Did Adam and Eve's Choice Really Explain the Imperfection of Human Nature?

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In summary, the conversation discusses the story of Adam and Eve and whether it makes sense in explaining the depravity of human nature. Some believe that the story is a metaphor for human evolution and the development of moral codes and a sense of good and evil. Others argue that the story is a parable and not meant to be taken literally. There is also discussion about whether Adam and Eve were the first humans or the first spiritually aware humans. The conversation also touches on the debate between God and evolution. Ultimately, the conversation highlights the various interpretations and debates surrounding the story of Adam and Eve.
  • #1
Saint
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How many of you really think that this story makes sense on the depravity of human's nature?

Were Adam and Eve ready for the test from God and temptation from Satan?

I always feel it is the most ridiculous story in the world, which assumes to explain the original cause of imperfection in human's nature.
 
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  • #2
Originally posted by Saint
How many of you really think that this story makes sense on the depravity of human's nature?

Were Adam and Eve ready for the test from God and temptation from Satan?

I always feel it is the most ridiculous story in the world, which assumes to explain the original cause of imperfection in human's nature.

Welp, back the humans didn't know a whole lot about the world. They didn't even know the Earth was round! (did they).

So, one would expect humans to want answers, and pick the ones that then were the best. Of course there was a bit of story-telling added to it.

To us these stories are obviously (and provably) false. And in the year 3000 many of the physical concepts we have today will seem childish.

But I think the different is the element of purposefull story telling. In other words, "they" were'nt attempting a literal and realistic answer, at least I don't take it that way.


But we still invent "new" stories these days as well, lochness monster is somewhat new, so is bigfoot I guess...


It's no excuse though, because their are those of us who do not do such things!
 
  • #3
Since God is fair and just and he allowed them to be tested we ought conclude that they were ready for the test. To say that they were not ready or that the test was not fair is to imply that God is unjust.
 
  • #4
God is omniscience, he can know the future,
when Adam and Eve failed, it simply proved that "They are note ready".
But God just acted like a bystander, watching them fail!

God screwed up!
 
  • #5
The story does not match up with the reality we know. Therefore, I take it as a parable or a myth.
 
  • #6
How many of you really think that this story makes sense on the depravity of human's nature?
Not me.
Were Adam and Eve ready for the test from God and temptation from Satan?
I think before this question can be addressed one has to decide what to ‘believe’ that tree was going to bestow upon the humans who ate of it. I’ve seen all manner of opinion about that…
If the couple were like children are today then I would say they were no more ready than a modern child who raids a cookie jar after being warned by his parents not to. In fact they would be even less ready due to an 'outsider' trying his best to convince them.
I always feel it is the most ridiculous story in the world, which assumes to explain the original cause of imperfection in human's nature.
There are other creation stories by other groups of humans that are likewise absurd.
 
  • #7
(Originally post in a previous thread. This is a more appropriate place for it. Royce)

I have always thought of that story as a metaphor of human evolution.
Before we became human we were as the beasts in the fields with no knowledge of right or wrong or God for that matter. We had no problems other that surviving and reproducing.
When we developed enough intelligence to become wise, i.e. develope a moral code and a sense of good and evil, part, I think, of forming societies, then evil came into the our world along with good. We covered our nakedness and learned to labor for our and our society's future benefit. In short we became human and began to know ourselves and strive to know God(s).
Our falling from grace is a "logical" construction oof the church to explain exactly what you are trying to explain or discuss in this thread. How or why could an all powerful all knowing God create such an imperfect being such as man and allow all the evil and suffering exist in the world of his loving creating.
I think also the it was and is exploited by the churches to make themselves and indispensable part of our lives and our society to give themselves power over us and of course wealth without having to really work for it.
I don't think mankind has fallen but is rather striving to reach a state of grace, a good loving knowing relationship with themselves and their God.
 
  • #8
I'm going with the general concensus, which is that this is a parable to try to explain something that modern psycholgy and biology is currently figuring out.
 
