Let’s get back to the conversation that the serpent and Eve have. Genesis 3:1 says that the serpent was more
“crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made”
and Satan uses this craftiness and cunning to convince Eve to sin. The serpent asks Eve if she really can’t eat from any of the trees. She says that she can eat from any except the tree in the middle of the garden because God said she’d die. The serpent says to her that she’ll surely not die.
“For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil,” Genesis 3:5.
He’s basically taunting her.
“Ohh, come on, you’re not REALLY going to die, God just doesn’t want you to be as smart as He is, or to be His equal!”
is basically what he tells Eve.
This seems to give Eve the push she needed to eat of the tree, despite knowing she shouldn’t. Genesis 3:6 says, “When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; she gave also to her husband and he ate.”
In that very first sin, Adam and Eve decided their desires were more important than God’s commands. They abused their freedom, and disobeyed the one command given to them by God. All subsequent sin, according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church,
“would be disobedience toward god and lack of trust in His goodness,” CCC397
After they ate the fruit, Scripture says their eyes were opened, and they knew that they were naked. They fashioned themselves loin coverings. They were embarrassed.
Think of the logic the Devil used to convince Eve: you're not really going to die, God just doesn't want you to be as smart as He is. How often do we read, see, or hear supposed logic telling us that a given sin is okay?
The political arena is rife with these “logical” arguments. Roe V. Wade comes to mind as the most obvious. The right to choice is more important to this country at this time than the right of the innocent to live. Pretty much every major political point made in any presidential debate these days is one person justifying their point with supposed logic and “facts,” to prove their own agenda.
We must remain steadfast in our faith and our knowledge of what is right and what is wrong according to OUR faith, OUR church, not what others are telling us. Have you ever caught yourself thinking “Well, yeah, I guess that makes sense,” when you hear someone justifying something you know in your heart isn’t right? I know I’ve struggled with that in the past.
Study Questions
What can you do in those situations?
Pray! Read scripture! Come up with your own way to make sure you stay steadfast, try not to be lead astray.
What candidates best have their agenda aligned with our faith?
It’s so easy to get distracted, especially with the political climate just getting warmed up. As the presidential election gets closer and closer, I’m sure we’ll hear more and more why gay marriage should be legal, why abortion shouldn’t, and every other side of every other moral issue that can be politicized. Pray for our country, and for our politicians elected (or soon to be elected) to do what is right, not just what is best for their own agenda.
