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THE GOLDEN CALF


An alternative myth of the origins
of the Levitical priesthood and the Levite priests

      In the story of the Golden Calf the Northern Levites attacked the credibility of the Jerusalem temple Levites, who were said to be descendants of Aaron, by attacking the credibility of Aaron. The Levites were concerned with more than simply attacking the new calf cult that had excluded them and left them jobless. The Levites in the north at Shiloh were dispossessed by Jeroboam and replaced by others. Thus, we have the Levites as the only ones loyal to Moses in the story. However, a distinction is being made in the narrative by employing the symbolism of Aaron as a 'failed Levite' and the one who was responsible for actually making the calf. The unflattering reference to Aaron in the story strengthens the conclusion that it was northern Levites who wrote this version of events, because it was accepted that the priesthood in the Jerusalem Temple was of 'Aaronite' descent. God, the northern Levites were suggesting, was just about mad enough to kill those temple priests.

      According to 'orthodox' temple dogma of the day, only 'the Aaronite' priesthood of the Jerusalem temple were true Levites, and this distinction, found encoded in the Law books, excluded the northern Levites and disparaged their right to be called priests. 'True' Levites were linear descendants of Aaron and his sons, and this excluded the northern Levites of Shiloh. In the following passage you will notice how the genealogy of the priesthood narrows to focus on Aaron.

"Amram took to wife Jochebed his father's sister and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of Amram being one hundred and thirty-seven years. Aaron took to wife Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab and the sister of Nahshon; and she bore him Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. Eleazar, Aaron's son, took to wife one of the daughters of Putiel; and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites by their families. These are the Aaron and Moses to whom YAHWEH said: "Bring out the people of Israel from the land of Egypt by their hosts." (Exodus Chapter 6 verse 20)

      Furthermore, the priesthood was inherited and followed strict family lines, it was to be like this 'forever,' and this permanently excluded outsiders.

"And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall attend to their priesthood; but if any one else comes near, he shall be put to death." (Numbers Chapter 3 verse 10)

"Then bring near to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the people of Israel, to serve me as priests--Aaron and Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar." (Exodus Chapter 28 verse 1)

"In the tent of meeting, outside the veil which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before YAHWEH. It shall be a statute for ever to be observed throughout their generations by the people of Israel." (Exodus Chapter 27 verse 21)

"These are the garments which they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker work, a turban, and a girdle; they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons to serve me as priests." (Exodus Chapter 28 verse 4)

"And you shall put them upon Aaron your brother, and upon his sons with him, and shall anoint them and ordain them and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests; and they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister in the holy place; lest they bring guilt upon themselves and die. This shall be a perpetual statute for him and for his descendants after him ... and you shall gird them with girdles and bind caps on them; and the priesthood shall be theirs forever. Thus you shall ordain Aaron and his sons." (Exodus Chapter 28 verse 41, Exodus Chapter 29 verse 9)

     It should not come as a surprise that this theme is carried on in the priestly document of Leviticus, thus indicating that this book is closely connected with the southern Levites attached to the Jerusalem temple cult.

"The priest from among Aaron's sons, who is anointed to succeed him, shall offer it to YAHWEH as decreed forever." (Leviticus Chapter 6 verse 22)

     It is made clear that this state of affairs is 'authoritative,' through the device of showing Moses participating in an elaborate ritual of ordination involving elements of the cult sacrifices practiced in the temple.

"Then Moses presented the other ram, the ram of ordination; and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram. And Moses killed it, and took some of its blood and put it on the tip of Aaron's right ear and on the thumb of his right hand and on the great toe of his right foot. Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and of the blood which was on the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron and his garments, and also upon his sons and his sons' garments; so he consecrated Aaron and his garments, and his sons and his sons' garments with him." (Leviticus Chapter 8 verses 22 and 30)

      Again and again we are told that the priesthood is an hereditary office, and belongs exclusively to Aaron 'and his sons' forever.

"Outside the veil of the testimony, in the tent of meeting, Aaron shall keep it in order from evening to morning before YAHWEH continually; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations ... Every Sabbath day Aaron shall set it in order before YAHWEH continually on behalf of the people of Israel as a covenant forever. And it shall be for Aaron and his sons." (Leviticus Chapter 24 verses 3 and 8)

      Not only is the death penalty called for if anyone other than Aaron and his sons 'approaches,' but the rules and regulations and prohibitions and taboos surrounding the rights, duties, and privileges attached to the priesthood are so severe that even Aaron and his sons are not safe, as is illustrated in the story of 'unauthorized ritual'. If even 'legitimate' hereditary priests were under such solemn injunction, then it is implied that 'usurpers' (such as the 'illegitimate' northern Levites) certainly deserved death as well, as called for in the priestly rules.

