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Showing posts with label context. Show all posts
Showing posts with label context. Show all posts

Friday, April 24, 2015

To "The Berean Call" and Others (e.g., Others Whom Oppose Christian Psychology and Psychiatry)

With all due respect, is The "Berean Call" really "Berean"? Based on what I have read, I do not believe so. For example, you push the following lie:

​"The fundamental problem is that although we know a lot about the biomedical etiology of neurological disorders, we still fathom embarrassingly little about the biology of the major mental illnesses. And even the burgeoning understanding of genetic and metabolic risk factors has not translated into clinically useful tests or cures. Modern technology has not produced a single blood test or brain scan that can be routinely used to diagnose depression, bipolar disease, schizophrenia or other common mental illnesses."

​What makes it a lie is that it is information that is presented as if it still current. Scripture says to not bear false witness. Speaking of false witness, The "Berean Call" also does quite a job of twisting Exodus 20:4-5. The context is as follows:

​"3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anythingthat is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,6 but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments."

​(From Exodus 20, NKJV. Also see Exodus 34:17.)

​The context is in making images to worship. Again (with emphasis): 

​"3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anythingthat is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,6 but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments."

​When images, etc. were destroyed, they were images (e.g., Asherim) used to worship false gods. Otherwise, making images as commanded by God would be contradictory. For example

​"“You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim." (From Exodus 26)

​Another example:

​"20 The two pillars, one Sea, the twelve bronze bulls which were under it, and the carts, which King Solomon had made for the house of the Lord—the bronze of all these articles was beyond measure. 
21 Now concerning the pillars: the height of one pillar was eighteen cubits, a measuring line of twelve cubits could measure its circumference, and its thickness was four fingers; it was hollow. 
22 A capital of bronze was on it; and the height of one capital was five cubits, with a network and pomegranates all around the capital, all of bronze. The second pillar, with pomegranates was the same. 
23 There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; all the pomegranates, all around on the network,were one hundred.

​(From Jeremiah 52)

​As far as psychology and psychiatry, understand that:

  1. ​We are called to love our neighbors as ourselves. If we can't love even ourselves, how can we love our neighbors?
  2. "Lo titzrach." "Thou shalt not murder." People have committed suicide and murder because of mental illnesses, etc..
  3. When Galatians 5 talks about drugs, it is talking about drugs used explicitly for occultic and other evil purposes. It uses the word "φαρμακεία" as opposed to "φαρμακο" (Hebrew "רפואה").
  4. God created everything, and certainly everything good (cf. Genesis 1, Psalm 24:1).
  5. God calls us to "[h]eal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give." (Matthew 10:8)
I could go on, although I hope that you get my point by now. By the way, I, as a Jew who has benefited from Christian psychology (psychos-logos, "ψυχή" and "λογος"), find a shame that you would decontextualize my Lord's Word for your gain. BTW, Deuteronomy 6:5 says to "love Yehovah your God with all your heart, and your soul, and all your might [e.g., your psyche]."