urban@spp2.UUCP (11/30/84)
This is a request for information. Please do not flame or proselytize in response. I have been told that the word "God" for the entity who creates the cosmos in Genesis is a translation of "Elohim", and that this world has the Hebrew form of a plural. There are several other indications in the Old Testament that appear to admit of other gods (otherwise, how could you have other gods before the one delivering the commandments? Or, isn't it funny to say "I'm a jealous god" if you're the only god there is?) My question: is there any sort of tradition in the Judaeo-Christian world that holds that there are other gods? Can the Old Testament be interpreted as indicating that the god spoken of is the god of the Jews, but that there are other (lesser) gods? Or am I completely misinformed? Note that Islam is particularly clear about asserting that there is no other god besides Allah. Why is this such an important point? Thanks for your time. Let's see if we can keep the level of discussion relatively high for once. Mike
martillo@mit-athena.ARPA (Joaquim Martillo) (12/02/84)
The oldest form of Biblical Hebrew has no regular abstract noun forms.
In order to form an abstract concept divinity from the noun for god
('elowah), ancient Biblical Hebrew speakers would use 'elohim. Calling
God the Divinity is no different than the English usage calling the king
your majesty.
Znunim, a word for fornication, is a similar construction of a abstract
concept noun from a masculine plural.karl@osu-eddie.UUCP (Karl Kleinpaste) (12/03/84)
A relatively minor correction... ---------- > ...isn't it funny to > say "I'm a jealous god" if you're the only god there is?) ---------- Your understanding of the description "jealous god" is a bit inaccurate. It does not refer to the fear that one particular god would be upset if a certain group of people were to worship another existing god. Rather, it is the case that God objects to anything or anyone getting in the way of His relationship with people; paying homage to a non-existent god is the most blatant and damaging case of this sort of thing, since it effectively disallows God's proper place with said people. It is not the case that jealousy is a bad thing in and of itself, either. I would be extremely jealous, possibly to the point of violence, if I found that someone else were taking my wife's affections. (Avoid obvious extremes, please.) In such a case, I would be justifiably upset and justifiably jealous. Similarly, God is upset when we give our "affections" to a (supposed) deity other than Himself. Thus, jealousy can in fact be constructive. It can be a tool by which we detect when there is a problem in a relationship, and leads us to find a means to correct that relationship. It is only bad when it degenerates to simple irrationality, such as in the standard Psych 101 "raging jealousy" example of a man who thinks that his wife/girlfriend/mistress is flirting with other guys when in fact she is not. -- From the badly beaten keyboards of best address---+ him who speaks in _*_T_y_P_e_* _f-_O-_n-_T-_s... | V Karl Kleinpaste @ Bell Labs, Columbus 614/860-5107 {cbosgd,ihnp4}!_c_b_r_m_a_!_k_k @ Ohio State University 614/422-0915 cbosgd!osu-eddie!karl
berger@aecom.UUCP (Mitchell Berger) (12/06/84)
> The oldest form of Biblical Hebrew has no regular abstract noun forms. > In order to form an abstract concept divinity from the noun for god > ('elowah), ancient Biblical Hebrew speakers would use 'elohim. Calling > God the Divinity is no different than the English usage calling the king > your majesty. > > Znunim, a word for fornication, is a similar construction of a abstract > concept noun from a masculine plural. *** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE *** i always thought it was the royal we.... mb