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Christianity Today, June (Web-only), 2009 |

Recovering from 'The Year of Living Biblically'

Author A. J. Jacobs talks with CT about becoming a minor celebrity in the Christian world.

Interview by Mark Galli | posted 6/30/2009 10:00AM

A. J. Jacobs describes himself as an agnostic Jew, but after publishing his book about living by biblical laws for a year, he has been invited to several Christian churches and events. The author of The ...

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Mike	Posted: July 03, 2009 4:28 PM


But, Nora, when the new covenant came into effect there still were no supermarkets or electrical refrigeration. So there must have been something more to the rituals than rational health concerns.

Jan	Posted: July 01, 2009 4:07 AM

It must have been a very interesting experience. I find it hard to call it "living biblically" because living under the laws of moses are not the only way to live that can be called biblical. If someone tried to live like Abraham for a year that would look VERY different to the Jewish thing but Abraham is the father of the Christian faith. Then we look at the new covenant and who do you live like then? Under the new covenant it's not biblical to live under the old rules. So I find the description of living biblically a little vague and misleading. Our biggest struggle as people who are born again is to live by faith, and the law is the opposite of faith, it doesn't encourage it but kills it.

Nora Charles

Posted: June 30, 2009 8:41 PM

Very interesting, although I feel a lot of people - potentially Christians included - who look at Levitical laws and shake their heads askance, fail to take into account the *rationale* in the context of the time they were performed, they also fail to understand the historical context. Things that seem weird or unfair to us only do so because technology has changed. Ritual washing? Well, duh, no reticulated water. 'Clean' and 'unclean' food? Sorry, no supermarkets, no electrical refrigeration, great risk of food poisoning. God's laws were perfect for the time and as Christians we are liberated from many of the arcane rituals because of the new covenant and the expectation that *our* lives are the living sacrifice that God wants to find acceptable.

Luke911

Posted: June 30, 2009 3:12 PM


It is very difficult to live "biblically" when congress is determined with the Hate Crime Bill to make it "illegal" to live in this country while holding a biblical worldview.

Linda

Posted: June 30, 2009 2:49 PM

All rituals are irrational? Tell that to Jesus since he instituted the sacrament (ritual) of communion. As for the ritual of blowing out candles on a birthday cake it doesn't seem irrational if the candles symbolize years of time gone up in smoke! As for people focusing on plane crashes instead of car crashes so what? Plane crashes are unusual which is exactly why the human brain takes note of them. That doesn't indicate a deficit in the brain!! You lost me in the shallow thoughtlessness in this interview...

Kenny Johnson

Posted: June 30, 2009 12:44 PM


Heard him interviewed on Steve Brown. Very funny, articulate, and generally nice guy.

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