DOCSLIB.ORG

ELIJAH MEETS GOD at HOREB 1. Introduction When I Was Preparing

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
ELIJAH MEETS GOD at HOREB 1. Introduction When I Was Preparing ELIJAH MEETS GOD AT HOREB 1. Introduction When I was preparing for this segment of the PD Day, I reflected on my task to explain the meaning of Elijah’s meeting with God on Mount Horeb and I came to the conclusion that my task shares basic similarity with that of visual artists to present their artistic viewpoints of that same event on Mount Horeb, which is also known Mount Sinai. There is however a difference in the way meanings and viewpoints are communicated. While visual artists convey their viewpoints through the various artistic mediums, I convey my explanations and thoughts about Elijah’s meeting with God in literary form. For my part, I hope to show that the encounter with God amidst the sheer silence at Horeb has given Elijah new courage to face the challenges in his prophetic career. In this regard, my thoughts will extend beyond 1 Kgs 19:11b-13 so as to set this prescribed text in context. 2. Context It will include a sketch of the events leading to Elijah’s meeting with God because they form an important backdrop for appreciating the significance of the event on Mount Horeb. My thoughts will also extend beyond verse 13, to verse 19a that describes Elijah’s departure from Horeb after his meeting with God. I would like to begin by reading the prescribed text to you; it describes the event on Mount Horeb subsequent to God’s instruction to Elijah to exit the cave in which he was spending the night after his arrival at the mountain of God. The text does not refer to God as “God.” Instead it refers to God as “the Lord” which is just a different of identifying God. Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” The text that I have read to you is taken from the New Revised Standard Version. Before I explain the forceful and dramatic imagery in this text, I would like to spend some time to talk about the events that occurred prior it. Elijah was a prophet to the northern kingdom of Israel during the mid-ninth century BCE. He makes an abrupt appearance in 1 Kings 17 after a short narrative (1 Kgs 16:31-34), which describes King Ahab’s marriage to Jezebel, the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians. Soon after the marriage, Ahab begins to worship Baal, the god that his new wife Jezebel serves and worships. Thus his marriage to Jezebel causes his heart to turn away from God. Baal is the Canaanite god of storm who is thought to be responsible for bringing life-giving rain at certain times of the year and thus restoring fertility to the land. Elijah Meets God At Horeb Elijah’s prediction of a drought upon his appearance in the narrative directly challenges the power of the storm god Baal; it is also an indirect attack on Jezebel for introducing Baal to King Ahab and causing him to sin against God. Elijah seeks to prove that Israel’s God is the one true God and that God, not Baal is responsible for the fertility of the land. The drought occurs as Elijah had predicted. At the end of the third year, God decides to send rain to water the land as a final proof that he alone has power over the natural elements; he alone has control over the fecundity or productivity of the land. The drought ends with a heavy downpour after Elijah prevails over the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel in a contest that culminates in the slaying of all the Baal prophets. Jezebel hears about Elijah’s deed and she sends a messenger to Elijah to inform him of her intention to avenge her prophets; she promises to kill him the next day. Elijah’s response is to flee. “The biblical text reflects Elijah’s panic in a rapid series of short grammatical clauses: ‘he feared and he arose and he fled for his life.’”1 By the fourth clause in that verse, Elijah is already at Beersheba in the Judah, which is about 200 kilometers south of Mount Carmel and well beyond the jurisdiction of King Ahab and Jezebel. He travels for another day and he enters the Negev desert and he prays to God; he prays for death in view of his trouble with Jezebel, “Enough; O Lord, take away my life now, for I am no better than my ancestors” (1 Kgs 19:4). After his prayer, he travels for another 40 days and 40 nights and he arrives at Mount Horeb. The narrator then reports, “At that place, he come to a cave and spent the night there.” 3. Elijah’s Meets with God at Horeb (1 Kgs 9-19a) Immediately after this report, the narrator says that the word of God comes to Elijah and it says to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah? Elijah answers, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” In response, God gives him this command, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” The dialogue that I have just described to you employs the phrase, “the word of God came to him,” to portray an encounter between God and Elijah; the narrative, however, does not explain the precise nature of that encounter. Interestingly, when Elijah meets God outside the cave, the same dialogue transpires between them in that God asks Elijah the same question─“What are you doing here Elijah?”