tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/bible-16885/articlesBible – The Conversation2024-03-26T17:02:09Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2265722024-03-26T17:02:09Z2024-03-26T17:02:09ZExtinguishing lights and a great big bang: the ancient sights and sounds of the pre-Easter tenebrae service<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584208/original/file-20240325-18-saxwku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The crucifixion of Christ inside Chester Cathedral.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/chester-cheshire-england-uk-26-march-2433472355">PhotoFires|Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Easter is a time of mixed emotions. According to <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media/press-releases/church-attendance-rises-second-year-running">Church of England figures</a>, up to a million people will go to church on Easter Sunday to celebrate the joy and hope of the resurrection of Christ. But in the three days before that, churchgoers in many traditions come face to face with the darkest moments of the Christian story: <a href="https://fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/explore-our-collection/highlights/context/subjects/judas">the betrayal</a> Jesus faced at the hands of Judas Iscariot, his death on the cross and his burial.</p>
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<img alt="A priest extinguishes a candle." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=553&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=553&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=553&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=695&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=695&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584205/original/file-20240325-9980-x5ion5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=695&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A symbolic darkening.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/paullew/25389408003/in/photolist-EFzmrR-qYG4Vv-rsNXi9-rD326R-qYJtLH-rCVpZw-rCVwuq-rBaqre-rD2YZB-rCU4QJ-rVq5Li-rBaCTZ-rVnevu-rVnbds-rVn54J-rCVt5u-rCU9Bh-qYutdC-qYGikB-rVpYFH-rVpZK6-9XFueb-rVuA3a-6dSFu4-rCUe3m-qYuwAu-rVuvSM-EFzmxT-SxBjRf-rCuHh7-7qWKHW-e6w8nR-7QK7Y4-e6FJya-rVsi1e-TNcwt5-5rUMHg-9AJeZS-TNcwqu-7Q8vmN-7QNq9G-4zM5yA-buGoW5-ngK9DK-ngK8v2-2gC1u1M-rUWund-rUZgjH-qYgu1p-nivvzB">Lawrence OP|Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
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<p>Among the lesser known rituals of this pre-Easter period is an ancient exploration of darkness itself, known as <em>tenebrae</em>. Originally, this service took place late at night or early in the morning on the last three days of Holy Week, leading up to Holy Saturday (the day before Easter Sunday).</p>
<p>For at least 1,200 years, the defining feature of tenebrae services has been the gradual <a href="https://alcuinclub.org.uk/product/175/">extinguishing of lights</a>. Enclosed in an increasingly darkened church, worshippers are reminded of the three days Jesus spent in the tomb following his death. </p>
<p>My research <a href="https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/humanities/departments/music/research/research-projects/music-in-the-shadows.aspx">shows</a> that in the past it was actually quite common for worshippers to attend church in the middle of the night. Before electric light, sunset forced most daily activities to cease. Long winter nights afforded plenty of time both to sleep and to pray. </p>
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<img alt="A black and white nitrate negative image of a church service in 1941." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584196/original/file-20240325-20-uwswqc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A tenebrae service on Spy Wednesday at the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem in 1941.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.loc.gov/resource/matpc.21011/">Matson photograph collection|LOC</a></span>
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<h2>Darker than dark</h2>
<p>Since medieval times, the tenebrae ritual has had the feel of a funeral. It features <a href="https://archive.org/details/liberusualismiss00cath/page/302/mode/2up?view=theater">dirge-like chanting</a>, <a href="https://www.liturgies.net/Lent/Tenebrae.htm">doleful texts</a> and a pointed avoidance of ornament. </p>
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<img alt="A large standing candelabra." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=947&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=947&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=947&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1190&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1190&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/584194/original/file-20240325-28-8pnz7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1190&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Antoni Gaudi’s tenebrae hearse.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:(Barcelona)_Tenebrae_Candelabra_-_Antoni_Gaud%C3%AD_-_Museums_of_the_Sagrada_Fam%C3%ADlia.jpg">Didier Descouens|Wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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<p>The Latin verb <em>tenebrare</em> means “to darken” and this is probably the origin of the ritual’s name. A symbolic number of candles or lamps – historically this varied between five and 72, but is now most often 15 – is lit at the beginning of the service, and then, for each successive chant, reading or verse, one light is extinguished. </p>
<p>These are often placed on what is known as a “hearse” – a triangular or pyramidal frame that would also be placed above a coffin or tomb. (Only in the 17th century would this word be borrowed to describe a funeral vehicle.) By the end of the service, a single light remains, barely enough to see by. </p>
<p>The effect is hugely dramatic. There have been different interpretations of the ritual through the ages.</p>
<p>In his ninth-century commentary <a href="https://documentacatholicaomnia.eu/04z/z_0776-0852__Symphosius_Amalarius__Liber_De_Ordine_Antiphonarii__MLT.pdf.html">On the Ordering of the Antiphoner</a>, the Frankish bishop Amalar of Metz understood the extinguishing of candles to represent the “the extinction of joy” brought about by Jesus’s crucifixion. Others saw a representation of the biblical figures and saints who had died bearing witness to this story, or a depiction of the waning light of Jesus the metaphorical sun.</p>
<p>Art objects have also provided layers of meaning. Standing some 25 feet tall, the giant <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/75710752@N04/8758144549">16th-century tenebrae candelabra</a> of Seville Cathedral is comprised of a metal hearse topped with 15 candles and as many carved figures.</p>
<p>As each candle is extinguished, a person seems to disappear, as if the faith of Christians is draining away. Similar objects are found in many Catholic churches, including the one designed by Antoni Gaudi for the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. </p>
<p>Some medieval churches used a hand-shaped snuffer made of wax to put out the candles. Signifying the hand of Judas, this underlined the theme of betrayal.</p>
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<p>At the end of tenebrae, the final light is customarily hidden. In the eery, disorienting darkness that ensues, there is a long tradition of a loud sudden noise being made. This bang or clatter is known as the <em>strepitus</em>. People <a href="https://forum.musicasacra.com/forum/discussion/282/tenebrae-best-ways-to-make-the-strepitus/">might</a> slam a door, bang a book, stamp their feet or use percussive instruments. </p>
<p>The strepitus is thought to represent the confusion or shock the disciples experienced after Jesus died, or the earthquake that followed the crucifixion. Like many aspects of ancient ritual, though, the strepitus was probably functional in origin.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/when-easter">By definition</a>, the days around Easter always enjoy the light of the moon. But finding your way out of an unlit church can be a struggle. It seems the original purpose of the sound, then, was to signal to the sacristan (the warden in charge of the church building and its contents) to reveal the hidden candle again, so that everyone could safely return home.</p>
<p>Inevitably, sometimes things got out of hand. In his Latin <a href="https://www.brepols.net/products/IS-9782503044033-1">commentary on the liturgy</a>, the 13th-century French bishop <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7312/thib14180">Guillaume Durand of Mende</a> described a form of tenebrae service that ended with shouting, wailing and a “commotion of the people” as congregants enacted both the disciples’ grief and the ironic cheers of Jesus’s enemies. One 19th-century author <a href="https://archive.org/details/ancientenglishho00feas/page/90/mode/2up">reported</a> a volley of musket-fire being used for the strepitus in Seville.</p>
<p>Today, the sounds of tenebrae are much more respectable. Performances by the eponymous, Grammy-nominated choir, Tenebrae, make a feature of candlelight and ancient church spaces. </p>
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<p>The ritual has also inspired countless famous classical works. The 16th-century English royal composer Thomas Tallis crafted a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de_OPTtfZdw">sensuous vocal setting</a> of tenebrae readings from the Old Testament’s Book of Lamentations. </p>
<p>In 1585, his younger Spanish contemporary Tomás Luis de Victoria published almost three hours’ worth of <a href="https://open.spotify.com/embed/album/4up2bNlUkQvQhPFAwsWhM1?utm_source=generator">tenebrae polyphony</a>. A more operatic style appears in François Couperin’s exquisitely anguished <a href="https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W7081_120622">Leçons de ténèbres</a>, composed around 1710.</p>
<p>More recent examples include Stravinsky’s angular and unrelenting <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RpOOgOeab0">Threni</a>, a concert work from 1958, and Poulenc’s lesser-known <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZCnnK7bvfc">Seven Tenebrae Responsories</a>, commissioned by Leonard Bernstein in 1961. </p>
<p>Among the many cherished settings of one medieval Tenebrae text, O vos omnes (a Latin adaptation of Lamentations 1:12-18), is a version by Spanish and Puerto Rican composer Pablo Casals. Written in 1932, it is still widely performed today. </p>
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<p>Casals was a <a href="https://www.paucasals.org/en/pablo-casals-and-the-united-nations/">peace activist</a> as well as a cellist. His simple, heartfelt strains transform <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Lamentations+1.18&version=NIV">the words of the prophet Jeremiah</a> into an impassioned plea for our troubled times: “Listen, all you peoples; look on my suffering.” </p>
<p>On Easter Sunday, many Christians will return from church having received a vital injection of hope for the world. But the tenebrae tradition, which some will also experience this week, has a useful role too. It helps us to come to terms with darkness in human history, and to find beauty even when it seems that hope itself is being extinguished.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226572/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Henry Parkes receives funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council. </span></em></p>The ancient tenebrae tradition brings churchgoers face to face with the darkest moments of the Christian story.Henry Parkes, Associate Professor, Department of Music, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2252122024-03-12T11:38:46Z2024-03-12T11:38:46ZThe ‘Curse of Ham’: how people of faith used a story in Genesis to justify slavery<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580842/original/file-20240310-28-s4o2j8.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=4%2C4%2C1587%2C1034&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">'The Drunkenness of Noah' by Giovanni Bellini.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drunkenness_of_Noah_bellini.jpg">Wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>According to a <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media/press-releases/church-commissioners-england-warmly-welcomes-oversight-groups-report">report by an independent oversight committee</a> released in March 2024, the Church of England should pay £1bn in reparations – 10 times the previously set amount – to the descendants of slavery.</p>
<p>The report was the start of a “multi-generational response to the appalling evil of transatlantic chattel enslavement”, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/04/church-of-england-told-to-boost-size-of-fund-to-address-legacy-of-slavery">said Justin Welby</a>, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion of about 85 million Christians.</p>
<p>His words summon the shocking spectacle of the 17th and 18th centuries, when the Church of England owned vast plantations in the Caribbean, chiefly in Barbados, employing thousands of slaves. Slavery was thought to be entirely consistent with the Christian message of bringing the Gospel to the “savages”. The Christian leaders even branded “their” slaves “SPG” – the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel.</p>
<h2>“Cursed be Canaan”</h2>
<p>The Anglican Church is not alone: all mainstream Christian denominations were deeply involved in the slave trade, as were the main branches of Islam.</p>
<p>How could this be possible? How had religions supposedly dedicated to propagating the word of a compassionate and loving God become so intricately involved in this “appalling evil”? The answer is rooted in a grotesque misuse of the very words of the Bible. Of the many ways that Christians have invoked the Bible to justify their actions, none has exceeded in cruelty and wilful ignorance their appropriation of the “Curse of Ham” to justify slavery.</p>
<p>Ham (no relation!) was the youngest son of the Biblical patriarch Noah. When Ham saw his father drunk and naked, Noah felt so humiliated that he put a curse on Ham’s son, Canaan, condemning his descendants to perpetual slavery. Here is the moment, as told in Genesis 9:24-25 (New King James Version):</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son [Ham] had done unto him. Then he said: ‘Cursed be Canaan. A servant of servants he shall be to his brethren’.”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>The making of a ‘slave race’</h2>
<p>Since the 15th century, religious leaders have cited the passage as the justification for the enslavement of <em>all</em> African people. For almost 500 years, priests taught their flocks that a Hebrew prophet had condemned millions of Africans to slavery <em>because</em> they were descended from Ham’s son Canaan. The curse of Ham thus formed the core religious justification for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. The curse of Ham entered Islamic thought in the 7th century, as a result of the influence of Christianity, and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Curse-Ham-Slavery-Christianity-Christians/dp/0691123705">medieval Muslim scholars drew on Noah’s curse in their work</a>, as the historian David M. Goldenberg has shown. The Koran, however, makes no mention of the curse and Muhummad’s Farewell Address <a href="https://theconversation.com/islams-anti-racist-message-from-the-7th-century-still-resonates-today-141575">rejects the superiority of white people over black people</a>.</p>
<p>According to this reading of Genesis, God had not only mandated slavery, he had also <em>predestined</em> black people as a “slave race”. In fact, some Christian leaders argued that it was in the Africans’ interests to be enslaved, because their captivity would hasten their conversion, purifying and redeeming their souls in readiness for Judgement Day.</p>
<p>By manacling and herding millions of Africans onto ships bound for the colonies, slave traders and their enabling church leaders and governments had persuaded themselves that they were guiding the “Negroes” out of darkness and into salvation.</p>
<p>The historian Katie Cannon <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/20487919">described the process another way</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Drunk with power and driven by grand delusions, government officials and officers of slave-trading companies… succumbed to the lies and manipulations that their soul salvation depended on the ceaseless replication of systemic violence.”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>The justification for African slavery in America</h2>
<p>The first written use of the Curse of Ham to justify slavery appeared in the 15th century, when <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2953315">Gomes Eanes de Zurara</a>, a Portuguese historian, wrote that the enchained Africans he’d seen were in such a wretched state “because of the curse which, after the Deluge, Noah laid upon [Ham]… that his race should be subject to all the other races of the world”.</p>
<p>In 1627, an English author and defender of the slave trade wrote:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“This curse to be a servant was laid, first upon a disobedient sonne Cham [Ham], and wee see to this day, that the Moores, Chams posteritie, are sold like slaves yet.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In the American colonies the Curse of Ham served as <em>the</em> ideological justification for African slavery. The Puritan colonisers of the New World bought slaves in large numbers to turn Providence, Rhode Island, into a Christian “city on a hill”. All were deemed the progeny of Canaan.</p>
<p>The moral obscenity of slavery was the root cause of the American Civil War (1861–1865). Both sides enrolled God’s authority in their cause. In the south this involved a literal reading of the Curse of Ham. Sulphuric southern preachers thundered that Noah’s condemnation of Canaan had condemned all Africans to slavery. An “almost universal opinion in the Christian world” held that “the sufferings and the slavery of the Negro race were the consequence of the curse of Noah”, asserted <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alexander-Crummell">Alexander Crummell</a> (1819–1898), an African-American minister and Cambridge-educated academic, in 1862.</p>
<p>Benjamin M. Palmer (1818–1902), pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in New Orleans and Mississippi’s pre-eminent clergyman during the Civil War, raged in sermon after sermon that Noah’s curse was a prophetic blueprint of the destinies of the “white”, “black” and “red” races. While the white descendants of Shem and Japhet (Noah’s elder sons) would flourish and succeed, Palmer asserted that “[u]pon Ham was pronounced the doom of perpetual servitude…”.</p>
<h2>An important reference in the Civil War</h2>
<p>In the opening months of the Civil War, bigotry and rank superstition blanketed the south with a Biblical defence of slavery. Southern Catholics also eagerly cited the curse as a validation of slavery. On 21 August 1861, Bishop Augustus Marie Martin of Natchitoches, Louisiana, declared in a pastoral letter, <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/church-history/article/abs/though-their-skin-remains-brown-i-hope-their-souls-will-soon-be-white-slavery-french-missionaries-and-the-roman-catholic-priesthood-in-the-american-south-178918651/7E167009CBB9C2C2C41BAA756BA9D987">“On the occasion of the war of southern independence”</a>, that slavery was “the manifest will of God”, and that all Catholics must snatch “from the barbarity of their ferocious customs thousands of children of the race of Canaan”, the accursed progeny of Ham.</p>
<p>All this was Biblical balm to slave traders and owners who feared for the salvation of their souls. The religious justification of slavery erased those concerns.</p>
<p>Setting aside the theologians’ misuse of Genesis, even on its own terms the Curse of Ham made a vague and unpersuasive case for slavery. Nowhere in Genesis is there a curse on Africans or black-skinned people.</p>
<p>If slave traders needed an explicit Biblical endorsement of slavery, they might have turned to the New Testament, where we find Saint Peter telling slaves to “be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh”. Or Saint Paul, who urged slaves to “be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling”.</p>
<h2>Come abolitionism</h2>
<p>Abolitionists were not silent in the face of this grotesque rendering of Christendom’s most sacred text. In a <a href="https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/teagle/texts/frederick-douglass-fifth-of-july-speech-1852/">5 July 1852 speech</a>, Frederick Douglass, the great anti-slavery activist and politician who had himself escaped his “owner”, delivered this response to those who peddled the Curse of Ham from their pulpits:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“[The] church of this country is not only indifferent to the wrongs of the slave, it actually takes sides with the oppressors. It has made itself the bulwark of American slavery, and the shield of American slave-hunters… They have taught that man may, properly, be a slave; that the relation of master and slave is ordained of God…”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And all based on a misinterpretation of Genesis 9:24-25 by the pro-slavery “Divines”, who thus transformed their religion into an engine of tyranny and barbarous cruelty. It was a sham and a lie, and anything but what Christianity was held to stand for.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225212/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Ham ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>For nearly 500 years, priests and imams justified slavery on the basis of a misunderstood passage of the Bible.Paul Ham, Lecturer in narrative history, Sciences Po Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2225642024-02-19T17:10:05Z2024-02-19T17:10:05ZHow modern vendettas compare with blood vengeance in the age of King David<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572876/original/file-20240201-23-tiyvdp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=9%2C18%2C1013%2C818&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The King David by Matthias Stomer (circa 1633-1639).</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://musees.marseille.fr/musee-des-beaux-arts-mba">Musee des Beaux-Arts de Marseille</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>This article includes reference to the killing of an Aboriginal Australian.</em></p>
<p>The English language has borrowed an Italian word, <em>vendetta</em>, to refer to a family blood-feud. Thanks in part to <a href="https://books.google.ie/books?id=jKqoZyCjTD0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=Hollywood+the+mafia&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=vendetta&f=false">Hollywood’s long fascination with the mafia</a>, family-based retributive violence continues to be strongly associated in western culture with parts of Italy and the Italian-American diaspora. </p>
<p>Yet a <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/09636412.2023.2153731?needAccess=true">growing body of research</a>, is making it clear that kin-based blood vengeance isn’t just found in films. It is surprisingly prevalent in the real world, found commonly in approximately 30% of countries, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/09636412.2023.2153731?needAccess=true">including</a> almost a third of countries in Asia-Pacific and Europe (notably the Balkan region), and almost half of countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and north Africa. </p>
<p>Given that western religions originated in the Middle East and are still prevalent there, and given the dependence of Judaism, Christianity and even <a href="https://www.academia.edu/29248508/The_Hebrew_Bible_in_Islam_in_THE_CAMBRIDGE_COMPANION_TO_THE_HEBREW_BIBLE_OLD_TESTAMENT">Islam</a> on the Hebrew Bible, it is important to understand how the Bible conceptualises blood vengeance.</p>
<p>In this ancient canon of western religion, there is <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2035&version=NIV">clear evidence</a> of legal mechanisms regulating the avenging of illegitimate bloodshed by kinsmen. However, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/king-david-innocent-blood-and-bloodguilt-9780198842200">my research</a> on King David in the books of Samuel and 1 Kings shows how the Bible offers a glimpse of the ancient dynamics of blood-guilt and blood vengeance in practice, rather than merely in theory.</p>
<h2>Bad blood</h2>
<p>Recent research has drawn attention to the role that blood vengeance sometimes plays in <a href="https://mwi.westpoint.edu/an-eye-for-an-eye-the-dynamics-of-blood-revenge-in-civil-war/">modern civil wars</a> – shaping patterns of violence, but also restraint. </p>
<p>Civil wars feature prominently in David’s own story, which begins with the slaying of the famous Philistine giant Goliath and then charts his rise to the throne of Israel and Judah, and the blood-soaked struggle to succeed him. It is against this backdrop that blood vengeance is often played out. The theme recurs regularly as King David first struggles to defeat Saul, his rival from the tribe of Benjamin, and later puts down an armed insurrection by his own son Absalom.</p>
<p>In the modern era, blood vengeance can sometimes be exercised long after the original killing. <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/26605348_Collective_Memory_and_Blood_Feud_The_Case_of_Mountainous_Crete">In one case</a> in rural Crete, a 25-year-old avenged his uncle who was murdered in 1958 by killing a distant relative of the murderer almost half a century later, in 2005. </p>
<p>So too in the ancient stories about David, we read of a minority community (the Gibeonites) being permitted to execute <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Samuel+21%3A1-14&version=ESV">blood vengeance against the descendants of the deceased Saul</a>, for Saul’s earlier illegitimate killing of their kinsmen.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Saul and David by Rembrandt (1650)." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=602&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=602&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572882/original/file-20240201-25-9wbv50.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=602&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Saul and David by Rembrandt (1650).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saul_and_David_by_Rembrandt_Mauritshuis_621.jpg">Mauritshuis</a></span>
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<p>Whether blood revenge is required against the perpetrators or their relatives, the prospect of it can lead those vulnerable to vengeance to flee the threat of retributive violence. </p>
<p>In 2010, after an Aboriginal man in Australia <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-09-28/family-wants-tribal-punishment-for-mans-death/2276798">killed a fellow tribesman</a> in his village, the entire family of the killer fled to Adelaide to avoid the “payback” required by tribal law. </p>
<p>Similarly, when David’s son <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Samuel+13%3A23-39&version=ESV">Absalom murders his half-brother Amnon</a> and flees the scene of the crime, he too seems to be motivated by his desire to escape blood vengeance. This best explains why Absalom ends up in Geshur, an ancient city beyond the jurisdiction of his father, King David. </p>
<h2>The fear factor</h2>
<p>While blood vengeance may spiral into a cycle of violence, <a href="https://przekroj.org/en/art-stories/blood-for-blood/">research among modern Chechen communities</a> in Russia, suggests that it can also discourage violence and reduce the risk of escalation. </p>
<p>This deterrent effect may be seen at various points within stories about King David. In a <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Samuel%2025&version=ESV">crucial episode in David’s rise to the throne</a>, he is insulted by Nabal, a powerful chieftain of the Carmel region of Israel.</p>
<p>When David swears to repay this offence by killing Nabal and the males of his household and sets out to make good on his promise, Nabal’s wife, Abigail, intervenes on his (and her own) behalf. In appealing to David, she warns him that killing Nabal for this insult, however egregious, would be unwarranted. </p>
<p>She insists that the reason David should refrain from illegitimately killing Nabal is that to do so would invite “bloodguilt” (in Hebrew, literally “bloods”) on himself. This would, crucially, have damaged his prospects of eventually attaining the crown. </p>
<p>When David spares Nabal’s life, he does so because he fears the consequences of “bloodguilt” which almost certainly included blood vengeance. This deterrent is also seen later in the David stories, when he refuses to kill a kinsman of his old enemy, Saul, even after the man curses him.</p>
<p>From these and other examples, it is clear that anxiety about innocent blood and the consequences of shedding it profoundly animate the stories of King David in the ancient books of Samuel and 1 Kings. While the phenomenon of blood vengeance remains a feature of the modern world, to fully understand it, we must first seek to understand its debt to antiquity. </p>
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<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Shepherd does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Given the dependence of Judaism, Christianity and even Islam on the Hebrew Bible, it is important to understand how the Bible depicts blood vengeance.David Shepherd, Professor in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Trinity College DublinLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2128552024-01-04T13:45:22Z2024-01-04T13:45:22ZSeeing the human in every patient − from biblical texts to 21st century relational medicine<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564308/original/file-20231207-19-2ew23e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=9%2C3%2C2108%2C1406&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Making patients feel seen and heard -- not just "treated."</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/clinical-doctor-giving-test-results-to-patients-royalty-free-image/1062186846?phrase=doctor+patient&searchscope=image%2Cfilm&adppopup=true">Tom Werner/Digital Vision via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Patients frequently describe the U.S. health care system as impersonal, corporate and fragmented. One study even called <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/archinte.168.17.1843">the care delivered to many vulnerable patients</a> “inhumane.” Seismic changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic – particularly the shift to telehealth – only exacerbated that feeling.</p>
<p>In response, many health systems now emphasize “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jradnu.2023.02.005">relational medicine</a>”: care that purports to center on the patient as a human being. Physician <a href="https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/people/112358510-ronald-mark-epstein">Ronald Epstein</a> and health communication researcher <a href="https://liberalarts.tamu.edu/communication/profile/richard-l-street-jr/">Richard Street</a> describe “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1370/afm.1239">patient-centered care</a>” as advocating “deep respect for patients as unique living beings, and the obligation to care for them on their terms.”</p>
<p>In 15 years as <a href="https://www.religiousstudies.pitt.edu/people/jonathan-weinkle-md-faap-facp">a primary care physician</a>, I have seen the effects of dehumanizing medical care – and the difference it makes when a patient feels they are being respected, not just “treated.” </p>
<p>Though “relational medicine” may be a relatively new phrase, the basic idea is not. Seeing each person before you as someone of infinite value is fundamental to many faiths’ beliefs about medical ethics. In my own tradition, Judaism, “person-centered care” has roots in <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.1.28?lang=bi&aliyot=0">the biblical Book of Genesis</a>, where the creation story teaches that “God created the Human in God’s own image.” As <a href="https://www.chatham.edu/academics/graduate/physician-assistant-studies/faculty/jonathan-weinkle.html">a medical educator,</a> I teach students how to turn these abstract ideas into concrete clinical skills.</p>
<h2>Divine dignity</h2>
<p>Traditional Jewish law sets rules that shape my understanding of these skills. As the influential French sage Rashi wrote in an 11th century commentary on the Bible, <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Leviticus.19.16?lang=bi&aliyot=0&p2=Rashi_on_Leviticus.19.17.1&lang2=bi&w2=all&lang3=en">it is forbidden to publicly embarrass a person</a> “so that their face turns white,” even while rebuking them. For doctors today, this might mean taking care not to <a href="https://doi.org/10.2337/diaclin.34.1.44">inflict shame on a person with a stigmatized illness</a> like substance use <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-does-weight-inclusive-health-care-mean-a-dietitian-explains-what-some-providers-are-doing-to-end-weight-stigma-207710">or obesity</a>.</p>
<p>The Bible <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Exodus.22.24?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en">forbids wronging</a> <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Bava_Metzia.60a.1?lang=en&with=all&lang2=en">or abusing strangers</a> not once, not twice, but 36 times – a reminder not to “other” people or obscure their basic humanity. A similar value appears in the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/44449883">18th century Physician’s Prayer</a>, written by the German-Jewish physician Marcus Hertz, who states, “In the sufferer, let me see only the human being.”</p>
<p>American Rabbi <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/26/us/harold-m-schulweis-progressive-rabbi-is-dead-at-89.html">Harold Schulweis</a> used the concept of “covenant” – a holy, mutual agreement – as <a href="https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/catalog/1859917">a model for the bond between physician and patient</a>, working toward a common goal. This idea inspired my own book, “<a href="https://healthylearning.com/healing-people-not-patients-creating-authentic-relationships-in-modern-healthcare-1/">Healing People, Not Patients</a>.”</p>
<p>Similar connections between medicine, respect and religion are found in other traditions, as well. A 1981 <a href="https://www.encyclopedia.com/science/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/islamic-code-medical-ethics-kuwait-document">Islamic code of medical ethics</a>, for instance, considers the patient the leader of the medical team. The doctor exists “for the sake of the patient … not the other way round,” it reminds practitioners. “The ‘patient’ is master, and the ‘Doctor’ is at his service.” </p>
<h2>Seeing and hearing the whole patient</h2>
<p>In undergraduate classes that I teach for future health professionals at the University of Pittsburgh, we focus on communication skills to foster dignified care, such as setting a shared agenda with a patient to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2005.40266.x">align their goals and the provider’s</a>. Students <a href="https://www.matthewsbooks.com/productdetail.aspx?pid=6221TRZ8106&close=false">also read “Compassionomics</a>,” by medical researchers <a href="https://preprofessionalstudies.nd.edu/people/stephen-trzeciak/">Stephen Trzeciak</a> and <a href="https://cmsru.rowan.edu/faculty-profiles/emergency-medicine/teaching-faculty/mazzarelli-anthony.html">Anthony Mazzarelli</a>, which aggregates the data showing caring’s impact on the well-being of patients and providers alike.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman in a white medical coat leans forward, seated, as she talks seriously with a seated boy in a green t-shirt." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564321/original/file-20231207-17-v5t2n4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Respectful care isn’t just ‘nice’ – it’s more effective.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/smiling-doctor-talking-to-boy-in-exam-room-royalty-free-image/1293518268?phrase=doctor+patient&searchscope=image%2Cfilm&adppopup=true">The Good Brigade/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>However, even health professionals steeped in these practices can encounter people whose humanity they struggle to see. Students wrestle with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM197804202981605">a classic article about “the hateful patient</a>” and practice an exercise called <a href="https://doi.org/10.7326/M13-0995">the “second sentence</a>.” This asks providers to look beyond their first impressions of a patient they might have trouble treating with compassion, imagining a “second sentence” that humanizes the person in front of them.</p>
