Real Bible Rob
I am a Presbyterian USA minister who interprets the Bible in all of its messy and varied voices. I teach and preach spiritual growth to people who want an open and affirming Christianity. My social media tagline is "People say lots of things about the Bible that aren't really there."
My full-length sermons and live stream are available on YouTube: @robchrist8999 and @edmondspresbyterian132
Contact me at: epc-pcusa.org, pastorepc@frontier.com
Real Bible Rob
Genocide & the Bible with Deuteronomy 7:1-2 & 1 Samuel 15:2-11
Genocide is the hardest part of the Bible. How can we justify the call for total war and the total destruction of enemies in the Hebrew scriptures with a loving God? The concept is called Cherem in Hebrew. It is not enough to defeat an enemy but you must obliterate the enemy, including all men, women, and children, and their livestock. God commands in Deuteronomy 7 to show no mercy. In 1 Samuel 15, Saul loses the favor of God for being too merciful. I dive into the meaning of these passages in history. Then I discuss how genocide has been and continues to be in our history. It is not enough to win, but their memory must be obliterated. I also talk about indigenous people and the underappreciated history of Japanese Internment during World War 2. This is why we must hold our leaders to account because history shows us that dehumanizing rhetoric and lies are the first steps toward genocide. Killing the body is not the point of genocide. Killing ideas is.
#genocide #herem #oldtestament #japaneseinternmentcamps #dachauconcentrationcamp #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa