The other day I noted that there is a section of Leviticus that says we are allowed to have slaves so long as they are from other countries. The question asked was, did that apply to Canadians as well as Mexicans? Here again we find a passage from scripture which on the face of it seems to condone slavery. Are we really to take this literally?
When I was a young boy and up until not too long ago, the Church, that is the Roman church as well as many others, used this passage for another reason. You could have the worst son of a bitch husband in the world, a lying, beating, drunken bum of a guy and a wife was told to go back to him because, "wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord". Didn't anyone see this as horribly wrong??
In fact we've come to realize slavery is wrong, abusive spouses is wrong, rape is wrong ( see Leviticus 1-29; Genesis 19:30-38 ). People who take such passages literally are really incerdibly ignorant of the message and context of scriptures. Sadly, this kind of ignorance is not only rampant in some "Christian" churches, their spiritual leaders still teach it!
Also when I was growing up, I know there were a great many phrases our parents used to keep us in line. There were outlandish threats like 'I'll beat you within an inch of your life' or 'If I have to pull this car over, I’m leaving you by the side of the road' or the famous 'I brought you into this world, and I can take you out!'. How many of you kept your nose to the grindstone? We say so many silly things mostly routed in exaggeration. We got the message because we had the intelligence to understand. Do we have the intelligence to understand that the passages of scripture were often written simply in accepted norms of the day? Whole passages used back then applied without reflection of morality or any kind of modern enlightenment. To take passages written millennia ago out of context is absurd.
And the message of Christ seems subverted lmost from the getgo with emphasis placed on absolutely the wrong things. It was Christ who railed against the Pharisees and Christ is synthesized all of Jewish law into the two great commandments. Let us keep those in mind.
Colossians 3:18-4:18
Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly.
Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is your acceptable duty in the Lord. 21Fathers, do not provoke your children, or they may lose heart. Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only while being watched and in order to please them, but wholeheartedly, fearing the Lord. Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for whatever wrong has been done, and there is no partiality.
Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, for you know that you also have a Master in heaven.
Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving.
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