Divergent by Veronica Roth

Note: This review was originally posted on my blog "Shelf of Friends" on March 6, 2012.

Statistics:
Title: Divergent
Author: Veronica Roth
Pages: 576
Genre: Dystopian
Age Range: YA
Publication Date: 5/3/2011
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers

What’s it about?

Beatrice, Tris for short, lives in the city of Chicago, but a Chicago of the future, and a Chicago that seems isolated from the rest of the United States. In her society, people are divided into five factions. The selfless and serving Abnegation, the honest and candid Candor, the artistic and caring Amity, the knowledgeable and studious Erudite, and the brave and fearless Dauntless. Every citizen is a member of a Faction, and those without a faction—the Factionless—are an untouchable caste.

Tris grew up in Abnegation, but every teenager is tested for which faction will best suit them and allowed to choose. The test is a simulation where several scenarios are presented and the reaction shows whether they are selfless, honest, caring, studious, or brave. Tris must choose to either stay with her family in Abnegation—where she has never felt she fits in—or to choose her own path—which will mean she will never truly be with her family again.

When Tris chooses to follow her heart and become a Dauntless, she must face the consequences of leaving her family and jumping into the dangerous initiation rituals of the Dauntless faction. And she must also keep secret the true results of her test, a secret that if revealed would be even more dangerous than the often deadly Dauntless initiation.

It’s YA. Tell me about the boy!

Four (yes, his name is a number) is everything you expect from a cliché YA boy….at first. He’s mysterious, aloof, unpredictable, and dangerous. But he’s a member of the Dauntless Faction so “dangerous” pretty much characterizes everyone in that faction. And I was really afraid for a good half of the book that Four was only going to be that dangerous, cliché boy—the one that you cringe to think about any girl being with. However, as the story progresses and our main character gets to know Four better, we see that all this cliché expected stuff is a very surface interpretation of him by a girl who barely knows him. The more we learn the more we discover that Four is anything but cliché. He’s a fully realized character, and if anything seems like a real boy in his late teens. (And really making a character seem real is the highest compliment.)

What makes Four real is not only his characterization but the relationship he develops with Tris. This is not your standard dangerous boy that girl is mysteriously drawn to and can’t help it. And it’s not your standard, boy completes girl by being awesome and being so much stronger than her at everything. Four is good and strong in some areas, and in some areas he really needs someone like Tris in his life—someone to be strong for him, to protect him. I really can’t say more than that without being spoiler-y, but I thought the relationship that developed between Four and Tris was amazing.

What makes this dystopian different from all the rest?

In most dystopias—especially YA dystopias—the main characters somehow know or quickly learn there is something innately wrong with the world they live in. One day they find an old document that describes how the world used to be and the main character thinks “What freedom people used to have! We are so oppressed. I’m dissatisfied! Argh!” Now in some dystopias, this response makes sense (example: Dark Parties. I don’t really think there is any other reaction you could have upon learning what she learns.). But this response doesn’t make sense in every dystopian situation.

A dystopia by definition is the opposite of a utopia, a land that is not a perfect idyllic place. Well, I love my country and I’m so glad I live in America, but let’s be honest. We don’t live in a utopia. Star Trek is a utopia. Modern America is not. But most of us don’t look at our world and think “I must overthrow all of this now!” Instead we look at our world and say, “I see the good intent here. I see the beauty and strength of the Constitution. But we as a society are missing something. We need a course correction.”

That is exactly the response Tris has to her world and it’s beautiful. It fits perfectly. She doesn’t look at her society with horror, seeing it as a place of restrictions and oppression. She looks at her society the same way we look at ours. She sees the intent behind the society, understands it, and wishes not to completely alter her world but to bring it back to its roots and intents. Is she correct? Should she want to completely alter her world and make it our own? Some people probably think the answer to that is yes. I think that’s a little ethnocentric. Our own society of freedom has its downfalls, it’s aspect of dystopia, just as hers does. Perhaps we’ll discover in sequels that her society is even darker than we think and the answer is to overthrow it. But for now, I think her desire not to overthrow but to fix is more realistic, and I love that. It’s a different perspective than most dystopias have, and honestly I think it’s the more realistic one. And that makes this book worth reading.

If this was a movie, what would its rating be?

This book is pretty safe when it comes to sexual situations and language. At the most there is some kissing and I can’t recall any bad language. But there are a couple of other things for parents and readers to be aware of.

Tris is encouraged to do many things that in our society would be viewed as reckless (jumping on and off of trains, jumping off buildings….). She also gets multiple tattoos, and I know some people don’t like tattooing in general, so just be aware of that.

However, the worst thing rating wise is undoubtedly the violence. The students are trained in hand to hand combat—which overall I wouldn’t say is a bad thing, but the hand to hand combat takes a turn for the worse when one of the instructors basically encourages the students to beat each other to a pulp. There are also some rather violent assaults (people being stabbed, people being threatened with being dropped over a cliff) and a suicide. There is also basically a massacre. I’m not talking a war. I’m talking people being lined up and shot. So yeah. Violence wise this probably gets an R. However, I think it’s important to note that none of the violence is gratuitous. It all makes sense in the world that Tris lives in and the story that is being told. And the violence isn’t glorified; most of the violence is viewed in a negative light.

So even though violence is R, I would say everything else is around PG or PG-13. This book is more than appropriate for teen readers (who are the target audience) and even advanced younger readers. I could have read this in fifth grade with no emotional scarring.

Overall, how was it?

Overall I loved this book. It was quick, fast paced and it sucked you in. It had great tension and characters who readers can relate to. If you love dystopians or just YA in general, you will love this book. I give it two thumbs up!

Joseph (Genesis) Part 1

Last week we talked about the wives of Jacob, Rachel and Leah. Jacob favored his wife Rachel over his wife Leah, but it was Leah who had the most children. Rachel for a long time couldn't, until finally she had a son. Does anyone remember that son's name? [Let them answer]

That's right. Joseph. Today we're going to talk about Joseph, and we'll see how Jacob's favoritism of Rachel affects his children. Please go get your Bibles.

Now can someone read Genesis 37:1-4?

37 Jacob settled in the land where his father had lived as an alien, the land of Canaan. 2 This is the story of the family of Jacob.

Joseph, being seventeen years old, was shepherding the flock with his brothers; he was a helper to the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives; and Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. 3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves. 4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him.

In verse 2, Joseph is described as being seventeen, so a teenager, and a helper to his other older brothers, because remember he was younger then all of them by a lot. But it seems he also would report back to his dad what the brothers did, and he brought back a bad report. It doesn't say what happened or whether the brothers were doing bad stuff, so why do you think the Bible mentions this? [Let them answer.]

Well if your brother told on you--even if he was right--would you feel good about that? Wouldn't you resent him for it? So we're laying the ground work here that Joseph's brothers may not be very fond of him.

Then in verse 3 and 4 this is made more explicit. Because Jacob--who remember is now called Israel--loves Joseph the most. Because Joseph is the son of his favored wife and because Joseph is the baby. So he makes him what your Bible calls a "long robe with sleeves." My Bible calls it a "varicolored tunic." Another translation of the Bible I have calls it an "ornamental tunic" and also "a coat of many colors." Does this sound familiar to you guys?

So Joseph's dad makes him this very special coat to wear, and doesn't give one to his other children, which makes them all very jealous of Joseph. Have you guys ever been jealous when your siblings got something they wanted? [Let them answer.]

Yeah, me too. I think we all have, that's human nature. But for these brothers this was just one of many things that represented the fact that Jacob loved Joseph more than all the rest of them put together. And they resented Joseph for that.

Okay can someone read now Genesis 37:5-11

5 Once Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream that I dreamed. 7 There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright; then your sheaves gathered around it, and bowed down to my sheaf.” 8 His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Are you indeed to have dominion over us?” So they hated him even more because of his dreams and his words.

9 He had another dream, and told it to his brothers, saying, “Look, I have had another dream: the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10 But when he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him, and said to him, “What kind of dream is this that you have had? Shall we indeed come, I and your mother and your brothers, and bow to the ground before you?” 11 So his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.

