This Tuesday, I am excited to begin our Epiphany discussion of Liz Curtis Higgs’ book, Bad Girls of the Bible: And What We Can Learn from Them. If you need me to order a book for you, please let me know. For this week, please read the Introduction and Chapter One – Eve. Each chapter is divided into four parts: a modern retelling of the story, the biblical narrative with Higgs’ commentary, Lessons to Learn, and Thoughts to Consider. In reading through each chapter, I found it best to begin with the Lessons and Thoughts and then read back through the commentary.
Before reading chapter one, please read Genesis 3 and the story of the Fall. In traditional Christian theology, sin has three parts: Temptation, Desire, and Consent, and the story of the Fall is read with the Serpent, Eve, and Adam representing each step along the way. Therefore, the story of Eve is the story of what causes sinful desires within us and how we can, in looking at Eve, hopefully overcome or avoid these desires.
Higgs’ blog post on this reading is HERE. Her discussion question for this chapter is:
Eve couldn’t stop listening to her growling stomach or marveling at how pretty the fruit was or thinking how helpful it would be to have more knowledge. Our craving for more is manifested in every area of our lives. What do find yourself wanting more of (yet needing less of) in your life?
Dinner is at 6. The menu is Cobb salad. Discussion about 6:45. Hope to see you here. Please bring a friend.
Grace was in all her steps, Heaven in her eye,
Milton, Paradise Lost, Book VIII, lines 29-30
In every gesture dignity and love.