  • #9
Royce - Reminds me of an interesting interpretation I heard in which Adam and Eve were not the first humans, but rather the first "spiritually aware" humans (the first humans to connect with God). This would allow for an old Earth & evolution and jibe with Bible history beginning at that more recent point in time.
 
  • #10
i think before this question is answered we should solve the old god vs evolution debate.
 
  • #11
Reminds me of an interesting interpretation I heard in which Adam and Eve were not the first humans, but rather the first "spiritually aware" humans (the first humans to connect with God). This would allow for an old Earth & evolution and jibe with Bible history beginning at that more recent point in time.

How in the world could someone come up with an interpretation like that from the following?
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:2
The Earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
Genesis 1:3
Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.
Genesis 1:4
God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
Genesis 1:5
God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
Genesis 1:6
Then God said, "Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters."
Genesis 1:7
God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.
Genesis 1:8
God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.
Genesis 1:9
Then God said, "Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear"; and it was so.
Genesis 1:10
God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:11
Then God said, "Let the Earth sprout vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the Earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them"; and it was so.
Genesis 1:12
The Earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:13
There was evening and there was morning, a third day.
Genesis 1:14
Then God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years;
Genesis 1:15
and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so.
Genesis 1:16
God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also.
Genesis 1:17
God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth,
Genesis 1:18
and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:19
There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
Genesis 1:20
Then God said, "Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the Earth in the open expanse of the heavens."
Genesis 1:21
God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:22
God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth."
Genesis 1:23
There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
Genesis 1:24
Then God said, "Let the Earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the Earth after their kind"; and it was so.
Genesis 1:25
God made the beasts of the Earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:26
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
Genesis 1:27
God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Genesis 1:28
God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

This is not the entire chapter, but merely the beginning up until god blesses man.

Nowhere in these words is there anything that even slightly implies the possiblity of other humans. Also, there is no mention anywhere in the bible about dinosaurs, and you would definately expect to see the worlds oldest species mentioned somewhere in the book about the beginning of it all.

In short, it looks like an ancient bedtime story blown way out of proportion to help manipulate mankind into being afraid of death. Any interpretation that leaves the original text so far as to claim other humans and evolution and such is not only contradicting the bible, but just simply not sensible.
 
  • #12
megashawn:
It has been theorized that the genesis account is basically a corruption of an older, more complete one that can be found in the Jewish torah. There you can find mention of Lilith, who was banished from eden for seeking equality with Adam, and went on to fornicate with demons etc etc...
 
  • #13
Originally posted by Saint
How many of you really think that this story makes sense on the depravity of human's nature?

Were Adam and Eve ready for the test from God and temptation from Satan?

I always feel it is the most ridiculous story in the world, which assumes to explain the original cause of imperfection in human's nature.
Actually, as this is the story which has been handed down over the milleniums, it goes a long way to explain the nature of human development (more so in The West) which has evolved in accordance with it, if you think about it. :wink:

For instance there's man's incessant need to rule over nature -- after having "fallen to it" -- rather than live in harmony with it. And why is his experience so foreign to it, if in fact he were an actual part of it?

Then there's his fall to the tree of knowledge, when he could have chosen the tree of life. Is it possible that the tree of life is also the "tree of wisdom?" If so, can you see a correlation here? I suspect that Adam and Eve were not grounded in the "practical understanding" of who they were (i.e., wisdom -- or, that which is "spiritual"), which is why they fell, "through knowledge," to the natural world.

While how often do we see the temptation of young people to acquire knowledge, without the "practical understanding" to back it up? I rembember going through something similar just after I got out of high school, and it was pretty rough! I had no real sense of identity then, and no means by which to "glean one" (i.e., by faking it), by knowledge alone. Hence I was by no means prepared to live on my own.
 
  • #14
all this theorizing is well and good, but it doesn't fit in with genetic evolution, science can show that humans evolved from the old world monkys, which had evolved from something else, and something else etc etc, so at which point along evolutional chain did eden take place.
 
