I found the gospel of Luke to be much more relatable than the chapters of Genesis and Exodus we read earlier in the semester. Jesus provided bits of wisdom throughout a number of the parables, usually in the form of obscure stories, but some of his messages really struck home. His preaching of forgiveness is probably the most important insight I’ve found. Holding grudges can be stifling; by crippling relationships that would otherwise bring years of happiness to all parties involved. Letting go of such things, even if you’ve been wronged, will give you the clarity and ease of mind to pursue what really adds value to your life.
Luke 16:1 was one passage I really didn’t enjoy reading at all. It depicted a rich man who lived lavishly, free to eat to his hearts content. Meanwhile, a beggar named Lazarus lived just outside the rich man’s gate and struggled to make ends meet, yearning to eat what was on the rich man’s table. Needless to say, Lazarus went to heaven while the rich man found his torment in hell. And I quote:
“In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' ” "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony...”
I find this passage detestable. This is why: the rich man was sentenced to eternal agony as punishment for his sins on Earth. Twice, the above passage emphasizes the word agony. It’s sickening, that a God would force anyone to endure such pain forever, where he must beg for water just to cool his tongue for some momentary relief. Now perhaps I’m over analyzing this passage, but I raise a good point. What kind of deity, all knowing and benevolent, would subject anyone to such brutal torture? Was it because the rich man was ignorant and sinned? That’s like burning ants with a magnifying glass just because they can’t comprehend the true structure of the Universe! Are they ignorant too? Any omniscient god worth his grain of salt would know that, nobody deserves such punishment. /Rant Over.
On a lighter note, I found most of the parables to be optimistic and inspiring. Many of them added a layer of depth to Jesus’ character that I hadn’t considered before. He felt more humanized and relatable after reading the Gospel of Luke. I leave with one final quote:
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” -Mahatma Gandhi
I agree with your point about forgiveness and the great lessons this part of the bible brings. However I feel as though that passage somewhat makes sense to me. I think the idea of it was that because he was not a kind man when he was alive he got sent to hell. I think it was written to show that if you are not kind and are selfish you will be punished. If he gets off easy and gets the same treatment as someone going to heaven then I feel as though many people would simply think that it is acceptable to be selfish. The point of this passage and many other passages is to scare people into doing the right thing. I feel as though God was justified in his decision to send that rich man to hell to show all the other people of the world that if you are selfish and ignorant you should get punished for it. I feel as though if I were in Lazarus' shoes I would not give anything to the man that would not give me anything. I agree with your last point about your feelings for Jesus and how after reading about him in the Gospel according to Luke he seemed more human.
I would like to comment on the story of the rich man and Lazarus. I see that you believe that God was too harsh on the rich man. But, if you read the story closely, it is said that Lazarus was hungry and dying outside of the rich man's house, and in need of care. The rich man was not ignorant to Lazarus' suffering, and did not help him. The reason that the rich man is so harshly punished is because he did not acknowledge that Lazarus needed help and kept his bountiful wealth for himself. So, it is right that although Lazarus had nothing on earth, he is rewarded greatly in the afterlife. This was the point that Jesus was trying to make. Also, at the end the rich man asks God to send Lazarus to his family that they may repent, but God will not because he has already sent many others into the world to teach men to be kind and selfless. So, conclusively the rich man is at great fault because he had been told to help those in need but knowingly disobeyed.
I agree with you that the rich man was rightly punished, however I’d like to comment more on the importance of this story. To me it is clear that the allegorical sense of this is that it is unjust to be selfish we you know one is in need of the surplus that you have. I feel like this plays in a biblical sense on the idea that God punishes the man for being unjust because in the Bible God represents justice. Also if you think of the idea that is made in our previous readings, such as Plato’s Republic and the Aeneid, that public good should be over private good is a just act, you can see that Lazarus being selfish and not sharing his wealth brings him to be unjust, which means justice no longer protects him. This is one of the many parables presented in Luke’s gospel. Jesus used these parables to teach those on earth the “Word of God” which is guidelines to living a just life. This parables obviously teaches us to be kind to “our neighbor” and to not let material things lead us off the track of justice.
This story was interesting, and I think it makes an important point about the compassion necessary in life.
I think that if Lazarus was lain outside my castle I would be careful, because I wouldn't want all the homeless to go lay outside my mansion if I fed him, nor would I want Lazarus there every day laying outside the castle for food. I suppose I would try to find some useful work for Lazarus to do in order to earn the food, of course after treating the sores and whatnot.
So if I had bountiful wealth, I would give it away by building stuff that would get me more bountiful wealth. I.e, paying the poor to build a hotel, so people in the neighboring towns could come stay, or a restaurant, to serve that extra food for a price, but either way just giving it away, unless the recipient to be really was incapable of expending himself to earn it, wouldn't be the proper way to go about solving the problem of Lazarus.
I would like to explore the idea of Rostam as both a hero for the force of good and a fallible, not-always-good human being. While Rostam is obviously a major hero in the Shanameh and in the Persian tradition, he also has more than a few problems. He, according to the story, has partially evil blood, is probably much more violent than he should be sometimes, and is a major trickster.
According to the Shanameh, Rostam’s father, Zal, has white hair at birth, which is the reason that at first, his father Sam casts him off into the mountains to die. White symbolized evil in the Persian culture at the time, and as we said in class today, Zal had white hair because his ancestry had some evil in it. Rostam, then, also has partially evil ancestry. Our professor said today that this fact is in the Shanameh as a reminder of the dualism of good and evil in Zoroastrianism. I would argue that this evil side of Rostam is the reason for many things he does in the Shanameh, such as those I will describe in the next two paragraphs.
Rostam, in my opinion, is sometimes excessively forceful and violent. For instance, in Rostam’s fifth trial, titled “The Capture of Olad,” a man who, according to the text, was sent to keep animals out of a wheat field (Olad), attacks Rostam and Rakhsh, who are resting in the wheat. I would be inclined to say that this was a justified action, since he was sent to keep animals out of the wheat, and Rostam is a stranger. In retaliation, Rostam tears Olad’s ears off (!!!). He also “nooses” him and threatens him, demanding information. In my opinion, these are not the actions of a noble hero, they are the actions of a crazed man.
Rostam is known as a “trickster hero,” which we discussed in class today. He lies to his combatant (who ends up being his son) that it is a chivalrous convention to only kill your opponent after you have overpowered him twice. There is no such convention, he is only using it to escape being killed. Even Rostam’s death is embroiled in trickery. He is tricked by his half-brother Shaghad into falling into a pit full of spikes with his horse Rakhsh, but in a final act of deceit as he is dying, he tricks Shaghad into giving him is bow and arrows under a ruse of honor, and shoots his killer before he dies.