"And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall attend to their priesthood; but if any one else comes near, he shall be put to death." (Numbers Chapter 3 verse 10)

"Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer, and put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and offered unholy fire before YAHWEH, such as he had not commanded them. And fire came forth from the presence of YAHWEH and devoured them, and they died before the LORD." (Leviticus Chapter 10 verse 1)

      There is no such thing as a trivial infraction under the priestly code, and every rule was permanent and unalterable, having been of 'divine origin.' The theme is picked up again and the point driven home in the story of the 'unauthorized goat sacrifice'

"Now Moses diligently inquired about the goat of the sin offering, and behold, it was burned! And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron who were left." (Exodus Chapter 10 verse 16)

      No doubt they barely escaped with their necks intact, which is remarkable, when you consider that their two brothers were burned alive by God for a similar infraction of priestly regulations.

      When the Aaronite mythology is compared to the myth of the Golden Calf, it becomes obvious that there are two competing psuedo-histories which purport to describe the ordination of the priesthood. In the version favored by the southern Jerusalem priesthood (as one would expect) the priesthood was a divinely ordained office, it was hereditary, and it was instituted officially by Moses, following explicit instructions from God and, according to 'the divinely ordained' rules and regulations, any interloper would be punished by death. We are expected to believe that this was not because the Jerusalem priesthood had a vested interest in protecting their hereditary rights, but rather that God was very, very strict about sacrificing those goats and so on and only a trained professional could possibly know all the intricate details and so save their lives. Any 'layman' who approached would have to put to death 'for fear that YAHWEH might break out against the people,' so ferocious was God in these matters of having goats sacrificed at just the right time and following exactly the divine methodology.

      In the alternative tradition, found in the story of the Golden Calf, the Levitical priesthood was awarded based on 'merit.' On the day that the (proxies for the northern) Levites 'killed their brothers, friends, and neighbors' they 'brought a blessing on themselves' and were appointed to the priesthood. No mention was made of 'hereditary rights', and Aaron is portrayed in the most unfavorable light. The northern Levites were expressing their hatred of the calf cult in the most extreme terms (they wanted to kill their brothers, friends, and neighbors, and sarcastically suggested that God would richly reward them for doing so). The meaning of the polemic would not have been lost on their contemporaries who also would have picked up on the sarcasm.

      Not only is this version an alternative myth of the origins of the priesthood, one more favorable to the northern Levites not attached to the southern temple cult, aspersions are also cast on the legitimacy of the claims of the priests in the Jerusalem temple, through the device of casting aspersions on the character of Aaron. First we are told that 'Aaron' was an unfit candidate for the priesthood, and showed it by allowing lax conduct among the people, even helping them to make the calf. Indeed the Golden Calf was Aaron's suggestion. He then offered a lame excuse when confronted by Moses. Political and religious commentary is being made here on events that were contemporary to the time of the Northern Levites, and on the much hated novel calf cult that had put them out of work, and they are also getting in their digs at the priests in the Jerusalem temple cult.

"And Aaron said, "Let not the anger of my lord burn hot; you know the people, that they are set on evil ... Moses saw that the people had broken loose (for Aaron had let them break loose, to their shame among their enemies) ... And YAHWEH sent a plague upon the people, as punishment for the calf which Aaron made." (Exodus Chapter 32 verses 22, 25, and 35)


RELATED ESSAYS

The Sinai traditions - The Golden Calf: Part 1

The Golden Calf as polemical allegory - The Golden Calf: Part 2

An alternative myth of origins - The Golden Calf: Part 3

Conclusion - The Golden Calf: Part 4

Two separate traditions

Variant versions of the Exodus story

Did Moses Compose the Torah?

The late dating of the composition of the Torah
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A Unified Field Theory

 failed_gravity_theory.gif - 10361 Bytes



The Unified Field Theory
is also available as a zip file -> unified.zip

Introduction :The Pioneer Effect and the New Physics. A brief description of the new physics required to explain the 'Pioneer Effect', which is the constant deceleration of space craft as they fly through space.







Principles of Evolution: A Study in the Evolution of Bedbugs


A couple of years ago my bedroom was invaded by bedbugs. There were two variant genetic lines. One type of bedbug was an enlongated, thin, tubular insect, and the second genetic line was a flat, perfectly circular insect. The result of the cross breeding of these two genetically distinct variants was the production of a bedbug with charcteristics of both, an enlongated, flat bedbug with a central bulge (such that the shape of the bedbug was somewhere between 'long' and 'circular'). The long skinny bedbugs were such strange and unfamiliar looking insects that at first I did not recognize them as being bedbugs, and considered them to be a seperate species of insect. However, as the photographs of bedbugs above indicate, enlongated and skinny bedbugs are not uncommon, and the photographs also show the variants that are produced by genetic combinations that result in an insect somewhere in between 'circular' and 'enlongated'.

