if i'm not mistaken, the strategy of this essay is that through creative interpretation one can mitigate the implications of patriarchic texts.

one could also entertain the view that the bible serves as a reductio ad absurdum of the belief in a benevolent God acting in history. or rather, one who acts in accord with an alternate morality, much like the Communist conception of revolutionary morality.

God seems to be a rather strategic, manipulative and morally unprincipled actor, utilizing an 'ends justify the means' approach to sanction slavery, mass killings and genocide as vengeance.

The exception to God's anti-liberalism, however, seems to be contractual obligation.
 

In re "reductio ad absurdum" I can only respond "credo quia absurdum." Well, I don't, but some of the more obstreporous patristic philosophers certainly did. More to the point, the current epidemic of self-serving literalism among the "Christian right" is certainly fideism.

For what it's worth, I find the "Christian right" earn their quote marks for failing to be Christians, not for failing to be right-wing ideologues. The idea that Jesus would have sanctioned bombing abortion clinics, preventive war or even banning stem-cell research strikes me as profoundly misguided theology.

This leads us back to the subject, as the theology of the Old-Testament Right likely includes the main examples of the biblical God meddling with individual motivations. A quick search for "heart" and "harden*" at http://unbound.biola.edu/ turns up Deuteronomy 2:30 ("..for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, in order to deliver him into your hand..").

I just can't see this stuff in the New, but then as an atheist I don't read it much and could be wrong.
 

More biblical reasoning:

As we all know, God says in Revelations 1:8, "I am the alpha and the omega."

The lower case Greek letter alpha resembles the lower case letter a: ?

The lower case Greek letter omega resembles the lower case letter w: ?

? .... ?
a .... w

a and w. Hmmm. Henceforth, we should all take communion with root beer.

Seriously: This is what happens when one applies close analysis to a very soft and fuzzy text. To say that God hardened Pharoah's heart (as opposed to Pharoah's heart was hard), or to say that Eve's punishment was to be cut off from attraction to women, is to miss the point. God put us here in a world with all sorts of delightful, mundane, and downright awful things, from the Bible, to the brilliant minds I read on this blog, to root beer, etc. For me, each has a place in my life. Some things a larger place, some things a smaller place. My job is to discern God's will and to do it. Whatever the truth of it, the fact that the Bible just SEEMS to me like a book that's hardly intended to be taken literally is evidence to me that God doesn't want me to take it literally. However, the fact that the Bible is ubiquitous in my tableau tells me to ignore it at my peril. Does your common sense and experience tell you that the Bible is to be parsed like the Bill of Rights?
 

Do religious conservatives really argue that that particular passage in the Bible is evidence of the "naturalness" of heterosexuality and the sinfulness of homosexuality? I thought that, if Genesis was used at all, the more appropriate passages to that end were the ones about Eve's creation, not Eve's punishment.

Your interpretation strains the passage to its breaking point. A more sensible interpretation along those lines is that women will be "condemned" to have their mental processes cause them to remain in abusive relationships when they shouldn't (this happens today), or that guilt about marital infidelity is part of woman's punishment.

Interesting blog entry, but now that you've gotten in a few good punches against a strawman, what's the next step?
 

If, as religious conservatives suggest, Eve's punishment (desiring only her husband) is proof of God's preference for heterosexuality, then doesn't the FACT of homosexuality prove that the religious right's view that the Bible is literally true is wrong. The response, I suppose, is "free will". But if that's the case, then homosexuality disproves the post's premise.
 

An interesting topic, Ian. Here are some thoughts:

(1) "When does the God of the Bible violate the Bruce Almighty rule and change people’s desires?" Here are a couple of general examples:

Philippians 2:13. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Titus 3:3-5. For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.

The question, though a good one, needs elaboration. I can think of three ways God could control my desires:

1. He could directly change my desires. "Grace" can be interpreted this way-- God directs my desires away from sin and towards good.

