It’s time to look into the other book of the Bible about the “return from exile” of Israel. The Jewish governor, Nehemiah, set about the task of setting things right -- in other words, putting things back the way they were in the “good old days.” This includes, apparently, "discovering" the Torah and making sure everyone knows what it says. We see what happens when the book is read to the people:
Neh 8:9-12 - And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites, who taught the people said to all the people, "This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep." For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, "Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our LORD; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, "Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved." And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.
Neh 13:1-3 - On that day they read from the book of Moses in the hearing of the people; and in it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should enter the assembly of God, because they did not meet the Israelites with bread and water, but hired Baalam against them to curse them - yet our God turned the curse into a blessing. When the people heard the law, they separated from Israel all those of foreign descent.
It looks like Nehemiah and his crew had to deal with an awful lot of crying after handing out the laws everyone was supposed to live under. What I find interesting is that the priests felt it necessary to order the people to feel the appropriate emotions. It's a sad commentary that the people felt the need to follow such orders. This looks to me like a clear example of mind control.
The second passage is equally disturbing, I think. Here is yet another example of thinking that has plagued humanity all its life. The inheritance of hatreds nearly 1000 years old (or that were made to look that old), and the people whose parents weren't from the correct race were the ones thrown out –- which only served to start new hatreds to lay on top of the old.
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