Therefore it is my hypothesis that evolution occurs by means of the transfer of dominate genes, with the production of such dominant genes being the product of 'biological algorithms', a genetic software program that brings physical characteristics into harmony with behavior, such that when behavior changes, and a conflict then exists, this acts as a trigger and causes the release of dominant genes. The result is rapid evolution of species. The bedbug is a relatively new insect, not the product of millions of years of evolution but rather an insect that is evolving in real time. The newly emerging dominant form of the insect is the flat, round ciruclar insect, well adapted to living in human bedrooms (it is flat, rather than tubular, thus allowing it to hide in the smallest cracks, living a stealthy lifestyle, and it is round, which gives the insect a maximum storage capacity such that it must endanger itself only a few times a month by emerging to feed.

Other examples of rapid evolution include the development of long legs in an invasive species of toad in Australia. As the toads move into the mountainous regions of Australia, and their behvaior changes, making them 'climbing toads', over the course of just a couple of decades the toads in the highlands have grown long legs specially adapted to climbing. It is worth noting here that the toads are poisonous, and are a successful invasive species because they have no natural predators in Australia, and so it would not be the case that the toads with long legs were 'the fittest survivors', because all the toads are survivors, and therefore predation does not explain the rapid emergence and spread of such well adapted, long legged toads. Once again we see evidence for the existence of biological algorithms and the rapid spread of dominant genes through a population, which once introduced proceed to overwhelm the older genes which are being replaced (making toad long legged and a bed bug round and flat).


A Theological Experiment

My interest in pursuing the Unified Field Theory is spurred on by my need to discover the theoretical explanation of a new form of propulsion (as explained on this page: Why the Unified Field Theory?). The experiment involving the bedbugs came out of nowhere.

I also believe that it is possible to justify theological propositions using experimental methods. If a thing is an objective truth then it can be verified and proven true by means of experimentation. Such a theological proposition is of more value than a ‘divine revelation’, since such revelations depend upon nothing more than establishing authority figures which requires the creation of artificial hierarchies, for the only reason why I might be encouraged to believe an authority figure who orders me to believe unsubstantiated opinions is if I could somehow be convinced that this authority possessed a mind that was somehow superior to mine, and thus was fit to express opinions as though opinions were unquestionable facts and thus worthy of being elevated to the status of absolute dogma.

There is a self evident human inequality which is visibly apparent. Some people are ‘beautiful’ and thus are the true elite on this planet, and some people are not. It is this sexual inequality and the degeneration that follows upon beauty that is the true driving force behind all the evil that happens on earth. The need for ruthless oppression and the pursuit of wealth and the consequent creation of suffering and poverty which must follow upon this practice is for the purpose of creating an artificial alpha elite.

The true elites are the young and the beautiful. The artificial elite are the rich and the wealthy. The elite aging rich artificial alpha male has no good looks, for he is physically degenerate, but he will be found escorting beauty because he has a beautiful wallet. If he loses his wallet he will be found at home with all the other unattractive aged beta males sitting in a rocking chair watching reruns of Bonanza. No money, no sex. It is for this reason that the alpha males are found to be so ruthless and so violent in pursuit of their goal. The alpha male has fallen. The beta male has arisen and now the whole planet is full of ruinous destruction for it.

We see in religion a confused and contradictory reaction to this reality. On the one hand religion preaches a sexless heaven where castration and the clitorectomy create ‘pure spirits’. Muslims throw women under sacks. On the other hand religion supports hierarchy and is the prop of the elite alpha male. It is for this reason that religion is incoherent when it comes to speaking about sex.

Now we see this same principle at work in all of nature. Guppies dance and show off their colorful tails and the guppy who dances with the most colorful tail is the sexually successful guppy. Therefore it is the doctrine of the ruthless oppressor which teaches that the solution to human sexual violence is to be found in castration and the creation of pure ghosts. This would be equivalent to damning an aardvark for having the ‘sinful aardvark nature’ or prosecuting an anteater for the high crime of ‘ant genocide’.

Therefore it was my theological hypothesis that the correct solution to this problem is to give every guppy a beautiful colorful tail. I compare this solution to the classic religious solution which is to cut off every tail since having a tail is ‘sinful’. If having a tail is sinful then God must be sinful for no human being has any choice in deciding whether or not they would be born with a colorful tail, or whether they would not.

When I was young I was a beautiful guppy with a lovely tail. So everyone seemed to think. I am older now. My nose became very badly sunburned and destroyed. It seemed good to me to test my hypothesis by using these ‘biological algorithms’ to correct this problem. I healed half my nose as you can see by the line separating the still very dark patch on the side in the photograph below.





I documented my experiment on these pages. one two t hree four fi ve six


I have confirmed to my own satisfaction that my theological proposition is correct and that religious dogma is erroneous, being based as it was upon nothing more than ‘divine revelation’ which is just a form of opinionated speculation. For the time being I am not continuing this experiment, for I must wait until the weather on this planet improves, and the dark clouds of ruthless oppression break letting a little sun shine come through so that I can show the world the truth about God, by showing people how God goes about giving an old guppy back his beautiful colorful tail.


Until then I will have to sit on the sidelines, while all my scientific breakthroughs are deliberately ignored, while I wonder to myself what ever in the world could be wrong with the human race, because what this all will prove at the end of it all is that there definitely was something wrong with the people on this planet.