One of the easiest questions for me to answer is, “John, what’s your favorite scripture that relates to footwear?”
It’s this one:
When brothers live together and one of them dies and has no son…[the widow’s brother-in-law] shall go in to her and take her to himself as wife and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her…And if he persists and says, ‘I do not desire to take her,’ then his brother’s wife shall come to him in the sight of the elders, and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face; and she shall declare, ‘Thus it is done to the man who does not build up his brother’s house.’ In Israel his name shall be called, ‘The house of him whose sandal is removed.’ – Deut. 25:5
Removing a sandal in Old Testament times meant something different than it does today.
To the ancient Jews, removing a shoe symbolized disgrace.
Going barefoot in church today just means you’re a hip worship leader.
Before women’s liberation, welfare, and #metoo it was disgraceful for a man to allow his brother’s widow to live without resources.
Old Testament law made provisions for women who found themselves alone.
The evil Patriarchy at work!
Thankfully, we no longer suffer under the regressive idea that men ought to take care of women.
We’re not enslaved by familial responsibilities.
Relationships don’t require commitment or personal obligations anymore.
In western civilization, everybody gets what they want!
Women get to be strong, independent, and self-sufficient.
And men get to keep both sandals.
32 Responses
Amen, John! One of the sweetest examples of this principle at work is Jesus on the cross, making arrangements for His mother, “When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.” Makes me cry. The Lord leaves no one behind, forgotten and alone.
But yeah, that barefoot thing in church now being hip, I just don’t get it! Funny you should say that, last week we had some shoes just tossed out in the aisle. Being a smart alec, I actually wondered what would happen if I just popped off my bra and added it to the pile of shoes? Pastor kept looking at me sideways. Pretty sure he was reading my mind and probably praying I wouldn’t do it.
A worn out argument that’s tried and true,
Straight out of the atheist’s playbook
God condones slavery shame on you
And though it’s not even close
they trumpet it until their blue
While it may not not their argument number on,
It sure seem like number two.
My humble attempt at rhyming.
Don’t worry about rhyming, Jeff. 🙂 Chris simply started something he couldn’t continue…
I think the best analogy for the moral dilemma is outer space. It’s a void… There is nothing out there and no way to tell which way is “up” or “down.” An Atheist can kick and flail all he wants… But to say he’s moving anywhere (or that he’s doing “better” or “worse” than someone else) simply doesn’t make sense unless he makes up some arbitrary point of reference to measure from.
Most Atheists point to “culture” or “society” as their benchmark. In other words, they have grouped together a whole pile of people, floating in the middle of the outer space void, and if all of them can agree about which way is up and which is down, then they can be pleased with themselves.
The Floating Herd has taught Chris that survival is “better” than death, and the Floating Herd pats him on the head when he kicks and flails in a way that they approve. But the whole lot of them are still floating in a void, where they’re only pretending that “up” and “down” (and “better”) exist.
Here’s to hoping someday he might get pulled into the Son.
I see whatcha did there… 😉
Jeff made a lame-ass pun
On Yahweh’s famous Son
I’m going to drop out of this thread, Jeff, because I don’t have anything more poignant to say to a Floater who isn’t phased by the lack of solid ground.
In the future, I recommend talking directly to me or JB, rather than replying to the Smooth Chimp. (He appears to be like Ark, in that he has his responses ready, regardless of what anyone else says.) I don’t know how long he’ll try to get your attention, but it might be fun to take bets… 🙂
Don’t worry about rhyming, Jeff. Just concentrate on spelling correctly. Then we’ll work on your logic.
Pick a question, any question.
The Atheist won’t answer.
A soulless troll; bag of flesh,
Must become a dancer.
A mulatto
An albino
A mosquito
My libido
Move over Kurt Cobain! There’s a new Queen of the non-sequitur, and her name is Amand.. no, Sarah Huckabee Sanders!
I’m offended.
Everyone knows the best verse about footwear is Psalm 60:8.
#GodThrowsShoes
I didn’t say it was “the best” verse about footwear. I said it was my favorite.
