What Was The Original Sin Adam & Eve Committed?

  • Thread starter Thread starter omgriley
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
O

omgriley

Guest
We know that the book of Genesis sometimes uses figurative language to describe real truths and real events. I have heard that many theologians hold that the actual original sin which Adam and Eve committed may not have been to literally eat an apple off a tree…

This sort of makes sense to me in a certain way: “Don’t eat the apple off this tree. Anything else? Go for it. But not this tree.” My response would probably be “Piece of cake!” --Especially with Adam’s heightened level of self-control. (I get there’s definitely more to it than that. I’m merely generalizing.)

So, many theologians believe that the actual sin was of a sexual nature. They also believe this is the reason sexual sins are so dangerous and easy to fall into. We can point the Blessed Mother’s words to children of Fatima that most people are in Hell because of sins of the flesh. It also sort of explains why virginity is held in such a high regard. Humans just have a certain weakness when it comes to their sexuality, so the ability to control it to the point of perpetual virginity is a great sign of self-mastery and love of God.

Does anyone have any ideas on this theory? I’d love to hear what people think. 🙂
 
Maybe it’s just me, but I never questioned it. I took it at face value. It could be possible, but anything other - to me - would be speculation at best. Ultimately it was disobedience resulting from pride in putting self above God knowing best that brought death & ruin - & not just for Adam & Eve (sheepishly waving hand up - guilty as charged)…They - like me - & everyone else on this planet have a tendency to do likewise. I’m just glad - even joyful that God loves us more than we do even ourselves. Call me a silly goose, but, yeah…Thank You, Lord…😘😘:+1:t3:
 
The sin in Garden was not sexual. This is a teaching of the gnostic heresy.
If the gnostics were right, then it would not have made since for God to use marriage as an illustration of Christ and the Church. Under gnostic “logic” God should have just made more men from dust ad-infinium .
 
omgriley said:
We know that the book of Genesis sometimes uses figurative language to describe real truths and real events. I have heard that many theologians hold that the actual original sin which Adam and Eve committed may not have been to literally eat an apple off a tree…

This sort of makes sense to me in a certain way: “Don’t eat the apple off this tree. Anything else? Go for it. But not this tree.” My response would probably be “Piece of cake!” --Especially with Adam’s heightened level of self-control. (I get there’s definitely more to it than that. I’m merely generalizing.)

So, many theologians believe that the actual sin was of a sexual nature. They also believe this is the reason sexual sins are so dangerous and easy to fall into. We can point the Blessed Mother’s words to children of Fatima that most people are in Hell because of sins of the flesh. It also sort of explains why virginity is held in such a high regard. Humans just have a certain weakness when it comes to their sexuality, so the ability to control it to the point of perpetual virginity is a great sign of self-mastery and love of God.

Does anyone have any ideas on this theory? I’d love to hear what people think. 🙂
Click to expand...
Original Sin is the direct action which shattered the original relationship between Divinity and humanity…

One cannot deny this if one actually studies and accepts the truths found in the first three amazing chapters of Genesis. 😃
 
steve93 said:
The sin in Garden was not sexual. This is a teaching of the gnostic heresy.
If the gnostics were right, then it would not have made since for God to use marriage as an illustration of Christ and the Church. Under gnostic “logic” God should have just made more men from dust ad-infinium .
Click to expand...
Citation please.
 
I realize this is an exercise in speculation and there is no teaching what the sin was. I’m asking for opinions on what the sin specifically was.

Obviously it was a sin of disobedience… what sin isn’t? Obviously Adam and Eve chose themselves over God —that’s the nature of sin. None of these statements really go to the gist of my question.
 
I’ve always thought of the Original Sin as the sin of disobedience, the fruit of their distrust in the Word of God. Adam and Eve doubted that what God said was True, interpreted God’s Word on their own, and acted on that false interpretation.
 
omgriley said:
I realize this is an exercise in speculation and there is no teaching what the sin was. I’m asking for opinions on what the sin specifically was.

Obviously it was a sin of disobedience… what sin isn’t? Obviously Adam and Eve chose themselves over God —that’s the nature of sin. None of these statements really go to the gist of my question.
Click to expand...
Sure it goes to the gist of your question; it was disobedience driven by the presumption to “be like God who knows.”

“Pride goes before the fall.” That isn’t just a quaint saying.
 
grannymh said:
Original Sin is the direct action which shattered the original relationship between Divinity and humanity…

One cannot deny this if one actually studies and accepts the truths found in the first three amazing chapters of Genesis. 😃
Click to expand...
I don’t know what it is that you have about the “first three amazing chapters of Genesis,” but you always seem to make comments on the issue without ever answering the question.
 
Tim_D said:
I don’t know what it is that you have about the “first three amazing chapters of Genesis,” but you always seem to make comments on the issue without ever answering the question.
Click to expand...
I did answer the question regarding “What Was The Original Sin”–in the thread title.
From post 4.

Original Sin is the direct action which shattered the original relationship between Divinity and humanity.
This is explained clearly in the first three sacred chapters of Genesis. While people find that pride is a valid answer, it is not quite a specific action that has the power to scorn God to the point that a pure friendship relationship is destroyed.

