The view from the dumpster--The problem started with Manna

The view from the dumpster--The problem started with Manna

Maybe the problem started long ago with an error in translation, or instructions that weren’t complete or possibly didn’t apply past the immediate or some other glitch hit the fan, maybe some scribe ran out of ink or the lambskin wasn’t quite dry enough. As we receive the story, it seems quite simple enough, you know, the big guy trying to take care of his people. I’m having a problem reconciling what I would expect with what was presented, did a scribe get lazy in duplicating the message over and over again across multiple skins or parchments, a task that would consume his whole life, or did he simply not understand the allegory and proceed with his version as best that he could. What I see, is a message that is limited in scope, is not as forward looking as other messages and fails to meet the message put forth in the kid’s newer version. And that’s where we run into the problem, different books, different authors, and different messages. All of which are used by different people and different sects to further their own cause and justify their own interpretation, to their own benefit.

The way the story unfolds, Ol’ Moses is leading his hommies out of the hood when they realize that there ain’t no 7-11s or Wawa’s on the road that they chose. This could be a problem. But the big guy says “Chill my dude, we got this”.  “Look, I’m going to rain down food from heaven for you. Then the people can go out and pick up as much food as they can eat for that day. Tell them to pick up twice as much food on the sixth day. But there will be a test to see if they followed my instructions” Those instructions said take only what you need, always good advice. And if they took too much, it rotted and was filled with maggots. And what fell to the ground and wasn’t picked up was gone. It was as if Waste Management had the contract, and possibly this was the start of composting, that’s pretty cool.  In order to satisfy the low-carb guys, he also sent along some quail, but there doesn’t appear to be a bag limit on those, or any discussion of how long they would last. Manna apparently is not shelf stable.

Maybe there’s a paragraph missing that says something like if you have too much leave some behind for those that follow you, apparently that can’t be done with Manna, but what about leaving behind a stash of quail jerky? Are the folks fleeing Egypt the only ones in need, what about the ones that were left behind, or the ones that weren’t in Egypt but still going hungry? And all of this at a time of famine and plaques and pestilence, who was taking care of all of these people? What did they do to not deserve the Manna? This is where I have a problem, take what you need, with no reference to what others need. That short sighted thinking is what really needed some clarification. And that way of thinking is still popular today; take what you need to take care of yourself and the rest will be disposed of, regardless of who else is in need.

The modern version is go to the grocery store and take all that you can, and the grocery store looks at it and says they’ve taken all that they need. Let us put magic dates and codes on all of the food and convince all of the tribes that this food at the end of its days will implode and suddenly spoil and be filled with maggots. Let us now, clean the desert and put it into the dumpster.  Oh, wait hold up on the quail that’s good for a few more days. Oh and those protein shake mixes, let’s go ahead and put them on quick sale and let people who don’t really need that crap think that they’re getting a deal. And all of this is consistent with the teachings in the Old Testament, an incomplete set of stories, whose pieces we are still gathering out of the jars in the desert and trying to decipher. But in the New Testament the story would be different, the kid would be tossing about shopping carts and overturning self-checkout stands.

Let’s let the Old Testament be what it is, an incomplete history and start looking more towards the guidance of the New Testament, a guidance based on love. A guidance based on caring about our fellow man, our brothers and sisters. If Manna is a gift from God, is food from God, then we should always share our blessings with all of the children of God.