> Matthew wrote: > That passage didn't say that at all Well, I'd argue that we have no idea what the original author, if there was a single one, intended when they wrote that passage so trying to analyze the text 3000 translations later may not prove very accurate.
Beyond that I'd certainly not put my knowledge up against a Rabbinical scholar so I'm going to assume that he knows what he's talking about. (see his bio below) FYI - he was honored by a Roman Catholic group. Basically he was making the point Brian was: trying to use the Bible to justify a position on abortion is ridiculous. He was emphasizing that by showing that even if one assumes you could, you'd still arrive at an answer those trying to do so wouldn't like. I'm trusting his word on that, but I can understand how others might now. Whatever the case you can hear it for yourself here: http://www.publicradio.org/tools/media/player/news/midday/2005/10/17_midday1 Here's his bio, just FYI: --------------------------------- Harold Kushner is Rabbi Laureate of Temple Israel in the Boston suburb of Natick, Massachusetts, after serving that congregation for twenty-four years. He is best known as the author of WHEN BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE, an international best seller first published in 1981. The book has been translated into fourteen languages and was recently selected by members of the Book of the Month Club as one of the ten most influential books of recent years. He has also written WHEN ALL YOU'VE EVER WANTED ISN'T ENOUGH, which was awarded the Christopher Medal for its contribution to the exaltation of the human spirit. In 1995, Rabbi Kushner was honored by the Christophers, a Roman Catholic organization, as one of fifty people who have made the world a better place in the last fifty years. His other books include WHEN CHILDREN ASK ABOUT GOD, WHO NEEDS GOD, TO LIFE, and a 1996 best-seller HOW GOOD DO WE HAVE TO BE?. With novelist Chaim Potok (z"l), he is co-author of the new Conservative commentary on the Torah, ETZ HAYIM, which has been enthusiastically received by hundreds of congregations since its publication in the fall of 2001. His book, LIVING A LIFE THAT MATTERS was a best seller in the fall of 2001 as well. His most recent book, a 2003 publication, is THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD, a meditation on the 23rd Psalm. Rabbi Kushner was born in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Columbia University. He was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1960 and awarded a doctoral degree in Bible by the Seminary in 1972. He has six honorary doctorates, has studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and taught at Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, and at the Rabbinical School of the Jewish Theological Seminary. For fours years, he edited the magazine CONSERVATIVE JUDAISM. In 1999, the national organization, Religion in American Life honored him as their clergyman of the year. Books by Rabbi Kushner: When Children ask about God : A Guide for Parents Who Don't Always Have All the Answers (Schocken, 1995) When Bad Things Happen to Good People (Anchor, 2004) The Lord is My Shepard (Anchor, 2004) When All You've Ever Wanted Isn't Enough - The Search for a Life That Matters (Fireside, 2002) How Good Do We Have To Be? (Back Bay Books, 1997) Who Needs God? (Fireside, 2002) Living A Life That Matters (Anchor, 2002) To Life! The Celebration Of Jewish Being and Thinking (Warner Books, 1994) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Purchase Captivate from House of Fusion, a Macromedia Authorized Affiliate and support the CF community. http://www.houseoffusion.com/banners/view.cfm?bannerid=52 Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:177287 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
