Why doesn't the Bible condemn cannibalism?

[Unification]

The Eucharist is a communal event that draws the church (the Body of Christ) together. It has little to do with "Is Jesus in your heart?"

Catholic definition it is, and if truth to them, I respect that.

I'm taught personally that I'm a church, and every human I see is a church. What I do to any human, I do to God. Every human I see has the body of Christ. From the least of them to the greatest of them.

 

[sojourner]

A child of God has no enemies, therefore, they don't murder or kill. Literally, legally, in wartime, anywhere.

Not true, biblically speaking. Ever actually read the hebrew texts?

 

[Unification]

"Murder" is a legal term. The commandment was, "Do not murder," not "do not kill." Killing one's enemy in wartime isn't murder.

Going to war with God spiritually and scripturally, is defeating ones own enemies, within. The things that have control and dominion over one, leaving them a slave to something in their own conscious prison.

Anything that contracts love, is not of God, and scripturally would have to have an objective, spiritual meaning.

Loving ones enemies as themselves is the human themselves being their own worst enemy, and the evil things that have control over them.
If we can kill our enemy in wartime, this is not love and against a commandement, and would mean that we can kill ourselves.

Anything else, would just be a self centered excuse and reasoning from our animal/carnal/lower/natural nature that should have been defeated.

 

[sojourner]

Catholic definition it is, and if truth to them, I respect that.

I'm taught personally that I'm a church, and every human I see is a church. What I do to any human, I do to God. Every human I see has the body of Christ. From the least of them to the greatest of them.

"Church" = "assembly" = "community of believers." Theologically speaking (at least from a Christian perspective) it's impossible to be a church by yourself.

 

[sojourner]

Going to war with God spiritually and scripturally, is defeating ones own enemies, within. The things that have control and dominion over one, leaving them a slave to something in their own conscious prison.

Not according to the Hebrew texts.

 

[Unification]

Not according to the Hebrew texts.

The Hebrew texts are metaphorical. Spiritual. Things not seen. Written by Spirit, there would be no other way to convey them besides literal objects to have a deeper spiritual meaning. One of the flesh and natural nature will always see things outwardly, and literally. Things of God (spirit/inner/within) or things of man(outward, vain, literal)

 

[Unification]

Not according to the Hebrew texts.

Everyone does know better too. They are just not looking. Everything in the scriptures one can relate to in their own personal life within, and they know it consciously. Just have to defeat the ego and self and conditioned mind.
The conditioning of religion, education, trusting in anyone but God has one making excuses and reasoning, trying to fit in with others, fear, flailing to explain scriptures in a non-evil and sugar coating way to suit what they've always known and a particular belief system, etc.
Dying to oneself is dying to ones own understanding and knowledge. Not an easy feat.

 

[Sapiens]

And if they do this,are they really christians?

and how many of them can dance on a pin head? Can you be a Christian without eating the flesh of Christ and drinking the blood of Christ?

 

[Sapiens]

The Eucharist is not cannibalism because the cracker really is just a cracker and not the body of Christ at all.

True, but isn't sin in the intent and the heart?

 

[sojourner]

The Hebrew texts are metaphorical.

In some cases, yes. But in terms of "who is my enemy?" History is on my side here. Israel had physical enemies.

Written by Spirit, there would be no other way to convey them besides literal objects to have a deeper spiritual meaning.

The bible wasn't written by a spirit. It was written by people. There's a sometimes VAST difference between executing what the texts say, and assigning meaning to them through apologetic work. And the astute scholar knows 1) which work comes first, and 2) how the work of exegesis informs the work of apologetics, and not the other way 'round.

 

[sojourner]

Everyone does know better too. They are just not looking. Everything in the scriptures one can relate to in their own personal life within, and they know it consciously. Just have to defeat the ego and self and conditioned mind.
The conditioning of religion, education, trusting in anyone but God has one making excuses and reasoning, trying to fit in with others, fear, flailing to explain scriptures in a non-evil and sugar coating way to suit what they've always known and a particular belief system, etc.
Dying to oneself is dying to ones own understanding and knowledge. Not an easy feat.

The ancient Israelites had Real. Physical. Enemies. Of course it's pretty to assign some deeper, spiritual meaning to those adversarial situations, but the fact remains what the texts actually say, and what that means in the context of when and by whom the texts were written. Any other meaning is corollary to that.

 

[Baladas]

Because banning blended fabrics seemed like a higher priority (Deuteronomy 22:11)?

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

True, but isn't sin in the intent and the heart?

I don't believe in sin, either.

 

[Harmonious]

Is horrific desperation an objective evil, or a subjective evil? What if that horrific desperation reflects God's will? If God utilizes cannibalism to punish humans (and the Bible says that he does), then we only characterize the punishment as evil and we do so on a subjective basis, no?

It's not described as an objective evil or a subjective evil, because in the most horrific of circumstances, it could be the only way to save one's own life.

People have heard about the Donner Party. Trey Parker gave a creative, tongue-in-cheek retelling of the Packer Party in "Cannibal: The Musical."

