[Paleopsych] shame in the Bible

[Michael Christopher]

>>So amongst the knowledge of good and evil that came
from eating the forbidden fruit is that nudity is
shameful.<<

--Or maybe rather, that knowledge of one's nudity
(i.e. shame) is shameful. My favorite theory about the
Fall is that it was an allegory for the tendency of
human beings to judge one another. To have knowledge
of good and evil is to be a judge, and to carry out
that judgment against another person is to play God.
The message is: don't play God. In that context,
awareness of nudity is a symbol for awareness of one's
own hubris and arrogance in the presence of a greater
judge. A bit like how many politicians would feel if
their acts were exposed to the public, with no
protection by secrecy or status. To be naked before
one's enemies was to be judged without the protection
of status symbols (uniform, title, etc). 

Michael


		
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