In a message dated 7/31/2006 2:02:49 PM Eastern Standard Time,
dopderbeck@gmail.com writes:
You're being disingenuous aren't you?
No. The discussion was about Christianity, not specifically about the OT. I
didn't shift it there; that's where it was.
and mistakenly assumed anyone who was a Christian would know that love was
not universal in the old but confined to the "chosen." I thought the difference
between the old and the new testaments was common knowledge, yet you don't
seem to appreciate the very core of supercession.
I don't agree with what I perceive to be your understanding of God's love.
God's love is constant, as it is a basic attribute of His character, and it was
available to all prior to the coming of Christ.
The discussion is always about Christianity, but here is what I responded to.
You wrote it:
In a message dated 7/31/2006 10:14:18 AM Eastern Standard Time,
dopderbeck@gmail.com writes:
It seems entirely appropriate to me in response to that premise to separate
the conduct of some Christians from the teachings and ideals of the Bible.
Yes, some people calling themselves "Christians" ripped some Bible passages out
of context and distorted them to support evils like Apartheid.
You spoke of "bible" above, that is the old and the new, but you couldn't
possibly be talking about the new testament in relation to apartheid. Judaism is
a tribal religion by definition and by definition you can expect to find OT
content that reflects their tribal affinities. They are chosen by God.
Christianity is a universal religion. If you choose God, you are welcome. There is a
vast difference between a tribal religion and a universal religion as reflected
in the OT and the NT.
"The Hebrew people, as the Books of the Old Testament testify, were aware to
a unique degree of God’s love for them, manifested in the form of a gratuitous
covenant with him. In this sense, since they were the object of a choice and
a promise, the Hebrew people stood apart from others. The criterion of
distinction, however, was God’s plan of salvation unfolded in history. Israel was
considered the Lord’s very own among all peoples."
From: The Church and Racism: Towards a More Fraternal Society issued by the
Pontifical Commission for Justice and Peace - November 3, 1988 Roger Cardinal
Etchegaray, President, Jorge Mejia, Vice President
If you think the constant of God's love was available to all before the
coming of Christ, you missed the old covenant.
"Observe all I command you this day and I for my part will drive out before
you the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the
Hivites and the Jebusites. Be careful not to make a covenant with the natives
of the land against which you are going, or they will prove a snare in your
midst." Exodus 34 (10-14)
No: you shall demolish their altars, smash their sacred pillars and cut down
their sacred poles.”
What of these people who are driven out? Where is the constant of God's love?
Have you been invited to join any orthodox community lately? They don't
proselytize.
You didn't make it clear that any quotes coming out of biblical context that
were used to promote apartheid could only come from the OT.
I made it clear. I also made the nature of supercession obvious. Christianity
is morally superior to Judaism because it is all inclusive and not elitist or
ethnically based.
rich faussette
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Received on Mon Jul 31 17:55:09 2006
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