Seven Surprises of the Bible’s Creation Story

Expand your understanding and grow your spirit.

Created by: Dan Ehrenkrantz
President, Dan Ehrenkrantz Consulting

What Will I Learn?

• At the end of my course, students will be able to find their way back to the Garden of Eden and eat from the Tree of Life. Okay, that's hyperbole, but it's closer to the truth than anything else I could think of in describing this course.
• The "secrets" referred to in the title of this course are hiding in plain sight. After taking the course you will never read the first three chapters of Genesis in the same way.
• Stories about origins are also stories that attempt to tell us something about where we are going. This course provides insights into how the Bible understands who we are and where we are going.
• Regardless of religious belief or perspective, these insights into human life are both profound and exciting.

Requirements

• Students should bring their critical faculties along with an open mind and an open heart. No prior background is necessary.
• No particular beliefs are necessary for a student to gain from this course. Students of any and all beliefs are welcome. Students who are new to the Bible and students who know the Bible well will gain equally from this course.

Target audience

• Anyone interested in re-reading the Biblical creation story and gaining new insights into the foundations of our culture should take this course. This course is not seeking to change anyone's beliefs or core commitments. Atheists and religious fundamentalists alike will be enriched by this course without having their core commitments challenged.
• If you are NOT open to new Biblical interpretations you should not take this course.
• If you have been influenced or intrigued by both Western and Eastern religious thought, this course might help provide a bridge between those two worlds.
• And if you have a clear preference for either Eastern or Western thought, you will also enjoy what this course offers.