─and Elijah responds with the same answer. Various solutions have been offered for this puzzling duplication. It is thought that the repetition of God’s question reflects the repeated calls of the prophets’ name when God appears to them─for example, the repeated calls of Moses’ name when God appears to him at the scene of the burning bush (Exod 3:4) 1 Jerome Walsh, 1 Kings. (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1996), 266. 2 Elijah Meets God At Horeb and of Samuel’s name when God calls him to the prophetic ministry (1 Samuel 3:4).2 As for Elijah’s verbatim answer, it has been argued that it emphasizes the major themes of Elijah’s zealousness for God and Israel’s abandonment of its covenant.3 There seems to be a simpler solution to this issue of duplication in that it is possible to interpret God’s dialogue with Elijah in the cave as an occurrence within a dream. The phrase (9a) that precedes the initial dialogue, which says that Elijah “spent the night in the cave” supports this idea that the word of God happens to Elijah while he was asleep. And it is not unusual for God to communicate through dreams; this phenomenon appears in a number of places in the Old Testament (Gen 15:1; Joel 2:28; Num 12:6; Zech 1:7-8:8; Obad 1:1; Nah 1:1). In sum it may be proposed that the ‘dialogue’ that occurs in the cave anticipates the dialogue outside the cave when Elijah actually meets God or conversely, the dialogue outside the cave is an enactment of the dialogue in Elijah’s dream. The next segment of my reflection concerns the prescribed text itself and it ends with Elijah’s departure from Horeb. Elijah’s encounter with God outside the cave is preceded by a great wind, a wind so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces “before the Lord” (1 Kgs 19:11b). This clause “before the Lord” is sometimes overlooked; this means “in the presence of the Lord” or literally, “before the לִפְנ ֵ֣י יְהוָ ה Hebrew clause face of God.” Thus the wind announces the arrival of God; the wind is not to be identified with God himself and the narrative stresses this point by asserting that God was not in the wind. Similarly, the narrative asserts that God was not in the subsequent earthquake and fire. Then after the fire, there was a “sound of sheer silence.” The narrative, however, does not say that God was not in the silence like the previous three occasions. The implication is that God is in the silence. that the New Revised Standard Version ק֖ ֹולדְמָמָ ה ָ֥ דַקָ ָּֽ ה The “Hebrew phrase renders as a “sound of sheer silence” has also been translated as “a gentle little breeze”, “a soft murmuring sound”, a “gentle whisper” (NIV), and “a still small in my view, refers to the utter silence and calm after ,ק֖ ֹולדְמָמָ ה ָ֥ דַקָ ָּֽ ה voice” (KJV). 4 the cessation of the fire. Thus the phrase “a sound of sheer silence” captures perfectly the scene before the actual appearance of God. When Elijah senses the onset of calm and sheer silence, he wraps his face in his mantle or cloak and goes out and stands at the entrance of the cave in accordance with God’s instruction.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The God Who Delivers (Part 2)
    The God Who Delivers (part 2) Review from Creation to Jacob’s family in Egypt? Our last study ended the book of Genesis with Joseph enjoying life as the Pharoah’s commanding officer. After forgiving his brothers for what they had done, Jacob and his entire clan moves to Egypt and this is where the book of Exodus begins. What turn of event occurs in the life of the Israelites in Egypt? Exodus 1:8-11 A generation passes and new powers come to be. A new pharaoh “whom Joseph meant nothing” became fearful the Israelite nation, becoming so fruitful and huge, would rebel against him. The Israelites became slaves to the Egyptians. The Pharoah comes up with what solution? 1:22 Kill every Hebrew boy that is born. The future deliverer is delivered. 2:1-10. A boy is spared, saved from a watery death through the means of an “ark”. Sound familiar? Moses is delivered to one day deliver God’s people out of Egypt, but for the time being, was being brought up in the Egyptian royal household. Moses becomes an enemy to Egypt. 2:11-15. Moses tries to do what is right, but has to flee Egypt for his life so he goes to Mdian. God has a message for Moses. Chapter 3. The Lord tells Moses he will be the one to deliver the Israelites out of slavery, but Moses immediately doubts. 3:11. God tells Moses who He is. 3:14-15. I am who I am. God gives Moses special abilities in order to convince the people.
