car perched on a billboard along Highway 94 in North Minneapolis which refers to Psalms 46:10 (the car survived the May tornado with only slight damage). The sited passage refers to a typical Psalm, “God the Refuge of His People,” a psalm “of the sons of Korah,” a song. The specific passage reads,“Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46, like many, seems to represent a prayer in song form in praise or supplication to God to aid in some way, with a few “Selahs” thrown in for good measure (my translation explains this strange word to mean a pause or musical interlude of some kind).
Another common theme in these prayers is seen in Psalm 35, “Prayer for Rescue from Enemies” which begins “Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; Fight against those who fight against me.” Psalm 35 is only one of many that exhort God for protection from many enemies, personal and widespread conflict seeming to be a major area of concern, then as now. It is still interesting how prominent the fears of violence seem to be in the Psalms, though little is mentioned of God counseling the differences of these “enemies,” only protection or action against them. There is however, an interesting case in Psalm 60, “Lament over Defeat in Battle” which is similar to other pleas for aid against enemies, but begins after “Thou hast rejected us” and allowed the “enemies” to win in battle and later sings “O give us help against the adversary.” The annotations mention a certain event in connection with this Psalm in which a Mikhtam of David struggled with Aramnaharaim and Aram-zobah, ending with twelve thousand being smote in the “Valley of Salt.” Prayers answered?
In conclusion, I feel that I have only scratched the surface of the Book of Psalms, and being such an important area of the Old Testament in modern culture I might need to go back for some more research on this one; I still do not entirely grasp the background of these songs. I’ll be starting up on the Book of Proverbs now (as a wannabe folklorist, this sounds interesting already!) and hopefully I’ll be able to avoid the pitfalls of the last couple of months and update more regularly, certainly, at least, before Judgement Day round two in October!
There’s a little something that seems to have been making the rounds in the media the last couple of weeks, something about the Bible that I thought it might be a good idea to discuss today in its relation to my project. Of course, I’m referring to the upcoming Judgment Day scheduled for tomorrow at 6:00 pm in the Pacific Rim as a “great earthquake” strikes each time zone in turn. This according to one Harold Camping of the FamilyRadio organization and his followers, who posit that, through calculating the exact date of the beginning of Noah’s Great Flood (which was precisely 7000 years ago tomorrow). While this group represents a very small minority of American Christians, their story has reached the media throughout the country and the world, due at least in part to their own tireless promotions as they hope to warn a disbelieving world that May 21st, 2011 marks the beginning of the end of the world, proclaiming “the Bible Guarantees it!” I have seen their billboards throughout the Twin Cities and in outstate Minnesota, and these advertisements are also found from coast to coast. I have no idea of the amount of money that went into this campaign.
I first encountered the story on MPR and quickly found it all over the Internet with reactions mostly hovering around humor at these people’s beliefs, with Facebook events scheduled for “Post Rapture Looting” and other jokes. How could these groups take these predictions so seriously, particularly after so many failed predictions for the date of the apocalypse (Camping himself having wrongly proclaimed a date sometime in 1994)? How did such a small group attain such public interest and attention, even if mainly ridicule? Part of the answer, I feel, lies in their study of the Bible and the mysteries that many people, devout Christians and the non-religious alike still feel.
Camping and his followers base all of their beliefs on what they hold to be written in the Bible, Camping himself expressing “I know it’s absolutely true, because the Bible is always absolutely true,” he says. “If I were not faithful that would mean that I’m a hypocrite,” as quoted on CNN.com. In explaining why he got the date wrong back in the ‘90s, Camping said that he had not studied the Bible long enough at that point and “at that time had not gone through the Book of Jeremiah, which is a big book in the Bible that has a whole lot to say about the end of the world.” I also have not gotten to the Book of Jeremiah, and wonder what I might find there that will pinpoint a precise time and date of apocalypse. I do recall reading that “no one will know the time” in the Bible somewhere as well. While many, Christians and non-Christians point to this to declaim the activities of Camping and those like him, to me their interpretations are interesting.
To a dispassionate reader of the Bible such as myself, interested in the cultural environment of Bible study, such interpretations are fascinating, and I can easily see how such things can come to be. Particularly in my continued (and continued) reading of Psalms, it has seemed to me that much I have read so far could be considered, in a word, cryptic. Perhaps such apocalyptic predictions may be a way for modern people to connect with the ancient writings in a way that really, truly will affect them personally today. Knowing the date of something as far-reaching and important as the end of the world due to their faith in the book and knowing the arcane messages hidden inside its many pages put them above other readers of the Bible.
