'In the Beginning...' A Catholic Understanding of the Story of Creation and the Fall
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- Create Date：2022-07-23 06:54:50
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Benedict XVI
- ISBN：0802841066
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Summary
In four superb homilies and a concluding essay， Joseph Ratzinger， now Pope Benedict XVI， provides a clear and inspiring exploration of the Genesis creation narratives。
While the stories of the world’s creation and the fall of humankind have often been subjected to reductionism of one sort or another — literalists treat the Bible as a science textbook whereas rationalists divorce God from creation — Ratzinger presents a rich， balanced Catholic understanding of these early biblical writings and attests to their enduring vitality。
Beginning each homily with a text selected from the first three chapters of Genesis， Ratzinger discusses， in turn， God the creator， the meaning of the biblical creation accounts， the creation of human beings， and sin and salvation; in the appendix he unpacks the beneficial consequences of faith in creation。
Expertly translated from German， these reflections set out a reasonable and biblical approach to creation。 ‘In the Beginning 。 。 。’ also serves as an excellent homiletic resource for priests and pastors。
While the stories of the world’s creation and the fall of humankind have often been subjected to reductionism of one sort or another — literalists treat the Bible as a science textbook whereas rationalists divorce God from creation — Ratzinger presents a rich， balanced Catholic understanding of these early biblical writings and attests to their enduring vitality。
Beginning each homily with a text selected from the first three chapters of Genesis， Ratzinger discusses， in turn， God the creator， the meaning of the biblical creation accounts， the creation of human beings， and sin and salvation; in the appendix he unpacks the beneficial consequences of faith in creation。
Expertly translated from German， these reflections set out a reasonable and biblical approach to creation。 ‘In the Beginning 。 。 。’ also serves as an excellent homiletic resource for priests and pastors。
Reviews
Erik
，
Very good content and some powerful one-liners。 However I don’t think it is as organized or focused as it could be - it reads more like homilies （which they are） than an organized treatise。 And perhaps some is lost in translation。 Some good thoughts on “modern heresies” and Marxism。 I’m finding it hard to recommend though。 I prefer his Jesus of Nazareth books。
Amelia Rista
，
Pope Benedict is honestly too smart for me。 I love his writing so much。 This wasn’t what I thought it was going to be （which was both good and bad） that made for an interesting reading。 A lot more philosophical than I anticipated， but I should have known better given the wonderful mind of Ratzinger！
Jose
，
This is a beautiful read。 I really savored each homily， and the appendix （while a bit over my head at times） really wrapped the book up nicely。 It sort of made me want to sit down and just talk with Pope Benedict forever。 Be aware that this is a moderately dense read。 Some previous Catholic theology may be helpful before diving into the reading。 I also found myself reading these aloud or mouthing along to just keep my thoughts organized， which makes sense since each section is a homily。 Totally This is a beautiful read。 I really savored each homily， and the appendix （while a bit over my head at times） really wrapped the book up nicely。 It sort of made me want to sit down and just talk with Pope Benedict forever。 Be aware that this is a moderately dense read。 Some previous Catholic theology may be helpful before diving into the reading。 I also found myself reading these aloud or mouthing along to just keep my thoughts organized， which makes sense since each section is a homily。 Totally worth it， though。 This little book is a gold mine。 。。。more
Rachel Williams
，
Read this book。 Reread this book with a highlighter。 It’s about love and beauty and goodness and what it means to be human。 Cannot recommend enough。
Charles Miller
，
This was interesting and thought provoking。 I would give some homilies 2 stars， some 4。 But the 4th Homily I would call the 4th my favorite religious reading ever。 Such a meaningful discussion of Sin and what religion does for us as humans。 That 15 pages alone make this book worth reading！
Wendy
，
Excellent homilies。 The appendix is lengthy and less captivating and was left unread。
Joseph Picos
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DishonestTaps around the true creation of Genesis。 Says the true and false are connected。 Ratzinger explored the true Genesis but rejected it。
Andrew Leccese
，
A nice short book by Ratzinger。 Has some very powerful moments with great thoughts behind the harder topics。 He is always very readable but it doesn't limit the powerful words and thoughts that he is able to use。 A nice short book by Ratzinger。 Has some very powerful moments with great thoughts behind the harder topics。 He is always very readable but it doesn't limit the powerful words and thoughts that he is able to use。 。。。more
Jason Townsend
，
This small collection of Lenten homilies first published in the 80s by then Cardinal Ratzinger offer up a thought provoking， non literalist interpretation on the creation and fall narratives from a Catholic perspective。 Ratzinger goes on to make the case for why the idea of a created world and cosmos must necessarily be central to Christian thought， and the practices that flow from it。
