The Secrets of the Cross Trilogy by Elizabeth Musser

Last month, I read this fascinating trilogy by Elizabeth Musser. It doesn't directly touch on Jewish culture (though there are Jewish characters in the series), but I did see correlation as far as honor/shame cultures and the importance of family.

So, I wanted to share the Secrets of the Cross Trilogy with you!

Set primarily in the early 1960s (book 3 is set in 1994), the story follows characters in southern France and northern Algeria during the French-Algerian conflict, detailing the dynamics of racism and clashing cultures between Algerians loyal to their country, descendants of Algerian soldiers who are loyal to the French army and fought against Algeria in the war, Europeans living in Algeria as a result of the conflict, and all of those 3 also living in France. 

From a cultural standpoint, it's a fascinating story to explore, as I knew little of this dynamic. Combined with daring rescues, harrowing escapes, plots, and intrigue, it's a great read!

But what I wanted to share is what stood out to me on page 204, as the character of Ali, an Algerian socialist, vows revenge on his father's death against the descendants of the man who killed his father (who is also dead): "Ali spat. 'Captain Duchemin! You traitor. I'll find your daughter and granddaughter, and then I can draw the line through your family no one will remember them. My father will be avenged'".

This reminded of the blogs I wrote a few years ago about the importance of family, names, and the dynamics of honor and shame in Eastern cultures. This character is so focused on revenge that he wants to wipe out the whole family line of a man who is already dead (so he won't know it happened) in order to avenge his dead father.

He's focused on the name. He wants to completely remove the name. There is importance in names in Eastern cultures that we don't pick up on right away in Western cultures. As I stated in this blog, "The idea is so much deeper in Jewish culture, however. 'It's hard to overstate how important names were in Biblical times,' Lois Tverberg states in Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus. 'In ancient thought, without a name, an object or being didn't even exist. Egyptian documents describe the time before creation as "when no name of anything had yet been named,' and it was only when God created and named things that they officially existed.

Names in ancient Near Eastern culture were more than just descriptive words. They were reputations... legacies... identities."

Wow! That's very different from Western culture. What other media (books, movies, tv shows, etc have you seen this)? I'd love to know in the comments below!

You can find the trilogy here on Amazon!

The Last Jihad Series by Joel C. Rosenberg

So, I was definitely late to the party when it comes to reading Joel C. Rosenberg's books, but I'm so glad I'm here now!

I just finished reading Rosenberg's 5-book series, The Last Jihad, and all I can say is: Wow! (I feel like I say that a lot when it comes to his books.

What's so incredible about this one is the story behind it, how the first book was almost completely written before September 11, 2001. And then, the same could be said for things that happened in the next year and book 2. Reading this in 2021, it's still eerie to see, because there are things in there that are happening now. 

How did this happen? Well, he based this books on Biblical prophetic texts, specifically Ex 38-39. Most recently, in book 4, The Copper Scroll, he talks about deal signed by Iraq and China as an exchange of oil for weapons. And on March 27, 2021, a very similar deal was signed in real life between China and Iran. I was literally reading book 4 when this announcement was made. 

While I've loved reading all of Rosenberg's novels so far, this one has caught my attention because it literally deals with the last days and what it could be like. I've always loved imagining what those would be like. So it definitely caught my attention and let imagination fly!

The other thing I wanted to point out from this series is how Rosenberg treats the depiction of honor and shame in this culture and explains it to the Western readers (and characters). He does an amazing job of that in book 2, The Last Days, specifically while describing the view point of Palestinian society. Pages 253-255 have an especially beautiful description of the heartache of the shame felt as a whole by the culture of the character who is speaking. His request to the President of the United States in this scene isn't so much about power or winning, so much as restoring some honor to his people.

Anyway, I loved this series! It's going on the shelf and will be read over and over, haha. If you've read it, I'd love to know what you think. Please let me know in the comments below!

Have you seen Ep 1 of Season 2 of The Chosen yet?

Have you seen Ep 1 of Season 2 of The Chosen yet?

WOW!

I thought it was incredible... what did you think?

I'm not going to give any spoilers away because it just came out (we can save that discussion for the comments)! But I did want to comment on something that stood out to me that isn't a direct spoiler, and that is how the show deals with honor and shame.

As discussed in previous posts, honor and shame was big in 1st century Jewish culture (and still is today). Whereas Westerners from individualist cultures see the world through innocence and guilt, in this collectivist culture, the concept of bringing shame on one's family (or honor) is the most motivating factor. 

