Happy Saturday, dear sisters! Today we wrap up our study on Genesis. We’ve covered a LOT over the last almost two weeks.
As I mentioned in yesterday’s study, the themes of sin and God’s grace are ALL OVER Genesis. Right from the start, God tells man what he needs to NOT do to remain in grace. When man falters and does exactly what man isn’t supposed to do, God punishes them, but then later blesses Adam and Eve with not one son, but two (and later a third).
In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, we learn that,
“All mean are implicated in Adam’s sin, as St Paul affirms: By one man’s disobedience many (that is, all men) were made sinners"
"sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned.’289 The Apostle contrasts the universality of sin and death with the universality of salvation in Christ” CCC 402
The Catechism of the Catholic Church puts a great perspective on the importance of the beginning of Genesis:
“Among all the Scriptural texts about creation, the first three chapters of Genesis occupy a unique place. From a literary standpoint these texts may have had diverse sources. The inspired authors have placed them at the beginning of Scripture to express in their solemn language the truths of creation - its origin and its end in God, its order and goodness, the vocation of man, and finally the drama of sin and the hope of salvation. Read in the light of Christ, within the unity of Sacred Scripture and in the living Tradition of the Church, these texts remain the principal source for catechesis on the mysteries of the "beginning": creation, fall, and promise of salvation” CCC289
Let us not forget, dear sisters, that with all of our sins and shortcomings, God is always there to give us grace and help lift us back up. No matter what we struggle with, we have the sacraments to turn to and get back into the Lord’s graces. The punishment of sin is death, but the gift of God’s graces is life!
What part of Genesis spoke most to you?
To me, there is something so beautiful about the patience and grace God has for us. No matter how often we sin, we can always turn to him for forgiveness and grace. This isn’t to say we should take advantage of His graces and patience, that we should intentionally sin just to go to confession and receive graces.
Let us turn to him with honest and open hearts, dear sisters, and let us never take for granted the unending font of grace the Lord provides.
Study Questions
What part of this study and these chapters spoke to your soul the most?
I would highly encourage going through your own bible and highlighting passages that mean the most to you. Even if you don’t have a study journal, what can you do to make your bible more your bible?
The more you feel connected with Scripture, the more you’ll enjoy and encourage yourself to dig deeper. The deeper we dig, the more we come to know and love our Lord and our Faith.