Adam committed pride is not enough information to justify the results of his direct action. Adam committed disobedience, but unless one actually understands that disobedience, one can wonder if Jesus was truly and completely Divine. And yes, there have been a few threads on the Incarnation.
.
And yes, I will advertise the first three informative chapters of Genesis because maybe there will be someone who is curious enough to study those chapters in relationship with Catholic doctrines, not in relationship to metaphors, and not in relationship to some kind of truths here or there hiding under figurative this or that.

Somewhere in the previous posts, there was a request for opinions. Did I read that wrong? Please accept my apology.

The above is my opinion. Take it or leave it. 😃
 
grannymh said:
I did answer the question regarding “What Was The Original Sin”–in the thread title.
From post 4.

Original Sin is the direct action which shattered the original relationship between Divinity and humanity.
This is explained clearly in the first three sacred chapters of Genesis. While people find that pride is a valid answer, it is not quite a specific action that has the power to scorn God to the point that a pure friendship relationship is destroyed.

Adam committed pride is not enough information to justify the results of his direct action. Adam committed disobedience, but unless one actually understands that disobedience, one can wonder if Jesus was truly and completely Divine. And yes, there have been a few threads on the Incarnation.
.
And yes, I will advertise the first three informative chapters of Genesis because maybe there will be someone who is curious enough to study those chapters in relationship with Catholic doctrines, not in relationship to metaphors, and not in relationship to some kind of truths here or there hiding under figurative this or that.

Somewhere in the previous posts, there was a request for opinions. Did I read that wrong? Please accept my apology.

The above is my opinion. Take it or leave it. 😃
Click to expand...
OP here. God bless you. I appreciate your opinion 👍

In my original post I was looking for something more specific than “disobedience” (all sins are disobedience). I also think it goes without saying that Original Sin is he action which shattered the relationship between Divinty and Humanity. But what was that particular “action”? That’s my question.

Many theologians posit that the sin was of a sexual nature. In particular, I heard this on an interview on CA Live recently. I get what original sin is and what happened.

IMO, it’s like going to confession and saying “Father, I sinned against God…” he’d be completely right to follow up with: "Alright, what did you do?
 
omgriley said:
But what was that particular “action”? That’s my question.
Click to expand...
You’ve already been given the answer; it was willful disobedience driven by presumption, the desire to be like God even if it takes violating the one divine prohibition.

I don’t know why you are going on about the original act of sin being sexual. That is actually a heretical idea that sprung up positing that Eve was sexually aroused by the serpent and finished the act herself. It does not stand up to the text and it most certainly is not an orthodox position of true theologians.
 
omgriley said:
OP here. God bless you. I appreciate your opinion 👍

In my original post I was looking for something more specific than “disobedience” (all sins are disobedience). I also think it goes without saying that Original Sin is he action which shattered the relationship between Divinty and Humanity. But what was that particular “action”? That’s my question.
Click to expand...
You are correct to ask about the particular action. This is an extreme question about two particular actions. What is the difference between a dog chewing his owner’s slippers and Adam disobeying God? Obviously, the difference is that the owner has a human nature and the dog has an animal nature. It should be obvious that God has a nature different from Adam. This difference between Divinity and humanity has to be included when we approach the particular action of Original Sin. The particular action is still disobedience, but the specific particular fact of the difference in nature must be included in the definition or we might as well be talking about chewed slippers.
 
Tim_D said:
You’ve already been given the answer; it was willful disobedience driven by presumption, the desire to be like God even if it takes violating the one divine prohibition.
Click to expand...
What was the disobedience? I completely understand that this question is totally irrelevant to our salvation. It’s merely a speculative question.
I don’t know why you are going on about the original act of sin being sexual. That is actually a heretical idea that sprung up positing that Eve was sexually aroused by the serpent and finished the act herself. It does not stand up to the text and it most certainly is not an orthodox position of true theologians.
Click to expand...
I’m not “going on” about it. I pointed out that it’s the opinion of many theologians. I asked you before to provide citation for your claim that it’s a heresy that the actual sin was of a sexual nature. You have thus far failed to do so.

You’re saying that the belief that Eve was arroused by the serpent is a heresy. Fine, that may be true. Please provide authoritative citation —I.e., official Church teaching. Besides, even if that belief is condemned as a heresy, that still doesn’t prove that the original sin was not an act of sex. Eve being aroused by the devil is not the only possible form of sexual sin. There could be any number of sins with sexual origin.

You still haven’t provided an opinion on what exactly the sin of disobedience was. That’s fine if you don’t have an opinion on it, you don’t need to have one. The Church hasn’t spoken on what the actual sin of disobedience was except for the fact that “Pride entered into his heart”

Again this is all speculative, so please refrain from speaking in an authoritative tone unless you’re willing to provide official church teaching on the specific subject.
 
omgriley said:
What was the disobedience? I completely understand that this question is totally irrelevant to our salvation. It’s merely a speculative question.
Click to expand...
Here are the citations which will answer your question about this disobedience.
These citations are not about a speculative first human man on planet earth or a speculative Creator God.

Genesis 2: 15-17
Genesis 3: 2-3
Genesis 3: 9-11

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The human person is worthy of profound respect.
 
It was doubting God’s word that partakIng of fruit forbidden them would end their lives, partakIng of that fruit thinking that it would make them gods (it didn’t) - but it proved God had spoken the truth, experiencing shame at knowing that they had disobeyed God, trying to hide themselves in clothing made of leaves that they’d created to hide from God (they couldn’t face Him)…Yeah…Sounds like all of us…
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top