2. He could create me in such a way that He controls my desires, via my genetics and environment. This is one way to reconcile predestination with free will, as matter of the point in time at which you look at things.

3. He could reveal information to me that changes my desires without affecting my underlying preferences. This is another way to interpret grace, a less conventional one I think.

(2) Heterosexuality as punishment. Genesis 3:16 says

To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."

That would be in category 2 above, so it isn't really a good example of God's changing any individual's desires. A woman normally looks to a man for satisfaction (and to children too), and is frustrated if she does not have a man. This is a deviation from the woman looking to God for her satisfaction. Lesbianism would be still worse (though the passage isn't about that), as being a deviation from the normal deviation. The woman's desire for her man puts her at his mercy; she will follow him even when he leads her astray.

It's interesting to contrast this with the man's punishment in Genesis 3:17-18:

To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.

Most straightforwardly, Adam's punishment is painful toil, the analog of painful childbirth. If I may go a step further, though, the male motivation most analogous to woman's desire for her man is a desire for success at work, whether that work be making money or killing enemy soldiers. That is where he, imperfectly and often completely unsuccessfully seeks satisfaction instead of from God.

(3) These ideas are interestingly compatible with biology. A woman is most reproductively successful if she can find a dependable man who will take care of her and the children, since pregnancy requires a dependable partner. A man is most reproductively successful if he does well in his vocation and can support one or multiple families, since his sexual contribution is minor.

(4) You see, sin without free will is not even possible. Pharaoh’s failure to let the Israelites go when his heart was hardened by God cannot in good conscience be considered sinful.

Can one sin without free will? Yes, in the sense that (a) one can do bad acts that (b) rightly result in punishment. A mad dog bites and kills people without free will. The dog is shot, a punishment. Why punish him? Incapacitation, mainly, perhaps with retribution too, the same (minus deterrence, rehabilitation, and stigmatization) as legal punishments.
 

What was the original sin? What was God's intention for human sexuality. Some have speculated that the original sin was a sexual act that deviated from the genital-genital form which was also contrary to reproductive potentiality. Marriage is meant to be free, total, faithful, and fruitful. Any sexual act which is not genital to genital and which intrinsically does not contain the potential for reproduction is contrary to our very nature as sexual beings. These sexual acts which are not genital to genital and which intriscicaly exclude the possibility of reproduction harm one's very self because they deny one the opporunity to totally give oneself to another. Sexual love is meant to image the "givingness of self to self in love." Sexual love is the highest icon in Christendom in its ability to express something of the ineffable dynamic of the inner life of the Trinity.
 

I would note that Jonathan Edwards disagreed rather strenuously with your contention that "sin without free will is not even possible." I will not attempt to summarize his argument in a blog comment, however.
 

well its pretty obvious what's being hinted at here - that for a woman to be a faithfull hetrosexual wife is a punishment, and this somehow protrays lesbianism as a liberation of some sort. This is clearly an attack on the institution of marriage, meant to weaken by passive-aggressive means the holy ordained union of man and woman, the best case scenerio for raising children. Yes, this reasoning clearly came from a mind with too much spare time on its hands. Why, if I weren't such a God-fearing soul, I might call for some kind of action-figure judgment on your keaster. In fact, you kind of remind me of someone - now who might that be... hmm... I wonder... hmm... would it beeee... satan!? Oh, and I just want to state for the record I don't hate homosexuals unless they turn me on, which they by definition never do.
 

You can feel free to read Luther's The Bondage of the Will for a defense of the existence of sin without "free will."
 

Well, I'll add my words to the pile. Some of these thoughts have already been partially expressed and I'm fleshing them out. The rest is Gravy...

The problem with the Bruce Almighty Rule here begins with the formulation of the premise: That God can make people do things, but cannot change their desires. In fact, the converse is true--God can and does change desires, but he does not make people do things.

