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In my house, we generally request that family members remove shoes that may have driveway stone dust or mud on them. Back in the early Christian days, they wore sandals with no socks, so a lot of dust found it's way between the toes. Personally, I discourage the use of sandals for better foot safety and cleanliness. In other words ------ don't bring no funky feet in this house!
It is not "People who enter their houses", a thief would be kicked out and likely beaten up.
It is "People they invite into their houses", it is called guest friendship and it is a very important thing in places with no (or just a rudimentary) police force. If you invite him into your house (even if it is just a tent) you take responsibility for him. you guarantee his life and wellbeing, etc. Remember in Lot when Lot offer his daughters to the rapehungry crowd? It was not that he particularly wanted to be rid of the daughters, but the 2 men the crowd was demanding were his guests. He had to protect his guests even if at the cost of losing members of his family. That is how important Guest Friendship was to the nomadic Jews, and it was something they despised the more organized city dwellers for having given up on. The tale is about "The ways of our fathers" versus "The horrible newfangled ways in the cities". Equally, by accepting the invitation guests promised not to harm the people in the house, not to rape the nubile daughters, etc. etc. When Jakob stole Labans Idols as he left with his 2 new wives he commited a major crime, oh he had excuses, such a the crime Laban commited on delivering the wrong daughter at his first marriage (and by worshiping idols in the first place), but Jacob was still guilty of a severe crime.
Modern interpretations often say that Lot 'knew the guests were angels' and that sells the story short. Lot had invited them to stay in his house, there is no reason to suppose he knew who they were.
They learned it from the people in the East who still DO this in many cultures. The taking off of shoes is still practiced.
They washed feet because of the dust and the sandals. It was a way of honoring the guest, humbling oneself and good housekeeping!
because of the smell?
Does it say in the Bible that they are supposed to? If it doesn't, why else would they want to?
probably cause we're not in biblical times
Because they don't walk barefoot or wearing sandals on dirt paths littered with animal dung to get to my house.
We don't live in First Century Palestine. In current American culture feet washing would be weird, even kinky.
Lmao!!! I love you Pearl!!
Because that's not a Western custom.people who visit others do different things to show hospitality.
Jesus did not institute a new foot washing ritual. They wore sandals in a sandy climate thus had sand on their feet. Have you ever wore sandals on the beech? Some beech front hotels in South Padre Texas have washing stations outside. We used them to wash the sand off of our feet when we were there a few months ago.
[Shortly before his death, Jesus told his apostles: “I set the pattern for you, that, just as I did to you, you should do also.” (John 13:15) He had just finished washing the feet of the 12. What Jesus did was neither a mere ritual nor just an act of kindness. Before relating the account of the washing of feet, John wrote: “Jesus, having loved his own that were in the world, loved them to the end.” (John 13:1) It was his love for the disciples that moved Jesus to render a service usually performed by a slave. Now they must humbly do loving things for one another. Yes, genuine brotherly love should move us to display care and concern for all our Christian brothers and sisters.]
The Pharisees made a ritual out of washing their hands up to the elbows before a meal.
(Mark 7:2-8) And they saw some of his disciples eat their meal with defiled hands, that is, unwashed ones. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands up to the elbow, clinging to the tradition of the men of former times, 4 and when they come from the market, they do not eat unless they wash themselves. There are many other traditions that they have received and cling to, such as baptisms of cups, pitchers, and copper vessels.) 5 So these Pharisees and scribes asked him: “Why do your disciples not observe the tradition of the men of former times, but they eat their meal with defiled hands?” 6 He said to them: “Isaiah aptly prophesied about you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far removed from me. 7 It is in vain that they keep worshipping me, for they teach commands of men as doctrines.’ 8 You let go of the commandment of God and cling to the tradition of men.”
In biblical times many walked barefoot and had an array of parasites on their feet.
Interesting answer.
Why Did Lot Offer His Daughters to an Angry Mob?
It was a practice among Christians and non-Christians alike to offer water for foot-washing, or for Romans of the time to have a slave do the foot-washing, so get off your ignorance-based lib Christian-hating high horse and quit chiding Christians for not doing what you surreptitiously determine is their supposed duty to do.
http://www.biblestudytools.com/encyclopedias/isbe/washing-of-feet.html
Now, once again I patiently and generously give my time and knowledge to explain the simplest real-world things, with real-world historical context, to an idiot lib.
Long before motor transportation, people journeyed on foot, and in temperate zones such as the Roman Mediterranean they wore only sandals on their feet. Nearly all walkways were dirt. Dirt gets into sandals. It was desirable to wash the feet to keep dirt from getting tracked into the house. Now, it is sufficient to ask guests to simply take off their shoes when they enter. Socks do not draw dirt like open sandals, and when those shoes do happen to be sandals or flip-flops, there has been only a limited amount of walking in them and it has happened on pavement and concrete for the most part. Therefore, the distinctions between the Roman age and the present have done away for any need for such foot-washing. That applies to Christians, Jews, Muslims, Zoroatrianists, Bhuddists, Confucianists, Satanists, Atheists, and all other variations including those who choose to worship an ant or a used condom if they so wish. What people choose to believe spiritually is entirely their business and none of yours.
Libs. Duh.