So Joseph has a dream and goes to tell his brothers. Do you guys know what a "sheaf" is? It's a bundle of grain stalks that are tied together after a reaping. Here let me draw it for you. [Draw a rough semblance on the board. I did a google search of sheaves of grain for my reference for drawing it.]

In his dream the brothers are all binding together their grain into these sheaves. But then basically the other brother's sheaves bow to Joseph's, like this. [Draw rough semblance of the sheaves bowing down to Joseph's on the board. Basically the other sheaves sort of leaning or blown over towards his.]

Joseph's brothers don't react well to being told this, why? [Let them answer.] Right, because it sounds like Joseph is predicting they will all bow to him one day and he will rule over them.

Joseph, however, doesn't seem to see that his telling of these dreams makes his brothers unhappy--or if he does he doesn't care, because he tells them about another dream, in which the Sun, the Moon, and the stars all bow down to him.

Now this time his dad is there when he says this, and his dad reprimands him. Why do you think his dad is upset with Joseph for relaying this dream? [Let them answer.]

Joseph is basically implying that his whole family will bow to him. And they don't necessarily know if this is a dream from God or just the delusions of a teenage boy who thinks he's special. But even if it is from God--even if these are visions of the future where God is telling Joseph his plan for him--do you think Joseph should have told his brothers? [Let them answer.]

I think there is a time and a place for everything, and an appropriate way to share information. I think there would have been an appropriate way for Joseph to share his dreams. Probably by going to his father in private to share and maybe discuss with his old wise father what they mean. But announcing them to the whole family? Announcing these dreams that highly indicated that they will all serve Joseph one day? That’s boasting and arrogance.

Joseph was sharing his dreams out of arrogance and pride, out of a desire to look better in front of his brothers. Which is why I think Jacob reprimands him for it. He calls Joseph out on this arrogance. But the damage is done. Sharing the dreams just makes his brothers hate him even more.

So after this, Joseph’s brothers go out into the fields with the sheep, and a little while later, Jacob asks Joseph to go check in with them. Basically Jacob is asking Joseph to go check on the status of everything and come back. This does show that Joseph is given some sort of special job. All of his brothers are in the field except him. Jacob is definitely giving Joseph special treatment, the brothers aren’t wrong about that. But instead of working through these problems with their father, and trying to handle it like grown-ups, they hatch a plan. Can someone read Genesis 37:18-22?

18 They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. 20 Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.” 21 But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” 22 Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hand and restore him to his father.

They see Joseph coming and they want to kill him. Seems a little extreme don’t you think? Have you guys ever been so mad or jealous of your siblings that you wanted to resort to violence? [Let them answer.]

I know I have. I’ve hit my siblings when I was mad or jealous. But that’s definitely not right. And what these brothers were planning was even more extreme then just hitting or punching. They wanted to murder him. And the only brother who at all seems alarmed is Reuben. Now remember, in the birth order Reuben is the oldest. He is the son of Leah and the first she had—making him Jacob’s oldest son. So by all accounts really, he should be the favored the son—the one who is getting the birthright and the blessing, all of that. But Reuben is also the leader because he is the oldest, and he is concerned by this idea of killing Joseph. He doesn’t want to do that—but he does still want to punish Joseph a little. Shake him up a bit, maybe humble him. I think there is a temptation with a lot of older siblings—and I know we have several of you who are the oldest in the room—to kind of view yourselves as having authority over your siblings. You’re the oldest and the one left most often in charge. But it is not Reuben's nor is it your place to punish your siblings for you parents.

Now if Rueben had wanted to have a talk with Joseph, brother to brother, and try to explain how Joseph’s actions are hurting his brothers? That would be reasonable. If Rueben had a talk with their father about how he thought Joseph was a little out of control and it was also hurting the other brothers? Also reasonable. But allowing the other brothers and himself to decide Joseph deserves to be punished? That is a step to far. It is not your place to punish your siblings. And as Rueben is going to see, it quickly gets out of hand.

23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the long robe with sleeves that he wore; 24 and they took him and threw him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.

25 Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying gum, balm, and resin, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers agreed. 28 When some Midianite traders passed by, they drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.

So Joseph shows up and his brothers steal his special robe and through him in a pit. It’s not a well—which is why the Bible clarifies there was no water in it. Just a hole in the ground that he wouldn’t be able to climb out of.

After that they decide to have lunch. It’s later in this verse implied that Rueben is not around at this part. Was he there when they put Joseph in the pit? Probably? But we’ll see in a later verse he’s not present for what one of the brothers is about to suggest.

They see a caravan traveling to Egypt and Judah—who is also one of Leah’s sons—has the idea that they should sell Joseph to the caravan, as a slave.

Now Judah might have thought he was sparing Joseph, because he might have thought that even though Rueben told them not to, they were still going to kill him. Or it’s possible he wanted to kill Joseph but since Rueben told them they couldn’t, he thought this was a way to get around that. Getting rid of their brother without dirtying their own hands.

So they sold Joseph into slavery.

They gave their own brother to strangers to take to a far away land and sell to strangers. I don’t think I’ve ever been so angry at my siblings that I wanted to do that.

Alright can someone now read Genesis 37:29-30?

29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he tore his clothes. 30 He returned to his brothers, and said, “The boy is gone; and I, where can I turn?”

So Rueben comes back and sees Joseph isn’t there and is surprised. But does he say “Oh no what happened to my baby brother, whom I love?” No! He basically says “Oh no! What’s going to happen to me? I lost my dad’s favorite son.”

Which kind of shows that Reuben's concern over Joseph wasn’t for Joseph’s life, but how Joseph’s disappearance might affect Reuben.

He’s also worried about what they’re going to do. They can’t tell their dad they sold his favorite son into slavery!

Can someone read Genesis 37:31-35?

31 Then they took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat, and dipped the robe in the blood. 32 They had the long robe with sleeves taken to their father, and they said, “This we have found; see now whether it is your son’s robe or not.” 33 He recognized it, and said, “It is my son’s robe! A wild animal has devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces.” 34 Then Jacob tore his garments, and put sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and all his daughters sought to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted, and said, “No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Thus his father bewailed him.

Basically, the brothers fake Joseph’s death. They kill a goat and cover Joseph’s special coat in the blood and take it to their father. And the worst part is perhaps that they don’t say “Hey, we found Joseph and he’s dead.” No, the act like they stumbled upon this bloody coat and are like “see if it belongs to your son.” Not our brother but your son. Have you guys ever done that? When you’re mad at your parents maybe and your talking to your sibling and you’re like “your dad is so awful” but he’s both of your dad. You’re just distancing yourself with your language. Or maybe you’ve heard your parents say that about you when you’re misbehaving. Your mom says to our dad “Your daughter” instead of “our daughter” because she’s irritated. It’s a verbal way of distancing yourself from someone. Of being like “this person isn’t mine, they’re yours.”

So Jacob sees the bloody robe and thinks Joseph is dead. And everyone tries to comfort him but he can’t be. His favorite son is dead. He says in verse 35 “I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Do you guys know what Sheol is? [Let them answer.]

Sheol is basically the Jewish place of the dead. It is NOT hell and it is NOT heaven. It’s more like a place of sleep. When a Jewish person died they would go there and basically sleep, regardless of whether they had been good or bad in life.

It’s rather complicated and off topic as to how this relates to our New Testament view of heaven and hell. And I’m not really smart enough on theology to talk about it in detail. But remember the Jewish people are God’s chosen people—through Abraham—and they had the Old Covenant. The rules were different for them under this Old Covenant than it is for us now under the New Covenant.

All that to say, Jacob was really sad and would rather be in death with his favorite son then up there living with his other sons.

I also want to mention that here, Jacob is deceived by his sons. This is a little bit of poetic justice, since Jacob deceived his own father when he stole Esau’s blessing—as we discussed a couple of weeks ago. He is now on the receiving end of a deception, and unlike Isaac who realized almost immediately he had been deceived, we’ll see that Jacob will think Joseph is dead for years, if not decades.

