Religions Hold Mix of Justice and Mercy

By Reuven Firestone

URL: http://www.jewishjournal.com/opinion/article/religions_hold_mix_of_justice_and_mercy_20040102/

Religion did not begin with compassion. The gods of the ancient Near East were not exactly epitomes of goodness.

In the flood story of the Gilgamesh Epic, the gods destroyed humanity not because they were reacting to unbridled violence and sin, as in the biblical (and quranic) versions, but because humans were making too much noise and disturbing them.

The ancient gods were worshipped but not out of love. They were worshipped out of fear.

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Comments:	A friend has recommended you read the following from The Jewish Journal... Religions Hold Mix of Justice and Mercy Religion did not begin with compassion. The gods of the ancient Near East were not exactly epitomes of goodness. In the flood story of the Gilgamesh Epic, the gods destroyed humanity not because they were reacting to unbridled violence and sin, as in the biblical (and quranic) versions, but because humans were making too much noise and disturbing them. The ancient gods were worshipped but not out of love. They were worshipped out of fear. http://www.jewishjournal.com/opinion/article/religions_hold_mix_of_justice_and_mercy_20040102/ Sign up for our free email news alerts at http://www.jewishjournal.com/email.

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