The difference has a great deal to do with the meaning of the phrase "free will." What constitutes free will in the first place? I would submit that the simplest definition is, as usual, the best: To be possessed of free will is simply to have the ability to choose any action from a set of possible actions (S.P.A.), assuming there is a multiplicity of possible actions from which to chose. I, for instance, have free will when it comes to what I have for breakfast--eggs and toast, thank you, though I might have had cereal. And, somewhat surprisingly, my free will is not violated by limitations on possible actions: I cannot at this very moment climb to the top of Mount Everest or speak to George Washington in person, but this has nothing to do with free will because Time and Space put them outside my S.P.A. Lastly on this point, if a circumstance presents a S.P.A. consisting of exactly ONE possible action, this does not negate my free will either. One might argue that the "inability to choose" in such a situation gives rise to a lack of free will; however, it is more accurate to say "there is no choosing to be done" than "there is no ability to choose." It is not that I am unable to choose; rather, choosing never enters into the matter, because a proper concept of choice is predicated upon a multiplicity of possible actions. "I do not choose" is not equivalent to "I cannot choose." While the latter is "not free," the former is merely involuntary.

On the subject of sin, therefore, I would venture to say that there needn't be any condition in which a sinful act is the only possible action, and therefore involuntary. Sinful actions (as well as right actions) are always free because there must always be an alternative possible action in a given circumstance; otherwise, the moral agency of the individual is compromised. (This is really a secondary point, and irrelevant to the important points below...)

Finally, in the argument at hand, what is at issue is not whom Eve desires or whether Pharaoh's heart is hard against releasing the Israelites, but whether they are able to choose any action from the S.P.A in their circumstances. It was possible for Eve not to take the fruit just as it was possible for Pharaoh to release the Israelites. The text does not say God interfered with Eve's or Pharaoh's ability to choose one possible action over another, so there is no reason to believe that God subverts free will based on these examples. Further comment on our case studies below...

In Eve's case, I happen to think the injection of homosexual/heterosexual rhetoric into the Genesis narrative is ill-conceived. The context sheds more light on what is meant by "desire." Look at God's words to Cain in Gen. 4:7. Literally translated, it reads "It's (sin's) desire is for you, and you shall rule over it." The grammar is very close to 3:16; in Hebrew and English the construction is virtually the same. This suggests that the kind of desiring implied by this usage is for control or rulership. Taken in this way, the text of 3:16 would suggest that God was giving Eve the punishment of struggling against the pattern of her original failure--asserting control or rulership of her husband (to say nothing of Adam's failure in leading, which is another kettle of fish). Sexuality is simply not warranted by the context.

As for Pharaoh's hardened heart (along with the enemies of Joshua), the Semitic concept of cosmology finds very little difference between a thing merely occurring and God's causing it to occur. This arises from a heavy emphasis on the omnipotence of God. In fact, it was hard for them to put God's omnipotence too strongly. We would tend to say that God allows things to happen--this is necessitated by the philosophical difficulties of free will arguments. The writers of the Torah certainly had no such philosophical conundrums to reconcile. To say that God hardened Pharaoh's heart was essentially the same as saying that Pharaoh hardened his heart, or that God allowed it to be hardened. The narrative actually uses all three constructions at different times. The point was in the hardness of Pharaoh's heart and the resulting events. The Exodus was central to the creation of the Hebrew faith, and was told (and later written) in a way that would keep God's purpose at the forefront.
 

Nice Blog!!!   I thought I'd tell you about a site that will let give you places where
you can make extra cash! I made over $800 last month. Not bad for not doing much. Just put in your
zip code and up will pop up a list of places that are available. I live in a small area and found quite
a few. MAKE MONEY NOWchurch corinthian full gospel pentecostal
 

no effort to make money
is easy. no effort to make money

 

Hi i am totally blown away with the blogs people have created its so much fun to read alot of good info and you have also one of the best blogs !! Have some time check my link to !!Easy making money quick
 

Thought you would like this. make money at home online

 

Hello, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!
I have a lead generation telemarketing site. It pretty much covers lead generation telemarketing related stuff. Check it out if you get time :-)
 

Interesting blog you have here, I landed here on accident. I was searcing for something else and came across your site. I found it pretty interesting and entertaining. I got you book marked.

