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| St. Paul |
Week One: Circumcision, Gilgal and Virgin Birth
Day One: Epistles: Romans 1 & 2
Day Two: The Law: Genesis 1-3
Day Three: History: Book of Joshua 1-5
Day Four: Psalms 1-2
Day Five: Poetry: Book of Job 1-2
Day Six: Prophecy: Book of Isaiah 1-6
Day Seven: Gospels: Matthew 1-2
This whole "Bible in a Year" project is going to be revealing. I feel like I'm reading a book that I read years ago and only remember parts of. I'm trying to read through the assigned readings as well as learn some of the background from Isaac Asimov's commentary. Asimov concentrates on the secular, historical context of the books of the Bible, lending valuable perspective to the readings.
Starting off with Romans is a bit daunting. It turns out that these epistles are not presented in chronological order but in order of length. Romans, the longest, was written about 58 AD by Paul, who was finishing up his mission in Corinth and before he had ever actually traveled to Rome. Romans represents the most complete exposition of Paul's theology and his theme is that the Gospel represents God's power for salvation to all who believe: who have faith in Him. He spends a good bit of the first two chapters rattling on about circumcision, mainly to differentiate between the ritualistic aspects of the Law of Moses and its ethical concepts. His main concern here was whether Gentiles who converted to Christianity had to be circumcised and observe all of the rituals of the Law. Paul's conclusion was that lack of circumcision and adherence to the rituals of the Law should not be considered as grounds for losing salvation for people who are otherwise righteous.
Moving on to Day 2 and the first three chapters of Genesis, I learned some more interesting things. The first is that there are hints of polytheism in the creation story (Gen. 1:26: God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness"). Also, in Genesis, the talking serpent is one of only two episodes of talking animals in the Bible (the other being Bakam's ass in the Book of Numbers - can't wait for that one). So, there's no Mr. Ed in the Bible. The name Adam is translated from the word for "man" and Adamah is the word for "ground". This stresses the relationship of humankind and the soil from which it was formed. I am reminded that one of my father's favorite Scripture quotes (which he trotted out after every family funeral) was (Gen. 3:19) "you are dust and to dust you shall return". Another interesting concept culled from these chapters is that for man to be fully human he must be in relation to others. This is interesting to think about as we all become more isolated in our technology, busy tapping away into our blogs and smart phones rather than actually relating to other human beings. Finally, the temptation story was fun to read through. It is interesting to me that eating from the tree of knowledge led to guilt, then shame and anxiety. This led Adam and Eve to hide from God in the Garden. A large portion of today's pharmaceutical industry and psychiatric practice would not be necessary if Eve hadn't eaten that apple!
The Book of Joshua is part of the larger story of Israel's life in its land. Asimov explains that this is an idealized historical narrative. It shows how an obedient Israel under God's chosen leader (Joshua) can bring into existence a society based on justice and freedom. Joshua finally leads the Israelites into the promised land of Canaan by parting the Jordan River and parading the Ark of the Covenant ceremoniously into the new land. Twelve stones are taken from the parted riverbed and placed in a ring at Gilgal. Gilgals (or stone circles) were built by ancient civilizations probably for astrological reasons. Many were built in Britain, including Stonehenge.
The first two Psalms didn't do a lot for me. The first contrasts the fates of the righteous versus the wicked and the second notes that monarchs in the ancient world regarded themselves as adoptive sons of the native gods. Psalm 2 is interpreted by some as having significance in defining a future messiah as a son of God.
The tough sledding really began for me with Job and Isaiah. The Book of Job does not attempt to explain the mysteries of suffering or justify the ways of God. It does, however, probe the depth of faith in the face of suffering. It's tough to watch Job lose everything in these first few chapters (including the lives of his family) on what seems to be a celestial bet between God and Satan. Satan in this book is not seen as a demonic figure but actually a heavenly being who patrols Earth checking on the righteous. Sort of a celestial hall monitor. I was reminded here of Harold Kushner's When Bad Things Happen to Good People, which is a very accessible and understandable treatment of the same issues.
Isaiah is tough for me to decipher, even with Asimov's help. This book deals with a period of history known as the "Syrian Ascendancy". In describing the culture of the times the author of this book speaks against the tendency of the rich of those days to squeeze out the poor farmer and to multiply their own holdings. So far this book has taught me that greed is nothing new and that the disproportionate distribution of wealth is not a modern concept.
The week wraps up with the Gospels, starting with Matthew 1 and 2. Finally something I think I know a little something about! Apparently I don't. Matthew is described as "a manual of Christian teachings". The first chapter emphasizes Jesus' divine lineage from David (through Joseph's ancestors). This would imply to all that Jesus is the legitimate heir to the royal House of David. It isn't problematic to the writer that Joseph actually isn't Jesus' biological father, that distinction going to the Holy Spirit as revealed in Matthew to Joseph in a dream. It is interesting to me that there are birth narratives in just two of the Gospels (Matthew and Luke) and here all we have is Joseph's dream and, in Chapter 2, the story of the wise men and Herod's slaughter of the innocent children. Christmas Eve pageants would certainly be a lot different if we didn't have Luke's version which includes the Annunciation, Mary"s "Magnificat", the census, Jospeh and Mary's trip to Bethlehem, Jesus' birth in a manger, angels and shepherds.
