For Jews and Christians, Genesis is the first book of God’s revelation to humanity of their place in the world and their place relative to God, as beings made in God’s image. And so, for the faithful, the study of Genesis is crucial to living an examined life. If read closely, with an open mind, and a willingness to learn from the text, however, Genesis can help both the faithful and non-believers examine what it means to be human, how best to live our lives, and what pitfalls we face given the flaws in our nature. This is especially true if we start by noting that the presentation in Genesis of creation, the fall, the flood, the tower of Babel, and the account of Abraham and his descendants suggests certain puzzles.

Why, for example, does God create light on the first day, but light-giving things (the sun, moon, and stars) on the fourth? Why are there two accounts of the creation of human beings, one where men and women are created at once, and a second in which woman is fashioned from man’s rib? What does it mean to say that we are created in the image of God? Why does God forbid human beings to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and why do we do it anyway?

Over six sessions, we will read the whole of Genesis slowly and carefully. By the end, students will have encountered one of the deepest meditations ever written on human nature, creation, and the moral structure of the world—and will be equipped to return to it for the rest of their lives.

Image: William Blake, Cain and Abel, 1826

Prof. Utter discusses reading Genesis as a great book

Faculty

Christopher Utter

Christopher Utter is a professorial lecturer in the Department of Government in the School of Public Affairs at American University. He has taught courses in the history of political philosophy, classical political philosophy, American political thought, American politics, and public affairs. His research focuses mainly on classical political philosophy with a particular interest in the problem of theory and practice in Plato and Aristotle.

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