5–High Five, or Lows?

Summer Fun with Numbers in the Bible.

Steps 1 and 2 of Guided Meditation: Relax. Ask God to sit with you. Bring up any concerns you have. Read the prompt:

As we have already seen, not all numbers are “symbolic” in the bible. Rather, certain numbers just make us think of scriptures we’ve heard often or have associated with a number. For example, there are FIVE books in the Torah– also called the Pentateuch or the Books of Moses or the first five books of the Old Testament. There are five books, so there is no symbolism involved. My point is that it’s really important not to get weird with biblical numbers and treat them like occult symbols (very sinful, by the way; false gods and tempting evil and all that). But it’s okay to tag scriptural information with numbers to help your memory. Just don’t believe everything people are publishing out there (online or in books).

Some people say, for example, that five stands for transformation because the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet “h” was added to “Abram” when God changed his name to “Abraham”. But wasn’t an additional “a” also added?

Others say five stands for “balance” because humans have five fingers and five toes on each side of their bodies. But that sounds weak to me. Some say the ten commandments are balanced between love of God and love of neighbor, but that isn’t quite accurate either. God: 1) Love God 2) Use His name reverently 3) Keep holy the Sabbath versus Human: 4) Honor thy parents 5) Don’t kill 6) Don’t commit adultery 7) Don’t steal 8) Don’t lie 9) Don’t covet your neighbor’s wife and 10) Don’t covet your neighbors goods. Even if we put Commandment Six in God’s column (meaning don’t be disloyal to God), it still comes out unbalanced in favor of more commandments regarding our neighbors. And then there’s the fact that the Sabbath was made for humans, not for God. Maybe the ten are balanced with five on one tablet and five on the other. I don’t even know if that is documented but it’s not important–that God wrote the commandments is what’s important. Sometimes the simplest explanation is the best.

A few interesting “five” facts from the Old Testament: David killed Goliath with five stones. The Book of Leviticus details five different offerings: trespassing, sin, peace, meat and burnt. The instructions for building the Tabernacle included five curtains, five pillars, and five cubits in width and in length. The oil to anoint the wood contained five spices. In the New Testament, Jesus fed a crowd of 5,000. He had five wounds (palms/wrists, feet, side) and sometimes all five are present in cases of the stigmata. Saint Paul was given thirty-nine lashes by the Jews five times. (Why thirty-nine? It was the legal limit because forty would kill a person; many were disemboweled by the practice.)

There are five decades in each mystery of the rosary: five Joyful, five Luminous, five Sorrowful and five Glorious. There are five Precepts of the Catholic Church: Attend Mass on Sundays and holy days; confess your sins at least once a year; receive the Sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter Season; observe days of fasting and abstinence; and assist with the material needs of the Church according to your ability. These are the minimal requirements of being a Catholic. I guess when they made the precepts they figured they didn’t have to say: continue your faith education throughout your life, especially before receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. But now, it needs to be pointed out I think.

Miscellaneous note: the stars that most of us draw have five points (the Star of David has six points and real stars don’t have points).

Step 3: Talk to God like you would your friend. What stood out to you when you read the prompt? How do you feel about what you read? (Read my sample if you like, or skip it and talk to God with your own words.)

[Wow, Jesus, the thirty-nine lashes make me sick. Humans were so brutal to each other back then. No wonder you made so many laws. Gosh, you had to teach them all kinds of things and You had to be specific. It’s like humans didn’t know how to behave after the fall–well, actually, before the fall or there wouldn’t have been the pride Eve felt to know everything God knew, or putting blame on others instead of owning our behavior like Eve did to the serpent and Adam did to Eve. And Cain wouldn’t have killed Abel. People criticize the Bible for having so much bad behavior and say God is mean. They don’t seem to understand that the Bible is not teaching people that it’s okay to act those bad ways; the Bible is saying the truth: this is the way people acted and to teach them how to behave, God gave them step by step instructions to form their good behavior and attitudes (like respect).

Jesus, I hear you better when I bring a question or situation to you before I meditate, or if something stands out to me. So I read the prompt again. The word transformation stands out to me. I always liked holy cards showing the Transformation because people who were dead–Moses and Elijah–were alive and talking with You. And Peter, James and John got to witness it. When I’m afraid of death, I think of this and it gives me peace.

I also like that You changed people’s names when their relationship with You was transformed. Abram and Sari to Abraham and Sarah. Simon to Peter. I wonder what You would change my name to? Or maybe You already did. When I asked Mom why she named me ‘Vickie’ when so many of my siblings had aunt and uncle names or Irish or Italian names, she said it was because it was popular at the time. I don’t like that reason. So maybe, because the Church had a rule that a baby needed a saint’s name to be baptized–thank heaven, thank heaven, thank heaven–You did change my name to Victoria–the victorious one. You’re probably laughing at all the mistakes I’ve made for having a victorious name, but it reminds me that You were victorious. That makes me happy, too. I often think You’re telling me that You gave me what I need to be victorious. And I didn’t get to pick out my Confirmation name. I sick the week we did that in school so on Confirmation day Sister Cecilia, young and very nervous about everything going well, scribbled Mary on my name card and said, “That’s a good name.” And sometime in my adulthood I came to like it as my name too.

Step 4: Sit in silence with God. Let Him talk to you by putting a movie on the “black screen” of your mind, or through a scent or a memory–even if it doesn’t have to do with the prompt above. What is God saying to you?

Step 5: Wrap up your thoughts into a prayer. Respond to what God said to you. (Read my sample if you like, or skip it and make your own prayer.)

Oh, Jesus, it is sooo relaxing to spend time just sitting quietly with You. As usual, I don’t hear You much during my contemplation but I know You speak to me afterwards when You can catch me off-guard–like yesterday when I was about to say something and the thought “what would Saint John the Apostle say as he watched You preach” reminded me that I want to be reverent to You and everyone You have made. And also, someone at church said my name and it sounded so pretty. So thanks for that–not just the sweet sound, but the fact that it sounded like a “hello” from You since we just talked about it.

So thanks for being with me, and for helping me hear you. And thanks for helping me with those prayer requests I’ve had. I love You.

Step 6: Save something–a word, a phrase, an image, a feeling, a memory–to keep in your heart until your next meditation/contemplation session. (Mine is her as an example, but please choose one for your own.)

Victorious blossoms.