The aim of the lesson is to teach you to analyse excerpts from the Bible, to compare the effect produced by different versions, and to discuss its place in the cultural heritage of mankind.
1. Look through the text, underline, reformulate and write out into the scheme the major symbols, images and principle that have become most significant dimensions of Christian philosophy.
In the beginning, God was revealed in all the works of creation. It was God that spreads the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth. It was His hand that hung the worlds in space, and fashioned the flowers of the field. It was He that filled the earth with beauty, and the air with song. And upon all things in earth, and air, and sky, He wrote the message of the Father’s love.
Even now all created things declare the glory of his excellence. There is nothing, save the selfish heart of man, that lives unto himself. … The angels of glory find their joy in giving – giving love and tireless watchcare to souls that are fallen and unholy. Heavenly beings woo the hearts of men; they bring to this dark world light from the courts above; by gentle and patient ministry they move upon the human spirit, to bring the lost into a fellowship with Christ…So in the heavenly courts, through the beloved Son, the Father’s life flows out to all and returns in praise and joyous service to the great source of love – and this is the law of life.
Now sin has marred God’s perfect work. In heaven itself this law was broken. Sin originated in self-seeking Lucifer, the covering cherub (херувим), desired to be first in heaven and gain control of heavenly beings, to draw them away from the creator, and to win their homage to himself. He let them to doubt the word of God. Thus he deceived angels and men. Satan represents God’s love as a law of selfishness.
That the gloomy shadows might be lightened, that the world might be brought back to God, Satan’s deceptive power was to be broken. This could not be done by force because it is contrary to the principles of God’s government. He desired only the service of love and love cannot be commanded. Since Jesus came to dwell with us, we know that God is acquainted with our trials and sympathizes with our griefs and is a friend of sinners. Jesus was to unveil Satan’s deception. He was an example of obedience through which we strive for forgiveness and salvation.
2. We are using the term "literature" in its broadest sense. There is a narrower sense of the term that encompasses only what is known as "belles lettres", that is, poetry, short stories, novels, plays, essays. Although the Bible does contain this kind of material, it also contains genealogies, laws, letters, royal decrees, instructions for building, prayers, proverbial wisdom, prophetic messages, historical narratives, tribal lists, archival data, ritual regulations, and other kinds of material more difficult to classify. But if the literature of the Bible (or the Bible as literature) is, indeed, so diverse, can anything at all be said about it that will apply across the board? Every piece of writing in the Bible expresses a subject, not an object. The difference between the two is crucial. As ordinarily understood, objects are things that exist externally to ourselves and independently of us. They do not have to be material - objects can be ideas, events, even possibilities - but they are "out there". A subject is not something "out there", but something "in here". It exists in the author's consciousness; it is a conception of what the author wishes to express…
C
onsider,
for example, the
first creation story in
GENESIS.
The object here is entirely unknowable, for it is a series of cosmic
events witnessed by no human being who ever lived. The subject,
however, is a conception of how the universe was created. There is no
point in asking, "Was the universe really created in six
twenty-four-hour days?" or "Could light have been created
before there was any light-emitting heavenly body?" It is
unimportant whether the answer to such questions be positive or
negative, because neither answer gets one anywhere. The process comes
to a dead halt. These are questions about the object.
On the other hand, if one asks questions about the subject, one can learn a great deal. What is the point, in the first place, of carefully separating the acts of creation from one another and presenting them in a cumulative series? Why is God shown creating things merely by saying, "Let there be ..."? Why does creation of the sun and moon follow creation of the earth rather than precede it? Why is each act of creation finished off by a divine appraisal and judgment? And so on. The answers to these and other such questions get us into the mental world, which is the immediate cause of all that we see on the page.
Read the story of Genesis and answer the above-mentioned “subject-questions”. If you can think of some more “subject questions”, ask and answer them, too.
3. All literary forms quickly become public property. Even in our own age – the age of innovation - successful forms are quickly absorbed into the general culture and become available to anyone who wants to use them. This was the case in biblical times - but with one important difference: Biblical writers seem, for the most part, to have wanted to submerge their individuality in the chosen form and made no effort to give the result a personal stamp. Surely there were writers who spoke out of deep personal feelings, but they tend to disappear as persons. For example, PSALM 22 ("My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?") may well have been written out of a personal crisis, perhaps a serious illness.
READ PSALM 13 AND ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS: Why would anyone compose a psalm? How would a psalm have been used? Psalm 13 is a clear specimen of the form. What are the characteristic features of it?