But let’s see what’s happening with Joseph. Because we’ve been talking about the brothers here and their reactions to Joseph and selling him. But if you were Joseph, how would you feel if your brothers sold you into slavery? [Let them answer.]

So let’s see what’s going on with Joseph. Let’s flip forward to chapter 39. Can someone read Genesis 39:1-6?

39 Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man; he was in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 His master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord caused all that he did to prosper in his hands. 4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him; he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had. 5 From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field. 6 So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge; and, with him there, he had no concern for anything but the food that he ate.

Now Joseph was handsome and good-looking.

Joseph reaches Egypt and is sold to a man named Potiphar. Potiphar is described as “an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.” Another version I have says “a courtier of Pharaoh” and “a chief steward.” Either way, it’s clear this is someone way up on Pharaoh’s government and is someone Pharaoh trusts.

Remember the Pharaoh is the rule of Egypt, the head honcho. Pharaoh is the most important person in Egypt and Joseph is now a slave to someone Pharaoh trusts.

In verse 2 it says the Lord was with Joseph. Do you guys think Joseph felt like God was with him when his brothers sold him into slavery? [Let them answer.] Yeah, probably not. He probably felt abandoned and betrayed by everyone, and that might have included God for a time. But God did not abandon Joseph. He was with him even in Egypt—which wasn’t the promised land he was supposed to be living in.

These verses explain that God prospered Joseph in Egypt, while he was under Potiphar. Joseph worked hard and Potiphar noticed. So he put Joseph in charge of everything, basically making Joseph his right hand man. And the Bible says in verse 5 that Joseph was so good at taking care of everything, that Potiphar didn’t have to worry about anything except his food!

Joseph was in a crappy situation, a really crappy one. He had been sold as a slave. No one wants to be a slave and it’s one of the worst things I can imagine. His freedom, his ability to choose, his agency over his own life had been taken away. But Joseph worked hard despite his crappy situation and earned his master’s favor. For now.

Because these verses end in a way that seems kind of random. “Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.”

Okay…what does looking good have to do with being a hardworking servant who is in charge of Potiphar’s whole house?

Well let’s see. Can someone read Genesis 39:7-10?

7 And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” 8 But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me here, my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my hand. 9 He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” 10 And although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not consent to lie beside her or to be with her. 

Joseph was handsome and Potiphar’s wife notices, and she wants Joseph to sleep with her.

Joseph is a slave. Potiphar is his master’s wife. Now in ancient Egypt Potiphar’s wife sleeping with a slave may have not been viewed as wrong by the Egyptians. I don’t know. From her perspective, she may not have thought she was doing anything wrong. It’s even possible she and Potiphar could have some sort of agreement that they could sleep with whoever they want. Marriage contracts that dictated those sorts of things weren’t that uncommon in ancient Egypt. But from Joseph’s perspective, this was not the case. He lists two reasons why he can’t do it. (1) It would be an abuse of the trust his master has placed in him. (2) It would be an offence against God. This is adultery, which is not something God approves of.

There’s also a third reason why this is wrong in our modern sensibilities. Potiphar’s wife is in a position of extreme authority over Joseph. Remember Joseph is a slave. His life can be forfeit if he missteps. And Potiphar’s wife has the ability to ruin his life, as we’ll see. This is coercion—which basically means getting someone to do something through threats and force. And if you get someone to have sex with you through threats or force, that is rape. Potiphar’s wife was trying to rape Joseph.

So with that in mind, do you think Potiphar’s wife is going to settle for an answer of no? [Let them answer.] Well, let’s see. Can someone read Genesis 39:11-15?

11 One day, however, when he went into the house to do his work, and while no one else was in the house, 12 she caught hold of his garment, saying, “Lie with me!” But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside. 13 When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, 14 she called out to the members of her household and said to them, “See, my husband has brought among us a Hebrew to insult us! He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice; 15 and when he heard me raise my voice and cry out, he left his garment beside me, and fled outside.”

So one day Joseph is alone in the house with Potiphar’s wife and she basically jumps him and tries to demand he sleep with her. He flees to get away from her, but she had grabbed onto his outer coat, so when he escapes, his coat gets left behind because she’s holding onto it.

Since she has his coat and she’s angry with him and no one saw what happened, she gathers all of her servants and basically tells them that Joseph tried to rape her, instead of the reality that it was the other way around. But she’s very mad at Joseph for defying her and wants to punish him. When Potiphar comes home, she tells him the same story. She lies.

Who do you think Potiphar is going to believe? His most trusted servant? Or his wife? [Let them answer.]

Well, let’s see. Can someone read Genesis 39:19-20?

19 When his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, saying, “This is the way your servant treated me,” he became enraged. 20 And Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; he remained there in prison.

Potiphar becomes enraged and he has Joseph put in the pharaoh’s prison.

That’s not usually what we expect will happen when we follow God, right? Joseph did the right things in this scenario. He wasn’t arrogant or prideful like he was with his brothers. He was a good servant. He followed God’s commandment not to commit adultery, and does he get rewarded? No, for that he gets put in jail.

Joseph follows God not because there is a reward at the end, but because it’s the right thing to do, what God wants him to do. Sometimes we do the right thing, and we don’t get rewarded. Sometimes we tell the truth and we get punished. Sometimes we do no wrong and we get penalized. We live in a fallen world, and God doesn’t promise us prosperity.

So Joseph goes from being a favored son to a slave to a prisoner. At this point, it couldn’t get much worse. Sure they could kill him, but then he would just be dead, like his father already thinks he is.

Things are looking pretty grim for Joseph.

But we’ll see next week where this story goes. Because Joseph’s story doesn’t end in a jail cell. Remember those dreams he had at the very beginning, of all his brothers bowing to him. That is yet to come. And we’ll continue the story of Joseph and see how that all comes to pass next week.

A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans

Statistics:
Title: A Year of Biblical Womanhood: How a Liberated Woman Found Herself Sitting on Her Roof, Covering Her Head, and Calling Her Husband 'Master'
Author: Rachel Held Evans
Pages: 352
Genre: Faith, Biblical Living, Woman's Issues, Feminism
Age Range: Adult
Publication Date: 10/29/2012
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Medium: Audiobook

What brought this book to your attention?

When I read non-fiction it's usually because either (a) a book has been given to me by someone else, (b) a book has been so highly recommended I can't ignore it, or (c) it covers some issue I'm struggling with. For me, this was definitely an option c.

I got married a little over a year ago, and leading up to my marriage I was concerned by a couple of issues. The theological idea of "complementarianism" was something I had been raised in, the idea that the man is the head of the household and a woman should subjugate herself to him. This wasn't an idea that had ever sat well with me--strong, independent, headstrong me. And if complementarianism was true, where did we draw the line? Was I supposed to cover my hair when I prayed (1 Corinthian 11:5)? And if I was supposed to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17), did that mean I was always supposed to keep my hair covered? Suddenly I was wearing hats to church every other Sunday, unsure if I was supposed to be doing this or not, but at least seeing what it felt like.

But wasn't Christianity about freedom? Wasn't always wearing a hat legalism? How's a modern Christian girl to navigate these waters?

Well I found the blog of Rachel Held Evans and discovered I wasn't the only modern woman asking these questions. In this book, Rachel tries to follow the different aspects of being a woman, as expressed across the Bible or encouraged by certain belief systems. A modern twenty-first century woman was asking the same questions as me and trying to follow through--for a whole year--and then seeing if there were any conclusions to be drawn. The book isn't quite the scientific methods by any means, but it had enough of that idea to draw me in. So I got the audiobook to listen to on my drive to and from work.

Did you learn anything?

