Fascinating read, got so much more out of this than I expected. The book is divided into chapters by body parts but just uses that to launch into a rich history of the times the bible was written in. And of course the bible was written and revised over hundreds of years so there’s much to pack in.
But today the bible is presented as a coherent whole, like
it’s just a book with chapters – right? Not a collection of books vastly
different in composition. Letters, myths, instructions, visions by so many
authors and editors all of whom had different agendas. Stavrakopoulou makes
this all wonderfully accessible and transports you to the times of these
writings. Her descriptions of ancient artifacts are so rich you get more than
just looking at the pictures, it’s like having an expert guide for your time
travels.
What this approach makes clear is the christian “God” we
think of today evolved over time coming from the original myths and times when
there were many gods who roamed the earth as well as the heavens and mingled
with the people. I found it amazing the amount of direct quotes from the bible
used as evidence throughout the book, it really is plain to see when someone
explains it. It made me appreciate how rich the culture of the ancient Levant
was even before the various parts of the bible began to be written, and how
these christian parables came from the older myths.
It's given me a thirst to find out more about those older
stories and I loved the way Stavrakopoulou kept the focus on the people of the
time and their relationships with the deities, from kings and high priests to
normal worshipers.
Her style was easy to read and of course there’s a fair
amount of taboo subject matter about bodily functions etc which was always
entertaining while staying informative but not veering into smuttiness.
