Forbidden Fruit

I am coming up on the whole Adam and Eve thing and this is where I have harbored deep philosophical struggles to what we are told happened.

God places Adam in the paradise of Eden with the admonition about the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Then he creates Eve from Adam’s rib. I am hardly the first to observe this, but it seems symbolically significant and appropriate that Woman came from Man’s side, not feet to serve below him, or head to rule over him. “It is not good for man to be alone.” Woman is created as a helpmate. Nice. We would be wise to be reminded of this equal standing for woman. And yet…she is about to have the shame of civilization laid at her feet for initiating man’s fall from Grace. With “helpmates” like her, who needs enemies? As a woman, I do believe that a considerable amount of history's misogyny may traced to this literary origin of Man.  Here my mind wanders to Paradise Lost, as I find myself wishing every translation of the Bible were written by one or ones with the poetic brilliance of Milton! Consider this a Suggested Reading. 

So, about this Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Why did God have it there? Was it to test the two? If so, why? The threat is death, and yet that was not what punishment God enacted. Why not? Seems the story of Man would have ended there if they had died, hmmm?

This seems like the parent saying to the child, “Whatever you do, do not look inside this beautiful little jeweled box, or I will spank you.” Then the child is left alone. What will he do? How long can he hold out, fighting against the very nature of curiosity he was given? Just seems like a set-up. Did God know Man and Woman would blow it? Were His expectations too high? Did Man and Woman really eat of the fruit because it would make them God-like, or because it just had the best looking, ripest, juiciest fruit in the grove? Is there a difference between wanting to be God and just desiring wisdom? Shouldn’t we each be seeking wisdom? So what, oh, what is the lesson here? Obeying God’s word? Shunning knowledge? Avoiding associations with talking serpents? Kidding aside, I truly ask this. God should know his creation. He created Human. Human is curious, risk-taking and sometimes disobedient.

I am an educator. I value knowledge. Man was made separate from the rest of the animals who simply labor. If God created Man, as Genesis says, to rule over all the earth, that is power and requires knowledge, wisdom. So does the answer lie in the Good and Evil part? If we do not “know” good and evil, how can we recognize each and choose wisely? Without that, we are left as deaf and mute infants, seems to me. Or just work horses, like the rest of the animals.

Upon banishment, Woman’s punishment is pain in childbirth; Man’s punishment is to toil hard all his life to eat. Wow. Our first image of God is powerful, creative. My second is unforgiving and vengeful. This is our basis for modern civilization. Wow. No wonder.

Question: What is Adam and Eve had not fallen from Grace? Would they have ruled the earth as God assigned? Wasn’t God ruling?

Confession #5: I still believe in seeking knowledge, wisdom and understanding good and evil. AND, I resent having my creator depicted in primarily such a negative way. Is it God’s way of controlling me, or man’s way of controlling his fellow man?

Let there be light

Right off the bat, I am filled with responses in only the first few pages of Genesis, probably the portion of the Bible most quoted and alluded to. As a writer myself, it seems to me that all writing should be able to be held up to the light and make sense, even those based on mystery and faith. But from the first few lines I have questions, boy, do I have questions!

For example, Genesis states that on the first day God said, “Let there be Light” and there was light. But He didn’t create the source of our light, the Sun, until the fourth day. Anyone? Anyone?

And while we’re at it…what constituted a “day” before the sun and moon was set in place for that very reason, “to separate the day from the night” (according to Genesis)?

A few lines later, God tells man (and other life forms) to “Be fruitful and increase in number.” First, was this a commandment or an invitation? Now, it really bugs me when I so often hear people quote the Bible to promote their own causes, or justify their actions. Here is one common example. God doesn’t say multiply irresponsibly, bring more little people into the world than you or the world can reasonably support. I am trying to understand all the rear window stickers I see these days with 4,5,6,7 little white outlines of children, as if they are badges of honor. I truly believe we should return to the days of ZPG (zero population growth) popularized in the ‘60s. One should be conservative in the number remaining on the planet when one leaves. This environmental strategy holds more sense today than ever.

Confession #4: I like rest.

On the 7th day, God rested. Well, o.k., it seems illogical that the Almighty would have finite energy and need to rest. But I think this is one of the greatest examples for Man. We need to be reminded to REST. God rested on the seventh day – the Sabbath. Farmers know the wisdom in resting a field every seven years. Man should take that break from work at times. In fact, this is where we get sabbatical. Indeed, some industries encourage, even require, that one take a leave for a time to renew, replenish. While I’m not sure we all have to choose Sunday as our collective day of rest, I do think our culture is too caught up in the short leashes of 80-hour workweeks, BlackBerrys and laptops on vacations, work cell phones at home. I cringe as I look back on way too many Sundays of nine or ten hours grading essays over 30 years of teaching English. I am now discovering the fine art of resting. Resting body, mind, soul. Let’s hear it for guilt-free rest following hard, meaningful work.

True inner peace through rest should find some accompaniment in silence. We do not allow ourselves the gift of silence. We wake up to music (or alarms) catch the news while we get ready for work, have t.v. on all our waking hours at home. Why, I wouldn’t dream of driving in traffic without being connected to my NPR or satellite radio. Our entire culture, I suspect, has a distrust or discomfort with real silence. I know I do. Even as I write this, music is in my background. Granted, it’s quiet and instrumental, but I am probably afraid that were I in complete silence, I’d fall asleep. Yep, I’m sure of it. And yet, I believe it is in silence where our innermost soul talk has to happen, whether to ourselves or our God.

Silence leading to meditation has been shown to add dramatically to our health – lowers blood pressure, decreases headaches, even slows aging.

I am determined to give myself more time for rest, more time in silence. Is this, indeed, where God is most present?

Which Good Book?

So, I had to buy a Bible. Easy, I thought. Nope. Browsing through Borders, I became quickly overwhelmed and confused. Which translation? Hardback? Softbound? Large print? Illustrated? Endorsed by…?

Now this translation issue becomes huge – especially if, like my neighbor, you believe each word in its literal sense (more on her later). But whose word? God? A committee of men in the 16th century commissioned by King James? A contemporary group of scholars bringing in the nuances and viewpoints of their own times? I wanted something “traditional” yet with modern voice, because, frankly, I have a short attention span and didn’t yet trust myself to stick with it.

For the sake of our further discussions, I chose the New International Version (1986). Seemed easy on the eye, softbound, yep, that’ll do for starts.

I first dove into the Preface, thinking, gee, I bet I’ll get my Old Testament question answered early on. Nope. I mean, is it just assumed that anyone reading the Bible already believes in it as the Word of God? What about some alien landing on our planet, as I was beginning to feel like, who has the natural intellectual curiosity of humans and starts first with a healthy need to know “Who wrote this stuff?”

Suddenly I am thrown right back into Catechism class, learning to memorize the following statement of Life’s first paradox: “God is, was and always shall be…” O.K., but how can that be? I mean, what came before God? Nothing. But how was God made? He always was. Yea, o.k., but before that? Just repeat the declaration, Valerie. But this doesn’t make sense. That doesn’t matter. Huh? Just accept it, accept it, accept it. But how can I accept what my, albeit limited, human brain cannot intellectually reason? I learned to repeat the mantra with all my fellow novice Catholics, trying to wrap my little eight-year-old brain around this ultimate conundrum.

Confession #3: I still don’t get this concept. 

So from the start, my human intellect has failed me.  However, I managed to make it through life this far, standing on this delicate precipice, and so we fast-forward to Valerie finally cracking open the “Good Book.”