What does "salt of the Earth" even really mean? The implication of the phrase means "the decent, common, humble, friendly people".But salt fucks up crops and shit. Are we supposed to think Jesus, who grew up in the Roman Empire, had never heard what happened to the Carthaginians?>That's a thing the Victorians came up withDon't matter since if Jesus is God he should know what they would come up with in the future
>>18004539Salt used to be a very valuable material, the main way to preserve food, used as a medicine and in religious and cultural practices (giving salt and bread to a visitor), as well as an important part of your diet when doing physical labour in hot climates . During the time of Jesus, it was part of the pay of each roman soldier. It was like saying "You are the Gold of the Earth", ie very important and valued.
>>18004539Salt conserves food, makes it taste better, it is associated with wisdom and it is the paragon for a whole dimension of taste (aka saltiness). Someone can abuse salt like they can abuse everything else, Jesus surely knew that but he also knew in each period we will have ways to understand this symbol.
>>18004539Salt didn't just fuck crops. It was also used as a fertilizer, in measured doses of course. It was highly valued as a commodity and everyone was familiar with it. It is also the flavor enhancer for food par excellence.
The idiom is that salt stands out in a meal, if you sprinkle salt into a bland porridge the salt will be what you taste first. Jesus then said we are the light of the world. Light stands out and is not covered up or hidden. Jesus is making the point that we, his disciples, should do our good deeds in the open and not to hide our belief and practice of Christianity. In this way we separate ourselves from the world and bring others to believe in Christ and become disciples also.
He's saying he wants you to be a good, reliable, down-to-earth person.
