What Happened to Us in Eden? - Psychology of the FallSample

TWO ACCOUNTS, ONE CREATION

Yesterday, we ended by recalling the parable of the talents:

• If you have physical strength, put it to work.
• If you have wisdom, serve with it.
• If what you’ve been given, in addition to or as a complement, is the capacity to be a mother, use it to honor the Creator.
• Not a mother, but a father? The Lord has entrusted you with responsibility, too. Put it all at His disposal, because He will ask for an account. We are stewards of what has been placed in our hands, and it’s not enough to simply keep it from fading away—we are called to multiply it.

The two creation accounts can also be seen, in a sense, as equal and complementary. It is in the second narrative that tensions often arise, because some “details” can be read very differently from the traditional way (even though it’s often treated as if there were no other possible interpretation).

Here, there is no unanimous consensus, no “single authorized opinion.” That’s why the debates exist, but also why it is fully legitimate to keep digging deeper—asking questions and searching for answers. There is so much at stake, and not only for women but also for men! Understanding Creation, the Fall, and Redemption correctly is vital for everyone, because we will all give account of our stewardship—and of the stumbling blocks we may put in each other’s way regarding the task entrusted to us.

In a very clear sense, then, both accounts present the same truth, only in complementary ways. They are made of the same “stuff” (yes, an expression you’ll see us use often). On that much, I think we can all more or less agree: both are an irreplaceable part of God’s revelation. Yet they point to different aspects, and that’s what has often left us confused.

One does not cancel out the other, and we don’t have to choose between them. The two go hand in hand and shed light on each other. It’s a beautiful picture—helping us understand, in the same way, the complementary equality between man and woman that we sometimes struggle to grasp, don’t you think?

• The fact in both accounts is the same: there was only one creation of man and woman, carried out by the hand of God.
• What differs is the way it’s told—two accounts, complementary, and not in conflict.

Doesn’t it all feel like an incredible invitation to worship?