Quodvultdeus Septemcastrensis
，
Excelentă analiză
Leslie Moellering
，
These handful of homilies from Pope Benedict XVI are short， but rich in meaningful exegesis of the first few chapters of the Bible。
Olatomiwa Bifarin
，
What the Pope Emeritus did with the book of Genesis is amazing。 The evolution of the subject of creation in the Bible is in of itself indicative that what is being portrayed in Genesis is about the form of creation and not the content。 They represent truth in the way symbols do。 His comments on some form of logical positivism is great （while invoking Kant）; and his analysis of what it means to be made in the image of God is salutary to say the least。 He also did some 'work' on sin， and this quot What the Pope Emeritus did with the book of Genesis is amazing。 The evolution of the subject of creation in the Bible is in of itself indicative that what is being portrayed in Genesis is about the form of creation and not the content。 They represent truth in the way symbols do。 His comments on some form of logical positivism is great （while invoking Kant）; and his analysis of what it means to be made in the image of God is salutary to say the least。 He also did some 'work' on sin， and this quote summarizes a fair chunk of his exegesis on the subject。 "Sin has become a suppressed subject， but everywhere we can see that although it is suppressed， it has nonetheless remained real。" 。。。more
Justin Gomez
，
New-New Ageism， vague spiritualism， or secular yoga all emphasize the body。 They recognize the very real problem that we are disconnected from our physicality， our body。 And they assert that only by reconnecting to our body can we heal from whatever ills usHowever， these types of spiritualisms make the body at worst a site solely for improvement and at best （or perhaps even worse） something that must be accepted， and connected to only to be transcended。 Pope Benedict XVI then Cardinal Ratzinger New-New Ageism， vague spiritualism， or secular yoga all emphasize the body。 They recognize the very real problem that we are disconnected from our physicality， our body。 And they assert that only by reconnecting to our body can we heal from whatever ills usHowever， these types of spiritualisms make the body at worst a site solely for improvement and at best （or perhaps even worse） something that must be accepted， and connected to only to be transcended。 Pope Benedict XVI then Cardinal Ratzinger disagrees。 We must accept our God created humanity， our limited and dependent and blessed state。 By trying to transcend our humanity， we are attempting to raise ourselves above others。 This vague spiritual transcendence is not the alleged escape of the self into a state of pure self-less love， but it is it's exact opposite because we are trying to enter into a state where death and our limitations as people and dependence on people melt away。 To transcend is a selfish act。 。。。more
Manuel Taboada
，
Cuatro homilías de Joseph Ratzinger que constituyen una admirable exégesis de los primeros capítulos del Génesis。 Con su capacidad innata para exponer los puntos de vista del otro sin manipulación ni artificios， Ratzinger demuestra （nuevamente） ser un hombre conocedor de los problemas de su Iglesia， y pone su inteligencia y su entusiasmo en este alegato a favor de la Creación y de la libertad del hombre。 Más allá del indudable placer intelectual derivado de su lectura， de la aclaración de concep Cuatro homilías de Joseph Ratzinger que constituyen una admirable exégesis de los primeros capítulos del Génesis。 Con su capacidad innata para exponer los puntos de vista del otro sin manipulación ni artificios， Ratzinger demuestra （nuevamente） ser un hombre conocedor de los problemas de su Iglesia， y pone su inteligencia y su entusiasmo en este alegato a favor de la Creación y de la libertad del hombre。 Más allá del indudable placer intelectual derivado de su lectura， de la aclaración de conceptos que muchas veces se nos aparecen confusos o difíciles de explicar， y más allá de la simple y valiosa adquisición de conocimientos， en los libros de este Papa hay siempre una alegría derivada de esa relación con un Dios Padre que nos ama y se nos entrega incondicionalmente。 。。。more
Damien Rappuhn
，
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in these homilies demonstrates the best principles and practices of Catholic biblical interpretation。 This short book is an amazingly simple but effective demonstration of Catholic biblical theology at work。
Richard
，
Remarkable clarity about the consequences of ideasI am always amazed by Pope Benedict ability to see clearly what will come of ideas。 He might have written this yesterday given the state of our culture and society。 That he wrote it when he did is remarkable。 Brilliant reflections。
Ruben
，
Simple & elegant
Michael
，
Wisely written and filled with wonderful insights about a world defined by Creator， creation， and creaturliness。At the same time， if you view， as he does， that the story of Genesis reveal “only images which reveal something deeper and greater，” it’s implicit the deepest and greatest truths must be extrabiblical。
Carina
，
We were created by God。
Nick Aho
，
Anything from Pope Benedict is worth reading。 On a intellectual level it is on par， but at a level where anyone can understand it
Alexis
，
