tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211616465018587403.post6796316821849974948..comments2023-09-09T03:52:44.418-07:00Comments on Emerging Catholic: AmosUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211616465018587403.post-76004611650614669602009-11-12T16:48:31.830-08:002009-11-12T16:48:31.830-08:00Here's another question for you. What is the ...Here's another question for you. What is the significance of the geographical ordering of the nations mentioned in the prologue of Amos?Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11273059630118569859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211616465018587403.post-82705907966837023942009-11-12T16:32:37.779-08:002009-11-12T16:32:37.779-08:00Luke, you're doing a great job. I'm very ...Luke, you're doing a great job. I'm very impressed.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11273059630118569859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211616465018587403.post-10618222024281021942009-11-12T06:53:57.686-08:002009-11-12T06:53:57.686-08:00My professor actually gave me a paper he had writt...My professor actually gave me a paper he had written on Amos, "Amos' Opposition to Strongholds: Some Theological Reflections". Strongholds were often the dwellings of the kings or the wealthy, and they were part of the defense of a city - sometimes built into the very city walls themselves. It's opening line is "God opposes the proud. This message rings loudly and clearly throughout Scripture."<br /><br />He goes on:<br /><br />"In twentieth century America, where political strength and material wealth abound, the temptation to self-sufficiency which, for all practical purposes, leaves God out of the picture is one of the easiest traps to fall into for those who honor God with their lips. This situation is not a new one. The prophet Amos addressed a very similar social setting. ... The rulers were predisposed to feeling self-assured primarily on two fronts 1) their great wealth and 2) their military strength. In the days of Amos, strongholds were characterized by precisely these two false means of security."<br /><br />The remainder of the paper goes on to show all the instances in which Amos' message opposes strongholds - they are mentioned twelve times, and condemned in 3:10,11; 5:9; 6:8; 6:13; 9:1.<br /><br />The phrase "great wealth and military strength" is probably the most compact and most accurate description of America I've ever considered. In addition to the stronghold symbolism, Amos condemns luxury and profiteering directly:<br /><br />"You cows of Bashan, who live on the mount of Samaria, who oppress the poor, crush the needy, and demand of their husbands, 'Bring more drink!'" (4:1) and the merchants seeking to make "the ephah small and the shekel great and use false weights to cheat people; that we may buy the poor for money and the impoverished for a pair of sandals and sell worthless wheat." (8:5-6)<br /><br />"Luxury sector sales almost doubled to $80.4 billion in 2008 from $44.1 billion in 2003" (http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1924242,00.html#ixzz0WemcQVsL) though they're tanking now with the economy, which was brought on by deceitful and fraudulent banking practices. <br /><br />You're exactly right, it's one of the primary themes of the OT. And people have not changed; technology has improved and the scale of behavior has mushroomed.<br /><br />I'll defer exploring Christ's teachings for now. Not because they aren't important - they're actually the most important; but because I haven't been brain-deep in them for the last couple weeks like I have with Amos. :)lukehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04844724534003766952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211616465018587403.post-31900526793202487582009-11-11T23:44:09.739-08:002009-11-11T23:44:09.739-08:00There's a statue hanging over Tbilisi as a mes...There's a statue hanging over Tbilisi as a message to foreigners. With one hand, she holds a stick of bread, and in the other a sword. To her friends, she proffers her bread, and to her enemies, the sword. Maybe the plummet and basket of fruit are similar to this meaning? <br /><br />So here's your practice question: I often find the pride of the wealthy believers in the OT awfully familiar in America... The presence of wealth leading to unsurmountable pride and a break with God seems to be a recurring theme in the Bible. Not that the wealth itself necessarily creates the breech, but rather the pride. In regards to this, what parallels do you find with Amos's preaching and Christ's?Saint Facetioushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17141014240883439626noreply@blogger.com