“The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible,” A.J. Jacobs. (Simon & Schuster). October, ’07. 388 pages. $25.
After the runaway success of his 2005 bestseller, “The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World,” describing his experience of devoting a full year to reading and writing about all of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, from “A” to “Z,” Esquire magazine editor A. J. Jacobs decided to undertake still another cover-to-cover project: the Holy Bible.
In this instance, however, his goal was to spend a year attempting to observe all of the ritual, moral, sacrificial and agricultural precepts of the Good Book by spending eight months on the Old Testament commands and four months on the New Testament, the disparity being due to the overwhelming preponderance of thou-shalt-nots being in the Hebrew rather than the Christian portion of the Bible.
As the writer compiled his list of rules, it grew to 72 pages with more than 700 entries. As he set out on his spiritual journey, he developed a completely religious alter ego he named Jacob.
What Is Not to Like?
Besides vowing not to shave during this 12-month stint, for awhile he wore only white garments. Soon he took on the appearance of a prophet or patriarch right out of ancient Israel.
His impressively thorough, intensive and nicely-balanced research included a trip to Israel, an Amish community, a snake-handler minister in Tennessee, a creationist museum in Kentucky and in New York City, attendance at an atheist meeting as well as a gay evangelical Bible study group. His frequent consultations with both Jewish and Christian theologians provide a very authentic basis to the narrative. They forcefully demonstrate how large and important of a role interpretation plays in deciphering the intent behind many of the Biblical exhortations.
For example, since the Bible forbids wearing clothing made of mixed fibers, such as linen with wool.
Responding to the Unknowable
For the concept known as shatnez, he contacted a mixed-fabric tester who came directly to his home to inspect all the clothing in his wardrobe to make sure none of the garments contained any forbidden combination and to decide how to evaluate cloth made from contemporary, man-made fibers that didn't exist in Biblical times.
When A. J. queried Bill Berkowitz about why the composition of cloth would be of any concern to a supreme being, the tester answered that we can never know or understand the mind of God, an observation that would certainly apply to the rationale for the vast majority of the compiler's original list of regulations.
Toughest Test
Jacob (aka A. J. Jacobs) found some of the commandments much harder to follow than others. The most difficult of all was not being able to even touch his wife Julie for seven days straight during her monthly period because of her ritual uncleanness while menstruating.
The author’s informal, very down-to-earth approach, a really generous sprinkling of his keen sense of humor and the format of 12 monthly chapters focusing on each segment of the year-long adventure make the work quite readable and enjoyable.
The writer began his spiritual odyssey as a secular, agnostic Jew and ended up still a non-believer. But he states unequivocally that the only metamorphosis his secular self underwent during that intense exposure living all of the Scriptural mandates was that he acquired a new and deeper insight into sacredness and transcendence.
Despite its oxymoronic ring, A. J. Jacobs has now transmogrified into a reverent agnostic.
Mr. Akerley is a Culver City resident.
