They gather around the fire. The night is pleasant but cool.
Rather than wait to see what emerges, a young girl asks, "What happened to Noah's family after the flood?" Her mother puts a restraining hand on the girl's arm.
The Story Teller smiles.
"An excellent question. That is exactly where I am going in tonight's story. After the waters recede and they get off the boat, they start a new life, with God's blessing. God tells them to make a bunch of babies and fill the earth with humans.
But God says a strange thing here that shows that Love is still not the ruling ingredient of God's consciousness. He tells them, 'Be the terror and the dread of all the wild beasts and all the birds of heaven, of everything that crawls on the ground and all the fish of the sea; they are handed over to you.'
God shows no compassion for the non-human life he has created. He still has a long ways to go, as we all do. God is very human at this stage of his life.
He tells them three things. --Don't eat flesh that has blood in it. --Anyone who sheds a human's blood shall have their blood shed by humans. --Get out there, 'teem over the earth and be lord of it.'
Before they depart, God also tells them that he will not destroy the earth by flood ever again. He creates the rainbow as a reminder to him and as a sign of his pledge."
The Story Teller pauses and takes a drink of water. He surveys his audience and sees that they wait expectantly.
"Time goes by. Three tribes form, one for each of Noah's sons. They all move together to some nice land and settle down. They speak the same language so have no trouble communicating. They learn to make bricks and they build themselves houses and a town.
Then they aggravate God once again. Just by being themselves. They decide to build a tower 'with its top reaching heaven.'
He comes down to see what they are doing. (Evidently God goes away and comes back. He is not eternally present.) And he is not pleased!
He says, 'They are just getting started. If they go on like this, there will be nothing too hard for them to do.' He decides to reign them in by confusing their language 'so they can no longer understand one another.'
It works. The humans can no longer understand one another and stop building the town and the tower. They scatter over the face of the earth."
The listeners around the fire look both interested and perplexed. "Why would God do a thing like that?" asks one. "Sounds like he might have been jealous," says another. "Maybe he just wanted his privacy," says a third who lived at the edge of the village. "He didn't want such close neighbors."
The Story Teller chuckles. "Good thoughts. As the Story progresses, maybe you will get new insights."
They sit quietly and watch the sparks from the crackling and the snapping of the fire drift upward into the cool dark night.
Rather than wait to see what emerges, a young girl asks, "What happened to Noah's family after the flood?" Her mother puts a restraining hand on the girl's arm.
The Story Teller smiles.
"An excellent question. That is exactly where I am going in tonight's story. After the waters recede and they get off the boat, they start a new life, with God's blessing. God tells them to make a bunch of babies and fill the earth with humans.
But God says a strange thing here that shows that Love is still not the ruling ingredient of God's consciousness. He tells them, 'Be the terror and the dread of all the wild beasts and all the birds of heaven, of everything that crawls on the ground and all the fish of the sea; they are handed over to you.'
God shows no compassion for the non-human life he has created. He still has a long ways to go, as we all do. God is very human at this stage of his life.
He tells them three things. --Don't eat flesh that has blood in it. --Anyone who sheds a human's blood shall have their blood shed by humans. --Get out there, 'teem over the earth and be lord of it.'
Before they depart, God also tells them that he will not destroy the earth by flood ever again. He creates the rainbow as a reminder to him and as a sign of his pledge."
The Story Teller pauses and takes a drink of water. He surveys his audience and sees that they wait expectantly.
"Time goes by. Three tribes form, one for each of Noah's sons. They all move together to some nice land and settle down. They speak the same language so have no trouble communicating. They learn to make bricks and they build themselves houses and a town.
Then they aggravate God once again. Just by being themselves. They decide to build a tower 'with its top reaching heaven.'
He comes down to see what they are doing. (Evidently God goes away and comes back. He is not eternally present.) And he is not pleased!
He says, 'They are just getting started. If they go on like this, there will be nothing too hard for them to do.' He decides to reign them in by confusing their language 'so they can no longer understand one another.'
It works. The humans can no longer understand one another and stop building the town and the tower. They scatter over the face of the earth."
The listeners around the fire look both interested and perplexed. "Why would God do a thing like that?" asks one. "Sounds like he might have been jealous," says another. "Maybe he just wanted his privacy," says a third who lived at the edge of the village. "He didn't want such close neighbors."
The Story Teller chuckles. "Good thoughts. As the Story progresses, maybe you will get new insights."
They sit quietly and watch the sparks from the crackling and the snapping of the fire drift upward into the cool dark night.
George--The evolution of God. I'm lovin' it. All that's missing is the canpfire. Keep 'em coming. --Steve F.
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