I was actually surprised how much I learned. I consider myself pretty well learned when it comes to things of the Bible, which is probably a mistake since the Bible is such a diverse and controversial book.  I always thought I knew what Proverbs 31 was about: a description of a woman we should all aspire to be. But I learned in this book, that's not true. Proverbs 31 has been used too often in churches as some sort of measuring tape all women have to stack themselves again, instead of what it truly is: a poem of praise of wise women, women of valor, "eshet chayil" in the Hebrew. The woman in the poem is just an example of a wise woman--but she comes from a very specific economic and social bracket. Should we all be holding ourselves to the standard of a wealthy, ancient Jewish woman? No! We should be seeking to be women of valor in our lives and that looks different ways! MIND BLOWN.

Also I had never before heard of the apostle Junia. Was it because I had Bible translations that misgendered her as Junias? Was it because my Sunday School teachers and complimentarian pastors just never wanted to point out that a woman was given the highest honor the apostle Paul could give her? I have no idea. But I learned she was a woman, "outstanding among the apostles" who Paul considered his equal and friend.

I also learned a lot about the many ways different Christian and Jewish faith traditions have interpreted the role of the woman. Rachel went and met with Amish women. She made friends with an Orthodox Rabbi's wife. She didn't limit herself to just one faith tradition but really tried to dwell in how women across the Christian spectrum have interpreted these different verses. And it was enlightening for me. I learned so much.

Did you disagree with anything?

I honestly don't remember disagreeing with anything in any visceral way, and that's probably because Rachel's end claim really that there is no one single prescriptive way to be a Christian woman. I maybe disagree with some of the woman she spoke with on their particular beliefs, but these beliefs aren't put forth by the book as things we should all believe, but rather different interpretations of the same faith. I think the only people who will disagree with this book are people who do believe there is only one distinct way to be a Christian woman and all other women are wrong. Which is an opinion people can have, but not one I maintain. So no, I didn't disagree with anything the author said really.

How did you like the book overall?

I loved this book. I learned a lot, and the audiobook narrator was very good. It was a perfect book to listen to on my commute to work. And I highly recommend this book to any woman who is struggling with what it means to be a "Biblical woman." 

Rachel and Leah

Last week we talked about Jacob. Jacob had a twin brother named Esau that he basically tricked out of his inheritance and blessing, and Esau got so mad that everyone was worried Esau might murder Jacob. So Jacob was sent away to his uncle Laban.

Remember if you look at our family tree, Laban is Jacob's mother's brother. But if you remember our lesson on Rebekah, she left her brother and never went back, to marry Isaac. So Jacob was leaving his family and the only place he'd ever known to go live with an uncle he'd never met. But he thought he might die if he stayed so he had to go.

Today we're going to talk about this time period that Jacob spent with Laban--which we skipped last week--because today we will be talking about Jacob's wives, who are Laban's daughters. Please go get your Bibles.

So Jacob makes it all the way to Haran and finally sees a bunch of people. They are shepherds with flocks of sheep. But he notices that they're just kind of all milling about this well, which has a big stone over it, basically to keep it closed and protect it. Probably to keep stuff from falling into the well when they're not using it. But the effort of moving the stone is so great that basically they wait for all the flocks to arrive before they remove it. Because they would need a couple of strong people to do it and they don't want to have to do it more than once.

Jacob approaches these guys and asks them if they know his uncle Laban. And basically they're like "Yes, and his daughter is coming here with her sheep!"

Can someone now read Genesis 29:9-14

9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep; for she kept them. 10 Now when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of his mother’s brother Laban, and the sheep of his mother’s brother Laban, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of his mother’s brother Laban. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and wept aloud. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son; and she ran and told her father.

13 When Laban heard the news about his sister’s son Jacob, he ran to meet him; he embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all these things, 14 and Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month.

So when Jacob sees Rachel, he removes the stone blocking the water, even though it wasn't his job. Why do you think he did that? [Let them answer.]

He could have been trying to impress her. He could have been trying to do something nice for her to show he was a nice guy. We don't know. All we know is that he does that first and then he goes to greet her. And he greets her with a kiss. Now when Jacob is described as kissing Rachel here, don't think of it as a romantic kiss. Think of it more like a customary greeting, like how the French greet each other. Basically he sees her and is so happy to meet a family member and finally be at his destination that he cries.

So he tells her they're related and she runs home to her dad, Laban. And Laban is very happy to see him. Remember, he probably hasn't heard anything of his sister since she left all those long year ago, and now here is her son! It would probably be a reassurance to him that he didn't make the wrong decision sending his sister off, and Jacob's existence was proof she was still alive. So Laban invites Jacob into his home to stay.

Now can someone read verses 15-20

15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were lovely, and Rachel was graceful and beautiful. 18 Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.

Basically Jacob is staying with Laban and helping out around the family business. And Laban thinks it's unfair not to pay him. So after that first month, when it's now clear that Jacob isn't going back home, Laban asks Jacob what a fair wage is. And Jacob offers to work seven years in order to marry Rachel.

Why Rachel? Because she's beautiful. It's interesting your versions of the Bible say her eyes are lovely, but every other version of the Bible I've read says it's "weak eyes" which is not meant as a compliment. So I checked my commentary and it seems the words used in the original language can go either way. However, most interpreters use the previous sentence that contrast the sister's age to say that this whole section is comparing and contrasting this sisters. If so, then this would be a contrast. Rachel was beautiful, and Leah was not [1].

However, even if we take it positively, that Leah really does have beautiful eyes, it's clear that for Jacob Rachel's overall grace and beauty out balanced Leah's eyes. After all, he loves Rachel not Leah.

Laban agrees to give Rachel to Jacob--you'll notice they don't ask Rachel her feelings at all on this matter. But Jacob has to work the seven years agreed. And in that last verse it says that the seven years only seemed a few days to Jacob because he's so in love. Have you guys ever experienced something like that? Where a long period of time seems short? [Let them answer.]

Generally when I'm looking forward to something, the time seems to take even longer for me! But clearly I'm not as patient as Jacob.

Alright, now let's see what happens after these seven years, if Laban holds true to his promise. Can someone read Genesis 29:21-27?

21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” 22 So Laban gathered together all the people of the place, and made a feast. 23 But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. 24 (Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) 25 When morning came, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 Laban said, “This is not done in our country—giving the younger before the firstborn. 27 Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.”

So does Laban hold up his end of the bargain? [Let them answer] No! Instead of marrying Jacob to Rachel, he marries him to Leah!!!!!

Now how did he pull that off? Well you guys know what wedding veils are, right? Now days those veils are pretty lacy and you can see right through them. But back then, that wouldn't have been the case! The veils they wore were heavy and would have masked her entire face!

Also there would have been a lot of drinking during the wedding feast, so by the time Jacob and his new wife got back to their room and it would be time to lift the veil, Jacob might have been so drunk he wouldn't have known the difference anyway.

Needless to say Jacob is really upset, but how do you guys think Leah felt? Were not told what she agreed to or if Laban just did it. But I imagine it would be rather demoralizing for your new husband to wake up the next morning and be devastated to see you instead of your sister.

The Bible doesn't tell us how Leah felt, unfortunately. But for Jacob, it was just not acceptable. So he went to Laban and yelled at him. It's too late for them to do anything about it, once Jacob was married to and slept with Leah, there was no going back. There wasn't really divorce back then, and if Jacob did decide to leave her over this--to not continue the marriage--no one else would want to marry her. And for women in these ancient times, you couldn't really make a living on your own. But fortunately, it doesn't seem like Jacob even considered that. Instead he was just mad because he wanted to marry Rachel, and fortunately for him--I guess--he could have a second wife.

So Laban says he can marry Rachel, and even lets her marry her within the week! But he has to work another seven years. Does that seem very fair? [Let them answer]

Alright let's see what happens next, can someone read Genesis 29:28-31.

28 Jacob did so, and completed her week; then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife. 29 (Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her maid.) 30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. He served Laban for another seven years.

31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.

So Jacob gets to marry Rachel, and now he has two wives. And he loves Rachel more and favors her, which doesn't seem very fair to Leah, does it? As far as we know she didn't do anything wrong, just did what her father told her to. And God sees that. So he lets Leah have children and doesn't let Rachel. Why do you think he did that? [Let them answer]

Yeah because he saw it was unfair for Jacob to treat Leah like this, and knew that he gave her children Jacob would at least give her some attention. Whereas Rachel was going to get attention whether she had children or not.