In a way, this illustrates a motivation and attitude toward the Bible, and towards religion in general, that I just cannot replicate. As I read the Bible, including Psalms, I do make some attempt to look at the scriptures through the lens of philosophical meaning. If I truly had faith, what would a certain passage mean to me? How would I justify a belief as radical as the end of the world? In the end, though, this just points out how little I understand such ideas. The idea of wholeheartedly believing that tomorrow only you and a small group of people would disappear from the Earth, leaving behind most of your loved ones to suffer terrible before finally being condemned to punishment is alien to me, I cannot help but think of how sad such a belief is. One article in the New York Times discussing the family dynamics of parents who believed in the May 21 Judgment Day and their skeptical children really illustrated this, with the teenage son lamenting,
“I don’t really have any motivation to try to figure out what I want to do anymore,” he said, “because my main support line, my parents, don’t care.” This really brought a more personal note to the effects of such beliefs. In any case, this topic really deserves more thought than I’ve given it now. Maybe, if the world doesn’t end in the next twenty four hours, I will elaborate on the link between Bible Study, apocalypse, and American culture. If it does, well, I’ll have something else to write about, after all.
So, anyway, to take the title of the MPR piece discussing the phenomena, “Is the end nigh? We’ll know soon enough.” Then, perhaps I can get back to discussing the more relevant topics of my much belated Bible reading. In the meantime, as I hammer out the rest of my hasty attempt to jump on the Rapture bandwagon before its too late, I need to get to sleep in order to prepare for the many plans I did happen to make for tomorrow, and none of them involve earthquakes. Then again, I don’t have any plans for a looting party, either!
For the last week or so, I’ve been reading through the beginnings of the Book of Psalms, and interesting, if cryptic, part of the Bible. I had been aware of the Book of Psalms as one of the most widely quoted sections of the book, still oft used for any pithy inspirational statements needed for any given religious situation. I am given to understand that these mostly short pieces represent hymns originally sung. How much of their impact is lost due to the lack of music all of these centuries later I am not sure. In some areas, they seem almost like formula or charms sung by people hoping to change or avoid various situations. In particular, defense from undefined enemies seem to be a major theme throughout many of the early psalms. Why this emphasis on enemies? However, this quite a long book, and I believe I will have more to say after I’ve read more of them.
In the meantime, one thing that I’ve noticed during my reading so far has been the occasional mention of the term “Sheol.” A typical mention of the term occurs in Psalm 6 (Prayer for Mercy in Time of Trouble), which begs God to protect the speaker “for there is no mention of Thee in death; In Sheol who will give Thee thanks?” (Psalms 6:) It was also mentioned in Job, “when a cloud vanishes, it is gone, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come back up.” (Job 7:9). Or how about Psalm 30, “O Lord, Thou has brought up my soul from Sheol; Thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down into the pit.” (Psalms 30:3). Sheol
I first encountered the term Sheol while researching for a project on the various interpretations of the afterlife as seen in world cultures and mythologies my freshman year of college, with Sheol being described in ancient Hebrew mythology, as a dark, depressing, misty netherworld where people went after they died. It reminded me of Hades or the Asphodel Fields in Greek mythology, an “egalitarian” land of the dead where people simply went to, a gray, cold place where spirits wandered eternally. I did not realize at the time that the term was included in the Bible, thinking it came from more obscure sources in ancient religion and mythology, so it was interesting to see it being used in various books. Psalms in particular seems to mention it a lot. “The pit,” as it is described in Psalm 30, does not seem to be the most pleasant place to end up after death, but, from what I’ve seen so far, the afterlife has not been a matter of much discussion in the Old Testament. Instead, they focus on the actions of the living, death itself often being meted out as a punishment. Why do older religions have so little interest in life after death, with any afterlife described being so lackluster?
