One Down, Sixty-Five To Go

If you are participating in our “Daily Bread” (Chronological Bible) group, then hopefully you are off to a good reading start this year! We are now finished reading Genesis, the first of the 66 books of the Bible, which contains some of the oldest stories in the scriptures. Next up is another very ancient story, the story of Job.

But let’s pause for a moment to consider what we’ve seen so far.

Continue reading →

The Women of Genesis

In our “Chronological Bible” reading this week, we came across a few more well-known stories in the first half of Genesis. Tara and I found ourselves discussing several of these stories from time to time, especially those stories that were surprising or troublesome in some way or another. Let’s take stock of what we have seen so far:

  • Abraham passes off his wife Sarah as his sister in Egypt.
  • Sarah gives her servant girl Hagar to Abraham as a wife. After Hagar gives birth to Ishmael, Sarah has her (and the child) kicked out of the household.
  • Lot very nearly sends his own two daughters outside to be raped by the men of Sodom.
  • Lot’s wife is suddenly and inexplicably (other than the “look back” to Sodom) turned into a pillar of salt.
  • Lot’s two daughters choose to sleep with their father and have (grand)children by him.
  • Abraham passes off his wife Sarah as his sister again, this time because of King Abimelech. Meanwhile, the women of Abimelech’s household are afflicted with infertility because of this situation.
  • Isaac passes off his wife Rebekah as his sister, again because of King Abimelech.
  • Esau learns that his parents don’t like him marrying foreign women, so he marries another one.
  • Jacob marries Leah, even though he wanted to marry (and thought he was marrying) her sister Rachel.
  • Leah and Rachel are portrayed as petty competitors for the most children with their husband Jacob. To this end, two other women (slave girls) are given to Jacob as his wives.

…and that’s just from twenty chapters of Genesis! Do you notice a pattern here? How is it that so many stories in the first book of the Bible have such a negative slant against the women in the stories? Sure, ancient Middle Eastern culture tended to be rather patriarchal in nature – and many cultures around the world today, including our own, still tend to favor men to varying degrees.

Having a patriarchal culture is one thing, but telling so many stories that portray women in such a negative light is another thing. What is going on here?

I can’t really make sense of this. The women of Genesis get a pretty bad rap, and I don’t have a good explanation. They are mistreated, abused, neglected, and disrespected on multiple occasions. The important overarching story of Genesis is God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the twelve sons (all men). The sign of the covenant is circumcision (only for men). In many cases, the women seem expendable.

Maybe the best conclusion to draw is simply to make sure that the same thing does not happen in our world today. Maybe the experience of reading these stories in Genesis should compel us all – men and women alike – to treat women with utmost respect in our everyday experiences, our churches, our schools, our workplaces, our government, and our homes.

I encourage you to read about a present-day movement emphasizing gender equality (#HeForShe) at this website: www.heforshe.org

Pastor David

Not a January 3 Christian

I don’t want to be a “January 3 Christian.”

Many of us at Mt. Haley are reading the Bible all the way through during this new year. We are using the so-called “Chronological Bible,” which rearranges the biblical text into the order, more or less, in which the events in the Bible occurred. This will help us draw connections among the stories of the various books of the Bible, and by the end of 2015, we will have read all 66 books in their entirety.

I intend to write a post each week to share some of my reflections as I read the scriptures with you this year. And as we get started, my first thought is simply this:

I don’t want to be a “January 3 Christian.”

The first readings of the Chronological Bible are similar to many Bible-in-a-year reading plans: we covered the first several chapters of Genesis. In the first three days of the year, we have read Genesis 1-9, which contain many well-known stories:

Creation. Adam and Eve. The fall. Cain and Abel. Noah and the flood.

And we still have 362 days to go. It’s only January 3! There is so much more to the Bible than just these first few stories.

I have heard Christians argue that we have to defend a literal six-day creation in order to believe in the death and resurrection of Jesus. I have heard Christians say that without a literal apple(?) in a literal garden, everything else in scripture becomes meaningless. I have heard Christians say that modern-day weather events might be a sign of the end times, because God promised (remember) that he wouldn’t destroy the earth by a flood again – but earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis and the like are apparently fair game for divine wrath.

Why do we emphasize these stories from early Genesis so much? Why do we make them the litmus test for true Christian faith? Why do we urge ourselves to be “January 3 Christians”?

If you love these early stories, keep on loving them. But please keep in mind that we have yet to read over 99% of the Bible.  What if the best is yet to come?

What if Genesis 1-9 just gets the ball rolling so we can find out what God is really up to in his relationship with humanity?

Keep reading, friends, and let’s keep up the conversation.

Pastor David

In the Beginning

The Gospel according to John opens with three famous words: “In the beginning…”  On this, the first Sunday of 2014, Pastor David preaches on John 1:1-18, a passage which introduces to us the Word of God:  Jesus Christ himself.  How can this Word and the light he brings into the world transform our lives?  Listen in to this week’s sermon!

Listen now!