Given my generally scientific approach to things, it might be surprising to some that I was raised very Christian. Now, not in the "all gays burn in hell" or "evolution is a lie" way. More in a "my mom read me a children's bible" and "going to kid's church on Saturdays was considered a fun weekly event."
At the same, time, my mom insisted on discussing what's behind the stories. I don't necessarily believe in god, but I know a bunch of biblical stories, their backgrounds, and I enjoy certain traditions.
With that background, I encountered (thanks to Spotify) the song "Poor Isaac" this week.
For those not familiar with the story of Abraham and Isaac, the short form is that God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, his only son. And Abraham was willing to follow through because he ... had faith?
In the last moment, before he was able to cut Isaac's throat, God sent an animal (I think I remember it being a goat, but that can depend on translations) to be sacrificed in Isaac's stead. And everything is great and rosy.
For Abraham.
Nobody talks about Isaac's trauma.
Of course, it's just a story, likely intended to convince believers that they should always trust in God, follow his word. If they do that, it will all be okay in the end and nothing bad will happen, even if it looks like that at first.
But how often are we told something similar by an authority figure?
Our parents? Our partner? Our boss? Our government? Someone who acts like they're above us in knowledge and experience?
"Trust me, I know what I'm doing. Just follow my words, do exactly what I say, and all will be okay."
And maybe it is. Maybe you follow the instructions and it turns out great in the end. But what if there were other people affected by it, and that negatively?
Had Isaac been a real person, I'm sure he would have life-long psychological damage from this event. Tied up, his father, the person who should have been protecting him, holding a knife to his throat, following the word of an invisible being. That's child abuse.
And then the sacrifice is being broken off, he's freed. And he's being told that God has spared him.
Spared? From what? From a fabricated danger? Had God not told Abraham to kill his son, Isaac wouldn't have been in danger.
How often is the danger we're in fabricated by someone else who pretends to protect us from it? How often is our pain caused by someone who claims to try to lessen it?
It's (more or less) obvious in abusive relationships. The abuser is the one inflicting damage and at the same time providing affection, safety, stability. That's why it's so hard to leave relationships like that, it's the reason why the abused doesn't always realize they're being abused, and why they return over and over again. They crave the affection following the abuse.
A similar situation can happen with parents. They can be abusers too. And the children tend to still be obedient.
Isaac proceeds to have a bunch of children and, of course, to continue worshipping God. The cycle continues.
And it tends to do so for us too.
Next time someone tells you they're doing something for your sake and you shouldn't question it, maybe check who's getting hurt. If it's not you, is it someone else? And is that someone else innocent?
That might not have been very coherent, but hey, that's what my -random account is for after all.
