Jewish Origins

Book Summary

"JEWISH ORIGINS" opens: The seemingly eternal conflict of Israel v Palestine feeds from "the chosen people" to "the promised land" of the Old Testament biblical history. Its claim has been asserted across some three thousand years. What is its substance? The Old Testament was written as an historical, mythological work of the creation of mankind, and within 2,000 years from Adam, Abraham was being recruited by a god to breed an especial nation of priests, working in perpetuity from the land of Canaan = (roughly) Palestine, to convert the peoples of the world to a new religion and improved earthly relationships - ethical monotheism. A noble dream, indeed. The Old Testament largely being composed to this intent. It was necessary, of course, to study many consecutive chapters of the Books of the Old Testament. The trend of the stories, with all of the mythology and complexities, appeared to be quite different from those presented by the various clergy, congregations, and general belief. Upon reflection, however, it is probably due to the clergy and lay members of congregations choosing a couple or so verses here-and-there, on many occasions, about which to form sermons or talking points. Such browsing is inadequate to contemplate the overall picture from the storylines. It is the limitations from that type of browsing that I have overcome, and by doing so have presented a quite different and proper version of that history. The change of circumstances have been proven from material within the Old Testament itself. In its doing much more material has been discussed and commented upon. It was "the chosen people" to "the promised land" which first attracted me interest, and itproved to be a subject which should have been studied and discussed in depth long, long ago by responsible others.

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