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Adam and Eve, blame, forbidden fruit, God, love, perfect, shame, The Sophia Center for Spirituality
It takes courage sometimes to own up to our faults and failings and some of us have a more difficult time than others in doing so. “Why is that?” I asked myself this morning as I read the passage from Genesis 3 where God asks Adam and Eve who told them they were naked. If that wasn’t enough, God also admits to knowing they ate the forbidden fruit. “The woman made me do it,” Adam says. “The serpent made me to it,” Eve chimes in. It seems there’s always someone around – or some circumstance – that’s a logical place to put the blame. But why not just admit that we are not perfect?
Think about it. The God that created all the universes that ever were or will be deigned to create each one of us uniquely. Even our fingerprints are different from everyone else’s. There must be enough forgiveness in the world for each of us to receive what we need when we make mistakes or even do terrible things. (If you are reading this, you probably don’t belong in the “most wicked” category.) Why are we so afraid of imperfection?
We have been taught to be ashamed of our bodies as well as of our bad habits. We didn’t come in that way. Think of the babies that you know or that you see on television commercials. They are delighted with everything. When does the blaming start? And why? God “knows the number of the stars and calls us each by name.” How can we doubt that kind of care? It seems today must be a day for a sign on our mirrors to read while brushing our teeth or our hair if we still have any. (Did you know that baldness is “in” these days?)
The sign should say “I am a marvelous creature of God” or “God loves me just as I am and so should you!” Or make up your own declaration – the bolder the better. Trust me; the world will benefit from our efforts and from any smiles that result from this practice.
This morning I listened to a talk about today’s lectionary readings by a noted Roman Catholic theologian and Scripture scholar, Sister Dianne Bergant, CSA. In speaking of the temptation theme in the Genesis reading (ch. 3) and in the gospel of Jesus tempted in the desert (MT 4), she said something that was a new thought for me. Have you ever considered that real temptation is a desire for a good, but not a good that we are meant to have as it may be inappropriate for what we need? I was happy she elaborated but also that I will have time today for consideration of that statement in reference to my own life. Sister Bergant spoke of the temptation in both cases being a call to misuse of power which Adam and Eve grasped for but Jesus refused. Jesus never used his power for self-aggrandizement; Adam and Eve were seduced into the choice to do so which was their downfall.
The Sophia Center for Spirituality 