There were so many examples of this in Ep 1 of Season 2 (as well as in season 1), from the key dinner scene where Jesus extends grace and saves the man's honor, to the first time we see him angry. And then, a precious, beautiful scene with one of those he rebuked, where honor is restored. (I'm lower-casing 'he' here, because those are all fictional events thought up by the show's creator, but they 100% appear consistent with Scripture. It's just that we don't know if these actual events happened). 

Could you see the examples of honor and shame culture here? What did you think of the episode overall? I'm sure we'll continue this discussion in future episodes. Y'all know I'm gonna keep talking about the show because this is basically me:

I love this show and want to share it with everyone, because I think it has the incredible potential to bring people to Jesus. 

You can catch the show here on their website or, best of all, download their app, "The Chosen", from either the apple store or google play, and cast it to your tv that way. Let me know what you think!

Seeking Allah, Find Jesus by Nabeel Qureshi

At first glance, it could seem like this week's book feature has nothing to do with Israel. But since 60% of the population of Israel is Arab, and Islam also claims Jerusalem to be a Holy City, there's a strong connection. 

In Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi describes his journey as a devout Muslim from a Pakistani American family who eventually came to follow Jesus as Lord. 

This book is incredible. Qureshi's writing drew me in, and his story is so powerful. But what I loved, almost as much as his journey to becoming a Christ follower, was how much I learned about Islam through this book—and Eastern culture as well. Through his story, I learned about what he believed and why, giving me a greater understanding of basic teachings and beliefs of Islam.

He also gave so many insights of being an Easterner in the West who is wrestling with converting to a 'Western' religion (hopefully this series on the global early church refutes that last claim) and I wanted to share a few of them here. The most heartbreaking were how he agonized over the affect his conversion would have on his family (and did have). While this is difficult to understand in an individualist culture, he does a great job of explaining this on a basic level with a simple example in Chapter 18: "Honor and Authority". 

"Islamic cultures," Qureshi explains, "tend to establish people of high status as authorities, whereas the authority in Western culture is reason itself. These alternative seats of authority permeate the mind, determining the moral outlook of whole societies.... Much of the West's inability to understand the East stems from the paradigmatic schism between honor-shame cultures and innocence-guilt cultures [the West]. This reliance on positional authority explains some characteristics in parts of the Muslim world that confound many Westerners, such as the continued practices of honor killings, child brides of 6 or younger, and blood feuds. For one reason or another, the prevailing sources of social authority in these regions deem these customs acceptable, perhaps even preferable. No amount of sheer reason is going to change these practices, nor will externally imposed prohibitions.... If there is no dishonor, it is not wrong" (pp. 108-109).

The example he gives is a simple one, where as kids, he and his friends would order water at fast-food restaurants, then go get soft drinks instead. But one day, a friend of his was caught getting Mountain Dew Code Red instead of water. An employee said, "You ordered water; you can't get soda!"

"At this," Qureshi says, "many people turned to see the commotion and my friend immediately blushed..... For my friend, this was the moment that made his actions a poor choice [not the actual stealing of the soft drink]. He had suffered dishonor in front of many. Stealing the soda was not the issue for him before being caught. In fact, it was still not the issue after being caught. As strange as it might sound to Westerners, it was more dishonorable for him to be called out by a minimum-wage employee than to be caught stealing soda. So he denied it, asserting firmly, 'I am getting water!' He filled the rest of the cup with water and walked away from the counter, as if were perfectly normal for water to be a deep, bubbly pink" (page 109).

This is fascinating to me, because it is such a different way of thinking than an innocence-guilt culture. It made me think of Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes' commentary on the story of David and Bathsheba (and confirmed this analysis of the story from an Eastern perspective). 

Anyway, exploration of Eastern culture is not the point of this book, but I picked up on it because it's something that I am learning more about—and it was impossible for Nabeel Qureshi to tell his story without incorporating it in. I loved every second of reading this book, and praise God for his testimony! 

I highly recommend this book! If you are interested, you can get it here on Amazon! And if you have read this book, I'd love to know your thoughts below!

*Nabeel Qureshi went on to teach with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries and was diagnosed with stage 4 stomach cancer in 2016 and went to be with the Lord in 2017. 

**For more on honor and shame in Eastern cultures, please check out these posts!

Bathsheba: Reluctant Beauty

This week, we're going to continue with Angela Hunt's A Dangerous Beauty series and talk about Bathsheba: Reluctant Beauty.

