Thinking about God

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Thinking about God

• An exploration of the divine

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The Creation

• In (the) beginning when God created the heavens
  and the earth, the earth was a formless void and
  darkness covered the face of the deep, while a
  wind from God swept over the face of the waters

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Notes

• God is the first subject of the text
• The time of creation is not specified it is at
  a beginning
• Tohu and bohu -- not creatio ex nihilo or
  creation from nothing

• Tehom or the deep is related to the Akkadian word
  tiamat the goddess of the ocean in the
  Mesopotamian Enuma Elish
• Ruach is wind, breath, or spirit

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An Orderly Creation

• Day 1 Light
• Day 2 Waters separated by heaven as a barrier
• Day 3 Dry Land and Vegetation
• Day 4 Sun, Moon, and Stars

• Day 5 Birds and Fish
• Day 6 Animals and Humanity
• Day 7 rest
• Days go by Jewish order evening and morning

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Hebrew Cosmology
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View of God

• First Subject always exists no beginning and
  no end
• Can order the forces of chaos with words alone
• Judges the outcome and declares much of the work
  good or very good.
• Proverbs 8 says wisdom is the master worker God
  creates first

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Compare the second view of God

• Gen 24b-324
• God fashions a human from the ground and breathes
  life into it (27) and then planted a garden
• Tries (and fails a lot) to create a partner fit
  for the human (218-20)
• Builds a woman out the mans rib (221-25)

• Walks around in the garden (38)
• Does not seem to automatically know what is going
  on (311)
• Dispenses consequences (314-19), but fears the
  power of the humans (322)

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The Fickleness of God

• Gen 65-6 The Lord saw that the wickedness of
  humankind was great in the earth, and that every
  inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was
  only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry
  that he had made humankind on the earth, and it
  grieved him to his heart.
• Compare Gen 611 Now the earth was corrupt in
  Gods sight, and the earth was filled with
  violence. .etc.

• Gen 821 And when the Lord smelled the pleasing
  odor, the Lord said in his heart, I will never
  again curse the ground because of humankind, for
  the inclination of the human heart is evil from
  youth, nor will I ever again destroy every living
  creature as I have done.

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Chagall The Flood
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A Penchant for Destruction???

• Gen 1817 Shall I hide from Abraham what I am
  about to do?
• The bargaining between Abraham and God
• Starts at 50
• Goes to 45
• Then to 40
• Down to 30
• On to 20
• Finally to 10

• Destroying the righteous with the wicked is the
  issue
• V 25 concludes Shall not the Judge of all the
  earth do what is just?

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Demanding

• Tells Abram to leave country and kin and he
  does without question
• Promises him a child, but makes him wait until
  almost impossibly late
• Once Isaac is born, asks for the sacrifice of
  this child .God tested Abraham ..Take your
  son, your only one whom you love, Isaac.

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Another Image
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