Kimberly's blog

2006-12-11T13:14:00.000-08:00

For the people who were at the study group on Sunday night I said that I would post Rosa's English 219 blogsite. It is:

http://mythmontana.blogspot.com/

Read it! It is awesome!!!!!!

2006-12-05T23:33:00.000-08:00

Individual Presentations and a Little Bit of Reflection..........

The last two class periods we have been having our individual presentations. There have been some of the most creative ways in speaking on dense supjects in three minutes. I am truely impressed!!! I will just hit on a few that stood out to me, and I thought did an exceptional job in presenting.....

Amanda did an amazing job when she mixed water with light (literally and figuratively). She talked about sir Isaac Newton and the study of how light came about and how it relates to subject matters in this class. It is also referred to as the truth of God.

John's poem rocked....I honestly just love listening to his poetry (as you can tell I have had him in many classes before).

Rosanna did an excellent job. I really really liked her idea for a paper and I thought she went about presenting it great. She was honest and just a joy to listen to. Plus...who doesn't like listening to Freudian thoughts and why we hate our mothers, ect.

Tara's depiction of women in the Bible was right on. I loved it! I wish that I would have thought of that topic to do because it was so interesting and dense that I feel there was so much more that could have been said but she nailed it!

Marlow definitely had me when the number 666 came up. The Caesar Nero talk and how that is the beast in Revolation with all of the disgusting images always makes for a great presentation.

This semester is coming to a close and it is just about time for me to move onto that next stage in my life. One thing is for sure is that I didn't know that Dr. Sexon's class was going to make such an impact on my life....I am not going to be looking at things in a totally different way, reading into them and taking them literally and not taking them literally and so fourth. I will have to say that the best part of the semester was reading Frye. He just seemed to make everything come together for my understanding. From types and anti-types to metaphors and images with meaning, I was really taken away by all of his deciferings. When he said "Doubt is an essential part of faith"....I began to question myself and my thoughts. This was a main point in my topic and it is something that I did not understand before this class and always will now. The deep look into the book of Genisis and the writer J was extremely entertaining....I wish J wrote the whole Bible! The women in the Bible who were strong women willing to sacrafice anything made me proud and I will always remember that Maria's birthday is on November 17.

This class as truely been a treat for me. I will look forward to our next meetings....and the mettings after those....and then...who knows?!?!

Thank ya'll very much!

Kim

2006-12-03T11:32:00.000-08:00

Hello all.....the individual presentations are going on right now and we are nearing the end of the semester! I presented last Thrusday and my paper is posted below, for those of you that were a little confused about my presentation! I thought that the presentations were awesome and am definitely looking forward to next week and the presentations to come!

