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What are creation stories and why are they significant?In: Creation [Recategorize] |
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I assume that this question is about creation stories in the Abrahamic religions, rather than the many other religions of the Middle East, Europe and so on.
There are 3 biblical sources of creation stories: 2 in Genesis and a fragmentary one in Psalms. Because the third one is fragmentary, I will ignore it in favour of (1) Genesis 1:1 to 2:4a ; and Genesis 2:4b to 2:15.
In Genesis 1:1 to 2:4a ( up to first sentence of 2:4) there was a pre-existing watery chaos. The ocean was already present and a wind moved across the surface. The seas rested on the dry land, which appeared on day 3 when God gathered the waters together. The order of creation was as follows:
(Day 1) light (day); (2) the firmament, which was believed to separate the waters of the heavens from the lower waters; (3) By gathering the lower waters in one place the land appeared. Grasses and trees; (4) sun; moon and stars - the lights in the firmament; (5) fish, land creatures and fowl; (6) man, both male and female. Notice that the light of day was not yet understood to have originated from the sun, although the sun was universally understood to rule the day. That is why it was possible to have grass and trees before the sun was created.
Genesis 2:4b to 2:15 is actually the older account in the Judaic religion and says that there was pre-existing dry land, but Yahweh had yet to make it rain for plants to grow. A spring arose and God took some moist clay and made Adam.
The King James Version contains a translation that is so obscure that few probably try to understand it fully. However, there are clearer translations that are also closer to the original Hebrew, one being the (Catholic) New American Bible which provides a clearer translation of the original Hebrew verses 2:4-6:
Such is the story of the heavens and the earth at their creation. At the time when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens - while as yet there was no field shrub on earth and no grass of the field had sprouted, for the LORD God had sent no rain upon the earth and there was no man to till the soil, but a stream was welling up out of the earth and was watering all the surface of the ground ...
The order of creation in the second creation story is that God made man before he created the creatures in his domain. There is no mention at all of God creating the sun, moon and stars.
The significance of these stories is that many Christians accept the first creation story for creation of the world except for the creation of man, then accept only the account of the creation of man (Adam) that is found in the second story. Other Christians are comfortable in recognising the creation accounts as not literally true and accept that it is not necessary to believe them to be a practising Christian.
More information can be found in Anchor Bible Series: Genesis (Speiser) and Middle Eastern Mythology (Hooke).
First answer by ID1177733650. Last edit by Dick Harfield. Contributor trust: 391 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 25 [recommend question]
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