I will pop back in from time to time to see what you have new here.

My site is a bit different than yours, but just as entertaining and educational, I run a mens male enhancement reviews related site pertaining to mens male enhancement reviews related articles.
 

We are trying to find good online movie to take the kids this weekend. Good online movie reviews are hard to find

I just stumbled onto your blog while looking. Seems to happen to me a lot since I am a knowledge mooch LOL

Thanks
 

I found your blog by accident, great info keep it up. I will be checking back often now that I know you are here!

I have been running my own site about affiliate internet make money online program for some time now and I am only just getting into blogging.
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!
I have a make extra money site. It pretty much covers make extra money related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

Hey maybe you can help me out, I'm looking for marketing.
Any ideas?
 

Great Blog! Ilike it.I have Site where you can Find sex partnerTake a look if you have a minute. Thanks and have a good one!
 

I've stumbled across your blog when I done some make money working at home research in Google. You're doing a pretty nice job
here, keep up the good work! check out make money working at home
 

Hello, just visited your bible blog, I also have a bible related website, it's about some books which is helpful to understand the God's Words
 

Cool blog you have. I have a personal money related site. Check it out if you get a chance. The URL is personal money
 

I discuss this topic daily myself. I also have a website that talks about advertising internet make money related things. Go check it out if you get a chance.
 

Help me Dude, I'm lost.

I was searching for Elvis and somehow ended up in your blog, but you know I'm sure I saw Elvis in the supermarket yesterday.

No honest really, he was right there in front of me, next to the steaks singing "Love me Tender".

He said to me (his lip was only slightly curled) "Boy, you need to get yourself a shiny, new plasmatv to go with that blue suede sofa of yours.

But Elvis said I, In the Ghetto nobody has a plasma tv .

Dude I'm All Shook Up said Elvis. I think I'll have me another cheeseburger then I'm gonna go home and ask Michael Jackson to come round and watch that waaaay cool surfing scene in Apocalypse Now on my new plasma tv .

And then he just walked out of the supermarket singing. . .

"You give me love and consolation,
You give me strength to carry on "

Strange day or what? :-)
 

I discuss this topic daily myself. I also have a website that talks about united airline affiliate related things. Go check it out if you get a chance.
 

Excellent internet marketing specialist articlre.
Keep up the great internet marketing specialist blog. I find it very informative. I check back soon
Thanks again for a great and informative internet marketing specialist articlre.
 

Hey i got here searching for pay per click affiliate program
Your sites not too bad!

You got good rankings for them keywords pay per click affiliate program

Check out my site
pay per click affiliate program
 

Cool blog you have. I have a making money related site. Check it out if you get a chance. The URL is making money
 

I was reading your blog and thought i would mention this free blog hosting site.

Free blog hosting using wordpress. The top blogging tols online and many free templates to choose from. Free hosting. Get your free blog template now!

GET FREE BLOG NOW
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a **Make Big Money**blog. It pretty much covers Make Big Money articles related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

Hi :)

You have a great blog! I'll be sure to bookmark it and visit regularly, keep up the great work!

Please visit my site if you get some time: to make money in real estate

 

Great Blog! Ilike it.But here you can find woman looking for sexTake a look if you have a minute. Thanks and have a good one!
 

Very cool blog you got! I just added you to my bookmarks!

I have a great article resource you might want to check out.
 

Hi :)

You have a great blog! I'll make sure to bookmark it and visit regularly. Keep up the great work!

Please visit my site if you get some time: Resell Rights eBooks
 

hey nice site you have here!

Any tips on bloggin ? id like to see your reply to this story :)

look forward to the next edition

i have bookmarked you
 

Nice blog! I have a lead free faucets site I thought you and your visitors might like.

