The Invention of Religion (1)

But I confess this to you, that in accordance with the Way, which they call a sect, I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and is written in the Prophets;  Acts 24:14 NASB Sect – If you’ve been following my comments on Daniel Boyarin’s book Border Lines, you…

Painful Days – A Reflection

Have mercy on me, LORD, for I am wretched.  Heal me, for my limbs are stricken.  Psalm 6:2  Robert Alter My limbs – On the 30th of April of this year, I wrote a piece about the excruciating pain I was experiencing in my left knee.  I asked for your prayers (thank you).  I wrote…

Israel’s Open Heart

However, Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all she had, Joshua spared; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.  Joshua 6:25  NASB Spared – English nuances often make big differences in translated Hebrew.  In this verse, the Hebrew…

The Problem with Consonants

Be still before the Lord  and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways,  when they carry out their wicked schemes.  Psalm 37:7   NIV Wait patiently – What do you do with a messy grammar?  Do you stick with traditional readings?  Or do you entertain alternatives?  And what do you do when there’s no…

Ignorance Is No Excuse

The Lord spoke To Moses, saying: Speak to the Israelite people thus: When a person unwittingly incurs guilt in regard to any of the Lord’s commandments about things not to be done and does one of them–  Leviticus 4:1-2 JPS Unwittingly incurs guilt – “But I didn’t know!”  We’d like to believe that this justification…

When Is a Curse Invalid?

At that time Joshua pronounced this solemn oath: “Cursed before the Lord is the one who undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho: ‘At the cost of his firstborn son  he will lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest   he will set up its gates.’”  Joshua 6:26  NIV Solemn oath – Who is involved in this oath is…