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This book nails the topic I think is most important to the way I and many others are living life (whether you know it or not): Is human nature mostly good or mostly bad? It is not very readable unless you are mildly familiar with the names of church fathers and some academic biblical studies. Its been a challenge typing this review and grasping it all in my head!
My only complaints about the book is I wish it was a bit easier to read and I wish it had a bit more connection to Jewish thought on Genesis 1-3/human nature.
In this book Elaine Pagels gives a history of the interpretation of Genesis 1-3 for the first 400-500 years of Christianity. About half the book deals with Augustine's interpretations and the other half is the people he argued against. The first chapter is kind of foundational talking about Jesus and Paul and first century Judaism. Because of Augustine's timing, prominence and support of the Roman empire/the popes of his time his view became the dominant one in western christianity. I would absolutely agree we see the impact of it every day in western culture.
"What Augustine says, in simplest terms, is this: human beings cannot be trusted to govern themselves, because our very nature— indeed, all of nature— has become corrupt as the result of Adam’s sin."
--For those who know me, this is exactly the opposite of my buddy Thoreau and the transcendentalists, for those who don't, now you see my bias :)
According to Pagels, this was also the opposite of the first 300 years of christian interpretation of Genesis 1-3!!
In those opening chapters the first christians saw God blessing humanity with the freedom to self-govern. God blessed humanity with a will that can choose moral freedom, thats what being made in the image of God was about. The emphasis was not on any kind of 'original sin' until Augustine. According to Pagels "the whole point of the story of Adam, most Christians assumed, was to warn everyone who heard it not to misuse that divinely given capacity for free choice."
The author claims that 'previous ideology of human freedom' was espoused by Justin, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Gregory of Nyssa, Valentinus, Clement, Origen, Jovinian, Pelagius, John Chrysostom, Julian of Eclanium. There's some pretty big hitters there. And also some who were considered heretics. Lengthy quotes and summaries are provided of each of them. The church fathers who identified with Augustine were Jerome, Ambrose and Pope Siricius of Rome (who was the one who decided who was a heretic and who wasn't). It was better for the pope and for the roman empire if people were considered bad, that way they could justify their desire for more control over people.
- Paperback: 189 pages
- Publisher: Vintage; 1st Vintage Books ed edition (September 19, 1989)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0679722327
- ISBN-13: 978-0679722328
- Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.6 x 8 inches
- Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
- Average Customer Review: 54 customer reviews
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Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#133,027 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #199 in Old Testament Criticism & Interpretation
- #252 in Ethics in Christian Theology
- #180 in Christian Historical Theology
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