Oops
- Don Roe
- Feb 1, 2009
Text: Genesis 2: 16-17; 3: 1-13
“And they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.”
- Genesis 3: 7b
Remember Bill Cosby’s famous comedy routine about Adam and Eve? In his
hilarious way, Cosby would go through his inventive version of the dialogue between the snake and Eve, and then between Eve and Adam, resulting in each one taking a bite of the apple. You can then imagine Cosby’s side-splitting rendition of their discovery that they had no clothes on; but then, that’s about the time the Lord shows up and proclaims, “Okay, that’s it! Everybody! Out of the pool!” Have you ever been caught doing something you knew you shouldn’t do, but thought you could get away with? Have you ever felt humiliated in public because of something you wished to keep covered up that came to light? We live in a world where there are more cover-ups and attempted cover-ups than we can keep up with. A year ago the head coach of the New England Patriots football team tried to film signals used to call plays by the opposing team and got caught. After years of cover-up it has been revealed that several major league baseball players used illegal steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. Cover-ups go beyond sports. We also get a steady diet of politicians who have attempted to conceal all sorts of misconduct and embarrassing situations. I’m sure most of us can remember an event in our childhood, when our parent or parents surprised us in the midst of some prohibited activity. Even as adults many of us have done things that we thought we could get away with that later became the cause of great regret. Usually we just suffer through such episodes, and eventually put them out of our minds. Sometimes, if the event is not of lasting consequence, we might later be able to laugh about it. On the other hand, some memories are so painful we are
scarcely able to face them. Today’s scripture lesson is the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They have everything they need and are living in a blissful state of naiveté. We may wonder what it must have been like living in the garden; but, paradise did not last very long. The snake comes along, catches poor Eve when she is alone, and talks her into eating not an apple, but the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Now, if you are like me, some questions emerge in relation to this story. If, for instance, Adam and Eve don’t understand the difference between good and evil in the first place, how can they really be blamed for eating the fruit? We might say that the
deeper meaning of this story has little to do with logic; but, the story is rich in meaning as we endeavor to live a wholesome life.
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