But remember as we spoke talked about with Sarah, for women back then, a lot of their self worth was tied up in their ability to have children. So do you think Rachel was very happy about this situation? [Let them answer.]

Well let's see what the Bible says. Can someone read Genesis 30:1-5?

30 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister; and she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2 Jacob became very angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she said, “Here is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, that she may bear upon my knees and that I too may have children through her.” 4 So she gave him her maid Bilhah as a wife; and Jacob went in to her. 5 And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son.

Even though Rachel is the wife that is loved, she is jealous of her sister. And she gets angry at Jacob, "Give me children, or I shall die!" This might seem like an over-reaction to you, but remember back then a woman who couldn't give birth was a shameful thing. The world was not at all as it is today. Now we know women are equal to men, and women are allowed to do all the same things men are. I don't have kids, and I'm not ashamed or sad, or thinking I would rather die! But for Rachel, having a baby would have been her only job. And she's failing at it and her sister is succeeding. It wouldn't even matter that Jacob loved her. His love isn't enough in the face of what seems to her to be this huge failure.

So Rachel does the same thing Sarah did. She gives Jacob her maid. Because remember, the child of her maid could basically be considered her child.

Rachel's maid, as we can see on our family tree, actually has two children. You would think that would be the end of this, yes? That Leah at this point already has four sons, and now Rachel has these two sons by her maid, that everyone would be happy, right?

Well let's see what happens.

9 When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her maid Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Then Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son.

Leah has four sons. But she doesn't seem to be having any others. So does she say "Well four is enough! Let's stop here!" No! Instead she gives her maid to Jacob, so that her maid's kids can be counted towards her. It's like Rachel and Leah are having this Cold War arms race of babies, but Leah is clearly winning. Why would Leah want to continue to have more kids, do you think? [Let them answer.]

The Bible doesn't tell us what Leah was thinking, but I think for Leah it was about having Jacob's attention. Without her children, without having more, Jacob would just hang out with Rachel all the time. After all, he loves Rachel not Leah. So if she stopped having more kids, would Jacob want to spend time with her? He could just spend time with his sons and not her. But mothers have a lot of control over babies, and for Jacob to hang out with a baby he has to hang out with it's mother.

It's all about who gets Jacob's attention and we'll see this in the next passage. Can someone read Genesis 30:14-17?

14 In the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me; for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night. 17 And God heeded Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son.

Alright so what is happening here? Reuben is one of Leah's sons. He finds a plant called a mandrake. Now back in the day, mandrakes were believed to have some special properties that could help a woman get pregnant. I don't think this is true--like I don't think anyone today believes that--but back then women might use the plant to help them. When Rachel sees it then, of course she wants it! She still wants a baby! But Reuben takes it to his mother, Leah. So Rachel has to go to her sister and ask for it.

Leah responds rudely, though perhaps understandably. She says Rachel has stolen her husband, which is true when you consider Jacob technically married Jacob first. But Jacob loves Rachel, and therefore probably spends more time with her. So to Leah it seems that Rachel is taking everything away from her, though of course Rachel would feel the other way. That Leah has stolen Rachel's husband, since Jacob had worked those original seven years for Rachel, not Leah.

But Rachel is desperate so she barters. She offers Jacob. Basically when you had multiple wives like this back in the day, a husband would alternate which nights he was with which wife. So that night he was probably supposed to be with Rachel. But Rachel gives the night to Leah.

In the end, Leah gets pregnant, and Rachel is still not pregnant. So this deal doesn't really work to Rachel's benefit. But it does show how competitive these sisters are, and how even when it seems that everything should be okay, because they each have kids associated with them, it's not.

So Leah actually has two more sons and then a daughter. And Rachel still has no children. Until finally, can someone read Genesis 30:22-24

22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God heeded her and opened her womb. 23 She conceived and bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach”; 24 and she named him Joseph, saying, “May the Lord add to me another son!”

Finally Rachel has a son. And when Joseph is finally born, when she finally has a child of her own, is she like "Thank you, God! I'll stop asking now because you gave me this one precious child and that's all I need?"

No. She's not. Instead she says "May the Lord add to me another son." She just had a kid and she's already worrying about whether she'll have a next one!

We'll study much later, stories in the Bible where there are women who God only gives one child and they are extremely grateful, but remember Rachel is in a child bearing Cold War. She needs to catch up with Leah, and right now she's like six behind.

But I'll give you a spoiler, Rachel is never going to catch up. Rachel only has one other son and it's not for many years later, after she thinks Joseph is dead. But we'll study that next week.

Perhaps if Rachel had been more grateful God would have given her more children? We may never know. But she does at least have this one son, Joseph, and we'll study next week what happens to him.

So all this time Jacob is still in Haran, with Laban and his family. But eventually we know, as we studied last week, he returns to Canaan, right? Can someone read Genesis 31:1-3.

31 Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s; he has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.” 2 And Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him as favorably as he did before. 3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your ancestors and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”

Jacob has been in Haran for a long time, and he's gained a lot of wealth in that time. But now it's time to go back. But Jacob is also married to both of Laban's daughters. Do you think he's going to be happy to see his daughters and all his grandchildren go away? [Let them answer.]

Yeah, I don't think so either. Can someone read Genesis 31:17-21?

17 So Jacob arose, and set his children and his wives on camels; 18 and he drove away all his livestock, all the property that he had gained, the livestock in his possession that he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.

19 Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole her father’s household gods. 20 And Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean, in that he did not tell him that he intended to flee. 21 So he fled with all that he had; starting out he crossed the Euphrates, and set his face toward the hill country of Gilead.

This section basically says that Jacob leaves without telling Laban, because he's afraid of what Laban will do if Jacob tries to leave. Laban may never let him go back to his father's family, back to his homeland, back to the land God has promised him. So Jacob leaves sneakily in the night. And everything would have been fine except what does verse 19 say? "Rachel stole her father's household gods."

So remember, back in this day no one followed God--our God--except Abraham and his descendents. Most people believed in many gods and spirits, and it was fairly common to have these household idols that you would worship as representations of these gods. This sort of practice even existed all the way to the Roman times. And people took these idols very seriously, because worshiping them was their only connection to their gods. So stealing them would be tantamount to grand larsony, stealing the most priceless and sentimental things people had.

Why does Rachel do it? Why would she steal her father's gods? Why do you guys think she did it? [Let them answer.]

I don't know and the Bible doesn't say. There are many theories. Perhaps they were made of gold, and Rachel wanted to sell them for money. Jacob seems to have a lot of money, but maybe she was worried something might happen on this long journey to a strange place. Maybe she didn't really believe in God--after all she had never seen them--and these idols held special meaning to her? Or maybe she was just really angry at her dad. Remember this is the man who made Leah marry Jacob instead of letting Rachel do it. Maybe she was so angry, she wanted to steal the most precious thing he had.

We don't know Rachel's motivation, we can only guess. What we do know is that Jacob didn't know she stole them, and Laban was furious when he found out. Can someone read Genesis 31:25-32?

25 Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsfolk camped in the hill country of Gilead. 26 Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have deceived me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the sword. 27 Why did you flee secretly and deceive me and not tell me? I would have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre. 28 And why did you not permit me to kiss my sons and my daughters farewell? What you have done is foolish. 29 It is in my power to do you harm; but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Take heed that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.’ 30 Even though you had to go because you longed greatly for your father’s house, why did you steal my gods?” 31 Jacob answered Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force. 32 But anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live. In the presence of our kinsfolk, point out what I have that is yours, and take it.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the gods.

So he chases after Jacob, and when he finally catches up to him, he's like "You didn't even let me kiss my kid's goodbye!!!! And on top of that, you stole my gods!" And Jacob owns up to the running away like a thief in the night because he was afraid of what Laban would do, but he's adamant he didn't steal the idols. Because he doesn't know Rachel did it. So he says that if someone did, it's the death penalty for that person! Uh-oh. Jacob just signed a death penalty for his favorite wife, without even knowing it. Anyone think this is going to end well?

