VIL.A.2. God's Command to Abraham (The Teleological Suspension of the Ethical) The following passage from the book of Genesis, a part of the Hebrew Bible, tells the celebrated story of God's testing of Abraham by commanding him to kill his beloved only son Isaac and make of him a burnt offering to God. The passage is frequently cited by Jews and Christians alike as the para- digm of faith and the exemplification of morality as obedience to God. After these things God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here am I.” He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Mori‘ah, and offer him , there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” So Abraham rose carly in the morning, saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; and he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place afar off. Then Abra- ham said to his young men, “Stay here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship. and come again to you.” And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father.” And he said, “Here am I, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together. When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there, and laid wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. Then Abraham put forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here am I.” He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him; for now | know that you fear God. seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked and behold him was a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of this place Scripture quotations are from the Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1946, 1952, 1971 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches, of Christ, in the USA. Used by permission. Genesis 22:1-18. 526 Scanned with CamScanner‘The Lord will provide: as itis said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.” ‘And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, “By myself'I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will indeed bless you, and 1 will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven and as the sand which is onthe seashore. And your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. and by your descendants shall the nations of the earth bless themselv because you have obeyed my voice.” VILA.3. Abraham and Isaac SOREN KIERKEGAARD Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855), the Danish philosopher and religious thinker often called the grandfather of existen- tialism, was the first to define the concept of the teleological suspension of the ethical. By this term he meant the setting aside of what morality normally requires in response to a specific command from God fora higher purpose. The story of ‘Abraham and Isaac is supposed to exemplify this principle, but Kierkegaard found such a notion profoundly disturbing. In the following brief selection, he offers four alternative interpretations of the famous story, interpretations that raise disquieting questions indeed about the notion of faith as the unquestioning performance of acts one becomes convinced God has commanded one to do. PRELUDE Once upon a time there was a man who asa child had heard the beautiful story about how God tempted Abraham, and how he endured temptation, kept the faith, and a second time received again a son contrary to expectation. When the child became older he read the same story From Fear and Trembling and The Sickness unto Death. trans. with Introductions and Notes by Walter Lowrie. Copyright 1941, 1954, © 1982 renewed by Princeton University Press. Pp. 26-29. BaF Scanned with CamScannerFee pengivn atic Luts: with even greater admiration, for life had separated what was united in the pious simplicity of the child. The older he became, the more frequently his mind reverted to that story, his enthusiasm became greater and greater, and yet he was less and less able,to understand the story. At last in his interest for that he forgot everything else: his soul had only one wish, to see Abraham, one longing, to have been witness to that event, His desire was not to behold the beautiful countries of the Orient, or the earthly glory of the Promised Land. or that godfearing couple whose old age God had blessed, or the venerable figure ofthe aged patriarch, or the vigorous young manhood of Isaac whom God had bestowed upon Abraham—he saw no reason why the same thing might not have taken place on a barren heath in Denmark. His yearning was to accom pany them on the three days’ journey when Abraham rode with sorrow before him and with Isaac by his side. His only wish was to be present at the time when Abraham lified up his eyes and saw Mount Moriah afar off, at the time when he left the asses