Click on lead free faucets to check it out. lead free faucets
 

See your Successes
by: make money business opportunity

It is important to have an understanding of money.
Keep a journal where you can see your successes when
it comes to saving money. This is a difficult task
and takes time to learn but worth it. By keeping a
list of the situations or ways you have saved money
in front of you, you will be encouraged to keep going.
These successes can be small or large. For example,
if you normally buy your lunch, costing you from $5.00
to $7.00 per day and one week straight you packed your
own lunch for $3.00 per day that is a success. If you
wanted to buy a new dress but held off until it went on
sale, saving 50%, that is another success.

make money business opportunity
 

Last week I told you about Google Site Targeting -
putting your AdWords ads on specific websites
instead of targeting by keyword, and how this
slices the world in a completely different way.

Now you can pay to have your ad shown, rather
than paying per click, and you can more easily
advertise products that people wouldn't necessarily
think to search for.

Google started out selling this space for $2.00
per thousand impressions ("CPM"). Then they
dropped it to $1.00.

On Monday they just dropped it again, to 25 cents.

(Now we're talking!)

This now puts those clicks in the ~5 cent neighborhood,
and in some cases less. It's a fun thing to play with.
But before you do, though, make sure you:

-Set a low daily budget so you don't make a big mistake

-Track conversion rates (Very important! Without
sales conversion, nothing else matters.)

-Delete sites with horrible Click Thru Rates - Hey, if
you're not getting any clicks, you shouldn't be paying
them for the impressions.

Want to increase the clicks on your adsense ads? Of course you do. This means more money in your pocket.
For FREE Information. That will for sure make you more money by the end of the week.
 

Nice earn home money survey taking site... I think you'll find this site interesting : **CouponRiches.com**
 

Rebate Programs
by: make money in real estate

When you shop, always keep your eyes open for rebate
programs. Although filling out the forms and clipping
the UPC codes from a box is a hassle, the money you save
is worth it. Some rebate items are not listed as offering
a rebate. Check out AsmartShop.com or Rebateplace.com to
see if any of your recent purchases offer a rebate.

make money in real estate
 

Hi :)

You have a great blog! Keep up the good work! I'll be sure to visit regularly.

Please visit my site if you get some time: Shia
 

Check Receipts and Statements
by: make money opportunity

If you were to check your grocery or store receipt,
approximately 50% of the time you would find an
overcharge. This happens all the time and in some
cases, the charge can be substantial. The same is
true for credit card statements, bank statements,
phone bills, etc. Check the detail because it is
quite common to find errors. These mistakes can
easily be corrected simply by asking and providing
a copy of the receipt or statement.

make money opportunity
 

Shop Online
by: make money quick

Many online businesses offer great bargains and in
some cases, free shipping. Since the Internet is
such a competitive market, you can usually find
fantastic deals. In addition, many of your favorite
businesses where you shop in person have websites
that offer even greater savings. Bookstores such as
Amazon.com will sell books up to 70% off the original
price. Overstock.com is another online business that
sells closeout items for fantastic bargains.

make money quick
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a at home work site. It pretty much covers at home work related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

This is an interesting blog ! I'm bookmarkarkimg you and will re-visit :o)

I also have a water testing site. It pretty much covers
water testing related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

Yo, This blog is pretty neat. You should check out mine sometime. It pretty much covers craft to make money at home related stuff.
 

hey, nice blog here, mind if i do a link exchange with you?
my blog's nice too, it's about how to become rich with google adsense
stuffs, many more, even becoming rich wealthy exact instructions, something you can't miss!Trust me, you'll change your life in a matter of minutes : )
Can visit my blog about google adsense secrets, business opportunities, becoming rich, and much more, if you don't want to be rich dont ever click
 

hello, your blog is interesting to read, I have a website about internet marketing, it should be helpful to you in making more web money. This is a global trend that more and more people can make a living online, so make sure you visit it.
 

