Week 9 Genesis
Reaction question:
God tells Adam not to eat from the tree of knowledge (Genesis 2:16-17) but doesn’t explain why this particular fruit is dangerous. Why is it wrong to follow rules if you don’t understand and agree with them?
Why should you follow rules even when you don’t understand or agree with them?
Reading Questions: Read the chapters from Genesis noted below as well as the Biblical selections handout.
What two substances does God use to create man? What potential conflicts are there between these two substances? How does the passage from Tanya (Biblical Selections Handout) interpret this conflict?
How does the serpent deceive Eve? What does she believe will happen to her if she eats from the tree? (Gen 3:1-6)
What does God select Abraham for at Genesis 12? Although the Bible does not explain why God called on the elderly Abraham, what do we learn about him as a young man from the passage in Genesis Rabbah (Biblical Selections Handout)? What did he do when he was in charge of his father’s store?
Explain what God asks Abraham to do in Genesis 22. How does Abraham respond and how does the story conclude?
How does Jacob steal Esau’s birthright? (Genesis 25, 27) Does God judge Jacob’s actions as commendable or dishonorable? (Gen. 28) How does the historical information about Jacob and Esau (Biblical Selections Handout) change your reading of the story?
Explain the fist fight that Jacob gets into in Gen. 32. Who is he wrestling and who wins the fight? What might this mean if read as an allegory? (Biblical Selections Handout)
To satisfy the lecture portion of this course, please view the Spotlight Lecture posted in the Week 10 folder. Demonstrate by answering the following: Explain why Moses’ vision contradicts the laws of nature.
This is a loose adaptation of the text with a modern take.
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