The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible As Literally As Possible

by A.J. Jacobs

As I write this, I have a beard that makes me resemble Moses. Or Abe Lincoln. Or Ted Kaczynski. I’ve been called all three.

I loved writing this book. Well, not the actual writing part. I don’t enjoy sitting alone in front of a laptop with just the sounds of the clicking keyboard to keep me company. I find it isolating and painful. But I loved researching and living and talking about this book. I loved meeting Amish people and Hasidic Jews, I loved diving deep into 2,000 year old texts, and I loved growing a beard (even if my wife hated it; apologies to Julie) Years later, the project continues to have a huge effect on me in dozens of ways. I’m more grateful. I’ve learned to appreciate the beauty of rituals and practice them myself. I try not to gossip as much (I’ve cut down 40 percent by my estimates). I notice the world around me more. I was thrilled by the reaction The Year of Living Biblically got when it was published years ago—and continues to get today. I'm grateful for the hundreds of emails from all types of people – from religious to totally secular – who tell me how the book touched them. I’ve enjoyed giving talks everywhere from synagogues to pastor conventions to atheist meetings, Writing this book taught me a ton about religion. A few years after the book came out, I was asked to do a panel on the small topic of “Is Religion Good or Bad?” It was organized by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, and one of the other panelists was Senator Corey Booker, for reasons I forget. My answer to that question was that religion is neither good nor bad. It’s a tool, and like any tool it can be used to make the world much better or it can be used to make the world worse. It can give us a sense of community, can inspire us to treat each other with dignity, and can produce gorgeous music. But it can also be used to justify hatred, bigotry and archaic laws. To me, the bigger split in this world is between those who are fundamentalists (whether religious, Marxist, or free market) and those who are open to changing their mind based on evidence and discussion. As for where I stand now: One of my advisers split religion into three parts: Belief (as in belief in God), belonging (as in being part of a community) and behavior (as in ethical behavior or rituals). I’m a fan of belonging (I joined a synagogue, even though I’m not particularly active) and I do like the rituals and ethical behavior they inspire (i.e. behavior). On the other hand, I remain pretty agnostic about the existence of God. So there you have it. As the sage Meatloaf once said, two out of three ain’t bad. I’m also grateful to this book for one other big thing: It inspired my new book, The Year of Living Constitutionally. I’m very excited about this one too. I take a similar approach to the Constitution as I did to the Bible. I try to follow it as literally as possible. I carry a musket around Manhattan. I give up social media in favor of writing pamphlets with a quill pen. And I provide quarters for soldiers in my NYC apartment. I hope you like it. Your humble and obedient servant, A.J.