Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Evangelical Christians are politicizing Jewish story of Esther + Mixed bag of items

#1
C C Offline
Evangelical Christians are politicizing the Jewish story of Esther
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2...an-jewish/

EXCERPTS: As Jews gather on Wednesday evening to celebrate the holiday of Purim [...] Purim is a carnival, satirical and joyous, a time for dressing up and drinking heavily, a topsy-turvy combination of Halloween, Mardi Gras and the classic Jewish holiday definition of “they tried to kill us, we won, let’s eat.”

The biblical character of Esther plays a starring role in the eponymous book that is chanted that evening and again the next day. [...] It’s a messy story. Some modern feminists argue the true heroine is not Esther, but her predecessor, Vashti ... Both Esther and Mordechai engage in questionable behavior to achieve their goals, and the book’s violent coda — when the Jews kill 75,000 Persians, supposedly in self-defense — remains controversial. Nonetheless, in the end, Purim is celebrated as a happy tale of communal survival.

[...] But over the centuries, the Esther story has come to represent a different sort of tale for many Christians — as other Jewish texts and rituals have been repurposed by evangelicals. This story is often stripped of its innate complexities to focus on Esther herself, as someone who is explicitly chosen to carry out God’s will (even though the name of God does not appear anywhere in the Hebrew text). Esther has evolved to become a secret stand-in for the divine purpose, used by leaders to justify their political decisions and to imply that God is on their side, even if the rest of us can’t see it.

No surprise, then, that in this polarizing climate, the politicization of Esther continues to even radical extremes. Christian evangelical women have long looked up to Esther as a symbol of appropriately behaved women’s empowerment. The term “Esther moment” has come to represent a moment when an unlikely woman is chosen by God to speak truth to power... (MORE - missing details)


Sexual harassment went unchecked at Christianity Today
https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2...awoye.html

INTRO: For more than a dozen years, Christianity Today failed to hold two ministry leaders accountable for sexual harassment at its Carol Stream, Illinois, office. A number of women reported demeaning, inappropriate, and offensive behavior by former editor in chief Mark Galli and former advertising director Olatokunbo Olawoye. But their behavior was not checked and the men were not disciplined, according to an external assessment of the ministry’s culture released Tuesday... (MORE - details)


Prepping The Mind, Body, And Soul For Ramadan
https://muslimmatters.org/2022/03/14/pre...l-ramadan/

EXCERPTS: A few years ago, my best friend (who is also a physician) and I were discussing our concerns about fasting long June days while seeing patients in the clinic all day. It wasn’t the refraining from food that we were worried about, or even the busy schedule of Ramadan. Our thoughts were on having enough energy to make it through the day without our caffeinated beverages of choice. What would prepping for Ramadan look like if we tried balancing our total well-being: mind, body, and soul?

As Ramadan approaches, there is a buzz of excitement in the air about getting ourselves spiritually prepared for the blessed month, so that we can maximally benefit from the Mercy pouring down upon us. The second wing of this preparation is that of the body. Although the fasts are getting progressively shorter, who doesn’t want an abundance of energy stores to be able to enjoy tarawih prayers, work, and even suhur with the family!

Energy is a mind, body, and soul affair affected by energy drainers and energy creators. I strongly believe in ‘mind over matter’ as that is where it all starts. [...] How can we break the cycle of overthinking, worry, and stress? Staying in the present, so to speak... (MORE - missing details)


Did We Kiss Purity Goodbye?
https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/did...ty-goodbye

INTRO: Not long ago, purity was something all Christians seemed to admire, and want, without qualification. Now, many professing believers associate the pursuit of personal purity with the scandal of “purity culture.” Christian pleas for purity, some claim, have spread fear, guilt, and shame instead. I encountered these concerns again as I researched and published a fresh plea for sexual purity... (MORE - details)
Reply


Possibly Related Threads…
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  (UK) Theatre bans comedian after abuse of Jewish members + Ski shop antisemitism C C 0 86 Feb 14, 2024 09:07 PM
Last Post: C C
  The cultural habits that contribute to Jewish success C C 0 51 Oct 3, 2023 06:25 PM
Last Post: C C
  Article Are white evangelical pastors at odds with their congregants? A new study says no. C C 0 55 Aug 12, 2023 04:53 PM
Last Post: C C
  Christians and anti-Semitism + UM tolerance of conservatives is impossible C C 0 69 Jan 19, 2023 09:27 PM
Last Post: C C
  What is a bodhisattva? + Christians who are Democrats are abandoning Social Gospel C C 0 117 Oct 12, 2022 01:14 AM
Last Post: C C
  Violence in Nigeria threatens religious freedom for Christians and Muslims alike C C 0 127 Sep 19, 2022 02:14 AM
Last Post: C C
  Islamic republic is killing Islam in Iran + Why are Christians not outraged by Trump? C C 1 142 Sep 5, 2022 05:25 PM
Last Post: Syne
  Nature’s God: Why Christians should accept the theory of evolution C C 1 73 Jun 21, 2022 08:02 PM
Last Post: Magical Realist
  Woman who claimed Grenfell Tower victims ‘burned alive in Jewish sacrifice’ convicted C C 0 79 Jan 15, 2022 02:49 AM
Last Post: C C
  Study links evangelical Christianity to phallic insecurity in the US C C 1 105 Apr 17, 2021 07:39 AM
Last Post: Syne



Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)