What is wrong with the world? We know that the world is full of goodness and beauty, truth and love. We also see many examples of anger and vengeance, hate and violence. Even though we are created in the image and likeness of God, we do not always live up to who God created us to be. St. Paul recognized this when he wrote: I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. — Romans 7:19

Jesus came to put things right in the world Even though Adam and Eve rejected God’s goodness, God promised to save all of humankind. God the Father sent Jesus to put things right. The coming of Jesus was a clear sign that God would not settle for what had gone wrong in the world.

When God created the world The Bible account of Creation in the Book of Genesis is written in a literary form that is highly symbolic. In the story of Adam and Eve, there is no apple, no sex and no character called ‘the Devil’! However, these symbols help us understand basic truths about ourselves as human beings. (Read Genesis 2:15— 3:24.)

Original Sin God created Adam and Eve in a state of original holiness and original justice and they were in harmony with God. But they lost that grace when they disobeyed God. Because of their Original Sin, this way of life was also lost for their descendants. (see p. 35)

Jesus is the ‘New Adam’ Although humans disobeyed God, God did not turn away from us. Jesus was God’s promise for Salvation. St. Paul saw a deeper symbolic meaning in the story of Adam and Eve and taught that Jesus was the ‘New Adam’ (1 Corinthians 15:47  49). God sent Jesus to earth to correct Adam’s mistake so that all people might gain eternal life.

Protoevangelium The first Revelation in the Bible that God would send a Savior comes in Genesis 3:15, where God promises to send an ‘offspring of the woman’, who will crush the head of the serpent—the symbol of temptation and sin. This is called the protoevangelium, or ‘first gospel’. (See CCC, nos. 410  411.)

Sin is a universal experience Sin means that we choose ourselves over God through acts of selfishness, pride and mistrust. We reject God’s love and plan of goodness for the world. Sin turns our desire to become ‘like’ God into a competition ‘against’ God. Every human person is capable of sin.

Sin is part of being human The first sin was the moment when Adam disobeyed God by eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge in the Garden of Eden. As a consequence, Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise. The Church teaches that sin is inherently connected to the human condition. (see p. 38)

Baptism cleanses us from Original Sin The Sacrament of Baptism cleanses us from Adam and Eve’s Original Sin and restores our relationship with God. This is why Catholics baptize infants who have not committed personal sin. (See CCC, no. 403.) The grace of Baptism empowers all of us to live with the hope that Jesus conquers evil and sin.

Why did God allow sin to happen? Evil, sin and death have existed in the world since Adam and Eve’s first disobedience, and people will always seek to explain why God allows this. The fact that God permits physical and even moral evil is a mystery that God illuminates by his Son Jesus Christ who died and rose to vanquish evil. Faith gives us the certainty that God would not permit an evil if he did not cause a good to come from that very evil, by ways that we shall fully know only in eternal life. — CCC, no. 324

The existence and work of angels Evil and sin, suffering and death are very real in our world today. But God’s love and strength are even more powerful. Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition tell us that God has sent angels as special messengers to help us live out God’s plan for Salvation.

Examples of the work of angels Throughout the Bible we have many examples of God sending angels to announce his plan to human beings. Angels were involved in these events: The Annunciation by the angel Gabriel to Mary: Luke 1:26  38. Joseph’s dream: Matthew 1:20. The Birth of Jesus: Luke 2:14. With Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane: Matthew 26:53. Jesus’ Resurrection: Matthew 28:5  6.

Fallen angels Scripture also speaks of ‘fallen’ angels, who made an irrevocable choice against God which made their sin unforgivable. Though God created them naturally good, they became evil by their own doing. (See CCC, no. 391.)

Expelling modern demons The Catholic Church teaches that good and bad angels can have a real effect on our lives. There are powers in the world that weaken our faith and trust in God. As human beings, we will always be tempted toward sin. However, God’s grace gives us the strength to make good choices and do what is right.

The story of Sr. Thea Bowman, FSPA Born Bertha Bowman in Yazoo City, Mississippi in Baptized as a Catholic at ten years old. Joined the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration at age sixteen and took the name Thea, which means ‘belonging to God’. Studied English literature and language arts and earned a PhD from the Catholic University of America. Helped found the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University in New Orleans. Died of cancer in 1990; her tombstone reads: ‘She tried.’