Re: intuition ( wasRe: dreaming and remembering)

[Guest guest]

>Deanna:

Aren't you talking about *intuition* here? Do you know why intuition

and premonition are more often than not associated with women rather

than with men? My own wife is almost infallible with her intuitions...

However, in the Bible (just to touch on religion again), all the

prophets were men, weren't they? Perhaps the Bible is a masculine opus:

written by men, to be read by men... Just a thought.

José

Oh, J.C. ! Now you are flaunting your Biblical ignorance ;-) There was Miriam,

the sister of Moses (Exodus 15:30)--famous for her song-writing abilities. Then

there was Deborah the Prophetess (Judges 4-5), an Israeli national leader.

Then, in the New Testament, there was (Luke 2), the 84-year old widow who

was one of the first to recognize the Christ Child. All of these ladies were

specifically referred to as being prophetic. The Bible was penned by men, but

it is not masculine. It is full of passages where women were influential, both

in positive and negative ways.

Rebekah

[Guest guest]

José-,

>However, in the Bible (just to touch on religion again), all the

>prophets were men, weren't they? Perhaps the Bible is a masculine opus:

>written by men, to be read by men... Just a thought.

>

Polygyny was common in the Bible, but not polyandry. Only male children

were counted in the census. But then dragons, unicorns and flying

serpents are mentioned in the Bible as well, so I don't know what it all

means. The most disturbing verse to me is:

Hosea 9:16 - Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear

no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved

fruit of their womb.

Deanna

[Guest guest]

On 7/21/05, Deanna Wagner <hl@...> wrote:

> José-,

>

> >However, in the Bible (just to touch on religion again), all the

> >prophets were men, weren't they? Perhaps the Bible is a masculine opus:

> >written by men, to be read by men... Just a thought.

> >

> Polygyny was common in the Bible, but not polyandry.

Lots of behaviors are common in the Bible, given its historical

narrative. Probably every sin imaginable under the sun is mentioned

there. One could just as well say *sin* is common in the Bible, though

its presence and description doesn't tell us whether that is how

people OUGHT to behave. It is just a historical and present reality.

> Only male children

> were counted in the census.

Given the purpose of most census, i.e. gov't theft...er I mean

taxation, that wouldn't be unusual at all in the ancient world given

that men generally paid the taxes.

> But then dragons, unicorns and flying

> serpents are mentioned in the Bible as well, so I don't know what it all

> means.

These terms (and others) were quite common in the ancient world, from

Aristotle to the early Church Fathers. Unicorns ( " one horned " animals)

are described all over the place in ancient literature as real one

horned animals that could not be tamed. There is even a rhinoceros

whose scientific term is rhinoceros unicornus, the Indian Rhinoceros,

that fits that description.

http://snipurl.com/gexq

Rhinoceros unicornis

" The biblical unicorn may have been a wild ox, but the great Indian

rhinoceros is similar to a unicorn: it has a single horn, usually

about 53 cm long, and it is very hard to find, being among the rarest

mammals in the world today.

The Rhino's horn is not a true horn, but consists of compressed hair,

and the animal prefers to defend itself with its canine teeth with

which it can make horrible gashes. Rhinos became extinct in America

long ago, and are becoming much scarcer in other parts of the world,

but there are still five species remaining: two in Africa and three in

Asia. They are the largest land mammals after the elephant and weigh

from 1,800 to 3,600 kg. "

And the translators of the Authorized Version put " rhinoceros " in the

margin when referring to the unicorn. Clearly these descriptions refer

to some real animal, even if we today aren't sure what animal it was.

But even so, the terms are often used metaphorically. The

Christological Psalm (Psalm 22) referring to the crucifixion of Christ

mentions a unicorn! There has never been any mention of a literal

unicorn present at His crucifixion, LOL!

Where we run into problems is when we fill these words with our modern

mythical understandings of such animals and become " western

literalists " regarding the OT, a practice common among skeptics who

normally decry such when they find a " fundamentalist " using such an

approach.

> The most disturbing verse to me is:

>

> Hosea 9:16 - Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear

> no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved

> fruit of their womb.

Hosea 9:1 says : " Rejoice not, O Israel, for joy, as other people: for

thou hast gone a whoring from thy God, thou hast loved a reward upon

every cornfloor. "

Thus you have the *context* of verse 16, God is speaking to Israel

about the consequences of their *spiritual* adultery, i.e. chasing

after strange gods. It is a common theme throughout the Old Testament.

In fact that is one of the themes of the book of Hosea, God's

judgement on the spiritual whoredom, if you will, of Israel.

However that is not the *primary* theme of Hosea. The *adultery* of

Israel is used as a backdrop for the *love* of God. Notice how many

times Hosea not only rescues his wife from prostitution and adultery,

but welcomes her home again and again and again and again and

again.....

The name " Ephraim " often represents the northern tribe of Israel but

was originally one of the twelve IIRC, but curiously does not appear

among the 12 tribes mentioned in Revelation as receiving the seal of

God.

In the middle of the chapter (verse 10) we find this:

" I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as

the first ripe in the fig tree at her first time: but they went to

Baal-peor, and separated themselves unto that shame; and their

abominations were according as they loved. "

A description of the history of Israel, how God found them when they

were lost, called them, loved them, but Israel went after strange gods

(Baal) and suffered the consequences thereof.

This passage is reminiscent of Christ in the NT who literally cried

over Israel, saying how He wanted to take them into His bosom, but

alas they had rejected Him.

The last verse in the chapter, right after the one you find the most

disturbing, verse 17, says this:

" My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him:

and they shall be wanderers among the nations. "

In others words, Hosea is describing, in very graphic and often

metaphorical terms, the consequences of Israel turning away from God

and cavorting with strange gods.

The NT continues the pattern, for example 24 is very graphic,

though symbolic description of the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70,

perhaps the most neglected event of the ancient world.

I find it disturbing as well, but probably for a different reason than you do.