behind and went alone with Isaac up unto the mountain; for what his mind was intent upon was not the ingenious web of imagination but the shudder of thought. That man was not a thinker, he felt no need of getting beyond faith: he deemed it the most glorious thing to be remembered as the father of it, an, enviable lot to possess it, even though no one else were to know it. That man was not a learned exegete, he didn’t know Hebrew, if he had known Hebrew, he perhaps would easily have understood the story and Abraham. I “And God tempted Abraham and said unto him, Take Isaac, thine only son, whom thow lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering upon the mountain which 1 will show thee.” It was early in the morning, Abraham arose betimes, he had the asses saddled, left his tent, and Isaac with him, but Sarah looked out of the window after them until they had passed down the valley and she could see them no more. They rode in silence for three days. On the morning of the fourth day Abraham said never a word, but he lifted up his eyes and saw Mount Moriah, afar off. He left the young men behind and went on alone with Isaac beside him up to the mountain. But Abraham said to himself, “I will not conceal from Isaac whither this course leads him.” He stood still, he laid his hand upon the head of Isaac in benediction, and Isaac bowed to receive the blessing. And Abraham’s face was fatherliness, his look was mild, his speech encouraging But Isaac was unable to understand him, his soul could not be exalted: he embraced Abraham’s knees, he fell on his knees imploringly, he begged for his young life, for the fair hope of his future, he called to mind the joy in Abra: ham’s house, he called to mind the sorrow and loneliness. Then Abraham lifted up the boy, he walked with him by his side, and his talk was full of comfort and exhortation. But Isaac could not understarid him. He climbed Mount Moriah, but Isaac understood him not. Then for an instant he turned away from him, and when Isaac saw Abraham’s face it was changed, his glance was wild, his form was horror. He seized Isaac by the throat, threw him Scanned with CamScannersae weiie Gonmnana theory or ethics 529 to the ground and said, “Stupid boy, dost thou then suppose that 1 am thy father? | am an idolater. Dost thou suppose that this is God’s bidding? No, it is my desire.” Then Isaac trembled and cried out in terror, “O God in heaven, have compassion upon me. God of Abraham, have compassion upon me. If 1 have no father upon earth, be Thou my father!” But Abraham in a low voice said to himself, “O Lord in heaven, I thank Thee. After all it is better for him to believe that | am a monster, rather than that he should lose faith in Thee.” When the child must be weaned, the mother blackens her breast, it would indeed be a shame that the breast should look delicious when the child must not have it. So the child believes that the breast has changed, but the mother is the same, her glance is as loving and tender as ever. Happy the person who had no need of more dreadful expedients for weaning the child! It was early in the morning, Abraham arose betimes, he embraced Sarah, the bride of his old age, and Sarah kissed Isaac, who had taken away her reproach, who was her pride, her hope for all time. So they rode on in silenée along the way and Abraham’s glance was fixed upon the ground until the fourth day when he lifted up his eyes and saw afar off Mount Moriah, but his glance turned again to the ground. Silently he laid the wood in order, he bound Isaac. in silence he drew the knife—then he saw the ram which God had prepared. Then he offered that and returned home. .. . From that time on Abraham became old, he could not forget that God had required this of him. Isaac throve as before, but Abraham's eyes were darkened and knew joy no more. When the child has grown up and must be weaned, the mother virginally hides her breast, so the child has no more mother. Happy t the child which did not in another way lose its mother. il It was early in the morning, Abraham arose betimes, he kissed Sarah, the young mother, and Sarah kissed Isaac, her delight, her joy at all times. And Abraham rode pensively along the way, he thought of Hagar and of the son whom he drove out into the wilderness, he climbed Mount Moriah, he drew the knife. It was a quiet evening when Abraham rode out alone, and he rode out to Mount Moriah; he threw himself upon his face, he prayed God to forgive his sin, that he had been willing to offer Isaac, that the father had forgotten the duty toward the son. Often he rode his lonely way, but he found no rest. He could not comprehend that it was a sin to be willing to offer to God the best thing he possessed, that for which he would many times