"Boy:" "Mother, I'm afraid." "Woman:" "I'm right here, near you." "Don't be afraid." "Boy:" "Why is it so dark?" "Woman:" "Because the day is resting." "The sun has gone to bed, like we have." " Boy:" "Even the sun?" " Woman:" "Yes, even the sun." "During the night, all living things go to sleep." "They close their eyes so they won't see the dark." "Come on, now, try to close your little eyes." "Boy:" "But after, will I be able to open them again?" "Woman:" "Yes, as soon as the dawn begins to brighten the sky." "Then, we'll see what the new day has in store for us." "What is the new day going to bring us?" "Man:" "No one can know... what is still hidden... in the womb of the light." "We have to wait... for the birth of the new day." "Not till then shall we discover all the splendors, the wonders that accompany the sunrise." "There are but few who truly know, who see what is there." "Can you see, Grandfather?" "On occasions my eyes open." "And when they do, I know that God has touched me on the shoulder." "Could you help me to see?" "You are a child, my boy." "That makes my help unnecessary." "The good Lord on high, reveals His glories openly to the young and innocent... the way he would have revealed it to the first man who looked upon Creation, with awe... and infinite wonder." "(sheep bleating)" "Grandfather:" "Thus it was, from the very beginning of time, when the good Lord created the sky, the sun, the stars... and all the vastness of the Earth." "But, before Creation, there was blackness, black darkness yet untouched by light... and the darkness was over the deep." "The darkness of the void and the unknown... because, as yet, nothing existed, not even the awareness of the darkness and the void." "(wind howling)" "But, behold, the Spirit of God was already breathing over the waters." "And God said, "Let there be light."" "And there was light." "The Lord God saw that the light was good, and divided the light from the darkness." "The light, God called "day," and the darkness, "night."" "Evening came, morning came... and that was the first of the days." ""Behold," the Lord said," ""let the firmament exist."" "I n the firmament, God separated the waters that are of the Earth from the waters that are above the skies." "And the Almighty saw that it was good." "And evening came, and morning came to complete the second day." "On the third day the Creator summoned all the waters that are under the heavens so that the dry land appeared." "And the Earth produced vegetation and plants of every species, and all kinds of fruit-bearing trees, each one with its own seed." "And thus it came to be that from that day forth the Earth began to produce vegetation and all kinds of plants and fruit-bearing trees of every species, each producing its own seed to spread over the whole Earth." "And again evening came, and morning came, the third day." "On the morning of the fourth day," "Almighty God said, "Let there be two great lights in the vault of the heavens, one for the night, and one for the day, to serve as a sign for the seasons, for the days, and for the years."" "And behold, the Lord God said," ""Let the waters teem with living beings, and let birds fly above the Earth under the vault of the heavens."" "The Lord God created all the living creatures that frolic in the waters, each according to its own species, and all the winged creatures, each according to its species." "And evening came, and morning came, the fifth day." "On the sixth day, the Almighty said, let the Earth produce living creatures, cattle, creeping things and wild animals, each one according to its species." "The Creator blessed them, and said," ""Be fruitful and multiply." "Fill with life the heavens and the oceans," "And let the Earth be filled with living beings of every species."" "(baby crying)" "(sheep bleating)" "When the Creator made Heaven and Earth, no wild bushes, no herbs of the field had sprung up, because God had not yet sent rain upon the Earth, and there was no human being to work in the fields." "I nstead, water flowed out of the ground and moistened all the surface of the soil." "(thundering)" "(heavy rainfall)" "Out of the Earth the Lord God fashioned man, making him out of the soil God had created." "The Creator breathed into his nostrils the breath of life... and the man became a living being." "(baby crying)" "Thus the Lord God determined to create man in His own image." "God wanted them in the image of God." "He created humankind, male and female." "He created them in the very likeness of God." "Then God blessed them and said," ""Be fruitful and multiply." "Fill the Earth and rule over all of Creation."" "And thus it was." "An evening came, and morning came, the sixth day." "Thus the heavens and the Earth were brought to completion and all the creatures that inhabit the Earth." "And then the Creator blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on that day God had completed all the work of the Creation." "(frogs croaking)" "Then, the soil brought forth life, and the trees produced fruit, enticing