The Immorality of the Decameron

The Black Plague struck Europe in the 17^th century, and modern historians estimate that it wiped out nearly one third of Europe’s total population. There was no cure – the people were helpless to save themselves. And many of them cried out to God – but there was no salvation. The Plague continued to spread.

The culture lost its faith in God. They began to revive the worldviews and thinking of the Ancient Greeks and Romans, renewing principles of logic and reason, and throwing themselves to enjoy things of the physical world, for they knew they could die at any moment. They lost a sense of morality found in Scripture – they drifted from the religious devotion of the earlier medieval periods because they felt that God had abandoned them.

Using the system of thinking I have learnt to adopt in this course, the changes become more marked and easier to see.

#1 – Sovereignty – In earlier periods, the people would have looked to God as their sovereign, but now they were going through hard times and believed that God had abandoned them. Even though God still held a position of sovereignty over them, they chose to ignore Him. The people didn’t realize that hard times may also come after choosing to follow God, as a test of faith.

#2 – Authority – As a result of the above points, the people switched from relying on both the Church and the State, to simply relying on the State.

#3 – Law – In spite of the fact that the laws of the land still existed and the State was in control, many officials were incapable of enforcing said laws, because of the great sickness and confusion. Moral law, however, was a different story – there was NO control, because the Church had lost its power in the eyes of the people. Since the people had decided that they didn’t want God to be their sovereign, they simply decided not to follow his moral laws. This led to an extreme moral deterioration in which adultery, murder, and theft abounded, and was often even glorified through the literature.

To quote “The Decameron” … “whereby every man was free to do what was right in his own eyes.”

To quote the Bible … “every man did what was right in his own eyes.”

The Israelites also fell prey to this mindset, yet God did not give up on them. The Europeans should have learned their lesson from the Israelites.

#4 – Sanctions – No one was getting punished for disobeying the moral laws that the nations had once held to, because there was no longer any punishment for disobedience of those moral laws. (Reason #1 – Moral decline. Reason #2 – Most potential enforcers of correct moral sanctions were unable to actually enforce them.) New sanctions were being presented, such as: If one should choose to commit adultery, let him – he may die soon anyway.

#5 – Inheritance – When faced with the bleak prospect of imminent death by an incurable virus, people lost heart. According to them, the end was near. They had no desire to work towards the future, because they had lost hope in the future. This resulted in many people living “for the moment”, doing whatever they wanted, regardless of the consequences. This calls to mind the age-old phrase, “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we may die.”

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Boccaccio invoked the name of God in order to hide what he was really dishing out, which was smut literature, for the purpose of the satisfaction of sexual desires. I will not be reading the more unsavory parts of the Decameron, but the mere fact that in one chapter God’s name is called upon, and then in the next a sexual scene is described, impresses upon me that perhaps Boccaccio was not himself a man of moral uprightness and perfect character.

In general, the Decameron emphasized that religion required reason and sincere faith. According to the book, actions didn’t matter, as seen in the chapters in which impure conduct is described. Yet biblically, deeds displayed true faith. Moral uprightness shows the world that we believers truly are different and have a different spirit inside of us.

We even have this problem today. People believe that as long as they have faith in God, say that He is the lord of their lives, and accept the fact that Christ will forever be the only perfect man, they can do whatever they want. They say that actions don’t much matter to their faith – that, as long as they are sincere in merely their thoughts, they are “all good” under heaven. This is certainly not the case – but people didn’t get it in the 1700s, and they still don’t get it today.

Sadly, even contemporary literature displays this theme – a book may refer to God, in passing, but yet the characters themselves may act just like the world, with debauchery and impure swearing – in other words, like non-Christians. One example is the popular and exciting ‘Divergent’ series – yes, full of adventure, and it does throw a few bones to a supreme deity – yet full of moral decay to the foundations.

“People can’t read your thoughts to see if you have a truly sincere faith. A truly sincere faith is shown by the deeds and actions of the believer.”

Makayla

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The Pharisees vs. the Apostles

The Pharisees were a religious sect within Judaism who believed in the deity of Yahovah and in the Torah (which is found in the first five books of the Bible) and the prophetic books. They also adhered to a strict set of laws that were not a part of the Mosaic law, referred to as the “Oral Law”, just for classification purposes. The term “oral law” is not found in the Bible, but it is the term believers use to refer to the strict customs and rituals that the Pharisees believed were essential to a righteous life.

Therein lies one difference between the apostles and the Pharisees: their respective adherence (or lack thereof!) to the Torah and/or the traditions of men. The Pharisees were Jews who did not believe in the salvation though Jesus. The apostles were Jews who did believe in salvation through Jesus! Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for their traditions, not because traditions are bad, but because the religious leaders required others to keep them as well; thus, adding to the law.

