GOD’S STORY RESEARCH PAPER: PART2

Research Paper on God’s Story
Student’s Name
Institution of Affiliation
Research Paper on God’s Story
Part 1: Project Plan
Topic-The Golden Calf
Thesis- many people believe Christianity is about having a personal relationship with God. They view this relationship as a basic need in their lives, which begs the question of how to reach and maintain the relationship established between human beings and the Almighty. The answer lies in worship. Nowadays, many people find reverence either true or false. Nonetheless, there is relevant evidence from the bible on the basis of true or false worship. Based on the Golden Calf’s story, God cannot be symbolized in any form that people imagine. Specifically, The Golden calf is linked to the theory of redemption in the predominant narrative in the bible.
Resources
The Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch.
Philip Yancey: The Bible Jesus Read.
Miriam’s well: Narratives around the Bible by Ilene Cooper (APU Library)
Outline
The Topic of The Golden Calf and its connection to the greater subjects of creation, fall, and absolution in the central narrative in the Bible is discussed in this paper. What follows is an elaboration of the initial meaning of the idea or the importance of this narrative within the book of Exodus or Deuteronomy. In addition to that, the importance of understanding the narrative of the Golden Calf is discussed. Lastly, there are insights gained from the story of the Golden Calf that could prove worthy in the context of today by providing understandings that are useful to Christians today.

Insights that help in guiding their spiritual journey and their relationship with God.
The Golden Calf
The golden calf was an idol that symbolized a god that Aaron had made for the Israelites to glorify. This occurred when Moses was still at Mount Sinai, where he had spent a significant number of days. When the Israelites observed that Moses was taking too long to come back, they came to Aron and told him “Come and make us gods, and a homemade idol was cast taking the form of a calf.”(Exodus 32:1-4). The Israelites gave Aaron their gold ornaments that he melted and used to cast the calf, which he later presented to them (Alexander & Baker, 2003). They were very happy and they began to worship the cast calf as their god. In this research paper, comprehensive scrutiny of the connotation of the Golden Calf is carried out, its sensitivity to the biblical story, the significance of appreciating the theories touching on the idol, its primary gist and insights that people can gain, which have a meaning in the context of Christianity today.
The Importance of understanding the History, Culture or Significance of the Golden Calf in a theological Perspective
A great appreciation is attached to understanding the theory behind the Golden calf. The god, in this perspective, the Calf, is a pointer that throughout the period of Moses, idols were being worshipped. It was standard practice among a lot of individuals. Furthermore, it clearly indicates that the Israelites might have come across the practice of idol worshipping when they were still in captivity, and during their exodus from Egypt (Yancey, 2001). From the theological perspective, according to the Canaanite writings, there was a chief god, who was also referred to as a bull. This narrative is considered as the ultimate scandal that occurred in the lives of the Israelites while in the desert (Deuteronomy 9:9-21).
The connotation of the Golden Calf idol to the Bible Narrative.
According to the Bible narrative, The Golden Calf played a substantial part. Molding the idol indicates the level of exasperation that the people of Israel developed due to the absenteeism of Moses amongst them. Moreover, it shows that the real God was present among the Israelites, even when they were making their idol. This was even after Moses, who according to the Israelites was the representative of God among them, had gone missing for some time. It shows that there is a danger of sentiment when the sign of God is absent from somebody’s life.
The True meaning of the Golden calf within Exodus/ Deuteronomy.
When Aaron decided to make the Golden Calf, he never had any intention for it to be worshipped as an idol by the Israelites. This is seen in his declaration that a festival will be held in honor of the Lord Almighty, just after he had completed creating the Golden Calf. (Exodus 32:5). He declared to the Israelites that the calf was their god, who brought them out of their captivity from the land of Egypt,” (Exodus 32:4). Based on this declaration, the Israelites saw the Golden Calf as a representation of God. Possibly this was the motive behind people of Israel’s decision to ask for a god, who may well guide them as they had no clue what had transpired with Moses in Mount Sinai. In the same context, in ancient Egypt, where the Israelites were in captivity, there was a depiction of a king who sat on top of a calf, a way that symbolized divinity. It is argued that Aaron’s decision to cast the idol was informed by the necessity to create a platform where the Almighty God, who is invisible would sit.
The Acumens that are Significant Based on the Story of the Golden calf in today’s Perspective.
Although sacred philosophies were amongst the people of Israel, the account of the Golden Calf idol shows that there was certainty in the presence of “supplementary” gods. This action might have resulted from the interaction of the Israelites with their Middle East acquaintances. Another comprehension that is gained is a requisite for leaders to be honest in discharging their mandate. For instance, lack of honesty is manifested when Aaron gave a lame explanation when he was asked by Moses why he decided to make the Golden Calf Idol. In his defense, he stated that he told the Israelites that whoever has gold ornaments to bring it to him, and he threw them into the fire and as a result, the calf came out as an end product (Exodus 32:24). This is a reflection of untruthfulness by Aaron.
In conclusion, based on the book of Exodus 32, several reasons can be deduced as to why people worship false gods. Even in the 21st Century, false gods exist in many forms and are manifested in different practices. The major undoing that leads people into worshipping false prophets is the lack of patience, not only in waiting for answers from the Almighty but also in their relationship with others. The Israelites had been with Moses for a long time and had even seen miracles happen during their journey from captivity; there was no reason to doubt that he would eventually return. Yet, their level of apprehension grew, leading them to seek a way of substituting what was missing. If people hold on to the view that they worship God through their thoughts and actions, then it cannot be hard to find examples of instances of idol worship. When people pray to God, they expect him to respond quickly. However, the reality is that it takes time for God to answer prayers. The major concern is that the followers of Christ know that God answers prayers at his own time, and despite that, they still decide to act alone, not knowing that God is preparing something special for them.
References
Alexander T.D & Baker D.W (2003), Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch
Yancey, P. (2001). The Bible Jesus Read. Zondervan.