<p>The course evaluation is based on a project in which students interview a friend, relative or neighbor about their experience of illness and care. Ultimately, they identify one element of the person’s care that could have been improved by attending more to the person’s individual needs and listening to their story. </p>
<p>One student recounted her brother’s experience after he suffered a serious sports injury. The trauma team followed protocol precisely, but this meant that they did not register him screaming in pain, telling them that what they were doing was making him feel worse. Only in the hospital did doctors discover that those screams were a clue to a specific injury that should have received radically different care in the field, which could have been caught earlier had the team attended more closely to his words. His sister explored the medical literature on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074019862680">when EMS needs to break its own rules</a> to care for a complex patient, and she suggested her own mnemonic – stop-ask-listen-evaluate (SALE) – for how to make “breaking protocol” one of the options in the protocol itself.</p>
<p>Another student related his father’s experience living with chronic illness. His condition frequently deteriorated because of delays in refilling medicine through his regular physician’s office. This student pointed to medical literature detailing how pharmacists can be given greater authority to refill medications for chronic diseases, preventing gaps in treatment, which would have saved his father significant hardship.</p>
<h2>Listening with both ears</h2>
<p>Down the road at Chatham University, I work with physician assistant students who are about to enter clinic for the first time. These students complete a workshop including many of the same communication exercises, including “listening with both ears”: listening not only to the patient, but also to what they themselves say to the patient, considering how it will be received. Students are encouraged to go home and practice until the words feel natural in their mouths, not scripted or mechanical – just like they drill anatomy facts and suturing skills.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Six young adults sit at a conference table, some of them in scrubs, as a doctor in a white coat leads a discussion." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564312/original/file-20231207-17-53rp14.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Part of a doctor’s responsibility is translating respect for patients into concrete techniques.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/female-doctor-teaching-nursing-students-royalty-free-image/1387152896?phrase=medical+student+clinic&searchscope=image%2Cfilm&adppopup=true">FatCamera/E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>After their clinical year, the students return to reflect. Many of them report using patient-centered skills in challenging situations, such as validating patients’ concerns that had previously been dismissed.</p>
<p>Yet they also report a work culture where effective communication is often seen as taking too much time or as a low priority. Sixty years ago, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel and psychiatrist William C. Menninger <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.1964.03070010087041">presented on The Patient as a Person</a> to the American Medical Association. Heschel declared that the profession was suffering from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11017-018-9472-x">a “spiritual malaria</a>,” his term for precisely the “high-tech, low-touch” attitude that my students encounter. The emphasis on technology and a rapid pace of treatment leaves scant room for caring, whether in Heschel’s day or ours.</p>
<p>In both programs where I teach, I aim to provide new practitioners with tangible skills that their future patients will experience as real “whole-person care” and not just a slogan on a commercial. Those patients will know that the people caring for them value all of them – their livelihoods, their life stories and the worlds they inhabit.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212855/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Weinkle is affiliated with American College of Physicians and American Academy of Pediatrics.</span></em></p>The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on how fragmented medical care can be. Relational, or person-centered, medicine is attempting to provide solutions.Jonathan Weinkle, Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine and Part-Time Instructor of Religious Studies, University of PittsburghLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2148492023-12-18T19:09:41Z2023-12-18T19:09:41ZWho wrote the Bible?<p>The Bible tells an overall story about the history of the world: creation, fall, redemption and God’s Last Judgement of the living and the dead.</p>
<p>The Old Testament (which dates to 300 BCE) begins with the creation of the world and of Adam and Eve, their disobedience to God and their expulsion from the garden of Eden. </p>
<p>The New Testament recounts the redemption of humanity brought about by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. It finishes in the book of Revelation, with the end of history and God’s Last Judgement. </p>
<p>During the first 400 years of Christianity, the church took its time deciding on the New Testament. Finally, in 367 CE, authorities confirmed the 27 books that make it up.</p>
<p>But who wrote the Bible? </p>
<p>Broadly, there are four different theories.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566007/original/file-20231215-17-wovd4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Bible tells an overall story about the history of the world.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pixabay/Pexels</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>1. God wrote the Bible</h2>
<p>All Christians agree the Bible is authoritative. Many see it as the divinely revealed word of God. But there are significant disagreements about what this means. </p>
<p>At its most extreme, this is taken to mean the words themselves are divinely inspired – God dictated the Bible to its writers, who were merely God’s musicians playing a divine composition. </p>
<p>As early as the second century, the <a href="https://archive.org/details/fathersofchurch0000unse/page/382/mode/2up">Christian philosopher Justin Martyr saw it</a> as only necessary for holy men </p>
<blockquote>
<p>to submit their purified persons to the direction of the Holy Spirit, so that this divine plectrum from Heaven, as it were, by using them as a harp or lyre, might reveal to us divine and celestial truths. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>In other words, God dictated the words to the Biblical secretaries, who wrote everything down exactly. </p>
<p>This view continued with the medieval Catholic church. Catholic theologian Thomas Aquinas put it simply in the 13th century: “the author of Holy Writ is God”. He <a href="https://www.ccel.org/ccel/aquinas/summa.FP_Q1_A10.html">qualified this</a> by saying each word in Holy Writ could have several senses – in other words, it could be variously interpreted. </p>
<p>The religious reform movement known as Protestantism swept through Europe in the 1500s. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Reformation">A new group of churches formed</a> alongside the existing Catholic and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Eastern-Orthodoxy">Eastern Orthodox</a> traditions of Christianity. </p>
<p>Protestants emphasised the authority of “scripture alone” (“sola scriptura”), meaning the text of the Bible was the supreme authority over the church. This gave greater emphasis to the scriptures and the idea of “divine dictation” got more support. </p>
<p>So, for example, <a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924029273996&seq=254">Protestant reformer John Calvin declared</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>[we] are fully convinced that the prophets did not speak at their own suggestion, but that, being organs of the Holy Spirit, they only uttered what they had been commissioned from heaven to declare.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=891&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=891&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=891&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1120&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1120&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566013/original/file-20231215-27-3bk1hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1120&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Protestant reformer John Calvin believed in ‘divine dictation’.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“Divine dictation” was linked to the idea that the Bible was without error (inerrant) – because the words were dictated by God. </p>
<p>Generally, over the first 1,700 years of Christian history, this was assumed, if not argued for. But from the 18th century on, both history and science began to cast doubts on the truth of the Bible. And what had once been taken as fact came to be treated as myth and legend. </p>
<p>The impossibility of any sort of error in the scriptures became a doctrine at the forefront of the 20th-century movement known as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christian-fundamentalism">fundamentalism</a>. The <a href="https://www.apuritansmind.com/creeds-and-confessions/the-chicago-statement-on-biblical-inerrancy/">Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy in 1978</a> declared:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Being wholly and verbally God-given, Scripture is without error or fault in all its teaching, no less in what it states about God’s acts in creation, about the events of world history, and about its own literary origins under God, than in its witness to God’s saving grace in individual lives.</p>
</blockquote>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-bible-helped-shape-australian-culture-96265">How the Bible helped shape Australian culture</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>2. God inspired the writers: conservative</h2>
<p>An alternative to the theory of divine dictation is the divine inspiration of the writers. Here, both God and humans collaborated in the writing of the Bible. So, not the words, but the authors were inspired by God. </p>
<p>There are two versions of this theory, dating from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Reformation">Reformation</a>. The conservative version, favoured by Protestantism, was: though the Bible was written by humans, God was a dominant force in the partnership. </p>
<p>Protestants believed the sovereignty of God overruled human freedom. But even the Reformers, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Martin-Luther">Martin Luther</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Calvin">John Calvin</a>, recognised variation within the Biblical stories could be put down to human agency.</p>
<p>Catholics were more inclined to recognise human freedom above divine sovereignty. Some flirted with the idea human authorship was at play, with God only intervening to prevent mistakes. </p>
<p>For example, in 1625, <a href="https://archive.org/details/catholictheories0000burt/page/46/mode/2up">Jacques Bonfrère said</a> the Holy Spirit acts: “not by dictating or inbreathing, but as one keeps an eye on another while he is writing, to keep him from slipping into errors”.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566017/original/file-20231215-25-7tzwzc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Catholics were more inclined than Protestants to recognise human freedom above divine sovereignty.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pixabay/Pexels</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the early 1620s, the Archbishop of Split, Marcantonio de Dominis, went a little further. He distinguished between those parts of the Bible revealed to the writers by God and those that weren’t. In the latter, he believed, errors could occur. </p>
<p>His view was supported some 200 years later by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-John-Henry-Newman">John Henry Newman</a>, who led the Oxford movement in the Church of England and later became a cardinal (and then a saint) in the Roman Catholic Church.</p>
<p>Newman argued the divinely inspired books of the Bible were interspersed with human additions. In other words, the Bible was inspired in matters of faith and morals – but not, say, in matters of science and history. It was hard, at times, to distinguish this conservative view from “divine dictation”. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-the-quran-the-bible-and-homosexuality-in-islam-61012">Friday essay: The Qur’an, the Bible and homosexuality in Islam</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>3. God inspired the writers: liberal</h2>
<p>During the 19th century, in both Protestant and Catholic circles, the conservative theory was being overtaken by a more liberal view. The writers of the Bible were inspired by God, but <a href="https://archive.org/details/catholictheories0000burt/page/186/mode/2up">they were “children of their time”</a>, their writings determined by the cultural contexts in which they wrote. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=691&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=691&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=691&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=868&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=868&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566015/original/file-20231215-31-6sqtab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=868&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An 18th-century depiction from the gospels of Matthew and Mark.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This view, while recognising the special status of the Bible for Christians, allowed for errors. For example, in 1860 <a href="https://archive.org/details/a578549600unknuoft/page/n359/mode/2up?ref=ol&view=theater&q=inspir">the Anglican theologian Benjamin Jowett declared</a>: “any true doctrine of inspiration must conform to all well-ascertained facts of history or of science”.</p>
<p>For Jowett, to hold to the truth of the Bible against the discoveries of science or history was to do a disservice to religion. At times, though, it’s difficult to tell the difference between a liberal view of inspiration and there being no meaning to “inspiration” at all.</p>
<p>In 1868, a conservative Catholic church pushed back against the more liberal view, declaring God’s direct authorship of the Bible. The Council of the Church known as Vatican 1 <a href="https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum20.htm.">declared</a> both the Old and New Testaments were: “written under the inspiration of the holy Spirit, they have God as their author.”</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/in-spite-of-their-differences-jews-christians-and-muslims-worship-the-same-god-83102">In spite of their differences, Jews, Christians and Muslims worship the same God</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. People wrote it, with no divine help</h2>
<p>Within the most liberal Christian circles, by the end of the 19th century, the notion of the Bible as “divinely inspired” had lost any meaning. </p>
<p>Liberal Christians could join their secular colleagues in ignoring questions of the Bible’s historical or scientific accuracy or infallibility. The idea of the Bible as a human production was now accepted. And the question of who wrote it was now comparable to questions about the authorship of any other ancient text. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=258&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=258&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=258&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=325&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=325&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566001/original/file-20231215-17-ny9bcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=325&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Eve in the Garden of Eden.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Giuliano di Piero di Simone Bugiardini/Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The simple answer to “who wrote the Bible?” became: the authors named in the Bible (for example, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – the authors of the four Gospels). But the idea of the Bible’s authorship is complex and problematic. (So are historical studies of ancient texts more generally.)</p>
<p>This is partly because it’s hard to identify particular authors. </p>
<p>The content of the 39 books of the Old Testament is the same as the 24 books of the Jewish <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hebrew-Bible">Hebrew Bible</a>. Within modern Old Testament studies, it’s now generally accepted that the books were not the production of a single author, but the result of long and changing histories of the stories’ transmission. </p>
<p>The question of authorship, then, is not about an individual writer, but multiple authors, editors, scribes and redactors – along with multiple different versions of the texts. </p>
<p>It’s much the same with the New Testament. While 13 Letters are attributed to <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Paul-the-Apostle">Saint Paul</a>, there are doubts about his authorship of seven of them (Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, and Hebrews). There are also disputes over the traditional authorship of a number of the remaining Letters. The book of Revelation was traditionally ascribed to Jesus’s disciple John. But it is now generally agreed he was not its author. </p>
<p>Traditionally, the authors of the four <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Gospel-New-Testament">Gospels</a> were thought to be the apostles Matthew and John, Mark (the companion of Jesus’s disciple Peter), and Luke (the companion of Paul, who spread Christianity to the Greco-Roman world in the first century). But the anonymously written Gospels weren’t attributed to these figures until the second and third centuries. </p>
<p>The dates of the Gospels’ creation also suggests they were not written by eyewitnesses to Jesus’s life. The earliest Gospel, Mark (65-70 CE) was written some 30 years after the death of Jesus (from 29-34 CE). The last Gospel, John (90-100 CE) was written some 60-90 years after the death of Jesus. </p>
<p>It’s clear the author of the Gospel of Mark drew on traditions circulating in the early church about the life and teaching of Jesus and brought them together in the form of ancient biography. </p>
<p>In turn, the Gospel of Mark served as the principal source for the authors of Matthew and Luke. Each of these authors had access to a common source (known as “Q”) of the sayings of Jesus, along with material unique to each of them. </p>
<p>In short, there were many (unknown) authors of the Gospels.</p>
<p>Interestingly, another group of texts, known as the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/apocrypha">Apocrypha</a>, were written during the time between the Old and New Testaments (400 BCE to the first century CE). The Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Christian traditions consider them part of the Bible, but Protestant churches don’t consider them authoritative.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/5-things-to-know-about-the-traditional-christian-doctrine-of-hell-119380">5 things to know about the traditional Christian doctrine of hell</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Divine or human: why does it matter?</h2>
<p>The question of who wrote the Bible matters because the Christian quarter of the world’s population believe the Bible is a not merely a human production. </p>
<p>Divinely inspired, it has a transcendent significance. As such, it provides for Christians an ultimate understanding of how the world is, what history means and how human life should be lived. </p>
<p>It matters because the Biblical worldview is the hidden (and often not-so-hidden) cause of economic, social and personal practices. It remains, as it has always been, a major source of both peace and conflict. </p>
<p>It matters, too, because the Bible remains the most important collection of books in Western civilisation. Regardless of our religious beliefs, it has formed, informed and shaped all of us – whether consciously or unconsciously, for good or ill.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214849/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Philip C. Almond does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Bible remains the most important collection of books in Western civilisation. Regardless of our religious beliefs, it has shaped all of us. But who wrote it? The answer is complicated.Philip C. Almond, Emeritus Professor in the History of Religious Thought, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2105392023-12-05T13:17:24Z2023-12-05T13:17:24ZHow sacred images in many Asian cultures incorporate divine presence and make them come ‘alive’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559865/original/file-20231116-23-care6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C19%2C3264%2C2423&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A gilded statue of the Buddha at Wat Phanan Choeng Temple in Thailand.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/wat-phanan-choeng-temple-this-highly-respected-royalty-free-image/1217280251?phrase=eye-opening+Buddhist+ritual&searchscope=image%2Cfilm&adppopup=true">Kittipong Chararoj/ iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Walking into a favorite restaurant here in Knoxville, Tennessee, I was immediately greeted by a golden statue of Buddha, its sparkling gemstone eyes meeting my own as I made my way through the door. The aromas of Thai curries beckoned, but as I was led to a table, I kept thinking about those glinting eyes.</p>
<p>Sacred objects are everywhere: Statues and paintings of gods fill museum galleries and catalog pages alike. You might also see them gracing a neighbor’s yard or upon an altar in your friend’s home.</p>
<p>Some dazzle in bejeweled splendor. Others may appear more humble, their luster softened through generations of hands passing them down. Oftentimes, it can feel as though sacred images are looking back.</p>
<p>I <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/michael-naparstek-1457307">research the ways in which objects express the power of divine presence</a> in Asian religious contexts. Studying different perspectives on sacred objects helps us think beyond religious contexts and allows us to rethink how objects and images play an active role in our lives.</p>
<h2>Sacred visual culture</h2>
<p>Hindu practice is defined by “<a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/darshan">darśan” – a ritual act of interacting with the divine</a> through the visual experience. Scholar <a href="https://scholar.harvard.edu/dianaeck/home">Diana Eck</a> describes this interaction in her seminal study of Indian visual culture, “<a href="https://cup.columbia.edu/book/darsan/9780231112659">Darśan</a>,” in the following way: “to stand in the presence of the deity and to behold the image with one’s own eyes, to see and be seen by the deity.”</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A couple, with a young child in the woman's lap, sitting before the Hindu God Ganesha, with folded hands." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559867/original/file-20231116-17-nxv3h6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A family prays to the Hindu god Ganesha.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/family-praying-royalty-free-image/548295807?phrase=hindu+worship&adppopup=true">IndiaPix/IndiaPicture via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-theravada-buddhism-a-scholar-of-asian-religions-explains-205737">Theravada Buddhist</a> rituals in Southeast Asia include all-night chanting sessions to recharge statues’ power. As scholar of Theravada Buddhism <a href="https://www.swarthmore.edu/Humanities/dsweare1/">Donald Swearer</a> notes in “<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691114354/becoming-the-buddha">Becoming the Buddha</a>,” monastics and laypeople in northern Thailand will gather to recite Buddhist sutras while holding cords attached to an image of the Buddha, forming an intricate web of connection between the image and the Buddhist community. </p>
<p>The benefits gained from these chants is understood to enter the statue, recharging its karmic power and reanimating it to once again interact with the community.</p>
<p><a href="https://asiasociety.org/education/buddhism-japan">Japanese Buddhist</a> statues <a href="https://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/fellows-book/behold-the-buddha-religious-meanings-of-japanese-buddhist-icons/">contain multiple items ritually placed</a> within their wooden cavities: bones of saints, robes from eminent monastics and even silk-fashioned replicas of visceral organs like lungs and kidneys. As art historian <a href="https://oberlin.academia.edu/JamesDobbins">James Dobbins</a> notes, certain Buddhist rituals are performed in order to transform the body of a statue into a living body. </p>
<p>In cases like this, inanimate objects are believed to transform into not only sacred things, but also active, living beings who can see, hear, taste and respond to the concerns of those who worship them.</p>
<h2>‘Eye-opening’ ritual</h2>
<p>There are many different ways to enliven an image, and each ritual tradition carries its own unique process. However, the most well-known across Asia is commonly referred to as the “<a href="https://pluralism.org/news/eye-opening-ceremony-buddhist-statues-draws-hundreds-connecticut">eye-opening” ceremony</a>. The term “eye-opening” gets its name from the culmination of an intense ritual process wherein the monk paints in the pupils of the image, thus opening its eye to see. </p>
<p>In Sri Lanka, Buddhist monks perform a version known as the netra-pinkama, which loosely translates to “meritorious action of the eyes.” </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gt5jY93AD2w?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The netra-pinkama ritual.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/research/research-in-conversation/how-live-happy-life/professor-richard-gombrich#:%7E:text=Richard%20Gombrich%20is%20the%20Emeritus,of%20the%20Clay%20Sanskrit%20Library.">Richard Gombrich</a>, a scholar of Buddhism and Sanskrit, <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/2051829">noted in his study of Buddhism in Sri Lanka</a> that “Before consecration, a statue is treated with no more respect than one would give the materials of which it is composed. … The very act of consecration indicates that a statue is being brought to life.” </p>
<p>Enlivening an image is not a task undertaken lightly, as it is believed in some cases that any demonic spirits loitering around could interrupt the process, thereby resulting in an ineffective ritual or even a malevolent icon. Both the temple grounds and the ritual specialists must undergo purification rites before beginning. The whole process is filled with strict procedures and avoidance of taboos – a common theme among consecration rituals across Asian religious traditions. </p>
<p>Perhaps most importantly, the monk must refrain from looking directly into the icon’s eyes, and thus uses a mirror to look over their shoulder in order to paint in the icon’s pupils.</p>
<p>In Taiwan, statues and paintings of Buddhist, Daoist and local gods will undergo a similar kind of practice known as “kaiguang,” meaning “<a href="https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674504363">opening the radiance</a>.” Monks, Daoist masters and even the artists who carve the statues may perform the rite on behalf of the individuals or temple communities that commission the image.</p>
<p>Once completed, shops will wrap a piece of red paper around to cover the statue’s eyes to ensure that the first thing that the image sees is the face of the one who requested it. The power of sacred vision is such that it must literally be kept under wraps.</p>
<h2>Living images</h2>
<p>Once its eyes have been opened, the image becomes a living thing capable of performing powerful deeds. As such, people may behave much differently – making offerings of incense and taking pains to follow social etiquette lest they offend. The care with which these objects are treated once they have been “activated” suggests that there is a lot more here than meets the eye. </p>
<p>As <a href="https://cup.columbia.edu/book/darsan/9780231112659">Eck’s observation attests</a>, being seen is critical to understanding what images do. By seemingly looking back at us, sacred images remind us that we are not alone in this world. In so doing, they also send a message that the world is not there for our eyes only, but that other viewpoints are just as powerful as our own.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210539/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Naparstek does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Through the power of rituals, inanimate objects can be understood to transform into agents who can see, hear, taste and respond to the concerns of those who worship them.Michael Naparstek, Lecturer in Religious Studies, University of TennesseeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2178672023-11-28T13:24:00Z2023-11-28T13:24:00ZFaith communities are rallying to check climate change – their size and influence counts<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/561285/original/file-20231123-24-r04pmf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C960%2C632&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Green Anglicans at a Climate Justice March Cape Town. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), more <a href="https://www.unep.org/about-un-environment-programme/faith-earth-initiative/why-faith-and-environment-matters#:%7E:text=Spiritual%20values%20drive%20individual%20behaviours,political%20engagement%20and%20economic%20prosperity.">than 80%</a> of the global population are motivated by a faith or spirituality. Faced with the triple planetary crises of pollution, biodiversity loss and climate change, what role can faith communities play in saving the planet?</p>
<p>In a recent <a href="https://www.worldscientific.com/doi/10.1142/S2972312423500029">publication</a>, we looked at the role of two faith-based organisations – the Green Anglicans movement, which is present in 13 African countries, and UNEP’s <a href="https://www.unep.org/about-un-environment-programme/faith-earth-initiative/why-faith-and-environment-matters">Faith for Earth Initiative</a>, a UN programme which partners with faith-based organisations on development goals. Our aim was to find out what role faith and religion can play in addressing climate change both at the grassroots and within the UN.</p>
<p>Our paper sets out lessons learnt, challenges, and opportunities for local and global engagements. We found that churches can move from local action into advocacy. Particularly in Africa, faith leaders have status in the community and can speak out on issues. For instance, the Bishop of Namibia was one of the first to raise awareness of the threat of <a href="https://theconversation.com/oil-drilling-threatens-the-okavango-river-basin-putting-water-in-namibia-and-botswana-at-risk-209887">drilling</a> to the <a href="https://neweralive.na/posts/bishops-call-kavango-basin-drilling-a-sin">Okavango Delta</a> by Canadian company Recon Africa. </p>
<p>The Anglican Communion was one of many faith voices calling for <a href="https://theconversation.com/cop27-key-outcomes-progress-on-compensation-for-developing-countries-but-more-needed-on-climate-justice-and-equity-195017">loss and damage funding</a> at the <a href="https://anglicanalliance.org/the-anglican-communion-and-cop27/">COP27</a> climate change meeting.</p>
<p>Based on our findings we argue that faith communities have the potential to make a significant impact on climate action for the following reasons:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>they are accessible – to be found in every community </p></li>
<li><p>they are affordable, with existing structures and potential volunteers </p></li>
<li><p>they are acceptable, grounded in the local culture </p></li>
<li><p>they can bring hope – combating eco-anxiety and providing spiritual sustenance through <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neipUPkQZBA">spiritual practices</a>, as explained by <a href="https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/advisory-board/gopal-d-patel">Gopal Patel</a>, co-chair of UN Multi-faith Advisory Council. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>As a result, faith groups can facilitate behaviour change based on their spiritual teachings. They have the potential to reach their huge constituencies with environmental education and action.</p>
<h2>The actors</h2>
<p>The Green Anglicans movement has three aims: to connect faith to the environment, to inspire local actions and to encourage advocacy.</p>
<p>When faith is connected to the environment, it is often referred to as eco-theology, or “care for creation”, and this can be taught on a number of levels.</p>
<p>Starting with children, Green Anglicans developed a curriculum for Sunday school called <a href="https://www.greenanglicans.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/CARING-FOR-CREATION-RYAN-THE-RHINO.pdf">“Ryan the Rhino”</a> which links the Biblical story of creation with teachings about water, land, trees and climate change. </p>
<p>A recent online eco-theology course for clergy had speakers from 12 different African countries. Each week focused on the biblical response to issues such as deforestation, waste and climate change. The sessions featured both an activist and a theological response, linking theology and science. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-nigerias-religious-leaders-should-learn-more-about-climate-change-153983">Why Nigeria's religious leaders should learn more about climate change</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The Church of South India celebrates World Environment Day every year, providing sermons and prayers on the theme for the year.</p>
<p>A key development in eco-theology has been the growth of the global <a href="https://seasonofcreation.org/">“Season of Creation”</a>. Initiated by the Orthodox Church, the season has been embraced by many other churches as a month when preaching, prayers and action are focused on the environment. Local actions focus on issues such as reforestation, waste management, promotion of solar energy and water harvesting – underpinned by spiritual teaching. </p>
<p>For instance, bishops from many churches are now blessing tree saplings for confirmation or baptism as a symbol of spiritual growth. Anglican Archbishop Jackson Sapit of Kenya is one of the key leaders in forest protection and tree growing. This movement across the Anglican Communion is known as the <a href="https://www.communionforest.org/">Communion Forest</a>.</p>
<p>Another UNEP affiliated interfaith group, Greenfaith, recently released a report on the potential spiritual violation of the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline in <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/11/disturbing-graves-is-latest-violation-attributed-to-east-african-oil-pipeline/">disturbing graves</a>. </p>
<p>The Anglican Communion and Greenfaith are just two of the 85 faith based organisations that are now affiliated to the <a href="https://www.unep.org/about-un-environment/faith-earth-initiative">Faith for Earth Coalition</a>. This is an interfaith programme of the United Nations Environment Programme promoting faith leadership and faith-based organisations as custodians of key value based perspectives on environmental sustainability.</p>