“And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!” Mark 7:9, NIV

“Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.” Deuteronomy 4:2, NIV

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Mathew 5:17-20, NIV

This brings me to my second point, which is regarding the deity of Jesus. When one makes the decision to live their life for Jesus, it is changed forever. Those changes include acknowledging Jesus as Savior and the only way to be saved from eternal death.

The changes also include a free personal decision to obey Him, as he desires us to obey Him. One of the ways we obey Him is by following the Law He commanded us to obey, but remembering not to add to or take away from those Words of the Law (Mathew 5.)

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One of the main differences between this essay and the one on Yeshua and Pharisees, is that Yeshua claimed to be the Messiah, but he claimed it quietly. As far as we can read in the gospels of Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John, Yeshua wanted with everything in Him to share His message, but only with those who would receive it.

“He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. Mathew 10:40, NKJV

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” Mathew 11:15, NKJV

However, not only did the disciples and apostles believe in the deity of Yeshua, they preached it! Repeatedly! To everyone! Although Yeshua was a public figure in His time, his apostles were 12 times the punch with a lot more disclosure.

“being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” Acts 4:2, NKJV

Conclusion…

The first point of argument between Yeshua and the Pharisees was the law; whether to add to and take away from it, or to obey it as it was commanded in the Bible. Yeshua’s opinion was the right opinion.

The second point of argument between Yeshua and the Pharisees was the deity of Yeshua. Yeshua said He was the Son of God, and the Pharisees said it was untrue and that Yeshua was a heretic. The Pharisees were wrong and Yeshua was right.

Modern Christians will tell you that all you need to do to be in right standing with God is to have faith in Jesus. They may tell you that you don’t need to even try to obey the Law, since you couldn’t do it perfectly anyway, and they may tell you “grace paid it all.” I tell you – show me where it says that “grace” is an offering you can hand back to God as a thank-you-note for saving you, instead of repenting and turning from the sin in your life that made Christ have to die in the first place.

My point is, you cannot have faith in Yeshua and say that you love Him without showing Him that you love him. In the end times, it won’t matter how many times you’ve taken advantage of the “free gift of grace”, but how you choose to act in accordance with the terms of the covenant. You need faith – and you need obedience too.

“And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Revelations 12:17, NKJV

Thanks for reading!

Makayla

Ethical Comparison in ancient Greek Literature

“How does the view of ethical cause and effect in history in Works and Days compare with the furies’ view in The Eumenides?”

To summarize the poem “Works and Days” in one paragraph would be an accomplished feat indeed. I suggest you read my post Life: by Hesiod in order to better understand the poem. It can be summarized as general life advice in hard work, religion, and relationships, from an Ancient Greek perspective, nevertheless applicable today.

“The Eumenides” is a story in poetic form. It focuses mainly on a man who has murdered his mother in order to avenge the murder of his father. In Greek religion, a group of underworld gods called “The Furies” were responsible to bring to a ruthless end those who had contravened justice through murder or other such crimes. (For more information, and to see a perspective as to how the modern story of Orestes might have happened, see my post, “Modern Orestes”.)

As I have already alluded, Greek ethics are inconsistent. One god wants men to murder, the other avenges it. One god rapes, another god kills the rapist. Its whatever set of rules works for you and every man for himself. There is no Greek ethics. It is a changeable system with many conflicting rules.

Some people have this idea of the Christian God. The “God of the Old Testament” supposedly is strict and unbending, with a law that must be followed. In reality, Yahweh’s law is meant to keep you safe, much as your parent’s laws or the laws of nature. Many times, Yahweh follows up a seemingly harsh command with the phrase, “Thus you shall purge the evil from your midst.”

Think about that. Think about having no evil. The concept blows my mind! If there were no evil, we would have nothing to be sad or upset about. Isn’t that desirable? Shouldn’t we want that?

Anyways, back to literature comparison.

In ‘The Eumenides’, Athena hands over the responsibility of the judgement to the human judges of Athens. The decision was based on the question “Would the father’s or mother’s death be avenged?” (Ironically, she stated that she always sides on the side of man, which seems like a biased judgement to me!!) In the end, Orestes was acquitted of his guilt.

The human court decides the verdict, effectively shutting out the furies. Thus, the endless rule of revenge is broken. However, the judgement was not made by the gods – the resolution was decided by civic religion and judicial system.

In the poem “Works and Days”, the gods are the one bringing judgement, punishment, or blessing upon those who either live the right way or choose to walk the crooked path.

