Here's a fascinating article on encryption, cryptography, and the breaking of codes. It is quite a substantive analysis for a BBC News column and quite interesting to read, especially if you are interested in espionage, mathematics, or such.
One of the most common mistakes of contemporary biblical interpretation in the Church is reading the Bible outside of its historical context. When this is done, people often misread. One common error, e.g., is making statements in the Bible prescriptive for contemporary culture that are not intended to be prescriptive. Nowhere, perhaps, has this caused more problems than in the reading and interpretation of the Pauline Household Codes. It is often assumed that these Household Codes prescribe male headship and female subordination. However, it is interesting to note that Household Codes were very common in the Greco-Roman world and that Paul, or those claiming his authority, simply appropriated these Codes in order to demonstrate how Christians live within them as Christians. As such, the Code itself is not prescriptive but rather the principles applied to the Code that are prescriptive. This is most plainly seen in Paul's views on the slave-master relationship. It is a misreading of Paul to suggest that Paul supported the institution of slavery. But, at the same time, Paul is not concerned to lead a revolt or start a petition against the practice. He is simply concerned with how Christians in that situation live Christianly. In essence then, Paul works with culture as it exists; he is not a socio-political revolutionary or cultural activist (a spiritual revolutionary? sure) but a pragmatist. Of course, it must also be pointed out that the Christian message inherently subverts the very premise of oppression and therefore it can be readily argued that the biblical trajectory is against the institutions of slavery and patriarchy. In a similar vein, consider this article on Dress Codes in the Greco-Roman world and 1 Timothy 2:9-15.
Breaking Codes: An Impossible Task?
![[Valid Atom]](http://anduril.ca/blog/themes/valid-atom.png "Validate my Atom Feed"){kind=small}