While Rostam is most surely a hero in the Shanameh, he is not all “good.” He has faults, and even has some evil in him.
I also thought that it was interesting that although Rostam is considered a true epic literary hero, he is deceptive and sometimes, quite evil. But then i thought of the fictional heroes that currently pervade American culture. Spiderman is considered a fictional hero yet in rent cinema depictions he accidentally aids in the killing of his own grandfather and is commonly referred to on the street as a criminal and is oftentimes being chased after by policemen. Also is current modern day depictions we see Batman trying to get information out of victims in a questionable way, and putting the ones he loves danger. These American heroes are humans with special abilities who do not always comply with what is necessarily "good." Like Rostam they delegate their own rules for what is right and wrong, and act accordingly.
The Gospel of Luke was definitely easier to comprehend compared to the other books we’ve read in the Bible. The story of how Jesus is born and his journey as he is older is a story that is very familiar to me. One aspect in particular that interested me was the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). This story is very relatable, as was most of the stories in the Gospel of Luke; you see similar instances in the real world today.
In the story of the Prodigal Son, the youngest of two sons asks for his inheritance so he can go off and live a life elsewhere. He leaves his home and spends all his money recklessly. He then finds himself in a country hit by famine, without any money, so he decides to go back to his father as one of his slaves. His father, however, welcomes him back with open arms, rejoicing over the fact that he is not dead or lost. The elder son sees this happiness and is angry since he has been loyal to his father all this time. The father tries to reduce the jealousy the eldest son is experiencing by saying “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours” (15:31).
Based on the story, I would say that the father resembles God in that he is always welcoming people in and helps restore them. The son came back after a troubling experience out on his journey and betrayed his father by spending all his inheritance money, yet his father celebrated his return by clothing him in a robe and shoes, and offering the fattest calf to eat. The father clearly did not dwell on the fact that his son was a fool. This is similar to God in that he shows compassion for people no matter what their past entails. He offers everything he can in order to restore and love those who come to him. I found this similarity very refreshing. It reminded me that I have many people in my life that can relate to the father in this story. This story was one of the reasons why I enjoyed the Gospel of Luke so much more than any other story we’ve read in the Bible so far.
I would definitely agree with you along with others who have mentioned that the Gospel of Luke is much easier to understand. Not only the way that the text is worded but I felt as though the stories were in Luke were a better read then some of the ones we previously read in the old testament. As for the story you mentioned in Luke 15:11 about the prodigal son I was somewhat surprised someone else brought this up. I enjoyed reading the Gospel of Luke but this story in particular stuck out with me. The way the father responds to his son after he returns was unexpected when I read it. Now that you’ve made the comparison that the father is representing God it makes more sense to me in that all the tests we’ve read depict God at some point as forgiving and understanding.
It was very interesting reading these two texts side by side. They both have the same story to tell but as we known the Qur’an has a different style accumulating detail as it reads. I found that the language used in both texts is very similar and you can see how Jesus is respected in the Qur’an as a messenger of God (Allah) but you can also see how Jesus’s story is different from the Bible.
The two texts are similar in their descriptions of the births of John and Jesus. This is where I found the language to be similar, Elizabeth being barren and both her and her husband Zechariah being advanced in age. Despite this both texts bless Elizabeth with the Holy Spirit and create John. Again with Mary being unchaste the two texts use the same language in describing the birth of Jesus.
Growing up nonreligious, I did not have much exposure to the stories of the Bible, and not until college have I studied the Qur’an. For me it is interesting to see the differences in Jesus’s story. The first was quite obvious that I found, Jesus being a servant of Allah, given a revelation to spread the word of Allah. In addition to this it was interesting to learn that Jesus is not the son of Allah, in fact you are “cursed” if you say this. What struck my curiosity was the denial of the crucifixion of Jesus. Instead of believing in the crucifixion, the Qur’an says Jesus’s body was taken into Heaven. I was not sure how to interpret this message in the Qur’an and I am interested in how the Qur’an explains the death of Jesus.
I do agree with you that the readings in the Quran and the Bible were similar in language although to me they had a difference in tone. The ways Jesus was described in the bible to me was more like the Quran was describing a prophet like any other many not as looked up to like Mohammad was. I definitely noticed that in the Bible Jesus was put up in a pedestal and viewed as an equal to God. The Bible shows this even by the way Jesus acts with other people. I found so interesting that the Bible used a lot more magic in a way to show how much power he has whereas the Quran did not do that as much. Also the fact that being "cursed" for stating that Jesus is the son of Allah is an example of how serious the people of the Quran believed that the history of Jesus was and the place each person in the Quran takes.
Until taking this class, I too have little experience with the Bible or the Quran and I found it interesting how there were differences in Jesus's story. I was surprised when I read that you are "cursed" if you say that Jesus is God's son because I had always been under the assumption that Jesus was God's son. I had thought that everyone was supposed to be "God's children" so wouldn't that have included Jesus? But the difference is that the Quran straight out says that Jesus was not God's son but in the Bible it was never denied nor confirmed. All that Jesus said was "you say that I am". I was also surprised when I read in the Quran that Jesus was not crucified and that they deny his crucifixion. That was also another big assumption that I had and I didn't realize that interpretations could vary that much.
Jesus was depicted in the Qur'an as someone who was respected and protected by Allah from the day he was born, until the day he died. Verse 15 from Maryam in the Qur'an states, "So Peace on him the day he was born, the day that he dies, and the day that he will be raised up to life!"
This verse, out of many other verses, reminds me of earlier in the semester, when I learned about how Muslims accept Jews and Christians in the Qur'an as "People of the Book." Verse 15 came to show me that Jesus was accepted in the same way. This blew my mind since I never realized that Jesus was ever mentioned in the Qur'an, even though I also learned that he was regarded in Islam as one of the great prophets, along with Mohammed.
Verse 41 from Maryam says, "(Also) mention in the Book (the story of) Abraham. He was a man of Truth, a prophet." Verse 51 from Maryam says, "Also mention in the Book (the story of) Moses: for he was specially chosen, and he was a messenger (and) a prophet." Verse 33 from the Family of Imran says, "Allah did choose Adam and Noah, the family of Abraham, and the family of Imran of all people." These verses also depict the acceptance of characters depicted in the Qur'an that are also depicted in the Bible. When I learned about Islam in depth in this Humanities course, I had a general idea that Muslims are a very tolerant group of people who celebrate religious diversity. However, I never realized that the Qur'an depicted Jews and Christians as the "People of the Book," with a lot of acceptance and tolerance. Reading the depictions of Jesus, as well as the other prophets in these verses, really made me think about how accepting Islam is of most of humanity versus how the rest of the world perceives Islam and Muslims in general.
