FEB 11

Although the idea of the existence of god[s] differs greatly throughout the religions and cultures followed by the human race, the idea of a superior deity has been a common trait in most people and cultures. In Joseph Ratzinger’s, “Prolegomena to the Subject of God”, we observe as he begins the text by explaining the origins of the idea of G-d. He also does more than just this, in also discussing how it has been such a unique idea in that it has persisted with global strength for so much time. The text continues to dive into the idea of how humans have reached contact with G-d. Ratzinger dives into many different themes of motivation, but the theme that most interested me is written in text as: ‘Loneliness is indubitably one of the basic roots from which man’s encounter with God has risen.’. When I consider this theme, I realize when humans feel without company, or mentally lonely; it is in their own thoughts to consider superior beings, almost as if it is an innate trait in humans to have faith in intangible explanations for that which they don’t understand. In my personal opinion, I feel as if the ideas relating to a god or multiple gods derive from the human craving for understanding. The ideas provide a common belief among cultures and comfort in people, which in effect unites many under the same shared comfort. Although I do not have any firm beliefs in any described deity, I feel as if religion is a beautiful thing, and how it has been represented by humans over history amazes me. The cultures and relationships which have been created because of religious and spiritual beliefs are extremely complex and give people from all sorts of backgrounds hope in their lives.

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   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

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   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

FEB 6

Years after the moment in which Joseph’s brothers sold him to Egypt, we observe as Joseph comes across them for the first time since the incident. Joseph realizes that the brothers do not recognize him and decides to take this opportunity to evaluate whether or not his brothers have changed. He therefore decides to test the integrity of the brothers by purposefully framing one of them by placing silverware among brother Benjamin’s belongings. He then stops the brothers while they are leaving in order to ‘see whether one had stolen the silverware or not’. Joseph uses this opportunity to place one of the brothers under a life threatening situation in order to see how the other brothers would react. The brothers then demonstrate the fact that they had indeed changed, and are loving each other. This test served as enough for Joseph to consider the brothers as ‘changed’. With this, he could finally confront them, and reunite with his family. This relates to his original status as the beloved son because the way in which he reacts to the sight of his brothers is representative of what a beloved person would do. After testing his brothers, we see that Joseph simply forgives them for their past actions and accepts the fact that they have changed over the many years which had past.

1. 

   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

2. 

   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

FEB 4

In the book of Genesis, in section the 32 verse, we observe as Jacob sends off his family and in his lone state, faced against a man. The book explains that the two wrestled until daybreak, in the darkness where they could not identify each other. Although there is no true winner, and Jacob ends the fight hurt severely, I consider the victory to still be in his favor. Jacob leaves the skirmish with the Lord’s blessing, which outweighs any repercussion for a man of faith. His opponent is a projection of the Lord himself into the body of a man, which is confirmed in the text as Jacob confirms the presence of God.

1. 

   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

2. 

   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

JAN 28

Wilkens presents a well constructed argument which concludes that faith is a driving factor in the everyday life of a human. He begins to explain how it is we trust people, the objects in our everyday lives, and nearly every existing concept. For example, when you order a Baconator at Wendy’s, you trust that the item you are given is certain to be a quality burger. You trust that the elements which compose it are real, and therefore you act upon it and eat the burger in confidence. The text explains that this is so with many other things, and that this trust in what you are told and what you see is impossible to not have. Wilkens explains that trust also surpasses the material world and transcends into all sorts of human intricacies. These include: placing trust in the witnesses of history’s events who tell the tales, trusting the knowledge taught to one in classes, trust in the theories which serve as the foundation to the sciences, and much more. Wilkens formally states that: “The term believing signals that one is speaking about knowledge that is probable, not certain.” when explaining that the understanding Augustine tries to develop. This argument being that the understanding we have of history is a mere belief, as we can never confirm and know anything for certain. Wilkens uses all of the arguments and explanations presented to conclude that: “Without faith, that is, without confidence in the truthfulness of others, in Augustine’s language, without authority, ‘the sacred bond of the human race’ would be shattered: ‘Nothing would remain stable in human society if we determined to believe only what can be held with absolute certainty.”.

