Biblical lifespans: Talk about seniors!

God took Enoch
1728 Illustration by Gerard Hoet

If social security had been around in early biblical times, it might have gone bankrupt long ago.  Folks seemed to live a lot longer back then.

The New Answers tells us that before the Great Flood, lifespans were far greater than afterwards.  The ten patriarchs were each centuries old.  Their ages were as follows: Adam (930), Seth (912), Enosh (905), Cainan (910), Mahalalel (895), Jared (962), Enoch (365), Methuselah (969), Lamech (777), and Noah (950).

If you're wondering why Enoch "only"lived to be 365, rest assured that his fate was even better than that of his fellow patriarchs.  Wikipedia explains that Enoch never actually died, he was instead "translated" by God (into another dimension, we presume).  Some even believe that Enoch is alive to this day (which would make him far older than Methuselah).

For the rest of us, aging is most likely programmed into our very cells.  The New Answers comes up with a number of theories as to why lifespans are so much shorter these days.  Assuming the Bible is correct, perhaps either genetic mutations or genetic bottlenecks have facilitated this devolution.

For example, "any mutation that decreases the efficiency of our maintenance, repair and defensive systems will likely lead to more rapid aging and decreased lifespan."  Genetic bottlenecks "occur when significant proportions of the population die or proportions become isolated" (such as after a Great Flood).  These bottlenecks significantly limit the gene pool, which in turn could lead to mutations.

Resources

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/nab2/adam-and-noah-live

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enoch_(ancestor_of_Noah)

Copernicus: The heliocentric eccentric

Nicolaus Copernicus
Portrait by Nicolaus Reusner, 1578

For polymathic Copernicus, astronomy was just a side dish.  Some of his major preoccupations included serving as a physician, Catholic cleric, military leader, diplomat, translator and economist.

Although he was also a mathematician, jurist, classical scholar, artist, governor and quadrilingual polyglot, he is nevertheless mostly remembered for his earth-shattering cosmology.

All this certainly made Copernicus stand out in a crowd.

His heliocentric ideas were in opposition to some biblical understanding of that time.  Commonly quoted passages such as Ecclesiastes 1:5, Chronicles 16:30 and Psalm 104:5 seemed to promote the idea of a motionless earth and a mobile sun when literally interpreted.

Sixteenth-century Protestants, who particularly relied upon the Bible for guidance, were up in arms about the heliocentric view.  In 1539 Martin Luther said this about Copernicus: There is talk of a new astrologer who wants to prove that the earth moves and goes around instead of the sky, the sun, the moon...  The fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside-down...

Many say that Calvin was not a whole lot kinder about this.  In response to the publication of Copernicus' De revolutionibus orbium coelestium ("On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres" - in Latin, no less), Calvin preached against those who "pervert the course of nature" by saying that "the sun does not move and that it is the earth that revolves and that it turns."  Years later, Lutheran theologian Abraham Calovius allegedly added: Who will venture to place the authority of Copernicus above that of the Holy Spirit?

Interestingly, Catholic contemporaries of Copernicus had looked somewhat favorably upon his heliocentrism.  Pope Clement VII and several cardinals attended lectures in Rome about it.  In 1536 the Archbishop of Capus actively encouraged Copernicus to publish the theory in its entirety.  It wasn't until the 1600s that this position was reversed.

Resources

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolaus-Copernicus 

Salt: Blood, sweat and faith

Dead Sea Salt
Photo by xta 11

Many think that the Bible is sweet, but it is actually quite salty.  References to salt are crucial within both the Old and the New Testaments.

The Hebrew Bible speaks of salt as a covenant between the Lord God of Israel and King David in II Chronicles 13:5.  Salt covenants between the Lord and the Israelites were also mentioned in Numbers 18:19 and Leviticus 2:13.  These were based upon the incorruptible nature of salt and have been integral to Jewish kosher laws.

Such Kashrut laws include the draining of all blood from a sacrificial animal, as well as its dehydration via salt.  Both practices help to ensure healthful preservation of the meat by deterring bacterial growth.  It took toil and sweat to harvest this salt from the Dead Sea and its cliffs.  The turning of Lot's wife into a pillar of salt in Genesis 19:26 is possibly linked to the human-type shapes within these salty cliffs.

When ancient cities were defeated, salt was poured upon their lands to symbolize desolation.  It was rubbed upon the skin of newborn babies as a healthful measure.  There were salt offerings in the temple, and salt seasonings in the homes.  Salt was considered to be an essential dietary element, a taste enhancer, a symbol of wisdom, and a currency.  It therefore became a key New Testament metaphor.

Matthew 5:13 famously refers to people of faith as "the salt of the earth."  Some say that sodium chloride is so stable that it is practically impossible to diminish.  The only way to diminish its strength might be to add unsavory elements.  Words to the wise could then sound like this: Be careful of the company that you keep! 

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_in_the_Bible#:~:text=Leviticus%202%3A13%20and%20Ezekiel,lacking%20from%20your%20grain%20offering.    

 

Musca domestica: Wings and a prayer

USDA Photo

If all God's children have wings, then musca domestica (otherwise known as the common housefly) must be one of them.  Even Ogden Nash admits: God in his wisdom made the fly,   And then forgot to tell us why.  

St. Leufredus, nicknamed "the Patron Saint against Flies," had his own musca theology, which he didn't keep to himself.  Legend has it that the tiny critters interfered with his sleep.  Perhaps fly swatters weren't yet invented in the 8th-century CE, so Leufredus did what any self-respecting Saint would...  He bowed his head in prayer, and whoosh!  Flies fled.