    [Show full text]
  • The Two Screens: on Mary Douglas S Proposal
    The Two Screens: On Mary Douglass Proposal for a Literary Structure to the Book of Leviticus* Gary A. Rendsburg In memoriam – Mary Douglas (1921–2007) In the middle volume of her recent trio of monographs devoted to the priestly source in the Torah, Mary Douglas proposes that the book of Leviticus bears a literary structure that reflects the layout and config- uration of the Tabernacle.1 This short note is intended to supply further support to this proposal, though first I present a brief summary of the work, its major suppositions, and its principal finding. The springboard for Douglass assertion is the famous discovery of Ramban2 (brought to the attention of modern scholars by Nahum Sar- na3) that the tripartite division of the Tabernacle reflects the similar tripartite division of Mount Sinai. As laid out in Exodus 19 and 24, (a) the people as a whole occupied the lower slopes; (b) Aaron, his two sons, and the elders were permitted halfway up the mountain; and (c) only Moses was allowed on the summit. In like fashion, according to the priestly instructions in Exodus 25–40 and the book of Leviticus, (a) the people as a whole were allowed to enter the outer court of the Taberna- * It was my distinct pleasure to deliver an oral version of this article at the Mary Douglas Seminar Series organized by the University of London in May 2005, in the presence of Professor Douglas and other distinguished colleagues. I also take the op- portunity to thank my colleague Azzan Yadin for his helpful comments on an earlier version of this article.
    [Show full text]
  • Covenant of Mount Sinai
    mark h lane www.biblenumbersforlife.com COVENANT OF MOUNT SINAI SUMMARY The children of Israel were slaves in Egypt. The Lord brought them out with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm. He brought them into the desert of Sinai and made them a nation under God, with the right to occupy and live in the Promised Land, AS TENANTS, subject to obedience to the Law of Moses. To have the privilege to continue to occupy the Promised Land Israel must keep: The ritual law concerning the priesthood and the continual offering of animal sacrifices, etc. The civil law concerning rights of citizens, land transactions, execution of justice, etc. The moral law: Love your neighbor as yourself The heart law: Love the LORD your God and serve him only In the Law of Moses there were blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. Penalties for disobedience went as far as being shipped back to Egypt as slaves. All who relied on observing the Law of Moses were under a curse. It is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law” (Deut. 27:26). None of the blessings under the Law of Moses concern eternal life, the heavenly realm, or the forgiveness of sins necessary to stand before God in the life hereafter. The people under the Covenant of Sinai did not even enjoy the privilege of speaking to the Lord face to face. The high priest, who crawled into the Most Holy Place once a year, was required to fill the room with incense so that he would not see the LORD and die.
    [Show full text]
  • Torah Texts Describing the Revelation at Mt. Sinai-Horeb Emphasize The
    Paradox on the Holy Mountain By Steven Dunn, Ph.D. © 2018 Torah texts describing the revelation at Mt. Sinai-Horeb emphasize the presence of God in sounds (lwq) of thunder, accompanied by blasts of the Shofar, with fire and dark clouds (Exod 19:16-25; 20:18-21; Deut 4:11-12; 5:22-24). These dramatic, awe-inspiring theophanies re- veal divine power and holy danger associated with proximity to divine presence. In contrast, Elijah’s encounter with God on Mt. Horeb in 1 Kings 19:11-12, begins with a similar audible, vis- ual drama of strong, violent winds, an earthquake and fire—none of which manifest divine presence. Rather, it is hqd hmmd lwq, “a voice of thin silence” (v. 12) which manifests God, causing Elijah to hide his face in his cloak, lest he “see” divine presence (and presumably die).1 Revelation in external phenomena present a type of kataphatic experience, while revelation in silence presents a more apophatic, mystical experience.2 Traditional Jewish and Christian mystical traditions point to divine silence and darkness as the highest form of revelatory experience. This paper explores the contrasting theophanies experienced by Moses and the Israelites at Sinai and Elijah’s encounter in silence on Horeb, how they use symbolic imagery to convey transcendent spiritual realities, and speculate whether 1 Kings 19:11-12 represents a “higher” form of revela- tory encounter. Moses and Israel on Sinai: Three months after their escape from Egypt, Moses leads the Israelites into the wilderness of Sinai where they pitch camp at the base of Mt.