The Answer to Why:
A Closer Look into the Justice of God

Horrific things happen to people everyday in this world. To get right down to it, tragedy has become a part of every day life. There was once a time in my life where I was sure that terrible things only happened to me, and thought it was extremely hard to accept, and I figured I deserved it. A good friend once told me that it was not fair that I was going through all of these hardships, and she proceeded to ask God why something so bad can happen to some one who is so good, while I just stood there and listened. That cliché saying has been with me for the past four years, since all the bad began to unravel. Hearing those words made me wonder where they came from, and why they came about. The last place that I thought I would be able to discover these ideas happened to be the first place I walk into every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, my Biblical Literature class. So why do good things happen to bad people, and bad things happen to good people? I am just going to say that I am not the first to go through, for now I know that this idea began tens and thousands of years ago with the Bible.
This idea of exploration came to me from the Biblical and Classical Myths book written by Northrop Frye. The Chapter entitled “Job and the Question of Tragedies” is what really added fuel to my fire. Frye explains that in order for us to answer a question of religion, accepting the assumptions in the question is primary. But it is because of this very thought that no serious religion will ever attempt to answer such a loaded question as ‘Why do bad things happen to good people’. For in all seriousness, Frye states that asking questions such as these cheat you out of the right to even ask the question (Frye 192). In other words, it is at times okay to question the justice of God, but by asking such enormous questions, we must understand that questioning might not get anyone anywhere. By asking a question such as this, we immediately put blame on Yahweh, forget to look at ourselves, and take the easy way out by asking this question instead of accepting the simple fact that God is God, and we should not question that fact.
But why will there be no answer, and should we question? I, along with many others, want to know why it poses a problem to reconcile the co-existence of evil in connection with God. This questioning is called a Theodicy, or attempting to justify God’s ways (Hypertext 1). A theodicy comes from the Greek term meaning the ‘justice of God’ (Wiki 1). To many, the ability to investigate the question of God’s nature and attributes should be allowed to be asked. But why should it? How can God be infinitely good and yet allow so much evil to occur?
This thought all began back in the times of the Bible. The one that stands out to me is the story of Job. Though Job was afraid of doing God wrong and ‘turned away’ from evil, one would argue that he had done nothing to deserve the treatment he received from Satan, and how God could sit back and allow such action to take place. However, God says that he believed Job would stick close to him no matter what. The passage that stands out to me in this first part of the Book is passage 1:9. The passage states:
Then Satan answered the Lord, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have you not put a fence around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face. (Atteridge 694)
In a sense, I feel like Satan is telling God that he has to take control, and make his presence on earth known. For God to be ‘almighty’, letting His people become aware of His power and His ability to turn the lives of some around in merely seconds is necessary to prove His authority as well as presence.
Following the incidents that happen to Job, he goes crazy and curses all who have done him wrong, including God. God then responds back in such a fury and states that if he does what he is asked of, then eventually his great life will be given back to him. By keeping the faith and trusting that God is powerful, his life shall be restored (Atteridge 698). Job also understands that, ‘The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away” (). After thinking about the events that show up in the first of Job, I have come to the conclusion that Job is not being punished for hiding from evil and fearing God. He is simply being tested.
No matter how one looks at this story, it will always go back to that one idea that Job did not deserve to be treated in such a way. A good person like Job should not have gone through the treachery he went though. Again, the questioning of God has circulated. If God is so powerful, why does he not just show his abilities by preventing all evil? No matter if one is being tested or not, putting one through agony is never good, and even God should understand that.
Northrop Frye states that, “[Asking such thought provoking questions] prevents you from reformulating a question with rather better assumptions in it, and so proceeding in the way the human mind does proceed in dealing with large and very serious issues, by trying to make the assumptions in the questions it asks more and more adequate” (Frye 192). I find this interesting because of the single word ‘assumption’. As stated in the beginning of the paper, one cannot ask a question without bringing their assumptions into the thought. In this, Frye is saying that this is such a broad question, and there are so many different sides to the story. I believe that to people like Frye, there are two ways in looking at everything, and absolutely two ways in viewing the overused statement – why do bad things happen to good people. Sure, going back and looking at the story of Job might arouse those ideas of the fact that it is insane that God could allow such horrifying things to happen. But maybe what happened to Job was a good thing. It also might give a clearer idea as to why tragic events happen today, in our society, in my life, and in anyone’s life for that matter.
The thought that we should not question God’s doings no matter the case, place or time is a definite example of one side to theodicy. The ultimate scheme is that God created this world with the proposal of free will. Some people choose to sin, and there are some who will choose not to. Some choose to believe in that word we call ‘Karma’, meaning what goes around will eventually come around. Many say that people choose their own fate, God does not. The free will idea to theodicy argues that if God were to become involved with people’s lives, and start influencing human actions for the better or worse, then human actions would not longer be free, and the idea of free will would not exist (Wikipedia 4). God should be involved with our lives to a certain extent, however making them His own, He should not. Sheela Pawar from the Center of Process Studies stated, “God gently persuades all entities towards this perfection by providing them a glimpse of the divine vision of a better future. And yet all entities retain the freedom to depart from that vision” (Robinson 1).
That being said, when I was going through my battles and my friend told me that I was too good of a person to have all of this terrible stuff happen to, I began to question the workings of the Lord. This becomes the second argument. A person who can see a child about to run into the path of a truck, who can see sixteen terrorists walk onto a plane and know their plans, and who can see the tropical storms form one-hundred miles off the coastline should put a stop to that. It is these types of events that can cause people to turn away from God. If God has the power to create such evil in the world, and he is for the good, then it is absolutely ludicrous for him to not put a stop to the bad things going on this day in age. Or for that matter, evil should never prosper during any time. These people are the ones who wonder how this God of love can allow killers to kill, terrorists to terrorize, and the wicked to escape without a trace (Robinson 2).
There is one more idea that I believe people overlook, and that is that maybe God gives bad days to illuminate the good. We suffer through difficult times to succeed. If we continue to believe in the great Yahweh and do not question (though put up a little fight as Job did), then life will pull through the bad. Dr Sexon implied that: "We learn from suffering, and we suffer into truth". This is as true of statement as we get. We can always learn from the bad to appreciate the good, which is inevitable. Believing through the doubt is what makes Yahweh prove to be so powerful....in the end there will be no question.
It is these ideas that Frye is saying is the problem to all of the questions we ask, in that there are way too many assumptions when asking. What answer do we want to hear? Or maybe he is saying that you may ask the question, however one should not expect an answer (Frye 193). The bottom line to all of this madness is that there is not an answer. If my English professor were to write out ‘Why do terrifying things happen to good people?’ on a test, I would simply leave it blank because there is no answer.
If I have learned one thing from this class that I will take with me, it is the notion of theodicy in the book of Job. In my personal opinion, Job passed the test, and I think that is what God does to many people, he simple gives them a test. Whether one passes it or not, that is not up to God. Job, at first, began to question the acts God was throwing upon him, but in the end he realized that in order to succeed in life, he had to go through the hardships. He did it through his faith, knowing that he was a good person who did not deserve this hardship; however, he was, in the end, going to be a better person. When the going gets tough this day in age, God gives us our own test, and that is maybe the answer as to why bad things happen to good people, and maybe it is not. I would have to say that the United State, New York City and New Orleans passed with flying colors. As it was said in the book of Job, the God and give and he can take it away just as fast. He is a hard one to question, for He is extremely powerful and one would have to believe that in some sense He knows what He is doing.
There are many reasons as to why people question the doings of God. However, there is one thing that holds true to wondering why God does what he does, and that is that there are many assumptions and many ideas, but there will never be that ONE solid answer. Northrop Frye states, “…all we can say is the ways of God are mysterious and too high for us to understand” (Frye 189). Well Mr. Frye, I think you might have found the answer to my test question!

2006-11-28T20:53:00.000-08:00

Group Presentations Continued.....

