That’s a strong statement, don’t you think?
But is it true?
It doesn’t matter
whether a society’s stories are truth or fiction.
When well told, they have unusual power.
For good
or for evil.
Why else would God want the Israelites to pile stones
to remind them to keep repeating the stories
of what happened at a particular location?
The retelling keeps the event alive
—in the teller as well as the hearer.
The stories pass on,
from generation to generation,
the heart foundation
for the beliefs and values of a society.
The stories of a society set its boundaries,
define its goals,
carve the values of that society
deep in the heart
of its people.
What stories do you remember from your childhood?
How did they influence your beliefs, your values, your behavior?
Have our stories as a society changed over the years?
At our tables,
in our classrooms,
on our television shows,
in our movies,
and our books?
Have these changes re-formed our society?
Maybe we need different stories,
ones that inspire us to look beyond this earth,
beyond ourselves.
If you’d like to read a Biblical account of using stones
as reminders to tell stories,
look in Joshua 4:1-7.
Here’s a bit from verse 6 and 7 for you:
“In the future, when your children ask you,
‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that . . .”
Please make your public comments at the TOP OF THIS BLOG.
Private comments can be made at the "Contact Us" tab.
But is it true?
It doesn’t matter
whether a society’s stories are truth or fiction.
When well told, they have unusual power.
For good
or for evil.
Why else would God want the Israelites to pile stones
to remind them to keep repeating the stories
of what happened at a particular location?
The retelling keeps the event alive
—in the teller as well as the hearer.
The stories pass on,
from generation to generation,
the heart foundation
for the beliefs and values of a society.
The stories of a society set its boundaries,
define its goals,
carve the values of that society
deep in the heart
of its people.
What stories do you remember from your childhood?
How did they influence your beliefs, your values, your behavior?
Have our stories as a society changed over the years?
At our tables,
in our classrooms,
on our television shows,
in our movies,
and our books?
Have these changes re-formed our society?
Maybe we need different stories,
ones that inspire us to look beyond this earth,
beyond ourselves.
If you’d like to read a Biblical account of using stones
as reminders to tell stories,
look in Joshua 4:1-7.
Here’s a bit from verse 6 and 7 for you:
“In the future, when your children ask you,
‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that . . .”
Please make your public comments at the TOP OF THIS BLOG.
Private comments can be made at the "Contact Us" tab.
