1. Mr. Sweeney Southwest High School

3.  Creation stories -- narratives describing how the world came into being and how people came into it  Often called “myths,” but their cultures believe them to be true  Usually considered sacred; every religious tradition has one  Components of the story reveal a lot about a culture’s values

4.  Creation ex nihilo – Story in which a divine being creates the universe out of nothing  Earth diver – Story in which some animal dives to the bottom of a sea and brings up the soil from which the land is created  Emergence myth – Story in which beings pass through a series of states or worlds before arriving in this one

5.  Creation by dismemberment – Story in which the universe is created from the body parts of a cosmic being  Creation by separation – Story in which a single thing (such as an egg) is broken, releasing the material that makes up the universe

6.  Many people in many cultures believe their stories are true  Our creation stories allow us to explain the world  Our creation stories establish the values we hold sacred  Our creation stories define us  How are we defined by where we come from?

7. The Big Myth The Big Myth