You can disagree without fear of blocking or banning. I encourage free dialogue.
After women’s liberation, welfare and, and #metoo, it’s disgraceful to sexually harass them, stalk them, smack them ’round, and, you know, generally kill them.
Fortunately, morality evolves, like everything else, and we live in somewhat better times than those Old Testament peasants.
Didn’t rhyme.
You like the rhymes, huh?
I’ll try to keep them coming.
Anybody can write what you just wrote. Make it rhyme and you’ll at least get creativity points.
Well, you or John wouldn’t have written it, of course. But you’re right: most people these days will offer something fairly similar in sentiment. It’s just the way the West is headed, for the most part.
The fundies were heard to weep and moan:
“These atheists are fanatical!
They just won’t leave us alone
And JB’s on a sabbatical!”
There, now. Satisfied?
Nope. At least 60% of that comment wasn’t a poem.
Fox, box, rocks, buttocks…
You’re still being kind of lazy by slapping poems in between…
You’re being very fundamentalist with these demands, Sarah. Can’t a boy mix things up a little, for the sake of variety?
But thanks for suggesting “buttocks.” You’re funny.
“ALWAYS happy to write another,”
That’s what he said to me.
Do those lips kiss his mother
Before lying through those teeth?
Where did evolving morality come from? It has always been disgraceful to treat people in a way you would not want to be treated.
Really? So why did Yahweh endorse slavery in the OT?
I’ll answer you when you answer me. I will say it’s like the mods here they allow your rhymes but don’t endorse them.
“Why DON’T you endorse slavery, Smooth Chimp?”
Feel free to use my question as your own, Jeff. 😉
Must we do this with EVERY SINGLE HEATHEN?
https://johnbranyan.com/lets-enslave-the-heathen/
Yes… The Heathen are VERY interested in slavery. 🙂
I would be, too, if my only reason for opposing it were the same reason a cat follows laser pointers. (Natural Instinct.) I would be a little troubled by the fact that morality is just as “arbitrary” as our evolution of five fingers instead of six, so I would spend a lot of time talking with Christians, begging them to give me something better to bank on.
Yes…the priests are VERY interested in raping the kids.
Yes…the churches are VERY interested in covering it up.
Yes…YHWH is VERY interested in allowing it to happen, VERY interested in not preventing it.
Yes…Christians are VERY interested in evoking the myth of God-given free will to account for why people do bad, bad things.
Yes…ethical minded Christians are VERY interested in leaving organized religion in droves.
Yes… those rusted-ons who remain are VERY interested in pretending things will go back to as before.
And so on…
If Jesus or Paul had actually spoken out against slavery in the first place, maybe Christians in the US wouldn’t have practiced it for quite so long.
Nice try though, John.
I’ll take that one, if you don’t mind, Jeff.
Because I’m more moral than your god, Sarah.
Here’s an unremarkable anecdote for you: unlike your god, I actually intervene when women, and sometimes men, are being assaulted. If I could intervene to prevent children being raped, or people being enslaved, I would. Your god doesn’t, and only someone as dependent on obsolete biblical pronouncements would ask something so silly as: “Why DON’T you et cetera….?”
Next silly question.
Put down the Bible, Chris.
What do you think “God” means?
Your answer is as illogical as saying “I’m an even winning-er winner than YOUR winner!” Lol.
It’s very simple, Jeff.
Ancient tribes, then societies, and finally civilizations tried out different moral codes, to foster and enable group cohesion. Over time, those moral codes that worked better got “selected” for; those that didn’t, like slavery, eventually got “selected” against. Humans are capable of being, in their better moments, more moral than the gods they created to enforce and legitimize said moral codes.
See? Not hard.
Now: why did Yahweh endorse slavery in the first place?
Apparently Chris believes freedom is BETTER than slavery!
He just acknowledged good moral evolution moves us closer to Perfection.
(And, I assume, bad moral evolution would move us the other direction.)
Do you suppose he realizes what he’s saying?