From: "Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>
To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Fw: Human Sacrifice - Semantic Domain
Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 09:03:50 -0500
Dear Shoshanna,
G-d never commanded us, in the Torah, to love our enemies.
HH: The Torah does not directly command one to
love his enemies, nor was it really understood
that way, it seems, based on the Psalms with
their imprecations (which call for God's
vengeance on sinners), but it could be understood
to imply that:
Lev. 19:18 ΒΆ "'Do not seek revenge or bear a
grudge against one of your people, but love your
neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.
HH: The law concerns fellow Israelites, but we
know that Israelites could have one another as
enemies, since we read about it in the historical
books. A person from who you want to get revenge
or against whom you are tempted to bear a grudge
is someone who could be put in the category of an
"enemy." A neighbor is simply someone who lives
near you, with no necessary implications of
friendship, other than God's expectation that you
show love to him.