If you are literally starving to death, and the only thing to eat is dead people... God didn't place a value judgment on such a thing. It would be horrific to have to make such a judgment call, and God isn't judging us for making a choice when the only option is a bad one.

 

[Harmonious]

Would you care to explain that difference?

I already did.

It DOES say not to murder, in various places, which is different than lawfully killing someone (ie. in battle, the death penalty, self-defense or defense of others, etc.)

 

[Harmonious]

The Hebrew texts are metaphorical.

Not the legal ones. As in, the Pentateuch.

Spiritual. Things not seen. Written by Spirit, there would be no other way to convey them besides literal objects to have a deeper spiritual meaning. One of the flesh and natural nature will always see things outwardly, and literally. Things of God (spirit/inner/within) or things of man(outward, vain, literal)

If it makes you happy to believe so, go for it. However, your belief doesn't make it true.

There are those of us who believe that when God commanded the Jews to do certain things, He meant them literally, and gave a more defined "how-to" book outside the general outlines, which is there to be read by anyone.

 

[Harmonious]

Because banning blended fabrics seemed like a higher priority (Deuteronomy 22:11)?

No. Because banning the blending of wool and linen was just one more thing God commanded the Jews to do to be different than our non-Jewish neighbors.

But you know... Regarding interpersonal relationships, God was pretty thorough in the ways and means in law. The highlights are outlined here in the Pentateuch. The Talmud, however, if FULL of case law, and how the details are explained, reasoned out, and adjudicated.

 

[Unification]

It's not described as an objective evil or a subjective evil, because in the most horrific of circumstances, it could be the only way to save one's own life.

People have heard about the Donner Party. Trey Parker gave a creative, tongue-in-cheek retelling of the Packer Party in "Cannibal: The Musical."

If you are literally starving to death, and the only thing to eat is dead people... God didn't place a value judgment on such a thing. It would be horrific to have to make such a judgment call, and God isn't judging us for making a choice when the only option is a bad one.

A bad choice is a bad choice, no excuses or reasoning.

Could God give one the strength to overcome any bad choice? The natural animalistic nature of survival will say to eat away. Is that nature supposed to be defeated? Is God powerless to the human? Does one not trust in God enough to not be afraid of death?

There are people and children starving to death in areas all over the world, they are simply dying and not eating dead people. All the billions of dollars the church buildings have made for a few thousand years, I'm not sure why anyone is starving or why the world hasn't changed a bit. Salaries?

 

[Harmonious]

A bad choice is a bad choice, no excuses or reasoning.

Let's pray that you are never in a position to know this.

Freezing (or dehydrating) and starving to death, or cannibalism to last a couple more days. Neither is a good choice. They are horrific options. I don't know what I would choose in a last ditch effort, and pray that I never have to find out.

Could God give one the strength to overcome any bad choice? The natural animalistic nature of survival will say to eat away. Is that nature supposed to be defeated? Is God powerless to the human? Does one not trust in God enough to not be afraid of death?

Again, let's pray you are never in a position to have to make such choices. I pray you stay safe, and always remain capable of being a Monday morning quarterback on such calls.

There are people and children starving to death in areas all over the world, they are simply dying and not eating dead people.

Different times call for different choices. In a very bad famine, there are choices to be made. In a long-lasting siege, other choices might be made.

Practically freezing to death, alone with no help or resources in sight, other choices might be made.

I'm not prepared to judge sincerely desperate people who are scrabbling at ANYTHING to live one more day.

Judge not lest you be judged.

 

[kepha31]

You've explained nothing. You've made the claim and then blathered nonsense, pretending it was an argument.

This is not a rebuttal or a refutation, it is an empty assertion.

You keep saying that, but I don't see why. Cannibalism isn't necessarily bad.

I mentioned the practice of eating the placenta after a birth. This is one example of cannibalism. I find the practice strange, and I wouldn't participate myself, but I don't think it's immoral; do you?

If you really were eating the flesh of Jesus, you would be engaging in cannibalism... but if this is a special kind of cannibalism where the person being eaten isn't harmed and actually wants to be eaten, then what's the issue?

Last I checked, a placenta is the waste product of birth, it is not the corpse of human being.
Here is a hair _______________________split it for me.

There's nothing in the definition of cannibalism that requires "ripping and tearing". Any eating of human flesh is cannibalism.
Do you think you're really eating human flesh?

Yes, under the auspices of consecrated Bread and Wine. You mock what you refuse to understand. At least the many who walked away did understand, they just refused to believe. See John 6:66. Hmm...where have I seen those numbers before?

I checked a couple of online dictionaries. One defined "cannibal" as "a person who eats the flesh of other human beings." Another defined the word as "a person who eats human flesh, especially for magical or religious purposes." Don't these two definitions precisely match what you say you do?

Consecrated Bread and Wine.

Of course, none of the definitions of "cannibal" include "a person who eats what he thinks is human flesh, but isn't", so I don't think you're actually a cannibal.

Maybe we are getting somewhere.