While reading through the Gospel of Luke I found various connections to a musical I was in my senior year of high school called Godspell. The parables shown in the Gospel of Luke all show up in Godspell. Until now, I had not read through the actual parables themselves, but had only known about them through the musical but most of it is identical. Having never read the Bible I did not realize the significance of such parables until doing the musical and I now realize even more, just how important those parables were. The parables in the Gospel of Luke are some of the most well know parables throughout the New Testament. The Parable of the Seed is referencing the growth of the word of God only in noble and generous heart. The story of the Good Samaritan shows the important of accepting and associating with outcasts. In chapter 15, three parables are presented about being lost... The parables of the sheep, the coin, and the prodigal son. These three parable represent God's love and concern for the lost and forgotten.
The Gospel of Luke is arguably one the the most important in the New Testament because of the importance of these parables and what they represent.
Reading the Gospel of Luke seemed to go a lot more quickly and smoothly than reading the earlier chapters of the Old Testament in the beginning of the semester. Like others have already said, I found these chapters to be much more relatable even though some of the stories were far fetched to life as we know it. One passage I particularly enjoyed and noted was Luke 21:1-4, where it talks about a time when Jesus saw rich men putting gifts into the treasury and a poor widow putting in two copper coins. The significance of this is that although the widow seemingly put in less, what she gave counted for so much more because while the rich men only put in a very little portion of their living, the widow put in all she had to give. This was very insightful in showing the different types of people in the world. There will be some who give only to give themselves the gratitude of knowing that they did what they were supposed to, and in this case they can call themselves good christians without feeling shameful. Then there are those who have the utmost faith in their religion (or anything else this may pertain to) who will give until they cannot give anymore because they know they will repaid in some other way. I've always loved this story because of how it portrays one's character, and it shows how many people take for granted what so many others do not have. One other point I would like to make is why I enjoyed this section more than those from the beginning of the semester. Before reading Genesis, Exodus, and Job, I had a very particular view of God in my head from all the years of religion classes and church. I always thought of God as a very forgiving, compassionate power who always answered ones prayers by helping them. Although I still view God in this way, my reading of the Bible as a piece of literature introduced me to a very different God. The God in the Bible is a very harsh, aggressive and proud. He tests his followers to see if they are good christians as they say they are. He blames people for their mistakes and punishes them in much bigger ways than seems necessary. In the book of Luke however, Jesus is depicted very similarly to how I've always seen him. Even when there were differences in the Bible from what I believed to be true, these differences never question my ideas of Jesus' character. He never seemed bad or mean because of these differences. All in all, I very much enjoyed reading this part of the Bible and learning from the many parables that were presented in the text.
One of the major things that intrigued me about this week’s readings was the unbelievably similar plot lines in the Gospels of Luke and with Jesus in the Qur’an. In today’s society we are taught that Islam is essentially different from all of western civilizationˏ specifically from Christianity. In these readingsˏ we see that some of the most famous of Gospel’s from Christianity are also seen in the Muslim tradition. One of the most famous of Luke’s Gospels in the Christian tradition is the immaculate conception of Jesus where an angel of the Lord visits Mary and tells her that she has been chosen by God to carry a holy child. While in the Bible that child is of course the son of Godˏ in the Qur’an that child is a Prophet of God. Despite this major difference in ideologyˏ the Qur’an does not dismiss or belittle Jesus as we are led to believe. Likewise both the Qur’an and Luke’s Gospel preach to unbelievers to be ready for the coming judgment day and that only the righteous that believe in God and follow his laws will be saved. Not only thisˏ but the Qur’an also tells of Allah telling Jesus that he will be cleared of blasphemyˏ just as the Bible tells of Jesus being free from sin. Seeing the heavy similarity between the Qur’an in relation to Jesus and the New Testament of the Bibleˏ it lends more to the idea that Islam and the West are not as different as people believe. The huge gap that people see between the cultures is not then an actualityˏ it is instead a social construct that has been built over centuries of fear and mistrust.
I agree with you. The idea of Islam and Christianity are not as different as what people believe. When I was in Jerusalem, I visited the holy old city, where Jews, Christians and Muslims congregate and pray side by side together. The feeling is indescribable because there is a sense of unity between everyone. Therefore I wasn't surprised that there were similarities between the New Testament and the Quran. What I found interesting is that in the Quran, Jesus is a Muslim. All my life I have envisioned Jesus as a white Christian, but I never knew that there could be different interpretations of him in terms of religion. Since Jesus is such an important role in society, it’s interesting to notice how each religion (Islam, Judaism, and Christianity) paints their own picture of him/how he is incorporates into their religious texts.
I agree with the fact that the Bible is just another example of how the West is connected to the East. It is interesting how Jesus is portrayed as a Muslim in the Quran. I've really enjoyed learning more about elements of Western culture that have their roots in Eastern culture. In the Bible jesus is absolved from his sins, just as in the Quran Allah is promised to be forgiven for blasphemy. Luke's gospel preaches to people about Judgement Day. Religion and science are the two major overlaps that are shared between Eastern and Western cultures. The terms of scientific practices have lingual roots tied to Eastern terms.
It was fascinating to once again examine the parallels between the Bible and the Qur’an. The story of Jesus’ birth in the Bible is one I was already very familiar with and it was interesting to see the differences between its depiction in the Qur’an and in Luke. In the Bible, Mary is already betrothed to Joseph when Jesus is conceived and he still agrees to marry her and raise Jesus as his own son, without any question. In the Qur’an, however, the birth story has absolutely no mention of Joseph, or any betrothal at all. The birth of Jesus is carried out in solitude beneath a palm tree without Joseph, a star, shepherds or any of the phenomena described in Luke. When Mary returns to her people with Joseph, as described in the Qur’an, they condemn her saying, “O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!” (28). In Luke Mary is not portrayed as facing nearly as much judgment from the people, even though she gave birth to a son before she was married: they seem to immediately believe her claim that she was still a virgin. The stories of Jesus’ birth in the Bible and the Qur’an illustrate a fundamental difference between Christianity and Islam- Christianity stating that Jesus is the son God and is divine, and the Qur’an claiming that Jesus was the pious son of the virgin Mary, but not Allah’s son as it “is not befitting to the majesty of Allah that he should beget a son” (35). Not only does the status of Jesus as God/Allah’s son differ, but the portrayal of the treatment of Mary does as well. I personally feel the Qur’an’s depiction of the reaction to the birth of Jesus is more accurate. Whether Mary was betrothed or not, it was still unacceptable and extremely scandalous to be sexually active before marriage at that time; and while it is nice to believe that the people would’ve immediately recognized and celebrated Mary as a virgin mother, it is far more likely that many, if not the majority, were initially skeptical of and scornful towards her.