In Conclusion, although both stories include the involvement of the Gods of Mount Olympus, the judgement is given by different parties. I think this is partly due the fact that Orestes’ case was unprecedented, however the only real-life situation that was given in “Works and Days” was decided by a corrupt courts system, however, there was an obvious opinion that the gods would bring negative sanctions upon the trespasser.

Thanks for reading!!!

~Makayla

Ethics in the Bible

What is the view of the biblical materials on the role of ethics in the development of history?

In this essay, I will give a general overview of some of the ethical concepts in the stories of creation, the flood, the giving of the law at Mount Sinai, and in the Psalms and Proverbs.

Creation (Genesis (sin, fall, must obey, etc.)

The birth of ethics begins in Genesis. The first command in the Bible where God told man to not do something was: “Do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Man disobeyed the command, therefore he got the negative sanctions associated with the disobedience of that command – eventual death. The concept of ethics was formed very early on in the creation story, and likely the very “first sin”, was the rebellion of the serpent, which led to the first human sins (Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit.) Thus sin entered the world.

How do we know that the Bible contains ethics? Because it has a concept of right and wrong. How do we know what is right and wrong? Obedience is right and sin is wrong. What is sin? Sin the transgression of the law of God (righteousness). We could not know what sin was, except through the law and through commands like “Do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”

The Flood

When all men but Noah and his family had stopped following Yahweh’s ways, Yah sent a flood to destroy all the evildoers, and saved Noah and his family in a boat. This story follows similar construction as the creation story: Yah allows people to live, yet they disobey, so he brings negative sanctions (death) upon the wicked. This time, however, Yah saves the righteous remaining. The message this sends is that He will not destroy those who obey and follow Him.

After the flood, a disgraceful thing happens in Noah’s family. Ham (one of Noah’s three sons) sees his father’s nakedness. Instead of keeping his mouth shut, he goes and tells his brothers, who go and cover up their father, turning their faces away that they might not see Noah. Noah wakes up and finds out what happens, and becomes very angry, cursing Ham’s son Canaan, and blesses his other two sons.

What can we learn from this? Don’t take or see what is not yours to take or see.

Giving of the Law

The people of Israel had just been freed from slavery and had come out of Egypt. Yahweh gave his Law to Moses, the chief spokesman of the people, to tell the assembly of the Israelites. Because of this, it is often referred to as the “law of Moses”, however Moses didn’t command the law, Yahweh did. Therefore, we may also call it the Law of God.

In giving a Law, Yahweh was giving His people a choice; either to obey or disobey him. He was telling them that in order to be His people, they must obey Him. What were the sanctions for obedience?

“Honor your father and your mother: that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God gives you.”

Exodus 20:12

Positive actions (such as honoring your father and mother) warrant positive sanctions.

Moses had gone up to the mountain to receive the Law from Yahweh. But the people, becoming anxious at waiting for Moses for 40 days, decided to worship a golden calf, an idol, instead of obeying Yahweh’s command, “You shall not have any other god before me.” When Yah told Moses what happened, he came down from the mountain to carry out Yah’s punishment.

Moses made them melt down the golden calf, grind it up, and put the gold in water to drink. Then the Levites carried out a massacre and killed about three thousand people. Then, a plague broke out among the people.

So we see that negative actions (disobedience of the law) warrants negative sanctions.

I believe the law is still applicable today, and we know that Yahweh never changes. Therefore, in the development of history, the law has remained a way for us to show others our morality comes from Yah.

Psalms

This book, written by David, contains songs and poems of praise to Yahweh. Themes David stresses are worship, obedience, resolution of inner conflicts, sovereignty of Yahweh, and many more. How does David want to be treated? He wants to be saved from the persecution of his enemies, because he obeys Yah. How does David want his enemies to be treated? He wants them to be destroyed for their unlawful acts.

Again, negative actions means negative sanctions.

Proverbs – Consequences of choosing to follow the right path …or choosing not to.

Proverbs is a book written by the wisest created man in the Bible, Solomon. Throughout the entire book, Solomon gives his son advice on wisdom, integrity, obedience, and interacting with people. He uses metaphors and contrived circumstances to emphasize the importance of being moral, wise, and humble. Proverbs 7 and Proverbs 31 compare the wayward woman with the righteous one.

Solomon holds to the principle that if you associate with immoral people, you may be affected, and if you are immoral, you will face negative sanctions such as poverty, shame, and death. But the sanctions of being moral and wise include prosperity, happiness, and long life.

Conclusion

The Bible has TONS to say on ethics. I’ve only scratched the surface. But these five stories/books can teach us that there IS morality, and the Biblical consequences of immorality are hardships, curses, and death. But the consequences of obedience and faith are positive sanctions.