Category: Faith

Some More Prager on Genesis – Man’s Creation

I liked this rereading this part again, Gen. 1:26-27.

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

27 So God created man in his own image,
    in the image of God he created him;
    male and female he created them.

In v. 26, man is made (from pre-existing matter) without a soul, but in “our likeness,” which some Christians think refers to the Trinity. Prager actually addresses challenges to the Jewish concept where the plural is no problem for them. The word uses the single verb with a plural noun. He says that the plural means the word encompasses all gods. Also, man is a creature in this verse. Interesting stuff. I actually just finished his commentary the other day. 

In v. 27, “the man” is created (from scratch) with a soul in “the image of God.” (Also, note that male and female are only in this verse.)

I do like reading the Jewish teaching, since it is the foundation on which our faith stands. For my part, I have read another commentator who suggested a “second or special creation.” Regular non-spiritual man was already in existence before the garden. Hence, my post on the Hebrew conception of the universe, where I point out the scriptural references and allusions to that conception which to me solve some issues, like Cain’s wife and age of the Earth.

Disrespect Parents, Despise Country

I read the first volume of the Rational Bible by Dennis Prager and was struck by the beautifully simple exposition, especially of the Ten Commandments. I was thinking on the commandment to honor your father and mother. Prager writes that we obey the president and police, so why can’t we honor our parents? We don’t obey them as adults, though we don’t treat them as peers either. He also suggests that our kids and other adults will see and emulate our actions toward our parents.

But the part I wished to write about is his realization that culture, religion and ethics are transmitted on to the next generation, if we honor our parents. Included here is the respect for the elder generations. If kids and young adults today don’t learn about the sacrifices that those generations have made, they will more likely also not appreciate our country.

Unfortunately I think, our Millennial and Gen-Z generations have been taught this very thing. Walking on the beach boardwalk, I have been bumped by kids walking past me and some don’t even apologize.

I remember being taught in junior high and high school that “I have rights” to disrespect my parents and protest any punishments. Disrespect for our flag and country are concurrent with that for our parents. But the Left are promoting hatred of America and “white racism.” If we or ours kids forget our country’s greatness, we disrespect those elders who fought for it.