As Christopher Nolan revives ‘The Odyssey,’ a scholar links Homer and the Bible

As Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of "The Odyssey" generates buzz, philosopher and classicist Jacob Howland highlights connections between Homer's epic and the Hebrew Bible. Howland, known for exploring the "conversation between Athens and Jerusalem," argues that both texts illuminate "the enduring questions of human life." He suggests that while Homer's Odysseus confronts a "wounding reality" with cunning and self-reliance, the Hebrew Bible emphasizes trust in a benevolent Creator. Howland notes that Odysseus's journey results in the loss of nearly all his men and the subsequent killing of 108 suitors, contrasting with the biblical narrative's focus on God's desire to form a community, starting with Abraham. He also discusses the historical awareness of Greek philosophy among Talmudic rabbis and the differing approaches to understanding the world presented by these foundational texts of Western civilization.