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At face value, Who is arrogant, or racist, or wrong in this hypothetical situation?

Tov Rose      -    926 Views

Discernment Questions #490

Question 1.
At face value, Who is arrogant, or racist, or wrong in this hypothetical situation?

A close-knit family write down their family history, teachings and stories, wisdom and songs for several generations. They don't record absolutely every detail, but the important stuff, sharing the good, the bad and the ugly without holding back.

There are some other books and stories not in the main collection.

After several generations pass and the ongoing stories have stopped being recorded, SOME of the family get blacksheeped because they've started doing things that aren't the family ways recorded by their elders. So, because the core family love kids and want more, they adopt some orphans into the family. The orphans are from a different race, come from very different backgrounds, and vary in ages.

The orphans read the recorded family stories, songs, histories, wisdom sayings and teachings.

After a few decades the orphans have started families of their own, but they still love those family writings and teach them to their own children.

One day there is a family reunion.

The direct descendents and keepers of the family books are all gathered together with the adopted family. The adopted family, for the most part, have translated copies of the books in their own native languages, but they do have dictionaries and some copies of the books in the languages of the family they were adopted into.

During a certain conversation with the family who were not cut off, the adopted members tell the family they were adopted into how they understand a wisdom lesson written down many years ago by great uncle "P".

The family who grew up with the stories and knew them best try to explain to the adopted ones how they are misunderstanding the lesson, and try to lovingly share the proper interpretation and meaning of the lession.

The adopted children get offended, calling the others arrogant and racist, adding accusations like, "We've been studying this for 20+ years, and you're telling us we're wrong." And, "We understand the stories better than you do, because we are the real family now." And, "You look like and act way too much like those blacksheepers who got cut off from your family. You're wrong, just like the blacksheepers, and we are now the right ones." And, " We are now the only real family members now, you have to act like us, cut your hair like us, wear close like us, and follow our new traditions and holidays from now on. If you don't, we will kill you and anyone who agrees with you."

Most of the adopted ones leave, unfriend the others on social media, conspire together with others they win and adopt. They even find some to agree with them from many other families, races and cultures, winning to their side many who are not even part of the original family. These newer ones don't have any actual firsthand knowledge of the stories and other writings.

When the adopted ones encounter the non-adaptived family and the subject is raised, they always use other wisdom teaching from great uncle "P" to prove they are right and try to overwhelm the non-adopted family with sheer numbers of adopted family supporters. The adopted ones also befriend the blacksheeper native family members and start giving them all their money for humanitarian causes and refuse to believe a lot their money is actually going persecute, shun and even kill the not-adopted ones; having convinced themselves that by being allies and friend with the blacksheepers will someone win them to their beliefs. Some of them actually are motivated by their belief that the blacksheepers don't ever have to believe like they do or like the not-adopted do.

The not-adopted ones try to lovingly explain that the adopted ones are not fully engrossed in the worldview, culture, language and traditions of their family, invite the adopted ones to study with them to help the adopted ones to understand what great uncle "P" really said, because they're understanding it backwards. Great uncle "P" actually said the opposite.

The adopted ones accuse the non-adopted family of causing division, being unloving, and breaking up the family by not trying hard enough to understand and build a family relationship according to the wisdom of great uncle "P." They further accuse the not-adopted family of practicing their religion the wrong way, speaking their language the wrong way, their history isn't as old as they say, they never traveled as far as they claim, accusing them of making their history and beliefs more important than every other adopted family who doesn't agree with them, that they are trying to keep the adopted ones out of the family traditions, and so on and so forth.

The not-adopted family is left with jaws flopping on the floor wondering why they adopted those Westerners.

The not-adopted family are blindsided, ridiculed, perplexed, even having their homes burned down, their wives raped and families murdered, forced to live in ghettos and concentration camps, not allowed to work certain jobs unless approved by the adopted family, kicked out of countries, forced to convert at the point of rifles and guns to the adopted family's ways of doing things-- for 2000 years.

AND the adopted family do the exact same thing to every other family they encounter as they colonize the world.

Question 2:
Who is right?

Question 3:
What are the possible godly responses and ungodly responses on each side of the issue?

Question 4:
Is this really hypothetical?

Answer 1:
This is exactly the issue Great Uncle P is addressing in his letter pleading with and teaching the Romans.

Answers 2:
Great Uncle P's discipline and correction to the self-assured addicted to arrogance adopted ones climaxes Several chapters before the end of his letter and is immediately followed by his plea to the Adopted Ones to reconsile after repenting for their wrong behavior and actions.

Here is the climax/Stern discipline and warning from Great Uncle P:

"But if SOME [not all] of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others [who were not broken off] and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree [family of God], do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you... That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith...
So do not become proud, but fear.....

Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided [that is, only if] you continue in his [God's] kindness [toward the natural branches].

Otherwise you too WILL BE CUT OFF. Lest you be wise in your own sight [meaning, your reasoning about this situation is the opposite of wisdom],

I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers:

[Meaning, I am now making this perfectly clear to you because you are 100% wrong]:

a PARTIAL [not completely including all those family members, just SOME of them] hardening has come upon Israel, UNTIL

[Meaning: you better be shaking in your boots in absolute fear, because a day of reconning IS coming when
...]
the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.

And then...ALL Israel shall be saved...

[But...maybe, not all of you?]....
Romans 11:17‭-‬18‭, ‬20‭, ‬22‭, ‬25-26 ESV

Answers 3:
Thank you for my adopted family who have properly received, understood and reaponded to Great Uncle P and us not-adopted family.

Question 5a, b, c,d:
How can we teach how important it is to show Honor? What does it mean to Honor those who were never adopted, to Honor those who were not cut off? How am I through action, inaction, word and deed intentionally and unintentionally demon-strating Dis-honor and Dis-harmony? Am I guilty of Demon-izing the my older brother and have been blind to it?

Question 5:
If you're adopted and feel offended, are reasoning that this is wrong or about someone else, then I guess this song is for you. I hope you really listen to the lyrics, because they are not mean, they are a great way to add humor to saying something serious, which MIGHT, I HOPE, open your eyes and ears to understand what this post is really about.

{If I tagged you, it's because I thought you might enjoy the story. Not because it's about you.}

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