Jared explores how language, culture, and historical context shape the way scripture is understood. Through the Creation story and other early narratives, he invites a more thoughtful and curious engagement with the text.
About the Podcast
Faith Matters is a network of podcasts, publications, events, and creative work centered on thoughtful engagement with faith. Their work creates space for conversation, reflection, and community, offering a broader lens for exploring Latter-day Saint tradition through scholarship, art, and lived experience.
Episode Summary
In this conversation, Jared explores the relationship between language and meaning in scripture, focusing on the differences between ancient Hebrew and modern English.
He reflects on how scripture emerges from lived context, shaped by culture, history, and collective understanding. In languages like Hebrew, words often carry multiple layers of meaning at once, while English tends to present ideas more narrowly. These differences can influence how key passages are interpreted over time.
Drawing from the Creation story, the Enuma Elish, and the narrative of Abraham, Jared walks through how these texts can be revisited with greater attention to language and context. He suggests that scripture often meets people where they are, speaking in ways they are able to receive in a given moment.
As the conversation unfolds, he highlights patterns within the text that point toward relational unity and deeper coherence, including a more expansive view of Eve’s role within the broader narrative.