5 ms·
In effect I'd say that it is an attitude more concerned with the spirit and less with the letter of the law (so, for instance, I don't think turni
by ido 8y ago
In effect I'd say that it is an attitude more
concerned with the spirit and less with the
letter of the law (so, for instance, I don't
think turning on the light is an issue, and
putting money on the table for someone to
take isn't actually adhering to the
prohibition on commerce).
That's something that generally rubs me the wrong way about a lot of things with orthodox jewish practices (especially the ultra orthodox) - there is so much effort trying to find loopholes in the rules, instead of adhering to their spirit instead.
- abraham_lincoln 8y agoAnd yet, they are the only ones observing the Sabbath.
- mikepurvis 8y agoBut the whole point is that it depends on your approach. Jesus was very clearly in opposition to the religious elites of his day by choosing to walk, teach, and even perform physical healings on the Sabbath. The summation of the rationale for this is pretty clear: it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+12%3A9-13 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+12%3A9-...
- neaden 8y agoRight. But Jesus wouldn't have wanted you to be driving for Uber on the Sabbath either.
- mikepurvis 8y agoI think all I'm saying is that there's a middle ground where you go screen/internet free, and avoid things like housework, shopping, planning, and meal preparation in favour of spending time with family, but don't sweat things like non-religious reading, turning lights on and off, and walking to the park.
- danjc 8y agoHe says the Sabbath was created for man not man for the Sabbath. His reaction was to the legalism of the day.
- RobertRoberts 8y agoHe didn't call it legalism, he called it everything from hypocrisy (heaping up burdens on people) to simply evil (neglecting elderly parent for the sake of ritual).
- danjc 8y agoI meant legalism specifically in the context of Mark 2 but I agree with you.
- protomyth 8y agoWell, some of the Protestants do still observe the Sabbath (generally anything with 7th Day in the title). Those that observer the Lord's Day are not quite as strict about it.
- RobertRoberts 8y agoThere are many people out there that are not Jews that follow God's laws, including resting on the seventh day.
- emodendroket 8y agoI mean, I can't lie -- it sometimes seems appealing compared to the constant, gnawing sense that you might not be doing things good enough that comes with Christianity.
- ams6110 8y agoThe thing about Christianity is that you can always be forgiven. It's understood that people are imperfect sinners and while there are ideals and moral codes, we will fall short of them.
- emodendroket 8y agoSure, but there is all the stuff about how not everyone who worships Jesus will join him in heaven and there is the parable of the sheep and the goats.
- phyller 8y agoOne of the parts you are thinking of is Matthew 7:13-23 [1]. The interesting thing about that is that people who are trying to do the things that Christians do are the ones that are not accepted. So yes, you literally cannot do things good enough, those guys performing miracles weren't good enough. The only way to do things good enough is to, for lack of a better term, seek after Jesus. And then he works in your life, and that's the only way to "do the will of the Father". There are specific verses for all that, but to keep it short (and encouraging), just look up a few verses to Matthew 7:7-8 [2] "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find" One of my favorite things about Christianity is that even in this time with all of our knowledge and access to everything it is so widely misunderstood, in almost all of its principles people have almost the opposite conclusion from what was intended. It's fun to explain it, if I can assume I understood it correctly ;) [1] https://www.blueletterbible.org/esv/mat/7/13/s_936013 https://www.blueletterbible.org/esv/mat/7/13/s_936013 [2] https://www.blueletterbible.org/esv/mat/7/7/s_936013 https://www.blueletterbible.org/esv/mat/7/7/s_936013
- astura 8y agoWhat's the incentive to even try to do the "right" thing if you can always be forgiven?
- Animats 8y agoYes. A whole collection of hardware has been developed to weasel out of the religious restrictions. There are "shabbos elevators", which not only stop on every floor (no button pushing), but bypass regenerative braking and dump the energy into a big resistor so as not to "do work". There's the "kosher light switch."[1] This looks like a regular light switch, and performs the same function. But it works by sensing the position of the switch with an optical interrupter at random intervals. So there's a random delay between throwing the switch and having it operate. This is apparently theologically acceptable, because there is not a direct cause and effect relationship. For the kids, there are non-electrical devices made to look like hand-held video games.[2] [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdbkvJznmwU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdbkvJznmwU [2] http://www.kosherimage.com/watergame.html http://www.kosherimage.com/watergame.html
- emodendroket 8y agoTo be fair, if the law itself is what is important you can see the logic in doing this. It is a way of thinking that is not my own but it has a certain internal consistency.
- spiritcat 8y agoWell ya the prohibition is about creating fire, why wouldn't you step on the elevator if it's just going to be going up and down anyway?