Dragons in Genesis

The greatest structure ever built in Jerusalem was Yahweh's temple, but the story of its construction might be a product of a much later generation. And the details preserved of the early religion still shine through and seem strange to monotheistic religions of today.

What did the early Christians believe about Jesus? Prior to the writing of Mark's gospel, Christian theology seemed... strange. It hints that Jesus lived in the heavens and never set foot on earth. But surely that can't be what the first Christian authors are hinting at. So what if they're not hinting at all? What if they left explicit writings detailing their beliefs about the cosmos and Christ's purpose and actions? And what if that writing had nothing at all to do with a man who ever walked the earth?

Paul can't seem to stay out of trouble and lands himself in prison once again. While cooling his heels he preaches to the guards and sends out a few letters. What do they say? Apparently Jesus lives in outer space.

Everything that could go wrong within a church has gone wrong. One member is sleeping with his stepmother and his immoral behavior has attracted the ire of Paul’s rivals who seek to undermine his authority. If that’s not bad enough, the congregation has turned against him. Some are denying that Christ was resurrected and others are openly cursing Jesus! What is an apostle to do? Write a stern letter, of course.

One of Paul's final letters, written to the Christians in Rome, contains a treasure trove of information which sheds light on the beliefs of the early Christian community. Though these beliefs don't always match up with the tale later told in the book of Acts. And the Jesus that these early Christians worshiped may have been quite different from anything we could have previously guessed.

The apostle Paul gives us our oldest surviving Christian writings which were addressed to congregations on two continents. But the version of Christianity he preach and the story of Jesus that he and his congregations understood, is significantly different from what would be stated in the later gospels. His ideas seem constantly at odds with the Hebrew Bible, which he seems to believe is irrelevant to Christianity.

We conclude our survey of the Book of Enoch with the Epistles of Enoch. This fifth and final section deals with blessings of the righteous and curses for the wicked, the destruction of heaven and earth, and the divine nature of Noah. We also dig into the overall theology of the authors of this book and how it sets the stage for Christianity.

In the Book of Visions we find a strange and curious section entitled the "Animal Apocalypse" which tells the entire history of the world, but replaces all the main characters with various animals. One portion, involving a great man who is being portrayed as a ram, has been hailed as a prophecy for Jesus' imminent arrival. But the truth behind this scene might be something else entirely. This might recall an event which is connected to the origins of Hanukkah and the story of Samson.

In the middle of 1 Enoch lies the Astronomy Book, a strange manuscript which details the method for establishing a solar calendar. While this may be important for tracking the seasons, it's difficult to comprehend why it should be included in scripture. Unless there's more to this book and their calendar than we previously believed.

Our study of the Book of Enoch continues as we dig deeper into the Similitudes of Enoch. The order of creation is laid out, the power of names is revealed, and we finally learn the identity of the Son of Man.