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Article: History of Paradise: The Garden of Eden in Myth and Tradition.
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- October 13, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Jean Delumeau's History of Paradise: The Garden of Eden in Myth and Tradition (translated by Matthew O'Connell, Continuum, 288 pages, $29.50) is a history of our hankering for that lost homeland -- one long sigh of regret. It tells us a world about ourselves.
"The Lord God planted a garden in Eden," according to Genesis. "And there he put the man whom he had formed (before feminism and inclusive language). .. A river flows out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides and becomes four branches."
For almost three millennia, writes Delumeau, Jews and then Christians have believed this garden was a historical fact. Each succeeding generation added ...