Mendalla
Creation Stories
Posted on: 09/09/2009 14:46
Hello, WC,
I am doing a service on Creation stories in my UU church in a couple weeks. I'm reading though Virginia Hamilton's In the Beginning, an excellent collection of creation stories from around the world trying to pick out some to read in the service. It's oriented to older kids, but the style makes it a good choice for reading in the service since the renditions are fairly short and read aloud well.
However, I'm curious what non-Christian creation stories other people around here know of and find interesting or meaningful. Might be useful in process of finding 2 or 3 to use out of the hundreds in the book (and other sources). I specify non-Christian because I'm not sure about Genesis 1 yet. I'd like to use it in some ways, but it's kind of old hat and I'd like to see some lesser known stories get their due, esp. since it's a UU service so there's no obligation to use the Bible.
And the scientific version (Big Bang and Evolution) is getting its due, BTW, as the basis for the sermon/message.
Mendalla
Comments
clergychickita
Posted on: 09/09/2009 16:06
There's a great children's book called "Big Momma makes the world" and it tells the Genesis creation story (version 1: both genders at the same time) in a light-hearted, funny way. Big Momma says "that's good. That's real good" about creation, but also sometimes says, "Don't make me come down there!" Not perfect theology, but it is accessible and a new way to hear the story.
sighsnootles
Posted on: 09/09/2009 18:50
awhile ago, there was a website called 'the big myth' or something... anyways, it gave the creation stories of all kinds of different cultures, including christianity.
it was fascinating to see the wide variety, and how the stories incorporated things that were understandable to the people that told them.
sighsnootles
Posted on: 09/09/2009 18:54
here it is...
http://mythicjourneys.org/bigmyth/2_eng_myths.htm
the innuit creation story is pretty cool... you can click on the ones that are highlighted in red and it will go into the story, as well as give you some excercises to help you understand the various myths.
Elanorgold
Posted on: 09/10/2009 00:30
Well, I don't know if it's useful but the first one I think of, and the most interseting and meaningful to me is the Sumerian one: that the gods came down from "heaven", "An-un-a-ki" (those who from heaven to earth came), and created man out of clay, blood and spit, as a slave race to work the land for them, and when man became too rebellious, they tried to off the race in the great flood, but one of the gods, Enki, lord of the waters, who along with the goddess Ninharsag (whose symbol is the Omega now well known as the logo for Lululemmon) had become fond of mankind and tipped Utnapishtim off, who then saved one of everything in his ark. There was also two trees, the tree of knowledge which man did receive, and the tree of eternal life which was kept from man.
I can't really sum it all up very well. You might want to check it out on Wikkipedia or somesuch if interested.
Elanorgold
Posted on: 09/10/2009 11:39
Found an essay online about the Sumerian Eden and the Archangels that was packed with info and very interesting: http://users.cwnet.com/millenia/eden.htm I had the flood bit a little wrong in my memory.
It's typed in a harsh font, so a little hard to get through, but if you narrow the box to shorter lines it's easier.