At least in modern Christianity, the afterlife seems to be a primary belief of the religion; perhaps it’s most important aspect. Heaven, and to a lesser extant, Hell still remain at the forefront of Christian teachings as well as popular culture, with even the most lax Christian professing a belief in the afterlife. Did this focus arise with the advent of Christianity? What in the culture changed that mandated elaborate afterlife worlds of reward and punishment to be discussed? How have fears and curiosity of death evolve or the centuries? Could a little bit of this shift be included in Psalms 18, “The Lord Praised for Giving Deliverance,” when the speaker sings, “the cords of Sheol surrounded me; the snares of death confronted me” (Psalms 18: 5) and calls on God for help, who later “rewarded me according to my righteousness” (Psalm 18:20). It seems to imply a reward after death for a life well led, something that had not been mentioned before. It will be interesting to watch how concepts of the afterlife and its relationship to life will change in religions. Finally, I wonder how this transition from a misty, insubstantial Sheol to modern Christian ideas of Heaven and Hell are looked at in modern religions. Is Sheol simply equated to Hell? This, the mystery of life after death, will be another category for my study as I continue to study the religious texts of world religions.
I really thought that this, the Book of Job, was one of the most interesting and though provoking stories I had encountered yet in the Bible. It has been one of the Books so far, I feel, that deals most in theological questions and philosophies that are still very relevant in religious discussion today. Rather than discussing the activities and conflicts of various ancient peoples and their personal alliances with a God who seemed to be more interested in “results” than “discussion,” the Book of Job discusses philosophical questions regarding God’s nature. In the Books of Exodus and Leviticus, for instance, when God spent much time explaining to Moses all of the precise laws, commandments, and ceremonies that He wanted of his followers, neither Moses nor God seemed to spend much time in ruminations about the reasons “why.” Job and his acquaintances, however, question and debate, focusing in particular on one of the biggest questions religion tries to answer; why do bad things happen to good people? Or, more specifically, “the problem of evil.”
Job tells the tale of the eponymous Job, a prosperous, happy, and god-fearing man who had everything that a Bronze Age shepherd could want. However, Satan, “the adversary” was curious if his piousness would suffer under “adversity” and convinced God to test Job, Satan predicting Job will “curse thee to thy face” as soon as things started to go bad. (Job 1:11) God agrees to this wager and before the first chapter is completed, Job loses his entire fortune and all of his children to a series of tragedies. Apparently, this not being enough, the next chapter has God, again at the instigation of Satan, allowing “My servant Job … a blameless and upright man” (Job 2:3) to be smote by Satan with boils completely covering his body. Incidentally, this Satan, or adversary, character and its relationship to God is never explained here. Interestingly, Satan appears with a group called the “Sons of God,” whose appearance I didn’t catch at first. Besides sounding like some sort of sect or metal band, these beings are, according to exhaustive research on Wikipedia, a “divine council” of minor gods, apparently a remnant of earlier Ugaritic religions. Interesting, but these guys are a bit outside of my discussion today.
So poor Job is in a pretty sorry state, “he took a potsherd to scrape himself while he was sitting among the ashes.” That’s a pretty bleak scene, and his wife exhorts him to “curse God and die” (Job 2:9) but Job, not being a “foolish woman” refuses to complain. It remains unsaid here whether he knows or not that God was personally responsible for allowing all of these bad things to happen by allowing Satan to have its way. This brings up many questions. Why did God allow “the adversary” (is Satan simply a personification of all the bad things in the world?) to torture Job so horribly when he was, by His own admission one of his most faithful followers? Does this make God, directly or indirectly, responsible for every bad event? Questions like these are discussed in the following chapters as Job’s friends hear of his unfortunate circumstances and arrive to talk to him. They find Job in such pain, that they simply watch him silently for a week (apparently it being bad form to offer help).
Finally, Job begins to question the injustice of his current situation, cursing his birth and asking “why is light given to a man whose way is hidden, and whom God has hedged in?” (Job 3:23). His friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar attempt to convince him that all of this is in some way Job’s fault, for being a sinner, Eliphaz claiming “who ever punished being innocent?” (4:7), though Job continues to refute that he had sinned, saying “I have not denied the words of the Holy One. We are given no reason to doubt this, as God himself praised Job’s “god-fearingness.” These three have to believe that evil does not happen for no reason, goodness is only rewarded and evil is only punished. Therefore, Job must have committed some evil somewhere along the line. Bildad in fact asserts “how then can a man be just with God? Or how can he be clean who is born of woman,” (Job 25:4), apparently putting it down to original sin that all humans are simply born with, as if this gives bad things full reign. Job does not accept this interpretation. Another friend of Job’s, Elihu, attempts (beginning in Chapter 32) to answer these questions by maintaining that whatever God does is righteous and, basically, it is not up to humanity to question his motives or look for a reason. Elihu asks, “If you are righteous, what do you give to HIM? Or what does He receive from your hand?” (35:7) This seems to argue that nothing humanity does effects God, who, as he argues later, “is exalted, and we do not know Him.” (36:26). Therefore, it is not for humanity to say and fruitless to look for an explanation (except that, to the readers of the text, an explanation is provided in the first chapter; God was goaded by Satan to test Job’s faith.)
