LITMIR.BIZ

While meaning and purpose are often seen as synonymous, this book argues that they sometimes are in opposition, the search for meaning at times suicidal, and living with purpose life-enhancing and invigorating. No people seemed to search for meaning in their lives more than did the ancient and classical Greeks. They were not content with living simple lives but oftentimes took on gargantuan tasks which resulted in a great deal of upheaval and unpleasantness in their everyday lives, and oftentimes to disaster, indeed suicide. The biblical human being, in contrast, is not driven to search for meaning in this way. One's purpose is inherent in daily life. He does not need to search for it. The God of the Hebrew Bible makes the human being, man and woman, in His own image. He then breathes life into man. Life has an inherent purpose. Man must be a steward of God's creation.

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Oedipus in Jerusalem begins with the unexpected meeting of the blinded Oedipus and the biblical prophet Nathan outside of Thebes. As the play unfolds, Nathan brings Oedipus to the Great Sanhedrin in Jerusalem for a formal trial with regard to his actions of patricide and his subsequent incest with his mother. The author of this play uses the characters and facts that exist in Oedipus Rex, the Athenian tragedy by the Greek playwright Sophocles, but employs the Sanhedrin to reach a dramatically different conclusion with implications for present times. Sophocles himself serves as accuser while Nathan defends Oedipus, who insists he is guilty. Oedipus in Jerusalem highlights the differences in Greek and Judaic worldviews, especially regarding determinism versus free will, the essence of moral behavior, and the actual concrete way in which Oedipus' «fate» unfolds. As a side note, Oedipus in Jerusalem suggests that the so-called oedipus complex, first described by Sigmund Freud, is actually somewhat of a misnomer when applied to Oedipus himself, and obscures the deeper meaning of his story.

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An initial play, Oedipus in Jerusalem, related the narrative of Nathan, the biblical prophet, encountering the blinded Oedipus wandering alone outside of Thebes. Nathan brings him to Jerusalem to be tried at the Jewish Sanhedrin. The Greek playwright Sophocles is the prosecutor, and Nathan serves as the defense attorney. Oedipus is acquitted, but he refuses to accept his acquittal, shouting, «I am guilty! I am guilty of patricide and incest.»Oedipus Redeemed focuses on Nathan and Sophocles combining forces to present Oedipus with two dialogues of historical/biblical characters within the play. The first contrasts the suicide of the Greek Zeno the Stoic after a minor mishap with the life affirmation expressed by the biblical Job after monumental losses. This is designed to uncover the possibility that Oedipus is experiencing shame rather than guilt (after all, he did not commit suicide until after he blinded himself). Nathan and Sophocles focus on the secondary psychological benefit Oedipus has received from insisting on his guilt, and on his coming to terms with the fact that he had blinded himself needlessly if he was innocent. The second dialogue between the biblical prophetess Judith and the blind Greek seer Teiresias focuses on the biblical story of Samson being betrayed by «following his eyes.» Insight is contrasted with sight. Oedipus's surviving daughter Ismene reunites with Oedipus, telling him she loves and needs him. The play ends with Oedipus's return to the Sanhedrin, tentatively and tearfully accepting his acquittal.

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Living Biblically de-situates biblical wisdom from its formally religious-theological underpinnings and offers it as a guide for fulfilled, happy living. Although over 95 percent of Americans have some sense of a meaning-providing transcendent power, 75 percent of clinical psychologists and psychiatrists lack such belief. Without intelligent, applicable access to biblical wisdom, many unwittingly live out the tragic patterns emerging from classical Greece underlying much of modern life and psychotherapy. People are stuck, even trapped, without hope of redemptive change. They spin their wheels, cycling back and forth. Biblical narratives, in contrast, portray people as growing, developing, and overcoming problematic life situations. This book presents a systematic yet readable delineation of how biblical wisdom can apply to ten issues of daily life: 1) Relating to the Environment, 2) Relating to Another as Yourself, 3) Relating to Authority, 4) Relating to the Opposite Sex, 5) Relating to a Son, 6) Relating to a Daughter, 7) Relating to Siblings, 8) Relating Body to Soul, 9) Relating to a Self-Destructive Person, and 10) Relating to Misfortune. In each chapter, a specific psychological issue is discussed, applicable Greek and biblical narratives are compared, and contemporary illustrations are provided, enabling the reader to live in a more fulfilling and happy manner.

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