A book about the icky parts of the Bible (grace, prophets, Baptist)
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I thought it was going to simply be a Bible-bashing book, but a closer look revealed that the author is himself a Christian, as is the reviewer, who like many here hold to the belief that all Scripture is inspired.
I remember being a young teenager and reading my Bible late at night when I couldn't sleep, desperate for comfort and help. I did come across Psalm 91 in that search, but I also discovered all these "dirty" stories in the Bible that they'd never told us in Sunday school. Sex between siblings, prostitution, oh my. Who knew?
As far as violence goes, the imagery of dogs licking the blood of Jezebel has always stayed with me.
It was ok for Jezebel's blood to be splattered for the dogs to lick up because it was comeuppance for an evil person (and especially an evil woman!). This is how a lot of the violence is handled mentally by Christians ... the victims deserve it, and/or the violence was commanded directly by god.
All violence is justified beginning the the dehumanization of the victim(s) and/or an appeal to a superhuman directive.
First glance, I thought the book was written by Jemar Tisby. But he just reviewed it back in 2015 before he went off the rails.
Looks like it might be an interesting read. I honestly know nothing of Joseph W Smith, other that he shares the same name as someone famous.
I'd never heard of Jemar Tisby, but yes, at first I thought that was the author. Thought the same about Smith as you did. I see he lives in Williamsport in central Pennsylvania, the home of the Little League World Series. Beautiful country there, typical Pennsylvania green rolling hills.
It was ok for Jezebel's blood to be splattered for the dogs to lick up because it was comeuppance for an evil person (and especially an evil woman!). This is how a lot of the violence is handled mentally by Christians ... the victims deserve it, and/or the violence was commanded directly by god.
All violence is justified beginning the the dehumanization of the victim(s) and/or an appeal to a superhuman directive.
She was actively trying to kill God's prophets.
Most of us didn't shed any tears when we found out Jeffrey Dahmer died. I'm sure no one minded in 1945 when Hitler died.
Most of us didn't shed any tears when we found out Jeffrey Dahmer died. I'm sure no one minded in 1945 when Hitler died.
And I'm not suggesting that, assuming for sake of argument the historicity of this narrative, Jezebel's contemporaries should have been particularly busted up over her demise, either. I'm only objecting to the violence porn aspect of it, the bloodthirsty revelry in the gore of it.
WRT Dahmer, I have a great deal of respect for Dahmer's father and how he handled the whole situation. He never excused or condoned his son's behavior, but he stood by him AS his son to the end, and was never ashamed to be his father, despite the predictable assumptions that Dahmer was necessarily as he was because of something as simplistic as bad parenting. In fact all indications were that Dahmer's father, unlike his son, had all his mental circuitry cabinets plugged in and functioning, and I think his father's conduct proved him to be in fact a very good father indeed. Most of us, my self included, would not handle it nearly so well.
It's a nuanced and sometimes fine line between acknowledging that the world is better off without some perpetrator or other, and the unseemly gloating schadenfreude in their demise, which, even for a Hitler or a Dahmer, should be seen as a regrettable and tragic necessity, not an opportunity to glorify murder or war or promote the notion that these people aren't even human like us. In religious terms, "there, but for the grace of god, go I", right? It won't kill me to admit that, e.g., Dahmer was part of the human race that I'm part of, and to see Dahmer's life as partly a failure of society. Otherwise how will we ever learn any lessons from it?
I'd like to think that somewhere, a parent or teacher or even friend notices a kid pulling the legs off bugs or dissecting dead rabbits and thinks of Dahmer and intervenes early when something can be done. Rather than blowing it off on being a "phase" that will "pass" all by itself.
Well if you think about it brothers and sisters had to marry as there was no one else...Adam and Eve were the first people.
And then Noah. Brothers, sisters and first cousins had to marry as there was no one left after the flood.
Well if you think about it brothers and sisters had to marry as there was no one else...Adam and Eve were the first people.
And then Noah. Brothers, sisters and first cousins had to marry as there was no one left after the flood.
Indeed, the apocryphal book of Jubilees claims that Claim eventually married his sister Awan. It doesn't matter whether that's an "inspired" account or not, it was the only possible option.
Well...of course...the assessment of these things is based upon a literal interpretation of the Book and taking them as actual.
And if this is how the Book is being critiqued...it's actually always all cool. Because a literal assessment must include as a given the Omnimax Powered God that knows everything & can do anything, and has thoughts and ways that are superior to ours, that was behind that and anything & everything else.
Thus..the God that knows more than us dunnit...and He has declared it all how it was/is supposed to be.
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