Thursday, July 2, 2020

Acts17apologetics seek Christ's example; war prisonners in Jesus' name?

In answer to the video "The Truth about Ramadan (David Wood)"

The Hebrew Bible sanctionned letter for letter by Jesus, allows the extermination of entire population save their virgins, regardless of age. All visibly mature women are killed while the visibly virgin, meaning children, are distributed among the invading Israelites Numbers31:17-18etc. The Hebrew speaks of "every woman who can lie with a man" in contrast to the "young girls who have no experience of intimate relation with a man". The text is thus clearly speaking in terms of physical appearance. Obviously the soldiers weren't going around verifying each captive's private parts to distinguish the virgins. Those children may be disposed of according to one's whims, as the passage gives no regulation in the matter. This is in the context of genocidal warfare, binding on Jews of all times where specific nations must be annihilated, like the Amalekites and six other Canaanite nations and any of their descendants whenever they are identified Deut20:16,25:19.

In another context, that of optional warfare, Deut21 instructs the soldiers to marry the captive he lusts for, prior to sexual intimacy. She has no choice and say in the matter. She is brought to the soldier's household, her hair trimmed (the Hebrew does not mean shaved off), nails shortened, previous clothes put aside, and given a month to mourn her decimated family, right in front of her captors' eyes v13. This period of mourning provides no mechanism by which to ascertain former pregnancy. The potential child's lineage is this way cut off and assimilated into his captor's tribe. Also, the passage only mentions the captive girl's murdered parents, which implies again she could be very young, or mature and unmarried (unlikely in those days for a woman that is so attractive that the soldier lusts after), or with a husband who is still alive. The altering of her physical appearance is understood differently among the commentators, some seeing it as a means by which she is beautified, and others that she is made purposefully unattractive. If after that process the Jewish man still lusts for her, he may then marry her, keeping her alongside the "preferred" wife. If not, she is simply abandonned to fend off for herself, returning to whatever is left of her ravaged home. 

As already said, Numbers31 and Deut21 are contextually unrelated. This undermines the argument that marriage is always a precondition to sexual intimacy. In Numbers31 the option of forced marriage isnt given as the female captive is from among the nations whom the Israelites are to be at war with forever, whose population, men women and children, are to be mercilessly killed to the last one by divine decree. Marrying from among their captives would contradict that ordinance. In Deut21, the context is that of optional wars, whose targets are people outside those concerned by the decree of extermination, hence the option of forceful marriage. In that sub-category, the Israelites are permitted to prey on the weak nation of their choice, subdue and abuse its people as they wish. These are the wars labelled up to this day by the rabbis as wars of "national glory". This isnt a war necessary for the survival of the Jewish people, or in response to provocation, not even under divine injunction. In such a case a random nation is given the choice between a "peaceful" surrender, that would result in the enslavement and taxation of its population, or in case of their rejection of the "peace offer", a military subjugation resulting in the execution of all adult males, the capture as spoils of war of their women, children, and livestock Deut20:10-14.

Should it be necessary to completely subdue that nation
2Kings3:19"you shall fell every good tree, and you shall stop up all springs of water, and you shall clutter every good field with stones".
In the land of Canaan, those natives that werent driven out or exterminated as per the Torah's injunctions during the invasion, were subdued into slavery Josh17:13. Their descendants suffered the same fate under Solomon's rule 1Kings9:20-1. After all and as stated in both the HB and the Talmudic writings (Eleazar ben Shammua) , the purpose of creation and the reason why the heavens and earth are maintained is for the chosen race to observe Torah. 

That is what the Quran would have looked like, and how it would have instructed its people to behave towards the foreign nations and the weak that come under their possession, had it been penned by the ancients of its time to whom such attitude was regarded as expected and acceptable. 

The following are the Jewish legal derivations based on the above rules of war, in regards to sexual conduct with war captives, married or not (Mishneh Torah, Kings and Wars 4).