I agree with your idea that the Qur’an had a more realistic response to Mary having a baby without being married. I think that the way the people in the Qur’an reacted is how I imagine people of the time reacting. I think that this realist point of view is also involved with the events surrounding Jesus’ birth. Although it is a wonderful story in the Bible about the wise men, the gifts and the wonderful details regarding Jesus’ birth, the birth is definitely more realistic in the Qur’an. In this version the birth was a very private and simple event. Perhaps the Qur’an differs from the bible in the fact of the more realistic story because their culture as a whole is more realistic and uses reason foremost. It is clear that Qur’an strongly encourages knowledge and using science and reason. So it makes sense that the people in the Qur’an would be skeptical of Mary miraculously have a baby without having sex, and explains their reaction to Mary’s announcement of having the baby Jesus.
The Shahnameh was an interesting story with many different interesting themes and overall values that are portrayed. I found it interesting how the values of certain cultures are shown throught the culture nad actions of the people in the story. For example, the idea of family is extremely strong in this tale, and the thought of being loyal to one's family and honoring their name is evident. Rostam is full of grief when he realizes that he has killed his son, Sohrab, in battle. Zal and Rubadeh, the parents of Rostam, were pulled apart by their own different cultures, and the belief that they should marry within these cultures. There is the idea of divine power, as well as the inability to escape one's fate. Simorgh, the bird that takes in Zal when he is abandoned, is portrayed as a divine creature, who has extraordinary powers. Simorgh is able to save Rubadeh during childbirth by preforming a Cesarian section. Simorgh also provides insight and wisdom, which the others do not always follow. The inability to escape one's fate is shown in Esfandiyar's inability to avoid the fate foretold by the astronomers. This is similar to our previous discussion on mythology, and how Aeneas was unable to escape his fate to found Rome. Even when Aeneas decided to pursue a relationship with Dido, pursuing his destiny was more important than his romantic interests. Despite Juno's attempts to steer Aeneas off course, ultimately the Gods pushed Aeneas away from Dido to continue his journey. A similar occurrence happens in The Shahnameh, when Rostam is called away from Tahmineh, the women who will give birth to his son. In both instances, the heroes of the story are told to fight for something much larger than themselves, and that this greater thing is their destiny. The Gods do not allow for the heroes to change fate, and display that no human has the right or the power to go against a God.
Reading through the stories of Rostam and his seven trials as a larger-than life hero was very interesting to me. I can find so many parallels in the books as he has to fight against these people and creatures as obstacles to his final destination. Then in the finale, he faces the ultimate devil, or evil being. You can see this in so many superhero movies in American society today. For example, we talked a little bit about superman today. First, we discussed that krypton is Superman’s first and most prominent weakness. What is interesting about this is that Krypton comes from Superman’s birthplace making it very ironic that his weakness is something that is very close to his heart. A similarity in Rostam is when he is only able to be hurt by someone close to him in his family. They also both end up being challenged throughout their stories. Both fight and are injured, and it helps to give them stronger character and is the reason they are able to defeat their final foe in the end. Another example of a similar story in American society today is Captain America. Captain America is the epitome of good vs. evil in American society. He is viewed wearing the American Flag on his shield and being the ultimate defender of good in America. Rostam has also been seen throughout the years as a hero in society from Iran. They are both people who from the naked eye look like normal men. Although they look normal, they are a higher being. They have super strength and can do things that normal men can’t do. These are just two examples of heroes in our society today that have parallels to the story from the Shahnameh. You can find countless examples of parallels in books, films, magazines, and much more in our society today.
The book of Luke is different from what our class has read of the bible so far. Now, Jesus is born to his mother Mary after the messenger, Gabriel the archangel, informs her of her blessing. I found it interesting that before the news of Jesus' future birth came to Mary, Elizabeth was informed that she would have a son as well. Elizabeth's son becomes Jesus' cousin and companion in John the Baptist, who eventually baptizes him. The book of Luke begins with this news and continues on through different stages in Jesus' life. As a young boy he is aware of what he's on the earth for - to spread the message of his father. One day, Mary and Joseph think he is lost. In reality, Jesus was in the temple for days asking questions and speaking with older men. From the beginning he is dedicated to seeking and spreading the knowledge of his father. The remaining chapters in the book recount Jesus' travels and the lessons he teaches people on the way. He tells several parables, which are stories with a moral at the end. Each of these forces one to think of what Jesus is saying and what kind of lesson can be learned from each story. These stories vary in length but each hold a powerful message that makes Christian values and beliefs present in occurrences that are relatable to all. In two of the parables, the parable of the mustard seed and of the yeast, Jesus compares the kingdom of God to each of those items. Both are different, but proclaim the same message. When a mustard seed is planted in a garden, it grows into a large bush and birds rest upon it's branches. When yeast is added to flour, a batch of dough is made and leavened, allowing it to grow. Other parables teach people to act as a just man would. Jesus always reminds those he runs into about the beauty of the kingdom of his father and what one must do to gain admittance. I also found it interesting how often, in the book of Luke, a just man or person is described within Jesus' teachings. Compared to Plato's idea of justice, it is very different. Jesus stresses for those to obey god and to show kindness to all men, even those who have wronged you. He even states that if one has already harmed you, turn the other cheek. Conversely, Plato believed that a just man was composed of spirit, appetite, and reason - ultimately, the just man is ruled by reason above all. Jesus does not teach others to rule by reason, but he stresses the values from the Ten Commandments and reminds people to think of someone other than themselves to not only receive their reward in heaven, but also to teach others to follow in their path.
One aspect that I found interesting was that in the Bible when it was talking about the birth of Jesus and how Mary was a virgin when he was conceived. This in and of itself foreshadows how Jesus was special and destined for greater things. I thought that this was similar to the Shahnameh with the idea of fate. Before Jesus was even born he was already destined for greatness and to make a difference in people's lives. Fate was also a huge idea in the Shahnameh and Rostam had this larger than life aspect. Jesus also shares this aspect in a way since he has the ability to perform miracles. However the two are also very different since Rostam is a trickster hero and Jesus did things for the good of the people and for God or Allah.
