Stories in the books of Genesis and Exodus tell of fathers whose sons are 'lost' to them through 'deaths' of various kinds. One is murdered. Another is abandoned. A third is supplanted. A fourth is betrayed. A fifth is taken for sacrifice. A sixth is forgotten about. A seventh is secreted away. Through these accounts we trace the theme with which the biblical narrative begins: God's first son, Adam, by becoming 'lost' to his Creator, sets in train God's long search for humanity . . .
