REL 203: Religions of the Middle East Thursday 04/04/02

-Reading Assignments Handout
-Extra Credit Reading Questions Handed In

More differences of Western and Eastern Religions (continued from Tues. discussion)

Western Religions:
Monotheistic-belief in only one God
God is transcendent or separate from the universe, he created it

Eastern Religions:
God is all and all is God
Pantheism-God is the universe, God is all
God is a part of the universe and everything in it
It emanates from him

Creation Differences in The Book of Genesis

Genesis 1:
Step by step, chronological, methodical
Man created last, man and woman created at the same time
Creation order: heavens, planets, sky, land , water, sun, moon, stars, plants, animals, man
“Elohim”=God
“Let us make man in our own image”
us - plurality of Majesty

Genesis 2:
More concrete, specific, less abstract, can draw more of a mental picture of creation and
what is created
More personal
Doesn’t go into as much detail of the heavens, sky, land, water, etc. being created
Creation order: garden, man, animals, woman
Anthropomorphic-human like portrayal of God
Woman finally created because none of the animals God created to be Adam’s
companion worked out
Yahweh=Gods' name, Written as the word LORD in our translation of the Bible

No sex or violence in either of these creation stories

Facets of life explained by Genesis 1 and 2:

Death: why man dies, we lost our chance to eat from the tree of immortality when they
ate fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil
Labor Pain: childbirth labor pain can be explained here because it was Eve who thought
they should eat the fruit and so this was woman’s punishment
Explains why farming is difficult, why snaked slither on the ground, why people fear/hate snakes, explains women’s servitude (you shall serve your husband), Patriarchy (rule by men), explains modesty (clothing), and it also explains Sin and why people are inclined toward evil.