to look at and good to eat." "And the Lord sat the man in the middle of the garden so that he might cultivate it and take care of it." "And then the Lord God gave the man this command:" ""All the fruit that grow here are for you." "And you may freely eat of them." "But of all these only one you shall not touch, the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil." "If you eat of that fruit you will know what is good and what is evil." "And of that knowledge, you shall die."" "Boy:" "So many stars!" "Man:" "Look!" "That one is Ishtar." "It is the star of the morning." "But every dawn it's the last to fade." "Why is the bright star called Ishtar?" "Everything that lives and moves in the Creation has been given its own name, like the sun, and all the creatures that live in its light." "From the time of the Creation, the Creator saw that the man was alone on the Earth." "And so God thought, "I will make the man a helper, who will be like him."" "And then the Lord, who had already created out of dust the animals of the fields and all the birds of the air, brought them in front of Adam, one by one, in order that he might name each one." "And whatever Adam called each and every living creature, that was to be its name." "Even fire?" "And the fire, too, and the mountains." "Boy:" "And the rocks, grandfather?" " And the plants?" " And the plants." "Grandfather:" "With all their fruit, each thing had its own name." "But the man could not find a helper similar to himself." "So the Lord God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep on the ground." "The Lord approached... as Adam lay there... and took one of Adam's ribs from him." "And from this rib God fashioned the woman, and brought her to Adam." "Then Adam said," ""Behold... this one at last is flesh of my flesh... and bone of my bone... life from my life."" "She is to be called, "Woman,"" "because she was made from the man." "That is why the man will leave his father and his mother, and will be united with his wife, and the two... will become one flesh." "(crickets chirping)" "Now both of them were naked, the man and the woman." "But because they were innocent, they felt no shame." "The serpent was the most subtle of all the wild creatures that God had created." "And behold, he said to the woman," ""Did God really say you shall not eat of the fruit of any of the trees in the garden?"" "The woman said to the serpent," ""We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but the Lord God said," "'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, nor shall touch it, or you shall die."'" "But the serpent flattered the woman saying," ""No, you will not die at all." "I n fact, God knows that the day you eat of that fruit your eyes will be opened and you will become like God, for you will know good and evil."" "And thus the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good to eat and pleasing to the eye and enticing for the knowledge it would give." "And so she took the fruit and ate it." "Then she gave some to the man who was with her." "And he, too, ate of the fruit." "Adam and the woman hid themselves behind the trees because their eyes were opened and both of them realized they were naked." "And so the Lord God Almighty summoned Adam and said to him, "Why are you hiding?"" "Adam answered, "I heard the sound of Your footsteps and I was afraid because now I am naked and alone."" "And the Lord God said," ""Who told you that you were naked?" "Have you perhaps eaten of the fruit of the tree that I forbade you to eat?"" "Adam answered, "The woman gave me that fruit and I ate some of it." "And now... now I know fear." "I am alone." "Now I know good and evil."" "Then the Lord God said to the woman," ""Why have you done this?"" "The woman answered," ""The serpent tempted me and I ate of the fruit."" "And so the Lord God said to the serpent," ""Because you have done this you shall be cursed among all the beasts." "You shall crawl in the dust on your belly because it was you who caused her to eat." "For all eternity there will be enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and hers and so until the end of time her descendants will crush your head, and you will strike their heel."" "(wind gusting)" "To the man God said," ""Because you disobeyed me the Earth will be full of suffering for you." "You will earn your bread by the sweat of your brow until you return to the ground because out of the ground you were made." "Dust you are, and to dust you shall return."" "(breathing deeply)" "And again the Lord God said," ""Behold, now man and woman have become like me, equal to me because they know good and evil." "And so they must not be allowed to reach out their hands and take the fruit of the Tree of Life and eat it, and live forever."" "And the Lord God expelled Adam and the woman from the garden so that they would work the soil from which they were made." "And at the east of the Garden of Eden," "God placed the Cherubim, armed with the fiery, flashing sword to guard the way to the Tree of Life." "Adam