I'm going to relay an example by telling of a message I was told of another's message. So there will be a loss of communication and probably a loss in the original speaker's theme. However, it is a good example.
I was told that a talk show host had a Rabbi on the show. They were discussing the Tower of Babel and the implications for today's society. The Rabbi was explaining the Hebrew practices for establishing monuments to God through the compiling of stones. Stones were used as representations of people because every stone is different, like every person. The Tower of Babel was constructed with uniform bricks made by Nimrod. These bricks were designed to be exactly the same. The Rabbi posited that the Tower of Babel was a work of uniformity between the people and the use of uniform bricks was significant in that process. At this point, I'm still with the speaker in tacit acquiescence.
Then the Hebrew root of the word "mortar" was described. It means "materialism." It was stated that materialism is holding our society together. So, the assertion was that the story of the Tower of Babel is unbelievably similar to today's society in that we are becoming more uniform and being held together by materialism. And that the Bible is amazingly accurate in its portrayal of the United States of America in 2010 through a story written about the origins of different languages. Of course, all of these ideas must follow the presumption that the Bible has centered its themes on the United States and that the US will be the focal point in history. That is doubtful. If one considers the way the Bible is laid out in form and focus, it seems that the focal point in history is the Nation of Israel and God's people: The Jews.
But of course, that's just one skeptic's opinion.
A correct assumption is one focus of the Bible is those who routinely find organized means to rebell against the authority and supremecy of God and His governance. The building of the Tower of Babel was the record of one such early well managed attempt. Few biblical scholars find any overt reference to the United States in scripture while, as you indicate, commonly agreed to focuses of the Bible are the Nation of Israel and its people.
ReplyDeleteIt's a fascinating thought by the Rabbi. And it's interesting to see God's solution. He creates different languages which would almost permanently separate people. Linguists believe it takes about 50,000 years for an entirely new languange to develop, independent of other roots.
ReplyDeleteThe point which echoes yours is this: if we're really created in the image of God, and we're all fearfully and wonderfully made, aren't we better off rejecting atempts to make us similar?