友情提示:如果本网页打开太慢或显示不完整,请尝试鼠标右键“刷新”本网页!阅读过程发现任何错误请告诉我们,谢谢!! 报告错误
依依小说 返回本书目录 我的书架 我的书签 TXT全本下载 进入书吧 加入书签

the evolution of theology-第9部分

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
————未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!




not only permissible but laudable。 Samuel's hewing to pieces of

the miserable captive; sole survivor of his nation; Agag;

〃before Jahveh;〃 can hardly be viewed in any other light。

The life of Moses is redeemed from Jahveh; who 〃sought to slay

him;〃 by Zipporah's symbolical sacrifice of her child; by the

bloody operation of circumcision。 Jahveh expressly affirms that

the first…born males of men and beasts are devoted to him;

in accordance with that claim; the first…born males of the

beasts are duly sacrificed; and it is only by special permission

that the claim to the first…born of men is waived; and it is

enacted that they may be redeemed (Exod。 xiii。 12…15)。 Is it

possible to avoid the conclusion that immolation of their first…

born sons would have been incumbent on the worshippers of

Jahveh; had they not been thus specially excused? Can any other

conclusion be drawn from the history of Abraham and Isaac?

Does Abraham exhibit any indication of surprise when he receives

the astounding order to sacrifice his son? Is there the

slightest evidence that there was anything in his intimate and

personal acquaintance with the character of the Deity; who had

eaten the meat and drunk the milk which Abraham set before him

under the oaks of Mamre; to lead him to hesitateeven to wait

twelve or fourteen hours for a repetition of the command? Not a

whit。 We are told that 〃Abraham rose early in the morning〃 and

led his only child to the slaughter; as if it were the most

ordinary business imaginable。 Whether the story has any

historical foundation or not; it is valuable as showing that the

writer of it conceived Jahveh as a deity whose requirement of

such a sacrifice need excite neither astonishment nor suspicion

of mistake on the part of his devotee。 Hence; when the incessant

human sacrifices in Israel; during the age of the kings; are put

down to the influence of foreign idolatries; we may fairly

inquire whether editorial Bowdlerising has not prevailed over

historical truth。



An attempt to compare the ethical standards of two nations; one

of which has a written code; while the other has not; is beset

with difficulties。 With all that is strange and; in many cases;

repulsive to us in the social arrangements and opinions

respecting moral obligation among the Tongans; as they are

placed before us; with perfect candour; in Mariner's account;

there is much that indicates a strong ethical sense。 They showed

great kindliness to one another; and faithfulness in standing by

their comrades in war。 No people could have better observed

either the third or the fifth commandment; for they had a

particular horror of blasphemy; and their respectful tenderness

towards their parents and; indeed; towards old people in

general; was remarkable。



It cannot be said that the eighth commandment was generally

observed; especially where Europeans were concerned;

nevertheless a well…bred Tongan looked upon theft as a meanness

to which he would not condescend。 As to the seventh commandment;

any breach of it was considered scandalous in women and as

something to be avoided in self…respecting men; but; among

unmarried and widowed people; chastity was held very cheap。

Nevertheless the women were extremely well treated; and often

showed themselves capable of great devotion and entire

faithfulness。 In the matter of cruelty; treachery; and

bloodthirstiness; these islanders were neither better nor worse

than most peoples of antiquity。 It is to the credit of the

Tongans that they particularly objected to slander; nor can

covetousness be regarded as their characteristic;

for Mariner says:





When any one is about to eat; he always shares out what he has

to those about him; without any hesitation; and a contrary

conduct would be considered exceedingly vile and selfish (vol。

ii p。 145)。





In fact; they thought very badly of the English when Mariner

told them that his countrymen did not act exactly on that

principle。 It further appears that they decidedly belonged to

the school of intuitive moral philosophers; and believed that

virtue is its own reward; for





Many of the chiefs; on being asked by Mr。 Mariner what motives

they had for conducting themselves with propriety; besides the

fear of misfortunes in this life; replied; the agreeable and

happy feeling which a man experiences within himself when he

does any good action or conducts himself nobly and generously as

a man ought to do; and this question they answered as if they

wondered such a question should be asked〃 (vol。 ii。 p。 161)。





One may read from the beginning of the book of Judges to the end

of the books of Samuel without discovering that the old

Israelites had a moral standard which differs; in any essential

respect (except perhaps in regard to the chastity of unmarried

women); from that of the Tongans。 Gideon; Jephthah; Samson; and

David are strong…handed men; some of whom are not outdone by any

Polynesian chieftain in the matter of murder and treachery;