1. 

   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

2. 

   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

JAN 23

Abraham has experienced the might of the Lord various times in the past, therefore he already is aware that his best interests are in following the Lord. Although the text clarifies that it was his fear of the powers of God that led him to nearly sacrifice his son, it would also make sense if Abraham’s self interests were also a motivating factor. Abraham knows that the Lord will provide for him all that has been promised, if and only if he remains obedient. For this reason, Abraham agrees to God’s request. Although he believes he is lying, Abraham and the boy both return as promised by Abraham in the beginning therefore God’s intervention atop the mountain caused Abraham’s lie to become the truth. The same situation occurs when Abraham informs his son, Isaac, that the sacrificial animal will be provided. In asking Abraham to sacrifice his only child, the Lord tests Abraham’s faith and obedience. He does this to ensure that Abraham is righteous and that he is fit to receive the bountiful lineage he is promised. I personally feel as if in this situation, both the Lord and Abraham are equally praiseworthy. Abraham is willing to sacrifice that which is possibly most important to him, his only son, and he can do so with the unrelenting trust and faith he has put in the Lord. This level of faith is not one which can so easily be reached, which is exactly why the sacrifice serves as such an effective means of confirming faith. I believe God is also praiseworthy in this situation because he has learned that he must evaluate carefully whether the humans he interacts with are genuine and right or not.

1. 

   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

2. 

   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

JAN 21

During the account of the first sin, the serpent which convinced Eve to consume the fruit of the forbidden tree does so by creating a sense of temptation in Eve. The serpent uses the innate human desire for understanding to convince both Eve and Adam to take part of the tree’s fruit. Once consumed, they saw that the serpent was in part correct and more importantly, the words of the Lord proved to be incorrect. During these early times in the garden, God had informed each humans of their mortality. The present issue was that God expects obedience and trust from humans, as he is their creator. Yet no human surely knew whether what God said was true or not due to previous accounts, therefore most of those who lived during the times before the first death lived a large portion of their lives with no knowledge of evidence to assure their mortality. Kass points out that Noah was the first human to be born during the time after the first natural death. Therefore, as Noah is the first human to be able to develop in a time where God’s word has proven to be true, he is the first human which God sees fit to rule over the lands which he created. From here, God acts upon his will and essentially resets the world with the purpose of providing a clean slate for Noah to restart humanity. Therefore, Adam and Eve consuming the forbidden fruit and the journey aboard Noah’s arc are much like cause and effect. One could not have happened without the other. Adam and Eve’s first sin inevitably doomed all their offspring but one.

1. 

   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

2. 

   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

JAN 14

In this account, we observe an omnipotent God in his process of creating the world in which we live in. A chronological sequence of creations compose what are sectioned off as seven ‘days’. The use of quotations around the word days is due to the fact that the seven days which are described are not the days we as modern humans are familiar with, as the times of day were not created until the fourth day arrived. On the first day, we observe as God created the universe which surrounds out planet, and created light, to fill the dark and empty void which was the universe at the time. On the second day, God created a space of division between the existing water, this place is to be called heaven. The third day brought the existence of land and in doing so, he also creates vegetation. During the fourth day, God creates what we now as the sun and the moon in order to give the world light. The remaining 3 days are where all animals are created; those of the sea, those of the land, and finally man himself was created. This text not only gives a glimpse of the infinite power of God, but it also begins to give a more advanced meaning to topics which man has questioned for years. For example, on the sixth day, God creates man with a purpose, to rule over all which he has created. The world God created was not for him to dwell on, but for man to rule over instead of him. The resting which takes place on the seventh day is due to the fact that God has now placed humans in charge of the world he created.

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1. 

   I really like how you tied in the theme of death and resurrection. How do you think Moses being alive…

2. 

   I did not think of the theme death and resurrection while reading. However, it does fit in my opinion. However,…

3. 

   I like your reference to the theme of death and resurrection with the succession of Joshua after Moses. However, usually,…

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