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

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Category: Non-fiction. Acquired: Christmas present from Brenda Read: Dec/Jan 2009 (trip to Pasadena) Briefly: agnostic NYC Jew decides to organize and hopefully enhance his life by following the Bible as literally as possible for one year. Jerry Seinfeld meets In His Steps.

Comments: Any hopes that this might be an inspirational book disappear when you see the photos on the dust jacket, showing a guy standing in downtown Manhattan dressed like a shepherd in a Sunday School Christmas program, complete with flowing robe, long unkempt beard and shepherd's staff. And a sheep. So this is Biblical literalism, hmmm?

So what's it really all about?

The author gives two reasons for the book: on the one hand, he describes himself as genuinely seeking to add a spiritual dimension to his life. Although of Jewish descent, he hasn't practiced his faith for many years, and as a new father he seems to sense something missing, a foundation that he believes would benefit both himself and his family.

Of course, a squishy topic like that isn't going to sell many books, so he acknowledges another agenda as well, specifically: ...the purpose of this experiment was to take legalism to its logical extreme and show that it leads to religious idiocy. What better way to demonstrate the absurdity of Jewish and Christian fundamentalism?

Having thus taken the liberty to draw his conclusions up front, Jacobs launches into his sociological experiment. Naturally, when faced with a choice of interpretations, he tends to favor whichever one leads to more bizarre or outlandish behaviors. To give at least some impression of fairness, Jacobs enlists a panel of rabbis, pastors and other advisers to consult with him on various spiritual issues. He also travels quite a bit, interviewing representatives of sects ranging from Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn to snake-handlers in Tennessee.

In the end, though, it all boils down to the list of 700+ 'commands' that Jacobs has distilled from the Bible, each of which he tries to obey at least once over the course of the year. Therein lies the entertainment, but also the fundamental fallacy. The Bible isn't just a big book of rules to be followed; in truth, it's a love story.

I did enjoy the book though, and for several reasons. First, it was fun - Jacobs is an entertaining writer. Secondly, as a literalist, I found it good mental exercise to track his logic and identify the holes and inconsistencies. You don't need to be a scholar to find them. And, lastly, it was interesting to see the progress that the author makes on his goal of injecting some spirituality (or at least morality) into his New Yorker lifestyle. I sensed some surprise on his part as to just how much personal impact this project had. But the Bible will do that to you.

This would make a great read for a church-oriented book club (such as the one I'm hoping to start this year). If I were leading a group discussion, I'd ask the group to chew on the following questions:

• How is it that some people come to salvation simply by reading the Bible on their own, while others can immerse themselves in it for a solid year and yet miss the whole point?
• How do you deal with the fact that evangelicals are just one of dozens of irreconcilably different groups who all claim to be interpreting the Bible literally? What gives you confidence that your beliefs are well-founded?

I think there are good answers for all of these, but how would you respond?