<p>Launched six years ago, the coalition promotes dialogue and collaboration between faith-based organisations and the UN system. This year the faith communities will have a significant presence at COP28 in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December 2023. </p>
<p>UNEP and the Muslim Council of Elders, together with the COP28 Presidency, have formed a strategic partnership with faith-based organisations and civil society partners to host the first ever “Faith Pavilion”. Religious representatives and climate activists will be able to engage around innovative solutions to the climate crisis. Pope Francis, one of the global faith leaders who has been most active in challenging climate change, will be <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-11/pope-statement-dubai-visit-cop28.html">addressing</a> COP28.</p>
<p>We have all the scientific knowledge we require to halt climate change but the emissions curve is not yet bending downward. The barriers are no longer technical – we face moral challenges such as greed, selfishness and apathy. We need to reject an extractive world view that sees Nature as a resource to be exploited and embrace a spiritual transformation, recognising that we are profoundly connected with the web of life that sustains us. </p>
<p><strong>Rallying faith communities to check climate change</strong></p>
<p>Faith communities are already acting, but their actions are rarely documented. Successful faith programmes and best practices should be researched, so that they can quickly go to scale. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change should include more social science research, including a working group on changing human behaviour. Western agencies, often from countries where faith is not a significant part of civil society, should include faith groups in their strategic planning.</p>
<p>The window of opportunity is narrowing fast. Can faith communities be empowered to inspire their billions of members, helping to bring about the spiritual transformation that is needed to save the planet? </p>
<p>Can we reweave the ecological web of life?</p>
<p><em>Iyad Abumoghli of Faith for Earth Initiative, UNEP, contributed to this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217867/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rev Dr Rachel Mash is the secretary of the Anglican Communion Environmental Network and coordinator of Green Anglicans. She is affiliated with the “South African–German Research Hub on Religion and Sustainability” (SAGRaS). SAGRaS is a collaborative initiative of scholars and practitioners at different institutions within the framework of the International Network on Religious Communities and Sustainable Development (IN//RCSD).</span></em></p>Faith communities can use their influence and large following to fight climate change.Rachel Mash, Research Associate of the University of Pretoria, Faculty of Theology and Religion, Department Practical Theology and Mission Studies, University of PretoriaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2177202023-11-17T17:18:15Z2023-11-17T17:18:15ZEarthrise: historian uncovers the true origins of the ‘image of the century’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560179/original/file-20231117-24-a4qtm4.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=9%2C9%2C2035%2C1523&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The restored image of Earthrise. A high quality black and white image was coloured using hues from the original colour photos.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap181224.html">Image Credit: NASA, Apollo 8 Crew, Bill Anders; Processing and License: Jim Weigang</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The recent <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/nov/10/frank-borman-commander-first-apollo-moon-mission-dies-aged-95">death of Frank Borman</a>, commander of Nasa’s <a href="https://nasa.gov/missions/apollo/apollo-8-mission-details/">Apollo 8 mission in 1968</a>, has focused attention on that incredible first voyage to the Moon. </p>
<p>It took place eight months before <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/mission/apollo-11/">Apollo 11</a>, where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin explored the lunar surface for the first time. However, the impact of Apollo 8’s “Earthrise” picture – the sight of the Earth from the Moon – now seems even greater than that of the first landing. </p>
<p>For many years, the story behind the <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/apollo-8-earthrise/">famous Earthrise photo</a>, was that the crew were caught off-guard by the blue orb rising from behind the Moon. But <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/resource/the-story-behind-apollo-8s-famous-earthrise-photo/">even if they were preoccupied</a>, the astronauts knew it was coming.</p>
<p>Another unforgettable event during the mission was a reading by the crew <a href="https://moon.nasa.gov/resources/318/apollo-8-genesis-reading/">from the Book of Genesis</a>, broadcast to the world at Christmas. Detailed research I’ve conducted in Nasa’s archives has revealed more clearly how much planning lay behind these dramatic moments. The famous Earthrise picture, a wonky snap taken in a hurry, was improvised, but it had been anticipated. </p>
<h2>Earthrise restored</h2>
<p>After entering lunar orbit, they nearly missed seeing the Earth. Only on the fourth orbit, when the capsule flipped round 180 degrees to point forwards, did they notice it. Borman confirmed to me that at that moment they were “taken by surprise – too busy with lunar observation on the first three orbits”.</p>
<p>But the <a href="https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/oral_histories/UnderwoodRW/underwoodrw.htm">Apollo programme’s director of photography, Dick Underwood</a>, was anxious to set the wider record straight. He explained: “Hours were spent with the lunar crews, including the Apollo 8 crew, in briefing on exactly how to set up the camera, which film to use … these briefings were most comprehensive.” </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The Apollo 8 crew." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559679/original/file-20231115-21-97wwdu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Apollo 8 crew presenting the Earthrise picture to the governor of Texas, John Connally, in 1969.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nasa</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There were, however, battles within Nasa about what images the astronauts should focus on, with the management insisting on shots of <a href="https://history.nasa.gov/alsj/a410/A08_PressKit.pdf">lunar geology and potential landing sites</a>. Dick Underwood explained: “I argued hard for a shot of Earthrise, and we had impressed upon the astronauts that we definitely wanted it.” </p>
<p>Borman was joined on the mission by two other astronauts: Jim Lovell, who was the command module pilot, and Bill Anders, who had the title of lunar module pilot. Nasa had intended for Apollo 8 to test the lunar module, but it was behind schedule so the mission didn’t take one.</p>
<p>At the pre-launch press conference, Borman had looked forward to getting “good views of the Earth from the Moon” and Lovell to seeing “the Earth set and the Earth rise”. </p>
<p>The official mission plan directed the astronauts to take photos of Earth, but only as the lowest priority. When the key moment came, the astronauts were indeed taken by surprise, but not for long. </p>
<p>Anders was at a side window taking photos of craters using a camera with black and white film when he saw the Earth rise from behind the Moon. “Look at that picture over there! Here’s the Earth coming up,” <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/resource/the-story-behind-apollo-8s-famous-earthrise-photo/">Anders exclaimed</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=610&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=610&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559678/original/file-20231115-23-nzbbhx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=610&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bill Anders’ first picture of Earthrise.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">NASA</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Anders quickly took a sharp shot of the Earth emerging above the lunar horizon. Then he and Lovell argued briefly over who should have the colour film camera, while Borman tried to calm them down. </p>
<p>It was Anders who took the blurry, hastily framed, overexposed <a href="https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap020127.html">colour shot of Earthrise</a>, later dubbed the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2018/dec/22/behold-blue-plant-photograph-earthrise">image of the century</a>. But in the other camera was a much better shot, long ignored because it was in black and white.</p>
<p>That first mono image was spot-on. A restored “Earthrise” photo, recently coloured by experts using the later shots as a reference, conveys the stunning sight beheld by the astronauts.</p>
<p>This shot, revealing the Earth as a majestic but fragile oasis. As Lovell mused: “The loneliness out here is awe-inspiring … it makes us realise what you have back on Earth.” For Borman too it was “intensely emotional … We said nothing to each other, but maybe we shared another thought I had: ‘This must be what God sees.’”</p>
<h2>The Genesis reading</h2>
<p>In 1968, as now, space travel was viewed as a scientific and technological domain. But the mission was also sent by one of the world’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_the_United_States#:%7E:text=Christianity%20is%20the%20most%20prevalent,is%20Christian%20(210%20million).">most strongly Christianised countries</a>, and the crew was not about to leave its cultural background behind.</p>
<p>It was a point of pride at Nasa that, whereas Soviet cosmonauts were <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210406-how-russias-cosmonauts-trained-for-space">tightly
monitored and controlled</a>, their own astronauts were free to speak their minds. Extraordinary as it now seems, they were left to decide for themselves what to say in their historic live broadcast from lunar orbit.</p>
<p>Borman knew that he had to come up with something special for the Christmas broadcast. A few weeks beforehand, he was told by a press officer: “We figure more people will be listening to your voice (during the broadcast) than that of any man in history. So we want you to say something appropriate.” </p>
<p>While Neil Armstrong’s “one small step” message was <a href="https://time.com/5621999/neil-armstrong-quote/">carefully considered inside Nasa</a>, no one in the agency knew in advance what Borman would say.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Earthrise" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=662&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=662&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560186/original/file-20231117-25-yelyw3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=662&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The original Earthrise photo.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nasa</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>With only two minutes left before radio contact was lost as the spacecraft passed behind the Moon, Anders said: “The crew of Apollo 8 have a message that we would like to send to you.” </p>
<p>He then <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToHhQUhdyBY">read from the Book of Genesis</a>: “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the Earth; and the Earth was without form and void.” He continued: “God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” </p>
<p>Lovell and Borman took over to read the next verses, and Borman signed off: “Merry Christmas, and God bless all of you – all of you on the good Earth.”</p>
<p>As Apollo 8 dipped out of radio contact, the world was left to absorb the impact. “For those moments I felt the presence of creation and the creator,” Nasa’s <a href="https://airandspace.si.edu/explore/stories/eugene-kranz">chief flight director Gene Kranz</a> later recalled. “Tears were on my cheeks.” </p>
<p>Somehow Borman and his colleagues found the perfect words to convey
their experience. But Borman had thought about the assignment carefully, asking a <a href="https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-archive/apollo-8-and-11-notes-and-letters-bourgin/sova-nasm-1995-0025">publicist friend to help out with the text</a>. </p>
<p>This was Simon Bourgin, science policy officer at the US Information Agency. Bourgin in turn asked a journalist, Joe Laitin, who <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-apollo-8-delivered-moment-christmas-eve-peace-and-understanding-world-180976431/">mentioned the task to his wife, Christine</a>. </p>
<p>She looked in the Old Testament and suggested: “Why don’t you begin at the beginning?” She recognised the primeval power of the creation story in the first book of Genesis, with its evocative description of the Earth. </p>
<p>Borman immediately recognised that this was just right, and had it typed up. He had superbly vindicated Nasa’s trust in him. </p>
<p>While inspiration and a degree of freedom were involved in the Earthrise photo and Genesis reading, behind their execution lay careful planning and professionalism.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217720/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Poole does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Borman’s professionalism helped the risky Apollo 8 mission become a success.Robert Poole, Professor of History, University of Central LancashireLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2131302023-11-15T13:22:10Z2023-11-15T13:22:10ZA TikTok Jesus promises divine blessings and many worldly comforts<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559329/original/file-20231114-17-d2sfpr.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=13%2C0%2C2215%2C1308&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Jesus images on social media promise divine rewards for today's fast-paced age.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@believerdaily">TikTok</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/tiktok-is-a-unique-blend-of-social-media-platforms-heres-why-kids-love-it-144541">TikTok</a> profile <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@believerdaily">Daily Believer (@believerdaily)</a> has 70 videos with computer-generated Jesuses looking directly at the viewer, beseeching them to stop scrolling and watch the next minute’s worth of content. </p>
<p>All these Jesuses are long-haired and bearded, recalling <a href="https://www.warnersallman.com/">artist Warner Sallman’s</a> ubiquitous 1940 painting “<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-long-history-of-how-jesus-came-to-resemble-a-white-european-142130">Head of Christ</a>.” Some wear the crown of thorns, some <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@believerdaily/video/7254161213561736453">look alarmingly like the actor Jared Leto</a>. Nearly all promise a surprise or “good news soon” in exchange for the viewer liking, commenting “Amen” or sharing it with their friends and family. With this digital outreach, the Daily Believer has gained, as of Nov. 13, 2023, 813,200 followers and over 9.2 million likes.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://clas.uiowa.edu/religion/people/brandon-dean">a scholar of religion in the U.S. and its intersection with popular culture</a>, I have been studying the ways American Christians use media and popular culture to perform religious work and evangelical outreach for the past 13 years. I argue that this TikTok phenomenon, in which viewers are promised good luck for sharing, liking and commenting on videos of a computer-generated Jesus, is close to what is known as the prosperity gospel – that is, a Christian belief that God will reward faith with this-worldly comforts, like health and wealth.</p>
<h2>Computer-generated Jesus</h2>
<p><div data-react-class="TiktokEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.tiktok.com/@believerdaily/video/7244190446103104774"}"></div></p>
<p>“<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@believerdaily/video/7244190446103104774">Welcome Jesus into Your Home</a>” is among the Daily Believer’s most popular videos, with over 22.2 million subscribers. According to the computer-generated Jesus, if the viewer believes in God, they must share this video with their friends and family and comment “I believe.” </p>
<p>If they do, they will receive a blessing within an hour. If they do not, computer-generated Jesus issues a thinly veiled threat of damnation by quoting <a href="https://www.bibleref.com/Matthew/3/Matthew-3-10.html#:%7E:text=ESV%20Even%20now%20the%20axe,and%20thrown%20into%20the%20fire.">Matthew 3:10</a>, which has John the Baptist saying, “Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”</p>
<p>It is a TikTok chain letter – one whose creator can be monetarily compensated, by TikTok, <a href="https://influencermarketinghub.com/how-much-does-tiktok-pay/">between 2 cents and 4 cents for every 1,000 views</a>. For example, “Welcome Jesus into Your Home” could have earned the creator $900 from TikTok views alone, with the possibility for additional money earned on sites like Facebook Reels.</p>
<p>It is simple and effective. While the Daily Believer’s views are dwarfed by TikTok megastars like socialite <a href="https://theconversation.com/social-media-and-branding-behind-kylie-cosmetics-success-new-marketing-rules-and-risks-82655">Kylie Jenner</a> and social media personality <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/search?lang=en&q=khaby%20lame&t=1698926189681">Khaby Lame</a>, its engagement percentages are much higher, receiving some form of engagement from about one out of every four viewers.</p>
<p>Whether or not there are religious motivations underlying the Daily Believer’s desire for viewer engagement, there are monetary benefits for sure. The <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/creators/creator-portal/en-us/getting-paid-to-create/creator-fund/">TikTok Creator Fund</a> pays creators who have over 10,000 authentic followers based on the number of views, comments and sharing. </p>
<h2>Faith equals wealth and health</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Preacher T.D. Jakes attends a conference." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557419/original/file-20231103-23-y7kkh7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Preacher T.D. Jakes attends the grand finale Woman Thou Art Loosed! Homecoming Day 2 at Georgia World Congress Center on Sept. 22, 2022, in Atlanta, Ga.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/bishop-t-d-jakes-attends-the-grand-finale-woman-thou-art-news-photo/1427267058?adppopup=true">Marcus Ingram/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Religious and monetary motivations are not mutually exclusive. In fact, their union is key to one of the more popular recent developments in American and global Christianity – the <a href="https://rpl.hds.harvard.edu/faq/prosperity-gospel">prosperity gospel</a>, a subsection of <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-pentecostal-christianity-185372">Charismatic Christianity</a> that says God will ensure followers’ material wealth and happiness as long as they believe in God.</p>
<p>The closest nonreligious analogy to the Daily Believer’s content is the chain letter where the recipient is promised good luck for forwarding and curses for breaking the chain. Such letters had their heyday in the mid-20th century as paper letters and in the late 1990s and early 2000s as <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/16/us/chain-email-recipe-exchange-letter-coronavirus-trnd/index.html">emails and social media posts</a>.</p>
<p>Two of the United States’ most famous preachers, <a href="https://www.tdjakes.org/">T.D. Jakes</a> and <a href="https://www.joelosteen.com/">Joel Osteen</a>, teach that individual faith in God will be rewarded by God in the form of material wealth and health. </p>
<p>However, the Daily Believer further simplifies this formula. Viewers don’t really need to have a specific set of Christian beliefs to participate and benefit. All that they need to do is to say “I believe” and share the content with friends and family.</p>
<h2>Turning likes and shares into cash</h2>
<p>This lack of denominational-specific beliefs allows for the widest possible engagement with a wider Christian community. </p>
<p>The TikTok videos can appeal to a spectrum of Christian groups that may have theological, ethical and social disagreements.</p>
<p>Additionally, the Daily Believer’s requests for social media engagement is analogous to the prosperity gospel’s idea of tithing. In the <a href="https://www.ramseysolutions.com/budgeting/daves-advice-on-tithing-and-giving">prosperity gospel, tithing</a> – the donation of a portion of your income to the church – is framed as “seed faith,” a monetary investment to demonstrate a person’s faith, and lack of faith will be punished as surely as faith is to be rewarded.</p>
<p>Seed faith and engagement with the Daily Believer’s TikTok videos have the same ritualistic function – give a little time, money or effort to get even more material rewards. They also both serve to make the person behind the request wealthier or increase their cultural clout. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="Painting of Jesus Christ." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1070&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1070&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557418/original/file-20231103-15-xurw2l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1070&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Warner Sallman’s portrait of Jesus, ‘Head of Christ.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/80236019@N03/7372049566/in/photolist-5Tv3Nh-ijPMsF-Emzza-Nsqjfa-ewNd59-cerFuS-7azzma-2kdka24-4DwU45-6CNrQa-K7JuP-qpSAZK-kL9SUM-b4xhER">Uncle Bobbit/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>By framing these requests as coming directly from the Son of God, not the influencer or content creator, the Daily Believer has made engagement with its social media religious work, which comes with a promise of divine reward in the here and now. It has transformed like-farming – the social media phenomenon of asking for viewer engagement – into the word of God.</p>
<h2>Use of Jesus’ image</h2>
<p>At the same time, it is difficult to see the Daily Believer’s content as having a missionary or outreach function. It seems aimed at those who would already consider themselves Christian and offers little in the way of persuasion or explanation of why someone should be a Christian.</p>
<p>The Daily Believer is not the only TikTok profile engaged in a type of “smash that like button if you love Jesus” content production. Within the larger phenomena of #ChristianTikTok, there are multiple profiles engaged in theological discussion and doctrinal issues. There are even more profiles that forgo discussion in favor of performing praise and worship.</p>
<p>The use of Jesus’ image as the deliverer of the message is more unique.</p>
<p>But the Daily Believer, with its digital Jesus and its bare-bones gospel of “Believe,” serves as an example of a new expression of an ancient religious motivation – the securing of this-worldly health, wealth and reward in exchange for following the will of the deity or deities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213130/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brandon Dean does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A scholar of American religion explains how a new phenomenon of Jesus images on TikTok is tapping into the prosperity gospel, a Christian belief that God will reward faith with this-worldly comforts.Brandon Dean, Visiting Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, University of IowaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2078952023-10-13T12:32:31Z2023-10-13T12:32:31ZFrom ancient Jewish texts to androids to AI, a just-right sequence of numbers or letters turns matter into meaning<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553059/original/file-20231010-19-m5thmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C6%2C2304%2C1288&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The power of putting basic elements in just the right order is key to both Jewish mysticism and computer coding.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/kabbalah-vector-symbol-isolated-on-space-royalty-free-illustration/1481071194?phrase=kabbalah+creation&adppopup=true">WhataWin/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Isaac Asimov’s <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/5681/i-robot-by-isaac-asimov/">iconic science fiction collection</a> “I, Robot” tells the story of androids created at U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. The androids range from “Robbie,” who is nonvocal, to “Stephen Byerley,” who may or may not be a robot – he is so humanlike that people can’t tell. </p>
<p>Yet each model is made of the same elementary components: the binary code of ones and zeros. The differences in behavior between the simplest robot and the most advanced one, nigh indistinguishable from a human being, is simply the sequence of these two digits.</p>
<p>All computer languages are ultimately rendered in ones and zeros, even artificial intelligence programs – today’s equivalent of “Stephen Byerley.” But though this technology is relatively new, the concept it’s hinged on is not. </p>
<p>The idea that rearranging elemental units just so can produce powerful, even seemingly magical results appears all around us. It manifests in everything from technology and science to religion and art – a pattern I focus on <a href="https://www.scienceandfiction.fiu.edu">in my work</a> about <a href="https://case.fiu.edu/about/directory/profiles/trauvitch-rhona.html">how literature intersects with science, technology, engineering and math</a>.</p>
<p>Some of the examples of this pattern that I find most fascinating are also the most ancient: They come from Kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism that <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Zohar?tab=contents">first appeared in print</a> in the 12th century C.E.</p>
<h2>Building blocks of creation</h2>
<p>Integral to Kabbalah is the notion that Hebrew letters are <a href="https://www.bl.uk/hebrew-manuscripts/articles/the-power-of-language-in-jewish-kabbalah#:%7E:text=Sefer%20yetsirah%2C%20one%20of%20the,language%20and%20ten%20cardinal%20numbers.">the building blocks of the cosmos</a>. According to mystical interpretations of <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.1?lang=bi&aliyot=0">the creation story</a> in the Book of Genesis, God brought the world into being by creating the alphabet, then assembled the earth and sky by recombining letters.</p>
<p>“God is portrayed as an architect and the Torah a blueprint in the creation of the world,” Jewish studies scholar <a href="https://www.umsl.edu/divisions/artscience/english/Faculty%20and%20Staff/schwartz.html">Howard Schwartz</a> writes in his book “<a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/tree-of-souls-9780195327137?cc=us&lang=en&">Tree of Souls</a>.” “The way the letters of the alphabet emerge and combine has an uncanny resemblance to the combining and recombining of strings of DNA.”</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An abstract, fractal-style image in yellow, red, blue and black, with a glowing letter at the center." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553596/original/file-20231013-23-vp15vl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The letter aleph, often believed to symbolize the oneness of God.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://pixabay.com/illustrations/alef-hebrew-fractal-letter-7081983/">Ben Burton/BRBurton23/Pixabay</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The “Sefer Yetzirah,” or “Book of Creation,” which <a href="https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/kaplan-aryeh">Torah scholar Aryeh Kaplan</a> called “<a href="https://redwheelweiser.com/book/sefer-yetzirah-9780877288558/">the oldest and most mysterious of all Kabbalistic texts</a>,” describes the Hebrew letters as having great power. In Rabbi Kaplan’s translation of and commentary on verse 2.2, God “engraved” the letters “out of nothingness,” then “permuted” them into different combinations and “weighed” them. </p>
<p>“Each letter represents a different type of information,” Kaplan wrote. “Through the various manipulations of the letters, God created all things.”</p>
<h2>From mud to man</h2>
<p>In Jewish storytelling, Hebrew letters’ sacred power can be manipulated into combinations that animate inanimate matter. Such is the case of <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/43308236">one of the earliest humanoid robots or “androids</a>” in literature: the golem, a manlike creature made of clay.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A black and white photo of a little girl in a white dress holding up a piece of fruit to a huge man in dirty clothes in an alleyway." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=735&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=735&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=735&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=924&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=924&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553052/original/file-20231010-21-jq0kc7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=924&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A scene from the German movie ‘The Golem: How He Came into the World,’ released in 1920.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While there are <a href="https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-golem">numerous versions of this Jewish legend</a>, the notion that letters animate the golem is common to them all. The mass of molded earth becomes lifelike when its maker intones secret combinations of letters. Engraved on the golem’s forehead is the Hebrew word for truth, “אמת,” comprised of the first, middle and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet – which Jewish tradition interprets to mean that truth is all-encompassing. </p>
<p>The golem sometimes helps the Jewish community, or sometimes wreaks havoc, <a href="https://www.jmberlin.de/en/topic-golem#:%7E:text=A%20golem%20is%20a%20creature,of%20an%20imperiled%20Jewish%20community.">depending on the story</a>. But the golem also represents something bigger: With mystical knowledge, man imitates God’s act of creation.</p>
<p>To deanimate the creature, its maker must remove the first letter written on its forehead: א, or aleph, which represents <a href="https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/137073/jewish/Aleph.htm">the oneness of God</a>. That leaves מת, the Hebrew word for “dead” – reflecting the Jewish tradition that there is no truth without God.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A human figure carved out of wood is positioned lying down, with intricate Hebrew letters carved into the surface." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1130&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1130&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553064/original/file-20231010-15-5s1fzi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1130&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A sculpture of the golem made up of carvings of Jewish letters, by artist Joshua Abarbanel and displayed in the Jewish Museum in Berlin.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/sculpture-of-the-golem-by-artist-joshua-abarbanel-lies-in-news-photo/609667830?adppopup=true">Sean Gallup/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>‘Coding’ everywhere you look</h2>
<p>Like the golem, robots, androids and even AI are powered with recombinations of elemental units. Instead of Hebrew letters, the units are ones and zeros. In both instances, the specific permutation makes all the difference – and all these creations have inspired speculative stories about what happens when familiar building blocks are rearranged.</p>
<p>The creature in <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/84/84-h/84-h.htm">Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein</a>” arises as an assortment of body parts. Novelist Margaret Atwood’s “Crakers” <a href="https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/margaret-atwood-on-the-science-behind-oryx-and-crake/">are humans 2.0</a>, bioengineered from reshuffled genes. In science fiction writer <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2023/06/ted-chiang-on-how-to-best-think-about-about-ai">Ted Chiang’s</a> novella “<a href="https://smallbeerpress.com/books/2010/10/19/stories-of-your-life-and-others/">Seventy-Two Letters</a>,” which draws from golem legends, dolls move according to the sequence of letters on a parchment placed in their backs. </p>
<p>Such patterns are not just the stuff of fiction, nor are they limited to computer science. Permutative “coding” is all around. Music notes are arranged to form a melody; gene sequences are combined to form an organism. In all living things – owls, geckos, people, roses – the instructions encased in DNA comprise recombinations of <a href="https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Base-Pair#:%7E:text=A%20base%20pair%20consists%20of,known%20as%20a%20double%20helix.">the same four nucleobase pairs</a>.</p>
<p>The biological difference between a complex human and a simple bacterium is the order in which the nucleobase pairs are arranged. Hugo de Vries, a biologist working at the turn of the 20th century, <a href="https://www.worldcat.org/title/14785707">observed that</a> “the whole organic world is the result of innumerable different combinations and permutations of relatively few factors.”</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A close-up of a model of a double-helix of DNA, with the middle 'rungs' in bright colors." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553057/original/file-20231010-23-4a40xt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Each rung on the DNA ‘ladder’ is made up of pairs of four base nucleotides: adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G) and thymine (T).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/modell-doppelhelix-royalty-free-image/925631442?phrase=double+helix+dna&adppopup=true">Martin Steinthaler/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Power of sequence</h2>
<p>Not all combinations “work” – neither in science nor in storytelling. In “<a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/785">On the Nature of Things</a>,” a famous poem about philosophy and physics, the first-century Roman writer <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/lucretius/">Titus Lucretius Carus</a> cautions that “we must not think that all particles can be linked together in all ways, for you would see monsters created everywhere, forms coming to being half man, half beast …” </p>
<p>Fantastical imaginings aside, the core idea stands: Not all permutations yield viable results. To put it in terms of modern biology, genes with certain combinations of the four nucleobase pairs would not lead to a functioning organism.</p>
<p>Writer Jorge Luis Borges explored similar ideas in “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/330909/collected-fictions-by-jorge-luis-borges/">The Library of Babel</a>,” a short story about a library-like universe filled with books that contain every possible permutation of 25 characters. Most amount to nonsense – strings of letters that bear no meaning. </p>
<p>What sets apart something that works from something that doesn’t is sequence. The difference between the behavior of a simple robot like Asimov’s “Robbie” and the behavior of AI so complex that it seems sentient boils down to the sequence of ones and zeros that instruct it – not altogether dissimilar from the way a single letter is the difference between animation and deanimation, or creation and destruction, in Jewish folklore.</p>
