Understanding Genesis by Nahum M. Sarna, The Bible as Literature by T. H. Henn (review)

204 BOOK REVIEWS tives, there is almost no scholarly apparatus, and the theology shows very little progress. On the other hand, the present book is more up-todate scientifically. The Catholic University of America Washington, D. C. RoBERT L. FARreY, S.J. Understanding Genesis. By NAHUM M. SARNA. New York: Schocken Books, 1970. Pp. 267. $2.45. The Bible as Literature. By T. H. HENN. New York: Oxford University Press, 1970. Pp. 270. $7.00. The first of these books appeared four years ago as Vol. I of the Melton Research Center series of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. Happily, it has been republished as a Schocken paperback. Nahum Sarna is a qualified biblical scholar and his approach-though eschewed by most orthodox Jews-includes the modern scientific perspective . However, his Jewish bias is immediately manifested in the Introduction, where he designates Benedict Spinoza as the founder of the scientific approach to the Bible. Sarna is at home with the principal pagan creation myths. He uses his knowledge to good effect in contrasting the Babylonian Enuma Elish story with the Genesis account to illustrate that in the latter "There is no connection between the Creator and his handiwork." (pp. 10-11) The " second " account of creation is employed to show the anti-fertility bias of the Old Testament. The Christian reader looks in vain for a treatment of Gen. 5: 15; here the typically Jewish optimism regarding human nature surfaces. Mankind needs no redemption from sin because Adam and Eve's disobedience did not constitute a "Fall." The Gilgamesh epic is adroitly handled in the treatment of the Flood and the Tower of Babel. Chapter 4 contains interesting insights on biblical chronology in the lives of the patriarchs. A whole chapter (6) is devoted to Gen. 14, where Melchizedek is treated as a proper name and is referred to Ps. 110! Sarna's explanation on p. 117, however, is a bit simplistic. Chapter 9 on the binding of Isaac is excellent. Rejecting the theory that the story represents God's rejection of child sacrifice as a primary theme, the author insists that its main significance is to illustrate Abraham 's growth in the spiritual life: he has passed the supreme test on his willingness to kill Isaac. Four more brief chapters bring the book to an end. The Onan incident is not mentioned, nor are the blessings of Jacob on his twelve sons treated. Perhaps the most telling omission, however, BOOK REVIEWS 205 is Sarna's neglect of source criticism, which he employs very sparingly. Although admitting the " non-unitary origin of the Pentateuch " on p. xxiv, he obviously has mixed feelings regarding the validity of the documentary theory. This book has a wealth of positive insights amply justifying the paperback reprint. The Bible as Literature is the work of a noted poet and literary critic, Professor T. R. Henn, President of St. Catherine's College, Cambridge. Understandably, the book deals largely with the Old Testament: the Hebrew Scriptures present a greater variety of literary types, and (perhaps ) the author feels more at home in this area. A wide spectrum of topics is treated: biblical themes, languages, poetic forms, the problem of evil, the Holy War, together with analyses of a few individual books. To review a work such as this (much less to write it) demands expertise in two fields: English literature and biblical exegesis. This reviewer pleads something less than competency in the former field; however , a few observatons may be in order. After giving his reasons for opting in favor of the King James Version, Henn then all but demonstrates on pp. 41-44 that it is " now so obsolete as to demand wholesale revision." He refers to "Rahner " on p. 20; one must consult the index to learn that the author is referring to Hugo rather than Karl. Literary allusions abound throughout the text; it is almost anti-climactic to find a chapter (14) expressly devoted "to invite attention to some of the many ways in which English writers have made use of the Bible. . .." When Henn ventures into the area of exegesis he comes up with some interesting insights. Certain of his conclusions, predictably...