The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible As Literally As Possible by A.J. Jacobs
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
God. Faith. Bible. Jesus. Holy. If any of those words offend you, please proceed with caution. This memoir is about a yearlong experiment to get down to the “brass tacks” of the Bible and discover what it really means.
Jacobs was funny and entertaining throughout the entire book. Although completely clinical in nature, I believe he successfully accomplished what he set out to do. There were several aspects of the book I thought he did well and several aspects of the book I thought he should have done differently.
Given his heritage and residence, Jacobs tended towards Hasidic Judaism for his daily living guidelines. When it came to other belief systems, he took “day trips” to study them. One thing I liked was Jacobs’ “fairness” towards all belief systems. He is a self-proclaimed agnostic so for him to approach with even half the objectiveness he had it would have been impressive. This is not say, however, that I agreed with all of his methods.
Most likely because of his favoritism of Judaism, Jacobs decided to spend approximately 70% of his year in the Old Testament and just 30% in the New Testament. How he treated those sections also differed greatly. In the Old Testament, Jacobs seemed to explore several viewpoints. It wasn’t just about the extremist. When he got to the New Testament and Christianity, he seemed to visit a couple radicals and then called it a day. I believe this imbalance hindered his results.
One of the main themes of the Bible, and arguably the most important, is relationship… namely a relationship with Christ. By basically skipping over most of the New Testament, Jacobs missed out on a massive part of what God wants for us. Jacobs was most comfortable with the acts-based faith of the Old and never fully committed to anything different. He admitted he never could acknowledge God but I don’t believe he ever tried either. He even kept with his OT ways of living because he said it was more comfortable for him. Well, it’s much easier to go about your day with your nose pressed to a to-do list versus seeking an open and honest relationship with our Creator. His apathetic approach granted him only half the picture and that saddened me a little bit.
I ended up being a little disappointed in the end, as well. Because Jacobs never sought a relationship and never achieved anything outside of physical deeds, he subsequently was left with “nothing” when the year was over. He mourned the loss of his beard and his “purpose”. That shows where his heart really was. Believing in a sovereign God should be unaffected by the clothes on your back and your possessions. He lives in your heart and not in your stuff.
His return to agnosticism came as no surprise. You can tell from day one that is how it was going to turn out. His approach was too clinical. There were big aspects, like relationship with others around him, missing, too. Sure he had a trusted counsel and sure he observed the Sabbath but what about attending a weekly service? He said he wanted to be as untainted as possible yet he constantly asked others’ opinions. I think it would have helped greatly if he has attended a church, synagogue or something and interacted with those around him frequently.
Overall, even though it may not sound like it, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I would, in fact, read it again and that’s a huge compliment. I may have politely disagreed with him frequently but I respected him the entire time. I learned a lot and for that I will always be grateful. No matter what you believe, you should read this book. It’s interesting to see his bird’s eye view. Just take the whole thing with a grain of salt and, if you are intrigued at all, read the real Bible. This was barely the cliff notes version and the real thing is so much better.
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