<p>The potential consequences of AI’s novel permutation <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/30/technology/ai-threat-warning.html">have caused fear and uncertainty</a>. Yet perhaps there is some comfort in the notion that, as the Bible says, <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Ecclesiastes.1.9?lang=bi">אֵין כָּל חָדָשׁ תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ</a>: There’s nothing new under the sun.</p>
<p><em><a href="https://case.fiu.edu/about/directory/profiles/benabentos-rocio.html">Rocio Benabentos</a>, <a href="https://users.cs.fiu.edu/%7Emarkaf/">Mark Finlayson</a> and <a href="https://www.chabad.gr/templates/articlecco_cdo/aid/66257/jewish/The-Hendels.htm">Mendel Hendel</a> contributed feedback for this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207895/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rhona Trauvitch receives funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities. </span></em></p>Advanced artificial intelligence is new, but a similar idea has been around for hundreds of years: the power of a just-right sequence of numbers, letters or elements to animate matter.Rhona Trauvitch, Associate Teaching Professor of English, Florida International UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2127372023-09-26T12:24:22Z2023-09-26T12:24:22ZThis Christian text you’ve never heard of, The Shepherd of Hermas, barely mentions Jesus − but it was a favorite of early Christians far and wide<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549156/original/file-20230919-25-wozzy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C6%2C4077%2C2998&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">"Italian Coast Scene with Ruined Tower," by 19th century American painter Thomas Cole</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.82649.html">National Gallery of Art</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>People usually think about the Bible as a book with a fixed number of texts within its pages: 24 books in the Jewish version of the Bible; 66 for Protestants; 73 for Catholics; 81 if you’re <a href="https://www.ethiopianorthodox.org/english/canonical/books.html">Ethiopian Orthodox</a>.</p>
<p>Writings that didn’t make it into the Bible, on the other hand, are often called “apocrypha,” a Greek term that refers to hidden or secret things. There are <a href="https://www.nasscal.com/e-clavis-christian-apocrypha/">hundreds of apocryphal Jewish and Christian texts</a> that, for one reason or another, were not included in different versions of the Bible. Some simply fell out of use. Some caused theological headaches for later Jews or Christians, and some were rejected because of their author – for supposedly not having really been written by an apostle, for instance. (When used with a capital “A,” Apocrypha refers to a handful of books included in the Catholic and Orthodox versions of the Old Testament, but not most Protestant ones.)</p>
<p>Just because a text was deemed apocryphal, however, does not mean that it was unpopular or lacked influence. Many texts that are treated as unimportant or unbiblical today were considered central at one time. As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=9b5HSS4AAAAJ&hl=en">scholar of early Christianity</a>, some of my research centers on what was once an extremely well-read text, but one that most people today have never heard of: The Shepherd of Hermas. </p>
<h2>Enslaved to God</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/shepherd-lightfoot.html">The Shepherd of Hermas</a> was written sometime between <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/shepherd-of-hermas-9780567699947/">70–140 C.E.</a> and takes place on the road between Rome and Naples. Hermas, who is presented as the text’s author and narrator, has various encounters with two divine figures called the Church and the Shepherd, who give him commandments and visions that he is instructed to share with other believers. </p>
<p>The Shepherd is a sizable text – 114 chapters long – and substantial portions describe a vision of a tower under construction. The tower represents the church itself, in the sense of all Jesus’ followers, built out of stones that represent different types of believers. Some fit right in, others must be reshaped or recolored, and some are rejected altogether. For example, stones representing rich people or businessmen are urged to repent, while hospitable people are portrayed as properly shaped.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A light-colored carving of a man in a tunic holding a large sheep, with two smaller sheep at his feet." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=902&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=902&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=902&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549172/original/file-20230919-23-cgnqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Christian art, like this Coptic piece from the third century, has long used the metaphor of the shepherd to describe Jesus and spiritual care.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/christ-the-good-shepherd-early-coptic-art-c3rd-century-news-photo/918981986?adppopup=true">CM Dixon/Heritage Images/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=529LdLITjYs">Other parts of the text</a> are focused on how believers should manage their emotions, how to act ethically in the world and how to obey God’s will. The Shepherd urges self-control and fear of God, trying to instill obedience and avoid allowing emotions like fear or doubt to overcome believers.</p>
<p><a href="https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/37375470">My own research</a> on the Shepherd focuses on how the text depicts believers as enslaved to God, as is true of some other early Christian literature as well. The writer imagines that God’s holy spirit is able to enter loyal believers’ bodies and possess them, urging them to do what God wills. </p>
<p>Notably, figures like Jesus and the apostles are virtually absent from the Shepherd. Instead, readers find a story about an otherwise unknown enslaved man named Hermas experiencing visions and talking with divine beings in the Italian countryside. Hermas is portrayed as a believer who doubts his own ability to accomplish what these two divine figures, the Church and Shepherd, expect of him, lamenting throughout how difficult it is to follow God’s commandments.</p>
<h2>‘Useful for the soul’</h2>
<p>Given that the Shepherd is a long, rambling text that doesn’t explicitly mention Jesus, you might assume that it was only read by a small number of early Christian theologians. This, however, isn’t the case. </p>
<p>The Shepherd became one of the most popular texts among Christians for the first five centuries C.E. Even today, there are <a href="https://robheaton.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/shepherd-mss-robheaton-com1.pdf">more surviving manuscripts</a> of the Shepherd from antiquity than of any New Testament text except for the Gospels of Matthew and John. </p>
<p>The visions were translated from Greek into Latin, Coptic, Ethiopic, Arabic and Georgian. Eventually, the text spread as far west as Ireland and <a href="https://www.academia.edu/39125540/The_Shepherd_of_Hermas_Fragment_from_Turfan_M97_and_its_Manichaean_Context_Abstract_">as far east as China</a>.</p>
<p>The Shepherd is even included in what scholars consider one of the oldest and most complete Bibles in the world. Canonical Christian Bibles today end with Revelation, a dramatic book of apocalyptic visions. The <a href="https://codexsinaiticus.org/en/manuscript.aspx?__VIEWSTATEGENERATOR=01FB804F&book=61&lid=en&side=r&zoomSlider=0">Codex Sinaiticus</a>, however, a fourth- or fifth-century manuscript now held at the British Library, ends with the Shepherd. The text’s inclusion in such an expensive, deluxe codex highlights how important the text was to many Christians, even as the contents of the New Testament were being solidified.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="The screen of an open laptop, positioned in a dark church, shows a page of a very old-looking manuscript." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549160/original/file-20230919-4851-nilz1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pages of the Codex Sinaiticus, the world’s oldest surviving Christian Bible, shown on a laptop in Westminster Cathedral, London, in 2009.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/pages-of-the-codex-sinaiticus-the-worlds-oldest-surviving-news-photo/88848627?adppopup=true">Leon Neal/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many <a href="https://earlychurchtexts.com/public/eusbius_canon_of_the_new_testament.htm">significant Christian writers</a> from the fourth and fifth centuries comment on how <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2806039.htm">the Shepherd is important instruction</a> for new Christians, regardless of whether it was considered part of the formal Bible.</p>
<p>Even figures who did not include the Shepherd among <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2806039.htm">New Testament texts</a> thought it was too important to be discarded. The book was too important to ignore, but too odd to be considered biblical: part of a halfway category that <a href="https://news-archive.hds.harvard.edu/news/2013/11/04/fran%C3%A7ois-bovon-1938-2013">biblical scholar François Bovon</a> called “<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/41474569">useful for the soul</a>.”</p>
<h2>An open Bible</h2>
<p>As the Shepherd helps demonstrate, whether a religious text is included or excluded from the Bible is not necessarily an indicator of its popularity or significance. </p>
<p>While scholars often lament that the Shepherd <a href="https://niedergall.com/book-review-the-shepherd-of-hermas-a-literary-historical-and-theological-handbook/">is boring</a>, pedantic or too long, its style likely made it ideal teaching material for early Christians. Esoteric texts that required deeper philosophical knowledge, like the <a href="http://gnosis.org/naghamm/got.html">Gospel of Truth</a> or <a href="https://www.npr.org/2006/04/06/5327692/the-lost-gospel-of-judas-iscariot">Gospel of Judas</a>, may have been ideal for some Christians who had access to more education. But texts that make bite-sized claims – like “don’t think about another man’s wife” (Shepherd 29:1), “rid yourself of grief” (Shepherd 40:1), or “believe that God is one” (Shepherd 26:1) – are easier for readers to carry with them and apply to everyday decisions in their lives.</p>
<p>The word “canon,” referring to texts that get a seal of approval from authorities, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/Old-Testament-canon-texts-and-versions#ref597299">comes from a Greek word for a measuring stick</a>: which books “measure up”? In religious communities, the idea of “canonical texts” can be especially limiting, determining what believers can or can’t read or believe.</p>
<p>Apocryphal literature, however, allows us to see how that wasn’t always the case: Ancient Christians didn’t think they were bound to the same specific set of stories that churches focus on today. The long history of reading apocrypha shows how some Christians have always been interested in reading the “<a href="https://academic.oup.com/book/7564/chapter/152549953">Bible with the back cover torn off</a>” – continually exploring religious ideas.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212737/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chance Bonar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The ‘Shepherd of Hermas’ has been accused of being pedantic, even boring. In the first few centuries of Christianity, though, it was a hit.Chance Bonar, Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for the Humanities, Tufts UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2099282023-08-10T12:41:42Z2023-08-10T12:41:42Z‘Uncivil obedience’ becomes an increasingly common form of protest in the US<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540448/original/file-20230801-25-ykxcyt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C0%2C5522%2C3119&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters in Utah demonstrate against a school district's ban on the Bible for having 'vulgarity and violence' unfit for young children.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/BibleBanUtahSchools/10711f2c31de462f899153fe9fd49502/photo">AP Photo/Rick Bowmer</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When Utah legislators passed a bill requiring the review and removal of “pornographic or indecent” books in school libraries, they likely did not imagine the law would be used to justify banning the Bible.</p>
<p>Utah’s H.B. 374, which took effect in May 2022, “prohibits certain <a href="https://le.utah.gov/%7E2022/bills/static/HB0374.html">sensitive instructional materials in public schools</a>.” It joins a series of conservative book bans that supporters claim protect children but critics have argued unfairly target <a href="https://www.nypl.org/blog/2023/06/23/lgbtq-titles-targeted-censorship-stand-against-book-banning">LGBTQ+ content</a> and <a href="https://www.goalcast.com/how-book-bans-silence-minority-groups/">minority authors</a>. </p>
<p>But in early June 2023, the bill stirred further controversy when, after receiving a complaint from a parent using the bill’s provisions, a Utah school district <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-65794363">removed the Bible</a> from elementary and middle schools because it contains “vulgarity and violence” deemed inappropriate for the age group. </p>
<p>Utah is not the only state that has faced complaints about the age-inappropriate content of the Bible in response to book bans. In June 2023, a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maX9IoUo5uc">Florida rabbi, Barry Silver</a>, <a href="https://www.wptv.com/news/palm-beach-county/parent-wants-bible-removed-from-palm-beach-county-school-to-make-a-point">compiled a list of Bible verses</a> that he argues contains violence and sex. Although he maintains he is opposed to censorship, he argues the Bible meets the criteria for Florida’s controversial <a href="https://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Bills/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=76545">Parental Rights in Education Act</a> and concludes: “You want to censor books? <a href="https://www.wptv.com/news/palm-beach-county/parent-wants-bible-removed-from-palm-beach-county-school-to-make-a-point">Start with the one that you like the best</a>.”</p>
<p>In May 2023, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, a nonprofit promoting the separation of church and state, called for <a href="https://www.publicradiotulsa.org/local-regional/2023-05-17/state-superintendent-ryan-walters-possibly-ripe-for-lawsuit-after-promoting-biblical-instruction">Oklahoma to ban the Bible from schools</a> due to its pornographic content. That move came after state education Superintendent Ryan Walters called for a <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/oklahoma-s-head-superintendent-wants-to-ban-lgbtq-books-but-teach-the-bible-in-history-classes/ar-AA1aPjQ9">ban on LGBTQ+ books</a>, while arguing the Bible should be taught in government-funded public schools. Like Silver, foundation leaders say <a href="https://eu.oklahoman.com/story/news/2023/05/20/ryan-walters-oklahoma-banned-books-freedom-from-religion-foundation-letter-bible/70238103007/">they do not support book bans</a> but maintain that if conservative Christians, who have been some of the strongest supporters of recent bans, want to ban books containing sexual references, they cannot ignore the Bible.</p>
<p>Such attempts to ban the Bible based on book ban laws are examples of a protest strategy called “<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/43387025">uncivil obedience</a>.”</p>
<h2>A different approach to protest</h2>
<p>Uncivil obedience is the opposite of the more commonly known protest strategy of <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/civil-disobedience/">civil disobedience</a>, which entails breaking the law in surprisingly respectful ways. Uncivil obedience, on the other hand, involves following the law but in ways that disregard people’s expectations.</p>
<p>Like civil disobedience, the purpose of uncivil obedience is to change laws, but it does so by “<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/43387025">mastering the system’s rules</a>.” Protesters may appear to respect authority by carefully following the laws to show what they are doing is legal. But the behavior may be seen as “uncivil” by some because the behavior challenges social expectations, uses laws in ways unintended by their originators, or both.</p>
<p>Uncivil obedience has been used to challenge the practicality and fairness of laws and processes. For example, in the 1990s, protesters challenged low <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-04-26-me-27445-story.html">speed limits</a> by strictly following them on a busy California freeway, leading to the disruption of traffic. The strategy has also been used to challenge
<a href="https://eu.gainesville.com/story/news/2006/05/02/industries-feel-effect-of-boycott/31482810007/">immigration policies</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1086/709417">election laws</a>. </p>
<p>As a scholar of <a href="https://www.usd.edu/research-and-faculty/faculty-and-staff/kristina-lee">political and religious rhetoric</a>, I have seen uncivil obedience be embraced by people across the political spectrum as a way to challenge laws – and to specifically use religion as one element of those challenges.</p>
<h2>Conservative Christians step to the plate</h2>
<p>A federal law passed in 1993 called the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Religious-Freedom-Restoration-Act">Religious Freedom Restoration Act</a> has often been at the center of religious strategists embracing uncivil obedience. That law, which prohibits the government from creating substantial burdens on citizens’ free exercise of religion, was originally passed by Congress in response to a <a href="https://mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/364/employment-division-department-of-human-resources-of-oregon-v-smith">1990 Supreme Court</a> case that critics argued restricted the religious freedom of Indigenous people. Over <a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/research-central/rfra-info-central/">20 states have passed similar laws</a>.</p>
<p>Although the law was originally designed to protect the rights of practitioners of all religions, <a href="https://www.hrc.org/resources/do-no-harm-act">particularly ones that are not as prominent</a> in the U.S. as Christianity, conservative Christians have <a href="https://scholarship.law.columbia.edu/faculty_scholarship/3931/">used its provisions</a> to resist progressive policies including <a href="https://eu.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2015/04/02/rfra-discrimination-concerns-really-surprise/70820966/">same-sex marriage</a> and the <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2013/13-354">Affordable Care Act</a>. A common argument proponents use is that the law protects conservative Christian business owners and employees who view recognizing same-sex marriage or providing contraception as a violation of their religious beliefs. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/gpr/2018/05/bad-faith-how-conservatives-are-weaponizing-religious-liberty-allow-institutions">Opponents view</a> the conservative embrace of the idea of religious freedom as a bizarre interpretation of the law, arguing that they are using it for the purpose of justifying discrimination based on religious beliefs. Defenders of the practice, however, argue that they want <a href="https://eu.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2015/03/25/gov-mike-pence-sign-religious-freedom-bill-thursday/70448858/">religion to be free from government intervention</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man in a suit stands at a lectern in front of a group of people." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540446/original/file-20230801-15-o2s08v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In 2015, when he was governor of Indiana, Mike Pence supported a state version of the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/indiana-gov-mike-pence-speaks-during-a-press-conference-news-photo/468209982">Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Progressive groups turn the tables</h2>
<p>Now, progressive groups are increasingly using religious freedom arguments, including the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, to justify exemptions from conservative policies.</p>
<p>Most recently, progressive Christian clergy members, Jews, Muslims, Satanists and other religious plaintiffs have begun to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2023/06/21/legal-strategy-that-could-topple-abortion-bans-00102468">file lawsuits</a> in states challenging strict abortion bans. These lawsuits claim their religions allow reproductive health care and abortions, and that bans violate their religious freedom.</p>
<p><a href="https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/about-us">The Satanic Temple</a>, one of the religious organizations that embrace opposing injustices as part of its mission, has also used other religious freedom cases to demand the same rights as Christians. For example, the group uses the ruling of <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/99-2036.ZO.html">Good News Club v. Milford Central Schools</a>, which determined schools cannot prohibit religious clubs from meeting on school ground after hours, to argue that schools also must allow <a href="https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/after-school-satan">Satanist clubs</a>. Satanists argue that they are just <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-after-school-clubs-became-a-new-battleground-in-the-satanic-temples-push-to-preserve-separation-of-church-and-state-209579">demanding the same rights that Christians</a> have won in court.</p>
<p>Progressive advocates claim they are championing religious freedom and equality. Their opponents, however, argued that plaintiffs are just engaging in “<a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2023/06/21/legal-strategy-that-could-topple-abortion-bans-00102468">political stunts</a>,” not advocating for <a href="https://becketnewsite.s3.amazonaws.com/20230118184008/Individual-Members-v.-Anonymous-Planitiff-Amicus-Brief.pdf">sincere religious beliefs</a>.</p>
<p>When uncivil obedience is used, its critics can frame such behavior as unprecedented, dangerous and insincere. Advocates, however, can argue that they are simply trying to follow the law and ask others to do the same. In religious freedom debates, these disputes are at the heart of a crucial question: where to establish the legal limits of religious freedom.</p>
<h2>Even failure can become a victory</h2>
<p>If uncivil obedience advocates are not successful, they can use their experiences to identify double standards in laws and policies, which can stir public anger over perceived biases regarding religious freedom. </p>
<p>When conservatives lose religious freedom cases, they <a href="https://www.moodymedia.org/articles/demise-religious-freedom-america/">can claim</a> such losses reflect bias against conservative Christian religious beliefs.</p>
<p>When minority religions or progressive Christians lose their religious freedom cases, <a href="https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/legal-action">they can point to the success</a> of conservative Christians in similar cases to highlight the courts’ protection of conservative religious principles.</p>
<p>Using uncivil obedience is a relatively safe protest strategy – at least legally speaking – because, unlike civil disobedience, those who use it do not risk being arrested. Yet it still allows people to draw attention to social issues in unprecedented ways that can spark public discussion.</p>
<p>There is risk, though. Uncivil obedience tactics can draw immense criticism from the public, who may view such tactics as manipulative or disingenuous. Additionally, although uncivil obedience can draw attention to double standards in societies, those standards can remain obstacles for those wanting social change. This can result in legal challenges that can be long and expensive to pursue but in which there is no guarantee of success.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jun/21/utah-bible-school-libraries-ban-reversed">Utah</a>, while the Bible was initially banned, public pressure caused the school board to quickly reverse the decision.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.wptv.com/news/education/bible-wont-be-banned-in-palm-beach-county-public-schools">Florida</a> and <a href="https://eu.oklahoman.com/story/news/2023/05/20/ryan-walters-oklahoma-banned-books-freedom-from-religion-foundation-letter-bible/70238103007/">Oklahoma</a>, challenges to the Bible so far have been dismissed, with the holy book’s supporters arguing that the proposals should not be taken seriously. </p>
<p>Both Rabbi Silver and the Freedom From Religion Foundation have maintained they will continue the fight until attempts to censor books in schools cease, or all books are judged by the same standards.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209928/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kristina M. Lee is on the board of the Secular Student Alliance.</span></em></p>Distinct from civil disobedience, this legal strategy demands complete compliance with the law – even when there are loopholes that the laws’ creators didn’t intend.Kristina M. Lee, Assistant Professor, University of South DakotaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2058012023-08-03T12:24:31Z2023-08-03T12:24:31ZDismantling the myth that ancient slavery ‘wasn’t that bad’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540252/original/file-20230731-27-oenyer.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C6%2C2101%2C1403&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A relief depicting a row of captives, carved into the Sun Temple at Abu Simbel in Egypt.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/relief-depicting-a-row-of-captives-sun-temple-abu-royalty-free-image/630961225?phrase=ancient+slave&adppopup=true">Richard Maschmeyer/ Design Pics via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As someone who researches <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=9b5HSS4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">slavery in the ancient Mediterranean world</a>, especially in the Bible, I often hear remarks like, “Slavery was totally different back then, right?” “Well, it couldn’t have been that bad.” “Couldn’t slaves buy their freedom?”</p>
<p>Most people in the United States or Europe in the 21st century are more knowledgeable about the transatlantic slave trade, and live in societies <a href="https://www.dukeupress.edu/monstrous-intimacies">deeply shaped by it</a>. People can see the effects of modern enslavement everywhere from <a href="https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.12512.30723">mass incarceration</a> and <a href="https://wwnorton.com/books/the-color-of-law/">housing segregation</a> to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1086/686631">voting habits</a>.</p>
<p>The effects of ancient slavery, on the other hand, aren’t as tangible today – and most Americans have only a vague idea of what it looked like. Some people might think of biblical stories, such as Joseph’s jealous brothers <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2037%3A18-36&version=NLT">selling him into slavery</a>. Others might picture movies like “Spartacus,” or the myth that enslaved people <a href="https://www.britannica.com/video/226777/did-enslaved-people-build-the-pyramids#">built the Egyptian pyramids</a>.</p>
<p>Because these kinds of slavery took place so long ago and weren’t based on modern racism, some people have the impression that <a href="https://answersingenesis.org/bible-history/the-bible-and-slavery/">they weren’t as harsh or violent</a>. That impression makes room for public figures like Christian theologian and analytic philosopher William Lane Craig to argue that <a href="https://youtu.be/hL-zJzE5clA?t=2989">ancient slavery was actually beneficial</a> for enslaved people.</p>
<p>Modern factors <a href="https://www.pennpress.org/9780812224177/slaverys-capitalism/">like capitalism</a> and <a href="https://library.harvard.edu/confronting-anti-black-racism/scientific-racism">racist pseudoscience</a> did shape the transatlantic slave trade in uniquely harrowing and enduring ways. Enslaved labor, for example, <a href="https://aeon.co/essays/why-the-original-laissez-faire-economists-loved-slavery">shaped economists’ theories</a> about the “free market” and global trade.</p>
<p>But to understand slavery from that era – or to combat slavery today – we also need to understand the longer history of involuntary labor. As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=9b5HSS4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">a scholar of ancient slavery and early Christian history</a>, I often encounter three myths that stand in the way of understanding ancient slavery and how systems of enslavement have evolved over time.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A statue shows a man and woman clutching hands, with a child, whose head has fallen off the relief, standing between them." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=422&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=422&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=422&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538185/original/file-20230719-23-djqajf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Roman funerary relief of the Decii, a family of formerly enslaved people from the 2nd century. Husband and wife clasp their hands while their son, holding a dove, stands between them. The inscription names them as A. Decius Spinther, Decia Spendusa and A Decius Felicio.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/funerary-relief-of-the-decii-a-family-of-freed-slaves-news-photo/525482317?adppopup=true">Werner Forman/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Myth #1: There is one kind of ‘biblical slavery’</h2>
<p>The collection of texts that ended up in the Bible represent centuries of different writers from across the Mediterranean and Mesopotamia, often in very different circumstances, making it hard to generalize about how slavery worked in “biblical” societies. Most importantly, <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300171921/how-the-bible-became-holy/">the Hebrew Bible</a> – what Christians call “the Old Testament” – emerged primarily in the ancient Near East, while the New Testament emerged in the early Roman Empire.</p>
<p>Forms of enslavement and involuntary labor in the ancient Near East, for example – areas such as Egypt, Syria and Iran – were not always chattel slavery, in which enslaved people were considered property. Rather, some people were temporarily enslaved <a href="https://www.asor.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Richardson-ANE-Today-October-2021.pdf">to pay off their debts</a>. </p>
<p>However, this was not the case for all people enslaved in the ancient Near East, and certainly not <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/us/universitypress/subjects/classical-studies/classical-studies-general/slavery-roman-world?format=PB&isbn=9780521535014">under the late Roman Republic and early Roman Empire</a>, where millions were trafficked and forced to labor in domestic, urban and agricultural settings. </p>
<p>Because of the range of periods and cultures involved in the production of biblical literature, there is no such thing as a single “biblical slavery.” </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A painting shows a group of men in robe-like outfits with wavy hair pointing to a smaller blond child among them." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=540&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=540&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538182/original/file-20230719-29-vcvvoz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=540&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Joseph sold by his brothers, 1636-1641. Found in the collection of the Musei Capitolini, Rome.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/joseph-sold-by-his-brothers-1636-1641-found-in-the-news-photo/464428495?adppopup=true">Fine Art Images/Heritage Images via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Nor is there a single “biblical perspective” on slavery. The most anyone can say is that no biblical texts or writers explicitly condemn the institution of enslavement or the practice of chattel slavery. More robust challenges to slavery by Christians started to emerge in the fourth century C.E., in the writings of figures like St. <a href="https://www.roger-pearse.com/weblog/2019/01/24/a-fuller-extract-from-gregory-of-nyssa-on-the-evils-of-slavery/">Gregory of Nyssa</a>, a theologian who lived in Cappadocia, in present-day Turkey.</p>
<h2>Myth #2: Ancient slavery was not as cruel</h2>
<p>Like Myth #1, this myth often comes from conflating some Near Eastern and Egyptian practices of involuntary labor, such as debt slavery, with Greek and Roman chattel slavery. By focusing on other forms of involuntary labor in specific ancient cultures, it is easy to overlook the widespread practice of chattel slavery and its harshness.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Part of a stone relief shows two people shaking hands while another crouches beneath them." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=752&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=752&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=752&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=945&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=945&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538184/original/file-20230719-17-drknta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=945&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Roman relief portraying an enslaved person being freed.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/roman-civilization-relief-portraying-a-slave-being-freed-news-photo/122222025?adppopup=true">DEA/A. Dagli Orti/De Agostini via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>However, across the ancient Mediterranean, there is evidence of a variety of horrific practices: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/03075133221130094">branding</a>, whipping, bodily disfiguration, <a href="https://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1084&context=mjgl">sexual assault</a>, torture during legal trials, incarceration, crucifixion and more. In fact, <a href="https://www.cairn.info/revue-dialogues-d-histoire-ancienne-2015-1-page-149.htm">a Latin inscription from Puteoli</a>, an ancient city near Naples, Italy, recounts what enslavers could pay undertakers to whip or crucify enslaved people.</p>
<p>Christians were not exempt from participating in this cruelty. Archaeologists have found collars from Italy and North Africa that enslavers <a href="https://doi.org/10.3764/aja.120.3.0447">placed upon their enslaved people</a>, offering a price for their return if they fled. Some of these collars bear Christian symbols like the chi-rho (☧), which combines the first two letters of Jesus’ name in Greek. One collar mentions that the enslaved person needs to be returned to their enslaver, “<a href="https://urbsandpolis.com/greco-roman-slavery/">Felix the archdeacon</a>.”</p>
<p>It’s difficult to apply contemporary moral standards to earlier eras, not least societies thousands of years ago. But even in an ancient world in which slavery <a href="https://www.city-journal.org/article/uniquely-bad-but-not-uniquely-american">was ever present</a>, it is clear not everyone bought into the ideology of the elite enslavers. There are records of multiple slave rebellions in Greece and Italy – most famously, that of the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-137-12161-5">escaped gladiator Spartacus</a>.</p>
<h2>Myth #3: Ancient slavery wasn’t discriminatory</h2>