    [Show full text]
  • Hannah's Prayer
    40 days in 1 SAMUEL Titles in 40 Days Series 40 Days in 1 Samuel 40 Days in Mark 40 Days in Psalms (release March 2021) 40 Days in 1 Corinthians (release March 2021) 40 days in 1 SAMUEL DUANE GARRETT — edited by — WILLIAM F. COOK III Copyright © 2020 by B&H Publishing Group All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America 978-1-5359-9346-3 Published by B&H Publishing Group Nashville, Tennessee Dewey Decimal Classification: 242.5 Subject Heading: DEVOTIONAL LITERATURE / BIBLE. O.T. 1 SAMUEL—STUDY AND TEACHING / CHRISTIAN LIFE Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers. Also used: New Revised Standard Version Bible (nrsv), copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Cover illustration by bweetRenie/shutterstock 1 2 3 4 5 6 • 23 22 21 20 Contents Preface ................................................vii Day One: Hannah’s Prayer .................................1 Day Two: Hannah’s Praise .................................5 Day Three: Samuel’s Childhood at Shiloh .....................9 Day Four: Samuel’s Calling................................13 Day Five: Israel’s Defeat . 17 Day Six: Dagon’s Humiliation..............................21 Day Seven: The Ark’s Return ..............................25 Day Eight: Israel’s Victory.................................29 Day Nine: Israel’s Request.................................33 Day Ten: Saul’s Search ................................... 37 Day Eleven: Samuel’s Message ............................. 41 Day Twelve: Saul’s Anointing . 45 Day Thirteen: Saul’s Elevation to Kingship .
    [Show full text]
  • Fisher, Memories of The
    Memories of the Ark: Texts, Objects, and the Construction of the Biblical Past By Daniel Shalom Fisher A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Near Eastern Studies in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Ronald Hendel, Chair Professor Robert Alter Professor Benjamin Porter Professor Daniel Boyarin Professor Ann Swidler Summer 2018 Copyright © 2018 by Daniel Shalom Fisher, All Rights Reserved. 1 Abstract Memories of the Ark: Texts, Objects, and the Construction of the Biblical Past by Daniel Shalom Fisher Doctor of Philosophy in Near Eastern Studies University of California, Berkeley Professor Ronald Hendel, Chair This dissertation constructs a cultural biography of the Ark of the Covenant, exploring through it the close, but often complicated, relationships that have existed between objects and collective memory in Biblical and ancient Jewish societies. The project considers the different ways in which Biblical writers and interpreters have remembered the Ark as a “real thing,” forming it, mobilizing it, and making meaning with it—largely in its absence after its likely loss in the 6th century BCE. From Exodus to Chronicles and in works of biblical interpretation through the Mishnah, this project explores how these writers reimagine the Ark to craft visions for their people’s future through their people’s past. The project is structured around five interrelated case studies from the Ark’s mnemohistory, considering different dimensions of cultural memory’s entanglement in material culture. Each case study draws upon and enriches text-, source-, and redaction-critical approaches, investigating the growth and reshaping of biblical writings as creative memory work.
    [Show full text]
  • Tabernacle, the Golden Calf, and Covenant Renewal Exodus 25-40 – Lesson 18 Wednesday, September 2, 2020
    EXODUS: Tabernacle, the Golden Calf, and Covenant Renewal Exodus 25-40 – Lesson 18 Wednesday, September 2, 2020 Quite possibly this is the last major unit of Exodus (dealing with the tabernacle), this section probably seems tedious, for many modern readers of the Old Testament. Nevertheless, Scripture has given us an intricate description of the tabernacle, a description that ranges over sixteen chapters, from divine orders to build (25-31), to interruption and delay of implementation because of apostasy (32-34), to final execution of the divine mandate (35-40). The movement is from instruction (25-31) to interruption (32-34) to implementation (35-40). Sandwiched in between two sections (25-31 and 35-40) that deal with proper worship of God and building what God wants his people to build is a section (32-34) that deals with improper worship of God and building/making what God does not want his people to build/make. One may also discern that Exodus begins and ends with Israelites building something. At the beginning that are forced to build stores cities for Pharaoh (1:11); at the end they choose to build a portable place of worship where God may dwell in their midst. Theological Analysis In the tabernacle there were seven pieces of furniture. The article of clothing worn by those officiating in the tabernacle numbered eight, four of which are worn by the high priest alone (the ephod 28:6-12); (the breastpiece of judgment 28:15-30); (the ephod’s robe (28:31-35); (a turban 28:36-38), and four more that are worn by all the priests (a coat, gridle, cap, and linen breeches 28:40-42).