named the woman "Eve"... because she was the mother of all those who live." "Their firstborn son, they named "Cain."" "When Eve gave birth to him, she said," ""Behold," "I have received a gift from the Lord." "With God," "I have created a human being."" "And so it was." "And after Cain, the woman gave birth to Abel, his brother." "Abel, the second son, was a shepherd and kept flocks." " J ust like us?" " Yes, just like us." "But Cain worked in the fields, planting the earth." "(water trickling down)" "(sheep bleating)" "(wind howling)" "(blowing in flute)" "(blowing in flute)" "(wind whistling)" "(long tone)" "(long tone)" "(flute music)" "Grandfather:" "I n the course of time" "Cain offered part of his crop to the Lord." "Abel sacrificed to the Most High the finest of the newborn lambs of his flock." "The Lord God looked with favor on Abel's offering." "He was not pleased with Cain's." "Cain was envious of his brother." "He became angry." "His face was downcast and he withdrew into himself." "(pigs squealing)" "Aagh!" "Waah!" "Waah!" "(rain and thunder)" "(water dripping)" "(water sizzles)" "(flute music playing)" "The Lord God sought out Cain and said to him," ""Why are you so full of anger?" "And why is your face so downcast?" "If you were doing what is right, surely you ought to hold your head high." "But if you are acting wrongly, look, the Evil One is crouching at the door, hungry to get you." "Wicked thoughts and temptations assail you... but you can be the master of them."" "Aaaah!" "(flute music playing)" "(music ends)" "I n spite of the Lord God's warning," "Cain raised his hand against his brother, Abel, and killed him." "The Lord God again sought out Cain and said to him," ""Where is Abel, your brother?"" "Cain, afraid and in hiding, replied," ""I do not know." "Am I my brother's keeper?"" "The Lord said, "What have you done, Cain?" "The voice of your brother's blood is crying out from the depths of the Earth." "From this day forth you must leave forever the ground which witnessed your brother's death at your hands." "Thus, when you till the earth, it will not easily yield up its fruits to you." "You shall be a restless wanderer and you will not cease to hide yourself from Me forever."" "Cain said, "This punishment is greater than I can bear." "Behold, You banish me from this place and from Your holy presence and I must hide from Your face for the rest of my days, far from You." "I must live in danger, for whoever meets me on the road will surely kill me."" "But the Holy One did not want Cain's death, and said," ""Whoever kills Cain will suffer a sevenfold vengeance."" "And the Lord, in His love, put a mark on Cain to protect him, so that no one coming across him would kill him." "Cain withdrew from the presence of the Holy One nd settled in the land of Nod, to the east of Eden." "Then Cain united himself to his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch." "And Cain founded a city and a new civilization." "And he called the city, "Enoch," after his son." "And these are the descendants of Cain:" "Enoch fathered Irad, and Irad fathered Mehujael." "Mehujael fathered Methushael, who, in turn, fathered Lamech." "Lamech married two women, Adah and Zillah." "The second wife, Zillah, gave birth to Tubal-cain, the craftsman, ancestor of all those who work with copper and all other metals." "Tubal-cain's sister was Naamah, whose name means "The one loved by all." "The one who is seduced by the comforts and pleasures of urban living."" "And Lamech said," "Lamech:" "All of you, hear my voice!" "Listen to what I am about to say!" "I killed a man who attacked me!" "A boy, in a moment of rage!" "Sevenfold vengeance for Cain, but for Lamech, seventy-seven fold!" "So now it happens that violence spreads itself wider and wider among men." "Behold, from action to action, from insult to insult, humankind shapes its own history." "Some are perpetrators of violence, some are its victims." "Some come out of the East, others come out of the West." "But in all this movement, all this confusion, which is the right direction?" "Then Adam, the father of all peoples, was joined again to his wife." "She gave birth to a male child, and she named him "Seth," because, she said, "God has granted me other offspring in the place of Abel, whom Cain has killed."" "And Seth had a son whom he called Enosh." "It was at that time that people began to invoke the name of the Lord." "Then Enosh fathered Kenan, and Kenan fathered Mahalalel." "Mahalalel fathered Jared, and Jared, Enoch." "Enoch fathered Methuselah, who fathered Lamech." "And Lamech fathered Noah." "(music playing)" "(music playing)" "(music playing)" "Grandfather:" "Loyalty has disappeared from among human creatures." "Neighbor lies to neighbor, the poor are oppressed by the arrogance of the rich, and the evildoer in his heart thinks," ""No one, not even the Lord, will hold me accountable."" "The Lord God looks down from the heavens at the children of Adam to see if a single one is still wise, if a single one still seeks God." "But