I found the gospel of Luke to be much more relatable than the chapters of Genesis and Exodus we read earlier in the semester. Jesus provided bits of wisdom throughout a number of the parables, usually in the form of obscure stories, but some of his messages really struck home. His preaching of forgiveness is probably the most important insight I’ve found. Holding grudges can be stifling; by crippling relationships that would otherwise bring years of happiness to all parties involved. Letting go of such things, even if you’ve been wronged, will give you the clarity and ease of mind to pursue what really adds value to your life.
ReplyDeleteLuke 16:1 was one passage I really didn’t enjoy reading at all. It depicted a rich man who lived lavishly, free to eat to his hearts content. Meanwhile, a beggar named Lazarus lived just outside the rich man’s gate and struggled to make ends meet, yearning to eat what was on the rich man’s table. Needless to say, Lazarus went to heaven while the rich man found his torment in hell. And I quote:
“In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' ”
"But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony...”
I find this passage detestable. This is why: the rich man was sentenced to eternal agony as punishment for his sins on Earth. Twice, the above passage emphasizes the word agony. It’s sickening, that a God would force anyone to endure such pain forever, where he must beg for water just to cool his tongue for some momentary relief. Now perhaps I’m over analyzing this passage, but I raise a good point. What kind of deity, all knowing and benevolent, would subject anyone to such brutal torture? Was it because the rich man was ignorant and sinned? That’s like burning ants with a magnifying glass just because they can’t comprehend the true structure of the Universe! Are they ignorant too? Any omniscient god worth his grain of salt would know that, nobody deserves such punishment. /Rant Over.
On a lighter note, I found most of the parables to be optimistic and inspiring. Many of them added a layer of depth to Jesus’ character that I hadn’t considered before. He felt more humanized and relatable after reading the Gospel of Luke. I leave with one final quote:
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” -Mahatma Gandhi
I agree with your point about forgiveness and the great lessons this part of the bible brings. However I feel as though that passage somewhat makes sense to me. I think the idea of it was that because he was not a kind man when he was alive he got sent to hell. I think it was written to show that if you are not kind and are selfish you will be punished. If he gets off easy and gets the same treatment as someone going to heaven then I feel as though many people would simply think that it is acceptable to be selfish. The point of this passage and many other passages is to scare people into doing the right thing. I feel as though God was justified in his decision to send that rich man to hell to show all the other people of the world that if you are selfish and ignorant you should get punished for it. I feel as though if I were in Lazarus' shoes I would not give anything to the man that would not give me anything. I agree with your last point about your feelings for Jesus and how after reading about him in the Gospel according to Luke he seemed more human.
DeleteI would like to comment on the story of the rich man and Lazarus. I see that you believe that God was too harsh on the rich man. But, if you read the story closely, it is said that Lazarus was hungry and dying outside of the rich man's house, and in need of care. The rich man was not ignorant to Lazarus' suffering, and did not help him. The reason that the rich man is so harshly punished is because he did not acknowledge that Lazarus needed help and kept his bountiful wealth for himself. So, it is right that although Lazarus had nothing on earth, he is rewarded greatly in the afterlife. This was the point that Jesus was trying to make. Also, at the end the rich man asks God to send Lazarus to his family that they may repent, but God will not because he has already sent many others into the world to teach men to be kind and selfless. So, conclusively the rich man is at great fault because he had been told to help those in need but knowingly disobeyed.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the rich man was rightly punished, however I’d like to comment more on the importance of this story. To me it is clear that the allegorical sense of this is that it is unjust to be selfish we you know one is in need of the surplus that you have. I feel like this plays in a biblical sense on the idea that God punishes the man for being unjust because in the Bible God represents justice. Also if you think of the idea that is made in our previous readings, such as Plato’s Republic and the Aeneid, that public good should be over private good is a just act, you can see that Lazarus being selfish and not sharing his wealth brings him to be unjust, which means justice no longer protects him. This is one of the many parables presented in Luke’s gospel. Jesus used these parables to teach those on earth the “Word of God” which is guidelines to living a just life. This parables obviously teaches us to be kind to “our neighbor” and to not let material things lead us off the track of justice.
DeleteThis story was interesting, and I think it makes an important point about the compassion necessary in life.
DeleteI think that if Lazarus was lain outside my castle I would be careful, because I wouldn't want all the homeless to go lay outside my mansion if I fed him, nor would I want Lazarus there every day laying outside the castle for food. I suppose I would try to find some useful work for Lazarus to do in order to earn the food, of course after treating the sores and whatnot.
So if I had bountiful wealth, I would give it away by building stuff that would get me more bountiful wealth. I.e, paying the poor to build a hotel, so people in the neighboring towns could come stay, or a restaurant, to serve that extra food for a price, but either way just giving it away, unless the recipient to be really was incapable of expending himself to earn it, wouldn't be the proper way to go about solving the problem of Lazarus.
I would like to explore the idea of Rostam as both a hero for the force of good and a fallible, not-always-good human being. While Rostam is obviously a major hero in the Shanameh and in the Persian tradition, he also has more than a few problems. He, according to the story, has partially evil blood, is probably much more violent than he should be sometimes, and is a major trickster.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the Shanameh, Rostam’s father, Zal, has white hair at birth, which is the reason that at first, his father Sam casts him off into the mountains to die. White symbolized evil in the Persian culture at the time, and as we said in class today, Zal had white hair because his ancestry had some evil in it. Rostam, then, also has partially evil ancestry. Our professor said today that this fact is in the Shanameh as a reminder of the dualism of good and evil in Zoroastrianism. I would argue that this evil side of Rostam is the reason for many things he does in the Shanameh, such as those I will describe in the next two paragraphs.
Rostam, in my opinion, is sometimes excessively forceful and violent. For instance, in Rostam’s fifth trial, titled “The Capture of Olad,” a man who, according to the text, was sent to keep animals out of a wheat field (Olad), attacks Rostam and Rakhsh, who are resting in the wheat. I would be inclined to say that this was a justified action, since he was sent to keep animals out of the wheat, and Rostam is a stranger. In retaliation, Rostam tears Olad’s ears off (!!!). He also “nooses” him and threatens him, demanding information. In my opinion, these are not the actions of a noble hero, they are the actions of a crazed man.
Rostam is known as a “trickster hero,” which we discussed in class today. He lies to his combatant (who ends up being his son) that it is a chivalrous convention to only kill your opponent after you have overpowered him twice. There is no such convention, he is only using it to escape being killed. Even Rostam’s death is embroiled in trickery. He is tricked by his half-brother Shaghad into falling into a pit full of spikes with his horse Rakhsh, but in a final act of deceit as he is dying, he tricks Shaghad into giving him is bow and arrows under a ruse of honor, and shoots his killer before he dies.