    [Show full text]
  • 1/10 of an Eifa ]=עשרון . וְהָ עֹמֶ ר, עֲ שִׂ רִׂ ית הָ אֵ יפָ ה הּוא
    Omer, Shemitta, & Har Sinai – what’s the connection? source sheet for lecutre by Menachem Leibtag, www.tanach.org A. “OMER” – something to count, or something to eat! 1. Manna – as preparation for Mount Sinai /Shmot 16:1-4 16:1 They moved on from Elim, and the entire community of Israel came to the Sin Desert, between Elim and Sinai. It was the 15th of the second month after they had left Egypt. 16:2 There in the desert, the entire Israelite community began to complain against Moses and Aaron. 16:3 The Israelites said to them, 'If only we had died by God's hand in Egypt! There at least we could sit by pots of meat and eat our fill of bread! But you had to bring us out to this desert, to kill the entire community by starvation!' 16:4 God said to Moses, 'I will make bread rain down to you from the sky. The people will go out and gather enough for each day, so. I will test them to see whether or not they will keep My law. 2. Taking as much as one ‘needs’, but not on shabbat / see 16:16-18 16:16 God's instructions are that each man shall take as much as he needs. There shall be an omer for each person, according to the number of people each man has in his tent.' 16:18 And they measured it with an omer, the one who had taken more did not have any extra, and the one who had taken less did not have too little.
    [Show full text]
  • Jerusalem, Jerusalem
    Martha C Langford First Presbyterian Church, LaGrange 17 March 2019, Second Sunday in Lent Luke 13:31-35 Jerusalem, Jerusalem Jesus has set his face toward Jerusalem. He is making his way through Galilee with his disciples; the region controlled by Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. It’s easy to confuse the Herod’s because there were six of them—this is the second of three that Luke will include in his story-telling. Herod Antipas has been curious about Jesus ever since he had John the Baptist beheaded. News of Jesus ministry filtered to the palace, along with speculation about the identity of the itinerant teacher, healer, exorcist who was on the loose in Galilee. Some thought John, raised from the dead, or Elijah, or another ancient prophet. Luke writes in chapter 9 that Herod is perplexed and tries to see Jesus (Luke 9:7-9) something that will only take place as Jesus stands trial—in Jerusalem (Luke 23:6-12). This warning – that Herod seeks to kill Jesus – is found only in Luke’s gospel. Did you find it interesting that it’s the Pharisees who bring this warning to Jesus? I know I did. In Matthew’s gospel, the Pharisees and Jesus are always at odds; yet, Luke paints a more nuanced picture. Jesus engages these leaders. He accepts invitations to their homes. He eats with them, sharing table fellowship even as he debates Pharisaic notions of righteousness. He teaches them—with actions and words—the spirit of God’s law and God’s desire for justice.