Well let's see. Can someone read Genesis 31:33-35?

33 So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, and into Leah’s tent, and into the tent of the two maids, but he did not find them. And he went out of Leah’s tent, and entered Rachel’s. 34 Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat on them. Laban felt all about in the tent, but did not find them. 35 And she said to her father, “Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise before you, for the way of women is upon me.” So he searched, but did not find the household gods.

Laban searches the tens and finds nothing in Jacob, Leah, or the maid's tents. Finally he ends up at Rachel's. But she hides the gods in a camel saddle and sits on it. And when Laban enters, she should rise to greet him but she says to him, "I can't because I'm on my period."

Back then they didn't have all the feminime products we have. A woman basically used rags and stayed away from everyone else during her period. And anything she touched would be considered unclean. So Laban wouldn't even want to touch the camel saddle, basically thinking it would be covered in her blood.

So he doesn't find them and Rachel doesn't have to die.

And that's basically the story of Rachel and Leah. We'll talk more about their sons next week, and how Jacob's favoritism trickles down through his children and causes ramifications he couldn't imagine. But for Rachel and Leah, there is only this competition for their husbands affection.

There really isn't some sort of pat morale. Though I will say, thank goodness in modern American society a woman's worth is not tied to her ability to bear children and no one has more than one wife. Because it sure seems that both of those things just led to a whole ton of drama!

February 2017 Memory Verse

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
— Deuteronomy 6:5

Hopefully in the month of February, we will reach the story of Moses in the class and begin to talk about the Law. And since this is the greatest commandment, we will definitely want to talk about it. 

Mostly I chose this verse for two reasons. The first reason is: it's a foundational Bible verse. Like John 3:16 this is one of those often quoted verses that is central to not only our faith tradition, but others. The second reason is less noble. All of the Middle Schooler's complained that January 2017's verse was too long, and in the end no one memorized it. So I'm hoping with a shorter verse, more of them will actually participate.

Hawkeye: A Truly Terrible & Brilliant Idea

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Note: This post was written by me, but originally posted on the website Spellbound Scribes on January 6, 2014. It is a review of Hawkeye #1 by Matt Fraction and David Aja.

There are some ideas that are so amazing, so beautiful that you can’t help but grab the book and say, “Yes, this is the story I’ve been looking for all my life.”

And then there are some ideas where you just find yourself thinking, “What the hell was the creator on that he thought this was a good idea?”

A comic based on Hawkeye is one of those truly terrible ideas.

Hawkeye is probably the most mocked Avenger, and for good reason. Captain America is a freaking super-soldier--the peak of human capability and awesomeness. Thor is a good. Tony Stark describes himself best as a "genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropist." The Black Widow is a super-spy, a combination of super-soldier serum and KGB training. The Hulk is the Hulk. And then there is this regular human with a bow and arrow running around. Yeah, Hawkeye's got nothing other than a carnie past to recommend him.

He’s the one Avenger who time and time again has not been able to support his own individual comic title. Everything about a Hawkeye comic was a bad idea.

Except…this isn’t really a Hawkeye comic. As in, it’s not about Hawkeye doing missions for SHIELD or the Avengers. Matt Fraction had another idea, the tag-line that would be on the title page of every issue:

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Hawkeye, Issue #1

A comic about what Hawkeye does with his downtime is not something anyone had ever seen before, and it turns out, it’s a completely brilliant idea.

Clint Barton isn’t Special

Clint Barton is not a super-soldier, he’s not a god or a genius, he doesn’t come from money, and he sure as hell has no idea what he’s doing.

Hawkeye is the Avenger who is trying to pay his rent, deal with life, and not die.

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Basically, he’s who you and I would be if we were an Avenger. And since we’re not Avengers, he’s the Avenger you and I could hang out with and not feel completely out of our depth.

And this issue shows us that in detail. Clint Barton needs weeks to recover from injuries in a battle that any of the other Avengers would have walked away from. He’s a guy who lives in a run-down apartment building and knows all of his neighbors. He’s a guy that sees a dog get hurt and can’t leave him there to die.

He’s just a good guy. Your average guy, sure, but he tries his best to do his best.

And that’s something we can all relate to.

“Paleolithic. I looked it up.”

Voice in comics is a much harder thing to pin down than it is in novels, because in comics you can have multiple voices: the narrator’s, the character’s, the artist’s, etc. But in the best comics they all meld together into something perfect and beautiful. Like in Hawkeye.

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Hawkeye, Issue #1

Clint is our narrator, and his voice is spot on: it’s the compelling voice of the every-man do-gooder that he is. A guy who came from nothing and in many ways still views himself as nothing. Perfectly underscoring that we have David Aja’s art and Matt Hollingsworth’s coloring. I can very much believe this is the world as Clint sees it: a world where he isn’t anything special to look at and a world that has perhaps a little more purple than it should. (I mean that last bit literally. Purple is Hawkeye’s favorite color, and man, the colorist for this comic is a master of coloring entire scenes using only varying shades of purple).

And that’s what a truly great voice does. It’s not just slang or word choice that pops off the page. A great voice filters the entire world as the narrator sees it. We come to understand the world as the narrator understands it. And that it was the creative team behind Hawkeye does. They give us the world according to Clint Barton.

Basically…

Hawkeye had everything going against it. This was a comic that when it first came out, people heard about it and laughed because who the hell thought a Hawkeye comic was a good idea? It is now the most popular Marvel comic, the one that everyone is talking about.

Every issue is as good, if not better, than the first. It’s one of the few comics where truly interesting things are being done with the medium. But none of those other issues would exist if the creative team behind Issue #1 hadn’t stuck the landing.

And stick it they did.

If I write a first chapter half as good as Hawkeye Issue #1, then I will have done a good job indeed.

Feed by Mira Grant

Note: This review was originally posted on my blog "Shelf of Friends" on February 28, 2012.

Statistics:
Title: Feed
Author: Mira Grant
Pages: 571
Genre: Post-Apocalyptic (Zombie)
Age Range: Adult
Publication Date: 5/1/2010
Publisher: Orbit
Series Name: Newsflesh Trilogy

What's it about?

It's been twenty years since the zombie apocalypse, and zombies are now a way of life. Georgia and Shaun Mason are siblings who can't even remember a time before zombies. They live in a world that's been changed, but not that much. There is still politics. And candidates still go on campaign tours for the job of America's president.

When the Masons are selected to follow the campaign of a presidential candidate as reporters, they jump at the career-making opportunity. But going on campaign means leaving the safety of the fortified cities where non-zombies live in fear. They must brave the zombie ridden countryside of America on this campaign to the White House.

The Masons expect political drama and zombie threats. What they don't expect is to uncover an assassination plot and a dark government conspiracy that threatens them all.

Zombies? Really?

Yes, zombies. Don't roll your eyes. This isn't another zombie apocalypse novel where the main characters are minding their business and then--bam!--zombies. Rather this is a novel where zombies have been around for twenty years, and people have survived. Life goes on. A lot of zombie novels and movies are extremely bleak. Either everyone pretty much dies as zombie food (and then becomes a zombie) or the world breaks down into a Mad Max level of disorder. Mira Grant doesn't present that sort of bleak outcome. Zombies are an obstacle, and like any other obstacle people learn to deal with them.

Granted zombies aren't like you're regular vermin that people deal with in our modern era. The book presents a constant fear, a constant danger in the background mindset of everyone. Sure life goes on, but it's a life where anyone around might become a zombie at any moment. It's not just a bite that can turn you into a zombie (though a bite guarantees it). At any moment a person could just randomly become a zombie, because the zombie virus is present in everyone at every moment.

The book also presents interesting mutations of the zombie virus that affect people without turning them into a zombie, and I love that. Because viruses rarely stay in one form. I love the Georgia's eyes are extra sensitive to light because she has a mutated form of the zombie virus. I think that's fantastic. (And that's not a spoiler. That's like chapter one.)