While Rostam is most surely a hero in the Shanameh, he is not all “good.” He has faults, and even has some evil in him.
I also thought that it was interesting that although Rostam is considered a true epic literary hero, he is deceptive and sometimes, quite evil. But then i thought of the fictional heroes that currently pervade American culture. Spiderman is considered a fictional hero yet in rent cinema depictions he accidentally aids in the killing of his own grandfather and is commonly referred to on the street as a criminal and is oftentimes being chased after by policemen. Also is current modern day depictions we see Batman trying to get information out of victims in a questionable way, and putting the ones he loves danger. These American heroes are humans with special abilities who do not always comply with what is necessarily "good." Like Rostam they delegate their own rules for what is right and wrong, and act accordingly.
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ReplyDeleteThe Gospel of Luke was definitely easier to comprehend compared to the other books we’ve read in the Bible. The story of how Jesus is born and his journey as he is older is a story that is very familiar to me. One aspect in particular that interested me was the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). This story is very relatable, as was most of the stories in the Gospel of Luke; you see similar instances in the real world today.
ReplyDeleteIn the story of the Prodigal Son, the youngest of two sons asks for his inheritance so he can go off and live a life elsewhere. He leaves his home and spends all his money recklessly. He then finds himself in a country hit by famine, without any money, so he decides to go back to his father as one of his slaves. His father, however, welcomes him back with open arms, rejoicing over the fact that he is not dead or lost. The elder son sees this happiness and is angry since he has been loyal to his father all this time. The father tries to reduce the jealousy the eldest son is experiencing by saying “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours” (15:31).
Based on the story, I would say that the father resembles God in that he is always welcoming people in and helps restore them. The son came back after a troubling experience out on his journey and betrayed his father by spending all his inheritance money, yet his father celebrated his return by clothing him in a robe and shoes, and offering the fattest calf to eat. The father clearly did not dwell on the fact that his son was a fool. This is similar to God in that he shows compassion for people no matter what their past entails. He offers everything he can in order to restore and love those who come to him. I found this similarity very refreshing. It reminded me that I have many people in my life that can relate to the father in this story. This story was one of the reasons why I enjoyed the Gospel of Luke so much more than any other story we’ve read in the Bible so far.
I would definitely agree with you along with others who have mentioned that the Gospel of Luke is much easier to understand. Not only the way that the text is worded but I felt as though the stories were in Luke were a better read then some of the ones we previously read in the old testament. As for the story you mentioned in Luke 15:11 about the prodigal son I was somewhat surprised someone else brought this up. I enjoyed reading the Gospel of Luke but this story in particular stuck out with me. The way the father responds to his son after he returns was unexpected when I read it. Now that you’ve made the comparison that the father is representing God it makes more sense to me in that all the tests we’ve read depict God at some point as forgiving and understanding.
DeleteIt was very interesting reading these two texts side by side. They both have the same story to tell but as we known the Qur’an has a different style accumulating detail as it reads. I found that the language used in both texts is very similar and you can see how Jesus is respected in the Qur’an as a messenger of God (Allah) but you can also see how Jesus’s story is different from the Bible.
ReplyDeleteThe two texts are similar in their descriptions of the births of John and Jesus. This is where I found the language to be similar, Elizabeth being barren and both her and her husband Zechariah being advanced in age. Despite this both texts bless Elizabeth with the Holy Spirit and create John. Again with Mary being unchaste the two texts use the same language in describing the birth of Jesus.
Growing up nonreligious, I did not have much exposure to the stories of the Bible, and not until college have I studied the Qur’an. For me it is interesting to see the differences in Jesus’s story. The first was quite obvious that I found, Jesus being a servant of Allah, given a revelation to spread the word of Allah. In addition to this it was interesting to learn that Jesus is not the son of Allah, in fact you are “cursed” if you say this. What struck my curiosity was the denial of the crucifixion of Jesus. Instead of believing in the crucifixion, the Qur’an says Jesus’s body was taken into Heaven. I was not sure how to interpret this message in the Qur’an and I am interested in how the Qur’an explains the death of Jesus.
I do agree with you that the readings in the Quran and the Bible were similar in language although to me they had a difference in tone. The ways Jesus was described in the bible to me was more like the Quran was describing a prophet like any other many not as looked up to like Mohammad was. I definitely noticed that in the Bible Jesus was put up in a pedestal and viewed as an equal to God. The Bible shows this even by the way Jesus acts with other people. I found so interesting that the Bible used a lot more magic in a way to show how much power he has whereas the Quran did not do that as much. Also the fact that being "cursed" for stating that Jesus is the son of Allah is an example of how serious the people of the Quran believed that the history of Jesus was and the place each person in the Quran takes.
DeleteUntil taking this class, I too have little experience with the Bible or the Quran and I found it interesting how there were differences in Jesus's story. I was surprised when I read that you are "cursed" if you say that Jesus is God's son because I had always been under the assumption that Jesus was God's son. I had thought that everyone was supposed to be "God's children" so wouldn't that have included Jesus? But the difference is that the Quran straight out says that Jesus was not God's son but in the Bible it was never denied nor confirmed. All that Jesus said was "you say that I am". I was also surprised when I read in the Quran that Jesus was not crucified and that they deny his crucifixion. That was also another big assumption that I had and I didn't realize that interpretations could vary that much.
DeleteJesus was depicted in the Qur'an as someone who was respected and protected by Allah from the day he was born, until the day he died. Verse 15 from Maryam in the Qur'an states, "So Peace on him the day he was born, the day that he dies, and the day that he will be raised up to life!"
ReplyDeleteThis verse, out of many other verses, reminds me of earlier in the semester, when I learned about how Muslims accept Jews and Christians in the Qur'an as "People of the Book." Verse 15 came to show me that Jesus was accepted in the same way. This blew my mind since I never realized that Jesus was ever mentioned in the Qur'an, even though I also learned that he was regarded in Islam as one of the great prophets, along with Mohammed.
Verse 41 from Maryam says, "(Also) mention in the Book (the story of) Abraham. He was a man of Truth, a prophet." Verse 51 from Maryam says, "Also mention in the Book (the story of) Moses: for he was specially chosen, and he was a messenger (and) a prophet." Verse 33 from the Family of Imran says, "Allah did choose Adam and Noah, the family of Abraham, and the family of Imran of all people." These verses also depict the acceptance of characters depicted in the Qur'an that are also depicted in the Bible. When I learned about Islam in depth in this Humanities course, I had a general idea that Muslims are a very tolerant group of people who celebrate religious diversity. However, I never realized that the Qur'an depicted Jews and Christians as the "People of the Book," with a lot of acceptance and tolerance. Reading the depictions of Jesus, as well as the other prophets in these verses, really made me think about how accepting Islam is of most of humanity versus how the rest of the world perceives Islam and Muslims in general.
