Abstract The purpose of this paper is to examine some of the main themes of Amos and Isaiah with regard to their attitude toward idolatry and especially idolatrous women, giving special attention to the historical and literary contexts in which these oracles are located.
From the Paper "The name Amos means ?a burden,? which is the key word to this book. He was suddenly taken from his humble country roots and given the burden of serving as God's prophet. His pleas to the people to repent and predictions of the destruction of Israel made him very unpopular because he ministered at the peak of Israel's material and political success.
"Amos assures the twelve tribes of the destruction of the neighboring nations; and as they at that time gave themselves up to wickedness and idolatry, he reproves the Jewish nation with severity; but describes the restoration of the church by the Messiah, extending to the latter days
(Henry,Matthew Commentary on the Old Testament)."
This paper challenges the conventional historical thought regarding idolatry by discussing Near Eastern idolatry from the idolater's point of view, encompassing ancient Egyptian Isis worship and the Baal cult.
Abstract This paper does not refute the more commonly accepted notions of Near Eastern religious faith as generated by the Hebrew Bible, but, rather, attempts to provide a greater understanding of the ancient Hebrews rejection of the concept of investing "idols" or statues with theological significance. The author points out that this rejection came not from the profound differences between the Israeli religion of the ancient Near East and its neighbors, but from the great similarities between the different cultic practices of Israel, Egypt, and Canaan. The paper reveals that the Israeli religion replaced the sacred space of the idolized body with the body of the temple, and replaced the ritual rhythms of investing the material substance of idols with the sacred space and temporal, seasonal rituals of sacrifice, and the sacrifice of animal, rather than human, offerings.
Table of Contents
Idolatry in the Ancient Near East?a Non-Exodus Perspective
Near Eastern Religion ?Idolatry?"a Historically Rehabilitative Retrospective
Introduction
A Critical Perspective
Israeli Religion
Some Answers
A Rejection of the Familiar and the Past"A New Judaism
A Final Caution
From the Paper "It is also noteworthy that in ancient Israel, the temple itself was constructed in a highly schematized fashion, reflecting the importance of practice. ?Just as the world was created in seven days, so also the Temple was created over seven years. These cycles of seven obviously serve to correlate Temple building with the construction of the world,? and the observing of the rhythms of the Sabbath through a temporal, seven-day weekly structure of accessing the divine through time, rather than through material practices. Rituals and sacrifices pertaining to the material substances of the temple, moreover, were to ?help concretize the manner in which the deity is truly present in the human community.?"
Abstract This paper examines how Christians used the label "idolatry" quite liberally during the Middle Ages to describe the vastly different practices of religious and ethnic groups that they wished to condemn and how the Christians, being the labelers, were immune to this classification, and instead used the plasticity of the term to sanction almost any Christian practice, no matter how similar it may have seemed to their own ideas of idolatry. The paper points out that Christians were able to condemn other religions for their use of images, while glorifying their own with similar practices. The paper thus concludes that Christian condemnation of other religions as idolatrous reflects the ambiguous nature of images, and the ease with which they are misused.
From the Paper "But at times it seemed that Christians did worship the images, offering votives, praying, and attributing miracles to effigies. Large-scale images of saints containing relics were objects of cults from the ninth to twelfth century (Dahl 175). These sculptures were often adorned by precious metals, and were derided by some as blatant idols. However, Christians defended their practices by claiming that they worshipped the memory of the saint, not the object itself. Respect shown to the statue denoted respect to the saint, and the saint jealously guarded her image from heaven (Dahl 178). Bernard, a Christian scholar, regretted dismissing a venerated sculpture of a saint as idolatrous, after realizing that "the statue is honored in memory of the holy martyr in order to glorify the highest God...Her image is not an impure idol but a holy memento that invites pious devotion...it is nothing but a casket that holds the venerable relics of the virgin" (Belting 536). "
Abstract This paper looks at the character of Lancelot, King Arthur's favorite all-conquering knight. It examines his obsession with Guinevere to the point where nothing else matters and he betrays his king's trust. The paper documents this fully and compares the idolatry with that of the Jews in the desert and Solomon's obsession with beauty.
