Holy: Understanding it Better Through Basics

You are likely checking out this site to find out the definition of holy.  There are many proposed definitions, but probably only three that deserve serious consideration.  In alphabetic order they are:
1) pure, 2) set apart, or 3) whole.  One of the great challenges in defining holy is knowing the basic choices for its definition.  Even if it is complex word, what is it on the most basic level or core? 

A number of years ago, I was challenged as an assistant basketball coach by the head coach to tell him the basics of the game.  I uttered what I knew were basic things from my experience as a basketball player.  Most of what I told him had to do with skills.  I now know that I blew it.  I really didn't have my basics down, as I should have. 

I'm sure I could have recited more basics and somewhere in the mix I would have covered all of them.  But it would have been very complex and it would have been disorganized.  So from that point on, I listened carefully when any coach started to talk about the basics (or fundamentals). 

The basics of basketball I now know very well.  I may not know many of the complex parts of basketball like the many drills or plays that there are to chose from, but I now know the basics and can spout them quickly and in order.  Basics though should have been clearly taught to me before I reached adulthood some time ago.  Basics to be called that are usually things that a 12 or 13 year old can grasp.  But my list to my head coach were not.  (At least not in such a way that I could recall them to memory quickly.)

In looking at holy's definition, we are looking at a question of what basically does the word mean?  Does it mean that "pure" or "clean" are essentially an amount.  Are they like a pure gold where "all" the alloy is removed?   Is it then a matter of measure or amount?  Is it like gold that has the dross removed and then is given a designation to measure how pure the gold is? 

Or is the main point that something like gold has been separated from the dross or maybe better the dross from the gold?   Could this mean that this means something more like "set apart"?

Finally, is the basic point that holy means moral wholeness?  Are righteousness, truth, love and goodness the major parts of holy?  Does it parallel in many ways the use of wholeness as a concept? 

I am currently working on a paper that will answer these questions.  The goal to finish it is by no later than May.  I am very excited, because I am using a method of exegesis or interpretation that is very basic and yet very powerful. 

My parents used to say to me at the table, if I voiced my opinion on a biblical topic: "Chapter and verse".  The  neat thing for me is that I now living their dream of working out "chapter and verse".  I don't want to give up on a dream of knowing what God means through the word  holy extremely well.  I would regret giving up on their dream.  Their dream has become my own. 

Here's a quote on why I think it is worthwhile to wait and get the definition of holy right:

     Never give up on something you really want.  It is difficult to wait, but it's more
     difficult to regret. 

So wait with me for holy to be defined clearly on the most basic level.  The basic semantic classes of words come down to five primary definitions: 1) amount, 2) relationship, 3) whole, 4) action, and 5) thing.  I used these 5 to identify the basics of basketball as: !Effort level, 2) Team approach, 3) Healthy Atmosphere, 4) Skilled play and 5) Know the game.  Out of three of the best options for the definition of holy, I think I will in the end arrive at the basic meaning of holy according to chapter and verse.  It is going to be either an: 1) amount (ex. pure), 2) relationship  (ex. set apart), or 3) whole.   (By the way, "set apart" could also a distinction between things making that the core idea.)  In any case, let's make sure our views fit with chapter and verse and do not fall short of what we really want - a single reliable definition of holy from God's point of view. 


Sincerely,

Jon

By the way, also check out:  http://communicationbasics101.blogspot.com.  There I also deal with the basics when it comes to exegesis.  .