I discuss this topic daily myself. I also have a website that talks about federal business opportunity related things. Go check it out if you get a chance.
 

For more information related to what is in this blogadult single dating
, you should stop by and see this site. It is full of adult single dating
related articles and information.
 

I found a free top 10 home based business resource blog/site that really helped me
get a handle on top 10 home based business.

I thought your posters might find this top 10 home based business resource useful.

top 10 home based business

Check it out if you get time:-)
 

Hey there......I was trying to find info on work from home home based business opportunity and got directed to your site. It wasn't exaclty what I was looking for, but I hope you dont mind me adding your blog to my favorites.
 

Market oi millions with blogblastertop network marketing companytop network marketing company
Please go to http://ww.blog-masters.net
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a virtual hosting site/blog. It pretty much covers virtual hosting related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

See your Successes
by: make money being online

It is important to have an understanding of money.
Keep a journal where you can see your successes when
it comes to saving money. This is a difficult task
and takes time to learn but worth it. By keeping a
list of the situations or ways you have saved money
in front of you, you will be encouraged to keep going.
These successes can be small or large. For example,
if you normally buy your lunch, costing you from $5.00
to $7.00 per day and one week straight you packed your
own lunch for $3.00 per day that is a success. If you
wanted to buy a new dress but held off until it went on
sale, saving 50%, that is another success.

make money being online
 

Hello, just visited your blog, it's informative. I also have a website related togoogle adsense software. So make sure you visit and hope it's useful.
 

Want more clicks to your Adsense Ads on your Blog?

Then you have to check out my blog. I have found a FREE and Legitimate way that will increase your earnings.

Come Check us out. How to Boost Your AdSense Revenue
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a craft work at home
site/blog. It pretty much covers craft work at home
related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a ebooks site/blog. It pretty much covers ebooks related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time.
 

 Hi: Just came across your blog. Interesting post and good looking site.

We recently set up a website offering totally free blog and website awards for sites with legal & legal related exceptional content.

No, we are NOT directly selling anything. If you would like to enhance your blog/web site, visit our web site award program web site. blog/website with one of our classy website award graphics! If you are interested, here is the link: http://www.web-site-award-winning.com
**web site award program**
 

Hi, I was searching for info on free work at home program and bumped into your site. Obviously, your site is not about free work at home program, but I hope you wont mind me adding it to my favorites.
 

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a marketing communication site/blog. It pretty much covers marketing communication related stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time :-)
 

"A friend of mine told me about your blog concerning info on **keyword** and I wanted to post here telling you how impressed I was with the information you have. I also have a web site & blog about **keyword** ,but will specialize in the impact of A/V on sites! Keep up the great work, you are providing a great resource on the Internet here!"affiliate internet marketing superaffiliate internet marketing super
 

I enjoyed reading your blog. There is a lot of useful information about free adult sex search engine in it. We offer Turnkey Websites and Reliable Hosting. We also provide a blogging service that will help your site get indexed fast and keep the search engines visiting your site. Click here for more information about free adult sex search engine.
Thank you
TWP Admin
 

Hi :)

You have a great blog! Keep up the great work, and I'll be sure to visit regularly.

I have a Resell Rights eBooks related site, check it out if you get some time!

Look forward to reading more of your insightful posts :)
 

Yo, This blog is pretty neat. You should check out mine sometime. It pretty much covers to make some quick easy cash money fast related stuff.
 

Organization
by: how to make fake money

You may be wondering what being organized has to do
with saving money but in reality, it has a lot to do
with it. For example, if you miss a credit card due
date by one day, you will be charged anywhere from a
15% to 25% penalty. The same would be true for taxes.
Missing one simple date can cost thousands. You need
to be organized so you know the exact dates your bills
are due as well as keep all receipts, contracts, etc.
in an orderly manner.

how to make fake money
 

hahah, Clever post, im amazed by the last comment!
sportsbook
http://www.enterbet.com
 

A fantastic post indeed! Thank you very much!

School of prophets