have given his life: and if it was a sin. if he had not loved Isaac as he did, then he could not understand that it might be forgiven. For what sin could be more dreadful? When the child must be weaned, the mother too is not without sorrow at the thought that she and the child are separated more and more, that the child first lay under her heart and later reposed upon her breast will be so near to her Scanned with CamScanner2 RHI arene bette no more. So they mourn together for the brief period of mourning. Happy the person who has kept the child as near and needed not to sorrow any more! Iv It was early in the morning, everything was prepared for the journey in Abrahams house. He bade Sarah farewell, and Eleazer, the faithful servant, followed him along the way. They rode together in harmony, Abraham and Isaac, until they came to Mount Moriah. But Abraham prepared everything for the sacrifice, calmly and quietly; but when he turned and drew the knife, Isaac saw that his left hand was clenched in despair, that a tremor passed through his body—but Abraham drew the knife. Then they turned again home, Sarah hastened to meet them, but Isaac had lost his faith. No word of this had ever been spoken in the world, and Isaac never talked about what he had seen and Abraham did not suspect that anyone had seen it. When the child must be weaned, the mother has stronger food in read- iness, lest the child should perish. Happy the person who has stronger food in readiness! Thus and in many like ways that man of whom we are speaking thought concerning this event. Every time he returned home after’ wandering to Mount Moriah, he sank down with weariness, he folded his hands and said, “No one is so great as Abraham! Who is capable of understanding him?” Scanned with CamScannerVU.A.4. The Red Sea Scrolls WOODY ALLEN Woody Allen (1935~ ) is a contemporary humorist, actor author, and filmmaker. The following piece, purporting tongue-in-cheek to be fragments of ancient scrolls, offers rather unorthodox interpretations of the biblical book of Job and, in fragment two, of the Abraham and Isaac story. The clear implication seems to be that humans often mistake their own ideas for divine commandments, and that we must be extremely cautious about going against established morality because we think that God has commanded us to do so. Scholars will recall that several years ago a shepherd, wandering in the Gulf of Aqaba, stumbled upon a cave containing several large clay jars and also two tickets to the ice show. Inside the jars were discovered six parchment scrolls with ancient incomprehensible writing which the shepherd, in his ignorance, sold to the museum for $750,000 apiece. Two years later the jars turned up in a pawnshop in Philadelphia. One year later the shepherd turned up in a pawnshop in Philadelphia and neither was claimed. ‘Archacologists originally set the date of the scrolls at 4000 p.c., or just after the massacre of the Israelites by their benefactors. The writing is a mixture of Sumerian, Aramaic, and Babylonian and seems to have been done by either one man over a long period of time, or several men who shared the same suit. The authenticity of the scrolls is currently in great doubt, particularly since the word “Oldsmobile” appears several times in the text, and the few fragments that have finally been translated deal with familiar religious themes in a more than dubious way. Still, excavationist A. H. Bauer has noted that even though the fragments seem totally fraudulent, this is probably the greatest archeologi- cal find in history with the exception of the recovery of his cuff links from a tomb in Jerusalem. The following are the translated fragments. One... And the Lord made an bet with Satan to test Job’s loyalty and the } Lord, for no apparent reason to Job, smote him on the head and again on the ear and pushed him into an thick sauce so as to make Job sticky and vile and then He slew a tenth part of Job’s kine and Job calleth out: “Why doth thou slay my kine? Kine are hard to come by. Now 1am short kine and I‘mnoteven sure what kine are.” And the Lord produced two stone tablets and snapped them closed on Job’s nose. And when Job’s wife saw this she wept and the Lord sent an angel of mercy who anointed her head with a polo mallet and of the ten plagues. the Lord sent one through six, inclusive, and Job was sore and his wife angry and she rent her garment and then raised the rent but refused to paint. Copyright © 1974 by Woody Allen. Reprinted from Without Feathers by Woody Allen, by permission of Random House, Inc. Scanned with CamScannereee ee eee And soon Job’s pastures dried up and his tongue cleaved to the roof of his frouthso he could not pronounce the word “frankincense” without getting