To be honest, I struggled with the beginning of this book. Since the events of the book aren't spoilers (they are in the Bible, haha), I'm not going to worry with hiding the events. I love Angela Hunt's books, especially her more contemporary settings like Unspoken, The Canopy, and The Justice. But because this is such a well-known story, Hunt took the risk of portraying the scene of David and Bathsheba in a very different way. At the end of the novel, she explains why—how traditional expositions of this story portray Bathsheba as a manipulative adulteress, and perhaps there was an unexplored angle here. I get that and respect it, but that doesn't mean that it wasn't difficult to read or that I agreed with the portrayal of what was essentially, rape. I also struggled with the early depiction of Nathan and how he dishonored his wife because of his lust for Bathsheba.

That being said, I believe she went farther into describing the culture and beliefs of this culture than many depictions of this story. It reminded me of Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes' exploration of the shame that David felt (and its reason), which I talked about here.

I still feel like the guilt portrayed here was more from Western eyes than Eastern, but it was closer to Eastern than I had read before. And perhaps my problems with the early scenes had more to do with my Western predisposition and cultural/personal bias. This book is well written, and Hunt expertly stayed true to the character development throughout.

In addition, I appreciated how she continued the story through those central scenes, so we could understand what is can be a confusing thread of scenes in the Old Testament. It was easier to see the connection between the consequences of this initial sin and how it impacted following generations.

Click here to purchase the book here on Amazon!

Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus: Names

In Chapter 6 of Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus, Lois Tverberg focuses on the mystery of names in Jewish culture. This is something that is very different from Western culture.

Tverberg states that from ancient times until today saying "in the name of" is the equivalent of claiming that's person's authority or behalf. It's like how today, when we pray, we often end with, "... in Jesus' name, Amen". We are claiming his status and authority as God's Son in that moment.

The idea is so much deeper in Jewish culture, however. "It's hard to overstate how important names were in Biblical times," Tverberg states on page 84. "In ancient thought, without a name, an object or being didn't even exist. Egyptian documents describe the time before creation as "when no name of anything had yet been named," and it was only when God created and named things that they officially existed.

Names in ancient Near Eastern culture were more than just descriptive words. They were reputations... legacies... identities. As we talked about in the posts "Family is Important" and "Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Honor and Shame", your name and the name of your family are vitally important in this culture. This is why when God redirected someone's life, he often changed their names (like Abram, Jacob, Saul, etc). And why Moses appealed to God's name in his attempt to persuade God not to destroy the Israelites for worshipping the golden calf in Exodus 32.

Throughout the Bible, the concept of God's name spreading throughout the earth is a common theme. And this is why the 3rd commandment, "You shall not take the Lord your God's name in vain" is such an important thing. Western Christians often see it as not swearing with God's name. But it's so much more than that. Tverberg states, "The text literally says, 'you shall not lift up God's name as an empty thing.' One of the was that rabbis interpreted this was as doing something evil publicly and associating God with it. It is a sin against God Himself, who suffers from having his reputation defamed" (page 88).

We see examples like this every day, and throughout history. From slavery, oppression, and prejudice, people who blow up abortion clinics or abuse family members who are under their leadership. We see it in religions of the world as well—horrible things done in the name of the god they believe in. The rest of the world is thinking, 'what kind of god is this that he would want you to do such a horrible thing?" His reputation is damaged, or taken in vain, just as God's is when people do things in His name that aren't of His commands or character.

Small examples are just as important here—businessmen who will cheat others and sit on the front pew on Sunday. Or what about cutting someone off with ours car while we have Christian bumper sticker on the back? It's giving a false witness, or a witness against Christ to the world around us.

As Christians, we carry God's name in all we do and say. And while we do know this, the full meaning of it is so much deeper because of the cultural connotations that we don't have. It's name and reputation that has been proclaimed for millennia throughout the earth—the universe—with great breadth and weight. For this reason, family names are so important in Near Eastern culture—because the name will last beyond those who bear it. In the West, it's considered admirable if someone has to rise from the adversity of overcoming negative (or toxic) dynamics and start a new, separate life. This would not be a positive thing in Near Eastern culture.

In fact, I once heard a story about a Jewish woman who heard about a practice in Germany that, due to limit land availability, grave sites are only leased for 15-30 years. After that, the grave's contents (and headstone) are removed and the land is available for a new inhabitant.