Three more groups enlightened with us on their depictions of different books of the Bible. Once again, I was extremely entertained! Group number FOUR kick started the day with their skit on the story of Ruth through the eyes of Jewish store owners.....Joshua was the best looking Jewish girl ever! They retold the book of Ruth and followed that up with some connections between Ruth and the book The Slave by Isaac B. Singer. One of the main connections was that of Naomi changes her name to Mara, like Wanda changes her name to Sarah in the book. Probably the main quote to remember is - Whither thou goest I shall go.

Group number SIX went next, and then did a pretty funny, and well acted out might I add, skit to the book of Jonah. Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and three night before he was spewed out to go and share the message of God to Ninivah that the city would be overthrown in 40 days. Another important idea is the fact that Jonah was - in the belly of the whale - for a while and all of the things that possibly come out of that situation. The groups also shared some terrific artwork to the music of the Newsboys.

Group number FIVE was the last to go.....and they ran into some technical difficulties. But they all came extremely prepared to show different ideas that come out of the book of Acts. Andrew gave some great examples of types and anti-types that come out of the book, and even threw in a little Johnny Cash to help his cause. Teresa explained how the conversions from Acts to Christianity are taking place in the book of Acts, and I thought it to be extremely interesting. Everyone should see the movie - Waking Life - in order to understand some of the book a little more.

We get to see the personalities of the people in this class through group presentations, just like we get to know the characters in Biblical times through the Bible and this class. I am glad that I got to whitness all of these presentations as well as participate!!!

2006-11-26T20:14:00.000-08:00

Class Presentations

Those that were not in class last Thursday really missed out because presentations were awesome! I have never been a part of a class where presentations were taken THAT seriously, which is definitely not a bad thing. I was a part of the Samuel group, and let me tell you, putting two books of the Bible together for a twenty minute speech is definitely a trick. However, we managed like the other groups to pull something off!

Group number ONE did a news presentation. It was extremely funny! John played an extremely sweet Ecclesiasties, who even dubbed with Yankees! And I love sports so that caught my attention. However it was their acting that helped me decifer what was going on in the braodcast. Alex played a hallarious on site reporter who focused on weights and measures, and the other on site reporters played their characters to a tee! Very impressive. Some things that should be noted about the presentations. The strength of Sampson comes from his beautiful locks of HAIR.......and he was killed by the pillars at the Fallen House of the Lords. It is important to know that story for the TEST. The story of Sissera is another thing that will show up on the test! Last but not least.....EAT DRINK AND BE MERRY FOR TOMORROW YOU DIE!!!

Groups number TWO did the interrigation of the main characters in the first and second book of Samuel. David was a jerk, Yahweh was pretty funny, Bathshiba was extremely innocent, Amnon was a flat out liar, and Absolom (who I played) thought he was pretty cool....though he really was not. Things that might appear on the test from this group is that the main issue in these books was finding a king because everything was crazy....first Saul then David....a king was definitely needed. Also, note that God LOVED David. No matter what David did, he could do no wrong.

Group number THREE did the Song of Solomon in what I think was a great performance! I was completely entertained throughout and it gave me a very different way to look at this book than how I used to view it! The SONG OF SONGS is a very erotic love poem and that should be noted for the test.....also keep going over it as the whole song could appear some where!

THe best part about all of these presentations is that they were all different and I cannot wait to see what the other groups come up with! It will be fun to see! And my term paper will be posted shortly!

2006-11-19T16:57:00.000-08:00

Samuel According to Absalom.....

I couldn't take it anymore. Knowing what my brother, Annon, had done to my sister had just eaten at me for two long and I had to take action. I wanted all of the king's servants, including Annon, to come with me to the sheepshearers. At first he was hesitant but then he gave in and we all feasted together. I told the servants to kill Annon after he was good and drunk, and I would take the blame. It just did not sit well with me than my brother had raped my sister, and I felt revenge was necessary. They did what I said and soon fled after the matter. I also fled to my maternal grandmother's house, while my father David recieved news and wept greatly. After much reconsiderationn with the king, Joab brought me back into Jerusalem. I wanted to get the forgiveness from my father David, and I am sure I knew how to do so. However, I set Joab's field on fire to get his attention to help me meet with my father. Once I did see my father, my good looks, charm, and long hair were to much for him (they usually are too much for most people), and I was forgiven for killing Annon. Of course, I was brutally murdered by Joab, who tricked me into a tree then stabbed me countlessly until I was dead......

2006-11-16T21:54:00.000-08:00

November 16, 2006 -- The world that we live in is incredible small....or maybe all things are connected. I think that things are more connected than the world being small. I say this because I recently had a posting about chapter 24 in Northrop Frye, and it was totally related to my Literary Criticism class. If Aristotle and Plato sat down with Northrop Frye, I think that they would have quite the conversation.

Plato has always said that you cannot believe what you read because most poets LIE. Aristotle says that though poets get the outward world stuff like history incorrect, they tell the truth about what is real. What is real inside is what Aristotle believes is important, and not a lie at all. Frye thinks that it is more about the descriptive active of the discourse, that matching what goes on in the text with the outside world, and making those connections are what is the most important in the literal meaning. I think that Frye would disagree with Plato saying that if all poets lie, then this whole thing called life is a lie because we are ALL poets. We all mean something in this world, and if there were not poets, then there would be no life.....NOTHING. Frye and Aristotle are more on the same page where they believe what is written on the page is what we should be looking at, not questioning it, and making the connections to the outside world. These are the things that make reading worth it.