So that puts a wrap on Week One. The main thing I have learned so far is that I don't know very much about the Bible at all. I hope that my determination to follow this through the entire year holds up. Stay tuned!
This whole "Bible in a Year" project is going to be revealing. I feel like I'm reading a book that I read years ago and only remember parts of. I'm trying to read through the assigned readings as well as learn some of the background from Isaac Asimov's commentary. Asimov concentrates on the secular, historical context of the books of the Bible, lending valuable perspective to the readings.
Starting off with Romans is a bit daunting. It turns out that these epistles are not presented in chronological order but in order of length. Romans, the longest, was written about 58 AD by Paul, who was finishing up his mission in Corinth and before he had ever actually traveled to Rome. Romans represents the most complete exposition of Paul's theology and his theme is that the Gospel represents God's power for salvation to all who believe: who have faith in Him. He spends a good bit of the first two chapters rattling on about circumcision, mainly to differentiate between the ritualistic aspects of the Law of Moses and its ethical concepts. His main concern here was whether Gentiles who converted to Christianity had to be circumcised and observe all of the rituals of the Law. Paul's conclusion was that lack of circumcision and adherence to the rituals of the Law should not be considered as grounds for losing salvation for people who are otherwise righteous.
Moving on to Day 2 and the first three chapters of Genesis, I learned some more interesting things. The first is that there are hints of polytheism in the creation story (Gen. 1:26: God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness"). Also, in Genesis, the talking serpent is one of only two episodes of talking animals in the Bible (the other being Bakam's ass in the Book of Numbers - can't wait for that one). So, there's no Mr. Ed in the Bible. The name Adam is translated from the word for "man" and Adamah is the word for "ground". This stresses the relationship of humankind and the soil from which it was formed. I am reminded that one of my father's favorite Scripture quotes (which he trotted out after every family funeral) was (Gen. 3:19) "you are dust and to dust you shall return". Another interesting concept culled from these chapters is that for man to be fully human he must be in relation to others. This is interesting to think about as we all become more isolated in our technology, busy tapping away into our blogs and smart phones rather than actually relating to other human beings. Finally, the temptation story was fun to read through. It is interesting to me that eating from the tree of knowledge led to guilt, then shame and anxiety. This led Adam and Eve to hide from God in the Garden. A large portion of today's pharmaceutical industry and psychiatric practice would not be necessary if Eve hadn't eaten that apple!
The Book of Joshua is part of the larger story of Israel's life in its land. Asimov explains that this is an idealized historical narrative. It shows how an obedient Israel under God's chosen leader (Joshua) can bring into existence a society based on justice and freedom. Joshua finally leads the Israelites into the promised land of Canaan by parting the Jordan River and parading the Ark of the Covenant ceremoniously into the new land. Twelve stones are taken from the parted riverbed and placed in a ring at Gilgal. Gilgals (or stone circles) were built by ancient civilizations probably for astrological reasons. Many were built in Britain, including Stonehenge.
The first two Psalms didn't do a lot for me. The first contrasts the fates of the righteous versus the wicked and the second notes that monarchs in the ancient world regarded themselves as adoptive sons of the native gods. Psalm 2 is interpreted by some as having significance in defining a future messiah as a son of God.
The tough sledding really began for me with Job and Isaiah. The Book of Job does not attempt to explain the mysteries of suffering or justify the ways of God. It does, however, probe the depth of faith in the face of suffering. It's tough to watch Job lose everything in these first few chapters (including the lives of his family) on what seems to be a celestial bet between God and Satan. Satan in this book is not seen as a demonic figure but actually a heavenly being who patrols Earth checking on the righteous. Sort of a celestial hall monitor. I was reminded here of Harold Kushner's When Bad Things Happen to Good People, which is a very accessible and understandable treatment of the same issues.
Isaiah is tough for me to decipher, even with Asimov's help. This book deals with a period of history known as the "Syrian Ascendancy". In describing the culture of the times the author of this book speaks against the tendency of the rich of those days to squeeze out the poor farmer and to multiply their own holdings. So far this book has taught me that greed is nothing new and that the disproportionate distribution of wealth is not a modern concept.
The week wraps up with the Gospels, starting with Matthew 1 and 2. Finally something I think I know a little something about! Apparently I don't. Matthew is described as "a manual of Christian teachings". The first chapter emphasizes Jesus' divine lineage from David (through Joseph's ancestors). This would imply to all that Jesus is the legitimate heir to the royal House of David. It isn't problematic to the writer that Joseph actually isn't Jesus' biological father, that distinction going to the Holy Spirit as revealed in Matthew to Joseph in a dream. It is interesting to me that there are birth narratives in just two of the Gospels (Matthew and Luke) and here all we have is Joseph's dream and, in Chapter 2, the story of the wise men and Herod's slaughter of the innocent children. Christmas Eve pageants would certainly be a lot different if we didn't have Luke's version which includes the Annunciation, Mary"s "Magnificat", the census, Jospeh and Mary's trip to Bethlehem, Jesus' birth in a manger, angels and shepherds.
So that puts a wrap on Week One. The main thing I have learned so far is that I don't know very much about the Bible at all. I hope that my determination to follow this through the entire year holds up. Stay tuned!
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