The JEDP theory

From Celia

Who are the JEDP authors who wrote the Bible?

The sources' titles came from their attitude to God: Jahveh (Jehovah )(the earliest, of nomadic pastoral era) is called J (and was green in my bible), P represents the Priestly tradition, much later, influenced by the exile in Babylon and association with mesopotamian traditional myths (and was blue in my bible)...E was from the name Elohim, a plural of god, given by another source (my memory of his influence and the colour I gave him has faded!) and D for the lawgiving writer of Deuteronomy.

Genesis is my favourite.

J's hands-on god ending with crafting Adam and Eve, and P's godly edicts and commands.

I think those two narratives together hold the wisdom we need, to live responsibly for the Planet and Eternity..... Reverence and Science.

(It fascinated me to see how the editors treated the story of the Flood, where they knitted together J,P and I think E traditions: their flexible attitude not at all minding the inconsistencies they included: whereas biblical literalists refuse both to see them and cannot celebrate their richness).

Translations recommended by Andrew James Brown

• The New Testament: A Translation by David Bentley Hart
• The Hebrew Bible by Robert Alter

For a one volume, stick with the Revised Standard Version.

Avoid:

• New Revised Standard Version
• New International Version (NIV)
• New Living Translation (NLT)