big laughs. And once the Lord, while wreaking havoc upon his faithful servant, came too close and Job grabbed him around the neck and said, “ Aha! Now I got you! Why art thou giving Job a hard time, eh? Eh? Speak up!” And the Lord said, “Er, look—that’s my neck you have. . .Could you lei me go?” But Job showed no mercy and said, “I was doing very well till you came along. | had myrrh and fig trees in abundance and a coat of many colors with two pairs of pants of many colors. Now look.” And the Lord spake and his voice thundered; “Must I who created heaven and earth explain my ways to thee? What hath thou created that thou doth dare question me?” “That's no answer,” Job said. “And for someone who's supposed to be omnipotent, let me tell you, ‘tabernacle’ has only one /,” Then Job fell to his knees and cried to the Lord, “Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory. Thou hast a good job. Don’t blow it.” Two... And Abraham awoke in the middle of the night and said to his ” only son, Isaac, “I have had a dream where the voice of the Lord sayeth that I must sacrifice my only son, so put your pants on.” And Isaac trembled and said, “So what did you say? I mean when He brought this whole thing up?” “What am I going to say” Abraham said. “I'm standing there at two a.m. in my underwear with the Creator of the Universe. Should I argue?” “Well, did he say why he wants me sacrificed?” Isaac asked his father. But Abraham said, “The faithful do not question. Now let’s go because | have a heavy day tomorrow.” And Sarah who heard Abraham's plan grew vexed and said, “How doth thou know it was the Lord and not, say, thy friend who loveth practical jokes, for the Lord hateth practical jokes and whosoever shall pull one shall be delivered into the hands of his enemies whether they can pay the delivery charges or not.” And Abraham answered, “Because I know it was the Lord. It wasa deep, resonant voice, well modulated, and nobody in the desert can get a rumble in it like that.” And Sarah said, “And thou art willing to carry out this senseless act?” But Abraham told her, “Frankly, yes, for to question the Lord’s word is one of the orst things a person can do, particularly with the economy in the state its in And so he took Isaac to a certain place and prepared to sacrifice him but at the last minute the Lord stayed Abraham’s hand and said, “How could thou doest such a thing?” And Abraham said, “But thou said—" _,_ “Nevermind what I said,” the Lord spake. “Doth thou listen to every crazy idea that comes thy way?” And Abraham grew ashamed “Er—not Teally. ..no.” : 4 jokingly suggest thou sacrifice Isaac and thou immediately runs out to lo it.” And Abraham fell to his knees, “See, I never know when you're kidding.” Scanned with CamScanner- Sap And the Lord thundered, “No sense of humor. | can’t believe it.” “But doth this not prove I love thee, I was willing to donate mine only son on thy whim?” And the Lord said, “It proves that some men will follow any order no matter how asinine as long as it comes from a resonant, well-modulated voice.” ‘And with that, the Lord bid Abraham get some rest and check with him tomorrow. Three. ..And it came to pass that a man who sold shirts was smitten by | hard times. Neither did any of his merchandise move nor did he prosper. And he prayed and said, “Lord, why hast thou left me to suffer thus? All mine enemies sell their goods except I. And it’s the height of the season. My shirts are good shirts, Take a look at this rayon. I got bution-downs, flare collars. nothing sells. Yet I have kept thy commandments. Why can | not earn a living when mine younger brother cleans up in children’s ready-to-wear?” . And the Lord heard the man and said, “About thy shirts. . .” “Yes, Lord,” the man said, falling to his knees . “Put an alligator over the pocket.” ~Pardon me, Lord?” , “Just do what I’m telling you. You won't be sorry.” And the man sewed on to all his shirts a small alligator symbol and lo and behold, suddenly his merchandise moved like gangbusters, and there was much rejoicing while amongst his enemies there was wailing and gnashing of teeth, and one said, “The Lord is merciful. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. The problem is, I can’t get up.” LAWS AND PROVERBS | Doing abominations is against the law, particularly if the abominations are done while wearing a lobster bib. The lion and the calf shall lic down together but the calf won't get much sleep. | ‘Whosoever shall not fall by the sword or by famine, shall fall by pestilence | so why bother shaving? The wicked at heart probably know something. Whosoever loveth wisdom is righteous but he that keepeth company with fowl is weird. My Lord, my Lord! What hast Thou done, lately? Scanned with CamScanner