Monday, 10/9/17
The story of Jonah was
inspired by God, but was it factual? No, it wasn't. The Second Vatican Council clearly teaches us that
among the books of the Bible, in addition
to accurate historical accounts, there
are as many types of writings as you will fins on any home library shelf. Let's
see where the Book of Jonah fit in.
In 440 B.C. Jerusalem's
elders took a strong stand against Jews mixing with Gentiles. They were trying
to protect their faithful from pagan ways, but they went a little too far. The
Book of Jonah was a humorous account of a Jew just going too far in avoiding
foreigners.
The fictional account of
Jonah pictures a Jew who so much hated the Gentiles in Nineveh, that he resisted
God's summoning him to go save the people of Nineveh from their sins, First, he
went far enough west that he thought he was beyond God's authority. When that
didn't work, he went to Nineveh, telling the people they would die for their
sins. hoping that they would perish.
When the people of Nineveh
reformed their lives, avoiding their destruction, Jonah went off and sulked
over it. God appeared to him, saying that he had to care for the Nineveh's thousands,
who were also his children.
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