Session 2: February 18, 2021

The Session Assignment [link]

The Lead-in:

Now that we've seen two creation stories from different authors, it's time to explore the notion that the Torah is composed of several sources and see just how that works in the Flood story. The long reading ("Source . . .") contains, in its central portion, the details which are required for the hypothesis to be persuasive; you're invited to lose interest at the end!

Read very carefully the J-and-P-in-columns portion of the linked website. Are you surprised that you didn't see the repetition and conflicts during your first reading? (I was!)

If we have time after considering our readings, I'd like to revisit two separate topics about the second creation story. First, let's consider to what extent it's plausible to contend that the snake is more than just a talking snake. What's the argument? Second, we should carefully consider whether the second story can support the doctrine of Original Sin as developed in the late 4th century by Augustine of Hippo. Here's a short piece describing Original Sin [link].