In Response

I recently read a post by someone I really dig for their contribution to the arena of decolonization and for their ability to convey information artistically, a skill I have not yet mastered. She made the argument that the Westernized linear way of thinking, that is ultimately detrimental, is a Judeo-Christian construct. I thought this was strange and immediately wondered where that idea came from.

You can find the specific post here. Be sure to check out the main page as well for lots of awesome info graphics and challenging but inspiring ideas. 

Without researching, I thought of a number of biblical "factors" that point to the opposite conclusion and in fact seem to support the indigenous way of thinking. I'm sure there are many more, but here is the list off the top of my head. 

*Please read to the end 

**Or at least skip to my final point

- There was a beginning of time (this is pretty much believed by everyone)

- God exists infinitely (outside of time) but is omnipresent, in all things (Great Spirit style)

- The Creator gave the earth to man and woman to steward and care for

- The Creator revealed himself to many people, one of interest is a man Moses who was told to remove his sandals where he stood because God had deemed it a sacred place

- The Jewish people were invited into relationship with their creator (YHWH) 

- Part of the relationship is the telling of stories to their children for generations to come (the Shema)

- One way of expressing the relationship with their creator was to write songs and poetry and dance expressively (there is an old testament book called Psalms that contains 150 ancient Jewish songs)  - These songs include acknowledgment of nature and animals as markers that point to the creator's work and influence in the everyday life of humans

- The Jewish people observed ceremony and ritual as a way of teaching younger generations of YHWH's promise and love for the people, passover, etc. 

- Art and food were also a part of these rituals as can be observed in YHWH's instruction to the people to build an ark adorned with engravings of animals and other ceremonial pieces adorned with the same

- Death was not seen as an end but as a new beginning, or sleep, or transition into eternity, or an alternative plane of existence

- Death also did not always mean physical death but the end of a season that ushered in a new season

- Future generations were considered as ancestors and in Jewish historical texts there are very accurate genealogical trees tracing male and female ancestors back many many generations even to the first man and woman

- The Jewish people still share a collective history as is demonstrated by their lifting up of such patriarchs as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In fact, they may refer to YHWH as "The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob"

- Israel, or the promised land was the land given to the Jews by their god and is still contested as such delineating a power of place

- In the Old Testament there are distinct sections known as the major and minor prophets. In these sections, people who listened to their creator interpreted dreams and visions and shared these interpretations with the people. Many of those dreams and prophecies are said to be about today.

This is all regarding the Old Testament. The advent of Jesus is the topic of the New Testament and is in effect the fulfillment of a death and rebirth and continuation of the cycle. 

- Dreams and visions experienced in the past about the future are apparently fulfilled in the coming of Israel's Messiah, the one who will bring healing by reuniting them with their creator, Jesus

- Jesus teaches many lessons, perhaps the edgiest being a step above the religious mantra of loving neighbours, Jesus teaches that his disciples should love their enemies

- Jesus also taught that to follow him, his disciples must die to self

- Jesus pointed to death as an equal part to life as life itself

- Jesus taught that there is eternal life and that what we see is not all there is

- Jesus convened with ancestors (Moses and Elijah) on a mountain (power of place) in the presence of three witnesses

- Jesus argued that people should not capitalize on sacred teaching or practices 

- Jesus undertook a pilgrimage in the wilderness for 40 days 

- Jesus taught that to know the creator you must be born again or have a rebirth 

- Jesus attributed sacredness to the elements and used nature as an illustration of God's love for the people

- Jesus also taught sacred wisdom through many stories or parables that often had to do with people's relationship with the land

- It is taught that Jesus died and was buried but was resurrected into his "resurrected state (transformed)"

- Jesus then taught the People of The Way (his followers) to go and teach what he taught them

- He then appointed Peter as a new elder who was to pass on the wisdom given to him

- Others like Paul, Stephen, Peter and John saw visions, signs, and dreams they attributed to the Creator and disseminated that knowledge through letters and public teaching which ultimately saw some of them and many others publicly murdered, marginalized, oppressed, and imprisoned

- Jesus taught that when he was no longer on Earth in bodily form, he would send The Helper to guide his people.

- The Helper has since taken on the name Holy Spirit. Holy means set apart, not like the others, above. The Spirit above all spirits if you will.

- That Spirit is said to dwell in all those who allow it to do so. Or those who allow themselves to die and be born again. 

- The Bible concludes by stating that God will return in the form of Jesus and create a new heaven and a new earth (rebirth)

I do have point I'm trying to make, obviously. Although these are clearly read in the Bible, there are many who have looked at one or two sections of the Bible and proceeded to rape the world including her people, lands, and resources. This is not from Judeo-Christian teaching. It is actually anti-Judeo-Christian teaching. And while the historical majority have gone astray from this teaching they do not represent actual teachings of the Bible or of The Creator and should not be said to.