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Thursday, September 27, 2007
Freedom From Choice When I was very young -- nine or ten -- I asked my parents to explain communism. My mom summarized it this way: In the Soviet Union, you don't have any choices. You can only get vanilla ice cream. I was horrified. Understandably so. Only vanilla? No Baskin-Robbins' 31-derful flavors? For most of my life, I've loved freedom of choice. Fetishized it, even. It's the American way. It's why I went to a college that had no requirements and where you can go through all four years writing papers about the usage of umlauts in the names of eighties heavy metal bands (Motley Cru, etc). I still think communism is a terrible system, and I'm still glad that I got to write a paper on umlauts, if not major in the subject. But one of the more interesting revelations from my year of living biblically: There are advantages to having freedom FROM choice. You don't want to give up all choice, of course. An all-vanilla world would be a sad world. But I experienced first-hand the how a life of restricted choice can be satisfying, even paradoxically liberating - especially as our choices multiply like cable channels. I recently did an interview on newsweek.com in which I talked about how disoriented I was after my year ended. Without all my rules, without the stable architecture of biblical living, I felt unmoored and unanchored. I was overwhelmed by choice. My know-it-all brother-in-law Eric Schoenberg - who teaches behavioral economics at Columbia - likes to lecture me about an experiment at a grocery store by researchers from Columbia and Stanford. They set up two tables offering free tastes - one had six flavors of jam, the other had 24 flavors of jam. Oddly, more people bought jams from the table with six flavors. The conclusion was that the other table was just too much, too many options. Biblical living takes away a lot of those jam jars. What should I do on Friday night? Stay at home with the family. Should I waste my time reading about Cameron Diaz’s love life? No. Should I give ten percent of my salary to the needy? Yes. Should I tell the truth? Yes. My dad always talked about how his hero Albert Einstein owned seven identical suits -- so that he wouldn’t waste any neuronal activity on choosing what to wear. In one of the more extreme instances of this, I learned from an Orthodox Jew that there is a rabbinically-approved way of putting on your shoes. You put on your right shoe. Then your left shoe. Then you tie your left shoe. Then you go back and tie your right shoe. It sounded like crazy talk to me when I first heard it. But maybe it's not all that different from Einstein's suits. On the other hand, I learned an equally important lesson from my biblical year: abdicating too much choice is dangerous. You have to choose wisely which rules to obey in the first place. There's a term -- cafeteria religion -- that is supposed to be a disparaging phrase. It describes those who pick and choose instead of following all of a religions edicts or principles. But after my year, I think cafeteria religion is okay. After all, there's nothing inherently wrong with cafeterias. I've had some delicious meals in cafeterias. I've also had some turkey tetrazzini that made me dry heave. It's all about picking the right parts. You want to take a heaping serving of the parts about compassion, mercy and gratefulness -- instead of the parts about hatred and intolerance. Inspiring leaders may not know everything about food, but maybe the good ones can guide you to what is fresh. They can be like a helpful lunch lady who...okay, I've taken the metaphor way too far. Oh, a couple of updates on early, pre-publication press happenings (I know boasting isn't biblical, so please forgive this) An article in Esquire A lovely review in People magazine, coming out tomorrow (the appropriately-named Faith Hill on the cover) Early reviews in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Heeb Magazine AJ
posted by A.J. Jacobs at 12:32 PM
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19 Comments:
Again, have you read the New Testament?
Colossians 2:14 says the law and list of decrees were nalied to the cross.
Romans is all about how law can enslave us. Like back in the Old Testament the Israelites had to be circumcised. In the New Testament, the law was fulfilled by Jesus death and neither circumcision not uncircumcision made a difference. The Law was fleshly, outward. The spirit is inside, the new law written on your heart.
So there is total freedom.
Romans 8:1 says that there's no condemnation for those in Christ, because through him the law of the Spirit of life set men free from the law of sin and death.
Just because a christian isn't under law any longer doesn't mean they should go and sin. If you did that then you would be a slave to sin and not to Christ. Romans 6:1
Once you're are a slave to righteousness, you should not go back to being a slave to sin. You cannot slave for two masters.
I think your view of the bible is confused. Read Romans. Pray for faith. Believe and follow Jesus, not law.
I did explore the New Testament quite a bit in my year and in my book. I also quoted many of my spiritual advisers (ministers, rabbis and priests) on the relationship between the New Testament and the Old Testament. If you feel inspired, hope you have a chance to pick up the book! AJ
I just read The Know-It-All and am looking forward to reading your new book. You are an entertaining writer.
Best of Luck!
Amanda
I've been enjoying hearing about your year of living biblically on the radio. I'd like to share something about my decade of living more sustainably with you. I'm in year 9 as I type this. See the site where I share the experience by clicking the pictures that you reach by clicking my name here.
Hello.
Am reading your book The Know It All. Really liking it. Plan on looking into your other titles. bet they are very funny too. One question though. Your brother in law Eric- how do you manage not to blow his head up with a stick of dynamite? I don't know if I could stand him for too long. Has ANYTHING ever phased him? (if not, you should make that one challenge and write about it-how to upsurp a complete know-it-all.)