Finally, God himself comes down from on high and personally gives His side of the story, thundering from the heavens complete with lightenings and whirlwinds, making for quite the impressive display. God snaps at Job to “gird up your loins like a man” (38:3) as he asks Job “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth!” or “Have you ever in your life commanded the morning and caused the dawn to know its place” (38:12). Basically, if you didn’t create the universe, don’t complain. In the end, though, after this Divine chewing out, God does reward the always faithful Job by restoring his wealth and prestige (one set of children is as good as another, right?). No matter that this infallible God basically screws with Job for no other reason than a bet with some undefined adversary. However, the arguments and discussions of Job and his friends about God’s nature and how to reconcile this with the existence of evil and suffering in the world are quite fascinating even if I find much of their arguments unconvincing. This makes the Book one of the most theologically and philosophically interesting parts of the Bible
However, as an agnostic reader of the Bible, I find much of the arguments put forward to be rather unconvincing, to say the least. The rest of the essay may be a bit, er, ranty. The arguments put forward here may illustrate one of the deep disagreements I seem to have with the religion. The relationship between the creator and his subjects seems rather abusive, when looked at through modern eyes. God tortures Job, one of his most loyal subjects terribly on a whim, but Job still loves Him in spite of the pain he suffered. Finally, Job breaks down and questions why so many bad things happen to him, debating the matter with his friends. Was it because Job was secretly sinful? They can’t say. Finally, God explains himself that the reason for all this pain suffered by Job was beyond their ken, as they did not create the Universe. So God created the Universe, that gives Him the right to treat His subjects in whatever fashion He likes? Of course, God would have knowledge and power humans could never understand, causing his actions to be, theoretically, inscrutable. Then why did God’s reason seem to amount to little more than a test? Job seemed to pass the test, but millions of other people still suffer. Have they not passed the test yet? This is a vision of God that I simply cannot come to terms with. I will have to study this in more detail to come to a more comprehensive philosophical argument against the arguments put forward in Job. How do others understand this Book? I can definitely see how this might be among the most important works in the Old Testament and I’m curious to look at some modern interpretations of this text. I’ll definitely return to the Book of Job as I explore how other religions come to answer the “problem of evil.”
I decided that it was time to start planning ahead a bit for my project, doing some research and forming a rough schedule. This is by no means set in stone, as I will continue to do research and edit my selections as I learn more. I think that I will begin with the original sources, and then read a few more modern works to increase my understanding of the contemporary faith. Suggestions and ideas would be highly welcome. Looking over my list, I suddenly realize the scope of my project; perhaps I might need to skim a few works if I ever want to finish this project. But, we’ll see. My old textbook, “Experiencing the World’s Religions: Tradition, Challenge, and Change,” by Michael Molloy, proved helpful in creating this list. Keep watching for my next post discussing my thoughts about the Book of Job, or, why do bad things happen to good people?
Christianity
The Bible (currently reading)
The Apocrypha Gospels
Confessions of St. Augustine
Letters of Abelard and Heloise
Revelations of Divine Love, Julian of Norwich
Selected Writings of Martin Luther
The Book of Mormon?
Pearl of Great Price?
Judaism
The Torah
The Talmud (Selections)
The Essential Kabbalah
Islam
The Koran
The Hadith
The Rubayyat
Hinduism
The Rig Veda
Upanishads
The Bhagavad Gita
The Perfection of Yoga
Buddhism
The Lotus Sutra
In the Buddha’s Words
Dhammapada
Buddhist Scriptures
Tibetan Book of the Dead
Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
Taoism, Confucianism, etc.
