March 14, 2008

'Policy Prescriptions' and the Bible

To the Editor:

In delivering the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, God visited plagues upon Egyptians without differentiation among them. Bruce Chilton, in "Abraham's Curse" (The Chronicle Review, February 15), says that such stories "convey a sense of purpose and a standard of justice" while "Isaac, however, was innocent."

But both types of stories reflect a group justice in which individuals are treated as means rather than as ends. While a collective punishment is carried out