Monday, July 12, 2010

Numbers

5:1-4
So a woman has to have leprosy to be on equal terms with a man? The shunning these verses mandate is unjust, unconscionable, and ungodly, but progress is progress.
5:11-29
The Bible once more delves into the realm of the atrocious. The idea that a woman, regardless of innocence or guilt, is automatically condemned if the husband even suspects her of wrongdoing, is...well, atrocious. Oh well, at least it keeps Bible-thumpers from adopting a holier-than-thou attitude toward Muslim misogynists.
11:1-3
We have tales of holy fire descending upon those who displease the Lord, but for often relatively minor infractions. We live in a world surrounded by things that would be staggeringly displeasing to this Lord of the Bible, ergo "holy fire" should be a facet of human existence, if these verses be any record of truth. Also, the concept that the Lord wished to punish, but then changed Its mind when Moses interceded, is not reasonable. An all-knowing being could never change Its mind at the request of a human (nor indeed for any reason). Mind you, it is possible that a "god" exists which does not have complete knowledge; as far as any "true" nature of god is concerned, i claim no insight whatsoever. But supposing that god is not omniscient…many people would, in such a situation (and rightly so) feel anxious about what this god might do. Indeed, doesn't it seem likely that an all-powerful but not all-knowing god would make Its presence known in blatantly undeniable ways? And then, i suppose, people might begin to speculate on the existence of another being, one on a higher plane than "god". There is also another possibility: perhaps god, for some reason, wanted Moses to believe that It was being influenced, when in actuality It wasn't. But such an idea would make god deceitful, which is patently unjust indeed.
11:31-35
The God of these verses is either moody and short-tempered, if It decided to kill Its people after giving them the holy feast, or diabolical, if It planned to kill them all along. Either way, none of these attributes can be reconciled with a supreme being.
17
Non-believers often ask for some tangible proof of God, a "sign", if you will. Often the answer from believers is that religion is a matter of faith, and that the Lord doesn't have to prove Itself, but rather that people must prove themselves. This answer, while not entirely satisfying, is reasonable. However, this chapter says that the Lord is willing to provide a "sign" for those who murmur against It. Therefore, all those who have ever demanded a "sign" have been biblically justified in any and all atheistic conclusions, when no sign was forthcoming.
33:4
This verse seems to imply the existence of other Gods, for the Lord "executed judgements" upon the other peoples' Gods. Doesn't something have to exist for a holy judgement to be executed upon it?

No comments: