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Re: a question of meaning

playing catchup on email today and throwing in my 2 cents:

Someone (bigLight?) mentioned in this thread that the knife should be Abe's
and not Isaac's.  I suppose there is a sense in which the knife could be
thought of as Isaac's.  In that moment of the image of which we are all
familiar of Abraham holding the knife in the air above a bound Isaac, that
knife in a sense belongs to Isaac as the (potential) agent of his death.
But there is also a metaphorical sense in which Isaac himself holds a
knife -- the knife that pierces Abraham's heart in that moment.  I suppose
it is really God, or perhaps rather Abraham's faith in God, that holds that
metaphorical knife, but Isaac is certainly at least a symbol, and more
likely a sacrament, of the agent that pierce's Abe's heart.

Also, another metaphorical interpretation that gets to the possibility of
"cutting away poisoned yesterdays":  doesn't Isaac mean "laughter" since Abe
and his wife had a hysterical fit when they found out she was pregnant?  So,
perhaps Isaac's "knife" is the pangs of laughter.  I think there was a Woody
Allen character (played by Alda?) who said something like "Comedy equals
tragedy plus time."  There can be a healing element to laughter, and perhaps
this is the "cutting away" that Isaac (Laughter) performs.

----- Original Message -----
From: Japhy <japhy at mail_utexas.edu>
To: Mark van Hornsveld <yellowpolo at hotmail_com>; <Tapehead at gmx_de>
Cc: <Over-the-rhine at actwin_com>
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2001 10:31 AM
Subject: a question of meaning


> dear all,
>    i remember asking linford what within/without meant. he turned to me
and
> asked, "are you hip to the bible?" it was a special moment. in honor of
> that, ill share a thought or two ive had recently.
>      "isaac's knife can cut away /all the poison of yesterday." now, i am
> taking a class on kierkegaard and began to wonder about this. today i
> decided it has several meanings..... one could be the knife of abraham,
> which is much too literal for me (abe was supposed to sacrifice isaac on
mt
> moriah). another way to see it is the knife is the faith of abraham and
> isaac, for we are not told that isaac disobeyed his father. he, then, must
> have shared abe's amazing faith. so, the faith of abraham is the knife
that
> will cut away all the poison of yesterday.
>      just thought id share. it gets lonely here in austin with no OTR fans
> around!! well, except the soup!
>              -tc from austin
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Mark van Hornsveld" <yellowpolo at hotmail_com>
> To: <Tapehead at gmx_de>
> Cc: <Over-the-rhine at actwin_com>
> Sent: Friday, October 26, 2001 5:36 PM
> Subject: OtR at Köln
>
>
> > Hello Tobi,
> >
> > you still around? Haven't heard from you in a while.
> >
> > Yesterday OtR and Cowboy Junkies played die Kantine in Köln. Did you see
> > that show?
> > I was planning to go, but finally decided it was too much to drive for a
> > weeknight. Still had to work today.
> >
> > Mark
> >
> > _________________________________________________________________
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