Theodicy

I thought alot about theodicy over the weekend. My grandmother lost her husband over thirteen years ago and still suffers his loss. I could never understand why my grandma was left to weep and suffer when she had always been so incredibly kind. I have never even heard her raise her voice, let alone act harshly or unjustly towards others.

Rationalizing theodicy always ends in callousness or a cheapening of the suffering a person feels, so I will not try to attempt such an impossible task. Suffering is there, it is inevitable. I suppose it is just a question of whether or not someone can withstand it long enough to survive and come out with scars rather than fatal wounds.

Jezebel and Wisdom

I have been listening to this song by Iron and Wine called Jezebel. Of course, this is very biblical so I was compelled to read the stories of Jezebel in Kings I and II and the story of the whore of Babylon in Revelations. Here is the song. It is a beautiful song that never fails to put me in a trance with its dreamy voices and subtlely intense guitar lines.

I suppose this man singing the song would fall under the category of one of the patrons of the harlot, but it is so beautifully composed, it causes the listener to feel for this woman and attempt to understand (or know) her. The part of the story that amazes me is the whore upon the beast. I know that the story of Jezebel and the story of the whore of Babylon are two different situations, but it seems that they have strong connections in that they represent women steeped in harlotry and evil. The beast has seven heads and ten horns; the seven heads represent seven mountains and the ten horns represent ten kings. Everything in the Bible seems to happen in tens and sevens-the ten commandments, the ten plagues, seven days of creation, seven years of plenty and seven years of

famine, etc. (and threes and forties of course).

It seems to me that this woman, fallible under the wrath of God, is sitting upon mountains which she deems indestructible. Mountains crumble under the hand of the Lord, though, just as her throne upon the beast crumbles as she is burned to ashes. All she has, basically, is riches and power, but is scorned for her harlotry and sacrilege. This results, of course, in the compromise of her mountains and her beasts which seem representative of her immense wealth and beastly behavior as the whore of Babylon. Just as Jezebel abuses her power, this harlot seems to delight in her riches and walk in the way of the sinful. Also, the name upon her forehead reads: "Mystery, Babylon the Great, The Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth". This seems to mean that she is the mother of all evil women, which would undoubtedly include Jezebel, as well as every other woman that seems to have any mention of length in the Old Testament.

Her name is especially phenomenal. It begins with the word "Mystery". The negative conotation given to that word in this context implies the fear of the unknown. As the viewer gazes in wonderment, the angel says, "Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns." (Rev. 17:7) After her mysteries are revealed, she is destroyed. The fear is no longer a factor, the unknown is known, so in becoming known, she becomes powerless. She is then percieved as nothing but a "Harlot and a Mother of Abominations of the Earth", and this, in its vileness creates for the viewer power over her; the power to look down upon her as inferior and base.

Wisdom is found through this text. When one views, in terror, a sight, but then reconciles this fear with understanding, they are then wise to the ways of the evil that seems so utterly terrifying. Understanding creates comfort, knowing, revelation.

Now back to the mountains... I beleive it is very important to try to realize the importance of mountains in these stories, as well as throughout the rest of the Bible, and I don't think I could ever fully grasp their significance. Jezebel, similar to the whore of Babylon, sits upon mountains of power and wealth, and sacrifices upon mountains or alters to the god Baal. The alters of the false idol, Baal, are her mountains, and upon these she reigns, feigning almighty power and striking fear into the hearts of her citizens. This fear, once again, is the fear of the unknown. Since the power of Baal never manifests itself, it is mysterious and fearsome. --This may be, perhaps, why the Israelites never adequately feared their God; they were too familiar with his power and his ways.-- Importantly, both of these women are smote by the omnipotent hand of God. They are shown as idolatrous and upon losing their mysterious power, destroyed through the medium of their fellow mortals. Thier mountains become mere hills under the fierce vengeance of God and their power is reduced to cinders.

These stories are representative of one of the important egos of women in the Bible: that of the harlot. This is a running theme throughout the Testaments and it will be interesting to explore it further.

Folklore In the Old Testament

I finally finished chapter 1 of Folklore and am relieved but confounded at the same time. Halfway through the chapter I realized I was reading this book and taking it in, but rather than learning the content, I was stuffing it into paradigms and systems wherein I could categorize the meaning. Basically, I was in-depth skimming. I feel I understand the basic aim of the first chapter, which would be to show the instances of creation within all cultures and how they relate to the Bible, but simultaneously I learned none of the stories and I find myself frustrated with this. For the sake of time, though, I will read on and hopefully return to this chapter at a later date to give it the time and attention it deserves.

Bad Day Deja Vu

I should have never posted about the bad day I had with my car. It was bad ju ju for sure, and now I have an equally bad day to post about; a day that gave me one of those eerie moments of deja vu. It was not pleasant deja vu, by the way. I began my day at 6:45, driving out to South 19th to exercise a horse for a lady I'm currently working for. I was driving along, in the dark, not really thinking about or expecting much, when WHAM, I nail a deer. Another self-sacrifice in concern of creating for me a terrible day. Fortunately, I did not have to deal with deer smear this time, and my grill guard wasn't totalled, but I did lose a headlight and a formidable chunk of my left side-panel. Cussing, I drove towards the fateful completion of my wretched existence on this otherwise beautiful October day. Rocky. The horse. What an a-hole. He just couldn't help himself and had to indulge in a nice explosion in the middle of a green, alfalfa-fragranced field which resulted in grass stains on my shoulder and skid marks on my forearm. Not to mention the fact that I landed on my ribcage, of all the places to land, which immediately stole away my air, leaving me helplessly gasping for breath while simultaneously whispering as loudly as I could "I'm going to kill you Rocky, oh you're dead." (a hollow threat, I didn't actually kill the horse) This resulted in a half hour of straight running and a panting Rocky as a result. I felt better when I saw the sweat gathering at his flanks and the tumultuous flare of his nostrils. So much for a refurbished car and trustworthy horses...

David and Batshsheba, Susanna and Peter Quince

It seems obvious at first, the connection between Peter Quince at the Clavier, and Susanna. As Wallace Steven's poem uses the story of Susanna as a metaphor for Peter's love for the clavier, a person may easily stop here in finding connections. Roots of similarity dive deeper than simply this, though. After reading Psalm 51, I was somewhat lost. I, not knowing the stories of David, was unaware of his sin unto Bathsheba and her husband, Uriah the Hittite. I began to read the stories and was lead directly to the story (2 Samuel 11) in the Bible about David's actions leading up to and following his infidelity. He actually raped this woman, beseeched her husband to come home from the war and sleep with his already gestating wife, in turn causing him to believe that he had indeed conceived the child with her. Being a faithful soldier, though, he did not allow himself to sleep with Bathsheeba, since his fellow soldiers were yet in battle. Now guess what Daniel did. The unthinkable...he basically murdered Uriah by sending him to the frontlines of battle. When the Hittite did die, as was inevitable, Daniel took Bathsheba as his wife.

This is a good place to point out gaping instances of lacuna. What was this poor woman, Bathsheba, thinking? She was forcefully taken by Daniel, watched while the same man killed her husband, then was made to marry him, and nothing was said of her emotions throughout this entire ordeal. What was she thinking? It could not have been a pleasant experience for her.

(that was not a digression) Now, back to the bridge between these three stories. Just as Bathsheba was taken advantage of, Susanna experienced the same difficulties. Innocent and unaware, this woman was led into the most decietful trap conceivable. Two old covetous perverts, out of pure lust, nearly had her killed. This woman, without the help of the spirit of Daniel, had absolutely no credibility in which to rely upon in the time of dire need. She was to be beheaded, but was only saved by a miracle.

The poem by Wallace Stevens also shows Susanna's predicament. A line toward the very end is extremely important in deciphering the significance of these passages:

"Susanna's music touched the bawdy strings

Of those white elders; but, escaping,

Left only Death's ironic scraping."

In both the story of David and Bathsheba and the story of Susanna, "death's ironic scraping" manifests itself in all its justice and cruelty. In the case of David, the son he conceives in infidelity dies seven days after birth. "'Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.'" (2Samuel 12:14) Susanna is also redeemed when the spirit of Daniel appears as she is being prepared for execution. The judges responsible for the trial are then asked to reconsider their position and the elder's are found guilty and put to death.

It is as if Daniel is redeeming his sins against Bathsheba by saving the innocent soul of Susanna. He has repented and is fully aware of his transgressions. It is the first instance I have seen thus far of a man defending the rights of a woman. They are beautiful and sad stories that end well for one woman, while another is left in the background. They are also stories of the power of men over women in the Bible. These two victims have basically no defense, unless of course it is in the form of a male savior and they are left to bend to the will any man's whim. When retribution is allotted, though, justice is exacted and the portrayal of women is slightly changed.

Adam on a Bar Stool

"To this explanation of the mark of Cain it may be objected, with some show of reason, that the ghost of Abel is nowhere alluded to in the Biblical narrative, according to which it was not the ghost, but the blood, of his victim which endangered the murderer by calling aloud from the ground for vengeance." James G. Frazer: Folklore in the Old Testament

In a small bar in a small town there sat a man of a Biblical mind set. Innocently, I walked into his trap, that is, after he bought my friend and I a beer. We sat there, talking (or should I say being talked at), and soon the subject shifted to infidelity. He said "If you were in a relationship with a guy and he went out and $%#@$% another woman, would you just dump him on the spot?" I said, "Yes, if he lived through the first twenty minutes after telling me." Then, in his infinite wisdom, he said, "See! That's your problem right there. Men are tempted by women so women should learn to forgive them when they cheat. It's easier for a woman not to cheat because men don't try to tempt them as much and it's not fair that men should be held responsible when they do stuff like that. My wife and I went through that about twenty years ago and she forgave me like she should have." As improbable as this sounds, this dipshit actually had the gall to say these things to me. I just sat there, dumbfounded, speechless, in utter disbelief. I honestly did not think I would ever experience ignorance to this degree. Biblically speaking, though, it was right on the spot. It is, after all, the fault of women (namely Eve), that men are tempted to do evil. I did not want to inform him of the finer points of the Old Testament at this point, though, afraid that it might strengthen his detestable argument. After this conversation, I actually had a fit of laughter, picturing this man on Judgement Day saying about the woman he cheated with, "It was her fault! She made me do it!"

Linda Sexson

Well, we have found Dr. Sexson's match... Listening to Linda Sexson speak for an hour and fifteen minutes was incredible. She used every minute thoroughly and I feel like I learned more than is feasible in that amount of time. I did not know about Judges 19 and the story of the Levite and was disturbed, to put it lightly, upon hearing this story. Part of what made it so powerful, though, was how Linda portrayed it and read it to us. We were all laughing and joking and with brevity noticing the absurdity of the inferior role of women in the Bible when suddenly this story came about in all its horror. She told it slowly, methodically and left it hanging for us to turn over in our minds. Once again, powerful. She made me realize the extremity of the doctrines in the Old Testament and to what extent gender bias was taken. As she said, though, the Levite's concubine was representative of the "feminine", which, in the context of our discussion, was strictly metaphorical or symbolic. As this distinction increased my understanding of the story, it did not succeed to abate my horror at such a gruesome account of human perversion.