Abraham and his Relationship with God
Colin Orr
Elizabeth Antus
Exploring Catholicism
10/10/13
Fear and Trust in God
God is often viewed in the Old Testament as cruel and somewhat irrational. However in Genesis 11-22, God has just cause and reason for all of his divine intervention with humankind. It is important to examine God’s objectives and motives behind his actions as we interpret the bible. Through close examination of “Dei Verbum” by Pope Paul VI, “The Book of Genesis”, and “Interpretation of the Book of Genesis” by Father Tadros Malaty, it is apparent that God offers his love and salvation to all those deserving of it and imposes judgment on all those who do not. It is through our unwavering trust and fear in God that he/she is able to truly recognize our faith and deem us righteous or wicked. The near sacrifice of Isaac is undoubtedly the toughest test for Abraham to prove himself to God. The son that Abraham had longed for all his life and whom God finally provided for him was to be killed by Abraham, himself, as a sacrifice. Abraham intending to obey this seemingly merciless and unreasonable request from God was indubitably his most relevant showing of loyalty and trust. The submission of Isaac to his father is symbolic of the death of Jesus Christ, who died with complete trust in God knowing that he died for our sins (Malaty 28). The trust that Isaac shows in Abraham is synonymous with the trust that Abraham shows in God. Just as Isaac trusted that Abraham was doing what was best for him, Abraham knows that God would not steer him in the wrong direction. God consistently rewards the abandonment of natural human reason when obeying a request of his/hers. As is reflected in Dei Verbum, "The obedience of faith" (Rom. 13:26; see 1:5; 2 Cor 10:5-6) "is to be given to God who reveals, an obedience by which man commits his whole self freely to God, offering the full submission of intellect and will to God…” (Pope Paul VI §5). Therefore God is characterized in Genesis as knowing
Elizabeth Antus
Exploring Catholicism
10/10/13
Fear and Trust in God
God is often viewed in the Old Testament as cruel and somewhat irrational. However in Genesis 11-22, God has just cause and reason for all of his divine intervention with humankind. It is important to examine God’s objectives and motives behind his actions as we interpret the bible. Through close examination of “Dei Verbum” by Pope Paul VI, “The Book of Genesis”, and “Interpretation of the Book of Genesis” by Father Tadros Malaty, it is apparent that God offers his love and salvation to all those deserving of it and imposes judgment on all those who do not. It is through our unwavering trust and fear in God that he/she is able to truly recognize our faith and deem us righteous or wicked. The near sacrifice of Isaac is undoubtedly the toughest test for Abraham to prove himself to God. The son that Abraham had longed for all his life and whom God finally provided for him was to be killed by Abraham, himself, as a sacrifice. Abraham intending to obey this seemingly merciless and unreasonable request from God was indubitably his most relevant showing of loyalty and trust. The submission of Isaac to his father is symbolic of the death of Jesus Christ, who died with complete trust in God knowing that he died for our sins (Malaty 28). The trust that Isaac shows in Abraham is synonymous with the trust that Abraham shows in God. Just as Isaac trusted that Abraham was doing what was best for him, Abraham knows that God would not steer him in the wrong direction. God consistently rewards the abandonment of natural human reason when obeying a request of his/hers. As is reflected in Dei Verbum, "The obedience of faith" (Rom. 13:26; see 1:5; 2 Cor 10:5-6) "is to be given to God who reveals, an obedience by which man commits his whole self freely to God, offering the full submission of intellect and will to God…” (Pope Paul VI §5). Therefore God is characterized in Genesis as knowing