Entries Tagged 'The Bible' ↓

Holy Week, what does the Bible have to say

The Holy Week is an important celebration followed by millions if not billions worldwide. From countries like El Salvador in Central America to the Philippines in South East Asia as the date approaches persons of all ages talk about it. The Holy Weeks is actually composed of eight days of Lent or “Cuaresma” as it is called in Spanish speaking countries where the Holy Week falls in the months of March and April. Holy Week is by far the most sacred days of the year for most people in these regions. These times instill a feeling of piety and religious fervor that is truly amazing.

I have seen images of passion in Spanish demonstration of the Passion of the Holy Week or “La Pasion de la Semana Santa” which would seem alien in an otherwise rather secular country. On the other hand Holy Week also becomes a time of recreation and which very often leads to violence and loose conduct.

It is ironic that during this most “Holy” of weeks morals run loose and lawlessness and disorder are rampant. Levels of violence increase regularly in El Salvador, Nicaragua and Guatemala during this week.
During the Holy Week the religious custom is to abstain from meat and many observe this tradition. During this time the ritual is to turn to sun-dried fish as opposed to meat.

Another custom is to save all year in order to be able to buy expensive garbs and robes made of purple and black priest-like clothes.
The “Good Friday” ceremony begins in one town of El Salvador with the removing of the image of Jesus from a cross in the church. The body of the image is anointed with expensive perfume and placed in a glass casket and paraded throughout the town with thousands following it closely.

The procession spends the whole day touring the city carried from block to block by volunteers that pay large sums of money for the privilege.
In other countries like the Philippines the images is substituted by a live human being, a young man literally nailed to a cross.

These are only a couple examples of the numerous traditions associated to this period of time. In other lands rabbits, eggs add to the colorful seasonal celebrations.
An interesting question from a biblical standpoint is: Is the Holy Week a proper religious observance for Christians? Is it based on the Bible?

What does the Bible say about the Holy Week festival?
Firstly, apart from the historical or biblical reasoning the immoral and violent connotations linked to this Holy Week does bring a question mark to how Holy the Week really is and if it is following Bible principle. If one measures it by the fruits of the people that celebrate it is found rather lacking.

Interestingly the customs associated with this week are mostly not based on Bible record. The abstaining of meat and other foods is particularly condemned in the Bible: “There will be some who abandon the faith, . . . They will be deceived by the pretensions of impostors . . . Such teachers bid them abstain from . . . certain kinds of food, although God has made these for the grateful enjoyment of those whom faith has enabled to recognize the truth.”—1 Tim. 4:1-3, translated by “Monsignor” R. A. Knox.

What about the procession of idols and the worshipping of them? Does this not go directly against the Bible’s command of abstaining from worshipping idols as stated in Exodus 20:4,5 and 1 John 5:21.

In John 4:24 we are admonished to worship in Spirit and Truth, could we say we are doing so by following unscriptural traditions.
Although it is obvious that many of those that celebrate the Holy Week do so for the right reasons and good motivation we must ask ourselves if we want to practice a tradition that is so far from the Truth the Bible explains to us.

The city of Jerusalem in the Bible, a brief history.

The city of Jerusalem carries so much history it would need a full library to disclose all the history associated with this ancient city. The name itself carries strong connotations for even the most ignorant of oriental and Bible history.

The name of Jerusalem is a good place to start on our brief journey. The Hebrew form Jerusalem or Yerushalayim as it is found in current Israeli maps, means Possession or foundation of Twofold Peace. There are other translations based on the Akkadian rendition of the city’s name that provides the meaning City of Peace. Logically though the Hebrew rendition must take precedence and we will keep the Hebrew meaning.

Early History of Jerusalem.
The first historical mention of the city of Jerusalem is found between the years 1943 and 1933 B.C.E when Abraham’s meets Melchizedek, who is called “king of Salem”. Who composed the city of Salem and the origins of Salem are as obscure as the origin of the king-priest that ruled it, Melchizedek.

Interestingly the location where Abraham offered his son Isaac on “one of the mountains” in the land of Moriah seems to have been located within the mountainous region around Jerusalem. We don’t know if Melchizedek was still alive, but it is very likely that Salem remained friendly territory for Abraham.

Another historical mention of Jerusalem is found in the Amarna Tablets, a series of letters from Canaanite rulers to their Egyptian overlord. These tablets include 7 letters from the king of Urusalim (Jerusalem). By this time the city was the possession of pagan Hamitic Canaanites, under the power of the Hamitic Egyptian Empire.

Interestingly the king of Jerusalem was among the confederate kings that attacked Gibeon, his name was Adoni-zedez meaning My Lord is righteousness with is similar to the meaning of Melichizedec, which means King of Righteousness.
After the conquest of the Promised Land the city of Jerusalem was on the boundary between Judah and Benjamin. Judah is credited with conquering it in Judges 1:8 but then seems to have lost it as the invading force continued as it is said that the Jebusites continued dwelling with them in Jerusalem.

This situation continued until David conquered Jerusalem when an attack spearheaded by Joab which gained entry through a water tunnel or gutter. After this David moves his capital here and the city began to be known as the city of David and also as Zion.
After this David began an ambitious building program of the city. There is no record of the city falling in battle during the entire rule of David. He did choose to retreat from it when his son Absalom rebelled against him and began a civil war.
Towards the end of David’s rule he prepared the city for the construction of the Temple. A task that would be left to his son Salomon.

Once the kingdom of Israel was divided the city of Jerusalem became the capital of the Two tribe nation of Judah under King Rehoboam. Throughout the remainder of Jerusalem’s history a pattern of blessings for the city when true worship was practiced and of apostasy and grave problems when the city turned away from true worship.

King Uzziah made significant additions to the city, especially in the form of defenses and fortifications. This did not stop Babylonian forces from conquering the city from King Zedekiah in 607 B.C.E

This sets a natural pause n the history of this magnificent city. We encourage you to continue an analysis of this city as part of your personal study of the Bible.