UGFH1000

Fall 2012

The Bible
--Creation, Separation, and Suffering
Focus Questions

[Focus on Genesis 1-3 / ]

1. In the Beginning
1.1 The Creation (Focus: Genesis 1-3). The Book of Genesis opens with the
line In the beginning when God created the heavens and the
earth ( ) (Genesis 1:1) and tells how the world and its
creatures came into being. A similar line appears in Genesis 2:4, In the day
that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens (
), and the story of creation is told a second time. Suppose someone
complains that our textbook is too thick and we can keep only one of the two
Creation stories. Which one do you recommend that we keep? Why? In answering
this question, you may consider: what aspects of God are highlighted in each
story? how did God created the world and what was human beings place in it?
how did human beings relate to God? how did the story end?
1.2 The Fall of the Humankind. In Genesis 3, the serpent successfully tempted Eve to
eat of the Forbidden Fruit. Try to get into the heads of the serpent, Eve, and Adam.
What strategy did the crafty serpent use to win Eve over? Try get into the head
of Evewhat made her give in to the temptation? What made Adam eat the fruit,
too? How did the two respond when being caught by God and why did they do so?
What difference did it make to eat or not eat the Forbidden Fruit? If you were
Adam or Eve, would you have chosen to do the same?
[Focus on Mark 1-7, 10, and 14-15 /]
2. Christian Love and Faith
2.1 Jesuss Love. The Gospel of Mark ( ) opens with this line, The
Beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ (
) (Mark 1:1/ 1:1). Who, according to Mark 1-7, was Jesus
good news () to? What kinds of people did he help and how did he help them?
How did these people and Jesus relate to each other? How would you characterize the
love between them? Do you think this kind of love is different from the love and
friendship promoted by Plato/Socrates, Aristotle and even Confucius?
2.2 Jesuss Suffering and Choice. If we follow the New Testament and regard Jesus
Christ as God (or the son of God), we may wonder why Jesus surrendered himself and
accepted the crucifixion. In Mark 15:29-32, people mocked Jesus for not being able to
save himself. Why didnt he save himself? If you were Jesus, would you have done
the same? Do you see any difference between Jesuss choice and Adams choice?
2.3 Jesuss Conflicts with the Jewish Groups. Jesus was questioned first by the high
priest () (Mark 14:53-65) and then by Pilate () (Mark 15:1-5), what
were the accusations against Jesus? You may consider some of Jesuss conflicts with

UGFH1000
Fall 2012

the priests, the scribes, and the Pharisees: his choice of followers (2:15-17), his
practice of exorcism (3:20-29), the disputes over fasting (2:18), the Sabbath (2:233:6), cleansing rituals (7:1-13), marital law (10:1-12), etc. [optional: Was Jesus
thinking like Confucius?]