Word to the Wise
Saturday, February 14, 2009 - Sts. Cyril and Methodius
[Genesis 3:9-24 and Mark 8:1-10]Then the Lord God said: "See! The man has become like one of us, knowing what is good and what is evil! Therefore, he must not be allowed to put out his hand to take fruit from the tree of life also, and thus eat of it and live forever!" The Lord God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he had been taken.
Sometimes reading the Bible is like listening to someone tell a familiar story. If a detail or two don't jive, we are tempted to interrupt and say, "Hey! Why is such-and-such happening?" The reply may often be, "Hush! Just let me tell the story my way, OK?" Every time I read Genesis, I come away with questions, and going to the commentaries doesn't always clear things up! Of course, that may be God's way of getting me to come back again and again for more! Today's little closing speech from God, coming on the heels of the marvelous "blame-game" scene with Adam and Eve, is an example. One could get the impression that the First Couple picked the wrong tree! Is that the irony of the whole story? Is immortality better than knowing the difference between good and evil? Were they oblivious to the choice simply because the snake distracted them? The story-teller doesn't say! The immediate point of the story itself is that disobedience to God's commands can have lasting consequences. The bigger point is to account for the necessity for hard work to make a living and why there is pain and suffering in the world. These are big questions that still cause debate. The story of the Fall and its meaning for us now remains a subject for profound thought. Going back to this story again and again can help us to grow in our understanding of the God-Human relationship. We might even realize that if we don't get distracted for the wrong reasons, there could be a better choice available! AMEN
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