Numbers 15: 32-36
This passage tells a story about a man that gathered sticks on the Sabbath. They put him in a prison until they decided what to do with him. Verse 35 says, "And the Lord said to Moses, "the man shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp." Verse 36 says, "and all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died"; as the Lord commanded Moses.

As God was setting up a theocracy and a "favored" people there was no tolerance for any deviations from commands such as doing no work on the sabbath. In the process of creating a nation and a national religion there was no tolerance for any behavior that was outside the established expectations on the people. Sticks were used for cooking and possibly shelter building. Stoning seems like a very harsh punishment. Note that the punishment was done by the group as a whole, with a supposition that God approved.

Modern day christians use the old testament and its scriptures as justification of their beliefs. How many would advocate a good ole stoning at the behest of a leader? None. It is against the law. I am sure stoning would be reprehensible to the average believer.

Is judaism and christianity a man made religion? How much of this did Moses make up as he went along? What kind of man was Moses? Would we tolerate Moses as a leader today? Would the average person follow Moses today?