The Eye Of The Needle

[Oleg Bach]

A Coptic Christian explained to me once what the eye of the needle actually was..."It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven" To para pharse> The EYE OF THE NEEDLE was a very low gate in the wall of an ancient town. This gate was a short cut to the market place. A camel laden with wealth was to tall to enter through..so the camel was made to get down on it's knees so as to allow camel and goods to pass through. In the western and for that matter eastern world, wealth causes blind arrogance - and this dulls the judement of the person to such a point that the person with material power becomes a detriment to society. If a person shows humility and wisdom while wealthy then it is a good thing.

The eye of the needle is a proverbial bit of advice to the rich that lets them know that a mans worth and true value is not gaged by what material he has under his control but by the contents of his soul and character.

[bloodyminded]

I have heard this theory too, from an Anglcian Minister. However, as he told me, it's not objectively a settled matter among Christians. And there is something unsatisfying, partable-wise, in that interpretatio, as it begs for a literal knowledge of social minutiae, not automatically decipherable through the agers, like most parables.

The Minister told me that this interpretation could well be a desperate justificatory impulse to exonerate the wealthy...which seems to contradict many of Christ's teachings.

[scorpio]

I kind of like this interpretation.

The suggestion is that the Greek word kamilos ('camel') should really be kamêlos, meaning 'cable, rope', as some late New Testament manuscripts1 actually have here. Hence it is easier to thread a needle with a rope rather than a strand of cotton than for a rich man to enter the kingdom.

[Michael Hardner]

Basically, it's the same idea: the rich will burn in hell. Am I right ?

[scorpio]

Yes, according to the bible. I just like to poke fun at the fundamentalists.

[Michael Hardner]

Yes, according to the bible. I just like to poke fun at the fundamentalists.

We'll laugh at them when we're in heaven, Scorpio.

[M.Dancer]

If the bible has been written in Norway instead of the desert, hell would be a lake of ice.

[Michael Hardner]

If the bible has been written in Norway instead of the desert, hell would be a lake of ice.

(watch first 45 seconds)

[Oleg Bach]

I have heard this theory too, from an Anglcian Minister. However, as he told me, it's not objectively a settled matter among Christians. And there is something unsatisfying, partable-wise, in that interpretatio, as it begs for a literal knowledge of social minutiae, not automatically decipherable through the agers, like most parables.

The Minister told me that this interpretation could well be a desperate justificatory impulse to exonerate the wealthy...which seems to contradict many of Christ's teachings.

THE COPTICS have been around a lot longer than the Anglicans. What is there to exonerate as far as being rich--usually some crimminal enterprise takes place to achieve great riches..but not always..take the problem Obama is having with medicare right now- in order to have social medicine you have to destroy all the insurance companies that are the height and absolute peak of capitialistic enterprise-- where you actually get rich of the backs of the sick..now that is sick - but they will never have social medicine because...their very identity has become what it is.....parasitic.

[bloodyminded]

THE COPTICS have been around a lot longer than the Anglicans.

That certainly doesn't make them right. According to your interpretation, the wise parables composed by God on Earth are reduced to such pearls as "you can be as filthy rich as you like..so long as you show a little humility before God at the moment of death."

The thing is, this interpretation has become in vogue 100% thanks to North American fundamentalist Christians, many of whom are so obssessed with earthly wealth that they desperately wish to justify greed and selfishness. So they make greed and selfishness Holy. You see, that's 'cuz they're a bunch of flaming assholes, to put it bluntly.

These jokers are actually opposed to Jesus' teachings on matters of the wealthy and the poor. They like to think that a person becomes rich as a reward, for their goodness. (ie Osama bin Laden and Paris Hilton, i suppose.) You can hear Evangelical blowhards preach about this nonsense constantly, telling their parishioners the path to riches (ie faith in God).

This opposes any of the true, deep, complex wisdom that Christianity actually contains. No wonder atheism is growing.

[Oleg Bach]

BEING rich is fine - but thinking that money is power..is foolish - power should be within a person rich or poor..Nothing more irritating that a person who figures you have no money...and he does and HE can dominate you...people like that have no class and can kiss my ass.