    [Show full text]
  • The Body and Voice of God in the Hebrew Bible
    Johanna Stiebert The Body and Voice of God in the Hebrew Bible ABSTRACT This article explores the role of the voice of God in the Hebrew Bible and in early Jew- ish interpretations such as the Targumim. In contrast to the question as to whether God has a body, which is enmeshed in theological debates concerning anthropomor- phism and idolatry, the notion that God has a voice is less controversial but evidences some diachronic development. KEYWORDS body of God, voice of God, Torah, Targumim, Talmud, anthropomorphic BIOGRAPHY Johanna Stiebert is a German New Zealander and Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible at the University of Leeds. Her primary research interests with regard to the Hebrew Bible are centred particularly on self-conscious emotions, family structures, gender and sexuality. In Judaism and Christianity, which both hold the Hebrew Bible canonical, the question as to whether God has a body is more sensitive and more contested than the question as to whether God has a voice.1 The theological consensus now tends to be that God is incorporeal, and yet the most straightforward interpretation of numerous Hebrew Bible passages is that God is conceived of in bodily, anthropomorphic terms – though often there also exist attendant possibilities of ambiguity and ambivalence. The famil- iar divine statement “let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness” (betsalmēnû kidmûtēnû; Gen. 1:26), for example, seems to envisage – particularly in 1 A version of this paper was presented at “I Sing the Body Electric”, an interdisciplinary day confer- ence held at the University of Hull, UK, on 3 June 2014 to explore body and voice from musicological, technological, and religious studies perspectives.
    [Show full text]
  • Response to Deere's Surprised by the Voice Of
    RESPONSE TO DEERE’S SURPRISED BY THE VOICE OF GOD ___________________ A Paper Presented to Dr. Glenn Kreider Dallas Theological Seminary ___________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Course ST101 Introduction to Theology ___________________ by Samuel Andrew Baylis December 2014 RESPONSE TO DEERE’S SURPRISED BY THE VOICE OF GOD There is perhaps no other issue in evangelical Christianity today that is more controversial, except for perhaps that of worship styles, than the issue of does God truly speak today outside of the written word of God. This paper will respond to a major book written on this subject, Surprised By the Voice of God, written by an American charismatic pastor by the name of Jack Deere. Deere, a former professor at Dallas Theological Seminary considers himself liberated from the chains of his past life as what he calls a Bible Deist, that is, one who believes that God who is simply not present outside of the written pages of the Bible. The author of this paper is himself a student at Dallas Theological Seminary and will examine this work in light of the strength of Deere’s arguments, both logically and biblically. To accomplish this goal, this paper will first present the author’s view of the topic, then will present Deere’s view of revelation, analyze several points of his argumentation, and finally analyze several points of his biblical support. The author would like to stress that this is a very difficult topic and that the pages below are the author’s best effort to make a clear distinction between the two philosophies, but is by no means considered the final word on the subject.
    [Show full text]
  • In Search of the Understanding of the Old Testament in Africa: the Case of the Lemba
    IN SEARCH OF THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE OLD TESTAMENT IN AFRICA: THE CASE OF THE LEMBA by MAGDEL LE ROUX submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF LITERATURE AND PHILOSOPHY in the subject BIBLICAL STUDIES at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA PROMOTER: PROF E H SCHEFFLER NOVEMBER 1999 Contemporary (1964) Ethiopian painting on cloth depicting how the Queen ofSheba journeyed to King Solomon by boat accompanied by her retinue (Photo: Kessler 1982) - 'WE CAME BY BOAT TO AFRICA .. .' CA LEMBA TRADITION) 'Solomon sent his ships to get gold from Ophir ... Some ofthe Jews who went on those boats stayed in Africa. That is the origin ofthe Lemba' (cfpp 155,156) CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS SUMMARY MAPS CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION ~ 1.1 HISTORY OF THE PROJECT . 1 1.2 METHODOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS ............................ 3 I~ 1.2.1 Qualitative research methods . 3 1.2.l.l The phenomenological perspective . 4 1.2.1.2 Participant observation . 5 1.2.1.3 Jn-depth interviewing . 6 1.2.1.4 The interview guide . 6 1.2.2 Processing and interpretation . 7 1.2.3 Conclusion ~··~ . 8 1.3 THE PURPOSE AND STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS .................... 8 1.3.1 The purpose of the thesis . 8 1.3.2 Limitations and delimitations of this project: the structure of the thesis . 11 CHAPTER TWO VARIOUS RECEPTIONS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT IN AFRICA: SOME OBSERVATIONS 2.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................ 14 2.2 OSTENSIBLE REASONS FOR 'RELIGIOUS SHIFTS' WORLD-WIDE . 17 2.3 'JUDAISING' MOVEMENTS IN AFRICA . 19 2.3.1 Groups upon whom the idea of Jewishness was imposed ................
    [Show full text]