Genesis 1 and the Creationism Debate : Being Honest to the Text, Its Author, and His Beliefs

Modern readers often assume that Genesis 1 depicts the creation of the earth and sky as we know it. Yet in an appeal for textual honesty, Steven DiMattei shows that such beliefs are more representative of modern views about this ancient text than the actual claims and beliefs of its author. Through a culturally contextualized and objective reading of the texts of Genesis 1 and 2, this study not only introduces readers to the textual data that convincingly demonstrate that Genesis' two creation accounts were penned by different authors who held contradictory views and beliefs about the origin of the world and of man and woman, but also establishes on textual grounds that what the author of Genesis 1 portrayed God creating was the world as its author and culture perceived and experienced it--not the objective world, but a subjective world, subject to the culturally conditioned views and beliefs of its author. In the end, this book clearly illustrates that the Bible's ancient texts do in fact represent the beliefs and worldviews of ancient peoples and cultures--not those of God, not those of later readers, and especially not those of modern-day Creationists.

""DiMattei's book is a refreshing call both for biblical literacy and for intellectual honesty in dealing with the Bible.""
--John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament Criticism and Interpretation, Yale Divinity School

""In an important contribution to the discussion between mainstream biblical studies and creation 'science,' DiMattei does a wonderful job of explicating the first two chapters of Genesis. He shows convincingly that although creationists claim to read this story literally, they are not reading it carefully at all.""
--Marc Brettler, Bernice & Morton Lerner Professor of Judaic Studies, Duke University

""Steven DiMattei presents an important challenge to creationists by showing that they fundamentally misunderstand the very chapter of Genesis on which much of their anti-scientific views are based. Genesis 1 and the Creationism Debate is an accessible and useful book for those who seek to understand why creationism is flawed on biblical grounds.""
--Hector Avalos, Professor of Religious Studies, Iowa State University

Steven DiMattei received his PhD (Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes) in Early Christianity/New Testament and has taught as a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Houston and Cornell University. He is currently authoring several books on the Pentateuch and the New Testament, and can be found posting tidbits on his website, contradictionsinthebible.com.