<p>Slavery in the ancient Mediterranean wasn’t based on race or skin color in the same way as the transatlantic slave trade, but this doesn’t mean ancient systems of enslavement weren’t discriminatory. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A relief shows rows of men lugging heavy items as they plod up a hill." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=790&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=790&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=790&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=992&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=992&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538186/original/file-20230719-22-wx31ga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=992&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Enslaved people in a stone quarry, detail from an Assyrian relief in the British Museum.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/slaves-in-a-stone-quarry-detail-from-a-relief-assyrian-news-photo/475592661?adppopup=true">DeAgostini/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Much of the history of Greek and Roman slavery involves enslaving people <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/300734">from other groups</a>: Athenians enslaving non-Athenians, Spartans enslaving non-Spartans, Romans enslaving non-Romans. Often captured or defeated through warfare, such enslaved people were either forcibly migrated to a new area or were kept on their ancestral land and compelled to do farmwork or be domestic workers for their conquerors. Roman law required a slave’s “natio,” or place of origin, to be <a href="https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/perspectives-global-african-history/roman-slavery-and-question-race/">announced during auctions</a>.</p>
<p>Ancient Mediterranean enslavers prioritized the purchase of people from different parts of the world on account of stereotypes about their various characteristics. Varro, a scholar who wrote about <a href="https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/e/roman/texts/varro/de_re_rustica/1*.html">the management of agriculture</a>, argued that an enslaver shouldn’t have too many enslaved people who were from the same nation or who could speak the same language, because they might organize and rebel. </p>
<p>Ancient slavery still depended on categorizing some groups of people as “others,” treating them as though they were wholly different from those who enslaved them. </p>
<p>The picture of slavery that most Americans are familiar with was deeply shaped by its time, particularly modern racism and capitalism. But other forms of slavery throughout human history were no less “real.” Understanding them and their causes may help challenge slavery today and in the future – especially at a time when some politicians are again claiming transatlantic slavery actually <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/07/22/desantis-slavery-curriculum/">benefited enslaved people</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205801/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chance Bonar works at the Center for the Humanities at Tufts University, and is affiliated with their ongoing Slavery, Colonialism, and Their Legacies at Tufts University project.</span></em></p>There was no one type of slavery in ‘biblical’ or ‘ancient’ societies, given how varied they were. But much of what historians know about slavery during those eras is horrific.Chance Bonar, Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for the Humanities, Tufts UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2102382023-07-31T12:22:46Z2023-07-31T12:22:46ZTourists search for Mount Sinai in Saudi Arabia – but does a geographical location for pivotal Bible event even exist?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539841/original/file-20230727-25-cdzqrg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C7%2C4955%2C3398&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mount Sinai is mentioned in the second book of the Bible, Exodus, as the site where Moses received his first instruction from God.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-burning-bush-is-an-object-described-by-the-book-of-news-photo/1354443003?adppopup=true">Pictures From History/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Since Saudi Arabia relaxed rules and expanded visas for tourists in 2019, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/24/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-christian-tourists.html">Christians have been increasingly visiting the country</a>, drawn by word of mouth and promotional YouTube videos, in search of Mount Sinai, where the Bible recounts God revealing the Ten Commandments to Moses. </p>
<p>For many centuries people have believed the location to be in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, near the site of a monastery built around 550 C.E. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Saint-Catherines-Monastery">and named after St. Catherine</a>.</p>
<p>But this was entirely based on the word of local tribes living some 2,000 years after the event. Most scholars believe that <a href="https://www.worldcat.org/title/Encyclopaedia-Judaica/oclc/123527471">the location of Mount Sinai is unknowable</a> from the available textual evidence. As a <a href="https://history.utk.edu/jacob-f-love/">scholar of the Hebrew Bible and language</a>, I agree with them. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=29%2C5%2C1955%2C1263&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A cross resting on top of a monastery located amid mountains." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=29%2C5%2C1955%2C1263&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539803/original/file-20230727-23-1d00em.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Greek Orthodox Monastery of St. Catherine on the Sinai Peninsula, some 240 miles from Cairo, Egypt.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/MideastEgypt/87b5a64207a44d2387e138560a49a504/photo?Query=mount%20sinai&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=563&currentItemNo=11&vs=true">AP Photo/Enric Marti, File</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The existence of Mount Sinai is likely a legendary myth that is part of the stories of many cultures. There is no corroborating evidence, archaeological or otherwise, to support any particular location. </p>
<h2>What’s in a name?</h2>
<p>The first biblical mention of the holy mountain occurs in Exodus, the second book of the Bible and the primary source for the story of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt. </p>
<p>In Exodus 3:1, a mountain is referred to as Horeb and called the “mountain of God.” Horeb is mentioned twice more in Exodus but then disappears without mention in the third and fourth books – Leviticus and Numbers – until it reappears in the last book of the first section of the Bible, or the Pentateuch – Deuteronomy. </p>
<p>Deuteronomy retells the history of Israel as the Israelites were poised to enter the Holy Land. Throughout Deuteronomy, there are over a dozen references to Horeb as the place where Moses received the commandments.</p>
<p>Horeb is also found in biblical books after the Pentateuch. For example, the <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Malachi+4%3A4&version=RSV">prophet Malachi says in the book that bears his name</a>, “Remember the statutes of Moses … whom I commanded at Horeb.” </p>
<p>Horeb is a common name for the mountain in the Bible and yet is far less known than Sinai. The name Sinai is used throughout Exodus and occurs in Leviticus and Numbers, although Horeb is absent from those works. </p>
<p>But in Deuteronomy, Sinai all but disappears – it is <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2033&version=RSV">used just once in a poem quoted by the author of Deuteronomy</a> (33:2). The poem is cast as Moses’ final benediction of the people and begins, “This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death. He said, ‘The Lord came from Sinai, and dawned from Se′ir upon us; he shone forth from Mount Paran,
he came from the ten thousands of holy ones, with flaming fire at his right hand.’”</p>
<h2>Horeb or Sinai?</h2>
<p>It is not simply a matter of two different names for the same place. That could be explained as easily as noting that Jerusalem is also called the City of David. And it would be logical if the various books scattered these names as if they were interchangeable. But I would argue that the distribution is anything but random. </p>
<p>The references to Sinai are concentrated in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, while Deuteronomy refers almost exclusively to Horeb. In other words, the author or authors of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers strongly preferred the word Sinai while the author of Deuteronomy used only Horeb.</p>
<p>For over 200 years biblical scholars have been analyzing the Pentateuch to discern its editorial history. The result of this search for the authors of the Pentateuch <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Who-Wrote-the-Bible/Richard-Friedman/9781501192401">has led to the conclusions</a> that the first four books were written by at least three authors and redacted by editors to combine their stories. </p>
<p>There is evidence to show that the last book, Deuteronomy, was written by a single author. However, scholars argue, an editor <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Who-Wrote-the-Bible/Richard-Friedman/9781501192401">probably changed and added material</a>. It is likely that the one poem that mentions Sinai in Deuteronomy, when every other mention of that mountain is in Horeb, is a result of the editorial changes.</p>
<p>A second possibility is that they are two different locations, each of which had sacred status to a particular group of Israelites. The third possibility, favored by most biblical scholars, is that the ancient stories cataloged among the Israelites <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Who-Wrote-the-Bible/Richard-Friedman/9781501192401">came from different sources and were ultimately reconciled by editors</a>. </p>
<p>The second and third possibilities are not necessarily mutually exclusive – in other words, even if the stories were written by different authors, those different authors could have the same place in mind. </p>
<p>Perhaps the key fact to keep in mind is that scholars know very little about the location of Mount Sinai and whether or not it is the same place as Horeb.</p>
<h2>A strange absence</h2>
<p>Many of the books recounting the early history of biblical times, especially the prophets, however, have practically no reference to Sinai or Horeb. Among the 150 Psalms there is <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+68&version=RSV">but one reference to Sinai</a>. </p>
<p>How can it be that such a critical source of the religion of Israel was of little interest to these prophets? The commandments that Moses is believed to have received from God framed the lives of all Israelites and established the priestly offerings, the courts, and the rules for marriage, divorce and inheritance. Yet, none of the prophets felt a need to call upon Israel to follow the laws of Moses given at Sinai or Horeb. Is it not more reasonable to imagine that they simply knew little of those events or did not attach much importance to them? </p>
<p>Some people might conclude that the belief about Moses at Sinai is just invention. After all, there is so much historical and archaeological evidence for the history of places such as Jerusalem and Lachish. But in the case of Horeb or Sinai, the geographical hints found in the Bible are insufficient to make any sort of determination. </p>
<p>In other words, there isn’t sufficient data to decide whether the biblical account of Sinai or Horeb happened somewhere, or whether it is perhaps a foundation legend created for some purpose such as uniting the disparate Hebrew-speaking tribes of Israel.</p>
<p>When some Christians, such as the ones now looking for Sinai in Saudi Arabia, examine these sources, they often try to stitch together texts written over centuries after the events supposedly happened. It is not surprising that various people have assigned the location of Sinai <a href="https://www.openbible.info/geo/ancient/abfba2a/mount-sinai">to locations hundreds of miles apart</a>.</p>
<p>Based on all the evidence – or lack thereof – I argue that Sinai is located not in any specific place but rather in the hearts and minds of those who treasure the meaning of the Hebrew Bible.</p>
<p><em>Editor’s note: This article has been updated in order to correct information about St. Catherine’s Monastery.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210238/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jacob F. Love does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A scholar of the Hebrew Bible argues that very little is known about the location of Mount Sinai, and it is likely that it was once part of a foundational legend.Jacob F. Love, Lecturer in Religious Studies, University of TennesseeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2065922023-07-13T20:05:28Z2023-07-13T20:05:28ZFriday essay: from angry gods and fertile myths to battleships and new technologies – how the wind shapes our world<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536487/original/file-20230710-23-rh65ob.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C68%2C3503%2C2264&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Shutterstock</span> </figcaption></figure><p>When it comes to the natural elements, wind’s role in shaping our world can be overlooked. <a href="https://www.livescience.com/ancient-egyptian-pharaoh-sphinx-statues-unearthed-at-sun-temple">The worship of the sun</a> in ancient cultures such as Egypt is common knowledge, and ancient gods such as the <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/Vulcan/">Roman Vulcan</a> deify volcanoes and fire. </p>
<p>But the work of wind – invisible to the naked eye – often goes unnoticed. Yet, for millennia, this unseen force has critically shaped aspects of life as varied as religion, trade, warfare, culture, science and more.</p>
<p>Mysterious and magical, wind has been worshipped, decided the outcome of innumerable military battles and powered the processes of <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/exploration/nasa-parker-probe-solar-wind/">scientific exploration</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536443/original/file-20230710-19-3a8gm0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Winslow Homer, The West Wind (1891).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Wind and the natural world</h2>
<p>Wind can be described simply as the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/wind">movement of air from areas of high to low pressure</a>. By definition, wind maintains a perpetual motion. Wind is a critical element for the maintenance of life on Earth – while the sun provides the planet with warmth, <a href="https://www.billnye.com/the-science-guy/wind">wind disperses this solar energy</a>, allowing for a habitable biosphere.</p>
<p>As well as shaping the course of human history, wind has shaped the Earth and its contents. A <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-11-powerful-sculpting-argentina-landscape.html">powerful terraforming force</a>, it is as influential as glaciers and rivers in moulding landmasses and creating mountains. Far from earth, winds blowing through the cosmos are thought to <a href="https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/space-science/how-galactic-winds-affect-evolution-of-galaxies/">seed the formation of galaxies</a>, while in the Southern Ocean, westerly winds feed the movement of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-how-the-antarctic-circumpolar-current-helps-keep-antarctica-frozen-106164">world’s strongest ocean current</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536460/original/file-20230710-29-tb1mqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The largest ocean current on Earth, the Antarctic circumpolar current.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">British Antarctic Survey/AP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Wind has influenced the growth of plants and the <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2017317118">evolution of their physical forms</a>, and has at times wielded an unseen evolutionary force over animals. </p>
<p><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32341144/">A recent study of neotropic lizards</a> (tree-dwelling reptiles) found lizards with bigger toepads were more common in areas that <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/hurricanes-make-lizards-evolve-bigger-toe-pads-180974772/">experience frequent hurricane activity</a>. Larger feet appeared better able to cling to points of security during powerful winds. Similarly, hurricane activity is thought to be shaping the evolution of some species of spiders, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2019/08/21/spiders-becoming-more-aggressive-survive-after-hurricanes/2054316001/">making them more aggressive</a>.</p>
<p>Wind <a href="https://phys.org/news/2018-12-biologists-mechanism-transition-insect-pollination.html">spreads the seeds, spores and pollens</a> necessary for fertilising the planet. It also carries life-giving rains, at times through aerial pathways known as “<a href="https://www.theamazonwewant.org/flying-rivers/">flying rivers</a>”. </p>
<p>Yet, the damaging potential of wind is as costly as it is unpredictable. In 2022, the Atlantic storm known as Hurricane Ian took 161 lives and caused <a href="https://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/weather/2023-01-11/new-report-ian-third-costliest-hurricane-on-record">over US$100 billion dollars in damage</a>. <a href="https://www.history.com/news/hurricane-katrina-facts-legacy">Hurricane Katrina</a>, in 2005, caused catastrophic flooding, widespread damage and the loss of over 1,800 lives. The financial cost of Katrina has been estimated at over US$125 billion. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-costs-of-disasters-like-hurricane-ian-are-calculated-and-why-it-takes-so-long-to-add-them-up-191736">How the costs of disasters like Hurricane Ian are calculated – and why it takes so long to add them up</a>
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<h2>Wind and religion</h2>
<p>Wind’s unseen force has been recognised since the times of our earliest written records. In literature from ancient Mesopotamia (an area roughly synonymous with modern-day Iraq), a theme appears that continues throughout much later literature — the fusion of wind and religion in human thought.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=970&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=970&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=970&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1218&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1218&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536439/original/file-20230710-29-2fw8io.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1218&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Baked clay statue of the Mesopotamian god Enlil, from Nippur, Iraq, 1800-1600 BCE.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">World History Encylopedia</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Enlil is a primary deity in the Mesopotamian pantheon, situated at the top of the divine hierarchy from the earliest times. <a href="https://www.history.com/news/hurricane-katrina-facts-legacy">Described as “king” or “supreme lord”</a>, his name can be translated as “Lord Wind”. Enlil’s wife is named Ninlil, meaning “Lady Wind”. </p>
<p>Enlil at times wields wind as a weapon. In the <a href="https://theconversation.com/guide-to-the-classics-the-epic-of-gilgamesh-73444">Epic of Gilgamesh</a>, he sends a great storm to destroy most of humanity. Wind is also weaponised in the Babylonian Creation myth, <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/article/225/enuma-elish---the-babylonian-epic-of-creation---fu/">Enuma Elish</a>, which dates to around 1200 BCE. In this myth, a cosmic battle involves an array of savage winds, alongside the divine creation of the cardinal winds, North, South, East and West.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/guide-to-the-classics-the-epic-of-gilgamesh-73444">Guide to the classics: the Epic of Gilgamesh</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In the Bible, the cardinal winds are frequently connected to apocalyptic settings. The four winds are involved in mediating the power of life and death in the Books of <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=job+1&version=NRSVUE">Job</a>, <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mathew+24&version=NRSVUE">Matthew</a>, <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+13&version=NRSVUE">Mark</a>, and <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezekiel%2037&version=NRSVUE">Ezekiel</a>, while under the power of God or angels (or both). </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/534480/original/file-20230628-29-6ms1i0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Durer: Four angels holding back the winds, and the marking of the elect.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The connection between the cardinal winds and apocalypse is reflected in art. The German Renaissance artist, <a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/albrecht-durer-3-things-to-know-1970024">Albrecht Dürer</a>, depicts angels holding the four winds in his work The Apocalypse with Pictures (1498). It represents a passage from the <a href="https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/book-revelation-curses-0017927">Book of Revelation</a>, where angels are described “holding back” the four winds, thus representing the staying of divine judgement prior to further cataclysmic events.</p>
<p>In Egyptian religion, the four cardinal winds are found in the <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/article/148/the-pyramid-texts-guide-to-the-afterlife/">Pyramid texts</a> – sacred texts carved on the walls of the pyramids of Egyptian rulers during the Old Kingdom period. </p>
<p>In these texts, the four winds were viewed as servants of the <a href="https://www.livescience.com/ancient-egyptian-sun-temple-discovered">Egyptian god of creation and the sun, Ra</a>. The four winds were thought to stand behind him. Their power of “looking with two faces” meant their gaze could either be protective or harmful. </p>
<p>In the Egyptian <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1021/the-coffin-texts/">Coffin Texts</a>, the cardinal winds were connected to the afterlife. They also played a complex role in <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1019/magic-in-ancient-egypt/">ancient Egyptian magic</a>. Wind and magic have long been fused in religious thought. In many ancient cultures, religious practitioners were believed capable of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tempestarii">magically summoning the wind</a> and manipulating its power. </p>
<h2>Fertile breezes</h2>
<p>As well as recognising the wind’s dangerous and destructive potential, ancient cultures revered its creative capacity. In Greek myth, <a href="https://www.theoi.com/Nymphe/NympheKhloris.html">unions between wind and plant deities</a>, such as Chloris the flower goddess and Zephyrus, the West-Wind, mirrored the role of the wind in spreading seeds and pollinating plants. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=797&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=797&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=797&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1001&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1001&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536447/original/file-20230710-27-6ofe7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1001&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Attic vase thought to depict Zephyrus (on left) and Hyacinthus, from Tarquinia, c. 480 BCE.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">World History Encyclopedia</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It was thought at this time that wind’s fertilising role worked on animals, too. Several early works in the genre of natural history, such as Pliny the Elder’s The Natural History (c. 1st century CE), describe divine, animate winds <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0137%3Abook%3D8%3Achapter%3D67">impregnating mares</a>. The Roman poet <a href="https://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/VirgilGeorgicsIII.php">Virgil</a> described this behaviour as inspired by the <a href="https://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/aphrodite/venus.html">Roman love goddess, Venus</a>.</p>
<p>In myths from West Africa and South America, wind shows a religious association with <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-77481-3_48">breath, as well as living and ancestral spirits</a>. </p>
<p>The wind deity <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1465923?casa_token=MDVNYTM4o3kAAAAA%3A_N7PN_qaEaE6hB5CRvGp7D0LSXaSgtLrF1KQKm66blwSA482i8Qm1ETaL1LcXev6eC_PXSG-FnbLTh7wmixRWvChuptDFX9f7zQ4bZMbAgytCHVqqQ">Oya</a> is connected to tornadoes, change and rebirth. These connections symbolically represent the role of wind in bringing rains and assisting in the production of new life. </p>
<h2>Winds of war</h2>
<p>The invisible force of wind has helped shape the course of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/nov/16/how-wind-direction-changed-the-course-of-english-history-in-1688">innumerable human battles</a>. An ancient example of the use of wind in warfare comes from the <a href="https://www.history.com/news/ancient-romes-darkest-day-the-battle-of-cannae">Battle of Cannae</a>. In 216 BCE, <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/hannibal">Hannibal</a>, the famous Carthaginian general, led his troops to victory over the larger Roman army in a bloody battle that took place in south-eastern Italy. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536444/original/file-20230710-19-w7ak16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Livy, Histoire romaine: The battle of Cannae.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Hannibal understood the direction of a scorching local wind, known as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libeccio">libeccio</a>, could prove a decisive element in the battle. </p>
<p>Knowing the wind would intensify in the heat of the afternoon, Hannibal positioned his troops so it would blow against their backs – and into the faces of his enemies. Hannibal’s success was recorded by the <a href="https://www.livius.org/articles/person/livy/">Roman historian, Livy</a>. The hot wind blew dust and grit into the eyes of the Romans, obstructing their vision. </p>
<p>During the English <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/wars-of-the-roses">War of the Roses </a>(1455-1487), the wind helped the Yorkists defeat the Lancastrians in the <a href="https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/The-Battle-of-Towton/">Battle of Towton</a>. While the Lancastrians had claimed the higher ground on the battlefield, the Yorkists had the wind at their backs. This powerful headwind sent their arrows deep into the bodies of the Lancastrians, while limiting the range of their opponents’ arrows.</p>
<p>Sudden changes in the wind were decisive during several points of the 16th century <a href="https://www.tudorsociety.com/30-july-1588-wind-scatters-armada/">battles of the Spanish Armada</a>. Fortuitous winds also played a key role <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/03/20/weird-weather-saved-america-three-times/">helping George Washington</a> escape a British siege in the <a href="https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/battle-of-long-island/">Battle of Long Island</a> during the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/american-revolution-history">American Revolutionary War</a> (1775-83). </p>
<p>Washington’s retreat was assisted by the arrival of a fog and a wind shift that filled the sails of his company’s ships. In a later battle, <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-tornado-that-saved-washington-33901211/">a tornado </a> pressed the British troops into retreat.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536445/original/file-20230710-19-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An 1889 painting of the American retreat from Long Island after the battle of Brooklyn.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>More contemporary examples show how wind can be a fickle friend on the battlefield. During the first world war, the use of <a href="https://sciencehistory.org/stories/magazine/a-brief-history-of-chemical-war/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw7uSkBhDGARIsAMCZNJueAShis_-YcLIAM6SNw4iQo99qIU76ucuLzyYE7psNZYfiKI3CqFwaAnjPEALw_wcB">chlorine, mustard and other gases</a> led to both psychological horror and devastating death and injuries. </p>
<p>Wind speeds and direction were carefully measured by military meteorologists, who advised on the optimal time to release gas to cause the greatest damage to the opposing side. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=225&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=225&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=225&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=282&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=282&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535459/original/file-20230704-22-3ledi8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=282&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">John Singer Sargent, Gassed (1919).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But a change in the wind’s direction, or a shift in its intensity, could result in unintended consequences – and potentially, blowback. The nebulous quality of gas borne on wind meant the poisons could not be restricted to the battlefield, easily carrying to villages near the battlefront. This caused civilian deaths, too.</p>
<h2>Nuclear fallout</h2>
<p>In modern times, the unpredictability of wind has influenced the testing and use of nuclear weapons. On August 6, 1945, crosswinds meant the nuclear bomb dropped over <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/apr/18/story-of-cities-hiroshima-japan-nuclear-destruction">Hiroshima</a> was carried a short distance from its aiming point – the Aioi Bridge – to the Shima Hospital, which was instantly destroyed.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535460/original/file-20230704-27-8jovfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Atomic clouds over Hiroshima, left, and Nagasaki.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In 1954, the <a href="https://www.history.com/news/nuclear-bomb-tests-bikini-atoll-facts">testing of nuclear fusion bombs on the Bikini Atoll</a> by the US military was <a href="https://ahf.nuclearmuseum.org/ahf/location/marshall-islands/">adversely affected</a> by an unexpected weather event. The wind on the first of March in Bikini did not follow the predicted patterns of the meteorologists. Strong westerly winds carried fallout contamination across the population of the Marshall Islands, and beyond.</p>
<p>More than 70 years later, Bikini Islanders continue to <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/us-nuclear-testings-devastating-legacy-lingers-30-years-later?loggedin=true&rnd=1687827127877">face the consequences of the spread of radiation from the nuclear tests</a>. <a href="http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/data/education/wind-shear.pdf">Wind shear</a> and ocean currents carried the fallout from the tests as far as Europe, Australia and India.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=291&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=291&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=291&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=365&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=365&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536446/original/file-20230710-28-ruryie.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=365&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The second atom bomb test at Bikini Atoll explodes underwater on July 25, 1946.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Shaping technology</h2>
<p>The invisible potency of wind has also powerfully shaped the development of technology. Since the Upper Palaeolithic times, wind-born aerofoils have been used for many purposes including hunting. The first known <a href="https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/earliest-evidence-of-the-boomerang-in-australia#:%7E:text=Boomerangs%20and%20throwing%20sticks&text=A%2023%2C000%2Dyear%2Dold%20mammoth,to%20about%2010%2C000%20years%20ago.">boomerang</a> dates to around <a href="https://apnews.com/article/5386e4fc34507bfe5a66dcb9f2753d80">23,000 years ago</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/5-indigenous-engineering-feats-you-should-know-about-198987">5 Indigenous engineering feats you should know about</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Wind filled the <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/mesopotamian-reed-boats-171674">sails of early boats</a> in Mesopotamia over 6,000 years ago, allowing for longer sea voyages, trade and cultural exchanges. </p>
<p>And in China, as well as parts of the Middle East, the invention of <a href="http://www.historyofwindmills.com/">windmills</a> allowed communities to pump water, grind grain and irrigate crops hundreds of years before the industrial revolution. </p>
<p>In modern times, wind-powered kites featured in many early weather experiments. Wind was critical to the discovery and development of electrical power — perhaps <a href="https://www.fi.edu/en/benjamin-franklin/kite-key-experiment">most famously in the experiments</a> of the American polymath, <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/benjamin-franklin">Benjamin Franklin</a>, who flew a kite fastened to a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leyden_jar">Leyden jar</a> into a thunderstorm to research the connection of lightning to electricity (please don’t try this at home).</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=804&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=804&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=804&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1010&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1010&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535462/original/file-20230704-19-1xh7f8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1010&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Benjamin West, circa 1816, Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Wind power generated <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/12/wind-and-solar-generated-a-record-amount-of-global-power-in-2022.html#:%7E:text=Sustainable%20Future-,'Entering%20the%20clean%20power%20era'%3A%20Wind%20and%20solar%20generated,of%20global%20power%20in%202022&text=An%20analysis%20published%20Wednesday%20by,global%20electricity%20generation%20in%202021.">a record amount of electricity in 2022</a>, becoming the top energy producer in the UK. Further from home, the use of wind turbines <a href="https://www.popsci.com/technology/mars-wind-power-turbines-nasa-study/">on the volcanic highlands and crater rims of Mars</a> has been posited as potentially powering future human bases on the red planet.</p>
<p>Last year, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-04363-9">wind dispersal</a> was explored as a means for carrying battery-free, wireless-sensing devices (sometimes called “<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2018/09/16/smart-dust-is-coming-are-you-ready/?sh=70e756785e41">smart dust</a>”) in a study published in Nature. </p>
<p>The authors were inspired by <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/dandelion-seed-flight/">dandelion seeds</a>, which carry adaptions to make them easier to carry on the breeze. Battery-free wireless sensory devices are a relatively new field of research with many potential applications — including the areas of medicine, agriculture and military science.</p>
