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GENESIS 3: The snake, Adam, and Eve:

The "fall" or "rise" of humanity:

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Introduction:

Genesis 3 describes a story in the Garden of Eden.

bulletIn a common traditional Protestant interpretation, Satan, in the form of a snake, convinces Eve that God has lied to her and her partner Adam concerning the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. It convinces her to eat the fruit of the tree so that they will become as gods. . Adam later follows suit. By this act, sin entered the world for the first time. With it, death also enters the world. (The Church has taught that before this event, animals lived forever, and without bloodshed.) God curses the snake, Adam, Eve and even the earth itself. The sin of Adam and Eve becomes imputed to all of the descendents of the original couple i.e. the entire human race to the present day. This is often described as the fall of humanity. A massive gulf was created by Adam and Eve's disobedience which can only be bridged by the salvation offered by Jesus Christ.
bulletThe Roman Catholic Church deviates somewhat from the Protestant interpretation. They acknowledge that Genesis 3 is not a precise historical account of the events involving  the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. However, they teach that it is based on a historical event. "The account of the fall in Genesis 3 uses figurative language, but affirms a primeval event, a deed that took place at the beginning of the history of man. Revelation gives us the certainty of faith that the whole of human history is marked by the original fault freely committed by our first parents." 1
bulletIn a liberal interpretation, the entire story is viewed as a religious myth: a legend that is spiritually significant, but is of a series of events that never happened. This approach leads to many possible interpretations of Genesis 3. Three are:
bulletIt describes the rise, not the fall, of humanity. It portrays God as having created Adam and Eve as proto-humans. They were not fully human because they lacked a moral sense -- the main difference between humans and the rest of the animal world. They had no concept of right or wrong. God deceived Adam and Eve into believing that the fruit of the tree was poisonous. A very intelligent and helpful animal, a snake, convinced Eve of the truth: that the fruit was not poisonous, but that she would gain knowledge of good and evil if she ate it. Both Eve and Adam ate the fruit and did indeed develop a moral sense for the first time. This was an attribute previously restricted to the gods. God was enraged and in a fit of rage cursed the snake, Adam, Eve and even the ground itself. The snake is the hero of the story. Adam and Eve advanced from an animal-like status with no moral sense into full humanity.
bulletGenesis is an allegory. It describes the process that every generation of humans goes through as they mature into adulthood. The start in a family of origin, helpless, innocent, in an atmosphere of security, and blindly following the expectations of their parents. When they become teens, they start to build up a head of steam. They question their parents, experience new levels of conflict within the family, develop their own goals and ethics, and finally leave their home to strike out on their own.
bulletGenesis is an allegory. It describes the transition of the human race from a state of innocence, where people lived as near-animals. They were initially unaware of their own mortality; they had no concept of a moral sense; they were nomadic hunters and gatherers who lived off the land. After the transition they had a moral sense. They realized that their life on earth was finite. They settled down and became farmers.

We will deal in depth with the first of these interpretations.

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Topics covered in this section:

bulletAn analysis of Genesis 3 from conservative and liberal viewpoints
 
bulletProblems with the traditional interpretation of Genesis 3

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References:

  1. "Catechism of the Catholic Church," Paragraph 390.

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Copyright © 2003 to 2007 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally written: 2003-FEB-29
Latest update: 2007-NOV-18
Author: B.A. Robinson

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