Upon hearing this, the Jewish woman said, "But what happens to their name?"

When I heard this story, I couldn't stop thinking about it. It's why it's so important to families from collective cultures to have children, and especially male children, to continue the family name. While this is important in Western culture, it's doesn't have the same gravitas. There might be shame and great pain over infertility, but the cultural implication of a complete loss of the weight of a name (identity and reputation) isn't necessarily as big of a deal. And as to people being removed from their graves 30 years after death (when it's likely that those who would visit have already passed on) is practical in light of limited land availability.

What do you think? How does the important of a name in Jewish culture from one on your own?

Honor and Shame in the Zion Legacy Series

So, before moving on, I wanted to address something else I found so fascinating in the Zion Legacy Series by Bodie and Brock Thoene.

Throughout the first 3 books, there's a sub-story that is so significant in terms of culture and honor/shame in the Middle East (again, spoilers ahead... but this series was published in the early 2000s, so it's not like it's new).

Basically, there are two Arab brothers, orphan boys, Dauod and Gaman, who are fighting against the Jews. They hate the Jews as a people group, but they are friends with Yacov and Shaul (Yacov's dog).

When Gaman is seriously injured, the boys go to the only safe place: a convent where the hurt and dying are being treated. Gaman undergoes surgery by a Jewish doctor, who saves his life. Before Dauod knows that Doctor Baruch is actually a Jew, he says that he shall be Dr. Baruch's son and will honor him as such for what he did for Gaman.

Then, Dauod discovers that Dr. Baruch is a Jew. But it doesn't matter—Dauod has already made his vow.

For the rest of the series, you see his struggle as he thinks of himself as and introduces himself as Dauod, the son of Baruch. He finds himself fighting on behalf of the Jews to honor to his father and his vow.

I LOVED this sub-story because it is so different from Western culture. We'd say, "well, I didn't have all the facts, so I don't have to keep this". But Dauod didn't do this. Even as a young boy, he knew the seriousness of his vow that it meant leaving his band of rebel boys/teens and acting on behalf of the people group that he had been fighting against (even in light of his friendship with Yacov).

What do you think of this example of honor/shame and the importance of family in the Middle East? How does it differ from your culture? How can it shed light on things we read in the Bible?

Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: The Woman Caught in Adultery

In Chapter 7 of Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, Kenneth E. Bailey focuses on the story of the woman caught in adultery.

The basis of this story from John 7:53-8:11 is that the Pharisees bring a woman caught in the act of adultery (I'm not a feminist, but where was the man she was with?) to Jesus who was at the temple. Forget the violation of so many things here that the Pharisees did (brought her in a half-dressed, unkempt state, her ceremonial uncleanliness, etc.)...they want to catch Jesus in a quandary in order to invalidate Him. 

Jesus is sitting in the Temple, teaching (because teachers sat in Jewish culture, and listeners stood when speaking to them- see page 286 for more on this practice). This is the day after a major feast, which according to Jewish law, had to be observed as a sabbath. 

Bailey states, "The fact that they brought the woman but not her male partner clearly indicates that their concern was not preservation of the law but rather the public humiliation of Jesus" (page 232). Additionally, this is done in clear view of Roman soldiers who were observing from the military fort near the north end of the Temple.

The Pharisees think Jesus has 2 options: 1) to agree to stoning her, which would lead to His arrest in the midst of a public outcry or 2) say something that would let her go and show Him a coward/law breaker.

Here's the cultural stuff I didn't know before reading this chapter (in addition to it being in the view of the Roman soldiers): 

What Jesus does next (writes in the dust with His finger) shows direct knowledge of Jewish law and culture, because while writing was considered work, writing in the dust was permissible, since it wasn't permanent. "By doing this, He made it clear to His accusers that He was not only familiar with the written law but also well-versed in the developing oral interpretation of that law" (page 234).

When Jesus says, "Let the one among you who is without sin cast the first stone", that coupled with whatever He wrote (we don't know), is a direct challenge where "He asks each individual to acknowledge responsibility for participation in the act....[He is basically saying], 'Gentlemen, you clearly want me to go to jail for the law of Moses. I am willing to do so. I have ordered that she be killed. But I want to know which one of you is willing to volunteer to accompany me into that cell?" (page 235). Bailey also points out that in this honor/shame culture, for someone to declare Himself sinless (other than Christ) would bring shame, because since they know the law, they know it says that all have sinned. 

