Mrs. Kenny November 2012 Religion 9 Exploring the 2 Creation Stories in Genesis

Introduction to the Pentateuch and Genesis your Bible, pages 1-5.

Diagram of the 1 st Creation Story in Genesis (Chapter 1):

Genesis 1

Explanation of 2 Creation Stories Dr. Robert Cargill, UCLA

Comparing the 2 Creation Stories Chapter 1 Chapter 2  “P” Priestly source – newer  “God”  repetitive, simple language  Made in a set series of days  everything is created out of dark black water  man and woman made at the same time (gender equality!)  man made after animals were created  Like a play – “least” things first  “Y” Yahwist source – older  “Lord God”  flowery language …  time period is ambiguous  Land and water already exist  man made first, then woman o “Adam” = “man” in Hebrew  man made before animals created (in reverse order as the first story)  Like a movie – “greatest” things first

Domains & Inhabitants of Domains - Ch. 1 DayLocation in GenesisCreation Domains 11:1-5 Light 21:6-8 Sky 31:9-13 Land & plants Inhabitants of Domains 41:14-19 Lights (i.e. sun, moon, stars) 51:20-23 Fish/birds 61:24-31 Land animals & humans 72:1-3 Sabbath

Creation = a mythological story Mythology = made up stories to explain natural phenomena Jews wrote the creation story to explain why the world/humans exist. In contrast to what the Babylonians at the time believed (world was inhabited by warring gods and humans were their slaves)

Geocentric & Heliocentric Models