Tuesday, May 8, 2018

A house divided

I live in the very polarized Western world, and I don't how else to say it, but it breaks my heart to see the West, my own country, divided as it is, when I know that I know that many of the people I meet in my day to day life, in our families, in our communities, share many of the same values. I see it. I live it. And so may I ask, why is it that I feel as a Christian living in a secular society that I'm a leper? I'm not exaggerating, that's how I feel, like conservatives and Christians need not apply. But how do I communicate what I so long to communicate to that broader secular culture? Folks, you're sawing off the branch you're sitting on, in attacking Christianity. The hyper skepticism about the Bible, when the Bible is the best we have from antiquity, hands down. I don't hear anyone asking if Socrates existed. If Plato really said the things he did, and yet, the reality is that the Bible is much better supported, both textually and in terms of the dates on sources, from their original transmission, to what we have copied in manuscripts today.

But it's not just that, it's that the West itself is grounded on biblical concepts, not the Enlightenment or reason, as is commonly assumed, because the reality is that reason is not sustainable on a material worldview. If our thoughts or principles even, are merely the product of random physical conditions, we can sustain neither the value of our thoughts, or our worth as human persons, objectively.

And this is what I see, a Western world that clings to a biblical worldview that they rarely if ever acknowledge, the idea that human beings have dignity! Human beings have an intrinsic worth! It matters how we live! It matters how we interact! Our actions matter, and people talk about such things as if they matter! We talk about the importance of human rights, but grounded on what? The worldview we ignore.

Sigh. Dear friends, I don't desire to force my views on anyone. All I've ever wanted is to be part of the larger conversation, instead of feeling pretty much how I've felt for a long time now, marginalized, like I couldn't possibly have anything to contribute. Please don't feel sorry for me, that's not what I want here. I want a broadening of this discussion. I want to see less political correctness, and more discussion.

The following is a response I wrote this morning, presumably to a Muslim, who I sense was asking honestly, why would the Bible say that a 53 year old man should not marry a nine year old girl? May I ask, can we stop attacking each other as Christians and arguably, cultural Christians or secular humanists? Can we begin to respect that we are both drawing from the same historical, Judeo-Christian well, and hit the reset button? I for one, have had enough of seeing people personally attacked, in place of much needed dialogue.

God bless,

Margaret Harvey


If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. Jesus.

Image result for a house divided image


Question:

"Why a 53 years old person can't marry with 9 years old girl according to Bible?"

Response: 

What Muslims are not seeing, is that it is arguably broader biblical concepts that have led to reforms over time, in the biblically influenced world. It's not that you cannot find examples of people who did wrong acts in the Bible, however, much of this is describing what they did honestly, or what people did at that time, rather than modeling these persons' behaviors.

Add to that, the Bible has a larger worldview that places an extremely high value on human life, in all stages of life. This is grounded in the biblical concept that human beings are created in the image of God. It's also grounded in a larger worldview, in which we as persons created in the image of God, have the capability to have an eternal relationship with a personal God. This gives human life an infinite value, grounded in an objective point of reference, that is both eternal and fixed, God being sovereign. 

And so, to answer your question directly, for a 53 year old man to marry a nine year old girl, is not in the girl's best interest. It is in her best interest to go to school, to get an education, to marry when she is older, if she so chooses, and/ or to contribute to her community in other ways. This would have a positive influence on the Muslim world, in advancing the possibilities for women, and would enable the Muslim world to move forward, with many families and communities being able to come out of generational poverty, which is often associated with illiteracy. In short, to encourage girls to marry later, is in their best interest, which is in keeping with their incredible worth and dignity and potential, as persons created in the image of a loving, personal God. 

John 1:12

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--

Margaret Harvey



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