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Of Mud and the Divine: Creation Myths of the Middle East: Part Two |
| Section: CULTURE / FOLK WISDOM |
| Author: Ewa Wasilewska |
| Publication:
The World & I Online |
| Issue Date: 3/1/1994 |
| Size: 2,963 Words, 17,215 Characters |
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The Genesis story of the creation consists of at least two different traditions generally defined as the Priestly and the Yahwistic, that freely borrowed ideas derived from much older sources: the traditions of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and other areas of the ancient Middle East. Genesis is thus a syncretic account whose inconsistencies are especially visible when the events of human creation are described. This compilation of two sources into one account contributes to some confusion with regard to traditional understandings of the origin of life on earth. Moreover, in Genesis, the older Yahwistic tradition follows the more recent Priestly account and apparently had to be adjusted to impose a more or less logical order on the events of the original creation.
There is no agreement, among scholars, on the exact dating of any of the accounts in the Old Testament. However, the Priestly tradition (which runs from Gen. 1:1 to 2:4a) is generally ascribed to the post-Exilic period of the fifth century B.C., and the Yahwistic tradition (beginning at 2:4h) is considered to be older, possibly composed in the eighth century B.C. or even earlier. Each tradition is a product of a different author, or group of authors, from specific and differing sociocultural and economic environments. Consequently, the philosophical foci expressed by these accounts also differ. In general, the Priestly tradition emphasizes the ritualistic and institutionalized elements of religion; the Yahwistic account focuses on the role of Yahweh, his chosen people of Israel, and mankind.
The Yahwistic tradition offers little detail with regard to the events of the creation process, simply stating that God "made earth and heaven," ...
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...es newborn babies (especially males) because she cannot have her own.
Liliths departure left Adam without a wife. God felt sorry for him and created a second wife to keep him company This time God made sure the new wife would be Adams inferior by making her from the mans rib. The second marriage seemed to work out until Adam and Eve went against the Creators will. The Fall was imminent.
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(The World & I Online) |
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