Posted by Dena on December 22, 2003, at 14:36:44
In reply to Re: While You are blocked... » Dinah, posted by Dena on December 20, 2003, at 11:37:52
I'm clarifying something I said in an earlier post, about Jesus speaking negatively about those who were self-righteous in His day.
Jesus spoke harshly against some of the Pharisees & Sadusees of His day. He spoke to the ones who had become self-important, using their religious/political status to "lord over" the laity. This is not to imply that all, or even most, of the Jewish religious leaders were corrupt - for He didn't speak about the Jewish religious leaders as a whole, only to the ones who came to Him, trying to entrap Him; He saw beneath their self-righteous exteriors into their hearts, which were full of pride, self-importance & superiority.
My comment was in no way to imply any sort of anti-semitism. Jesus, Himself a Jew, certainly loved the Jewish people. He came first to them, as their promised Messiah, then to the rest of the world.
I believe that if Jesus were to directly speak to the religious leaders of any religious group today, He would find plenty of them who were just as self-righteous as those He addressed 2,000 years ago. Jesus was against self-righteousness, not against the Jews, per se.
In fact, I cringe when I hear many of the religious leaders of my own faith (Christianity, in general), when they speak out against others with self-righteousness.
It's wrong, no matter who says it, no matter who harbors it in their heart. Myself included.
Shalom, Dena
poster:Dena
thread:291080
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/faith/20030908/msgs/292410.html