Word to the Wise
Saturday, February 16, 2019 - Saturday in the 5th Week in Ordinary Time
[Gen 3:9-24 and Mark 8:1-10]"You have eaten, then, from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat!" The man replied, "The woman whom you put here with me - she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it." The Lord God then asked the woman, "Why did you do such a thing?" The woman answered, "The serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it." [Genesis]
There was once a comedian named Flip Wilson, one of whose comedy routines involved a female character named Geraldine. When confronted with some mischief or wrongdoing her reply was, "The devil made me do it." Adam and Eve cannot seem to accept responsibility for their actions. Adam blames Eve and Eve blames the serpent. Does this sound familiar? It should, because the scene is a common one from ordinary life even today. A parent finds something broken and the blame game begins among the children. Although St. Augustine called the sin or Adam and Eve the "Original Sin," there is nothing "original" about it any more.
The theological consequences of the "Fall," would take us a long time to talk about. Suffice it to say that the price was considerable and we are paying for them every day not because Adam and Eve were the original actors but because we repeat their actions. Original sin is not some bad piece of DNA in our person. We have the same freedom of choosing that they did. And, yes, there will always be the "serpent" of temptation. We can be grateful that God ultimately did not give up on us, even after Noah and the flood! God finally offered a mercy called Jesus Christ to give us a way to avoid the mistakes. Even so, we have to still choose that way. AMEN