while Deborah's jubilation over Jael's violation of the primary

duty of hospitality; proffered and accepted under circumstances

which give a peculiarly atrocious character to the murder of the

guest; and her witch…like gloating over the picture of the

disappointment of the mother of the victim





The mother of Sisera cried through the lattice;

Why is his chariot so long in coming? (Jud。 v。 28。)





would not have been out of place in the choral service of the

most sanguinary god in the Polynesian pantheon。



With respect to the cannibalism which the Tongans occasionally

practised; Mariner says:





Although a few young ferocious warriors chose to imitate what

they considered a mark of courageous fierceness in a

neighbouring nation; it was held in disgust by everybody else

(vol。 ii。 p。 171)。





That the moral standard of Tongan life was less elevated than

that indicated in the 〃Book of the Covenant〃 (Exod。 xxi。…xxiii。)

may be freely admitted。 But then the evidence that this Book of

the Covenant; and even the ten commandments as given in Exodus;

were known to the Israelites of the time of Samuel and Saul; is

(to say the least) by no means conclusive。 The Deuteronomic

version of the fourth commandment is hopelessly discrepant from

that which stands in Exodus。 Would any later writer have

ventured to alter the commandments as given from Sinai; if he

had had before him that which professed to be an accurate

statement of the 〃ten words〃 in Exodus? And if the writer of

Deuteronomy had not Exodus before him; what is the value of the

claim of the version of the ten commandments therein contained

to authenticity? From one end to the other of the books of

Judges and Samuel; the only 〃commandments of Jahveh〃 which are

specially adduced refer to the prohibition of the worship of

other gods; or are orders given ad hoc; and have nothing

to do with questions of morality。



In Polynesia; the belief in witchcraft; in the appearance of

spiritual beings in dreams; in possession as the cause of

diseases; and in omens; prevailed universally。 Mariner tells a

story of a woman of rank who was greatly attached to King Finow;

and who; for the space of six months after his death; scarcely

ever slept elsewhere than on his grave; which she kept carefully

decorated with flowers:





One day she went; with the deepest affliction; to the house of

Mo…oonga Toobo; the widow of the deceased chief; to communicate

what had happened to her at the fytoca 'grave' during

several nights; and which caused her the greatest anxiety。

She related that she had dreamed that the late How 'King'

appeared to her and; with a countenance full of disappointment;

asked why there yet remained at Vavaoo so many evil…designing

persons; for he declared that; since he had been at Bolotoo; his

spirit had been disturbed by the evil machinations of wicked

men conspiring against his son; but he declared that 〃the youth〃

should not be molested nor his power shaken by the spirit of

rebellion; that he therefore came to her with a warning voice to

prevent such disastrous consequences (vol。 i。 p。 424)。





On inquiry it turned out that the charm of tattao had

been performed on Finow's grave; with the view of injuring his

son; the reigning king; and it is to be presumed that it was

this sorcerer's work which had 〃disturbed〃 Finow's spirit。 The

Rev。 Richard Taylor says in the work already cited: 〃The account

given of the witch of Endor agrees most remarkably with the

witches of New Zealand〃 (p。 45)。



The Tongans also believed in a mode of divination (essentially

similar to the casting of lots) the twirling of a cocoanut。





The object of inquiry 。。。 is chiefly whether a sick person will

recover; for this purpose the nut being placed on
返回目录 上一页 下一页 回到顶部 0 0
未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!
温馨提示: 温看小说的同时发表评论,说出自己的看法和其它小伙伴们分享也不错哦!发表书评还可以获得积分和经验奖励,认真写原创书评 被采纳为精评可以获得大量金币、积分和经验奖励哦!