One Adam or many?

  • Thread starter Thread starter sdean
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
S

sdean

Guest
Our daughter’s CCD teachers (Confirmation) and our community priest are teaching that Adam and Eve could represent many people - that they may have been a community rather than one couple. I asked our priest about polygenism and he very emphatically stated that the Church has never had a teaching on Adam.

I have read the Adam, Eve, and Evolution page in the Catholic Answers site, but the priest claimed that the internet is a poor place to get information and again stated that the Catholic Church did not have a position or teaching about the issue.

Is this true? What is the Church’s teaching?

A little explanation: We are in the military and assigned to Budapest, Hungary. An American Jesuit who works in a local university performs mass for the English speaking community. It is not a parish.
 
First off - the Vatican has its own website. He can hardly dispute findings on that site can he? The internet is an excellent resource providing you stick with real Catholic sites.

Polygenism at Vatican Website

…37. When, however, there is question of another conjectural opinion, namely polygenism, the children of the Church by no means enjoy such liberty. For the faithful cannot embrace that opinion which maintains that either after Adam there existed on this earth true men who did not take their origin through natural generation from him as from the first parent of all, or that Adam represents a certain number of first parents. Now it is no no way apparent how such an opinion can be reconciled with that which the sources of revealed truth and the documents of the Teaching Authority of the Church propose with regard to original sin, which proceeds from a sin actually committed by an individual Adam and which, through generation, is passed on to all and is in everyone as his own.[12]
 
Thanks buffalo,

I have printed off the Humani Genris and am reading the entire document. I was concerned that a more recent teaching may have contradicted this document.

Sam
 
sdean said:
Thanks buffalo,

I have printed off the Humani Genris and am reading the entire document. I was concerned that a more recent teaching may have contradicted this document.

Sam
Click to expand...
As a Catholic, that’s the one thing you NEVER have to worry about. Doctrine may develop, but it can never change or contradict earlier, defined Church teaching.
 
I did not read this in entirety so please take it for what its worth.

I found this for you:
rtforum.org/lt/lt73.html

I am hoping its a good source, but have not checked it and dont know more than glancing at it to tell you diddly about it.
 
Here are what the paragraphs in the Catechism have to say about Adam and Eve as first parents
(just type in the paragraph number in the search box)

(List of resources by John Martignoni - Catholics and the Bible Audio - Text )

CCC #'s 54-55, 359-360, 375, 390-392, 402-405, 407, 416-417, 419

As for the rest of Creation here are the 9 things the Church teaches:
  1. The creation of all things out of nothing by God at the beginning of time (including the creation of time).
    CCC #'s 296-299
  2. The special creation of man.
    CCC #'s 355-358
  3. The creation of woman from man.
    CCC #'s 371
  4. All of humanity is descended from an original pair of human beings - i.e. Adam and Eve.
    CCC #'s 54-55, 359-360, 375, 390-392, 402-405, 407, 416-417, 419
    ~ First parents
    ~ Personal sin
  5. Adam and Eve were created in an original state of holiness, justice, and immortality.
    CCC #'s 374-379, 384, 398, 415-416
  6. A divine command was laid upon man to prove his obedience to God [do not eat from the tree…]
    CCC #'s 396-397, 399
  7. The transgression of that Divine Command at the instigation of Satan.
    CCC #'s 379, 390-392, 394-395, 397-398, 413-415
  8. The loss of the state of holiness, justice, and immortality of our 1st parents [because of their disobedience, Adam and Eve were kicked out of Paradise].
    CCC #'s 379, 390, 399-400, 410
  9. The promise of a future Redeemer, a Savior [Genesis 3:15, the protoevangelium, the first “good news”]. Reference: Denzinger: #2123
    CCC #'s 410-411
Humani Generis, Pope Pius XII, 1950
~ Adam is the first parent of all mankind (HG #37
~ Genesis is history in a “true sense” (HG #38)
~ Genesis chapters 1-11 is not a myth. (HG #39)
 
Everyone,

Thank you for your help. I am new to the faith and have much to learn. I’ve discovered the encyclicals (so to speak) and will spend my time to and from work reading these.

Sam
 
I cant remember were, but I heard an excelent reason on why Adam and Eve HAD to be a single male and female…
  1. We all inherit the stain of original sin. This is passed on from Father/Mother to child.
  2. If there is more than one person, this sin cannot be passed down as it is then possible to have decendants that are not decended from the same line
  3. The only way that ALL humans on the planet can have the same stain of sin is if ALL humans trace their roots back to a single set of parents.
Hope that helps

In Christ
 
sdean said:
Everyone,

Thank you for your help. I am new to the faith and have much to learn. I’ve discovered the encyclicals (so to speak) and will spend my time to and from work reading these.

Sam
Click to expand...
Please dont read and drive at the same time. We need all the Catholics we have right now. Especially the ones who like to read encyclicals. 🙂
 
Thankfully I ride a bus and the metro. Driving in Budapest traffic might be too much for my faith. 👍
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top