If you read a poem, and you just read it without exploring it, it will make no sense, but if you allow yourself to read into the literal meanings, then it will begin to become more clear. I love this chapter on Frye. There is no LIES in poetry, because deep down we will always find some sort of truth, fiction or not, it is still truth. I really hope that makes sense!

We should not think about whether things are true or not, or worry about weather the meaning of the text is literal or not.....but we should allow ourselves to experience what the book/Bible is saying to us because it is a beautiful thing....

2006-11-16T09:14:00.000-08:00

November 16, 2006 -- So it's been a while but I am finally back into blogging mode! Though I thought that I had run out of ideas, I really hadn't because all I had to do was open up a page in Frye and read about two sentences and I realized that I had a lot to say! In chapter 24 of Frye he explains a simple question that many people always ask : What does the Bible literally mean? He says that the Bible means what it says, and there is no beating around the bush, and that the Bible literally means exactly what it says. However, to Frye, and to others, two ways of answering that question arise.....which is what I want to explore a little. The first way to approach the literally meaning of the Bible is when you make the 'immideate jump from what the text in the Bible tells you to, to what you guess about that historical event'. This in my eyes is a lot like a Reader-Response critic. Of course when we read anything we bring our own historical background into what we are reading and it effects the words on the page. Every person who is reading the Bible will see some things differently just because of where they came from, or where they are at that specific point in their life. That is one way to approach the literal meaning of the Bible. The other way is to 'accept the Word in the Bible and gain your understanding in the way we gain understanding of all meaning, simply through the context in the Bible itself'. I think this is the point that Frye wants us to capture but I also think it is the hardest to accomplish. Whenever anyone reads something they will always see that word in the way they were brought up to see it. Frye gives an excellent example of the word 'story' and the word 'history'. In my opinion, the first one is easier, however the second idea is more important in the case of the Bible. I love this chapter in Frye and I think that he makes some extremely good points. Dr. Sexon has asked us all to talk about some one's blog who has really inspired us, and given us new insight rather than what he thinks about the class. I have chosen Rosa Mauro and Teresa Lang-Court. I think these two ladies have given the most in dept detail into their blogs, in different ways. Rosa is much more on the story telling, opinionated side......where Teresa is much more of a note taker and class understander! However, I look at their blogs all the time, and they have been quite helpful to me in this journey through English 211......

2006-11-07T10:41:00.000-08:00

November 6, 2006 -- Maybe I am beating a dead stick here, however Mark 13:6-8 gives me hope that my idea of the Bible showing reflections of what goes on in the world today is true. The talk of the wars and how they are just a part of the world is what is going on right now. The fact that they eventually will end is another idea that presents is self this day in age. The talk of the nation vs. nation is exactly what we are experiencing right now, and it likely will not end soon. However, it is then stated that there will me earthquakes and famines. I am thinking that this is the metaphorical version of earthquakes and famines. This means that there will be huge fights and arguments among one another and there will be times we peace is in the air. It just shows what the world is going through right now. I feel like I can see the year 2006 in this passage. The passage goes:

"Many will come in my name and say,'I am he!' and they will lead many astray. When you hear of the wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs."

Something that I also wanted to hit on was the idea of the prodical son. I think that some people get this term misunderstood because the prodical son was not always good. He went through to bad to find the good and that is what makes him prodical. Of course what about the other son.....he was not 'the prodical one'....but that does not make him any less of a good son. For he was the one who was in the right in the first place. It is a good thing to be that son and on the other hand, it is okay to not have the term prodical in front of your name! I hope that makes some kind of sense!!!

2006-11-02T10:26:00.000-08:00

November 1, 2006 -- I walked into class not wanting to go there. I was sick and not feeling well and pretty much wanted to pass out on my way into the building. But after I walked out of class, I was so glad I went because something that we talked about in class was something that I don't think I will ever forget, or at least for a while. That something what the notion of the Book of Job. I HATED the book of Job....all it did was make me feel like I was in some kind of prison. This man's life went from being amazing to Hell. I did not like it.

THEN..........

Dr. Sexon made a reference that the reason why we read the Book of Job is to learn how to deal with dark days. I know we are not supposed to talk about faith in this class but after I left class Tuesday, I realized that it is true. I went back and read the Book of Job that night and realized that is EXACTLY why we read it. After all of my bad days lately.....it is safe to say that Job made me realize that I need to handle them differently.

Of course the dominant theme in Job is that that we have been talking about all semester....Why do Good People Suffer? And I ultimately think that we suffer so we can eventually succeed. If we continue to believe in the great Yahweh and do not question (though put up a little fight as Job did), then life will pull through the bad. Dr Sexon implied that: "We learn from suffering, and we suffer into truth". This is as true of statement as we get. We can always learn from the bad to appriciate the good.....it's enevitable. Believing through the doubt is what makes Yahweh prove to be so powerful....in the end there will be no question.

As Frye said in his chapter.....Doubt is an essential part of faith.

Thank Yahweh I went to class this day. My life has changed yet again......

