Giving the Bible a Kick

      This is my third post diving into the different sections of my next collection of short stories, poetry, and art, Beyond Pomegranate & Thorns, which is being funded by a Kickstarter campaign this month.  The Bible (Hebrew Bible, Old and New Testament) is full of stories that, just like classical mythology and traditional fairy tales, are woven into the very fiber of European/Western culture, and appear as references, as proverbs, as characters “everyone” knows, etc.  Yet some people don’t think these stories belong in the same category as other myths and fairy tales.  Some people believe that the Bible’s stories are true or sacred in a way that makes them off-limits to any exploration.  Other people believe that any mention of Bible stories is an invasive attempt to proselytize.  Both groups may be offended by my inclusion of the Bible as a source of inspiration — One ought not to give the Bible a kick!  However, I believe that true faith is always questioning, and that anyone trying to figure out how to be a human in this world needs to be open to wrestling with the big questions that are raised by all these stories, regardless of their source.  For me, many of the stories in the Bible lead me to imagine, reimagine, and explore just like other legends, myths, folklore, and fairy tales.  Therefore, one of the sections in Beyond Pomegranate & Thorns is dedicated to short stories, poems, and art that are inspired by, riffing on, and jumping off from the Bible.

     Here’s what I’ve got so far:

Creation (short story, art)

Eve and the Apple (poem)

Cain and Abel (short story, art)

The Plagues of Egypt (short story)

The Judgement of Solomon (series of 5 poems)

Mary (poem about the end of her life, plus art of the nativity)

        So, I’ve stated my belief that the stories of the Bible are fair game for explorations, but I certainly do acknowledge the reality that there’s more sensitivity about this than about the other categories of stories.  I’m being a little more cautious about what to include here, and my short story about the Plagues of Egypt, for example, has a very big question mark beside it.  My version portrays the Biblical events as a sort of cage match between Yahweh and Amun-Ra, and it isn’t uniformly complimentary toward either god.  Does this push too far into blasphemy?  I’m the last person in the world to want to be deliberately offensive or controversial, and yet for me as a Christian the development of the relationship between humans and the Divine is absolutely one of the most important aspects of my own faith to explore.  (Of course, there’s also the perhaps even more important question of whether or not the story is a good story!)  I still have plenty of time to decide what to do about this, and I’ll presumably get some trusted advisors to weigh in on my work to help me figure it out, but it’s undeniable that I’m making decisions about this section rather more gingerly.

        What do you think about this tangle when present-day religions intertwine with fantasy?  How worried should one be about offending people?  And are there any religious stories that make you want to reimagine the narrative?

        And of course, check out the Kickstarter campaign for Beyond Pomegranate & Thorns to get the full scoop.

[Pictures: Behold, It Is Good teaser, details of short story and rubber block print by AEGNydam, 2021;

Madonna and Child, linoleum block print by AEGNydam, 1987.]