From the Paper "Sir Lancelot's success and fame as a warrior were darkly paralleled by his numerous and onerous trials and burdensome passion. The reader or student of the Arthurian legends, specifically of those surrounding the shining knight, Lancelot, must remind himself or herself to view the story from a limbo point, that is, as an omniscient spectator who knows the end from the beginning, in order to find answers to questions and understand the symbols that abound in his adventures, trials, glory and idolatry of Guinevere.
"The cart was immediately the lasting symbol of his entire life. The cart stood for a curse, which was made over criminals who broke either the law of the land, the law of customs or the law of God and His church. It was anathema. And Lancelot was. From the start, he was pictured as a man whose mind was infinitely and absolutely fixed only on Guinevere, to the point that he was not mindful of his own identity, existence, surroundings, other people near or far, any other motive or the dangers or death that lurked anywhere. She was an absolute obsession to him and no divine one, either. The selection describes how love completely dominated him. His functions deteriorated, his faculties of no sense. It took much for anyone with him to shake him from the only reality he knew, which was the thought of a woman."
Tags: obsession, idolatry, betrayal, loyalty, King, Arthur
Abstract This paper provides an historical overview of the death penalty system in the United States. The author does not justify death penalty and argues that it is rather ineffective. The author uses statistical data concerning death penalty to support his opinion.
From the Paper ""One of the arguments most frequently used to justify the death penalty is deterrence. Proponents of the death penalty say that it is necessary to kill a condemned offender in order to set an example that will deter others from committing similar crimes.
If the death penalty did serve this purpose, however, if it actually did deter potential offenders from committing crimes, then states carrying out death penalties should certainly be found to have a lower rate of crime than those that do not execute their citizens."
Abstract This paper will seek to understand the differences and similarities of the Hindu and Jewish religions. By assessing the matter of idolatry and religious beliefs inherent in both religions, we can see how they compare and contrast.
Abstract This paper will seek to understand how a Gentile might have perceived Jesus or Peter in the early days of Christianity. By understanding the writings of the Bible, and more especially of those in Mark, and Paul, we can see how a Gentile might be extremely confused by these points of view. Not only did Christ think he was the Son of God, the Gentiles believed that God was an idolatry, and that Jesus might, indeed, have been this sort of 'royal' character. In any case, Paul and Mark proved to them to believe in his testimonial, and confusion and disagreement might have been put aside in the example Jesus set for them.
Abstract This paper discusses the life and religious work of Sheikh Muhammad Al-Wahhab, founder of Wahhabism. The paper describes Al-Wahhab's determination to rid Islam of Muslim decadence and return to the pure practices of Islam prior to the 11th Century.
From the Paper "During the first half of the twelfth century Hijra degradation and decline marked the fall of the Islamic World. Gloom and darkness were ushered into this world through moral degradation and rampant corruption. As for Islam, decadence and decline were also the norm. A number of practices related to polytheism had come to supplant the pure and austere monotheism, such as superstitious practices and mysticism. Islamic Mosques stood empty, unfrequented and even deserted. The ignorant multitude decked out in..."
Abstract In this article, the writer discusses Ulrich Zwingli as a religious reformer in Switzerland, who actually started out from inside the ranks of the Catholic Church, but gradually became a crusader against it. The writer points out that his radical policies showed that he was fearless in challenging the Church, and he even died for his beliefs in battle.
The writer discusses that despite his relatively short life, Zwingli left his mark on the reformation by his insistence on changes such as the removal of indulgences, the outlawing of idolatry, the relaxing of marriage laws and the wielding of political power. The writer concludes that the legacy of Ulrich Zwingli as a religious reformer and political leader lives on in statues in Zurich.
From the Paper "Zwingli left Glarus in 1516 because his faithfulness to Catholicism made it unpleasant for him. He took a position as a secular priest at Einsiedeln and continued studying the classics. It is unclear exactly when he began speaking out against the Catholic Church during this period. He claims he was speaking out against the church, but he still remained friends with Cardinal Schinner and continued to draw his pension from the pope. He was even appointed acolyte chaplain of the Roman See in 1518, so it is not entirely supported that he was preaching Catholic reform. Still, others were preaching reform during this time, and Zwingli soon became a powerful voice for change."
