Once again it is past midnight. I do this whenever I feel uncomfortable about a topic. So, I took a byte of one of the apples pictured above and began typing.
I am writing a series on the classical liberal world view. In my last post I pointed out that Ptolemy Soter and his progeny established the Library of Alexandria. It is likely that that Ptolemy studied under Aristotle. Euclid was one of the first great scholars.
The Library sought to collect works from around the world. In an event called The Septuagint, the Library of Alexandria created a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible.
The Bible, as the name implies, is actually a collection of shorter works. It is likely that there were subtle changes to the canon. However, this famous translation made it difficult to add new works to the canon.
Scholars in Alexandria began an intensive analysis of the Hebrew Bible. Aristobulus and Philo of Alexandria are often cited as examples of thinkers who attempted to combined Stoic Philosophy, Pythagorean numerology and Platonic forms with Jewish scripture.
Jewish scriptures presents the history of the tribes of Israel. These scriptures claim that the God that created the Universe created a special bond with a family known as the Tribes of Israel.
The story details the rise from tribalism to nationhood. When Israel is faithful to God, they thrive. When they falter they fall into bondage.
The historicity of the early books of The Bible is in question. Many of the early characters are likely myths including Moses.
Stories don't have to be true to contain truth. Writers of fiction have long known that it is easier to discuss important issues with fiction.
Personally, I find it easier to explore the ideas in the Bible if I assume they were written and not revealed.
The Creation Stories
The Torah contains two creation stories. It has a cosmic creation story of the universe and a creation story of man. Some people use the term "dualism" for this idea that material and spirit are two different things.
I think that there are many possible interpretations of stories in the Bible. The Genesis talks about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.
They were told that if they ate of the apple on the tree in the center of the garden; they would be doomed to die.
Predictably they ate the forbidden fruit.
The Conservative interpretation is that they were given a simple command. They were willful and disobeyed. Because they disobeyed, God became angry and kicked them out of the Garden.
When I read the story I noticed that the apple had a name. The name doesn't make sense. It was called "The Knowledge of Good and Evil."
The term "knowledge" does not make sense, because people do not have an innate knowledge of good and evil; So, lets look closer at the story.
Before eating the apple, Adam and Eve were nude. After eating the apple they were darting behind leaves. The apple did not change their bodies. It changed the way that they perceived the world. The name "perception of good and evil" makes more sense.
In this light, the story of the Garden of Eden takes on a different meaning.
They wouldn't have just started seeing their bodies in terms of good and evil. They would have started judging everything in terms of good and evil.
When one tries to process the world through a dichotomous view, everything becomes shrill and tense.
Quite frankly, I believe that people who perceive the world through such a dichotomy could not live in a paradise. The dichotomy in their mind would destroy their perception of paradise.
It is possible that they were not driven from the Garden of Eden. When they began seeing the world in terms of good and evil, the paradise vanished. They would have perceived such an event as banishment.
Some scholars use the term "dualism" to refer to dichotomies.
So, I think I will end here because I presented two different definitions of dualism.
Many scholars see the spirit and material world as two different things. A second common definition of dualism is the use of a fundamental dichotomy to explain the world.
My Interpretation Is Probably Considered a Heresy
The ideas that exist in The Bible are extremely important and influential. One of the big challenges the world faces today is figuring out how to discuss the ideas in the Bible without the shrill attacks that occur whenever people discuss Biblical ideas in public.