A learned but rollicking journey through every aspect of Yahweh's body. A book that will offend some but delight more. ― Economist Best Books of the Year
Lively . . . [with] a wealth of scholarly detail and much gusto -- Rowan Williams ― New Statesman
Rivetingly fresh and stunning . . . I rather like this inexhaustibly powerful, shouting, bearded giant of a God, a fiery, fierce and startlingly “pagan” God, alive to his very fingertips, laughing at human hubris and singing with unbridled joy.
-- Christopher Hart ― Sunday Times
A marvelous conspectus of references to the divine body in ancient southwest Asian texts. But more than this, it is about recalibrating our understanding of these difficult texts to better understand ourselves. -- Simon Yarrow ― Literary Review
Professors of Theology are imagined to be dull, gentle souls. This book, however, is a great rebel shout . . . A book that aims to upend the notion of a cloudy, spiritualised creator . . . instructive, vivid and frequently hilarious. ― Economist
Stavrakopoulou is no literalist ― indeed, she’s an atheist ― but she maintains that her reading makes far more sense than the traditional ones, and her confident tone never falters.
-- Dan Hitchens ― The Times
God: An Anatomy is a tour de force. Stavrakopoulou has created not just an extraordinarily rich and nuanced portrait of Yahweh himself, but an intricate and detailed account of the cultural values and practices he embodied, and the wider world of myth and history out of which he emerged . . . Stavrakopoulou has taken to heart the biblical injunction to seek the face of God, and what emerges is a deity more terrifyingly alive, more damaged, more compelling, more complex than we have encountered before. More human, you might say. -- Mathew Lyons ― New Humanist
A detailed and scrupulously researched book . . . packed with knowledge and insight -- Karen Armstrong ― The New York Times
Boldly simple in concept, God: An Anatomy is stunning in its execution. It is a tour de force, a triumph, and I write this as one who disagrees with Stavrakopoulou both on broad theoretical grounds and one who finds himself engaged with her in one narrow textual spat after another . . . A stunning book. -- Jack Miles ― Catholic Herald
The sheer amount of primary evidence examined is staggering . . . Stavrakopoulou’s argumentation is intellectually penetrating, analytically robust, and sophisticated . . . Stavrakopoulou’s book, and her public-facing scholarship, demonstrate what makes an outstanding biblical scholar. ― Church Times
Good Lord, Stavrakopoulou touches that sweet spot that is scholarly, funny, visceral and heavenly. A revelation. -- Adam Rutherford, author of A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived and How to Argue with a Racist
One of the most remarkable historians and communicators working today. -- Dan Snow

lgrsnf/Francesca-Stavrakopoulou-God-An.epub

lgli/Francesca-Stavrakopoulou-God-An.epub

Stavrakopoulou, Francesca

Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Macmillan Children's Books

Penguin Publishing Group

Macmillan Digital Audio

Dutton Children's Books

Campbell Books Ltd

Alfred A. Knopf

Pan Macmillan

First United States edition, New York, 2022

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

Penguin Random House LLC, New York, 2021

United States, United States of America

First American edition, New York, 2022

Basingstoke, 2021

PS, 2022

{"edition":"1","isbns":["0525520457","1509867341","9780525520450","9781509867349"],"last_page":608,"publisher":"Picador"}

Winner of The PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize
Shortlisted for The Wolfson History Prize
A The Times Books of the Year
A fascinating, surprising and often controversial examination of the real God of the Bible, in all his bodily, uncensored, scandalous forms.
'One of the most remarkable historians and communicators working today' – Dan Snow
Three thousand years ago, in the lands we now call Israel and Palestine, a group of people worshipped a complex pantheon of deities, led by a father god called El. El had seventy children, who were gods in their own right. One of them was a minor storm deity, known as Yahweh. Yahweh had a body, a wife, offspring and colleagues. He fought monsters and mortals. He gorged on food and wine, wrote books, and took walks and naps. But he would become something far larger and far more abstract: the God of the great monotheistic religions.
But as Professor Francesca Stavrakopoulou reveals, God's cultural DNA stretches back centuries before the Bible was written, and persists in the tics and twitches of our own society, whether we are believers or not. The Bible has shaped ideas about God and religion, but also cultural preferences about human existence and experience; our concept of life and death; attitude to sex and gender; habits of eating and drinking; the understanding of history.
Examining God's body, from his head to his hands, feet and genitals, she shows how the Western idea of God developed. She explores the places and artefacts that shaped our view of this singular God and the ancient religions and societies of the biblical world. And in doing so she analyses not only the origins of our oldest monotheistic religions, but also the origins of Western culture.
Beautifully written, passionately argued and frequently controversial, God: An Anatomy is cultural history on a grand scale.
'Rivetingly fresh and stunning' – Sunday Times

