Review by Jackie_Eberle -- Who Told You That You Were Na...

[Jackie_Eberle]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Who Told You That You Were Naked?" by William Combs.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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This writer was initially attracted to this book because of the book's title; the impression was made that the book would be exclusively about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and their ultimate disobedience to God and the resulting change in history. Combs' twist on the Garden of Eden story included what may have happened in the Garden of Eden prior to the appearance of Eve and the appearance of the serpent. But as the book continues, Combs connects the story of Adam and Eve to the teachings of Jesus and St. Paul.

What this writer liked about ]Who Told You That You Were Naked was that it was written like an instruction manual for readers who may be involved in the RCIA program, for example, as well as the average reader; this is not written as an instruction manual. Combs posts questions after each chapter to enable the reader to reflect on the chapter. In the end notes at the end of the book, Combs also explains different aspects of each chapter. What is particularly interesting is a twist on the part of the Adam and Eve story in which they cover themselves with fig leaves after being caught by God after they disobeyed Him and how uncomfortable they may have been physically, adding to their sense of embarrassment and shame.

Another thing that makes Who Told You That You Were Naked interesting is that Combs concludes the book by adding his favorite Doxology summing up God's love for his people, specifically to keep them on the straight and narrow in accordance to His will for each of us, and to prevent them from stumbling into sinfulness, the way Adam and Eve did by disobeying God's one request that they don't eat from the Tree of Life.

The main thing I did not like about the book is that near the end of the book, Combs presented a contemporary interpretation of Genesis Chapter 3 from Old Testament scholars that made it look more like a textbook than a book for readers who may be interested in the Adam and Eve story and how their sinfulness changed all of humankind and made life worse for the descendants of Adam and Eve than God ever intended. It was also somewhat distracting that Combs included personal stories about his own family and how it related to Genesis Chapter 3. Combs also felt the need to always state that an underlined emphasis in a Bible passage was his own, it was also distracting for this reader. I

Based on the above, I rate Who Told You That You Were Naked 4 out of 4 stars.

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Who Told You That You Were Naked?
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