This week (August 26) on Shabbat Night Live, you are in for a special treat — a “double header” of sorts. Filmmaker Tim Mahoney is coming out with 2 new movies, one of which will be released NEXT WEEK (Sept 2)! You’re going to get some behind-the-scenes information about these two movies in a special interview with Tim Mahoney
Watch the episode — included on this blog post.
While you watch, consider the questions below. The timeline for each discussion topic in the video is noted on each question. Post your answers in the comments section and let’s get some discussion going!
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 16:00) How should today’s believers who are eager to learn about the history of their faith attempt to reconcile their workaday spirituality with the remnants of biblical archeology, whether they confirm beliefs or raise further questions? Aside from recognition of YeHoVaH, what is the common ground between knowledge of artifacts and an individual’s prayer life and interaction with one’s neighbor?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 20:00) In the study and teaching of YeHoVaH’s message, how does our reliance upon documentation, text, and traditional school settings provide only a partial impression of our responsibility as his followers and evangelists? Apart from providing an environment for learning the Bible, how should parents view the home as a place to explore the full range of living the divine truth within our world?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 24:00) How do the ancient Israelites offer an enduring example for contemporary family members of how to negotiate such issues as abuse, personality disorders, or clinical depression, that can threaten the integrity of home life and spirituality? How might verses in Psalms or Proverbs serve to enlighten us about the command to “honor thy father and thy mother?”
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 28:00) Similarly, how do the children of Israel under the leadership of Moses continue to demonstrate our own lack of trust in YeHoVaH throughout our earthly sojourn? How can our contemporary world, with its abundant material wealth and pursuit of power, be tenably viewed as the equivalent of the vast and barren desert that threatened the Hebrews with undernourishment and an attendant loss of faith?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 32:00) Despite their own personal testament of belief in and worship of YeHoVaH, why do so many professed Christians also acknowledge the difficulty of placing their full trust in his providence and guidance? How should today’s believer cultivate this ethos of conviction and genuine dependence in both private prayer and personal engagement with our neighbor?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 36:00) Similarly, how might this unconditional trust in YeHoVaH as heavenly father be impeded by our very human but inherently flawed refusal to forgive others who have wronged us, even those who are no longer present in our lives, either through estrangement or death? How might the countless references to divine forgiveness in scripture be viewed as an admonition against the false pride of maintaining a grudge?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 40:00) How can the concept of “patterns of evidence” in biblical history be viewed as an archetype that transcends such categories of reference as archeology, textuality, or oral tradition? How might the diverse and conflicting theories regarding the location and significance of Mount Sinai in Judeo-Christian history ironically result in a greater recognition of the spiritual dimensions of narrative by disputing believers?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 44:00) How might the ongoing exploration of such subjects as the Exodus and the discovery of the true Mount Sinai serve to reorient the public’s attention to the ancient significance of the Sinai Peninsula and its centrality for the three major faiths of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam? How could this potentially serve as an alternative point of reference from Jerusalem for eventual peace in the Middle East?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 48:00) How might today’s believers, accustomed to advanced communication, prolonged life, and relative material comfort, be likened to the “stiff-necked” Israelites, who repeatedly complained of their predicament in the midst of divine miracles? What sort of spiritual guidance should be sought by those teachers and evangelists who must share the exasperation of Moses?
- (VIDEO TIMELINE – 50:00) The final sentence of Joshua 24:15 is often emblazoned by evangelical Christians as a proclamation of personal faith, yet the complete verse offers a more challenging context for such a statement. How does this passage offer a straightforward acknowledgement of free will in its presentation of choice to the believer between worship of YeHoVaH and recourse to familiar but false forms of solace?