  • #15
Originally posted by drdeath
all this theorizing is well and good, but it doesn't fit in with genetic evolution, science can show that humans evolved from the old world monkys, which had evolved from something else, and something else etc etc, so at which point along evolutional chain did eden take place.
But what does the "Garden of Eden" suggest, if not the Gardner (God) who attends to it? And what have gardners been known to do, if not transplant new plants into the garden? Whereas if you can acknowledge that mankind is somehow "separate" from nature, then perhaps this is the best means by which to acknowledge why he's here -- "as a transplant."

While indeed, the whole chain of evolution seems to exist in order support this "new creation." Or, perhaps another way to put it is that Mother Nature, through evolution, has risen to meet God on His terms (through His influx), at which point He breaths a "living soul" into that which has become most like Himself -- "in His own image."
 
  • #16
almost all of that went right over my head, natural genetic evolution theory shows us exactly where we come from in the chain of species', and roughly when each change took place.

eden suggests that we were put here fully formed as humans by god, errhhhh don't think this fits into the chain anywhere.
 
  • #17
Originally posted by drdeath
almost all of that went right over my head, natural genetic evolution theory shows us exactly where we come from in the chain of species', and roughly when each change took place.
And yet there are two forces which come into play here: the "static principle" -- i.e., that which always was and always will be, and hence the sun -- which represents God; and that which is ever-changing and ever-evolving towards the one constant, i.e., Mother Nature herself or, evolution ... In which case the influx from the sun is really "the culprit" for the existence of life, not evolution itself -- for without it, "nothing" would evolve. Now isn't that a bit of a twist? ... i.e., what is "evolution" evolving towards?


eden suggests that we were put here fully formed as humans by god, errhhhh don't think this fits into the chain anywhere.
The only problem with this is that we all have a soul. Or do we? :wink:

This I know for myself, whether I can convince you or anyone else otherwise. Although I will say the idea is nothing new here, and has been handed down over the eons. I know that's not evidence per se', and yet as an individual I do have a soul, and have been able to ascertain this for myself.
 
  • #18
erh when you say that nothing would evolve without sun light you are wrong, we would not have evolved the way we have without sunlight, but other life forms would have evolved to live without sunlight.

so yes evolution could still go on without sunlight, or any other factor you can think of, life evolves to fill every niche it can. therefore god still goes un-needed. and the eden story still does not fit in anywhere.

and how do you know you have a soul, you have a mind and you have a body. but what else is there and can you prove you have it.
 
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  • #19
yep

Yeah, I believe they did. It was that, Satan wasn't part of that "perfect" creation. He was at first, but then he was cast out of heaven. Correct? Well, because of this, he did what he could and man fell. God's creation, that He loved, fell and sin entered into the world. Now, it was their choice, so they did it willingly. Guess that tells us something about everyone - we're all curious. We all know what happened to the cat?

-CubeX
 

What is the story of Eden Garden?

The story of Eden Garden is a biblical tale from the Book of Genesis in the Old Testament. It tells the story of the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, who were created by God and placed in the Garden of Eden. They were given everything they needed, but were forbidden from eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. However, they were tempted by the serpent and ate the fruit, resulting in their expulsion from the garden.

Is the Garden of Eden a real place?

The Garden of Eden is not a verified historical location and is believed to be a symbolic representation of paradise. Some scholars believe it could have been located in Mesopotamia or the Persian Gulf, but there is no concrete evidence to support this.

What lessons can be learned from the story of Eden Garden?

The story of Eden Garden teaches several important lessons. It highlights the consequences of disobedience and the importance of following God's rules. It also shows the dangers of temptation and the power of free will. Additionally, it emphasizes the significance of cherishing and protecting the blessings we are given.

Why is the story of Eden Garden significant?

The story of Eden Garden is significant because it is the origin story of humanity in the Judeo-Christian tradition. It explains the creation of the world and the beginning of human existence. It also provides insight into the relationship between humans and God, and the concept of good and evil.

How does the story of Eden Garden relate to science?

The story of Eden Garden is often viewed as a religious or mythological tale, but it also has connections to scientific concepts. For example, the concept of human consciousness and the development of free will can be explored through the story. Additionally, the idea of the forbidden fruit and its consequences can be seen as a cautionary tale about the effects of genetic modification or playing God in science.

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