Day 53: Man in Paradise

The first man was not only created good, but was also established in friendship with his Creator and in harmony with himself and with the creation around him, in a state that would be surpassed only by the glory of the new creation in Christ. The Church, interpreting the symbolism of biblical language in an authentic way, in the light of the New Testament and Tradition, teaches that our first parents, Adam and Eve, were constituted in an original "state of holiness and justice". This grace of original holiness was "to share in. . .divine life". CCC 374-375

In today's reading, the Catechism speaks of the paradise our first parents, Adam & Eve, were in with God in the Garden of Eden. They were in a "state of holiness and justice", united with God in love and for his will. As I get older and look back on childhood, as is normal at this point in life, I can't help but get a bit nostalgic. The trials and problems have largely faded away from memory with mainly the good things being recalled. The 1970s - 90s were in a way much simpler times when compared to today, but as with all eras in human history, they had their own struggles to deal with and overcome. Today's younger generations will no doubt be saying the same one day. I say all this because it is akin to our yearning for that "state of holiness and justice" and intimate unity with God that Adam & Eve experienced before the Fall. The innocence of childhood, the lack of adult concerns and worries, the safety we felt growing up being cared for by our parents, all of these things every child should have, but still must be a shadow of what our first parents experienced in the Garden with God.

The Fall itself will be covered tomorrow, but today's reading does go a bit into the results of sin entering our world: suffering and death. More than that though was the loss of our innocence and intimate unity with God. All of these can be overcome of course through the sacrifice and redemption of Jesus Christ, but like childhood what we had before the Fall can never return in this life at least. The Catechism Companion, Vol I speaks of this:

The book of Wisdom says, "God did not make death, and he does not delight in the death of the living" (Wisdom 1:13). The price of sin is that the harmony, relationship, and intimacy with God that he created us with, and made for us, was broken. We experience this brokenness every moment of our lives, but we also experience the incredible gift of God's grace. God enters into our brokenness. (p. 110)

With regard to death after the Fall, I'm reminded of a Jewish story I once heard. It apparently is from the Mishnah but where in it I do not know. The Hebrews had fled across the Red Sea after the miraculous parting, with Egyptian soldiers in hot pursuit. Before catching up to the Hebrews, they were drowned when the Red Sea came crashing over them. The angels wanted to sing for joy to God, who was not pleased, and He responded by asking, "My creations are drowning and you are singing before me?" All of our suffering and death in this life God is similarly not pleased with and He yearns for our turning to Him again as we were in the Garden.

Early Christian depiction of Adam and Eve in the Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter