Deuteronomy 33 – Moses addresses all the tribes and
grants them each a special thought or blessing along with a portion of the land
into which they will be going. For
some reason Simeon is not mentioned and the sons (tribes) of Joseph are given
shares. The Levites, the ones who
helped execute the Lord’s vengeance over the golden calf incident, receive
praise for putting God ahead of family (33: 9). The Schocken version points out
that this blessing differs somewhat from what is found in Genesis and says the slant
here is a more “Northern tribal” account, perhaps from the days of Jeroboam II
in the early 8th C. BC.
Deuteronomy 34 – They go up through the plains of
Moab to Mt. Nebo, opposite Jericho.
Here Moses dies and is buried—the place unknown. Joshua takes over leadership of the
people. He is filled with “the spirit of wisdom, since Moses had laid
his hands on him . . .” (34:9).
But “no prophet has arisen in
Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face” (34:10).
1 Corinthians 6 - It is wrong to resort to the law courts when dealing with a “brother” (a
fellow-Christian). The saints should work things out in their community. Paul
clearly alludes to the promises made in Daniel’s eschatological passages
(7:22-23) that the “holy ones” will someday be the ones who will possess the
kingdom and be judges over others, even over the angels, though when I turn to Daniel, that seems far from clear in the cited
passages. Paul seems to think it is better to put up with injustices than
to go to “outside” courts for judgments in cases between believers. Paul lists
those who will not inherit the kingdom: the unjust, fornicators, idolaters,
adulterers, boy prostitutes (catamites), practicing homosexuals (sodomites), thieves,
greedy, drunkards, slanderers, robbers.
Beyond this, the saying, which perhaps Paul himself had said at some
point and others in Corinth had taken too literally that “everything is lawful
for me” (6:12) does not mean that immoderation or other departures from “moral”
behavior is now okay. The standard
of the kingdom is high, not slack: “[W]hoever
is joined to the Lord [and all the baptized are joined to him] becomes one
spirit with him. Avoid immorality.
Every other sin a person commits is outside he body, but the immoral
person sins against his own body” (6:17-18). Our bodies are temples “of the
holy Spirit within [us] whom [we]
have from God. . .” (6:19).
How to deal
with the passages here and elsewhere on homosexuality?? It is challenging for Christians
today. And one part of the challenge is that it has become harder and harder to
discuss the issue. My own view is complicated. I am not a biblical literalist,
so the fact that Paul condemns homosexual sex acts as immoral along with
idolatry and injustice and greed and all the other things many of us are guilty
of, is not per se an answer to the question of whether there is room for
fundamental change in our understanding of what is acceptable in the Christian community.
I think it may take us time to sort out. Many gay men and women are believers
and do, like heterosexual believers, try to establish their relationships on a
commitment to lifelong faithfulness. But I do not know if this is enough. There
is a very deep part of me that wonders if it is enough. I would be interested
to hear how others have “settled” the issue in their own thinking.
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