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What has always “tainted” humanity with an ethical, inclusive and caring life and continues to be the root of our cultural divide today? Bad decisions are often rooted in tribal anger and hatred.
The first four chapters of the Bible, Genesis 1-4, contain parable ancient stories that contain deep truths. They are best considered as ahistorical etiological accounts, meaning mythical stories from the beginning. How did it all start and then start going wrong?
Genesis 1-3 contains what many consider to be two accounts of creation from different sources: six steps / days and then rest in chapter 1, followed by Garden of Eden and exile in chapters 2 and 3.
I grew up with far too much literal emphasis on the Garden of Eden and the so-called “Fall of Humanity”. This approach leads Adam and Eve to disregard an arbitrary rule to avoid certain fruits on the advice of a serpent, which results in Jesus having to “fix” things on the cross.
As a Christian, I believe that Jesus gets things right by showing and teaching us how to live, and that his death and resurrection can lead to forgiveness, deep peace, companionship, and empowerment to help us make good choices hold true. This is what life and the kingdom of God are all about now – good choices. Jesus’ teachings and model of life provide a basis for an inclusive, love-centered life for Christians and all others.
The well-known six-step or “day” account of creation culminates in the creation of mankind by God: “… God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them” (Genesis 1: 27.) Further: “God saw everything that he had made, and it was really very good” (Genesis 1:31). So the climatic and enduring truth of this report is that the people have been very good from the start. The only difference was gender. History does not even suggest groups, races, socio-economic differences, or any tribal or other differences.
It is instructive to temporarily set aside the separate Garden of Eden account in Genesis 2 and 3 and to link the complete equality of the people in Genesis 1 with the account of Cain and Abel (Gen 4: 1-10). Cain and Abel, the sons of Adam and Eve, were farmers and shepherds, respectively. Cain realized that God preferred his siblings’ sacrifice to his own. This made Cain “very angry” (v. 5). He responded to his deep anger by murdering his own brother (v. 8).
Importantly, this is the first mention of “sin” or wrongdoing that God, humanly morphic, “lurked at the door” to Cain when Cain was angry before choosing “not” [to] Doing good ”while killing Abel (verse 7).
The account of Cain and Abel is, in part, an etiological story of tribal or group hatred between shepherds and peasants that goes so deep as to affect blood brothers. The climax of this ancient story is Cain’s post-murder response to God’s question about Abel’s whereabouts: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Gen. 4: 9). The implicit answer in this formative anecdote is a clear divine “yes” – from the beginning and for all generations
For me the creation account in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2-3) is more mysterious and ambiguous than the combination of Genesis 1 and 4 to a practical, understandable and through life experience confirmed beginning of equality and goodness, realized in good decisions and spoiled by bad decisions .
Yet the Eden story teaches us that we are mortal and our life will not be easy. Time is of the essence to live each day with good choices that are rooted in love and caring for our sisters and brothers, regardless of their differences. God actually decreed that as “very good”.
Without question, Jesus understood that our mortal life should be shaped by good daily choices based on love, care, and the pursuit of justice. The earliest gospel, Mark, quickly shows us what Jesus’ life was about. Mark summarizes Jesus’ teaching as “the kingdom of God is at hand”; Therefore, it is time to “repent” (Mark 1:15).
To repent is to change yourself so radically that it is like turning around and following a different path. Jesus went in the opposite direction of many prominent and powerful leaders of his own Jewish tradition, advocating for people who were ordinarily despised and oppressed.
Shortly after summarizing the teachings of Jesus, Mark tells us that a leper asked Jesus for help: “You can cleanse me if you want” (v. 40). Many healthy people oppressed the sick, mistakenly thinking that sickness meant that God rejected them. No one dared approach a leper, but Jesus immediately took the opportunity by “touching” him and helping him (v. 41). Jesus showed us the power of good choices.
The Gospel of Luke provides a powerful example of Jesus’ relentless pursuit of justice for the needy and abused. Full of God’s Spirit, Jesus proclaimed in a synagogue in Nazareth (Luke 4:16) that God had “anointed” [him] to bring good news to the poor … to proclaim liberation to the prisoners and the regaining of sight to the blind [and] to set free the oppressed … ”(v. 18).
Another example is the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew (Matthew 5-7). At the beginning of this longest compilation of His teachings, Jesus declares that the “poor,” “meek,” hungry, “peacemakers,” and “the persecuted” are actually the “blessed” (Matthew 5: 3, 5). -6 and 9-10).
Like Jesus’ actions and the pure intention of every decent person of all stripes, our choices should be “anointed” and consistent with how God intended and created us from the beginning – with equality and special concern for those who are or have suffered oppression .
The time for our return is overripe. Let us not hesitate to actively make a lasting difference in the way we live.
Walt Shelton is a writer, public speaker, professor at Baylor Law School, and Austin environmental attorney. His award-winning book, The Daily Practice of Life: Practical Reflections Toward Meaningful Living (CrossLink Publishing 2020) is a collection of previously published columns
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