Beautifully Written, Passionately Argued And Frequently Controversial, God: An Anatomy Is Cultural History On A Grand Scale. Three Thousand Years Ago, In The Southwest Asian Lands We Now Call Israel And Palestine, A Group Of People Worshipped A Complex Pantheon Of Deities, Led By A Father God Called El. El Had Seventy Children, Who Were Gods In Their Own Right. One Of Them Was A Minor Storm Deity, Known As Yahweh. Yahweh Had A Body, A Wife, Offspring And Colleagues. He Fought Monsters And Mortals. He Gorged On Food And Wine, Wrote Books, And Took Walks And Naps. But He Would Become Something Far Larger And Far More Abstract: The God Of The Great Monotheistic Religions. But As Professor Francesca Stavrakopoulou Reveals, God’s Cultural Dna Stretches Back Centuries Before The Bible Was Written, And Persists In The Tics And Twitches Of Our Own Society, Whether We Are Believers Or Not. The Bible Has Shaped Our Ideas About God And Religion, But Also Our Cultural Preferences About Human Existence And Experience; Our Concept Of Life And Death; Our Attitude To Sex And Gender; Our Habits Of Eating And Drinking; Our Understanding Of History. Examining God’s Body, From His Head To His Hands, Feet And Genitals, She Shows How The Western Idea Of God Developed. She Explores The Places And Artefacts That Shaped Our View Of This Singular God And The Ancient Religions And Societies Of The Biblical World. And In Doing So She Analyses Not Only The Origins Of Our Oldest Monotheistic Religions, But Also The Origins Of Western Culture.

An astonishing and revelatory history that re-presents God as he was originally envisioned by ancient worshippers--with a distinctly male body, and with superhuman powers, earthly passions, and a penchant for the fantastic and monstrous.
[A] rollicking journey through every aspect of Yahweh's body, from top to bottom (yes, that too) and from inside out ... Ms. Stavrakopoulou has almost too much fun."--The Economist
The scholarship of theology and religion teaches us that the God of the Bible was without a body, only revealing himself in the Old Testament in words mysteriously uttered through his prophets, and in the New Testament in the body of Christ. The portrayal of God as corporeal and masculine is seen as merely metaphorical, figurative, or poetic. But, in this revelatory study, Francesca Stavrakopoulou presents a vividly corporeal image of God: a human-shaped deity who walks and talks and weeps and laughs, who eats, sleeps, feels, and breathes, and who is undeniably male.
Here is a portrait--arrived at through the author's close examination of and research into the Bible--of a god in ancient myths and rituals who was a product of a particular society, at a particular time, made in the image of the people who lived then, shaped by their own circumstances and experience of the world. From head to toe--and every part of the body in between--this is a god of stunning surprise and complexity, one we have never encountered before.

"An astonishing and revelatory history that re-presents God as he was originally envisioned by ancient worshippers--with a distinctly male body, and with superhuman powers, earthly passions, and a penchant for the fantastic and monstrous. The scholarship of theology and religion teaches us that the God of the Bible was without a body, only revealing himself in the Old Testament in words mysteriously uttered through his prophets, and in the New Testament in the body of Christ. The portrayal of God as corporeal and masculine is seen as merely metaphorical, figurative, or poetic. But, in this revelatory study, Francesca Stavrakopoulou presents a vividly corporeal image of God: a human-shaped deity who walks and talks and weeps and laughs, who eats, sleeps, feels, and breathes, and who is undeniably male. Here is a portrait--arrived at through the author's close examination of and research into the Bible--of a god in ancient myths and rituals who was a product of a particular society, at a particular time, made in the image of the people who lived then, shaped by their own circumstances and experience of the world. From head to toe--and every part of the body in between--this is a god of stunning surprise and complexity, one we have never encountered before"-- Provided by publisher

2022-09-25