Wow! Later in the chapter, Bailey says Jesus walked a razor's edge between condemning her (following the law) and overlooking her sin (violating the law). I don't think I fully caught all the ramifications of this until reading this chapter. 

What about you? What do you think?

(Edit July 7, 2019: in What if it's True?, Charles Martin also has a very powerful chapter about this story). 

Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Honor and Shame

Fast-forwarding ahead to Part II of Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes, the authors take us deeper into the 'iceberg' of understanding culture and worldview.

In chapter 4, they talk about the difference between Individualist (Western) and Collectivist cultures (Eastern), and give examples of this from the Bible.

Then, in chapter 5, they explore what it means that Individualist cultures are right/wrong cultures and Collectivist cultures are honor/shame cultures—and why this is important in the Bible, which was an honor/shame world (page 114). If that sentence doesn't make sense, I definitely recommend researching this topic. It's fascinating!

To oversimplify this, Westerners see the world through right and wrong, and believe the Holy Spirit (or their own conscience) will convict them of right and wrong. Yes, actions have impact on others, but ultimately, conviction and repentance is about the individual.

In the East, "people are more likely to choose right behavior on the basis of what society expects from them. It's not a matter of guilt, or an inner voice of direction, but outer pressures and opinions that direct a person to behave a certain way. Rules and laws are less a deterrent for bad behavior than the risk of bringing shame on oneself or one's family.... If a person from a shame culture commits a 'sin', he will not likely feel guilty about it if no one else knows, for it is the community (not the individual) that determines where one has lost face" (page 116-117). The authors continue to unpack this on pages 120-127 by talking about the honor/shame language, customs, and actions in the story of David and Bathsheba in 2 Samuel 11-12. It's too long for me to summarize, but WOW- seeing this influence in this well known story really gave me another perspective!

Here are some short examples, however. In Exodus 32, when God is angry and wants to destroy the Israelites for worshipping the golden calf, Moses appeals to God's honor. "He makes a two-pronged argument to persuade God to change His mind: 1) think about what the Egyptians will say about Your name, and 2) You swore on Your name and You don't want to get a bad name! Moses doesn't appeal to God's sense of justice ('it wouldn't be right') but to His sense of honor ('You will be shamed')" p. 128.

Another example comes from Jesus. In this example, it's also important to realize something important about the concept of honor/shame. Basically, there's only so much honor. For someone to gain honor through interpersonal interaction, it means that they gained honor by shaming someone else (again, an oversimplification). Richards and O'Brien say that, "Public questions were contests. The winner was determined by the audience, who represented the community. If you silenced your opponent, you gained honor and they lost some" (page 129). This is why the disciples asked Jesus questions privately instead of publicly, as well as Nicodemus. But when the Pharisees asked questions in the open, at the Temple, it was a challenge, and every time they "lost", they lost honor. It was so enraging that they decided to kill Jesus as a criminal—this public disgrace would get their honor back (page 130).

WOW! How do these concepts impact how we can read the Scriptures? The authors conclude the chapter by recommending Bible readers to pay attention to where stories take place in Scripture (in private or in public). For us, it's a good clue as to what is a true quest for truth or a challenge.

Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus: Family is important

In Chapter 6 of Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus, Lois Tverberg talks about the importance of family in a way I've never thought of before.

Being from the West, while family is important in my culture, it doesn't have the same focus and weight as in the East. Maybe it's because my country is less than 300 years old. My family's "memory" is really only goes back around 3-4 generations. 

But for those from the East, it's very different. 

In the West, we say, "I'm so and so and I do this job". We put our identities in what we do.

In the East, Tverberg says they say, "I am so and so, from the family of _____". Their identity is bound up in the identity of their family. Why? Because the family is what will last long after the individual passes away (p. 119). This is why it's so important for your family to have a good reputation, why honor and shame is so important, and why every action needs to be thought of in terms of what it means for the family name, not the individual. (Edited April 4, 2020: For more about this, check out the post on names in Near Eastern culture here).

This is also why it is so important for people to marry and have children, and why barrenness is a curse. And why when God says He will bless someone's name and family, it is so important. It means a great, lasting reputation.

But the coolest thing to me, is how in Romans, Paul says that Gentiles who accept Him are grafted into the family of God. We have that legacy, and are part of it—not because of birth, but because of grace. 

What do you think? How does our concept of identity change when we think in terms of family and relational status, instead of our profession? How does that impact our thinking of what it means to be part of the family of God?