many have become corrupt." "Many have proven faithless and violent." "They are guilty of all manner of sins." "Not one of them does what is right." "All are seeking their own advantage." "Why, O Lord, do you keep so distant?" "Why do You hide Yourself in time of trouble?" "Hear Me, all you nations and peoples." "Listen to Me, all you who inhabit the Earth, people, high and low, rich and poor alike." "Do not be overawed or jealous when some of you become rich and live in ever greater splendor." "When they die, they will take nothing with them." "Their wealth will not go down with them." "H umankind, in all its splendor, cannot last." "H uman beings will never be able to repay to God their own ransom, no matter how powerful they become." "They will see that the wise also die, just as the fool and the brute, and leave their wealth behind for others." "The tomb is their home forever, their dwelling place until the end of time, even though they give their names to vast palaces, and properties." "You who eat from the work of your hands, blessed are you for you walk in the ways of the Lord." "Your wife will be a fruitful vine in the inner places of your house, and your children round your table like shoots of an olive tree." "Even the sparrow finds a home, the swallow, a nest to place its young." "Blessed are they, who dwell in the house of the Lord." "(laughing)" "Woman:" "Tell me, then..." "O loved one of my soul, where will you lead your flocks to graze?" "Where will you stop to rest at noon?" "For sick with love I am." "Your right hand is under my head and the other embraces me." "On my bed, in the night," "I searched for the one whom my heart loves." "I searched for him, but did not find him." "Before the day breeze rises, before the shadows flee, return, my love." "Leap joyously, like a gazelle, like a young stag on the mountain of sweet fragrances." "Kiss me with the sweetest kisses of your mouth." "Your love is sweeter than any nectar." "Your name is an inebriating perfume." "Your banner on me is love." "(noise and commotion)" "(festive music)" "Grandfather: "Show respect for my Creation,"" "says the Lord." ""Revere everything that lives in My holy place." "But unless you honor My laws and live your days according to My commandments, you will know the terrors I can inflict." "No light shall enter your eye." "You shall suffer fever and disease and your days shall pass in agony." "I n vain will you wait to reap what you have planted." "Your enemies will gather the harvest." "And if, in spite of this, you refuse to listen to Me," "I will continue to chastise you and will punish you seven times over for your sins." "I will break your proud strength and I will make the sky like scorching iron for you, and your soil like flesh without a shield." "Then you will seek refuge in your cities, but there I will send plague and pestilence, and you shall fall into the clutches of death." "And if, in spite of this, you will not listen to Me, and continue to go against Me," "I will go against you in fury and punish you seven times over for your sins." "You shall eat the flesh of your children." "I will destroy your higher places." "I will smash your incense altars, and I will pile your corpses on your foul idols."" "(horse whiney)" "(drum beats)" "(drum beats continue)" "(drum beats)" "(wind howling)" "Grandfather:" "Then the Most High saw that human wickedness was great on the Earth, and that the violent heart of humankind contrived nothing but evil schemes." "The Lord God regretted having made human beings on the Earth." "The Holy One was grieved at heart and said," ""I will rid the face of the Earth of the human beings I created, and of all the domestic animals, the crawling creatures, and the birds of the air." "All, I will exterminate them, because I regret having created them."" "And so the Creator God spoke to Noah," ""I have decided that the end has come for all living things, for the Earth is full of lawlessness and violence because of them." "So now I will destroy them and the entire Earth."" "(wind gusting)" "Then the Lord God said to Noah," ""I am going to send the flood, the waters on Earth, to destroy all living things with the breath of life under heaven." "Everything on Earth is to perish, but with you, Noah, I will make a pact." "With you I will establish my covenant." "Behold, you will build an ark." "You will make it out of resinous wood." "You will divide it into compartments and caulk it with pitch, inside and out." "You will fashion a roof for the ark raising it a cubit higher than the rest." "You will build the ark with three decks, lower, middle, and higher, and one side of the ark, you will make a door."" "This is the story of Noah." "Noah was a good man, just and honest, and he walked with the Lord." "Noah fathered three sons," "Shem, Ham, and Japheth." "And so Noah did exactly as the Lord had commanded him." "Then the Lord God said to Noah," ""Go aboard the ark and with you take your sons, your wife, and wives of your sons." "From all living creatures, from all