Some might think that saintly prayers should be a bit loftier.  Perhaps this is too harsh a judgment.  Perhaps St. Leufredus was merely praying for the flies' well-being.  Perhaps they even knew that, and so in gratitude flew on to the next victim. 

Houseflies, insects and animals in general have far more intelligence that we give them credit for.  We think that our brains are better because they're bigger.  Yet scientists now know that a brain the size of a pinhead can function in many of the basic ways that a human one can. 

As for the expression "filthy fly," houseflies are actually quite fastidious.  They are continually grooming their feet, wings and eyes - especially after enduring the pollution of most human habitats.

Resources

https://stories.uq.edu.au/research/2020/what-do-flies-think-about/index.html#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThis%20is%20fascinating%20because%20it,like%20us%20with%20every%20discovery.

https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/fly-cleaning-hands-face-leg-rubbing-video

https://www.insightbooks.com/blogs/news/national-days

Rainbow Promises

Photo by Wing-Chi Poon

Although worldly promises are often like pie crusts (made to be broken), spiritual promises are sometimes like rainbows (made to be infinitely pursued but never possessed).

This motif is reflected in rainbow imagery from numerous traditions.  There is usually a visionary promise at the end of the rainbow, and that end is never quite reachable by mere human effort.

Take the pot of gold, for instance.  Leprechauns tend to be blamed for its unavailability, but the real culprit is the rainbow itself.  If the rainbow did not shift and/or disappear when approached, then all the leprechauns in (and out of) this world would not be able to keep that gold from human hands.

Then there's Iris, the elusive Greek goddess.  Although people have been naming their daughters after her for centuries, many are still scratching their heads while asking, "Who is she really?"  That's because Iris rides rainbows, allowing her to be just as flighty.  The Australian aboriginal Rainbow Serpent has been equally unpredictable.  Symbolizing creation and destruction, it may just as easily crush as nurture.

The Covenant of Noah's Rainbow seems like something that humankind can really count on.  Yet while assuring us that God will never again destroy most living things with floodwaters, it says absolutely nothing about nuclear meltdowns, plagues, meteorites, star wars, etc.  That's when faith needs to pick up the slack.  Unlike rainbows, it can continually brighten our Way.  

Resources

https://www.theoi.com/Pontios/Iris.html

https://www.aboriginal-art-australia.com/aboriginal-art-library/rainbow-serpent/

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%209&version=NIV

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/is-there-a-pot-of-gold-at-the-end-of-the-rainbow-/5810673.html

 

Arlo Guthrie's Bubbe

Arlo Guthrie in 1979
Public Domain

Way before Alice's Restaurant, there was Bubbe's kitchen.  Bubbe was Arlo Guthrie's Jewish grandmother, and he warmly remembers Shabbat dinners at her home, saying: Nobody ever came close to her blintzes.  

Her name was Aliza Greenblatt, and she was the mother of Woody Guthrie's second wife, Marjorie Mazia (a Martha Graham dancer at the time).  Although from very different backgrounds, Aliza and Woody shared much in common.  They were both antifascists who were immersed in music and poetry: she an "Orthodox Jewish songwriter," and he an "Oklahoma Christian troubadour."

Bubbe's husband was not as enamored as she was with Woody.  In order to better fit in with the family, Woody embarked upon an intense study of Judaism.  Bubbe was one of his primary mentors.  

Although Woody had previously written songs based upon biblical stories (including those from the Hebrew Bible), he now wrote a number of songs about Jewish historical struggles.  Arlo's sister, Nora Guthrie, recalled that "Woody loved spirituality...[and] felt all religions sprang from the same well."  Arlo himself  has shown a special fondness for performing Bubbe's Yiddish songs and Woody's Jewish ones, all the while upholding ancestral traditions of social justice.

Resources

https://jewishjournal.com/culture/arts/10614/

When truth is beauty and beauty is tulips

Two Lips!
Photo by Gabriel S. Delgado C.

What is it about tulips that has made them so compelling to humans?

The "tulipmania" of Holland in the 1630s resulted in single tulips being worth more than some houses.  From their humble origins on the steppes of Central Asia to their annual stardom on the streets of Albany, New York, tulips have been cherished by populations as diverse as Turkish sultans and Yugoslav soldiers.

The question is...  Why?

In her poem Tulips, Sylvia Plath provides us with clues.  As she lies depressed within a hospital, Plath laments the vibrancy of her bedside tulips with these words: The tulips are too excitable, it is winter here... I didn't want any flowers, I only wanted to lie with my hands turned up and be utterly empty...  The tulips are too red in the first place, they hurt me...  Upsetting me with their sudden tongues and their color...  The vivid tulips eat my oxygen...  They concentrate my attention... The tulips should be behind bars like dangerous animals; They are opening like the mouth of some great African cat...

Famed journalist Michael Pollen investigates the relationship between people and tulips in his book The Botany of Desire.  He discusses the voluptuousness of these flowers that morph from a tightly-clenched "chaste" position to an open and "receptive" one.  He proceeds to disclose that when the tulip finally "collapses," the petals fall down around its sexually-exposed innards.

Such descriptions speak to the fatal attraction between humans and tulips.  They have engineered one another quite literally.  The modern-day tulip is as much a human creation as it is a natural one.  The modern-day human is quite the same.  Together they reflect the Madison Avenue motto that "beauty is truth and truth beauty," and together they replace the longings of the human soul with the desires of the human mind and body.

Resources

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/dutch_tulip_bulb_market_bubble.asp#:~:text=The%20Dutch%20tulip%20bulb%20market%20bubble%2C%20also%20known%20as%20tulipmania,of%20tulip%20bulbs%20to%20extremes.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/49013/tulips-56d22ab68fdd0

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41021145-the-botany-of-desire