Is the only real moral to this story, “Don’t get caught”? What is the answer to Cain’s question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”ĭoes Cain ever figure out the answer himself? Isn’t that protection an act of grace? Why does God show mercy to a murderer? How did the “mark of Cain” come to be known strictly as the mark of a criminal, when in fact it was God’s way of protecting Cain from vengeance? Why didn’t God prevent Cain from killing Abel in the first place? What kind of God would sit by and allow that? What does it say about humanity when the very first human death is a murder? To those in the discussion, the story has deep meaning far beyond the obvious.

God sentences Cain to be a fugitive, and puts the mark of Cain on him.

So Cain kills Abel in a fit of jealousy or rage. He likes Abel’s gift, but doesn’t like Cain’s. The story seems straightforward enough: The two sons of Adam and Eve offer gifts to God. For one thing, we soon come to realize that these stories - Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah and Flood - have formed the way we think about the world.įor another thing, the people in the discussion are uncommonly articulate and thoughtful about what these stories mean, and how these stories have affected Western culture and other cultures.įor instance, the first episode, “The First Murder,” deals with the story of Cain and Abel. The discussions are uncommonly compelling.

Then seven people - authors, poets, rabbis, priests, teachers - discuss what the story means to them. Each segment begins with Mandy Patinkin or Alfre Woodard reading one story from Genesis. Surprisingly good, if the first two segments are any indication. So Moyers created the 10-part series, “Genesis: A Living Conversation.” That’s because the network was PBS and the man pitching it was Bill Moyers, who has made a career out of exploring the world of ideas with such previous shows as “Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth.” This time, he wanted to explore the stories that had formed the basis of three great religions: the stories of Genesis. So, what do you think? Do we have the green light?”Īstonishingly enough, it did get the green light. Then seven people sit around and discuss it for an hour.

“OK, we start with a guy reading a passage from the Bible. Imagine somebody pitching this idea at a network:

The power of myth pbs