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Understanding Hebraic Culture

Posted on: Mon, 2006-07-17 10:35 | By: matt | In:

Fag is a word with a strong meaning. If one calls someone a fag there is little question as to what they mean. Yet, less than a century ago the word fag had a totally different meaning. It meant a cigarette.

Understanding the idea someone is trying to convey with words is culture dependent. Back when I was in high school my English teacher had us read Shakespeare. Because, Shakespeare was from a different time with a different culture my English teacher had to explain quite a few things about the culture so we could understand what was going on.

The same thing applies to reading the Bible. The Bible is written from a Hebraic cultural perspective which is quite different from the western cultural perspective we view things today. To understand what is written in the Bible requires some knowledge of the Hebrew culture from the time it was written. Otherwise, it is easy to incorrectly understand what is written in the Bible.

This past weekend at the church service I attended the pastor taught about some of those differences and here is a short list outlining an idea followed by the difference in how the Hebrews and western culture view them:

  • Study:
    • Western: Comprehend
    • Hebraic: Revere / Do
  • Sin:
    • Western: Wrong Thinking
    • Hebraic: Wrong Action
  • Salvation:
    • Western: Way To Die
    • Hebraic: Way To Live
  • Spirituality:
    • Western: Escape World 
    • Hebraic: Embrace World
  • Practice of Faith:
    • Western: Individual
    • Hebraic: Communal
  • Communication:
    • Western: Words
    • Hebraic: Pictures

An example of this in the communication area would be western thinking talking about God being omnipotent and Hebraic culture talking about God being a rock, fortress, or shepherd. One is a concept and the other is an image.

Having a relationship with God requires knowing who God really is and Gods character. Being able to understand the writings of the people who conveyed Gods character to us is essential to understanding the character of God.

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Comments

#1 Thanks for the insights

Submitted by Rina on Thu, 2006-10-12 10:28.

Dear Matt,

Thank you for sharing your insights about the differences between the Hebraic outlook of the Bible and the Westerntern outlook. I felt that your pastor presented a concise and accurate summary of some major points. I would like share these thoughts with my friends-particularly our youth group back home.

My teacher, Professor Ikuro Teshima, also outlined the differences between Hebraism and Hellinism using the poetry of Robert Browning (who was also an enthusiastic Hebraic thinker), in particular: Rabbi Ben Ezra. If you haven't read it before, I recommend it. Unfortunately, my teacher's writings are mostly in Japanese so I can not give them as a reference. I just started to translate this work and that is why I stumbled on your blog.

Thank you.
All the best.

Rina

#2 thanks

Submitted by matt on Mon, 2006-10-16 07:29.

Thanks for the feedback. I am just trying to convey what I am learning. There is so much about this stuff that people don't know that I think could benefit them.

#3 Thanks

Submitted by Denise on Wed, 2006-11-29 00:00.

Matt, I really like how you phrased things. Unfortunately, so many people refuse to see the Hebraic perspective even when it's right in their face. At any rate, good job and I'd like to see more from you in this vein.