<p>In the 21st century, the need to understand and appreciate the natural world has become increasingly clear. Wind by its very nature is always shifting, and in recent years, <a href="https://e360.yale.edu/features/global-stilling-is-climate-change-slowing-the-worlds-wind">changes to global wind patterns have occurred due to climate change </a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cyclone-ilsa-just-broke-an-australian-wind-speed-record-an-expert-explains-why-the-science-behind-this-is-so-complex-203835">Cyclone Ilsa just broke an Australian wind speed record. An expert explains why the science behind this is so complex</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1056&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1056&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536959/original/file-20230712-24-bdstyv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1056&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Indeed, climate change has been linked to an increase in <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-isnt-just-making-cyclones-worse-its-making-the-floods-they-cause-worse-too-new-research-182789?gclid=CjwKCAjw44mlBhAQEiwAqP3eVqPwZCGYkGkY9LuAltqIolEqxP7h1AKSYYc1k3IOjUv6AuP2-_ywlRoCX7kQAvD_BwE">catastrophic wind-related weather events</a>, an <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-65844901">increase in clear air turbulence</a> (also known as “in-flight bumpiness”) and a <a href="https://www.ft.com/video/94669d40-8d30-4e95-8865-a4d034176c59">global reduction in wind speeds</a> known as “The Stilling.” </p>
<p>The impact of climate change on wind is a developing area of study, with the long-term impacts difficult to predict. Delving into the intangible and <a href="https://theconversation.com/cyclone-ilsa-just-broke-an-australian-wind-speed-record-an-expert-explains-why-the-science-behind-this-is-so-complex-203835">unpredictable</a> world of the wind is an encounter with nature’s ephemeral complexity.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Louise M. Pryke is the author of <a href="https://reaktionbooks.co.uk/work/wind">Wind, the latest volume in Reaktion’s Earth Series</a>. Wind explores the element’s natural history as well as its cultural life in myth, science, religion, art, music and literature.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>_Correction: in the original version of the article, The Book of Revelation was incorrectly listed as the Book of Revelations. _</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/206592/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Louise Pryke does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Invisible to the naked eye, the work of the wind often goes unnoticed. Yet, for millennia, this unseen force has shaped religion, trade, warfare, culture, science and more.Louise Pryke, Honorary Research Associate, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2077202023-06-20T12:27:59Z2023-06-20T12:27:59ZThe tree of life has been a powerful image in Jewish tradition for thousands of years – signifying much more than immortality<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532441/original/file-20230616-29-13d56x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C0%2C2101%2C1412&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Tree of life imagery appears in several sections of the Bible.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/tree-hugging-royalty-free-image/141377343?phrase=large+tree&adppopup=true">Catherine MacBride/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>After two months of trial, jurors unanimously <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/jury-recommends-sentence-death-pennsylvania-man-convicted-tree-life-synagogue-shooting">recommended the death sentence</a> for Robert Bowers, the gunman who killed 11 worshippers in a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018 – the deadliest <a href="https://www.vox.com/2018/10/29/18037580/pittsburgh-shooter-anti-semitism-racist-jewish-caravan">antisemitic attack</a> in U.S. history. A federal judge <a href="https://apnews.com/article/pittsburgh-synagogue-shooting-death-penalty-ccb447356b2cfe855875c329fb00f505">formally imposed the sentence</a> on Aug. 3, 2023.</p>
<p>The name of the synagogue, Tree of Life, has almost become shorthand for the tragedy. Yet it highlights a symbol from the Bible that has transformed over time, coming to represent how the human and the divine relate through revelation. In Jewish Scripture and Jewish thought, <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/what-is-the-tree-of-life-etz-chaim/">the tree of life</a> speaks to fundamental aspects of what it means to be human in the world.</p>
<p>In my research as <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/jewishstudies/samuel-boyd">a scholar of the Bible and ancient Judaism</a>, I have been amazed at the potency of the symbol of the tree of life. Not only has the symbol itself transformed over time, but it has the power to transform communities along with it.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An orange, autumn-foliage tree with long branches extending over an open grave." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532099/original/file-20230615-18-ixz5ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The final resting place of Rose Mallinger, 97, who was among the 11 victims of the 2018 massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue, lies ready for her casket.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-final-resting-place-of-rose-mallinger-lays-ready-for-news-photo/1055780540?adppopup=true">Jeff Swensen/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>In the beginning</h2>
<p>The tree of life appears in <a href="https://brill.com/edcollbook/title/8704">the Book of Genesis</a>, at the very beginning of the Hebrew Bible – what many Christians call the Old Testament. </p>
<p>In the creation story of <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.2.10?lang=bi&aliyot=0">chapters 2</a> and 3, God places man in the <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300178692/what-really-happened-in-the-garden-of-eden/">Garden of Eden</a>, then creates woman, Eve, from his rib. Eden is filled with “every tree that was pleasing to the sight and good for food,” as well as the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil – but God commands the man not to eat this last tree’s fruit. </p>
<p>Before long, however, a <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/from-creation-to-babel-studies-in-genesis-111-9780567370303/">serpent tempts Eve and Adam</a> to do just that. When the serpent speaks, it addresses Eve directly – and for centuries, art and stories about the Garden of Eden <a href="https://artuk.org/discover/stories/from-the-garden-of-eden-to-killing-eve-deconstructing-the-first-woman-in-art">have portrayed her as “responsible</a>” for succumbing to temptation. </p>
<p>Yet in the Hebrew text, the snake often uses verbs for the second person plural, suggesting that it is addressing Adam as well – or at least implying the benefits of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil will apply to him, too.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/from-creation-to-abraham-9780567703118/">Biblical scholars debate</a> the meaning of the tree’s name: what exactly do “knowledge” or “good and evil” entail? Persuaded that eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil will make them like God, however, Adam and Eve consume the fruit. Worried that the couple might eat from the tree of life as well, making them immortal, God <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.3.23?lang=bi&aliyot=0">expels Adam and Eve from the garden</a> and places a flaming sword and angelic beings at the entrance to prevent reentry.</p>
<p>This transgression of the boundary between divinity and humanity begins <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.6.2?lang=bi&aliyot=0">a recurring theme</a> in the Bible, one that famously appears in the story of <a href="https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9781506480671/Babel">the Tower of Babel</a> in Genesis 11. In this latter passage, humans build a tower and a city without conferring with God at all – both acts that, in the ancient world, defied divine prerogative. </p>
<h2>Two trees</h2>
<p>These two trees, especially the tree of life, have long raised questions for scholars. Though the tree of life <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.2.10?lang=bi&aliyot=0">is introduced at the same time</a> as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the rest of Genesis’ creation story focuses on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree of life does not reappear until <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.3.22?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en">the end of the Eden story</a>, when God expels Adam and Eve to prevent them from eating it.</p>
<p>Some scholars have argued that the two trees in Genesis emerged from two <a href="https://www.mupress.org/Genesis-P1083.aspx">distinct traditions</a> in the ancient Near East. The tree of life symbolism had a <a href="https://brill.com/display/book/edcoll/9789004423756/BP000002.xml">long history</a> in the region. Kings from <a href="https://brill.com/display/book/edcoll/9789004423756/BP000003.xml">Assyria in ancient Mesopotamia and elsewhere</a> would use a verdant tree in imagery to evoke the wonders and fertility of their domain. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A worn stone carving of winged figures on either side of a tree." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532097/original/file-20230615-18-krqfj2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A relief from ancient Assyria with two winged mythological beings and the god Ashur before the tree of life. From the State Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/relief-with-two-figures-of-ashurnasirpal-winged-news-photo/464450757?adppopup=true">Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The two themes associated with each tree, however – wisdom and immortality – are connected in other <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/from-creation-to-abraham-9780567703118/">ancient myths</a>. In <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/myths-from-mesopotamia-9780199538362?cc=us&lang=en&">one legend from Mesopotamia</a>, for example, in modern-day Iraq, the first human is named Adapa.</p>
<p>Ea, the god who created Adapa, gives him wisdom from the start. Ea then offers the man food that would lead to immortality but tricks Adapa into refusing it. The result is that humans have some wisdom, like the gods, but are not immortal and cannot challenge the divine.</p>
<p>Similarly, the two trees in Genesis display how humanity is both like and unlike God. According to other texts in the Bible, <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Psalms.82?lang=bi">such as Psalm 82</a>, divinity is characterized by immortality and a concern for justice. Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, giving humanity some sense of self-awareness, justice and, ideally, care for the poor and oppressed. Humans did not consume the tree of life, however, creating a distinction between them and the divine.</p>
<h2>Living wisdom</h2>
<p>In Genesis, readers are introduced to “the” tree of life, with the definite article – implying there is only one such tree.</p>
<p>Later in the Bible, however, “a” tree of life appears four times in <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Proverbs.1?lang=bi">the Book of Proverbs</a>, a complex anthology that collects many sayings and gems of wisdom from the ancient world. A possible, though by no means certain, allusion also appears in <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Ezekiel.47.12?lang=bi">the Book of Ezekiel</a>.</p>
<p>Some of these passages in Proverbs use the imagery of a tree of life as a positive contrast to sickness, <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Proverbs.13.13?lang=bi">languishing</a> or <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Proverbs.15.4?lang=bi">broken spirits</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Proverbs.11.30?lang=bi">Other verses</a> connect knowledge and a tree of life. <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Proverbs.3.18?lang=bi">Proverbs 3:18</a>, for example, instructs that wisdom “is a tree of life to those who grasp her, and whoever holds on to her is happy.”</p>
<p>Jewish tradition frequently pictures God’s teachings and scripture, <a href="https://www.reformjudaism.org/learning/torah-study/torah-tree-life">the Torah</a>, as the tree of life – deepening this connection between life and wisdom.</p>
<h2>Reaching up to God</h2>
<p>In Genesis, the tree of life is a symbol of the divide between humanity and divinity. In the Bible’s wisdom literature, however, it comes to represent how knowledge, wisdom and Torah connect God and Israel. Both meanings continued to evolve in a strain of Jewish mysticism <a href="https://academic.oup.com/book/662">known as Kabbalah</a>, which <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300140910/nahmanides/">has roots in the 13th century</a></p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A faded manuscript page with intricate illustrations of plants." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=780&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=780&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=780&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=980&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=980&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532096/original/file-20230615-17-48uxzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=980&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Kabbalistic tree in an illustration from around 1625.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/arbor-cabalistica-ca-1625-private-collection-artist-news-photo/600047287?adppopup=true">Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The <a href="https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=30152">most famous texts</a> of Kabbalah discuss the relationship between humanity and divinity in terms of <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300046991/kabbalah/">God’s attributes</a>, such as righteousness, justice and beauty. These attributes, called “sefirot,” are often drawn as spheres, linked with branchlike lines as though they form a “<a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/reading-the-zohar-9780195118490?cc=us&lang=en&">tree of life</a>” – a tree that connects human experience on Earth to an infinite God above.</p>
<p>Mystical tradition sees these pathways through the “sefirot” not only as a means of connecting divinity and humanity, but also as a means of repairing our broken world, where believers may feel that the divine is often absent.</p>
<p>According to these teachings, when people access spheres on the tree of life through mystical reflection and study, they aid in “<a href="https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=1174">tikkun olam</a>,” the repair of the world. </p>
<p>It is no wonder, then, that the tree of life holds so much significance for Jewish communities. Like the synagogue in Pittsburgh, they can experience tragedy, even as they continue seeking ways to heal a broken world. </p>
<p><em>Editor’s note: This story was updated on Aug. 3, 2023 to include the gunman’s sentencing.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207720/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Samuel L. Boyd does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In the beginning of the Bible, the tree of life represents what sets humans apart from divinity – but other texts use the symbol to depict mankind’s relationship with God.Samuel L. Boyd, Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Jewish Studies, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2049692023-05-11T14:29:12Z2023-05-11T14:29:12ZZulu vs Xhosa: how colonialism used language to divide South Africa’s two biggest ethnic groups<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524909/original/file-20230508-230994-rsgk8o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An illustration of an antique photograph of the British Empire's mission work among the Zulu people of then-Natal province.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">ilbusca/DigitalVision Vectors/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>South Africa has <a href="https://www.parliament.gov.za/press-releases/na-approves-south-african-sign-language-12th-official-language">12 official languages</a>. The two most dominant are <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Zulu-language">isiZulu</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Xhosa-language">isiXhosa</a>. While the <a href="https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/zulu">Zulu</a> and <a href="https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/xhosa">Xhosa</a> people share a rich common history, they have also found themselves engaged in ethnic conflict and division, notably during <a href="https://africasacountry.com/2022/07/divided-by-the-word">urban wars</a> between 1990 and 1994. A new book, <a href="https://shop.wits.ac.za/product/divided-by-the-word/">Divided by the Word</a>, examines this history – and how colonisers and African interpreters created the two distinct languages, entrenched by apartheid education. Historian Jochen S. Arndt answers some questions about his book.</em></p>
<h2>What is the key premise of the book?</h2>
<p>The beautiful thing about history is that it can help us develop a more complex understanding of the things we consider natural in our daily lives.</p>
<p>People like to believe that their languages have always been there and always played an important role in defining their identity.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A book cover showing an old photo of a young African girl in western attire holding a book and a pen and reading from the pages." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524921/original/file-20230508-15-pj1xl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wits University Press</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But history can show us that what appears to be timeless is, in fact, deeply historical and dependent on the actions of people with ambitions and agendas. My book argues that, as well-defined, standardised languages rather than speech forms (vernaculars), isiZulu and isiXhosa emerged as part of a long historical process that involved a wide range of actors, notably European and US missionaries and African interpreters and intellectuals.</p>
<h2>How did you arrive at the project?</h2>
<p>During the transition from <a href="https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/history-apartheid-south-africa">apartheid</a> to democracy in South Africa between 1990 and 1994, the urban areas reserved for black people around Johannesburg were engulfed in <a href="https://academic.oup.com/afraf/article/112/447/283/79418">violence</a> that killed thousands. Civil wars are always complex, but the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/afraf/article/112/447/283/79418">testimonies</a> of <a href="https://boydellandbrewer.com/9781847012128/township-violence-and-the-end-of-apartheid">participants</a> <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2637187">reveal</a> that many of them understood the <a href="https://quod.lib.umich.edu/p/passages/4761530.0004.002/--violence-and-political-action-in-south-africa-five-comrades?rgn=main;view=fulltext">conflict</a> as a war between Zulus and Xhosas. I was struck by how they defined Zuluness and Xhosaness. Many said they were Zulu because they spoke the Zulu language, and Xhosa because they spoke the Xhosa language. One haunting testimony was of a self-identifying Zulu:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The Xhosa who were trying to kill us were just looking for your tongue, which language you were.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>My book argues that the historical process that produced isiZulu and isiXhosa as distinct languages began at least two centuries before apartheid. It was the product of colonial encounters and both foreign and African ideologies of language.</p>
<h2>Was there a time when Zulu and Xhosa identities didn’t exist?</h2>
<p>The subtitle of the book is: “Colonial encounters and the remaking of Zulu and Xhosa identities”. I’m not saying that Zulu and Xhosa identities didn’t exist before the languages were well defined, rather that the identities were transformed when these languages came into existence.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-100-year-old-story-of-south-africas-first-history-book-in-the-isizulu-language-178924">The 100-year-old story of South Africa's first history book in the isiZulu language</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Before the 1800s, South Africa’s indigenous people had two key forms of collective belonging: the chiefdom and the clan. There were many chiefdoms and clans, including Zulu and Xhosa ones. The chiefdom was a political entity: a person belonged to a chiefdom because they had submitted or sworn an oath of fealty to a chief. The clan was a genealogical entity: a person belonged because they were born into the clan. </p>
<p>Membership in a chiefdom or a clan had nothing to do with language. </p>
<h2>How did the two distinct languages come into existence?</h2>
<p>I argue that in the 1800s foreign missionaries and their African interpreters together created distinct isiZulu and isiXhosa out of numerous speech forms.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A vintage illustration in black and white of an African man in formal western attire standing next to a table where three other men stand and sit in a lavish drawing room." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525056/original/file-20230509-25-q1mqtk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">JanTzatzoe, left, was a Xhosa chief who converted to Christianity and served as a translator for the British.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Nicholson/Corbis via Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Protestant missionaries arrived in South Africa in the 1820s. Their primary goal was to convert Africans to Christianity. For them the Bible was the source of revelation. To give Africans direct access to it, it had to be translated.</p>
<p>The problem was there was no written language, so written languages and their geographic reach had to be defined. Consequently, missionaries asked themselves: are the speech forms of the Zulu and Xhosa and of the chiefdoms and clans in between them – such as Mfengu, Thembu, Bhaca, Mpondo, Mpondomise, Hlubi, Cele, Thuli, Qwabe – similar enough to represent a single language into which the Bible can be translated, or do they represent multiple languages?</p>
<p>I suggest that the answer to this question changed over time for a host of reasons, perhaps most importantly due to the influence of African interpreters. Missionaries depended on interpreters, who had their own ideas about language. The decision to think of isiZulu and isiXhosa as two separate languages can to some extent be traced back to these interpreters.</p>
<p>Education played the crucial role in people identifying with these languages. It involved Africans and non-Africans, as lawmakers, superintendents of education and teachers, promoting isiZulu and isiXhosa as part of “mother tongue” education in various school settings between the middle of the 1800s and the last decade of the 1900s.</p>
<h2>How did apartheid entrench this?</h2>
<p>Apartheid merely reinforced this trend. Crucial was the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Eiselen-Commission">Eiselen Commission</a> of 1949, which <a href="https://www.worldcat.org/title/report-of-the-commission-on-native-education-1949-1951/oclc/668118744">claimed</a> that isiZulu and isiXhosa were the “bearer of the traditional heritage of the various ethnic groups”. This was like saying that these languages captured the essence of these groups in particularly powerful ways. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Close up of hands holding an old, battered document containing an identity photo and personal information." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524925/original/file-20230508-213756-74pvcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dekemani Mzuzwa with his pass book that he is waiting to exchange for a new passport in 1994.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">David Turnley/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To reinforce these group identities, the commission expanded mother tongue education in schools. This for a Mpondo child, for instance, meant studying isiXhosa, and for a Hlubi child meant studying isiZulu. Children gradually assimilated Zulu or Xhosa as their language-based identities.</p>
<h2>How is this relevant today?</h2>
<p>Post-apartheid South Africa continues to promote the Zulu-Xhosa divide through its own official language policies in schools. In the Eastern Cape, for instance, African pupils will learn standard isiXhosa because it is assumed that their “home language” is a dialect of isiXhosa. In KwaZulu-Natal the same happens with isiZulu. Under this policy, it is very difficult to revive and strengthen identities such as Bhaca or Hlubi.</p>
<p>The only way out of this predicament for the Hlubi and Bhaca is to make language a battleground of their identity politics. I think this best explains why the Hlubi have created an <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2020-02-21-amahlubi-battle-to-save-mother-tongue-from-extinction/">IsiHlubi Language Board</a> and why the <a href="https://www.dispatchlive.co.za/news/2015-05-28-respect-bhaca-kingdom-/">Bhaca</a> insist that their <a href="https://ridgetimes.co.za/43364/isibhaca-is-the-language-of-the-bhaca-nation/">speech</a> is not a dialect of isiXhosa.</p>
<p>My point is that we cannot make sense of their need to make these arguments without coming to terms with the long history of the Zulu-Xhosa language divide.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204969/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jochen S. Arndt received funding from the Social Sciences Research Council, American Historical Association, and Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa.</span></em></p>Missionaries and African translators working on local versions of the Bible divided South Africa’s ethnic groups by language.Jochen S. Arndt, Associate Professor of History, Virginia Military InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2021932023-03-22T16:51:32Z2023-03-22T16:51:32ZThe most expensive book of all time? What makes this $50 million Hebrew Bible so special?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516762/original/file-20230321-2335-97zqlg.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=45%2C18%2C5993%2C3992&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A view of the 'Codex Sassoon' at Sotheby's in New York.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ed Jones/AFP</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In May, Sotheby’s headquarters in New York will be hosting the auction of what could be the most expensive book of all time: a <a href="https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2023/codex-sassoon-the-earliest-most-complete-hebrew-bible">bible estimated up to 50 million dollars</a>. It is said to be one of the oldest in the world, an example of a book unlike any other. What is it really?</p>
<h2>The origins of the Bible</h2>
<p>The Bible is said to be <a href="https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/best-selling-book-of-non-fiction">the world’s best-selling book</a>. Granted, it enjoyed a head start: in the 15th century, when Gutenberg developed his famous printing technique, it was of course the Bible that he chose for widespread distribution.</p>
<p>At the time, Gutenberg printed a Latin version of the Bible, known as the “Vulgate”, translated from Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek by Saint Jerome at the turn of the 5th century AD. We owe such linguistic diversity to the fact that the Bible is not a book, but a collection of books written at different times by authors who did not all speak the same language. The word “bible” itself means “the books” in the plural (in Greek: “ta biblia”).</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513425/original/file-20230303-20-tgc9ok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Gutenberg Bible, Lenox Copy, New York Public Library.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Starfire2k/Flickr</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The bible to be auctioned on May 16 is in Hebrew and dates from around the 10th century AD. This is a respectable age, but there are much older manuscripts. A thousand years earlier, scribes were copying the same books onto parchment (or, more rarely, papyrus) scrolls.</p>
<p>Some of these manuscripts spent millennia hidden in caves on the western shores of the Dead Sea. They were discovered in the middle of the 20th century by Bedouins. These “Dead Sea Scrolls”, as they are called, are the oldest manuscripts of the Bible to date. Unfortunately, they are dislocated and fragmented: there are more than <a href="https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il">30,000 fragments</a>, which must have corresponded to about a thousand scrolls. There are as many puzzles to be solved, without a model, and with most of the pieces missing. The oldest are dated to the 3rd century BC, perhaps even the 4th or 5th century BC, as I <a href="http://michaellanglois.org/?p=18261">recently proposed</a>. The later ones are dated to the 2nd century AD.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517656/original/file-20230327-14-p6u06g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsᵃ), copied in the late IIᵉ century BC.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://barhama.com/">Ardon Bar-Hama</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In most cases, the method for dating is based on “paleography” – the way the letters are drawn – with the assumption that people did not write in the same way in the 3rd century BC as they did in the 2nd century AD.</p>
<h2>A dating problem</h2>
<p>Carbon-14 dating is, in theory, useful, but it faces several difficulties: it is a destructive method, because samples have to be taken and crushed. These samples are often contaminated and give aberrant results. And even when they are correct, the results have to be calibrated, and one sometimes ends up with several possible and rather imprecise dates. Finally, even when the date is plausible, only the parchment or papyrus is dated, not the writing. The text itself may have been inked much later – especially if the parchment was washed and reused, as was often done: in those days, recycling was the norm.</p>
<p>Before the upcoming auction, a carbon-14 dating was carried out, but the results have not been published. We are told that this bible would date from the late 9th or early 10th century AD, but no further details are given. It is in the seller’s interest to offer the earliest possible dating to raise the bidding, even to the point of presenting this bible as a missing link with the Dead Sea Scrolls. In reality, a millennium separates them, so that a few decades will hardly make any difference.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=620&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=620&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=620&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=779&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=779&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513439/original/file-20230303-24-fowbkn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=779&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Codex Vaticanus, copied around the IVᵉ century AD.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ardon Bar-Hama</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A missing link?</h2>
<p>The missing link exists, however: Greek bibles dated to the 4th or 5th centuries AD. The most famous is in the Vatican, hence the name <a href="https://digi.vatlib.it/view/MSS_Vat.gr.1209">Codex Vaticanus</a>. For the books of the Bible that were written in Greek, these manuscripts preserve the text in its original language. But for books written in Hebrew and Aramaic, one must do with a Greek translation. Alas, to translate is to betray.</p>
<p>This raises the question of the reliability of this Greek version, especially as it sometimes differs from later Hebrew bibles such as the one being auctioned. Were the Greek translators incompetent or distracted? The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls solved this riddle, since some of these scrolls, including Hebrew ones, agree with the Greek version. In other words, the Greek translators did a pretty good job, because the Hebrew text in front of them was different from the medieval Hebrew bibles.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=729&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=729&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=729&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=916&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=916&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513442/original/file-20230303-2362-9f7vc4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=916&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Aleppo Codex, copied circa AD 930.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ardon Bar Hama</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The biblical text did not stop its metamorphosis there. For centuries, different versions were passed on from one hand to another, copied time and again by Jewish and Christian scribes who did not necessarily speak much to each other.</p>
<p>In the Early Middle Ages, Jewish scholars developed systems for punctuating the biblical text. It must be said that the Hebrew alphabet does not mark vowels in a systematic and precise manner. In fact, the same text can often be read in different ways, which can have serious consequences for those who view it as Holy Scripture.</p>
<p>To remove any ambiguity, small dots and strokes were added here and there to specify the exact pronunciation of vowels, stress, punctuation and cantillation. Several pronunciations were in competition, and it was not until the 10th century AD that the first Hebrew bible with the pronunciation still in use today was produced.</p>
<p>That bible is the <a href="http://aleppocodex.org/">Aleppo Codex</a>, dated around AD 930. It is on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Several pages are missing, but its heir, the St. Petersburg Codex (or Leningrad Codex), copied in AD 1009, is complete. It is this manuscript that serves as the reference for the study of the Hebrew Bible.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=705&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=705&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=705&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=886&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=886&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/513436/original/file-20230303-26-gifoy7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=886&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Codex Sassoon 1053, copied around the Xᵉ century AD.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ardon Bar-Hama</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A living text</h2>
<p>The bible up for sale is neither the Aleppo nor the St. Petersburg Codex. It is Codex Sassoon 1053. Unlike the St. Petersburg Codex, pages are missing, so it cannot claim to be the oldest known complete Hebrew bible. Its punctuation is also slightly different from that of the Aleppo Codex. Which can be viewed either as a flaw or a quality: believers who wish to read the Hebrew Bible according to the official pronunciation will disregard this codex, while other scholars note the value of this manuscript for a comparative study of Hebrew punctuation.</p>
<p>The astronomical price for the item being auctioned is indicative of the Bible’s ongoing relevance to billions of people around the world.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
À lire aussi :
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fake-scrolls-at-the-museum-of-the-bible-106012">Fake scrolls at the Museum of the Bible</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Such cultural heritage must be protected from any form of instrumentalisation and appreciated at its true value. Codex Sassoon 1053 has other qualities: for example, it arranges the books of the Hebrew Bible in a slightly different order than we know them. The book of the prophet Isaiah has been placed after Ezekiel, not before Jeremiah. Imagine watching the <em>Star Wars</em> movies in a different order than the one in which they were released in theatres; the effect would not be the same!</p>
