I’ll be quick today, since I’m traveling this weekend. And also isn’t there some game or something on, and aren’t mountains of seven-layer dip and nachos and sliders and brewskis mandatory for said feast?
Anyway, as we wrap up this first version of the Creation story, I want to offer this statement that I think is pretty foundational.
All language about God is metaphor. 1
What does that mean? That any language about and imagery for God in the Bible is descriptive but not definitive.
In other words, we can describe attributes and characteristics of God but we can never define God — because to know God fully enough to define God means we’d have to be equal to God. Make sense?
“Many critics regard the making of metaphors as a system of thought antedating or bypassing logic. Metaphor is the fundamental language of poetry, although it is common on all levels and in all kinds of language.” (from Merriam-Webster)
Exactly! It’s like a mobious strip — you can never see the back of it
For me, thinking metaphorically is the only way to embrace an otherwise unlogical story. Also, thinking poetically about creation creates images of the vast wonder of a creator.