I have a friend who once described her religious beliefs as, “God, yes. Bible, no.” I see her point. Some are left cold by The Good Book. In addition to its considerable length, there are repetitions in plotting that are confusing (why does God create Adam and Eve twice?) and moral inconsistencies that clash with the popular image of religion as a force for good.
I fall into a different camp: a spiritual person who enjoys reading the Bible. I understand why people don’t like it: it has been used to justify slavery and Apartheid, the subjugation of women, and to bash LGBTQ people. We have just cleared four years of neo-fascism wrapped in insincere evangelicalism. I am not naive about the myriad ways the Scriptures have been weaponised.
And, yet, I continue to be inspired by the Social Gospel and its influence on civil rights. I see spiritual truth in the Exodus story: God works on the side of justice. I like (some) religion.
For these and other reasons, I have set a goal to re-read the Bible in its entirety this year. I have done this once before, just before I started a Master’s degree in theology. Fifteen years have passed since then. I have changed. The times have changed. I’m curious what I get from it as I hit fifty.
If you’re curious to read along but short on time, I have included a condensed reference book I sometimes use. It is a faithful synopsis.
This essay is the first in a six-part series that will look at the parts of the Bible that seem most significant to me. I will attempt to contrast historical facts with my own subjective literary analysis. It should be noted that this is a year-long goal, so the essays will be infrequent. There are many more books than just this one.
So what exactly is the Bible about? Its narrative arc was described by CS Lewis as “the reversal of Adam” – a thousand-page epic journey of humanity’s deliverance from original sin. It is also a written history of the Israelites, an ancient tribe, up until the time they split over the existence of a Messiah.
I will start at the beginning. The first book, Genesis, is arguably one of the most influential. It has inspired many Sunday school teachers with the creation myth and the global flood. The story of Dinah topped best-seller lists as The Red Tent. Andrew Lloyd Webber took Joseph and his colorful coat to musical superstardom.
In generality, it depicts the origins of a god-man relationship. The god of these scriptures breathes life into Adam (the Hebrew word adamah means earth) and speaks directly to him. God continues to interact with Adam and his descendents, sending word to Noah that a global flood will wipe out humanity, and promising several patriarchs that they will be blessed into the next generation.
And, yet, curiously, there are other moments when God does not seem omniscient, such as when he asks Cain about his missing brother, whom Cain has murdered. Could this be the start of the mystery of free will?
One theme that emerges is rivalry among brothers. In addition to murderous Cain, Jacob disguises himself as his hirsute twin, Esau, and steals his birthright. In the final story, Jacob’s son Joseph is sold into slavery by his jealous brothers.
There is also the foundation of a pact between God and his creation. There are moral contracts, or covenants, that must be followed. This will be important in the next essay, on Moses in Exodus.
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