Re: matt's take

["Peter T. Chattaway" <petert at interchange_ubc.ca>]

On Sat, 29 Dec 2001, The Mattrix wrote:
> Does a parent who spanks her brat deserve to be called a child abuser?

Depends how she spanks the brat, obviously.

> If the answer is "yes", the I guess God is a genocidal maniac.

Since the answer is "maybe", perhaps we could discuss criteria?

> More than likely, though, He's just givin' us a large- scale spankin' in
> the examples you've cited.  What doesn't kill you, (the species as a
> whole) makes you stronger, ya now?

This is one of the key problems we modern folk tend to have with the Old
Testament right there -- the way people are looked at *collectively* and
not *individually*, at least in cases like Joshua, etc.

> So, it's not that God loves violence  God is a good parent.

Ever read Philip Yancey's _Disappointment with God_?  I believe that's the
book where he says that the central thrust of the Bible -- its overarching
narrative, if you will -- is that God *learns* to be a parent.

--- Peter T. Chattaway --------------------------- peter at chattaway_com ---
 "I detected one misprint, but to torture you I will not tell you where."
      Winston Churchill to T.E. Lawrence, re Seven Pillars of Wisdom

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References:

• Re: matt's take
• From: "The Mattrix" <soberman_69 at hotmail_com>

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