So yes, this book is about zombies. But it's zombies as you've never seen them before. I promise.

Wait...a presidential candidate campaign? Is this just a political novel in disguise?

No! Be not afraid! This novel isn't preachy. Don't worry about it preaching politics you don't believe in at you. Don't worry about your children being brainwashed to one side or the other of the political spectrum. Unless you have really strong feelings on how the government should behave in the case of a zombie apocalypse.

The presidential candidate the Masons are following is a Republican, and he's also a genuinely good guy. But there weren't any rants on Republican values or anything like that. It's mostly concerned about politics in a post-zombie world. Policies are keeping people safe from zombies, searching for a cure, etc. And the Masons bring a healthy dose of skepticism to the campaign. They don't blindly follow this presidential candidate. Georgia openly tells the the candidate that if they're looking for people to write propaganda they've found the wrong reporters. The Masons are there to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.

If this was a movie, what would its rating be?

I'm fairly certain that zombie movies are almost always rated R. Zombies pretty much equal violence. Though the language of the writing isn't coarse, the characters sometimes use rather coarse language, including the f-word. But there isn't any sex. I can't even recall any kissing other than the candidate kissing his wife in a sentence here or there. These people are too concerned with surviving zombies and uncovering conspiracies for any lovey-dovey stuff.

Overall, how was it?

Let me see: politics, conspiracies, and ZOMBIES! I loved it. Articles written by the reporter main characters are interspersed throughout the novel which give it an extra feel of reality. And I was surprised how quickly I became attached to the Masons, and the risks that Mira Grant was willing to take with them.

This is a fantastic novel with an end even I didn't see coming. If you like zombies or conspiracies or fast paced novels with a strong voice, Feed is the right book for you.

Jacob

Last week we talked about Rebekah, the wife of Isaac. She was a faithful woman who moved across the world to marry a stranger, because it was what God wanted her to do. She was also the mother of two sons. Does anyone remember their names?

[Let them answer.]

That’s right, Jacob and Esau. Now who remembers which of those two was the older son and which was the younger?

[Let them answer.]

Yes, Esau was older than Jacob. Today we’re going to study Jacob, who is the younger son. The fact that Esau was older—though barely because remember they were twins-- is important because back in this era it was usually the older son who inherited most things from the father. This is a concept called “birthright.” Which basically boils down to the fact that because Esau was the oldest son, he would get the majority of the inheritance from their father. The younger son wouldn’t get nothing, but it would be an uneven split. The older son might get two-thirds of the land, animals, and money while the younger would get one-third. Doesn’t seem very fair, does it? But until very recently that was pretty much how these sorts of things were run.

Now last week we talked about how Jacob and Esau were both favored by different parents. Who remembers which parent favored Esau? [Let them answer.] Right, Isaac. So it was Rebekah, the mother, who favored Jacob. Because of this, and because perhaps Isaac wasn’t perhaps the best judge of character, Rebekah helped Jacob get Isaac’s blessing.

This blessing of Isaac, as we talked about last week, was basically a religious thing. It was NOT the birthright. Which is a little confusing because they both start with B. So I want you to remember: [write this on the board] birthright equals wealth, blessing equals religious.

With this in mind, I want you guys to go grab your Bibles. We’re going to turn to a story that is just before Jacob gets the blessing from Isaac.

This is the first story in the Bible of Jacob and Esau interacting as adults. The only interaction we’ve seen before this is of when they were born, which we talked about last week, and how from the moment they were born they were basically fighting. So can someone please read Genesis 25:29-34.

29 Once when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was famished. 30 Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stuff, for I am famished!” (Therefore he was called Edom.) 31 Jacob said, “First sell me your birthright.” 32 Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” 33 Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank, and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

So remember Esau was an outdoorsy huntsman type, while Jacob was the kid more likely to stay inside and cook stew. Esau comes in from a long day working outdoors and is basically starving. He thinks he might die if he doesn’t eat that stew Jacob is making, which is a little over dramatic, don’t you think?

If you were Jacob would you let your brother eat the food you’re making? If he came in all over dramatic like this? [Let them answer.] As we can see, Jacob doesn’t just react by giving his brother food out of the goodness of his heart. Nope. He does the opposite, he says something crazy. “First sell me your birthright.” What? That would be like saying you’re not going to let your brother have some food until he gives you the entirety of his college savings account.

Would you make that deal? Would you give up all the property and money and stuff you’re going to get for a bowl of food?

[Let them answer.]

Well Esau does make the deal! And he can’t have thought Jacob wasn’t serious because Jacob makes him swear to it. And back then a swear—which is an oath—was a very serious thing. There was no backing out of it. It meant 100% you were going to do this thing.

And Esau agrees to that! Do you guys think this was a very smart move?

[Let them answer.]

So basically in this story, Jacob takes Esau’s birthright. In the story we talked about last week, Jacob took Esau’s blessing. This means for all intents in purposes, Jacob has become the older son. He’s getting the money and the divine covenant with God.

Esau doesn’t seem very upset about Jacob taking his birthright, but last week we talked about how Esau was so angry at Jacob over stealing his blessing that he wanted to murder Jacob. I think this shows a credit to Esau’s character. Not the murderous part, but rather the one of these things he cared about more was not the wealth but about the religious blessing. Esau knew the blessing was more important than the birthright. But Esau gave up his birthright willingly for instant gratification, and that’s not cool.

The result of all this is Jacob runs away to go spend some time with his mother’s family. Remember Rebekah had a brother named Laban, who lived far far away. Jacob is heading there when we get to the next section.

Can someone read Genesis 28:10-15

10 Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. 11 He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. 12 And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 And the Lord stood beside him and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring; 14 and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the families of the earth shall be blessed[c] in you and in your offspring. 15 Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

Jacob goes to sleep and has a dream. What does he dream? A ladder, or stairway, to heaven. If you’ve ever heard anyone refer to Jacob’s ladder—this is it. This is Jacob’s ladder. Jacob sees this stairway where he is at the bottom and at the top of it is heaven, and going up and down it are angels.

The imagery of this staircase or ladder is also super important. It harkens back to the story of the Tower of Babel and harkens forward to Jesus. Can someone here tell me the story of the Tower of Babel? [Let them answer.] Right, people were basically trying to build a tower to God. God stops them, basically calls them out on their pride to think they could do such a thing, and scatters them across the earth. Could we build a tower to God if we wanted to? If all of humanity got together, would that even be possible? No! We can’t build a tower to heaven! Heaven is most likely not contained in our universe—it’s not some place we can get in a spaceship and fly to. It’s outside of that. We are literally by ourselves in capable of getting to God by our own means.

So in a sort of reverse Tower of Babel story instead of man building a stairway to God, God reveals a stairway from himself to man. God could just stay in heaven, but instead he comes down to Jacob. Your version of the Bible say the Lord stood beside Jacob—so even though in the dream he was looking up into heaven, God wasn’t in heaven but rather right next to Jacob, beside him. My version of the Bible says that the Lord stood above him—in heaven basically. I looked in my commentary and it said that the actual words in Hebrew allowed for either interpretations, so I can’t say for certain which is right. But I like the idea of God standing beside Jacob. God is in heaven, yes, but he is also beside us, helping us through our journey.

We couldn’t build a tower to him, but he makes a way for us to get to him. For Jacob that is this ladder. For us, do you know what it is? [Let them answer.] Right, Jesus. Jesus tells people this directly in John 1:51. I’ll read it, you don’t have to flip there.

51 And [Jesus] said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Jesus is making a direct reference to this story, the heavens being opened and the angels ascending and descending but not on a ladder. On the Son of Man, which is Jesus. Jesus is our ladder to heaven and God.

