In Exodus 32, there’s a story about how the Israelites in their flight from Egypt become restless when their leader, Moses, disappears for several weeks. So they go to Moses’s brother, Aaron, and tell him to “[…] make gods for us, who shall go before us […] .”
Aaron famously instructs the people to melt down all their gold and makes a calf out of it, which the community in exile proceeds to worship. When Moses returns, he smashes the tablets on which God has written the 10 Commandments, melts the calf, grinds it into gold dust, throws it in the water, and makes the Israelites drink it as punishment.
We typically view this story as a tale warning against the idolatry of creating false gods. But really, it’s a story of misrepresenting Yahweh, the One who Israel viewed as the true God.
It’s a story not of creating an object to replace God, but of actually objectifying God.
This week at New Wineskins, we‘ll explore the ways we objectify the divine by objectifying nature, scripture, Jesus, and, ultimately, ourselves.
Join us this Sunday, June 27, in the New Wineskins Virtual Theology Pub as we unpack the means, reasons, and implications of our habit of objectification.
6:00pm: Happy Half-Hour (informal meet & greet time)
6:30pm: Presentation & conversation begins
Pride in the Park!
New Wineskins is excited to be part of this year’s Pride in the Park celebration Saturday, June 26, at Parkersburg City Park.
Members of our community are invited to participate in the following ways:
- Booth set-up/tear-down
- Staff our booth during the day
- Contribute items for a door prize gift basket
- Enjoy the celebration!
If you are able to volunteer, please contact Joe Webb at 304.481.5683.
Take our Reconciling Ministries poll!
New Wineskins is considering affiliation with the Reconciling Ministries Network as a Regional Reconciling Community. In order to do so, we need as many people as possible who participate in our gatherings to agree to RMN’s statement of affirmation and advocacy.
Click here to read the statement take our poll now!
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