Photograph by Troy Mason
As I watched the red sun rise over icy fields this morning, I thought of the hot sunrise thousands of years ago upon which our ancestor Abraham awoke to the knowledge that he must kill his beloved son.
You know the story: God commands Abraham to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering. It is a test, but Abraham doesn’t know this. The next day, Abraham takes his son and two servants, and wood for the burning. When they reach the mountain upon which the sacrifice is to be made, Abraham binds his son, and raises the sacrificial knife. An angel stays his hand, and Abraham finds a ram which he sacrifices instead.
The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
Genesis 22, 15-18
Today is the Muslim festival of Eid ul-Adha, commemorating this event, and celebrating the submission of Ibrahim to the will of Allah. It is a time when Muslims remember the need to submit themselves completely to Allah.
The humility of this submission is a beautiful thing. We can all celebrate the common roots in Abraham (Ibrahim) of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
But I have to tell you, the story itself outrages me. Abraham genuinely believed that he was to sacrifice his own son. What kind of capricious God would demand such a thing, in the full knowledge that he was only testing Abraham? What kind of vicious God would reward a faithful servant and his son with moments of stark horror?
I know that we start to stray here into debate about which parts of the Bible are historical truth and which are not, but this story is a key part of the development of Christianity. Here we meet head-on the vengeful God of the Old Testament. I simply cannot envisage the boundless loving creative energy of God squeezed into this bullying tyrant.
Amazing then that out of these questionable beginnings we have the beauty and poetry of the three Abrahamic faiths, celebrating peace and love.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
much food for thought here, tess. i know i feel the pull to have solid answers where there probably are none. i, too, wrestle with this story and oddly enough have found comfort in it at times as i have struggled with “surrendering” my own son. as you mention, three wonderful faith traditions have come from the line of Abraham. i have no answers just more questions. thanks for a thought provoking post & the acknowledgment of this muslim festival day.
At least we are able to ask the questions…
The way I have resolved it for myself (and this is going into Bible study, I know) is this was one of those “ideas” Abraham had and projected onto God. I know I get them myself, sometimes. After all, such blood sacrifices were not uncommon in surrounding cultures and, I guess, old Abraham wanted to make a point about his faithfulness. I give credit to Yahweh for stepping in and setting him straight, pointing out how Abraham’s God was unlike the others. Wasn’t Isaac’s best day, however.
Thanks Barbara, this is helpful.
Peace, one and all…
It’s not an easy thing to resolve, and I have nothing new to add.
Abraham is known as Khalil Allah in the Islamic tradition: literally, the close friend of God.
Abdur Rahman
Abdur, I didn’t know about that: “the close friend of God”. Oh that we could all call ourselves that! Peace.