14.The early Hebrews were tribal groups who wandered far and wide. What can we tell about their religious beliefs?

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The Hebrews were nomads who organized along classic tribal logic. They were monotheistic and believed in one God. They had a kinship relationship with their God and believed that they were a chosen people selected by Yahweh. They remembered their tribal character during and after the monarchical period. Genesis associates civilization with Cain and his descendants, and this means that civilization is not a good thing. The monarchy history is written from a anti-monarch point of view because the the Hebrews believed that desiring a king was disobeying God. The Hebrew religion had nothing to do with the Yahweh cult. Their accounts of the patriarchs used the term "Elohim" (God,) and "El Shaddai" (God Almighty.) Several accounts described in Genesis seem to point to a belief in animistic forces and possible polytheism, but this topic is very controversial.

-Mary VanLoh

picture: http://histclo.com/chron/ancient/heb/hist/hh-ot.html

Manual pg 114

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