2006-10-26T08:40:00.000-07:00

October 26, 2006 -- Dr. Sexon said something in class that I have been hitting on a little in my e-journal.....it is something that I find very captivating....that something is the idea that 'we are only versions of things that have gone before us'. I am totally enthralled with this statement. I have been reading the Bible for a while now....kind of skipping around in places and I have come up with the idea that if some one who was totally unfamiliar with the Bibe were to sit down and read it, or if they were to read every single type of religion as well as other sacred texts....the only thing that would make sense to hit close to home (or close to reality) would be the Bible. The Bible is the best explination of life that we have today, and from some of my experiences the best explination of reality.

Jacob in the book The Slave, really made this idea clear for me. He was just the Jacob of THAT TIME. That got me thinking.....is there a Jacob of every time? Is there a Sarah, or Wanda, of every period in time? I don't know. But it is comforting to know that other people are thinking the same things that I am! I am only beginning to wonder who I am replicating at this TIME PERIOD in the world!

Other issues that were brough up in class:

Isaac Singer won the Nobel Prize for this piece of Literature

Some good Wisdom Books are Job, Psalms, and Salom (of course there are more)

"We are all simply acting out stories"

Wisdom is somethign that belongs in the Bible. Widson Hebrew is known as Hokmah Mashol, but the type of widsom that we are most familiar with is that of the knowlegde straight from our grandparents. However, they had to get it from some where. I am beginning to think that the wisdom that is found in the proverbs is just the wisdom that came BEFORE the wisdom of our grandparents. The cycle is continuing!!!!

2006-10-23T14:45:00.000-07:00

THE SLAVE By Isaac Bashevis Singer -- One of the greatest things about literature is the idea that in every reading of any text, there are two subjects that will always cross path. One being the examination of oneself to the text, and the other being that there is aways a meaning. The beauty in this is that there are no two people who are identical, and who will come away from the text with the same experience. In Isaac Bashevis Singer's novel The Slave I experienced something that will be impossible for another to feel, and the meaning I took from the book is one that I will never forget.

I often felt like I was watching three or four movies during the duration of the text. The beginning of the book was, quite honestly, a big blurr for me. I was interested, but not to the extent I wanted to be. Here I was, reading this book for a class and it was a love story. A simple Romeo and Juliet version, where Jacob was the Jewish slave, who longed for Wanda, his master's daughter. The passion that the two had for another fit right into a Hollywook script. However, there was so much more than that. I realize this when Jacob said to God, "I have no doubt that you are the Almighty and that whatever you do is for the best, but it is impossible for me to obey the commandment, Thou Shalt Love Thy God. No, I cannot, Father, not in this life" (108). This is a story of sin.

Once Jacob and Wanda, who's name had now been changed to Sarah (a parody from the Bible), entered the land of Pilitz, we have already seen the sin begin to take shape. For Jacob, who was a slave, literally, ran away with Wanda to this land. He had broken the plan of God, and gone against his will. Sarah did the same when she slept with Jacob, and preceded to run away from home. The two of the entered this land, this Jewish land, where Sarah lied to say that she was a Jew. In doing this, Jacob told the townspeople as well as Pilitzky that she was a mute. For while Jacob was teaching her the ways of the Jews, he did not want her to slip and and say something that would banish them from the land. To me, this whole second part of the story was a lie, a sin.

However, I then thought about the word Slave. Being a slave means that one has total control over another. I do not know if I would want to go through life like this. Jacob did not want to either, therefore breaking away from his master in the beginning of the story, but also from his master God. I saw why he said he could no longer vow to the commandment. He turned on these people so that he could live the way he thought fit, and so be it that it was a sin.

Though it was not divided up this way, the next part of the story come when Sarah goes into childbirth. In a scene from the Exorcist or something, Sarah gives birth to a baby boy, but not at the price of her life. After the longest few days of Jacob's life, Sarah dies. This woman who he has sinned his whole life for has finally left him. After her death, I believe that Jacob realizes that he cannot live a lie anymore and decides to take charge of his life, first by wanting to raise his boy on his own. He realizes this in a simple statement made on page 279, "Lead, God, lead. It is thy world."

Not only did he realize that through all of these sins, he is still that slave trapped in the world of God, but I did too. It is God's world, and we are all slaves in it. I believe that is why the book is called what it is. Sometimes we revolt and we hate the idea of theodicy, however this world that we live in is a circle. And with the accepting of sins, life will end up where is started. For Jacob, it was right next to Sarah. And that is the way it will forever be for him. The same goes for some one like you or I, whether we believe we are slaves or not.

2006-10-23T14:31:00.000-07:00

I know that this is a blog on the study of Biblical Foundations of literature, however I had a HORRIBLE day last week and since Dr. Sexon mentioned it....I thought I would enlighten you on my adventure...

First of all, I woke up at 7:59, realizing that I was supposed to be at the gym to meet some of my dance team to work on a dance at 8:00. I could not find my car keys so I had to use my spare ones. After arriving at 8:11, I realized that I actually forgot my dance shoes, forcing me to dance in my bare feet. I then got done with dance around 10 and went to get into my car. However, my car would not start because I was so rushed to get into practice that I forgot to turn off my lights, (at least that is what I am blaming it on!). So after that, I went to class and almost fell asleep, which is never a good feeling when you know you should be paying attention (don't worry it was not ENG 211). Then once I got home, I realized that when using my spare keys I don't have an extra house key on that key chain. I was locked out. I laid on my car for 4 hours in the freezing cold, without my cell phone because it is broken, and waited for my roomate to get home. Once I got home, I turned on the radio to Daniel Powder's song "You Had A Bad Day".