“Similarly, the king may take wives and concubines from the entire territory of Eretz Yisrael. The term ‘wives’ implies women who were married with A ketubah and kiddushin; concubines, women who were not given A ketubah and kiddushin. With the act of yichud alone, the king acquires her and relations with her are permitted him.

Similarly, a soldier may engage in sexual relations with a woman while she is still a gentile if his natural inclination overcomes him. However, he may not engage in sexual relations with her and then, go on his way. Rather, he must bring her into his home as Deuteronomy 21:11 states 'If you see a beautiful woman among the prisoners...You shall bring her into the midst of your home...'
It is forbidden for him to engage in sexual relations with her a second time until he marries her. 
Relations with a yefat toar are only permitted while she is in captivity as the verse states ' If you see... among the prisoners.'
This license is permitted whether the woman is a virgin or not, even if she is married, for the gentiles' marriages are not recognized.
A number of laws are derived from the exegesis of the verse from Deuteronomy quoted above:
'And you desire' - even though she is not beautiful.
'Her' - and not another. He may not engage in sexual relations with two women. 'You may take her as a wife' - He may not take two women as captives with the intention of engaging in relations with one and saving the other for his father or brother.
What is the source which teaches that he may not pressure her in the midst of the war? Deuteronomy 21:12 states: 'You shall bring her into the midst of your home...' Thus, he must bring her into an (vacant) place and then, engage in relations with her. 

A priest is also allowed relations with a yefat toar initially. For the Torah only permitted relations as a concession to man's natural inclination. However, he is not permitted to marry her afterwards, for she is a convert. 

If she desires conversion, enter under the wings of the Shechinah, he may have her immersed in a mikveh for the purpose of conversion immediately.
If she does not accept the Jewish faith, she should dwell in his house for thirty days, as ibid. 21:13 states: 'She shall mourn her father and mother for thirty days.' Similarly, she should mourn the abandonment of her faith. Her captor should not prevent her from crying.
She must let her nails grow and shave her head so that she will not appear attractive to him. She must be together with him at home. Thus, when he enters, he sees her; when he leaves; he sees her, so that he becomes disgusted with her.
He must be patient with her so that she will accept the Jewish faith. If she accepts Judaism and he desires her, she may convert and immerse herself in the mikveh for that purpose, like other converts. 

A captor must wait three months before marrying his captive: the month of mourning and two months following it.
When he marries her, he must give her Kiddushin and a Ketubah. If he does not desire her, he must set her free. If he sells her, he violates a negative commandment, as Deuteronomy 21:14 states: 'You may not sell her for money.' Should a captor sell his captive, the sale is invalidated and he must return the money.
Similarly, if after having relations with her, he forces her to become a servant, he violates a negative commandment from the time he makes use of her as ibid. states: lo titamar boh. That phrase means 'he should not make use of her.' 

Her captor must be patient with her for twelve months if she refuses to convert.
If she still refuses after this interval has passed, she must agree to accept the seven universal laws commanded to Noah's descendants and then, she is set free. Her status is the same as all other resident aliens.
Her captor may not marry her, for it is forbidden to marry a woman who has not converted. 

If she conceives after the initial relations with her captor, the child has the status of a convert. In no regard is he considered as the captor's son, for his mother is a gentile. Rather, the court immerses him in the mikveh and takes responsibility for him.
Tamar was conceived from King David's initial relations with a yefat toar, but Avshalom was conceived after marriage. Thus, Tamar was only Avshalom's maternal sister and thus, would have been permitted to Amnon. 

A yefat toar who does not desire to abandon idol worship after twelve months should be executed”.

The Quran changed the way such categories of people that already existed in the society it came to reform, had to be treated. It did so by igniting the believers' taqwa/God-consciousness, elevating the status of such weak categories whom there was now no shame of marrying 4:3,25,24:32,33:50 and honoring them as one would honnor the closest family members 4:36.

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