animals, you will take into the ark two of each species to save their lives with yours." "There must be a male and female of the birds, the cattle, and of all the creatures that crawl on the Earth, according to their species." "Two of each will go aboard with you, so that they might live."" "(sheep bleating)" "Again the Lord God said," ""Take with you provisions of every kind and lay in a store of them." "They will be nourishment for you and the others in the ark."" "And Noah did this exactly as God had commanded him." "(wind gusting)" "(rain drops)" "(rain pattering)" "(heavy rain falling)" "Grandfather:" "Seven days later the waters of the flood appeared on the Earth." "All the springs of the great deep burst through and the cataracts of the heavens opened wide." "On the same day Noah entered the ark with his three sons," "Shem, Ham and Japheth, his wife and the wives of his three sons." "These people and the animals, each according to his species, all came to Noah in the ark." "And thus it was, as God had commanded." "And then the Lord God closed the door behind him." "(thunder)" "(rain pouring down)" "(thunder)" "(baby cries)" "(thunder)" "(thunder)" "(baby cries)" "(sizzle)" "(water dripping)" "(sizzle)" "Noah:" "The Lord God Almighty summons the Earth, from the West to the East, and the heavens proclaim His justice." "Our God is coming to sit in judgement." "Before Him, devouring fire, around Him, raging tempests." "Behold, the Holy One comes and the Holy One speaks," ""I am the Lord God, your God." "Not for your sacrificial offerings does your God reproach you." "Nor for the solemn ceremonies you ever performed to the Almighty." "But do not offer me a bull of your herd, nor the goat you prize over others." "They're already mine." "All the beasts of the forest, the animals that graze on the earth, they're mine already." "I know every bird that flies to the highest summit, and all living creatures of the sea." "They are mine also." "Does God eat, perchance, the cattle you give your Lord, or drink blood from your sacrificial goats?" "Offer thanksgiving." "Let it be your sacrifice to the Holy One." "I n this way... fulfill the vows you've made to the Most High."" "(water dripping)" "(creaking)" "(creaking)" "(thud)" "Grandfather:" "The flood lasted for 40 days and 40 nights." "The water swelled, lifting the ark until it floated off the ground." "The waters rose higher and higher on the surface of the Earth until they covered the highest mountains under the heavens." "And so it was that all living things on Earth perished." "Every being with the least breath of life in its nostrils, died." "Everything on the face of the Earth was exterminated:" "Human beings, birds, animals, domestic and wild, and creeping things." "Only Noah was saved, and with him, those in the ark." "(chirping)" "(rain stops)" "Then the Creator remembered Noah and all the animals that were in the ark with him." "And so the Lord God Almighty sent a wind across the Earth, and the waters began to subside." "The springs of the deep and the cataracts of the heavens were stopped up." "And the rains ceased." "(thud)" "And thus the waters began to withdraw from the earth." "And after 150 days the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat." "I n the tenth month, on the first day of the month, dry land began to appear." "And in the distance, the peaks of the mountains were to be seen." "Another 40 days passed, and Noah released a raven who flew back and forth, because the waters had not yet receded from the face of the earth." "(draining water)" "Then Noah released a dove, but the dove, too, returned to Noah in the ark," "for there was still water on the surface of the earth." "Noah waited another seven days... and once again sent out the dove... from the ark." "I n the evening the dove came back to him." "And behold, in its beak, was a fresh olive branch." "And so Noah realized that the waters were receding from the earth." "Noah waited another seven days." "Then, he set free the dove." "And this time, it returned to him no more." "And so the Most High blessed Noah and his family and said to them," ""As long as Earth endures, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease." "I will now set my bow in the clouds." "This is the sign of the covenant" "I am establishing between Myself and the Earth." "The bow will be on the clouds and I shall see it." "And I shall remember the eternal covenant established between God and every living being." "Every living thing that has life and moves will be yours to eat." "Behold, I give you everything, as in the past I gave you the green fruits of the field." "But there is one exception:" "You must not eat flesh with its life, that is to say, with its blood in it." "And I will hold you accountable for your own life blood, too." "The Lord of life will demand an accounting of every living creature." "The Creator of life will demand it of all human beings." "Whoever sheds human blood will be accountable for it because the Lord has made man and woman in His own image.""