The Tao Te Ching
Confucian Analects
Mencius
The I Ching
Shintoism
Shinto: The Kami Way
Shinto Norito
The Kojiki
The Nihongi
Zoroastrianism
The Avesta
Ancient Religions
The Golden Bough
The Gosepl of Mani
The Egyptian Book of the Dead
Poetic Edda
Kalevala
Mabigion
Popul Vuh
The Power of Myth
Neo-Pagan/New Age
Isis Unveiled
Drawing Down the Moon
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner
Principia Discordia
The Satanic Bible
Dianetics?
Atheism/Agnosticism
God is Great
The God Delusion
Unfortunately, I’m not sure what to make of the Book of Esther, except as the origin story for the holiday of Purim. Because of this, I assume the book is much more well known among Judaism. Again, after reading this book, I am left to ponder what this story brings to the narrative of the Bible. It appears to follow typical conventions of what would be called a “legend” in folklore (as opposed to a myth), being the deeds of various important people during a specific period of time. Taking place during the reign of the Persian king Ahasuerus, it follows the story of Mordecai and his cousin/adopted daughter Esther. After Ahasuerus becomes displeased with his disobedient wife/queen Vashti, the other princes of Persia apparently fear that their wives too will become “the same way.” They suggest the king proclaim that every beautiful young virgin by sent to the capital city of Susa, and “then let the young lady who pleases the king be queen in place of Vashti.” (Esther 2:4). Among this hoard of virgins sent from across the empire to be picked through by Ahasuerus was Esther, who quickly became the favored one, though she still remained unable to so much as speak to her new husband; ” Meanwhile, another of the king’s servants, Haman, plotted the downfall of the Jews of Susa (due to being offended by Mordecai, it seems). Mordecai than uses Esther’s connection of the king to defend his people from the machinations of Haman, in the end killing five hundred people as well as Haman’s ten sons, who were hung. Despite the name of the book, Esther herself seemed to have very little role, and was more of a go between for Ahasuerus and Mordecai, and simply passed between the authority of the two men (not to mention the thousands of other “virgins” who were basically sent to the king as a material offering).
These questionable (to the say the least) gender ideas are not much different, of course, from many traditional folktales, fairy stories, literature, or texts in world history. On the other hand, this story is included among the religious text of a very prominent and influential religion that, for many, still is deeply problematic in terms of gender ideology.
I did a little research online to get a better idea of how contemporary Christians regard the book. Apparently, the most common interpretation places Esther, as one of the precious few women with roles in the Bible, as an inspiration for women “young and old.” Seems an odd choice, being that Esther herself had very little choice in any of her actions. In any case, I can’t think of any “lesson” that can be taken from this tale that would really be applicable to society today, any more than any other legend from any number of ancient sources. It may be important as one source for understanding Jewish culture during the period of the Achaemenid (Persian) Empire. I also wonder why Purim, still an extremely important holiday in Judaism, is not celebrated by Christians, despite still being included in the Bible. Simply due to the fact that the majority of modern Christians come from a background of other cultures? Hmm.
Oh, yes, I nearly forgot, as my first entry for 2011, Happy New Year!
Several months ago, a local representative of the Jehovah’s Witnesses going door to door to proselytize their particular brand of Christianity visited me on a lazy late-summer morning, around 11:00. Groaning inwardly after the brisk knocking revealed an earnest 30-something woman outside, I dreaded the awkward interaction to come as my ingrained Minnesotan desire for politeness and non-confrontation battled with my introverted dislike of forced religious conversion. Successfully stifling my desire to hide and wait until she went away, I opened the door. She explained cheerfully that she was going around the neighborhood talking to people about the Bible, and asked if I was interested in learning about the Bible. “Actually, I am currently reading the Bible,” I replied, truthfully, relieved at such a simple question. This appeared to please her and she gave me a small booklet entitled “What Does the Bible Really Teach?” telling me to have a look. I thanked her and accepted the text, genuinely interested in what it had to say. Satisfied that the information was appreciated, the missionary said “Bye!” and left to continue her efforts in the neighborhood.
This was information that I had been curious about since beginning reading the Bible at the beginning of my project last year. I had been wondering how contemporary Christians (of any sect or denomination) interpreted this ancient and, to my mind, disorganized text. I had recently found the results of the U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey (http://pewforum.org/other-beliefs-and-practices/u-s-religious-knowledge-survey.aspx) to be very interesting; they suggested that atheists and agnostics were among the most knowledgeable about the Bible and Christianity, surpassed only by Mormons and White Evangelicals. Could this be that atheists and agnostics, like myself, are more interested in studying the text than many Christians, particularly “mainline” groups? Why? Also, the groups who were most knowledgeable would approach the text much differently. Bible study from a religious standpoint was something I had never had the chance to participate in, even during my church going days. How would this approach differ from a more literary one, as my own study? I was curious about how religious groups would approach the material and it was a funny stroke of luck that a resource regarding this very question was literally provided to my doorstep (one could even blame divine intervention, if one was so inclined).
