Part 2/The Fall from Grace Article 5

Adam and Eve’s Disobedience Roman’s 7:15: “What I do, I do not understand. For I do not do what I want, but I do what I hate.” St. Paul describes an experience that all people since Adam and Eve have had, with the exception of Jesus Christ and his mother, Mary. We sin when we know it is wrong We make choices to hurt others, even ourselves for selfish reasons The attractiveness of sin is the result of our first parents.

The Fall Tragic moment in God’s plan Genesis 3:1-24 God commands Adam and Eve to eat from any tree in the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and bad. From that tree you shall not eat; the moment you eat from it your are surely doomed to die. Serpent tell Eve the exact opposite. Eve eats the forbidden fruit and gives it to Adam, who does the same. Nakedness symbolizes feeling guilt and shame which are two feelings that God did not intent humans to know. Fig leaves symbolizes that Adam and Eve to be seen by each other and by God( that is why they hide from him) God confronts them but they play the blame game. Adam blames Eve for his sin and Eve blames the serpent.

The Fall The shame of their nakedness, their hiding from God, their blaming others for their choices-is a symbolic way of saying Adam and Eve lost their original holiness and justice. They are no longer in loving communion (relationship) with God, not are they in harmony with each other. Leave the Garden of Eden (paradise) and their disobedience will affect the future of all humanity. The Fall of Adam and Eve is the origin and result of Original Sin

What was the Sin Why would God not want Adam and Eve to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad (or evil)? The reason is this and we must consider the culture of figurative language. Author of Genesis, the full knowledge of good and evil belongs to God alone, who is the source of everything. The tree symbolizes what humans beings can never be: GOD himself. Eating the fruit from the tree is the symbolic way of saying “We don’t need God; we can be gods ourselves. The irony is that God had already given Adam and Eve the greatest gift possible: they are made in God’s image and they have the grace of full communion(relationship)with God Seduced by serpent’s lie, “you will be like gods” they ended up losing the grace of original holiness and justice. Their sin was a misuse of human freedom and a lack of trust in God Not accepting our own goodness and a lack of trust in God-are the root of all sin.

Part 2/ The Fall from Grace Article 6

Original Sin: A Consequence of the Fall The doctrine of the Trinity is the most essential truth, but without Original Sin there would have been no need for the Son of God to become flesh and live among us. We would all be living in Paradise Remember that sin does not defeat God. St. Paul said, “Where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more.”(Romans 5:200

No One is Exempt Original Sin 1-the sin of the first human beings, who destroyed God’s command by choosing to follow their own will and so lost their original holiness and became subject to death 2.-the fallen state of human nature that affects every person born into the world. Transmitted to their descendants/deprived of original holiness and justice Accepted as a mystery Born into state of original sin

Original Sin Result of Original Sin Human nature weakened Relationships/marked by tension/misunderstanding Moral Decisions/difficult and confused More inclined to sin-concupiscence-leads to more pain and suffering Loss of relationship with God-clouded/hidden/struggle to find him Most serious loss-death-consequence of original sin/but is not our final end. Jesus Christ has conquered death and opened the gates of Heaven

Original Sin Original Sin does not: Cause us to lose goodness or make us completely spiritually corrupt. Weakens our natural powers for relating to God and choosing to do good. Conscience Voice of conscience/speaks to our hearts; do this, shun that. Man has in his heart a law written by God to obey; it is the very dignity of man

The Spiritual Battle Doctrine of Original Sin is behind an important concept in the Scriptures and Tradition. The concept is: Since the fall of Adam and Eve, the human race has been involved in a spiritual battle between good and evil. The two sides of the battle are: 1. Satan-the evil one, who continues to tempt human beings to reject God and God’s laws. 2. God-the Father, Son and Holy Spirit who has promised to help us win this battle against evil.

The Spiritual Battle JESUS CHRIST has already won the battle through his Passion, death, Resurrection and Ascension. We must decide whose side we are going to be on.