View source for The Forbidden Tree: History or Folklore? by Jabulani Midzi

{{infobox1
|title=The Forbidden Tree: History or Folklore?
|sort=Forbidden Tree: History or Folklore?
|author=Jabulani Midzi
|reviewer=Ani Johnson
|genre=Spirituality and Religion
|summary=An examination of the Bible that will trigger a thousand pub chats: the word of God or a belief system that's ignorant and deluded?  Jubulani Midzi puts his views on the table; do we agree?
|rating=3.5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|pages=124
|publisher=AuthorHouseUK
|date=August 2016
|isbn=978-1524661915
|cover=Midzi_Forbidden
|aznuk=1524661910
|aznus=1524661910
}}

Engineer Jabulani Midzi applies his professional logic to the Bible, asking us to consider if and to what degree it's the word of God.  He examines this via categories including the Creation, the Fall of Man, heaven and hell and punishment and forgiveness.  

This is indeed a good question that not even Christians can agree on.  The spectrum goes from the right wing Evangelical literalists who believe right down to the creation's 7 days being just that, all the way over to the left wing Anglo Catholic liberals, some of whom take issue with the virgin birth and the crucifixion.  Staking my colours to the mast, I'm in the middle, believing that the Bible should be taken in historical context, that it does contain Old Testament myths and some accounts clearly written in a one-sided way but I firmly believe in Jesus, the miracles etc.

Once we start reading we realise that Jabulani has definite passionate views that, possibly inadvertently, override his assertion that this book isn't judgemental.  He begins on the relatively safe ground (unless you're on the right) that the Creation and expulsion from Eden are myths.  He then connects it to the crucifixion via a few theological gaps and leaps of logic that will start the crowd murmuring.  He urges us to believe that the life of Jesus is history's biggest hoax by linking it to the creation story and telling us what God would and wouldn't do or think.  He's definitely a brave man, inferring along the way that believers are deluded.

Jabulani is definitely a passionate arguer, making sure we understand his point by stressing and re-stressing it before moving on and then sometimes returning to it.  I found his comments on belief versus knowledge particularly interesting.

Jabulani maintains that belief is a form of ignorance and should be discarded when full knowledge comes along.  He also suggests that we have full knowledge that counteracts Christian belief right now and so that should be the final arbiter of veracity.  Moving away wondering how the eminent scientists and other academics who also hold Christian beliefs would answer that, I wonder if we have or will ever reach full knowledge?  Surely knowledge evolves as much as belief does, sometimes discarding old ideas (even scientific ideas) as they become discredited in the same way that a belief system should be challenged and re-evaluated regularly. 

I do agree with some of Jabulani's assertions including the selection of the Bible's canon and its branding with the special interests of the compilers in mind.  However other sections such as his linking of the God of (the mythical… perhaps, perhaps not) Job and Adam with the God on the cross shows some understandable knowledge gaps.

For me this would have worked better as a written, extended conversation between Jabulani and theologians of various hues.  I think the author would be surprised how many points of agreement there would be while having the right of reply if his ideas were contradicted.  As it stands, there are moments of rant as well as repetition and (depending on your views) misunderstanding but it's still a speedy, interesting read that will trigger a thousand pub discussions.

(We'd like to thank AuthorHouseUK for providing us with a copy for review.)

Further Reading: If you'd like to read more of an atheist's take on religion, we recommend [[An Atheist's History of Belief by Matthew Kneale]].

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