(Note from Duncan: I have pasted in an email from Jenny and some responses to it. They are not from me – I just posted them on the blog for others to see.)
HI Everyone
How’s it going? I must admit that I’m finding Leviticus less exciting than Genesis and Exodus.
Is anyone up to date? Be honest!!
March readings now ready for down load – keep going and keep praying for everyone else to keep going too…
God Bless
Jenny
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Dear Jenny
Thank you with eager anticipation for the next installment! I am up to date and have finished all of February’s readings. Really enjoyed reading it all.
I agree Leviticus was hard going and some days after a difficult day at work I wasn’t quite up to an old testament God and sacrifices. In fact it made me a little cross/agitated at times! But what it did show me was their act of worship and how living by a Levitical code they lived by what they felt were requirements for Holy Living. That challenged me……it has made me think about my life as an act of worship to God. I found the words in Leviticus 25:35 very thought provoking about how we should help the poor. A real message for community living and mission,…. an Acts 2 church.
I loved the way the psalms just seemed to link to the levitical themes – a righteous, blameless life and echoed the theme of holy living. The psalmist words were uplifting and revealed a God who never fails and is always there for us.Very helpful when one has just read that God will send wasting diseases and fever on those who don’t obey him! Not the passage to read in the early hours of the morning!!
Then Mark was great because there we see Jesus and the good news of Jesus. It was refreshing to read familiar stories and their message. The authority that was given to the twelve to go out, preach and heal particularly spoke to me.
Many of the readings revealed how the Jews live and think and their relationship to God. In Mark they were missing the point about Jesus. This has helped me at work where I meet so many Jewish families.
I must admit when Leviticus was heavy going I just read it as a chunk in an endeavour to move on or suss out what was being said!!!
Happy reading! It’s going to rain all weekend so you can catch up!!!
R Tulloh
Yes – it is a bit heavy going. My tip is to use Bible Gateway on the internet and listen as well as reading……
Regards, Clive P
Hi
I found this though not sure I agree with it….being with your baby and husband is a joyous occasion not one where you are separated!
I found the whole passage about clean and unclean very disturbing and it made me think in my job how do the Jewish families cope when their child has cancer, sores, illnesses. I have never liked the harshness of the OT towards the sick. Praise God for Jesus’s ministry!
Leviticus 12 – Cleansing After Childbirth
A. Ceremonial impurity after giving birth.
1. (1-4) When a male child is born.
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean. And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled.’”
a. If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days: The child was then circumcised on the eighth day, with the ceremonial uncleanness lasting an additional 33 days, for a total of 40 days of ceremonial impurity after giving birth to a male child.
b. She shall not touch any hallowed thing: The commanded time of ceremonial impurity should not be regarded as a negative attitude towards birth or child-bearing on God’s part. God commands child bearing, in that man is commanded to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 1:28), children are regarded as a gift from God (Psalm 127:3), and a woman with many kids is considered blessed (Psalm 128:3).
i. The key to understanding this ceremony is to understand the idea of original sin. As wonderful as a new baby is, God wanted it to be remembered that with every birth another sinner was brought into the world, and the woman was here symbolically responsible for bringing a new sinner into the world.
ii. Perhaps just as importantly, the time of ceremonial impurity gave the new mother a time of rest and seclusion that would she no doubt welcomed.
2. (5) When a female child is born.
But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her customary impurity, and she shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days.
a. If she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks: The time period for each phase was double of that when giving birth to a son. For a the birth of a daughter, a woman was unclean for 14 days followed by 66 days.
b. She shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days: The longer period of ceremonial uncleanness for the birth of a daughter should not be understood as a penalty. Instead, it is linked to the idea stated in the previous verses – that the time of impurity is for the symbolic responsibility of bringing other sinners into the world. When giving birth to a female, a mother brings a sinner into the world who will bring still other sinners into the world.
i. Some also suggest the longer period of time in connection with the birth of a girl was because girls are usually smaller at birth, and this would allow more time for the mother’s focused care and attention on the child. As well, since sons were more prized, the longer time at home for a mother with a new born girl would force the family to bond more deeply, over a more extended period of time with the new born girl.
Ref: http://www.enduringword.com/commentaries/0312.htm
Best wishes
R Tulloh
Well I have struggled to keep up to speed each day. With a varying schedule it’s hard to make sure I can fit it in. What I have done when I have missed a couple of days is do a bit of a marathon catch up, but I know it doesn’t really help as I’m more in a rush to get to the right place, than I am to really read the verses and think about them. Sometimes I’ve tried catching up over a couple of days, which has also helped, but I guess I’ve learnt my lesson – don’t miss a day and then you’ll get the best out of it.
On another note, I’ve found it awesome doing this thing – knowing that by the end of the year I will have read the whole bible. I’ve never done that before and it feels great to know that I won’t miss a single story that I may have missed before. Also, reading the Old Testament in sequence is giving a much better perspective to all the well-known stories and where they fit in.
Leviticus is quite tough going with all the laws but reading Jesus’s life through the gospels has been great. (I’m still marvelling at the feeding of the 5000 and how he managed to do that with just a couple of loaves and fish… Miracle is the word I think!).