The method of iconic reading opens the door to finding new meaning in the oldest stories of the Bible.

When we think about causality in the post-modern era, we think in very linear ways.  We most naturally think of  a cause leading to an effect, “x → y.”  Not so with ancient Israelites.  Perhaps because of their proximity to phenomena of natural growth, like the fruition of a tree or the metamorphosis of a butterfly, or because of the linguistic structure of biblical Hebrew, ancient Israelites thought and read in a way best described as “unfolding.”

In this path-breaking study, Jim uses his knowledge of cognitive psychology and anthropology to trace the development of iconic writing in the ancient world, show the parallels with modern screenwriting (which tells stories through a series of images or “icons”), delineates the 18 rules of iconic reading, and demonstrates how to use the rules to unfold the images in ancient iconic writing, such as we find in the Book of Genesis in the Bible.