This is where the Hebrew conception of God departs from other religious traditions. For the first time, the source of all that is sacred is up in the heavens, unreachable for humanity except through the mercy and goodwill of God. The rest of the universe loses its divinity, becoming dead matter. This is the great dualistic divide accomplished by the Old Testament, detaching the source of meaning and value from material existence and placing it in a separate dimension. This dualistic conception applies equally to morality. The determination of whether something is good or bad comes not from
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The rest of the universe became dead matter except transcendence and heavenly presence. Or commercialism?