A great series of homilies on the creation stories in Genesis。 Short， to the point， and interesting， if a little non-specific。
Nicholas Martin
，
Filled with great insights into Catholic theology， but unfortunately not very convincing as it was written to an audience of fellow Catholics who agree from the outset with the countless underlying assumptions the author makes。 As a non-catholic I would still recommend this if only for its theological description of original sin， but the flaws in logic and rhetoric are countless in this book。
Paul
，
thanks to my roommate for lending this - the four homilies and appendix make for a concise meditation on Creation and the necessary Redemption of the created world。
Jorge Reyes
，
Consigue "Revelación y tradición" de JR: https://amzn。to/2UFjhrNReview:Con el característico estilo de altos vuelos intelectuales， claridad argumental y profundo entendimiento de lo humano， JR nos refrezca y proporciona en unas cuantas hojas， teología， arte， sociología， filosofía y más。 La presente obra es directa y penetrante， aprovecha el espacio que tiene para abordar temas contemporaneos， en momentos me pareció que el autor desea hacer pensar， más que desbordar la verdad con conocimiento， qu Consigue "Revelación y tradición" de JR: https://amzn。to/2UFjhrNReview:Con el característico estilo de altos vuelos intelectuales， claridad argumental y profundo entendimiento de lo humano， JR nos refrezca y proporciona en unas cuantas hojas， teología， arte， sociología， filosofía y más。 La presente obra es directa y penetrante， aprovecha el espacio que tiene para abordar temas contemporaneos， en momentos me pareció que el autor desea hacer pensar， más que desbordar la verdad con conocimiento， que definitivamente podría hacer。 La belleza， la armonía， la libertad。。。no son fruto del azar， lo sabemos， lo llevamos impreso en nuestra alma， en la naturaleza de nuestro ser y lo comprobamos cuando somos verdaderamente felices。 Es una verdadera alegría leer a verdaderos rebeldes， que van en contra de la corriente voluntarista， utilitaria， cientifista y relativista de nuestros tiempos。 Hermosa edición de EUNSA， con la calidad que nos tiene acostumbrados。 。。。more
Kathryn
，
I love the topic of Creation and the Book of Genesis and this book is exactly what I had been looking for。 Comprised of four homilies that Pope Benedict gave when he was the Bishop of Munich， I could easily write whole essays on each different talk。 The belief that God created the universe and everything in it， including us， is so essential to how we view everything else around us that I don't understand why we don't discuss it more often。 Pope Benedict makes the excellent point that if you beli I love the topic of Creation and the Book of Genesis and this book is exactly what I had been looking for。 Comprised of four homilies that Pope Benedict gave when he was the Bishop of Munich， I could easily write whole essays on each different talk。 The belief that God created the universe and everything in it， including us， is so essential to how we view everything else around us that I don't understand why we don't discuss it more often。 Pope Benedict makes the excellent point that if you believe truly that God is the Creator of all and that we are made in His Image， then racism and discrimination of any kind should be impossible。 "The Bible says a decisive 'no' to all racism and to every human division。" Pope Benedict also points out that Genesis is not meant to be a Natural Sciences textbook; it is a religious book and that determines how we are meant to read it。 We shouldn't expect answers to cold science questions。 This is a short little book， but well worth the read。 。。。more
Paul
，
I miss Pope Benedict and his ability the contrast ways of thinking to show the truth ofour faith。 In this book （a series of homilies）， he demonstrates why understanding creation， humanity， and the fall， in the context of covenant， our identity， and redemption is so important。 A great， short， but insightful， read。
FrDrStel
，
This book is a series of four homilies delivered by Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI on creation and the fall。 The Lenten sermons were given as part of an adult Lenten catechesis program in the Cathedral in München， the Liebefrauenkirche， when Ratzinger was still a cardinal in Germany。 They express the need to always examine the relevant Scriptural texts from an appropriate Christological perspective， and specifically， from the future backwards。 Good （and deep） short reading。
M。
，
Good answers by Benedict XVI on why creation is an important concept that should not be set aside by Christians， much less considered contrary to reason。 I wish it had expanded more on the creation of man and woman， but it had good anthropological points to make， especially in discussions with atheists such as Monod， Bloch and Marx himself。
Friar Dismas
，
A good， simple look， not only at the Genesis account， but also at human nature and its relation to God and sin。 It would be a good little resource for anyone preaching on the first chapters of Genesis。This is not a "book" per se， but a collection of four homilies given as a Lenten series in 1981。 A good， simple look， not only at the Genesis account， but also at human nature and its relation to God and sin。 It would be a good little resource for anyone preaching on the first chapters of Genesis。This is not a "book" per se， but a collection of four homilies given as a Lenten series in 1981。 。。。more
Fr。 Wirth
，