Okay but back to Jacob. God is standing next to Jacob and what does he say to him? He basically reiterates to him the promise he made Abraham, he basically tells Jacob that the covenant is now between Jacob and God. I think this is important, because Jacob took a birthright and blessing that by birth order weren’t his to take. God could have said, “No, these were not yours to take, and I’m establishing my covenant with Esau. I’m not punishing Esau for your trickster ways.” But instead God re-establishes his covenant with Jacob, giving Jacob his seal of approval despite the fact that Jacob stole these things from his brother, which endorses the idea that it was God’s plan all along for Jacob to take these things.

I think if God hadn’t done this, Jacob would have wondered his whole life if he was really the inheritor of the Abrahamic covenant. Instead of letting his wonder, God literally meets Jacob where Jacob’s at—in the middle of nowhere—and has a talk with him. I think this tells us a lot about how much God cares about individuals, which is a lot—more than we can imagine.

Alright so Jacob wakes up and does he think he had a super crazy dream and it’s not real? Let’s see. Can someone read Genesis 28:16-22

16 Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” 17 And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

18 So Jacob rose early in the morning, and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel; but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house; and of all that you give me I will surely give one-tenth to you.”

Jacob wakes up and is basically like “woah, this is a holy place and I didn’t even know it!” So he gets up and makes a pillar, which is basically like a column of rocks and pours oil on it—which is not like gas oil but more like essential oils or olive oil or perfume. This is expensive stuff to just waste on pouring on rocks. But to him it’s not pouring on rocks, it’s basically him honoring God in the best way he can.

Then Jacob makes a vow to God. He is the only one of the “patriarchs” that is (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) to make a vow to God. In all the other stories, basically God promises the patriarchs something and they’re like “cool.” Here, God promises Jacob stuff and Jacob responds by promising God that if God keeps him safe and allows him to return home one day, God will be his God. Is this Jacob testing God? Saying “You need to keep me safe or else I’ll never make it back to the land you promised me so I can fulfil your covenant, so you better keep me safe!” Maybe. Or maybe Jacob is making a pledge to God, saying that God will be his God. We’re not certain. But regardless, Jacob doesn’t seem content to just let God state how it’s going to be. He feels a need to respond and give his own vow back to God. And I think this is a defining characteristic with Jacob. He responds to God, he converses with him, and as we will see later he even struggles with God.

Okay for this week we’re going to skip Jacob’s time with Laban, because we’re going to talk about that next week when we talk about Rachel and Leah. For now we’re going to skip ahead. Jacob makes it to his uncle’s place. He gets married to a couple of women, though not exactly by choice, and then after twenty years he’s ready to head back. He’s a different man now than from the one who left his home. He’s not a running away son, but rather a man with his own household returning home. He has a family—not just wives but a lot of kids. He has wealth he earned while working under his uncle. And it’s been a long time. So he decides it’s time to head home.

In this 20 years he’s not seen his parents or his brother Esau. They would’ve had no way to communicate with him short of sending a messenger which was not cheap or easy to do. So Jacob is heading home, but doesn’t actually know if any of his family is still alive. And he doesn’t know if Esau has forgiven him, or if after 20 years, Esau is still angry and might just murder him on site. Can someone read Genesis 32:9-12

9 And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, and I will do you good,’ 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan; and now I have become two companies. 11 Deliver me, please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I am afraid of him; he may come and kill us all, the mothers with the children. 12 Yet you have said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted because of their number.’”

Jacob is praying here to God. And he’s basically saying he has returned home as God has requested him. He’s also praising God for his constant presence in Jacob’s life and all the blessing he has given him—how when he left his home he had almost nothing and now he’s returning with a whole household of his home. But despite all of that, he is still afraid Esau might kill him, even after twenty years. So he’s basically praying that God will protect him. But not just him, also his family which includes his wives and children.

So Jacob decides to send ahead some servants with presents for Esau. Then the next day he goes out to meet him. What do you guys think is going to happen. Is Esau still mad? Would you still be mad? [Let them answer.]

Well let’s see what Esau does, can someone read Genesis 33:1-3

33 Now Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two maids. 2 He put the maids with their children in front, then Leah with her children, and Rachel and Joseph last of all. 3 He himself went on ahead of them, bowing himself to the ground seven times, until he came near his brother.

Okay so here Jacob sees Esau coming with an army! Jacob though knows he has to meet with his brother if he’s to come home, to the land God has given to him, so he splits up his family and the order is important because as we’ll see later, Rachel and Joseph are his favorite. So he puts them in the back, just in case Esau is going to murder them all, they might have a chance to escape. But Jacob goes out in front, well ahead of everyone, so that if Esau just wants to murder him and let everyone else pass, he pretty much can. Jacob is preparing for the worst.

Now can someone read Genesis 33:4?

4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.

 Esau is happy to see him! This is not what Jacob expected at all! The two brothers reconcile, after a lifetime of strife. That alone is a miracle.

But it’s not the most miraculous thing to happen to Jacob by far. We’re going to go back slightly to something we skipped over, because there is one last important story of Jacob I want to cover today. Can someone read Genesis 32:24-30

24 Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the day is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.” 27 So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 Then the man said, “You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. 30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved.”

This is probably the most famous story about Jacob, and probably the one that makes the least sense. What is going on here?

Jacob is alone, he’s sent his family ahead to camp in a previous verse, and then suddenly a man appears and they wrestle til daybreak. This implies they wrestled—basically fought—all night. This strange man then hurts Jacob, dislocating basically one of his legs from his hip, which I can’t even imagine how painful that would be. But it seems despite that Jacob still doesn’t let go! He’s not willing to give up in this fight! But the sun is rising and this strange man is basically like “I need to leave now.” Mostly likely because he is trying to hide his identity, because before the sun rises, in the dark before there are like street lights, it would be very dark indeed and Jacob wouldn’t be able to see the strange man’s face.

But Jacob refuses to let the other man go until he blesses him. Why? Why would Jacob ask a strange man to bless him? Does he think this man might be Esau who attacked him in the night and he’s trying to force his brother to make amends? Or does he suspect the true identity of this strange man is divine, and a divine blessing is always a great thing? I don’t know.

The strange man responds by changing Jacob’s name to Israel. Now that’s a name we’ve all heard before, right? It’s the name we now know the land of Canaan as, the land that belongs to the Jewish people, God’s chosen people, a name that comes from this idea of “the twelve tribes of Israel.” This is the Israel all those words are referring to. This man, Jacob, who we’ve been studying about.

The strange man changes his name and says he does so because “you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.” When has Jacob striven with man? [Let them answer.] Write he has had many problems with Esau. And as we’ll see next week, he has problems with his uncle, Laban. So he’s definitely striven with man. But when has Jacob striven with God? Right here. This is it. This isn’t just a strange man. This is God, or at least an angel representing God.

Jacob sure does seem to think it is God though because he says in verse 30, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.”

This is actually a big deal. Very few people get to see God the Father. Of course, a lot of people get to see Jesus! Who is God! But Exodus 33:20 God says “You cannot see my face, for no man can see me and live!” Perhaps this is why the figure Jacob was wrestling was concerned about leaving before dawn, because is Jacob saw God’s face in the morning light it would kill him! Or maybe this was just an angel representing God, that Jacob wrestled.

Either way, Jacob gets blessed and honored for this, for wrestling with the divine, and not letting him go even when asked. What do you guys think of this? This idea that Jacob wrestled God? [Let them talk and answer.]

I don’t have a clear-cut answer for you guys, but what I think it means is that it’s okay to struggle with God. We should spend our entire lives searching for God, seeking him, seeking to be closer to him. It’s a lot easier for us than it might have been for people back then, because we have Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Jacob wouldn’t have even had the Old Testament! Just his few encounters with God! You and I have the whole Bible and we have our own bridge to God—which is Jesus and the Holy Spirit. But if in your life and your seeking to become closer to God, sometimes you struggle, that’s okay. It’s okay to question, it’s okay to doubt, and if we take a cue from Jacob, it’s okay to wrestle with God. The key is, we don’t give up.

Jacob didn’t give up. He wrestled that strange man until the man basically said, “Let me go!” And that’s how our seeking of God should be. Don’t let go. Seek, search, and struggle all you want, but never stop and don’t let go of God.