I am sure that Jacob and Isaac and Joseph all had their bad days as well, and that's what gave me the strength to wake up the next morning and try it all over again!

2006-10-19T09:45:00.000-07:00

October 19, 2006 -- Before I write my Slave entry, I just wanted to give a brief rundown of what has been going on in class as of late. We have been covering the story of Moses.....if for some reason you do not know this story, in other words, have not been to class then look at the video that I posted on my blog a couple days ago....It will some what catch you up a little.

The Bible seems to admire those who are like the underdogs in a way. It wants to see the people who are up for a challange succeed.....and God appriciates the way these people worship him.

I have officially become annoyed with the Bible actually.......I am a very simple person and I really really need some straight out answers. I am no good and trying to figure out what happened in between everything. After Zapora cuts off her son's foreskin and touches Moses' feet with it it ends! I agree that it was a strong take for Zapora to do this, however what now.....we know what the Bible states but what happend at the specific point on?!?! I guess I could let my imagination do the speaking....which would be terrifying!!!!

Exodus 24:9 is very important......

See ya'll Thrusday!

2006-10-17T07:43:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, October 17 -- I wanted to go back and talk a little bit about the test...or extra credit question. I guess it seems to me like most of the people in this class have had experience with reading the Bible from a literature standpoint. I, on the other hand, have not. This is ALL new to me, so I am trying to take it all in the best that I can. There have been so many things that I have learned this semester that it's hard to remember all of the key points that have interested me. I know that I have mentioned it before, but I chose to talk about etiology for my extra credit question. The simple fact that things are being seen now (present time) that first came about in the Bible is absolutely astounding to me. If anyone has any other references to this idea will you please let me know.....for I am fascinated with the idea that a rainbow came about in Biblical times and we still see it as a sign for 'good'. I have heard from many people that the world right now is just a re-priduction of Biblical times, and I don't know whether or not to believe this. For, where is the Joseph, Issac, Moses? Is President Bush the present day Issac.....and are the Olsen twins the present day Esau and Jacob? Just some food for thought.....let me know what you think?

2006-10-12T08:20:00.000-07:00

October 12, 2006 -- EVERYBODY remember that Maria's birthday is November 17th and that her parent's names are Robert and Nancy!

I love that way that the story of Moses is told. It seems to me that it could be made into a daytime drama series. I mean, there are many boys who are killed at this time in fear or taking over the King of Egypt's thrown and then one boy escapes who happen to become this great and powerful son of God. What a great story! Until I find a director to make this feature film......this one is just a cute little children's version that I thought I would share! Take a look"

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3949397304360340797&q=The+Story+of+Moses&hl=en

We talked about the word deliverance in class. That word is just an intimidating word to hear. It is a mythological idea that comes from Egypt that means, in our class terms, as your own mind holding you in bondage and you needed to escape. When we do something wrong or something that we do not think should be publically announced, we often put ourselves into this jail....and it is vital to give ourselves enough credit to come out. Delieverance is one of the keys to life now as it was back in the days of the Bible. It is a way out of the situation if you allow yourself to do so.

Something else that would be quite intimidating would be the sight of God. There were many of these in the Bible, through metaphors. Things like angels and burning bushes are good indications that God was present in the situation. I did not know that there was a word for this but there is and it is theophany. I think that people now-a-days look at their own life and hope to see that image of God, however maybe we see God through the epiphanies that we have. These movements in our lives that a light switch goes on. Or maybe we will never see him at all........

2006-10-01T15:07:00.000-07:00

October 1, 2006 -- It's the start of a new month, and I can honestly say in the past month....I have learned so much. We are told that if we cannot think of something to write then to talk about some thing we didn't know yesterday, but now no. To do that would take an eternity. There was a point that was made up in class last week and I wanted to point it out. It was the quote, "The Moral of the Story is the STORY."

I have never thought of this. Without crazy things happening, like Joseph being thrown into the wll, there would never be no story and without no story, there would never be a moral. It sounds so simple, but it just makes a lot of things make sense as to what goes on. Because of stories, we have many morals.

I wanted to touch a little bit on things that Dr. Sexon has commented on throughout the semester that he said would likely show up on the test:

1. 7 Stages of the Bible (Creation, Revolation, Law, Prophecy, Wisdom, Gospel, and Appocalypse)
2. Laws 1-5 is the Torah.
3. Theodicy: wicked people that do not suffer
4. The Book of J is peronal and the Book of P is practical
5. The circumcision of Schechem is missing in the Book of J.

Of course there is plenty more to study but these are just tid-bits of information! See ya'll in class on Tuesday!

2006-09-26T18:29:00.000-07:00

September 27, 2006 -- I would like to go back a couple days and talk about something that was brought up then. The word incest. I cannot remember who said it....could have been Dr. Sexon, but don't quote me on it.....but they mentioned how according to the Bible, every person in this world comes from two people. Does that mean that EVERYONE on this earth is related? Are people out there really re-producing with their siblings? And since incest is a sin, then every person on this planet is born into sin. But because of the word of God, He allows this stuff because that is just the way it is? Why can and does this happen....because God SAID SO....