While reading through the Gospel of Luke I found various connections to a musical I was in my senior year of high school called Godspell. The parables shown in the Gospel of Luke all show up in Godspell. Until now, I had not read through the actual parables themselves, but had only known about them through the musical but most of it is identical. Having never read the Bible I did not realize the significance of such parables until doing the musical and I now realize even more, just how important those parables were.
ReplyDeleteThe parables in the Gospel of Luke are some of the most well know parables throughout the New Testament. The Parable of the Seed is referencing the growth of the word of God only in noble and generous heart. The story of the Good Samaritan shows the important of accepting and associating with outcasts.
In chapter 15, three parables are presented about being lost... The parables of the sheep, the coin, and the prodigal son. These three parable represent God's love and concern for the lost and forgotten.
The Gospel of Luke is arguably one the the most important in the New Testament because of the importance of these parables and what they represent.
Reading the Gospel of Luke seemed to go a lot more quickly and smoothly than reading the earlier chapters of the Old Testament in the beginning of the semester. Like others have already said, I found these chapters to be much more relatable even though some of the stories were far fetched to life as we know it. One passage I particularly enjoyed and noted was Luke 21:1-4, where it talks about a time when Jesus saw rich men putting gifts into the treasury and a poor widow putting in two copper coins. The significance of this is that although the widow seemingly put in less, what she gave counted for so much more because while the rich men only put in a very little portion of their living, the widow put in all she had to give. This was very insightful in showing the different types of people in the world. There will be some who give only to give themselves the gratitude of knowing that they did what they were supposed to, and in this case they can call themselves good christians without feeling shameful. Then there are those who have the utmost faith in their religion (or anything else this may pertain to) who will give until they cannot give anymore because they know they will repaid in some other way. I've always loved this story because of how it portrays one's character, and it shows how many people take for granted what so many others do not have.
ReplyDeleteOne other point I would like to make is why I enjoyed this section more than those from the beginning of the semester. Before reading Genesis, Exodus, and Job, I had a very particular view of God in my head from all the years of religion classes and church. I always thought of God as a very forgiving, compassionate power who always answered ones prayers by helping them. Although I still view God in this way, my reading of the Bible as a piece of literature introduced me to a very different God. The God in the Bible is a very harsh, aggressive and proud. He tests his followers to see if they are good christians as they say they are. He blames people for their mistakes and punishes them in much bigger ways than seems necessary. In the book of Luke however, Jesus is depicted very similarly to how I've always seen him. Even when there were differences in the Bible from what I believed to be true, these differences never question my ideas of Jesus' character. He never seemed bad or mean because of these differences.
All in all, I very much enjoyed reading this part of the Bible and learning from the many parables that were presented in the text.
One of the major things that intrigued me about this week’s readings was the unbelievably similar plot lines in the Gospels of Luke and with Jesus in the Qur’an. In today’s society we are taught that Islam is essentially different from all of western civilizationˏ specifically from Christianity. In these readingsˏ we see that some of the most famous of Gospel’s from Christianity are also seen in the Muslim tradition.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most famous of Luke’s Gospels in the Christian tradition is the immaculate conception of Jesus where an angel of the Lord visits Mary and tells her that she has been chosen by God to carry a holy child. While in the Bible that child is of course the son of Godˏ in the Qur’an that child is a Prophet of God. Despite this major difference in ideologyˏ the Qur’an does not dismiss or belittle Jesus as we are led to believe. Likewise both the Qur’an and Luke’s Gospel preach to unbelievers to be ready for the coming judgment day and that only the righteous that believe in God and follow his laws will be saved. Not only thisˏ but the Qur’an also tells of Allah telling Jesus that he will be cleared of blasphemyˏ just as the Bible tells of Jesus being free from sin.
Seeing the heavy similarity between the Qur’an in relation to Jesus and the New Testament of the Bibleˏ it lends more to the idea that Islam and the West are not as different as people believe. The huge gap that people see between the cultures is not then an actualityˏ it is instead a social construct that has been built over centuries of fear and mistrust.
I agree with you. The idea of Islam and Christianity are not as different as what people believe. When I was in Jerusalem, I visited the holy old city, where Jews, Christians and Muslims congregate and pray side by side together. The feeling is indescribable because there is a sense of unity between everyone. Therefore I wasn't surprised that there were similarities between the New Testament and the Quran. What I found interesting is that in the Quran, Jesus is a Muslim. All my life I have envisioned Jesus as a white Christian, but I never knew that there could be different interpretations of him in terms of religion. Since Jesus is such an important role in society, it’s interesting to notice how each religion (Islam, Judaism, and Christianity) paints their own picture of him/how he is incorporates into their religious texts.
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DeleteI agree with the fact that the Bible is just another example of how the West is connected to the East. It is interesting how Jesus is portrayed as a Muslim in the Quran. I've really enjoyed learning more about elements of Western culture that have their roots in Eastern culture. In the Bible jesus is absolved from his sins, just as in the Quran Allah is promised to be forgiven for blasphemy. Luke's gospel preaches to people about Judgement Day. Religion and science are the two major overlaps that are shared between Eastern and Western cultures. The terms of scientific practices have lingual roots tied to Eastern terms.
DeleteIt was fascinating to once again examine the parallels between the Bible and the Qur’an. The story of Jesus’ birth in the Bible is one I was already very familiar with and it was interesting to see the differences between its depiction in the Qur’an and in Luke. In the Bible, Mary is already betrothed to Joseph when Jesus is conceived and he still agrees to marry her and raise Jesus as his own son, without any question. In the Qur’an, however, the birth story has absolutely no mention of Joseph, or any betrothal at all. The birth of Jesus is carried out in solitude beneath a palm tree without Joseph, a star, shepherds or any of the phenomena described in Luke. When Mary returns to her people with Joseph, as described in the Qur’an, they condemn her saying, “O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!” (28). In Luke Mary is not portrayed as facing nearly as much judgment from the people, even though she gave birth to a son before she was married: they seem to immediately believe her claim that she was still a virgin.
