A.J. Jacobs is a funny and provocative writer. Much of his stuff has appeared in Esquire, New York Magazine and he's been a frequent contributor to Weekend Edition on NPR. In his book The Know-It All, Jacobs chronicled his determination to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica from cover to cover. In The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible, Jacobs, who grew up in a very secular family (he says he's Jewish in much the same way as The Olive Garden is Italian) tells the often funny, often compelling story of his effort to live an entire calendar year following the Bible as literally as possible. It is a great read! And he treats his subject matter with great respect and his quest to understand and follow the Bible as literally as possible is both hilarious and eye-opening.
How do we take these ancient texts, stories, songs, memories, prophecies seriously without declaring that they are completely historical accounts? How can we take the "goal" of certain ritual behaviors seriously without embracing the cultural practice? If I think it's ok to eat a well-cooked pork chop (there's a rule against that), or if I simply don't like to iron and therefore buy and wear mostly cotton shirts with just a bit of polyester thrown in so I don't have to (there's a rule against wearing clothes of mixed fabrics), what keeps me from ignoring the rule about "loving the LORD my God with all my heart and mind and soul and strength?"
And if we are free to pick and choose (obviously I think we are, at least to some extent) just what are our criteria for picking and choosing? My guess it has something to do with "loving the LORD my God with all my heart and mind and soul and strength and my neighbor as myself," but that's my guess. What's yours?
Here is a link to a brief (15 minutes or so) presentation Jacobs gave about his year of living biblically. Depending on your computer system, you may have to cut and paste the link into your browser. Watching and listening is well worth your time.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/a_j_jacobs_year_of_living_biblically.html
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3 comments:
I can see that Rob drew from Jacobs' experiment for his sermon yesterday (3/8). I absolutely agree that our behavior is one of the strongest ways of influencing our thinking (and our spirituality). I, too, am a behaviorist, and I firmly believe that we need to act, behave, and conduct ourselves like Christians in order to be Christians. And by acting as Christ would have us act, I believe we get in touch with the Holy Spirit within us and within others around us. And that connectedness is what fills me spiritually. I'm reading Henri Nouwen's "Intimacy," and he said that people whose lives have become meaningless are in a state of boredom. "Boredom is the dullness of life felt all the way to your stomach. It is the lukewarm quality of daily life, which manifests itself in the repetition of the 'I don't care' phrase." And Nouwen says that boredom really means "the isolation of experience." The challenge for the church, as I see it, is to create experiences for people in which they feel valued, connected, and purposeful. For me, volunteerism and service give me that experience.
I would love to hear what other people think about the Old Testament. I struggle to find it of any use in my spiritual life. It seems to me to be such a primitive account of a people and their struggle and sometimes if seems like we really reach to find relevance in it. I really only think about the teachings of Jesus when I think about how God wants us to be. Does that make me a Red Letter person?
Sorry that this is off-topic from the last entry written, but I just have to comment on A.J. Jacobs' presentation. I really admire him for the commitment he made to that year-long experiment, but more for the incredible risk I would see it as than for actually adhering to each rule. What I mean is that for me, I have this silly, pre-determined level of acceptance of the Bible (not even really based in any substantial exploration thereof), that would be make me afraid of doing something like that. I think I'm scared of really delving into the Bible for fear of having to let go of the little I think I understand. I need a little more Jacobs in my life...
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