It is a very interesting subject and I just wanted to touch on it real quick because it is some one odd to think about the person sitting next to me as my 'brother'.

One of the best and interesting stories that we have gone over in class, finally, has been the story of Isaac (link shows full story) and his wife Rebecca. She is another one of those wives who is not granted the ability to get pregnant at first, however God then grants her twins. At this time, one twin was of the superior nation and the other was of the inferior nation. Esau, who came out first was superior and Jacob was inferior. After the huge lacuna....Isaac is on his death bed and wants to bless his favorite son, Esau, and tells him to bring him his favorite wild meat. Rebecca over hears this and wants her favorite son, Jacob to be blessed....so she tells Jacob to do the same thing. In the end, Isaac blessed Jacob and cannot bless Esau. I found this such a humerous story because again, I have pointed it out before, this is totally a story of humerous betrayal. It is a story that could quite be seen on the Big Screen this day in age. Loving it!

Another note....the fact that men back in those days had other men go talk to girls for them is quite awesome. No wonder relationships are so crazy....it is still happening!!!!!!!

2006-09-20T19:10:00.000-07:00

September 20, 2006 -- I was totally inspired to start reading into how much women affect the Bible after Mrs. Sexon came to talk to us Tuesday. I had no idea that women played such a big role thoughout history....dating back to like 750 BCE and further back from that! I now see why we women are so strong and wise because as she said, women in a way controled what went on and still control what goes on! One of the most interesting stories that was talked about was that of Sarai (Sarah), the wife of Amraham. The way she handled her servant to bear her child, it just showed the power that women slithered their way into things. Sarai means princess, and we see exactly where that comes from. But back in that day, women who were childless and were wealthy could have their maids bear their children for them.

I believe that we are now living in the Bible. So when things like this statement come into play, can only believe what I think. Women now days hire surrogates to mother a baby for them. Crazy but we are now seeing the old times totally reflect the new ones. Another reflection is the way women were treated, and how they have come to be powerful, powerful human beings....as Mrs. Sexon noted!

2006-09-15T13:18:00.000-07:00

September 15, 2006 -- I could not help but be estatic when Dr. Sexon began talking about how much of the Bible is written as a myth and/or metaphor. While I was reading Genesis yesterday, I kept thinking to myself "should I be thinking that?" I should, because we have to understand that the Bible is written mythalogically. This language is something that people need to take as a metaphor and should not be literalized.....as I found out yesterday. You might get yourself into trouble!

First let us be clear what is meant by "metaphor": the word means "a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance as `A mighty fortress is our God'". Sometimes we have to take a less literal approach to such language because it does happen to tell the truth. Jesus is often referred to in the texts as a bird, a stone, a branch, and this metaphorical language does nothing but make the truth beautiful. We can speak literally, but that is no fun to read. The Book of J uses some of the greatest metaphorical language and it is so fun and enjoying to read. It also give us as readers a better understanding and the language is not as hard to understand.

Here is an example:

"The Lord hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt" (Deuteronomy 4:20).

The land of Egypt was not an actual furnace, but the circumstances of Israel's sufferings there are likened to being in a furnace.

I thought this was very interesting and thought I would clear up for you, as well as myself, some of the metaphorical language that quite possibly could be used.

Also, where did the word and idea of theodicy originate?

2006-09-13T07:52:00.001-07:00

September 13, 2006 -- D.H. Lawrence was once quoted as saying, "Trust the tale, not the teller". We also hit on something like this today that caught my attention in class. Most things come into being because of words, or LOGOS. Words are so powerful, and we often over look the ability a word has to take over a text. Now, does this mean we are supposed to read everything that we see? Is it any different than believing everything you should hear? I have no idea, that it my question. However, the words of the Bible are so strong and powerful that it is hard to over look that fact....

Something that I just wanted to remind people (and partly cause it was a hallarios part of class) as well as myself for a test in the future maybe, and that is the Creation Myths!

4) World is created by voice of male (no female)

3) Dismembered body of Goddess

2) Woman and Snake

1) World is created by woman herself....no man!

I found these all greatly interesting and I hope we elaborate on them some more! Where do you think this world was formed?

2006-09-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

Something that I just wanted to remind people (and partly cause it was a hallarios part of class) as well as myself for a test in the future maybe, and that is the Creation Myths!

4) World is created by voice of male (no female)

3) Dismembered body of Goddess

2) Woman and Snake

1) World is created by woman herself....no man!

I found these all greatly interesting and I hope we elaborate on them some more! Where do you think this world was formed?

2006-09-08T13:12:00.000-07:00

September 7th, 2006 -- I came into this class not knowing much. In fact, when I left class last week I was so confused with what was going on that I was not sure how to compose myself. However, I left class on September 7th with a much better understanding of the different Books of the Bible. In particular, the Book of P and the Book of J.

The Book of P gives us as the readers and students the first creation story...."In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth". This type of writing of the Bible is a much more structured reading and priestly at the same time. My understanding of this is that this book is the explanation of why we do the things we do. Another interesting idea is the way that Good is viewed here. This type of Book thinks of God as a transcendent.....Some one who is way beyond our comprehension. Basically, this is the scriptures we read today.

