The Genesis of Justice: Ten Stories of Biblical Injustice That Led to the Ten Commandments and Modern Morality and Law

by Alan M. Dershowitz

Book Overview

From the nation's most peripatetic civil liberties lawyer comes a "dazzling and stimulating" exploration of how the creation of the ten commandments provides the origins to today's law (Library Journal).
Alan Dershowitz is one of America's most famous litigation experts. In the Genesis of Justice he examines the Genesis narratives to bring to the reader an insight into the creation of the ten commandments and much of what...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0446524794
• ISBN13: 9780446524797
• Release Date: March 2000
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 2.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Sounds of Silence

Back in the 1960's, the Beatles wrote and produced a song whose title is uniquely fitting for this book by Dershowitz, the "Sounds of Silence." I saw the book in the bookstore recently and being familiar with Constitutional Law theory for which Dershowitz is most noted among the legal community, I was interested to see how he treated the topics of the Ten Commandments and the dilemma of the Madonna vs the Prostitute in religious dogma as it affects our laws now. What I found was a most enthusiastic treatment of consequence where Dershowitz has outdone himself in addressing some of our most difficult moral problems rooted in our Biblical heritage to which we seem to cling with near steadfast loyalty.I actually think this book outperforms the work of Dershowitz in Constitutional Law since he is clearly enthralled by the topics, and his combination of legal and religious knowledge offer remarkably logical analysis in why we think as we do, and whether it is appropriate to think as we do. He has used his logical and linguistic skills very effectively to illuminate subjects that need a rational approach. If anything, he may not go far enough in relation to his analysis of the double standard that so affects the female in our culture as it relates to the economics of power and social freedom, but which also affects males due to their loss of equivalent resources from combining their talents in a life alliance. The aggregation of resources does not necessarily produce the benefits it should due to the low wages and glass ceilings their women cannot penetrate. It appears to be a very valuable read and a thoughtful, unique analysis of our human condition. I think he should do more since revelations like his can help to break "the sounds of silence" that such injustices rely upon to maintain the status quo.

Engaging and Entertaining...

For those with an open mind and a thirst for new Biblical insights, this book is a delight. It is just what you might expect from a brilliant legal mind, and more. Alan Dershowitz shares his research and analysis in an engaging and entertaining style on a subject for which he obviously has a tremendous passion.Maimonides, Soren Kierkegaard, Abraham Ibn Ezra, Franz Kafka, Blaise Pascal, Everett Fox, and Bob Dylan are just a small handful of the voices invited to the party. The genius of this work is that while it presents so many different viewpoints (without necessarily adopting one "correct" interpretation over another), Dershowitz is still able to clearly show the reader that within the complex and confusing assortment of narratives that is Genesis, there exists a straightforward path toward the Law. This path, while full of injustice along the way, does not merely show us the need for the Law; it shows a developing legal system in process.No matter how familiar you may think you are with the book of Genesis, you will be able to experience the narratives afresh. Dershowitz holds up the book of Genesis like a crystal in sunlight, its beauty seen in the reflections of light, observed at a number of different angles.

Dershowitz in Defense of Injustice in Genesis

Never underestimate Alan Dershowitz. That's a lesson I learned when I was a student of his at Harvard Law School. Just when it seemed like he was cornered, with his argument tattered to ribbons, he would emerge with a counterargument that depended on his first argument being devasted. He had just successfully set-up the other professor (who shall remain nameless here) once again. Since then, I have seen him use the same strategy successfully time and again in many of his most famous cases. He has the nerve to skirt the edge of defeat to grasp victory.So I was not surprised to see that having taken on the Book of Genesis as his client that a similar strategy prevails here. The book is based on his successful seminar on the same subject which he has recently been teaching at Harvard. He does a marvelous job of taking a religious text and examining it as a source of legal precedent both in sacred and secular terms. Few would have the nerve, but your understanding of Genesis will be greatly improved as a result. He encourages you, as well as his students, to bring your own religious beliefs to the discussion. He proposes no official interpretations, and shares a diversity of opinions from learned Rabbis and religious thinkers of the Christian and Moslem faiths. In each case, he also shares his own interpretation. If you are like me, you will not always agree with him, but you will be interested to know what he concludes. He undertakes his inquiry in the spirit of a disputatious Hebrew school student who earned rebukes for his impertinent questions about where Cain's wife came from. He also draws from the Jewish tradition of encouraging the faithful to study the texts for their meaning. He clearly confronts the contradictions within Genesis through examining 10 stories, one per chapter. In the story of Adam and Eve and the expulsion from the Garden of Eden, Professor Dershowitz emphasizes that God changes the deal. Having told Adam that he would die if he ate from the Tree of Knowledge, Adam goes on to live quite a long life. Having never told Eve not to eat from the tree, God punishes her with pain of childbirth and expulsion also. He describes God as having erred in dealing with Adam and Eve. You'll have to decide for yourself what your interpretation is. The title of the chapter is "God Threatens -- and Backs Down."Here are the rest of the first 10 chapter titles. They give you a sense of the argument that Professor Dershowitz is building:Cain Murders -- and WalksGod Overreacts -- and Floods the WorldAbraham Defends the Guilty -- and LosesLot's Daughters Rape Their Father -- and Save the World Abraham Commits Attempted Murder -- and Is PraisedJacob Deceives -- and Gets DeceivedDina Is Raped -- and Her Brothers Take RevengeTamar Becomes a Prostitute -- and the Progenitor of David and the MessiahJoseph is Framed -- and Then Frames His BrothersHis basic points in these chapters are that bad

Magnificent!

I was utterly amazed at the depth of insight, the logic, and the fairness demonstrated by Alan Dershowitz's treatment of this difficult topic. This is a book for anyone who has pondered questions of justice, from a human and from a divine viewpoint. Having recently read Just Revenge, Alan's second novel (highly recommended), I preordered this book knowing it would be special. It made me laugh sometimes--if Abraham had possessed the chutzpah of Alan Dershowitz, who knows how differently things might have turned out. Seriously, I found the book extremely well researched and enlightening. I'm Catholic, and was especially surprised by the author's seemingly favorable view of Jesus. Alan pointed out that Jesus wanted to make the law more compassionate, but that he contradicted himself by saying he came not to destroy but to fulfill the law. I don't feel there was a contradiction there, because as Alan himself demonstrated, the Bible is a living document in which the concepts of righteousness and justice evolved into a more mature understanding as time moved on. Well...I think that happened by God's design, and that Christ was indeed the fulfillment of not only the law, but the unanswered questions. I halfway expected Alan to arrive at that conclusion himself in the last chapter, when he discussed the question of an afterlife. I only wish Alan Dershowitz were a Christian, because he would be one of the most moral and effective evangelists of all time.

A learning God?

Does God struggle along with his creation to establish laws that are fair and just? Is God actually learning from his creation? These are just two questions that are explored in this fascinating book. This book is a great primer for those interested in the history of Western culture and Judaism.