What I'm Reading #31: The Year of Living Biblically (A. J. Jacobs)

The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible, by A. J. Jacobs

I saw The Year of Living Biblically (Simon & Schuster 2008) in a bookstore a few weeks ago and nearly bought it. Last week, I subscribed to audible.com, because I'm commuting 1.5 hours twice a week to teach this semester, and I need listening material. I didn't realize the version of Jacobs' book that I bought was abridged until I finished it, so I feel like I'm cheating a little by saying I read it, but I'm gonna choose to let that go.

My interest in the book was originally kindled because it looked like a pretty hilarious satire. There also seemed to be great potential for getting offended, which doesn't happen often to me and which I generally find more amusing than anything else. I was a little surprised by how non-aggressive Jacobs' approach to this strange project was. You would expect that anyone who commits to following the Bible literally for a year is being facetious and has an agenda that is at least cynical if not malicious, but Jacobs came at this with a healthy dose of humility (though not without preconceived notions).

Jacobs started out a secular Jew with little to no experience with religion. He described his family's Judaism using an image I thought was particularly salient: they put a star of David on top of their Christmas tree. So, Jacobs took 5 hours a day for 4 weeks to read through the entire Bible and write down every single command he found. Needless to say, the list was exhaustive, and he quickly found that obeying all the commands at the same time was impossible, not only because of the sheer number but also because some of them contradict. One of Jacobs' main conclusions after completing the project was that everyone, conservatives, liberals and moderates alike, picks and chooses what they want to adhere to from the Bible.

There were definitely scenes that aligned with my expectation for satire, especially those involving Jacobs' skeptical wife and his 2-year-old son. One was when Jacobs tried to obey a prescription for corporal punishment for children (which he hadn't done before), seeking out a "rod" that would not actually harm his son: a Nerf bat. When Jasper misbehaved, Jacobs whacked him gently with the bat. The toddler's response was to laugh hysterically, grab a whiffle bat, and return the favor. Discipline fail.

But there were also moments of surprising solemnity. Jacobs got into a daily routine of prayers, though he rarely felt like he was actually talking to anyone. He did, however, experience a few moments of connection, or joy, or something, and I felt like he did a marvelous job of receiving and reflecting on those moments without overly dramatizing them. In the final part of the book, Jacobs admits he still doesn't believe in God in the way that a practicing Jew or Christian does; though he did experience a change, he describes his transition as one from being an agnostic to being a reverent agnostic, someone with an appreciation for the sacred and for ritual.

Besides simply following the commands on his own, Jacobs also did a lot of research, assembling a group of spiritual leaders to act as guides, reading up on Biblical interpretation and Jewish and Christian practices, traveling to Israel, etc. One research trip I found interesting was two-part: to visit Liberty University, founded by the infamous Jerry Falwell, and to check out the Red Letter Christians, of which Tony Campolo is a part. I was confused at first as he described these groups, because he used the term "Christian literalist" for both. I've always associated literalism with conservative fundamentalism, and the RLCs are more on the moderate to liberal side. However, the RLCs are committed to interpreting the words of Jesus literally (hence the "red letter" reference), calling Christians to hear Jesus' admonitions around social and economic justice. I don't think the term "literalist" actually applies in truth to much of anyone who reads or follows the Bible, but it was interesting to see it applied in two radically different exegetical camps.

I would definitely recommend this book for an easy and interesting read, complete with plenty of laughs and some healthy doses of humility for any reader.