Reviews for Bibelstudien: Beitrge, Zumeist Aus Den Papyri Und Inschriften, Zur Geschichte Der Sprache, D...

The average rating for Bibelstudien: Beitrge, Zumeist Aus Den Papyri Und Inschriften, Zur Geschichte Der Sprache, D... based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-08-05 00:00:00 Thomas Kordick This is the story that makes you question everything you have been taught about Christian morality, dogmas and religion in general. I like how Byron uses the well-known biblical story of Cain and Abel and reinterprets it. In the Bible, Cain is a bloodthirsty killer, a criminal who killed Abel of jealousy. But in this mystery Cain is a rebel, a philosophical thinker who is struggling to find answers about the meaning of life and death and also sees the suffering of mankind just because his parents Adam and Eve sinned by eating from the forbidden fruit. The important questions are raised: Why should Adam and Eve's descendants (the whole mankind) suffer for the sin even if they were never born at that time? Is the God always right, just and noble? Or this the God a tyrant who is against freedom of thought and reason and who wants complete obedience from his creations, so they can suffer and maybe even be destroyed along with the world if the God wished it?

Review # 2 was written on 2014-07-21 00:00:00 Delta Foxx I love fleshing out what scripture leaves out. And after listening to Springsteen's "Adam Raised a Cain" and reading Steinbeck's East of Eden, I was perfectly pumped to tackle the story of the origin of murder. This story feels a lot like Paradise Lost, you know the hundred plus year wait was nothing for Satan and couldn't be happier that he made it back into the pop culture lexicon, but what I really loved about this play was how much you get to see inside of Cain and really discover who Cain is. The guy has been blacklisted since the beginning of time, but there is no way that he is solely responsible for what he did to his brother. Byron obviously puts the temptation element on Satan, but like Springsteen insinuated, it is the sin of the father that is truly responsible. The other thing I enjoyed about this play is (hubris though it may be) how Satan imbues Cain to not fear the wrathful God. You read a lot in the Bible, old and new testaments, about how fear is synonymous with belief, but personally as a Christian I've never felt that. I'm more of a follower of the whole Love element of Jesus Christ and base my faith around that transcendent ideal, but obviously the old testament is all about fearing this supernatural spirit who put you on the earth. Satan makes a good point though about why should he necessarily be considered the evil one, when it is God that has judged man and run him out of paradise. It is thus that Cain stands up to God in the final act most beautifully: "Spirit! whate'er or whoso'er thou art, Omnipotent, it may be --and, if good, Shown in the exemption of thy deeds from evil" Now as in Genesis so here, God does not smile upon Cain the way he smiles upon Abel because Cain is a farmer and only has his crop to offer in sacrifice whereas Abel is a shepherd and offers his choicest lamb; but in Genesis it simply goes that Cain is angered by this and kills Abel for it whereas here Byron has Cain proudly challenge the Lord: "If a shrine without victim, And altar without gore, may win thy favour, Look on it! and for him who dresseth it, He is -- such as thou mad'st him; and seeks nothing Which must be won by kneeling; if he's evil, Strike him! thou art omnipotent and may'st-- For what can he oppose? If he be good, Strike him, or spare him, as thou wilt! since all Rests upon thee; and good and evil seem To have no power themselves, save in thy will" I won't give away the ending, but will say the final part of this retelling that I really enjoyed was the inclusion of Cain & Abel's sister-wives. They added an often missing from scripture female point of view to the story and really help you feel for Cain in the end.