--- In [email protected], "sparaig" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > --- In [email protected], "authfriend" <jstein@> wrote: > > > > --- In [email protected], bob_brigante <no_reply@> > > wrote: > > > > > > --- In [email protected], "authfriend" <jstein@> > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > --- In [email protected], bob_brigante <no_reply@> > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > > "Listen to how Joshua and Caleb describe the inhabitants of > > > Canaan > > > > the > > > > > people who rightfully possess the land the Israelites want to > > > > > seize: "Have no fear then of the people of the country, for > > they > > > are > > > > > our prey" (my italics). "Prey"that's a breathtaking and > > > sinister > > > > > word! Again we're reminded that the Torah is not aspiring to be > > > a > > > > book > > > > > for everyone. It is not preaching universal truth for all men. > > > It is > > > > > the work of a single tribe at war with everyone around it. > > Their > > > > > enemies were not human: They were prey." > > > > > > > > > > http://www.slate.com/id/2146473/entry/2146669/?nav=tap3 > > > > > > > > > > > > > > I'm sorry, but it's just plain silly to pull some > > > > negative-sounding bit out of a scripture written > > > > thousands of years ago, then turn around and point > > > > fingers at the people whose scripture it is and > > > > sneer, See? See? > > > > > > > > > > The point I was making was that things have not changed over the > > > course of thousands of years -- "a single tribe at war with > > > everyone around it." > > > > Obviously. That's the "point" I was saying was > > silly. > > > > > As far as your claim that this is scripture belonging > > > only to Jews, > > > > I did not make such a claim, Bob. Don't put words in > > my mouth, please. > > > > that's not true, as the Book of Numbers is part of > > > both Christian and Islamic tradition. If you don't like the tone of > > > Numbers 13, you probably will also not like Numbers 31, in which > > > Moses tells his soldiers to kill everybody in an enemy tribe, > > > except virgin girls: > > > > Says Bob, completely missing *my* point. > > > > And Jesus said one should hate one's mother > > and father and not even bother to give them > > a decent burial when they die (in a scripture > > that's considerably less ancient). > > > > You can find things that sound offensive to > > modern sensibilities in virtually any ancient > > scripture. > > > > We mock Christian fundies for taking the Bible > > literally, then we turn around and do the same > > thing when we want to slam Jews. > > > > In many if not most cases, such passages in > > ancient scripures are either metaphorical in > > some sense, or aren't the point of the scripture > > at all; or they reflect the way the society > > thought *then*, in a vastly different time and > > vastly different situations. > > > > As I pointed out to Curtis not long ago, the > > Jews have a long, long history of humanitarian > > ethics and social-justice activism on behalf of > > the poor and oppressed, all grounded in the very > > same scriptures you and he hold up to scorn. > > Different part of the scriptures.
Yes and no. But the point being, the existence of the "bad" parts hasn't somehow turned the Jews into an unethical people. Curtis had said: "I am always amazed when the bible is held up as a moral standard to follow and to expose to children. It makes me think, 'have you actually read that book?'" That's such an extraordinarily shallow perspective. To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