The Book of J is so much simpler in the way in which she writes. This is the type of writing that is in fact the storytellers point of view. To this writer, God is a lot more up close and personal that that of the Book of P. I am so much more open to this type of writing, just because I think that it gives us a little better understanding of which way we are to go as readers, and a more logical way to think. The Documentary Hypothesis is also a huge help to understanding the meanings of all of the books.

So, why does this matter to us, and what difference does it make in this class? Basically, I see two things. One is that it is important to get the different views on the Bible and to see where all of these texts originated from, since there are so many versions of the Bible. I also think that another reason why we read different books and put our focus into these two is because they are the ones that are more closely related to literature. They are there to guide us in a better understanding of the Bible today from a literary point to view.

2006-09-06T06:53:00.000-07:00

September 5, 2006 -- Northrop Frye mentioned something in his Biblical and Classical Text that flipped and switch in my head.
"First of all, in the beginning God created heaven and then earth. Now, one of the first questions that is likely to come out of a child's mouth is, What happened before that?"

Well here I am, 20 years old, and I still ask it. I do not think that the question will ever wear out, not will it ever be answered. I would love to know what is going to happen AFTER it is all said and done, however that is yet another mystery. What happened before earth is a lacuna, a gap, an uknown piece of information. That was one of the prettiest words that I have ever heard, and it shows so much relavence to life.

The Bible is full of lacune. From Cain and Able, to where does Abraham's life go as he goes from 60 to 160 in two pages, there is so much that we are not aware of. Though I did not know that we were going to talk about what we read and are not able to read in class because of the lacune in the text, it was something that has always been on my mind. I sometimes think that I am not reading the right way, or missing something, but in reality.....that is just the way the Bible is. This book full of EVERYTHING, has many holes in it! It is kind of like the circle of life, we know so much, yet we do not understand some of the things that take place and why. But everything is connected in some way.

Isaiah and the Book of Revalations are connected in the sense of the and guts sequence that we read in class, for a quick example. However, that is one of the thousand connections that are made in the Bible. I was inspired and relieved to learn of the word lacuna. I now know I am not the only one who gets a little lost along the way.

2006-08-31T19:24:00.000-07:00

August 31, 2006 -- One of the most important things that needs to be remembered throughout this class is something very simple that is stated in the first chapter of Northrop Frye's biblical mythology, and this is that the word Bible comes from the Greek language meaning ta biblia, which is plural for "the many books". So no matter what goes on during the course, it is so necessary to remember that the Bible is a miniature library, a compiled array of myths and folktales and observences, and is all circumstances it is everything in this world combined into one big cover! Sometimes we think that the Bible has a couple of authors and a few editions, when in reality it has millions of each. I learned today in class and through the Book of J that there are so many different editions that we as humans have gone through. That is where we get all of the different thoughts and components.

We started off the class talking about Documentary Hypothesis. This specific term sees the Bible as having been composed by a series of editors out of four major strands of literary traditions. These traditions are known as J, E, D, R and P. We did establish that the main ones we will go over in this class is J and P. The book of J is responsible for the stories and narratives that are found in the Bible. These stories are the ones that command our attention, and are the texts in the Bible that do stand out to us! Genisis is a great example of narratives that have been written by the editors of the Book of J. I can tell you that I am definitely more attracted to stories wrather than the Litany of the Bible. The term litany is one that I never have heard of before however it just stands for lists of names that do not grab our attention. The main purpose of these traditions are to distinguish what books different authors wrote.

I guess when I think of all of the different images and authors and stories that are compiled into the discussion in class today, I realize how much I do not know. However, then I think about how if I do not know much, and things are based on translation as Frye mentions, then who really knows anything? And when Dr. Sexon said that 'we never read the Bible, we misread it', I knew I was in for a long haul. However, throughout all of the translations, two things that are always going to remain constant are the fact that there will always be narratives, and there will always be images that come up repetitively. These are not lost in translation no matter what. I like knowing that there is some stability in the Bible, since I am not incredibly familiar with it.

So the story of doing what was forbiddon is OUR story was a perfect way to end the day. I sat thinking about that statement and realized that it is so true. So much is forbiddon in the world and many people committ forbiddon acts. My question is, if all of translation is not true, then how do we know what is and is not forbiddon? Just some food for thought, and I definitely might be overthinking myself!

Have a great weekend!

2006-08-31T10:02:00.000-07:00

Hello to all you Enlgish 211ers! I'm Kim and I am happy to be in class with you all! We began class on August 29th with some very simple yet interesting questions. However, most of the class was spent doing some introductions.

One of the first things that I found interesting was how we were talking about name changes. People in class either have shortened, lengthened, or altogether changed what their name is. So that began the discussion of people in the past from the Bible like Abraham and Jacob that have changed their name. When you change your name, does that mean your identity changes to? To some extent I am going to agree. Anytime you change something you are doing something new which creates a certain personality altercation. Just like when an individual dyes their hair, it is some what like starting over! However, when looking at you, whether it be name change or hair change or even eye color change, you are still physically the same person coming from the same place. Confusing yet interesting!

These blogs are supposed to be about something that we know now that we did not know yesterday. I think that I will be able to expand on that more when the time comes.

By reading the Book of J and the first chapyer of Frye, I know that this semester is shaping up to be rather interesting! There are some many different Biblical text and the history of where they all came from with all of the different authors is absolutely fascinating. Historical critisicm is something that will definitely be accounted for in this section. The Bible is one book that can never be talked about too much!

See you all in class!