Time In Israel
According to cultural anthropologist and biblical scholar Raphael Patai the predominantly Arab, Middle Eastern Culture reflects an interesting relationship with time that can be understood through the Arab language. In his book entitled The Arab Mind, he says "In Arabic the imperfect form can stand for present, future and past ". The Arab language reflects a clear lack of concern for linear time, with significant historical events often grossly misrepresented in linear time sequence. A disconcerting example follows. The names Mary and Miriam share a root and in Arabic are one and the same; Maryam. Patai tells us that even though Mary -mother of Jesus, lived some thirteen centuries after Miriam- sister of Moses, "the two women are represented in the Koran as one and the same person". Koran 3:35ff. The wife of Imran (ie.Amram, father of Moses) is said to have given birth to Maryam, who in turn gave birth to Jesus. In Koran 19:28 Maryam the mother of Jesus is addr