<p>This is what happens here: the Bible is read in a different way. Each manuscript is unique. The Bible’s millennial history invites us to discover it, not as a monolith trapped in a univocal reading, but as a living text in perpetual flux.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202193/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Langlois ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Codex Sassoon 1053 is not exactly the oldest known complete Hebrew bible. So how can we explain its astronomical price?Michael Langlois, Docteur ès sciences historiques et philologiques, maître de conférences HDR, membre honoraire de l’IUF, Université de StrasbourgLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2001412023-02-28T13:25:44Z2023-02-28T13:25:44ZA feminist theologian says, ‘Our Father’ is not the only way of referring to God<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511779/original/file-20230222-27-qqs83c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=25%2C8%2C5552%2C3855&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A service in the village church of St. Paul de Leon in Devon, England. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/members-of-the-congregation-stand-before-taking-holy-news-photo/1452321203?phrase=church%20of%20england&adppopup=true">Hugh R Hastings/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Many Christian communities refer to God as “Father.” This takes root in the Gospels, where Jesus teaches his followers to pray “<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%206%3A9-13&version=ESV">Our Father</a>,” which Christians continue to say today. It is certainly appropriate to refer to God as Father, yet it is not the only way to depict God.</p>
<p>As a Catholic <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Z64meKEAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">feminist theologian</a> who runs a women’s center at a Catholic university, I understand the impact of the pronouns Christians use for God. Historically, Christian tradition has recognized many depictions for God, including father and mother. This is partly because God does not have a gender.</p>
<p>Despite the diverse images used for God in Scripture and Christian tradition, male language and images predominate in contemporary Christian worship. </p>
<h2>Many images for God</h2>
<p>When we speak about God, we do so knowing that what we say is incomplete. All images for God reveal something about God. No image of God is literal or reveals everything about God. </p>
<p>For example, while Christians can refer to God as a king, they must also remember that God is not literally a king. Calling God a king expresses that God is powerful. However, it is not expressing factual accuracy about God’s gender or implying that God is human.</p>
<p>Referring to God with many titles, descriptions and images invites many of us to recognize the mystery of God. God is like all of these things but also more than all of these things. </p>
<p><a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aquinas/">Thomas Aquinas</a>, an influential 13th-century Catholic theologian, asserted that individuals can talk about God in ways that are true <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/summa/1013.htm#:%7E:text=We%20cannot%20know%20the%20essence,Him%20in%20that%20manner%20only">but always inadequate</a>. Aquinas explained that our language about God affirms something about God, yet God is always beyond that which we can express. We express truths about God in human terms and constructs, but since God is mystery, God is always beyond these categories. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A colored engraving showing a man dressed in robes with a halo around his head, reading a book." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511781/original/file-20230222-695-t0pmon.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Painting of the 13th-century theologian Thomas Aquinas.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/saint-thomas-aquinas-dominican-friar-theologian-and-italian-news-photo/700192393?phrase=thomas%20aquinas&adppopup=true">Fototeca Gilardi/Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Scripture is filled with multiple images of God. In some of these images, <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+6%3A9-13&version=NABRE">God is depicted as a father or male</a>. In other parts of Scripture, God is female. The prophet Isaiah compares God to a nursing mother in the <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+49%3A15&version=NABRE">Book of Isaiah</a>. A mother hen gathering her chicks is an <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mt+23%3A37&version=NABRE">analogy for God in the Gospel of Matthew</a>. The Book of Wisdom, a book in the Catholic Bible, depicts wisdom personified as a woman. <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Wisdom+10%3A18&version=NABRE">Wisdom 10:18-19</a> states: “She took them across the Red Sea and brought them through deep waters. Their enemies she overwhelmed.” This account presents God as female, leading Moses and the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land.</p>
<p>Depicting God as female in Scripture speaks to God’s tenderness as well as strength and power. For example, the prophet <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hosea+13%3A8&version=NABRE">Hosea</a> compares God to a bear robbed of her cubs, promising to “attack and rip open” those who break the covenant.</p>
<p>Elsewhere in Scripture, God has no gender. God appears to Moses in the burning bush in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+3&version=NABRE">Exodus 3</a>, defying all gender categories. The <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Kings+19%3A9-12&version=NABRE">Book of 1 Kings</a> presents a gentle image of a gender-neutral God. God asked the prophet Elijah to go to a mountain. While there, Elijah experienced a strong wind, an earthquake and fire, but God was not present in those. Instead, God was present in a gentle whisper. The creation stories of Genesis <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Gen+1%3A26&version=NABRE">refer to God</a> <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Gen+3%3A22&version=NABRE">in the plural</a>. These examples emphasize that God has no gender and is beyond any human categories. </p>
<h2>The social impact of male pronouns</h2>
<p>Pronouns, like “He/Him” in the Christian tradition, can limit one’s understanding of God. It can also make many individuals think that God is male. </p>
<p>It is not wrong to refer to God with male pronouns, but it can have negative social and theological consequences to refer to God with only male pronouns.</p>
<p>Feminist theologian <a href="https://liberationtheology.org/people-organizations/mary-daly/">Mary Daly</a> <a href="http://www.beacon.org/Beyond-God-The-Father-P211.aspx">famously stated</a>, “If God is male, then the male is God.” In other words, referring to God only as the male gender has a significant social impact that can exalt one gender at the expense of others. </p>
<p>Referring to God only as male can also limit one’s theological imagination: Using many pronouns for God emphasizes that God is mystery, beyond all human categories.</p>
<p>On Father’s Day, people can remember God not only as a father, but as a mother and mystery.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of a piece originally published on Feb. 28, 2023.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/200141/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Annie Selak does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Despite the diverse images used for God in Scripture and Christian tradition, male language and images predominate in contemporary Christian worship.Annie Selak, Associate Director, Women's Center, Georgetown UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1983752023-02-10T13:51:30Z2023-02-10T13:51:30ZWhy is a love poem full of sex in the Bible? Readers have been struggling with the Song of Songs for 2,000 years<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507784/original/file-20230202-16-6v8pqh.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=36%2C0%2C941%2C603&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Figuring out what to do with the 'Song of Songs' has preoccupied people reading the Bible for centuries.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Song_of_Solomon#/media/File:10268Ashendene_1000.jpg">'Song of Songs' illustrated by Florence Kingsford/Southern Methodist University/Wikimedia Commons</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Many Americans have heard the expression “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine” – in fact, a quick Google search turns up myriad websites offering wedding bands inscribed with <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Song_of_Songs.6.3?lang=en&with=all&lang2=en">the much-loved line</a>. Search Etsy for Valentine’s Day gifts, and you’ll see jewelry, T-shirts and coffee mugs printed with the phrase. But perhaps not all of the quotation’s admirers know that its origins lie in a biblical text: the Song of Songs, which has created difficulties for readers for 2,000 years.</p>
<p>Also known as the Song of Solomon or Canticle of Canticles, the Song of Songs stands out in the Bible because of its extensive and candid sexual content. It is a work of sensual lyric poetry that portrays scenes of actual and imagined trysts between the poem’s female protagonist and her lover. </p>
<p>Graphic descriptions of both male and female bodies pervade the work and are certainly titillating, even bordering on pornographic. Sensual metaphors such as “<a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Song_of_Songs.6.3?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en">grazing among the lilies</a>” and “drinking … <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Song_of_Songs.8?lang=bi">from the juice of my pomegranates</a>” suggest sexual practices that are anything but vanilla.</p>
<p>It’s not just the emphasis on sex that makes the text unusual. The Song of Songs is the only work in the Bible that focuses exclusively on human-to-human love, not human-to-divine – at least on the surface level of the poem.</p>
<p>Ancient Jews and Christians were troubled by the inclusion of such a graphic love poem in the biblical canon and came up with their own ways to remedy the dilemma.</p>
<h2>Barely a mention of God</h2>
<p>The Bible includes other references to sex – including graphic depictions of <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/II_Samuel.13.24?lang=bi">sexual violence</a>. And other books certainly contain depictions of human love, such as that of the patriarch Jacob, who labored for 14 years to win <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rachel-biblical-figure">his wife Rachel</a> in the Book of Genesis.</p>
<p>But when other biblical books talk about love and marriage, they primarily use this language to depict God’s relationship with people – specifically, the people of Israel, who have a special covenant with him according to the Torah. In contrast, the Song of Songs may possibly allude to Israel’s God only once, in <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Song_of_Songs.8?lang=bi">chapter eight</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A painting of a woman wearing glittering jewels and a crown against a dark background." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=794&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=794&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=794&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=998&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=998&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507783/original/file-20230202-12-6v8pqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=998&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘The Song of Songs,’ by 19th-century painter Gustave Moreau.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-song-of-songs-private-collection-artist-moreau-gustave-news-photo/600051949?phrase=%22song%20of%20songs%22&adppopup=true">Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Yet ancient interpreters of the Song of Songs did not interpret this poetic work as a depiction of human-to-human love. In fact, <a href="https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/mes/faculty/jk33798">while researching</a> <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/my-perfect-one-9780199359332?cc=us&lang=en&">my book</a> about early rabbinic interpretation of the Song of Songs, I noticed that no such interpretations – Jewish or Christian – survive from before the modern era.</p>
<p>Instead, the earlier commentators “reread” the Song of Songs exclusively as a portrayal of divine-to-human love, God’s relationship with a beloved individual or community.</p>
<h2>Covenant with the divine</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/23509951">Other scholars and I have argued</a> that the earliest interpretations of the Song of Songs appear in late first-century works, such as allusions in the <a href="https://www.npr.org/transcripts/148125942">Book of Revelation</a> – the final book in the New Testament, which describes prophetic visions of Jesus’ second coming – and <a href="http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/apocrypha_ot/2esdr.htm">4 Ezra</a>, another apocalyptic work included in some versions of the Bible.</p>
<p>In the first few centuries, rabbis began to interpret the Song of Songs as part of their commentaries on the Pentateuch, the first section of the Hebrew Bible. The Pentateuch describes the creation of the world and includes stories about the Israelites’ ancestors and their epic journey from Egypt to Israel. Over the course of several books, the Pentateuch shows them fleeing slavery, receiving revelation from God at Mt. Sinai, wandering in the desert for 40 years and finally entering the promised land.</p>
<p>These early rabbis envisioned that narrative as an extended, intimate story about God’s relationship with the people of Israel. And although they shied away from the more erotic dimensions of the Song of Songs, they used its language to depict God’s relationship with the people of Israel as more than a simple contractual arrangement. In <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/my-perfect-one-9780199359332?cc=us&lang=en&">my 2015 book, “My Perfect One</a>,” I argued that the earliest rabbis characterized these bonds as deeply affectionate and marked by profound emotional commitment. For instance, in one passage, they interpret <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Song_of_Songs.2.6?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en">Song of Songs 2:6</a> – “His left hand was under my head, and his right hand embraced me” – as describing God’s embrace of Israel at Mt. Sinai.</p>
<h2>A lover’s yearning</h2>
<p>In a similar fashion, Christian scholars avoided the carnal dimensions of this poetic work. Rather than seeing the Song of Songs as a statement of God’s love for Israel, early Christians understood it as an allegory of Christ’s love for his “bride,” the church. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An old plank with inked writing on it." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507782/original/file-20230202-12-9a533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A piece of wood inscribed with text from the Song of Songs in Egypt around 580-640 A.D.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/ostrakon-with-text-from-song-of-songs-580-640-made-in-news-photo/1296599240?phrase=%22song%20of%20songs%22&adppopup=true">Sepia Times/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Other allegorical readings have also emerged throughout history. Origen, for instance, <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Song_of_Songs.html?id=Mjxy0Fl7VMsC">a third-century Christian writer</a>, proposed that the Song of Songs could be interpreted as the soul’s yearning for God. Similar to other interpreters, Origen associated the soul with the female protagonist, and the divine with her male “beloved.”</p>
<p>Another Christian <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt3fhv3r">approach to the Song of Songs</a> was that the poem described God’s loving relationship with Jesus’ mother, Mary. </p>
<p>These diverse interpretations may also have influenced medieval Jewish mystics. In Judaism, the divine presence or “Shekinah” is often <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0364009402000016">thought of as feminine</a> – an idea that became important to these mystics, who relied on the Song of Songs to describe the Shekinah.</p>
<h2>Reading the poem today</h2>
<p>In the modern period, even more understandings of the poem have emerged, including some about human-to-human love. For instance, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/003463730810500306">feminist readings</a> have highlighted the female character’s power, autonomy and sensuality. Conservative Christians, meanwhile, often <a href="https://www.ivpress.com/the-message-of-the-song-of-songs">approach the poem</a> as an ideal expression of acceptable love between a husband and wife.</p>
<p>From the first few centuries up to today, these many meanings highlight readers’ creativity – and the evocative power of the Song of Songs’ poetic language.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/198375/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Kaplan has received funding from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and the American Friends of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. </span></em></p>The famous biblical book alludes to God only once. Historically, though, most interpreters have argued the poem’s about love between the divine and his people.Jonathan Kaplan, Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Judaism, The University of Texas at AustinLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1994242023-02-09T09:05:11Z2023-02-09T09:05:11ZWhat does the Bible say about homosexuality? For starters, Jesus wasn’t a homophobe<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508641/original/file-20230207-21-ed2xy3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Pope Francis was recently asked about his views on homosexuality. He <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/pope-francis-says-laws-criminalising-lgbt-people-are-sin-an-injustice-2023-02-05/">reportedly replied</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>This (laws around the world criminalising LGBTI people) is not right. Persons with homosexual tendencies are children of God. God loves them. God accompanies them … condemning a person like this is a sin. Criminalising people with homosexual tendencies is an injustice.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This isn’t the first time Pope Francis has shown himself to be a <a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20131124_evangelii-gaudium.html">progressive leader</a> when it comes to, among other things, gay Catholics. </p>
<p>It’s a stance that has <a href="https://theconversation.com/pope-francis-visit-to-africa-comes-at-a-defining-moment-for-the-catholic-church-197633">drawn the ire</a> of some high-ranking bishops and ordinary Catholics, both on the African continent and elsewhere in the world.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/pope-francis-visit-to-africa-comes-at-a-defining-moment-for-the-catholic-church-197633">Pope Francis' visit to Africa comes at a defining moment for the Catholic church</a>
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<p>Some of these Catholics may argue that Pope Francis’s approach to LGBTI matters is a misinterpretation of Scripture (or the Bible). But is it? </p>
<p>Scripture is particularly important for Christians. When church leaders refer to “the Bible” or “the Scriptures”, they usually mean “the Bible as we understand it through our theological doctrines”. The Bible is always interpreted by our churches through their particular theological lenses. </p>
<p>As a biblical scholar, I would suggest that church leaders who use their cultures and theology to exclude homosexuals don’t read Scripture carefully. Instead, they allow their patriarchal fears to distort it, seeking to find in the Bible proof-texts that will support attitudes of exclusion. </p>
<p>There are several instances in the Bible that underscore my point.</p>
<h2>Love of God and neighbour</h2>
<p>Mark’s Gospel, found in the New Testament, records that Jesus entered the Jerusalem temple on three occasions. First, he visited briefly, and “looked around at everything” (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/mrk.11.11">11:11</a>). </p>
<p>On the second visit he acted, driving “out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves” (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/mrk.11.15">11:15</a>). Jesus specifically targeted those who exploited the poorest of the people coming to the temple. </p>
<p>On his third visit, Jesus spent considerable time in the temple itself (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/MRK.11.NIV">11:27-13:2</a>). He met the full array of temple leadership, including chief priests, teachers of the law and elders. Each of these leadership sectors used their interpretation of Scripture to exclude rather than to include. </p>
<p>The “ordinary people” (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/mrk.11.32">11:32</a> and <a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/mrk.12.12">12:12</a>) recognised that Jesus proclaimed a gospel of inclusion. They eagerly embraced him as he walked through the temple. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.bible.com/bible/100/MRK.12.24.NASB1995">Mark 12:24</a>, Jesus addresses the Sadducees, who were the traditional high priests of ancient Israel and played an important role in the temple. Among those who confronted Jesus, they represented the group that held to a conservative theological position and used their interpretation of the Scripture to exclude. Jesus said to them:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not understand the Scriptures or the power of God?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Jesus recognised that they chose to interpret Scripture in a way that prevented it from being understood in non-traditional ways. Thus they limited God’s power to be different from traditional understandings of him. Jesus was saying God refused to be the exclusive property of the Sadducees. The ordinary people who followed Jesus understood that he represented a different understanding of God.</p>
<p>This message of inclusion becomes even clearer when Jesus is later confronted by a single scribe (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/100/mrk.12.28">12:28</a>). In answer to the scribe’s question on the most important laws, Jesus summarised the theological ethic of his gospel: love of God and love of neighbour (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/MRK.12.NIV">12:29-31</a>).</p>
<h2>Inclusion, not exclusion</h2>
<p>Those who would exclude homosexuals from God’s kingdom choose to ignore Jesus, turning instead to the Old Testament – most particularly to <a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/GEN.19.NIV">Genesis 19</a>, the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Their interpretation of the story is that it is about homosexuality. It isn’t. It relates to hospitality.</p>
<p>The story begins in <a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/GEN.18.NIV">Genesis 18</a> when three visitors (God and two angels, appearing as “men”) came before <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham">Abraham</a>, a Hebrew patriarch. What did Abraham and his wife Sarah do? They offered hospitality. </p>
<p>The two angels then left Abraham and the Lord and travelled into <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2019%3A1-29&version=NIV">Sodom (19:1)</a> where they met Lot, Abraham’s nephew. What did Lot do? He offered hospitality. The two incidents of hospitality are explained in exactly the same language. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2019%3A1-29&version=NIV">“men of Sodom” (19:4)</a>, as the Bible describes them, didn’t offer the same hospitality to these angels in disguise. Instead they sought to humiliate them (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2019%3A1-29&version=NIV">and Lot (19:9)</a>) by threatening to rape them. We know they were heterosexual because Lot, in attempting to protect himself and his guests, offered his virgin daughters to them <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2019%3A1-29&version=NIV">(19:8)</a>. </p>
<p>Heterosexual rape of men by men is a common act of humiliation. This is an extreme form of inhospitality. The story contrasts extreme hospitality (Abraham and Lot) with the extreme inhospitality of the men of Sodom. It is a story of inclusion, not exclusion. Abraham and Lot included the strangers; the men of Sodom excluded them.</p>
<h2>Clothed in Christ</h2>
<p>When confronted by the inclusive gospel of Jesus and a careful reading of the story of Sodom as one about hospitality, those who disavow Pope Francis’s approach will likely jump to other Scriptures. Why? Because they have a patriarchal agenda and are looking for any Scripture that might support their position.</p>
<p>But the other Scriptures they use also require careful reading. <a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/lev.18.22">Leviticus 18:22</a> and <a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/lev.20.13">20:13</a>, for example, are not about “homosexuality” as we now understand it – as the caring, loving and sexual relationship between people of the same sex. These texts are about relationships that cross boundaries of purity (between clean and unclean) and ethnicity (Israelite and Canaanite). </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%203%3A28&version=NRSVUE">Galatians 3:28</a> in the New Testament, Paul the apostle yearns for a Christian community where:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Paul built his theological argument on the Jew-Greek distinction, but then extended it to the slave-free distinction and the male-female distinction. Christians – no matter which church they belong to – should follow Paul and extend it to the heterosexual-homosexual distinction. </p>
<p>We are all “clothed in Christ” (<a href="https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/gal.3.27">3:27</a>): God only sees Christ, not our different sexualities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199424/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gerald West does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Those who exclude any groups of people from God’s kingdom choose to ignore the teaching of Jesus.Gerald West, Senior Professor of Biblical Studies, University of KwaZulu-NatalLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1946142023-01-10T13:29:29Z2023-01-10T13:29:29ZGod and guns often go together in US history – this course examines why<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502489/original/file-20221221-20-q1wuth.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C2%2C1986%2C1502&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Views on guns are intertwined with views on God for many Americans.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/pistol-on-open-bible-royalty-free-image/157197798?phrase=gun%20god&adppopup=true">RichLegg/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Text saying: Uncommon Courses, from The Conversation" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499014/original/file-20221205-17-kcwec8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/topics/uncommon-courses-130908">Uncommon Courses</a> is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.</em> </p>
<h2>Title of course:</h2>
<p>“God and Guns: the History of Faith and Firearms in America”</p>
<h2>What prompted the idea for the course?</h2>
<p>As <a href="http://jslaughter01.faculty.wesleyan.edu">a religion professor</a>, I’ve come to know many students from other countries who identify as Christian. I realized they were puzzled at some of the things Americans often bundled into their faith – things these international Christians didn’t consider relevant to their own religious identity.</p>
<p>One issue in particular sparked a question from a South Asian Christian student: Why did American evangelicals seem to have such an affinity for firearms? For example, Pew Research indicates <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2017/november/god-gun-control-white-evangelicals-texas-church-shooting.html">41% of white evangelicals</a> own a firearm, compared with 30% of people in the U.S. overall. This unsettled the student, since they shared much of the same theology, and they wanted to know more about this connection.</p>
<p>I was embarrassed to admit that I didn’t have a satisfactory answer. Since I was trained as <a href="https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/122/article/766198">a historian of the 18th and early 19th centuries</a>, I suspected it wasn’t explained by the last 10 or 20 years. I knew we needed to go back and start with the Colonial era and work our way forward. This course is my humble attempt to answer these students’ questions.</p>
<h2>What does the course explore?</h2>
<p>We spend the first two weeks reading what the Bible says about violence. There are no firearms in the ancient text, of course – but there are plenty of other weapons.</p>
<p>For example, <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Judges+5&version=KJV">hymns of celebration</a> after <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Judges+4&version=KJV">defeating enemies</a>, such as when Jael hammers a peg through the head of the military commander Sisera in the Book of Judges, appear to celebrate violence.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+5&version=KJV">the Sermon on the Mount</a>, however, Jesus teaches his followers to turn the other cheek. What do American Christians think about these types of passages, and to what degree do they inform their approach to firearms? </p>
<p>The surprises in the text are endless, especially since very few of my students have ever read the Bible.</p>
<p>Our readings help contextualize key themes in American history as we move through the course: from the Colonial era, <a href="https://wwnorton.co.uk/books/9780393334906-our-savage-neighbors-5712a22d-99af-4f98-ab18-ca2a75a2180e">when firearms, religion and violence were intertwined aspects of settlers’ lives</a>, to the Cold War, when we discover how evangelicals embraced a <a href="https://wwnorton.com/books/9781631495731">masculine, warriorlike idea of Jesus</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A black and white old-fashioned portrait of a standing man with a long white beard in black clothing." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=846&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=846&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=846&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1063&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1063&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502500/original/file-20221222-22-kmbu5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1063&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Portrait of John Brown (1800-1859).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/portrait-of-john-brown-militant-abolitionist-that-seized-news-photo/615230680?phrase=%22john%20brown%22&adppopup=true">Corbis Historical via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Together, we explore digital and archival sources that show a wide range of attitudes toward weapons. For example, the abolitionist <a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781442236707/John-Brown-Speaks-Letters-and-Statements-from-Charlestown">John Brown’s prison letters</a> provide a fascinating window into how faith and firearms can be central to someone’s cause. Brown was a Christian who believed so strongly in abolishing slavery that he was convinced God had appointed him as his agent of violent judgment. The letters were written just prior to Brown’s execution in 1859, after his failed attempt to spark a slave uprising in Harper’s Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia).</p>
<h2>Why is this course relevant now?</h2>
<p>Americans live in a country where politicians’ platforms often focus on God and guns.</p>
<p>Some are overtly weaving it into their election pitch, such as U.S. Senate candidate <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mandel-campaigning-pro-god-guns-050100949.html">Josh Mandel</a> of Ohio, who called himself “pro-God, guns and Trump,” while other Republicans such as Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert and Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/christmas-card-guns-lauren-boebert-thomas-massie-start-new-culture-ncna1285709">included guns in Christmas messages</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A crowd holds signs, including one that says, 'God...guns...and guts...lets keep them all.'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502503/original/file-20221222-24-d330ay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A crowd outside the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix in 2013, during a Guns Across America rally.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/GodAndGuns/9c3ba87661c54684aaea8a29da4171d0/photo?Query=guns%20god&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=116&currentItemNo=4">AP Photo/Matt York</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s a critical lesson from the course?</h2>
<p>American Christians, including evangelicals, are a diverse lot. The “peace church” tradition – the Mennonites, Amish and Quakers, among others – may not often grab headlines, but complicate the narrative about guns and God in U.S. culture. </p>
<p>Many other types of Christianity <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-01/the-role-of-religion-in-the-gun-control-debate/101114470">do not embrace firearms</a>, either. For example, Pew Research found that only 52% of Black Protestants have fired a gun, compared with <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2017/july/praise-lord-pass-ammunition-who-loves-god-guns-pew.html">a 72% average among all Americans</a>.</p>
<p>Yet from the time of the Puritans onward, many Christians <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691181592/as-a-city-on-a-hill">have viewed America as a divinely inspired nation</a> – an idea that often served to sanction violence, whether in a war for Indigenous lands, defending slavery or leading a revolt.</p>
<h2>What will the course prepare students to do?</h2>
<p>Hopefully this course will equip students to coherently answer the question of why American religious culture is so intertwined with gun culture – especially if the subject comes up at Thanksgiving dinner. </p>
<p>More seriously, the better that people in America understand how their predecessors viewed firearms, the more robust and productive debates will be over their place <a href="https://gunsandsocietycenter.com/">in American society today</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194614/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joseph P. Slaughter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Support for strong gun ownership rights is often associated with conservative Christian views, but religion and self-defense have a much longer history in the United States.Joseph P. Slaughter, Assistant Professor of the Practice in Religion and History and Associate Director of the Center for the Study of Guns and Society, Wesleyan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1941332022-12-15T13:06:07Z2022-12-15T13:06:07ZWhy early Christians wouldn’t have found the Christmas story’s virgin birth so surprising<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500114/original/file-20221209-41413-3bblu5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C7%2C997%2C672&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">'The Nativity,' circa 1406-10, by Lorenzo Monaco</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-nativity-circa-1406-10-artist-lorenzo-monaco-news-photo/1206224323?phrase=nativity&adppopup=true">Heritage Images/Hulton Archive via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/por-que-a-los-primeros-cristianos-no-les-habria-sorprendido-tanto-el-nacimiento-virginal-de-la-historia-de-navidad-219875"><em>Leer en español</em></a>. </p>
