Monday, September 30th Julia Petewon Julia borrowdalej@lanecc.edu

<title>Monday, September 30th Julia Petewon Julia borrowdalej@lanecc.edu</title>
Religions of the Middle East<br>
Monday,September 30th<br>
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2 Announcements:<br>
  -33rd Annual Philosophy Lectureship @ Linnfield College<br>
  *Is Integrity Just Another Business Advantage? Wed., Oct. 9th @6pm<br>
  *Is Love Biology or is it a Social Invention? Thurs., Oct. 10th @8pm<br>
  -Add Exodus 20 to reading assg.(it was meant to be read the 1st assg.)<br>
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Reviewed:<br>
  -Hebrew Bible = Tanakh<br>
  -Pentateuch(Torah) = 1st 5 books of the Bible<br>
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Mentioned the typo on syllabus: supposed to say Monday class and not MWF<br>
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Comparing Genesis 1 and 2 creation stories<br>
Genesis1:<br>
  -Elohim ="God" or "gods" depending on context or grammar<br>
  -Old Testament was not polytheistic<br>
  -Elohim is used also w/singular verbs<br>
  -less detail about creation of man and woman<br>
  -the order of creation: light, heaven/earth, sea, sun, moon, stars, fish, birds, bugs, mammals, man<br>
  -man is given dominion over everything<br>
  -more grandiose and "cosmic"<br>
  -structured, orderly<br>
  -God seems more transcendent(above it all)<br>
Genesis2:<br>
  -Yahweh(God's personal name)<br>
  -Yahweh Elohim(The God Yahweh)<br>
  -a lot of detail and concentrating on man and woman<br>
  -the order of creation:  mists, man, animals, woman(Eve)is made from Adam's rib as a companion<br>
  -man is caretaker of the world<br>
  -more anthropomorphic(human-like)antropos=man morphic=shape or form<br>
  -God speaks, walks, displays emotions<br>
  -God doesn't seem omniscient(all knowing)<br>
  -God is immanent<br>
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Epic of Gilgamesh and Mesopotamian texts<br>
2 Stories similar to Genesis-Babylonian Stories:<br>
  -Enuma Elish-version of creation<br>
  *world is created when Marduk slays the dragon Tiamat and the world comes out of her(Tiamat's) corpes<br>
  -Epic of Gilgamesh<br>
  *hero named Gilgamesh and his sidekick Enkinu, battle the gods<br>
  *Enkinu dies and Gilgamesh looks for immortality<br>
  *he goes to the Babylonian Noah, Upknapishtem, to find the secret of immortality<br>
  *Up... tells Gilgamesh the location of the plant that gives immortality<br>
  *Gilgamesh finds the plant, falls asleep, and the snake eats the plant getting the immortality<br>
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Genesis 3 The Fall of Man<br>
Consequences of eating the forbidden fruit:<br>
God said "In the day you eat of it you will die"  <br>
Serpent said you won't die, your eyes will  open, you will be like God, you will know good and evil<br>
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Misc. Notes:<br>
  -cheribum=angel<br>
  -nephilem=race of giants(prof. will find source)<br>
  -Prof. handed out the next reading assg.<br>
  -discussed possible exam questions<br>
  -test will be mostly from study questions<br>
  -he will give study guide<br>
  -handed out larger print sylibus<br>
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Etiological Stories-explain why things are the way they are<br>
  -pain in childbirth-curse<br>
  -why men have to work hard/why farming is difficult<br>
  -Patriarchy=man's rule over women, woman is to desire her husband<br>
  -death/mortality<br>
  -sin(disobedience to God)"sin nature"<br>
  -language differences and separate nations<br>
  -fear of snakes/why snakes slither on the ground<br>
  -clothes and modesty<br>
  -rainbows-promise that the earth would never be destroyed by flood again<br>
  -stars, sun and moon to tell time and seasons<br>
  -why God doesn't just start over w/the world<br>
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Noah's Story-God destroys the earth except the righteous<br>
  -group responsibility: Exodus 20<br>
Noah: Ham, Shem, Japeth<br>
  Ham: Canaan(cursed by Noah to make him and all his descendents slaves)<br>
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Abraham-Father of Judaism-would have lived 2000 BC<br>
   name changed from Abram=exhaulted father<br>
                to Abraham=father of a multitude/many<br>
Abraham was the 1st "Jew"(practitioner of this religion<br>
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First 2-way covanent between God and Man:<br>
  -covenant of circumcision<br>
  -God will make him father of nations<br>
  -Abraham and all his descendents would be circumcised<br>
Patriarchs=father/ruler<br>
  -Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob<br>
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Abraham and Sarah had Isaac<br>
Abraham and Hagar(Sarah's handmaid)had Ishmael who settles in Northern Arabia and who Muslims now claim to be descendents from<br>
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Jacob changed to Israel, had 12 sons who became the 12 tribes of Israel<br>
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Genesis 18: Who were the men in the story? <br>
  -God and 2 angels<br>
Genesis 22: Abraham is commanded to sacrifice Isaac-loyalty test<br>
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Mulech-god that was worshiped by sacrificing the firstborn baby on the hot statue<br>
  -emphasis on obedience<br>
  -Book: Fear and Trembling by Soren Kierkegaard<br>
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Israel-the name means "he wrestled with God"<br>
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epiphany=appearance of God in human form<br>
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Early stories like in Genesis-very human-like language to describe God<br>
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Exodus3:14<br>
  -When God says who he is to Moses<br>
  -Moses mentions other gods, so others exist in the story but only Yahweh is supposed to be worshiped<br>
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Early Judaism<br>
  -monolotry=worship of one God (even if others exist)<br>
  -anthropomorphic<br>
Later Judaism<br>
  -monotheism=only one God exists, God is transcendent, all powerful, all knowing, a spirit<br>
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