Hello,
I have read The-Know-It-All and am currently reading The Year of Living Biblically. (They're both great!) I just read in "The Year" that you had a book signing and only your family showed up. Whether this is an under-exaggeration or not, I felt inspired to say that I love your books and I hope you're getting more signees. :) Happy day-after-halloween!
Rachel
There were different types of ice-cream in Soviet Union. Not 333 types, but quite a few. And all of them were very tasty. Actually, ice-cream, ballet, ice hockey, women rights and paid-free universities were the best things in the USSR. Everything else more of less sucked.
I loved your book, "Year of Living Biblically", it really tickled me as a person who was raised as a Protestant Christian. Ever since I reached adulthood, I have had many of the same questions as you posed in your book about the nature of the divine, religion in general, etc. Not only was it entertaining, it was uplifting. I can't wait to read "Know it All"!
Hi A.J.,
I just finished "Living Biblically," and found it both humorous and inspiring. My husband bought it for me for Christmas, but he will end up reading it, too.
So, nearly 18 months after finishing your experiment, do you still have your alter-ego? Does Jacob still remind you to watch your language? (I have no alter-ego, just a 3-year-old and a 5-year-old who say, "Mommy, that's a bad word" if I let the S-word slip.
Thanks for a great read.
Bought the book over a day ago and will finish it tonight. I must say, I admire and thank you for the way you've kept an open mind and respectfully considered reasons behind peoples' actions and beliefs. I was also glad that you had the foresight and insight to be thorough, using several Bible translations and researching a variety of resources. At best, I think your book will have people thinking about their spirituality, priorities, and morality. Maybe like how Michael Moore's "Sicko" got people talking about healthcare.
i love you
I'm an evangelical Christian and found out about your book through MentalFloss. I was intrigued to say the least and my parents got me your book for Christmas. I must say that I enjoyed it immensely. My husband kept looking at me as I frequently laughed out loud. I was also impressed by your candor and how you just jumped in with both feet.
I'm definitely checking out "Know-it-all" and am interested to see if you still feel like a changed person so long after your year. I hope your family is well and all those boys aren't driving your wife nuts! :)
I just finished your book " The Year of Living Biblically". Thank you! It was fantastic and enlightening. I was raised in a very strict black letter home who has become agnostic in view. I definitely will borrow a phrase you identify as Elton Richard's. It fits my perception of myself "reverent agnostic". I wish you and your family the best.
Tim
I agree with the findings...have you read The Paradox of Choice? A good book about that :)
I'm reading your newest book right now :) Highly entertaining!
I thouroughly enjoyed this book. Please see my blog for a detailed review.
http://freephilosophicaldiscussions.blogspot.com/2008/03/year-of-living-biblically-review.html
A.J.
I realize that you haven't written on your blog since September 2007. But, for whatever it's worth, I just finished your book "A Year of Living Biblically" and really enjoyed it. Perhaps it has even made my personal top-ten list. It was great to share some of the journey with you.
Many blessings as you continue to travel through life.
Heather
I just finished reading the book Living Biblically. It was entertainingly amazing and informative. Being a (culturally) Muslim male from Pakistan, I found out how close original Judaism is to Islam and perhaps that is the bone of contention between them- a shared legacy with quest to own it exclusively. Literature like this is a great way to promote harmony. I am desperately searching for the Britannica book, but can not find it here in Pakistan. Perhaps I shall have to do the same as the other book, i.e., requesting friends in the US to parcel it.
Dear AJ,
I so enjoyed your newest book, The Year of Living Biblically. As a Christian, I was touched by many things you said, especially that one could not go through a year of living biblically and not be changed as a result. I enjoyed reading and mentally watching your transformation of spirit from a self-proclaimed, somewhat neurotic insecure person to a man who was seeking, nobly for his son as well as for himself, and found periods of peace and connectedness with something greater than yourself. Now, as a "reverent agnostic", you may get something, insight or clarity, from reading "We Agnostics" in the AA Big Book. I think you will find it very interesting and even applicable to your spiritual situation. I will admit I was disappointed at the end when you declared yourself a "reverent agnostic", I would have felt there had been a spiritual victory if you had become a practicing, reverent Jew! Through your writing I sensed a lightness of being in you as pursued your year, and a contentedness. I am praying for you, your wife and three beautiful sons that you may all surrender yourselves to His Love and Guidance. God Bless you.
Yeah, so this is an old post, but I have to thank you for the story of Eric's story about the jam.
My partner is from the UK, and I have a lot of friends from the UK, and almost every single one always talks about the sheer amount of stuff available at US groceries.
They say this like its a *bad* thing, and half the time, standing in an aisle staring at the same shelves as they are, I can't figure out what they're talking about, there's only maybe 10-15 items tops on the shelves of whatever they're looking at.
"UK stores don't carry this many of the same item!" they always claim, in a distressed voice. "It's too much! It's somehow wasteful in a way that I can't explain! It's just TOO MUCH CHOICE!" they wail.
Well, unless they're my partner and my friend Pete (also from the UK), who I shall avoid taking to WalMart again if I'm in a hurry to get somewhere else. It's like herding cats.
Anyway, the story explains the cultural dissonance, in a way that I won't bother explaining here, since I've written too much already and can't be bothered to edit. Now I too can trot out that story and annoy them as much as Eric annoys you. :)
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