<p>Every year on Christmas, Christians celebrate the birth of their religion’s founder, Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee. Part of this celebration includes the claim that Jesus was born from <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew+1%3A18&version=NIV">a virgin mother named Mary</a>, which is fundamental to the Christian understanding that Jesus is <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201&version=NIV">the divine son of God</a>.</p>
<p>The virgin birth may seem <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/15/opinion/believe-it-or-not.html">strange</a> to a modern audience – and not just because it runs counter to the science of reproduction. Even in the Bible itself, the idea is rarely mentioned.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=4ufVq8gAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">a scholar of the New Testament</a>, however, I argue that this story’s original audiences would not have been put off by the supposed “strangeness” of the virgin birth story. The story would have felt much more familiar to listeners at that time, when the ancient Mediterranean was full of tales of legendary men born of gods – and when early Christians were paying close attention to the Hebrew Bible’s prophecies.</p>
<h2>What the Bible does – and doesn’t – say</h2>
<p>Strikingly, the New Testament is relatively silent on the virgin birth except in two places. It appears only in the gospels of Matthew and Luke, written a few decades after Jesus’ death.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%201&version=NIV">Book of Matthew</a> explains that when Joseph was engaged to Mary, she was “found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.” The writer links this unexpected pregnancy to an Old Testament prophecy <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=isaiah+7%3A14&version=NIV">in Isaiah 7:14</a>, which states “the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will call him Immanuel.” According to the prophet Isaiah, this child would be a sign to the Jewish people that God would protect them from powerful empires.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A faded illustration shows an angel looking down at a woman kneeling on the ground in a cloak, surrounded by rays of light." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A depiction of the Annunciation to Mary at Our Lady of the Assumption Church.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/the-annunciation-our-lady-of-the-assumption-church-royalty-free-image/538214856?phrase=the%20annunciation&adppopup=true">Catherine Leblanc/Stone via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Now the majority of early Christians outside of Judea and throughout the Roman empire did not know the Old Testament in the original Hebrew, but rather a Greek translation known as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Septuagint">the Septuagint</a>. When the Gospel of Matthew quotes Isaiah 7:14, it uses the Septuagint, which includes the term “parthenos,” commonly understood as “virgin.” This term differs from the Hebrew Old Testament, which uses the word “almah,” properly translated as “young woman.” The slight difference in <a href="https://brill.com/view/journals/nt/43/2/article-p144_3.xml">translation</a> between the Hebrew and the Greek may not mean much, but for early Christians who knew Greek, it provided prophetic proof for Jesus’ birth from the Virgin Mary. </p>
<p>Was the belief in the virgin birth based on a mistranslation? Not necessarily. Such terms were sometimes synonymous in Greek and Jewish thought. And the same Greek word, “parthenos,” is also found in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201&version=NIV">Luke’s version of the story</a>. Luke does not cite the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14. Instead, this version of the Nativity story describes the angel Gabriel announcing to Mary that she will give birth even though she is a virgin. Like in Matthew’s version of the story, Mary is told that her baby will be the “son of God.”</p>
<h2>Human and divine?</h2>
<p>For early Christians, the idea of the virgin birth put to rest any rumors about Mary’s honor. It also contributed to their belief that Jesus was the Son of God and Mary the <a href="https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum03.htm">Mother of God</a>. These ideas became even more important during the second century, when some Christians were <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103126.htm">debating Jesus’ origins</a>: Was he <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103321.htm">simply born</a> <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103126.htm">a human being</a> but became the Son of God after <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+1&version=NIV">being baptized</a>? Was he a <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103111.htm">semi-divine being</a>, not really human? Or was he both fully divine and fully human?</p>
<p>The last idea, symbolized by the virgin birth, was most accepted – and is now standard Christian belief. But the relative silence about it in the first few decades of Christianity does not necessarily suggest that early Christians did not believe it. Instead, as biblical scholar <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300140088/the-birth-of-the-messiah-a-new-updated-edition/">Raymond Brown</a> also noted, the virgin birth was likely not a major concern for first-century Christians. <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+1&version=NIV">They affirmed</a> that Jesus was <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=philippians+2&version=NIV">the divine Son of God</a> who <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews+2&version=NIV">became a human being</a>, without trying to explain exactly how this happened.</p>
<h2>Greco-Roman roots</h2>
<p>Claiming that someone was divinely born was not a new concept during the first century, when Jesus was born. Many Greco-Roman heroes had divine birth stories. Take three famous figures: Perseus, Ion and Alexander the Great.</p>
<p>One of the oldest Greek legends affirms that Perseus, an ancient ancestor of the Greek people, was born of <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DLibrary%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D4">a virgin mother named Danaë</a>. The story begins with Danaë imprisoned by her father, the king of Argos, who feared her because it was prophesied that his grandson would kill him. According to the legend, the Greek god Zeus transformed himself into golden rain <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0162%3Abook%3DP.%3Apoem%3D12">and impregnated her</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A painting shows a nude woman reclining on a bed with soft rain behind her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A painting of Danaë, showing the golden rain above her, by Andrea Schiavone (1522-1563). From the collection of Museo di Capodimonte, Naples.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/danae-mid-of-16th-cen-found-in-the-collection-of-museo-di-news-photo/1155650935?phrase=danae&adppopup=true">Fine Art Images/Heritage Images via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When Danaë gave birth to Perseus, they escaped and eventually landed on an island where he grew up. He eventually became a famous hero who killed the snake-haired Medusa, and <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0028:book=4:card=604&highlight=medusa%2C">his great-grandson</a> <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DLibrary%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D4%3Asection%3D8">was Hercules</a>, known for his strength and uncontrollable anger.</p>
<p>The playwright Euripides, who lived in the fifth century B.C., describes the story of Ion, whose father was the Greek god Apollo. Apollo raped Creusa, Ion’s mother, who abandoned him at birth. Ion grew up unaware of his divine father, but eventually reconciled with his Athenian mother and became known as <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Eur.+Ion+1-75&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0110">the founder</a> of various Greek cities in modern-day Turkey.</p>
<p>Lastly, legends held that Zeus was the father of Alexander the Great, the Macedonian ruler who conquered his vast empire before age 33. Alexander was supposedly conceived the night before his mother consummated her marriage with the king of Macedon, when Zeus impregnated her with <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0243%3Achapter%3D2%3Asection%3D2">a lightning bolt from heaven</a>. Philip, the king of Macedon, raised Alexander as his son, but suspected that there was something different about his conception.</p>
<h2>A familiar type of hero</h2>
<p>Overall, divine conception stories were familiar in the ancient Mediterranean world. By the second century A.D., Justin Martyr, a Christian theologian who defended Christianity, recognized this point: that virgin birth <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm">would not have been considered as “extraordinary</a>” in societies familiar with Greco-Roman deities. In fact, in an address to the Roman emperor Antoninus Pius and philosophers, Justin <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm#:%7E:text=Chapter%2022.%20Analogies,done%20by%20%C3%86sculapius.">argued</a> that they should tolerate Christian belief in the virgin birth just as they did belief in the stories of Perseus. </p>
<p>The idea of the divine participating in the conception of a child destined for greatness wouldn’t have seemed so unusual to an ancient audience. Even more, early Christians’ interpretation of the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14 from the Septuagint supported their belief that Jesus’ origin was not only divine, but foretold in their prophetic scriptures.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194133/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rodolfo Galvan Estrada III does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The idea of virgin birth has been part of Christianity since the start, but its significance has shifted over time.Rodolfo Galvan Estrada III, Assistant Professor of the New Testament, Vanguard UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1922442022-10-13T12:18:54Z2022-10-13T12:18:54ZSimchat Torah: A Jewish holiday of reading, renewal and resilience<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489080/original/file-20221010-22-s43c6m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C3%2C1010%2C679&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Simchat Torah celebrations in Netanya, Israel, in 2013.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/jews-dance-as-they-read-from-a-torah-scroll-during-the-news-photo/181935434?phrase=simchat%20torah&adppopup=true">Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://press.jhu.edu/books/title/2456/act-reading">Reading</a> can cause many different emotions. For some people, <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/How-to-Read-a-Book/Mortimer-J-Adler/9781476790152">beginning</a> a new book produces excitement about where the narrative will take them. Then there’s <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-pleasures-of-reading-in-an-age-of-distraction-9780199747498?cc=us&lang=en&">the pleasure</a> of the plot itself, watching how events unfold. Finally, there’s the sense of joy at the end: satisfaction, gratitude and anticipation at the prospect of beginning the journey of reading all over again.</p>
<p>The Jewish holiday known as Simchat Torah, which begins at sunset on <a href="https://www.reformjudaism.org/jewish-holidays/shmini-atzeret-and-simchat-torah">Oct. 17, 2022</a>, encompasses all these emotions. During the festival, Jews celebrate another year of reading and studying Torah: the first five books of the Bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy – which, according to Jewish tradition, were divinely revealed to Moses at Mount Sinai. </p>
<p>As <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/jewishstudies/people/faculty/samuel-boyd">a scholar of the Bible and the ancient Near East</a>, I am struck by the ways in which Simchat Torah cultivates a sense of humility and resilience in the midst of profound joy. </p>
<h2>Joy of Torah</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Simchat-Torah">Simchat Torah</a> is Hebrew for “the joy of Torah.” It is a celebration, often accompanied by dancing and singing, to mark the completion of the annual reading of this section of the Bible. Each week of the year, congregations around the world read a particular portion of the Torah, called a <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/what-is-the-torah-portion/">parashah</a>, in a specified order. </p>
<p>On <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-torah-service-for-simchat-torah/">Simchat Torah</a>, the scrolls that contain this literature are removed from the ark, the special place where they are kept at the front of the synagogue. While one or <a href="https://shulchanaruchharav.com/the-order-when-two-torah-scrolls-are-removed/">two scrolls are taken out</a> during readings in the usual weekly service, Simchat Torah is one of the <a href="https://jps.org/books/jewish-traditions-a-jps-guide/">few times</a> of year that all the scrolls are taken out of the ark.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.patheos.com/answers/what-is-the-jewish-holiday-of-simchat-torah">Celebrants</a> circle seven – or, in some traditions, three – times around the bimah, the stage where the scrolls are read during services, while holding these scrolls and dancing. This dancing, called <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-torah-service-for-simchat-torah/">hakafot</a> in Hebrew, occurs both in the evening and the morning of Simchat Torah. </p>
<p>In some Jewish communities, people say they become the very “<a href="https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1288671/jewish/Simchat-Torah-Hakafot-Procedure.htm">feet</a>” of the scrolls, carrying them so the scrolls themselves can participate in the dancing and joy. The rejoicing can extend into the streets.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A handful of men dance with their hands in the air, as one of them holds a covered Torah scroll." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489081/original/file-20221010-19-a2cjkq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Jewish men in Tehran, Iran, dance during Simchat Torah as one holds the covered Torah scroll.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/MideastIranJews/fd340f1bde654da8b3dc389143ca4af6/photo?Query=simchat%20torah&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=24&currentItemNo=16">AP Photo/Vahid Salemi</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>The last liturgical section for the year is read, from the Book of Deuteronomy. During the same service the first section of the first book of the Bible, Genesis, is also read. In this fashion, Simchat Torah <a href="http://www.reclaimingjudaism.org/teachings/simchat-torah-endings-and-beginnings">connects</a> the ending of the reading cycle with the beginning of the new one.</p>
<p>In 2022, Simchat Torah will take place from sundown Oct. 17 to sunset Oct. 18 in most of the world, immediately after a holiday called Shemini Atzeret the day before. In Israel and for Reform Jews, however, both holidays are combined on the same day. In either case, the celebrations come on the heels of another <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/jewish/2020-10-02/ty-article/.premium/the-history-of-sukkot/0000017f-e6b9-d62c-a1ff-fefb3e8e0000">weeklong festival called Sukkot</a>, or the festival of booths, when Jews commemorate the ancient Israelites’ wanderings in the desert after fleeing slavery in Egypt.</p>
<h2>Centuries of celebration</h2>
<p>Unlike <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/jewish/2014-10-14/ty-article/origin-of-shemini-atzeret-and-simhat-torah/0000017f-ef1e-d3be-ad7f-ff3f9eb80000">Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret</a>, the celebration of Simchat Torah <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/history-of-shemini-atzeret-and-simchat-torah/">does not</a> appear in Bible. </p>
<p>Aspects of divinely ordained rejoicing and regular reading of the Torah do, however, appear in the book of <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-torah-service-for-simchat-torah/">Deuteronomy</a>. For example, <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Deuteronomy.16.15?lang=bi&aliyot=0">Deuteronomy 16</a> commands the Israelites to “rejoice” in the festival of booths. In <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Deuteronomy.31.11?lang=bi&aliyot=0">Deuteronomy 31</a>, Moses commands the priests to read the law, or Torah, to all Israel during Sukkot. </p>
<p>The origins of the celebration of Simchat Torah as known today are likely medieval. One of the most influential compilations of Jewish laws is called the “<a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-shulhan-arukh/">Shulchan Aruch</a>,” written by a 16th-century Spanish rabbi named Joseph Karo. The overall <a href="https://shulchanaruchharav.com/shemini-atzeres-simchas-toraha-laws-customs/">features</a> of the holiday, or “yom tov” in Hebrew, are set forth there. </p>
<h2>Lifelong journey</h2>
<p>For modern Jewish thinkers, the celebration of Simchat Torah embeds some of the most profound aspects of life, including themes of humility and strength even amid suffering and a troubled world. </p>
<p>Writer and Holocaust survivor <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1986/wiesel/biographical/">Elie Wiesel</a>, for example, saw in Simchat Torah a reminder that <a href="https://www.92ny.org/archives/elie-wiesel-elisha-wiesel-simchat-torah">we never know everything</a>, and much less than we think we know. Even for a text as familiar as the Bible, an entire lifetime of reading the Torah week after week, year after year cannot begin to yield all the possible interpretations.</p>
<p>So, according to Wiesel, Simchat Torah is a time to take joy not only in completing the liturgical reading cycle, but in the reminder that we always need to look again, and be willing to <a href="https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/opinion/op-eds/let-there-be-a-new-beginning/article_527bcc3e-445a-11e6-9e4c-9b5d224b610f.html">begin again</a> – even stories that we think we know so well. </p>
<p>As Wiesel observed, this aspect of Simchat Torah could transform a person and how that person lives with others. He famously once <a href="http://www.hillel.org/docs/default-source/hillel-conversation-guides/what-story-do-we-tell.pdf?sfvrsn=0">said</a> that “people become the stories they hear and the stories they tell.” The celebration of Simchat Torah had profound significance, in Wiesel’s view, since the very act of reading could make a better world.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman in a blue short-sleeve shirt kisses an ornate case holding a holy book amid a crowd of people." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489082/original/file-20221010-14-9bl9hm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Simchat Torah joyously marks the end of the annual cycle of readings from the Torah.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/jewish-woman-kisses-a-torah-scroll-as-others-dance-and-sing-news-photo/181935443?phrase=simchat%20torah&adppopup=true">Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Likewise, the biblical scholar <a href="https://ccjs.uchicago.edu/baruch-j-schwartz-0">Baruch Schwartz</a> calls attention to a prayer spoken during Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, the High Holy Days, which take place weeks before Simchat Torah. The words of the <a href="https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/mahzor-contents/">prayer</a> speak the desire for “the discernment and understanding needed in order to comprehend the Torah’s deepest mysteries.” <a href="https://www.thetorah.com/article/a-bible-scholars-simchat-torah">For Schwartz</a>, this prayer anticipates the deeper meanings of Simchat Torah, and prepares celebrants for them. </p>
<p>There is joy in ending and once again beginning the Torah because of its many puzzles. Bringing intellectual energy to interpreting these texts opens windows into the seemingly unending dimensions of the Bible – and also into what it means to be human. Simchat Torah underscores the importance of revisiting the familiar, and, in so doing, cultivates humility.</p>
<h2>Reading the Bible in a world gone wrong</h2>
<p>The biblical command to have “joy” in reading the Torah also lays a framework for resilience in the midst of troubled times. Wiesel, himself born on Simchat Torah in 1928, recounted <a href="https://www.jta.org/2019/04/23/ny/blowing-in-the-wind">witnessing Jews</a> who had no Torah scrolls and lived amid unthinkable horror in a concentration camp. Yet, during Simchat Torah, one adult picked up a child and delightedly danced with him as though he were a Torah scroll. </p>
<p>Simchat Torah represents renewals in endings – almost as though Jewish communities are receiving the revelation from Moses <a href="https://www.thetorah.com/article/a-bible-scholars-simchat-torah">again</a> for the first time, starting with the book of Genesis.</p>
<p>Such a cycle is not redundant, but instead can promote resilience. As Wiesel notes, the biblical command to “rejoice” becomes the means through which tragedy can be endured – helping to explain Simchat Torah’s power and vitality today.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192244/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Samuel L. Boyd does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Simchat Torah is about more than beginning to read the Torah all over again. It’s about the need to reexamine what we think we know, over and over again.Samuel L. Boyd, Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Jewish Studies, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1917122022-10-10T16:13:48Z2022-10-10T16:13:48ZThe Lindisfarne Gospels: the story of how a medieval masterpiece was made<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/488547/original/file-20221006-26-gosn0l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A detail of the _incipit_ page with the first words of the Gospel of John: _In principio erat Verbum_, "in the beginning was the Word". </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/lindisfarne-gospels">The British Library</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Sometime around the turn of the 8th century, on Lindisfarne, a windswept island off the English coast in Northumbria, a monk by the name of Eadfrith sits down and sharpens his quill. He dips it into the black ink pot before him and, guided by the light of flickering candle, traces the first words of the Gospel of John on to blank parchment. </p>
<p><em>In principio erat Verbum</em>. </p>
<p>“In the beginning was the Word”.</p>
<p>Eadfrith’s task is to copy the Latin text of all four Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – and illustrate them in what art historians term the insular style, a geometric decorative technique spreading across early medieval Britain and Ireland. </p>
<p>It will take Eadfrith ten years to finish the Lindisfarne Gospels, <a href="https://laingartgallery.org.uk/whats-on/lindisfarne-gospels">on view</a> at Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle until December 2 2022, but his masterpiece will be valued for generations. Later owners will add to its pages and the book will be saved from Viking invaders, finding a new home in Durham for 800 years before becoming part of the British Library’s collection via the collector <a href="https://www.bl.uk/collection-guides/cotton-manuscripts">Robert Cotton (1571-1631)</a>. </p>
<p>The story of the Lindisfarne Gospels is intimately connected to life in the north east of England. It speaks to the migration of communities, the passing on of artistic traditions and the preservation of a communal history that resonates with modern-day concerns around identity and belonging.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A highly decorative page from an illuminated manuscript." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487818/original/file-20221003-22-wb4cze.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">One of the manuscript’s five carpet pages.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Cotton_MS_Nero_D_IV">British Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Encrusted with jewels</h2>
<p>The Lindisfarne Gospels is formed of more than 250 vellum pages and measures just over 36cm in height, about the size of a modern A3 sheet. The book’s original “treasure binding”, encrusted with gold and jewels, was destroyed at some point in the manuscript’s tumultuous history, but the modern copy, commissioned in 1852, and <a href="https://www.themorgan.org/exhibitions/magnificent-gems">other medieval treasure bindings</a> give some sense of the sumptuous world in which this holy book was created. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="The red and bejewelled cover of a large book." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=799&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=799&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=799&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487817/original/file-20221003-22-po9jlu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Lindisfarne Gospels with its modern binding, commissioned in 1852 by Edward Maltby, Bishop of Durham.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Cotton_MS_Nero_D_IV">British Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The book opens with letters by the influential Christian theologians and Church Fathers <a href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_nero_d_iv_f003r">Jerome</a> and <a href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_nero_d_iv_f008r">Eusebius</a> and with a series of <a href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_nero_d_iv_f010r">canon tables</a>, organisational systems for comparing stories across the gospels. Then follows the gospel texts, each preceded by an image of its author and an <em>incipit</em> (literally meaning “it begins”) – a page of twisting geometric shapes that form the first words of the text. </p>
<p>The manuscript also includes a <a href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_nero_d_iv_f029r">Chi-Rho page</a>, where the letters of the abbreviated Greek version of Christ’s name, “XPI”, emerge from a swirling sea of vines. Most impressive of all are its five “<a href="https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2018/02/the-lindisfarne-gospels-carpet-pages.html">carpet</a>” or ornamental pages, where a <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2852565?searchText=carpet+pages+lindisfarne&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcarpet%2Bpages%2Blindisfarne&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3A1f4e7c58c172f6dfc91b3328d5537056#metadata_info_tab_contents">dizzying pattern</a> of repetitive knots and spirals, designed around the shape of a cross, fill the page.</p>
<p>On closer inspection, the dense mass of painted lines reveals a world teeming with life, from big-footed birds who parade around the borders to long-necked snake-like creatures darting in and out of the twisting shapes. Scholars are still divided as to their meaning, but some of their purpose must lie in their ability to beguile their reader, drawing them into the sacred text.</p>
<p>While these forms <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3050843?searchText=lindisfarne+gospels+metalwork&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dlindisfarne%2Bgospels%2Bmetalwork&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3Acfe9db63af175e3c905db64c66d80b70#metadata_info_tab_contents">recall</a> older worlds on the cusp of Christianity – particularly the Scandinavian-inspired <a href="https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/death-and-memory/anglo-saxon-ship-burial-sutton-hoo">burial goods</a> of Suffolk site <a href="https://theconversation.com/ancient-syrian-bitumen-discovered-in-anglo-saxon-boat-at-sutton-hoo-69521">Sutton Hoo</a> – they remain rooted in the Christian world in which they were made. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="An illuminated portrait of a saint." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=839&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=839&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=839&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487821/original/file-20221003-20-5b9tpi.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The portrait page for the Gospel of John.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Cotton_MS_Nero_D_IV">British Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The spread of Christianity</h2>
<p>The 5th-century collapse of the Roman Empire <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-roman-brexit-how-life-in-britain-changed-after-409ad-93886">splintered</a> Roman Britain into numerous warring kingdoms. By the 7th century, <a href="https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004421899/BP000011.xml">Oswald</a> – son of <a href="https://www.academia.edu/1627934/The_early_kings_of_Bernicia">Æthelfrith of Bernicia</a> – had united Bernicia and Deira under the single banner of Northumbria. Over this powerful land, he encouraged the spread of Christianity.</p>
<p>In 635, Oswald invited an Irish monk named Aidan, from the Hebridean isle of Iona, to be his bishop, gifting him the small tidal island of Lindisfarne on which to establish a <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-you-can-join-the-hunt-for-holy-islands-lost-monastery-55779">monastery</a>. Arriving with Aidan were monks trained to produce the books for which Iona was famed: the <a href="https://digitalcollections.tcd.ie/concern/works/hm50tr726?locale=en">Book of Kells</a>, the <a href="https://digitalcollections.tcd.ie/concern/works/wm117t53k?locale=en">Book of Durrow</a> and the <a href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_otho_c_v_fs001r">Otho-Corpus Gospels</a> (also on display at the Laing Art Gallery) were all produced on this isle.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="A highly colourful illuminated manuscript." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=827&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=827&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=827&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1039&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1039&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487816/original/file-20221003-24-sin849.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1039&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The incipit page featuring the first words of the Gospel of John:_ In principio erat Verbum_, ‘In the beginning was the Word’.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Cotton_MS_Nero_D_IV">British Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The writing room Aidan’s monks established, a <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-needs-of-monks-and-empire-builders-helped-mold-the-modern-day-office-146390">scriptorium</a>, paved the way for the creation of the Lindisfarne Gospels a generation later, but its production is linked to another famous event in the island’s history. Cuthbert, Lindisfarne’s prior and later bishop, had already acquired a reputation as a miracle worker by the time of his death in 687. However, when his tomb was opened 11 years later and his body was found to be “incorrupt” (it had not decayed), pilgrims began to flock to Lindisfarne seeking healing. The island became a holy island. (Research <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/27831946?searchText=cuthbert+lindisfarne+incorrupt+body&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcuthbert%2Blindisfarne%2Bincorrupt%2Bbody&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3A0cb074317013310cc5fda5419c9a0fd3&seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents">has suggested</a> that embalming techniques or the saltiness of the soil might explain why the body was preserved.)</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="An illuminated portrait of a saint." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=845&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=845&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=845&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1062&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1062&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487822/original/file-20221003-9083-xmyytp.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1062&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The portrait page for the Gospel of Matthew.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Cotton_MS_Nero_D_IV">British Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Eadfrith began his work on the gospels in the wake of these events, perhaps designing the book to take centre stage in the elaborate ceremonies performed around Cuthbert’s new shrine. A later inscription in the manuscript records that it was made “for God and St Cuthbert and – generally – for all the saints who are on the island.” </p>
<h2>The Gospels survive Viking raids</h2>
<p>That the book should have survived for 1,300 years is remarkable. In 793, Viking armies raided Lindisfarne, destroying Cuthbert’s shrine and most of the monastery. The monks fled, taking Cuthbert’s body and as many books as they could carry, including the Lindisfarne Gospels.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A detail of an illuminated manuscript." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=847&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=847&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=847&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1065&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1065&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487808/original/file-20221003-18-7xlkyr.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1065&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The 10th-century addition of the Old English translation, visible above the original Latin text.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Cotton_MS_Nero_D_IV">British Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After seven years the community settled at the priory in Chester-le-Street, near Durham. It is here that the Lindisfarne Gospels received their final but remarkable medieval addition. In the 10th century, when the manuscript had been in the library of Chester-le-Street for nearly 200 years, a monk named Aldred carefully added a translation of the gospel text in Old English above the Latin. </p>
<p>Aldred’s “interlinear gloss” (so-called because of its placement between the lines of text) is written in Northumbrian dialect in a smaller and spikier hand than Ealdred’s rounded Latin forms. It is <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/20060636?searchText=lindisfarne+colophon&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dlindisfarne%2Bcolophon&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3A485d089d36add7eb210495a34c58d359#metadata_info_tab_contents">unclear</a> why Aldred decided to embark on this ambitious task. The timing, however, corresponds with growing efforts to cement Cuthbert’s cult in Durham and to translate books that had once been closely associated with his shrine in Lindisfarne for those with little or no Latin.</p>
<p>Aldred may also have had more personal reasons for his translation project. One of his inscriptions records that he is translating the text “for God and St Cuthbert, so that he [Aldred] may have admission into heaven; on earth, happiness, peace and success”.</p>
<p>Whatever his motivations, Aldred’s intervention provides us with the oldest surviving version of the Gospels in the English language. As well as a masterpiece of Northumbrian art, the Lindisfarne Gospels is an invaluable record of early medieval history, preserving the words spoken by everyday people in the north of England over nine centuries ago. Its images and text connect us to a world of saints, miracles and Viking invasions, but also a society that cared deeply about its past, its people – and its books.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191712/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sophie Kelly does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A book that took ten years to make became the oldest surviving version of the Gospels in English.Sophie Kelly, Lecturer in History of Art, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.