Being that the Jehovah’s Witnesses were a sect founded on Bible Study, in an attempt to focus their own brand of Christianity more directly on what they felt the Bible’s teachings this text was perfect to explore how this group analyzed the text. While the group represents only a small percentage of the Christian religion, their interest in bible study would make them well suited to study how a religious group looks specifically at the Bible’s contents, rather than the centuries of cultural tradition that has sprung up around the religion. As a hard-line group, probably best known for their door-to-door proselytizing and their disdain of blood transfusions, the Jehovah’s Witnesses publication “What Does the Bible Really Teach” explained much about the sect. While of course, I agree with virtually nothing that the sect practices, this book will be a good resource for me as I continue to read the Bible, particularly into the New Testament. I will definitely be returning to this later as my study continues.
Unfortunately, it did not help much with my reading of the Book of Nehemiah. I was correct in predicting that Nehemiah would continue with the use of the first person perspective, following quite closely to the narrative of the Book of Ezra. It is Nehemiah’s account of the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem “during the second half of the 5th Century BCE” (according to Wikipedia). The Wikipedia article also notes, interestingly, that the book was originally combined with the Book of Ezra, which is a definite thought I had while reading it. Nehemiah was separated from the Book of Ezra several centuries later. Why? Was it simply due to the difference in primary narrator between the two books?
Most of the themes of the Book of Ezra were continued along with the use of first person in the Book of Nehemiah. In particular, I noticed the feelings of xenophobia, which seemed even more pronounced than usual. Nehemiah refers in Chapter 10, for instance, to the “peoples of the land,” who are unworthy of law of God. Why are they referred to in this way? Is it a reference to their connection to the “world” instead of God, or that they were the original inhabitants of the area who were being displaced? Also, the family names of the men who participated in the rebuilding of Jerusalem were listed prominently, continuing the Old Testament propensity to keep a roster of who participated. Chapter 11 was especially devoted to this. However, in the end, I feel, both Nehemiah and Ezra seem to be more historical records of this particular group rather than more theological depictions. It is interesting to compare it to the historical records of others, to place the events into the actual background of the past, rather than a more purely mythological period. I’m interested now to be starting the Book of Esther, which is another book of the Bible named for a woman, and also one that is very brief.
I finished reading the Book of Ezra, a rather short book, this week. The book focuses upon Ezra, the eponymous prophet who was commissioned by Cyrus the King of Persia to lead the Jewish exiles in Babylon back to Jerusalem to reestablish a temple there and return worship to God in the region. Among the most prominent things Ezra accomplished, according to the book, was a purge of mixed marriages among the people of Jerusalem. Apparently, God was displeased by such unions, though, of course, it appeared to be only men marrying “foreign wives.” It did not explain what happened to the foreign women and children after Ezra had completed his “investigation” of them and their husbands, simply stating “and they pledged to put away their wives, and being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock for their offense” (Ezra 10:19). Why was this seen to be such a problem?
The most interesting aspect of the Book of Ezra for me, however, was its prominent usage of the first person perspective. I don’t remember any other time previously in the Bible where the first person was used so intensively. In addition to recording the letters and decrees of Persian nobles, such as King Darius in Chapter 6 and Artaxerxes in Chapter 7, Ezra himself narrates much of Chapters 8, 9, and 10. This provides a much different perspective than the normal third person narration of other books, one which seems much more personal than others. In a way, it actually allows a much more interesting view of the events in the Book, one in which a actual person was present and performing actions. Why was this perspective used so much in the Book of Ezra when it was used so rarely before? Will it be a common literary device elsewhere, later in the Bible? I will definitely be keeping my eye open for more uses of the first person perspective, to analyze when or why this device is chosen, or if it is a unique aspect of the Book of Ezra. Next, the Book of Nehemiah, another rather short section which I believe is connected to the Book of Ezra. Will this narration theme continue as well?
Sacred Books Project 