Cain and Abel

Discussion in 'Religion' started by Bowser, Feb 21, 2018.

  1. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    So, what was Canes sin? I understand that jealousy drove him to murder, but prior to that, what had he done?

    BibleGateway
    https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis 4
     
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  3. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    It's a very unclear and unsatisfactory story, in a number of ways.

    We are told Cain and Abel both made sacrifices to God but God preferred Abel's. Why this was, we are not told, however. This is said to be what makes Cain jealous. We are told they are the sons of Adam and Eve, but they have families and we are not told where their wives came from......

    Incest? Or just an unconnected story, that someone has tried half-heartedly to connect to Adam and Eve.

    Interestingly, I see from Wiki that this story seems to be a version of a more general, ancient myth about nomadic shepherds vs. settled farmers (Abel being the nomad in this case), so it may have its origins in conflicts between these two ways of life in the epoch when agriculture was developing. So in that sense a bit like the story of Noah's Flood.
     
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  5. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    I agree. Some assumptions need be made that Cane had previously made God angry and couldn't gain favor with his offerings.

    Could it also be assumed that murdering his brother was not only an act of jealousy but also a way of giving God the finger?
     
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  7. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    I think there's a risk of overinterpreting something so unsatisfactory. Personally, I think it is pretty hard to get anything useful out of this story, save possibly for an illustration of Original Sin in action.
     
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  8. Michael 345 New year. PRESENT is 72 years oldl Valued Senior Member

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    Could it be the whole story is fabricated by someone who didn't think it through?

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  9. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    No. It is too similar to other Middle Eastern myths about nomad vs farmer.
     
  10. Gawdzilla Sama Valued Senior Member

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    Could it be the whole story is fabricated by someone who wasn't a Hebrew who didn't think it through?
     
  11. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    I think it's more a dream put to paper.
     
  12. sculptor Valued Senior Member

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    shepherd(past) vs farmer(future)?
     
  13. Gawdzilla Sama Valued Senior Member

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    Alan Shepherd vs. Philip Jose Farmer? Now that's a bullshit session I'd love to sit in on.
     
  14. Vociferous Valued Senior Member

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    Caan's sin was jealousy. The reason for God's displeasure isn't important. It's a parable for anyone in life preferring someone else to you.
    God didn't rebuke him for his offering, only for his reaction to it not being accepted, as if he were entitled to acceptance.

    A sense of entitlement and a demand for acceptance lead to sin.
     
  15. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    Well, God sighted Cane's shortcomings prior to the murder of Abel. It would seem that pissed off Cane even more, causing him to react the way he did.

     
  16. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    What better way to hurt your father than take away what he loves most?
     
  17. Vociferous Valued Senior Member

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    Yes. God's displeasure with Caan's offering could have just been a test.
     
  18. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    I don't think so. My theory is that Cane had deeper issues that needed to be addressed. Rather than face them, he killed his brother.
     
  19. Jan Ardena OM!!! Valued Senior Member

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    Cain's sacrifice was based on pride, and not a sacrifice.
    Abel's was based on honesty, integrity, and love of God.

    There is no where in genesis, where we are told sepecifically that Adam and Eve were the first two human beings ever.
    In fact we are told that on the sixth day God created man and woman, and instructed them to go forth and multiply.
    Then our attention is brought to the creation of one man, Adam, and eventually a mate, Eve.
    It stands to reason that Eve could have played away with any one of those humans that were previously created, or the beguiler.

    jan.
     
  20. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    Probably just mad that he had no girls to sex with except his mom.
     
  21. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    He always had his work.
     
  22. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    Hunting and gathering?
     
  23. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    plowing the fields.
     

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