ReplyDeleteThe stories of Jesus’ birth in the Bible and the Qur’an illustrate a fundamental difference between Christianity and Islam- Christianity stating that Jesus is the son God and is divine, and the Qur’an claiming that Jesus was the pious son of the virgin Mary, but not Allah’s son as it “is not befitting to the majesty of Allah that he should beget a son” (35). Not only does the status of Jesus as God/Allah’s son differ, but the portrayal of the treatment of Mary does as well. I personally feel the Qur’an’s depiction of the reaction to the birth of Jesus is more accurate. Whether Mary was betrothed or not, it was still unacceptable and extremely scandalous to be sexually active before marriage at that time; and while it is nice to believe that the people would’ve immediately recognized and celebrated Mary as a virgin mother, it is far more likely that many, if not the majority, were initially skeptical of and scornful towards her.
I agree with your idea that the Qur’an had a more realistic response to Mary having a baby without being married. I think that the way the people in the Qur’an reacted is how I imagine people of the time reacting. I think that this realist point of view is also involved with the events surrounding Jesus’ birth. Although it is a wonderful story in the Bible about the wise men, the gifts and the wonderful details regarding Jesus’ birth, the birth is definitely more realistic in the Qur’an. In this version the birth was a very private and simple event. Perhaps the Qur’an differs from the bible in the fact of the more realistic story because their culture as a whole is more realistic and uses reason foremost. It is clear that Qur’an strongly encourages knowledge and using science and reason. So it makes sense that the people in the Qur’an would be skeptical of Mary miraculously have a baby without having sex, and explains their reaction to Mary’s announcement of having the baby Jesus.
DeleteThe Shahnameh was an interesting story with many different interesting themes and overall values that are portrayed. I found it interesting how the values of certain cultures are shown throught the culture nad actions of the people in the story. For example, the idea of family is extremely strong in this tale, and the thought of being loyal to one's family and honoring their name is evident. Rostam is full of grief when he realizes that he has killed his son, Sohrab, in battle. Zal and Rubadeh, the parents of Rostam, were pulled apart by their own different cultures, and the belief that they should marry within these cultures. There is the idea of divine power, as well as the inability to escape one's fate. Simorgh, the bird that takes in Zal when he is abandoned, is portrayed as a divine creature, who has extraordinary powers. Simorgh is able to save Rubadeh during childbirth by preforming a Cesarian section. Simorgh also provides insight and wisdom, which the others do not always follow. The inability to escape one's fate is shown in Esfandiyar's inability to avoid the fate foretold by the astronomers. This is similar to our previous discussion on mythology, and how Aeneas was unable to escape his fate to found Rome. Even when Aeneas decided to pursue a relationship with Dido, pursuing his destiny was more important than his romantic interests. Despite Juno's attempts to steer Aeneas off course, ultimately the Gods pushed Aeneas away from Dido to continue his journey. A similar occurrence happens in The Shahnameh, when Rostam is called away from Tahmineh, the women who will give birth to his son. In both instances, the heroes of the story are told to fight for something much larger than themselves, and that this greater thing is their destiny. The Gods do not allow for the heroes to change fate, and display that no human has the right or the power to go against a God.
ReplyDeleteReading through the stories of Rostam and his seven trials as a larger-than life hero was very interesting to me. I can find so many parallels in the books as he has to fight against these people and creatures as obstacles to his final destination. Then in the finale, he faces the ultimate devil, or evil being.
ReplyDeleteYou can see this in so many superhero movies in American society today. For example, we talked a little bit about superman today. First, we discussed that krypton is Superman’s first and most prominent weakness. What is interesting about this is that Krypton comes from Superman’s birthplace making it very ironic that his weakness is something that is very close to his heart. A similarity in Rostam is when he is only able to be hurt by someone close to him in his family. They also both end up being challenged throughout their stories. Both fight and are injured, and it helps to give them stronger character and is the reason they are able to defeat their final foe in the end.
Another example of a similar story in American society today is Captain America. Captain America is the epitome of good vs. evil in American society. He is viewed wearing the American Flag on his shield and being the ultimate defender of good in America. Rostam has also been seen throughout the years as a hero in society from Iran. They are both people who from the naked eye look like normal men. Although they look normal, they are a higher being. They have super strength and can do things that normal men can’t do.
These are just two examples of heroes in our society today that have parallels to the story from the Shahnameh. You can find countless examples of parallels in books, films, magazines, and much more in our society today.
The book of Luke is different from what our class has read of the bible so far. Now, Jesus is born to his mother Mary after the messenger, Gabriel the archangel, informs her of her blessing. I found it interesting that before the news of Jesus' future birth came to Mary, Elizabeth was informed that she would have a son as well. Elizabeth's son becomes Jesus' cousin and companion in John the Baptist, who eventually baptizes him.
ReplyDeleteThe book of Luke begins with this news and continues on through different stages in Jesus' life. As a young boy he is aware of what he's on the earth for - to spread the message of his father. One day, Mary and Joseph think he is lost. In reality, Jesus was in the temple for days asking questions and speaking with older men. From the beginning he is dedicated to seeking and spreading the knowledge of his father.
The remaining chapters in the book recount Jesus' travels and the lessons he teaches people on the way. He tells several parables, which are stories with a moral at the end. Each of these forces one to think of what Jesus is saying and what kind of lesson can be learned from each story. These stories vary in length but each hold a powerful message that makes Christian values and beliefs present in occurrences that are relatable to all. In two of the parables, the parable of the mustard seed and of the yeast, Jesus compares the kingdom of God to each of those items. Both are different, but proclaim the same message. When a mustard seed is planted in a garden, it grows into a large bush and birds rest upon it's branches. When yeast is added to flour, a batch of dough is made and leavened, allowing it to grow. Other parables teach people to act as a just man would. Jesus always reminds those he runs into about the beauty of the kingdom of his father and what one must do to gain admittance.
I also found it interesting how often, in the book of Luke, a just man or person is described within Jesus' teachings. Compared to Plato's idea of justice, it is very different. Jesus stresses for those to obey god and to show kindness to all men, even those who have wronged you. He even states that if one has already harmed you, turn the other cheek. Conversely, Plato believed that a just man was composed of spirit, appetite, and reason - ultimately, the just man is ruled by reason above all. Jesus does not teach others to rule by reason, but he stresses the values from the Ten Commandments and reminds people to think of someone other than themselves to not only receive their reward in heaven, but also to teach others to follow in their path.
One aspect that I found interesting was that in the Bible when it was talking about the birth of Jesus and how Mary was a virgin when he was conceived. This in and of itself foreshadows how Jesus was special and destined for greater things. I thought that this was similar to the Shahnameh with the idea of fate. Before Jesus was even born he was already destined for greatness and to make a difference in people's lives. Fate was also a huge idea in the Shahnameh and Rostam had this larger than life aspect. Jesus also shares this aspect in a way since he has the ability to perform miracles. However the two are also very different since Rostam is a trickster hero and Jesus did things for the good of the people and for God or Allah.
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