Dr. Dylan Johnson

And so I think at that scale,

It works great for poetry.

I think it works less well for images and imagery in the iconographic register.

And so, again, there's obviously ways to do it.

But the imagery is so much more vivid, I think, in the Eden story, which is why it's really stood the test of time in the artistic repertoire of not just the West, but really globally.

Right, exactly.

And what's interesting is it's kind of a universal theme, not expressed through the medium of the Garden of Eden, but this lost golden age, right?

That cuts across all, not all, but many world cultural traditions.

This idea that at one point in our past, everything was great.

And if we could only just get back there, then everything would be fine again.

And so, yeah, the Eden narrative, it's just so translatable, I think.

Yeah.

Yeah, some people know a version of the story. I think in the podcast, we can kind of go through the fact that there's actually multiple, but most people know the names Sodom and Gomorrah, that's for sure.

Yeah, some people know a version of the story. I think in the podcast, we can kind of go through the fact that there's actually multiple, but most people know the names Sodom and Gomorrah, that's for sure.

Yeah, some people know a version of the story. I think in the podcast, we can kind of go through the fact that there's actually multiple, but most people know the names Sodom and Gomorrah, that's for sure.

So the one that most people will know is more or less contained in two chapters in the book of Genesis. That's the first book of the Bible, chapters 18 and 19. There's a couple of allusions a little bit earlier to what's about to happen, but basically Sodom and Gomorrah are what are known as the cities of the plain. Two of five, actually.

So the one that most people will know is more or less contained in two chapters in the book of Genesis. That's the first book of the Bible, chapters 18 and 19. There's a couple of allusions a little bit earlier to what's about to happen, but basically Sodom and Gomorrah are what are known as the cities of the plain. Two of five, actually.

So the one that most people will know is more or less contained in two chapters in the book of Genesis. That's the first book of the Bible, chapters 18 and 19. There's a couple of allusions a little bit earlier to what's about to happen, but basically Sodom and Gomorrah are what are known as the cities of the plain. Two of five, actually.

And in a little while, we'll get to what those other three cities are. But for the most part, these two are a pair, Sodom and Gomorrah. They're mentioned together quite frequently, not always, but quite frequently. And the content of Genesis 18 through 19 is kind of two stories smushed into one. The first story in chapter 18... is about a divine visit.

And in a little while, we'll get to what those other three cities are. But for the most part, these two are a pair, Sodom and Gomorrah. They're mentioned together quite frequently, not always, but quite frequently. And the content of Genesis 18 through 19 is kind of two stories smushed into one. The first story in chapter 18... is about a divine visit.