Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Shoshanna Walker <rosewalk AT concentric.net>]

There's so much more to the "story" and the commandments than the written text

Ok I accept that you read these statements as attempts to persuade 
readers of the validity and absolute truth of Oral Torah.

But from MY point of view, I was sharing, not persuading.

Since I do believe that Torah is absolute truth, when I share my 
beliefs, I think that no matter how I say it, you would think I was 
proselytizing, and if I contribute to discussions on this list, it 
will always be from that perspective, so I am doomed in advance....

As for science and archeology, there really are many examples.  I 
don't agree that if I tell this to the group, tell the group of the 
wisdom of the Torah,it is proselytizing.

Shoshanna



>
Shoshanna, I refer to statements of yours like:
> It is not chauvanistic to say that you won't get a proper education 
> or understanding if you don't learn the material.  It is a true 
> thing to say, that you can't understand Torah from just the written 
> text alone.

> As far as archeology and increasing scientific knowledge, over and 
> over again, they "discover" what Torah, including Oral Torah, and 
> those who taught and wrote down Torah, taught thousands of years ago 
> and extracted during that time.

I read these as attempts to persuade readers of the validity and 
absolute truth of Oral Torah.

> You give me the impression that you reject out of hand anything 
> that comes from Oral Torah.  If that's true, isn't that less 
> tolerant than my position?
I do not consider it authoritative or to derive from Moses, although 
doubtless much of it is good teaching from godly rabbis. But I am not 
presenting my position as absolute truth or attempting to convert 
anyone else to it.

--
Peter Kirk
E-mail:  peter AT qaya.org
Blog:    http://speakertruth.blogspot.com/
Website: http://www.qaya.org/