Today is the 27th of Iyar, 5770 (42 days of Omer. 5 weeks)
(See last week’s HOTD)
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2. Abraham Abinu believed that God is “One”, which does not imply a mere mathematical reduction of the number of “gods”. It goes way beyond that…
Abraham lived in a society ruled by a tyrant king named Nimrod, who did whatever it pleased him pretending to have received a message from “god A” or “god B” . So, if Nimrod didn’t like you, the “god of death” would reveal to him that today it is a Mitzva to kill you. And if Nimrod liked your wife, the “god of lust” would reveal to him that he must take her from you. Right or wrong depended exclusively on the whims of Nimrod and his cynical manipulation of the various “gods”.
When Abraham Abinu spread the idea of “One God” he was considered by Nimrod and his entourage an extremely “dangerous individual” not because of his philosophical ideas but because it was ruining Nimrod’s play!
The idea of only “One God” would imply that there is an objective right and wrong. That whatever is wrong today is wrong tomorrow, for the simple citizen and even for the powerful Nimrod….
Abraham was persecuted and he would have been executed by Nimrod if not for God Almighty’s protection (Magen Abraham) who saved him from the tyrant’s hands.
The belief in God’s unity, initiated by Abraham Abinu, has a greater impact in man’s morality than in man’s theology.
(See last week’s HOTD)
.
2. Abraham Abinu believed that God is “One”, which does not imply a mere mathematical reduction of the number of “gods”. It goes way beyond that…
Abraham lived in a society ruled by a tyrant king named Nimrod, who did whatever it pleased him pretending to have received a message from “god A” or “god B” . So, if Nimrod didn’t like you, the “god of death” would reveal to him that today it is a Mitzva to kill you. And if Nimrod liked your wife, the “god of lust” would reveal to him that he must take her from you. Right or wrong depended exclusively on the whims of Nimrod and his cynical manipulation of the various “gods”.
When Abraham Abinu spread the idea of “One God” he was considered by Nimrod and his entourage an extremely “dangerous individual” not because of his philosophical ideas but because it was ruining Nimrod’s play!
The idea of only “One God” would imply that there is an objective right and wrong. That whatever is wrong today is wrong tomorrow, for the simple citizen and even for the powerful Nimrod….
Abraham was persecuted and he would have been executed by Nimrod if not for God Almighty’s protection (Magen Abraham) who saved him from the tyrant’s hands.
The belief in God’s unity, initiated by Abraham Abinu, has a greater impact in man’s morality than in man’s theology.
