![]() ![]() Leader (grasps new situations, makes bold decisions, expects respect from followers) Trickster (ambitious, uses trickery for self-advancement) Matriarch (head of domestic household, considerate, nurturing, notices details) Patriarch (family head, position unchallenged, decision-maker) Supply 1 or more examples from literature or history What characteristics come to mind for these typical folk-story characters?Ģ. In groups of 2-4 people work on 4-6 archetypes (provide list)ġ. (feel free to adapt by only looking at two or three of these after naming them all or by having a vote of the five favorite to investigate) It is a way of maximizing the power of the story. Thinking of Biblical characters as archetypes does not mitigate their worth or lessen their godliness. Seen as a magician, Moses is every bit as riveting as wizards Gandalf, Merlin or Dumbledore. Elisha purifies poisoned soup, restores life and heals the sick. Elijah the wildman can whirl up rain and outrun the king’s chariot, be fed by ravens and hear God in the eye of a storm. Arnold sees Elijah as a man of the wilds in tune with nature. If we get hung up on David’s atrocities and attitudes to women, particularly his wives, we fail to see the majesty of this great king. In so doing is added a powerful dimension of defined attributes, qualities that we can readily relate to and learn from. Jesuit priest Patrick Arnold, in his book Wildmen Warriors and Kings advocates liberating the Scriptures by thinking of Biblical characters as story archetypes. ![]() There was nothing half hearted about Elijah’s faith. In this he is a magnificent, manly role model. For the one true God Elijah was willing to stand up and be counted. He is a man who protects widows and children but Elijah’s greatness lies in his faith, his utter faith in the God of Israel. In his fear he is receptive to the spiritual and hears the voice of God not in weather violence but in a still small voice of calm. To add insult to injury Baal was, among other things, the great god of weather and after his priests were slain there was the gratifying sound of ‘rushing rain.’ What a victory!Įlijah’s archetype is the Wildman Prophet, staunch in the face of danger yet a man who knows fear. Elijah the Hebrew prophet thoroughly humiliates the heathen priests. However, the prime task of the Hebrew Scriptures editors’ was to present Elijah as a hero with absolute faith in God, done wonderfully well in the graphic telling of how he defeated the Priests of Baal – a story full of drama and humour. Those into mythological symbols, point out the importance of fire and water in his story, and stress the mythic power of these opposites both basic to life yet able to kill. To read Elijah as folklore presents a typical hero versus villain, combat and return tale, or as a quest story, rain taken and recovered. Then we see a softer side as Elijah continues his God directed journey – he shares a meal with a poverty stricken widow who thinks it will be her last but Elijah blesses her flour jar and her oil jar and they never empty (shades of the magic porridge pot of European legend) and later Elijah revives the widows son. As Elijah hides from the wicked queen he is fed miraculously by ravens. But the power he believes in, does not desert him. Elijah becomes this larger than life character who dares confront royalty, then he becomes afraid. He embarks on a journey that involves standing up for what he believes is right. Rosalie Sugrue from Aotearoa / New Zealand sends a days’s retreat for looking at Elijah and for considering archetypes as a new way of entering Bible studies.Įlijah – Hebrew Bible lectionary hero for the month of June, 2016Įlijah is the archetype folk hero who begins as a nobody from the fringes of the Bible lands. ![]()
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