Creation

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Creation

This is a stub for a detailed exploration of the concept of creation in Mesopotamia and in the Bible.

At first glance, the accounts of creation in Mesopotamia and the Bible seem to have many similarities. But upon closer investigation, it becomes clear that they are radically different. One difference lies in the aim of the creation of humans: they are slaves or servants in the case of Mesopotamia, useful for working and preparing offerings for the gods. In the Bible, humans are made in the image and likeness of God, and their work is a form of participation in the divine life before it is a punishment for sin.

In the context of this website, the most important difference regards creation understood as an absolute beginning (Biblical spirituality), as opposed to the re-organization of pre-existing matter (Mesopotamian spirituality). This stark difference plays out also in later concepts, in particular the Biblical prophets who speak of a “new creation” to come. The upshot, obviously needful of many distinctions, is that the Mesopotamian gods manipulate the world they find themselves in, whereas the Biblical God creates the world itself “ex nihilo”.