It amazes me that in this foundational story, which has doubtlessly been rewritten time and again from its first telling, there is no mention of the origin and nature of Good and Evil. From where did Good and Evil come? Who created them? In the creation stories that precede this one, at no point does the author say, “And on the third day, God created both Good and Evil.” Both Good and Evil simply exist, an understood part of the universe. But in this story there is a question that is not answered-or even asked. Into this story has been read the belief that Good and Evil existed before humanity, that they are contending forces in the world, with us as the battlefield.Īll of this, and more, in one short story from over 3000 years ago. Into this story has been read a belief that sexuality is evil and sinful, and that humankind is a failed experiment, and needs to be fixed. Into this story has been read the belief that human nature is inherently evil, and the belief that woman is inherently more sinful than man-something my own experience denies. It is one of the most over-interpreted narratives in human history. Take the story of a tree in the middle of a garden called Eden, with an order from God, a talking snake, and two rather normal, curious people. Some of those stories have been so foundational to our society that we sometimes do not see how deeply we are affected by them. We human beings are shaped and molded by the stories we tell one another, including those we tell our children.
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