Reflection on Today's Readings, Saturday, 5th Week in Ordinary Time Year 1, February 13th, 2021
Texts: Gen. 3:9-24; Ps. 90:2-6.12-13; Mark 8:1-10
Today is about the result of man's disobedience; the reason for luring man into eating of the forbidden fruit; what the Devil never told him would happen to him. Now they have eaten from the forbidden tree; they have lost their state of Innocence and guilt has set in. They are now playing hide and seek, hiding from God. This brings to mind the words of the Wise: "The wicked runs when no one is pursuing, the upright is bold as a lion" (Prov. 28:1). Sin takes away boldness and gives a new knowledge of self, knowledge of inadequacy, knowledge of lack. Sin takes away the sense of security and gives the sense of insecurity. Sin breeds fear of attacks; it has a way of striping us naked and exposing our limitedness and inadequacy without God. This brings about the sense of self-preservation; the desire to want to preserve our lives by ourselves. Adam and Eve realized their were naked and they started to protect themselves, they never trust in God for protection any longer because of their sin. Lack of trust in God is the manifestation of life of sin.
It is also clear in the story that man has the tendency not to accept the responsibility for sin. We are quick to shift blame for sin. Adam shifted the blame to Eve, and Eve shifted it to the serpent. The blame end with the serpent. The practice of shifting blame to the Devil is as old as man; it did not just start today. Adam and Eve did not take responsibility for their sins. Taking responsibility for our sins opens up for mercy and forgiveness. If Adam and Eve had accepted the responsibility for the sin, perhaps, the story would have changed today. When we fail to accept responsibility for sin, we claim to be right and that we are not in need of mercy and forgiveness. Hence, failure to accept responsibility for our sin denies us of God's mercy and forgiveness.
The story goes on to remind us that there is punishment for sin. The serpent was cursed, debased and never rose again, he also became our enemy, for God put enmity between the serpent and the woman and her offspring. The woman incurred pain of childbirth and desire for her husband and subjection to him. The man incurred toilsome labour. The earth is also cursed to bring forth thorns and thistles to make work hard for man. Hard labour is the result of sin. Sin makes the earth to turn against us.
It is also clear in the story that a choice of one thing is the rejection of another thing. Adam and Eve chose to eat the fruits of tree of knowledge and evil and denied themselves of tree of life. It is said, "'Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he puts forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever' - therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken".
Today's gospel reading shows that the solution to the problem inherited from our first parents is in Jesus Christ. We return to God through Jesus Christ. When we come to Jesus Christ we receive the grace to live above the consequences of the disobedience of our first parents. We also receive the grace to live above sin. While Adam and Eve were sent out of the garden of Eden to live the consequences of their disobedience, Jesus Christ sent out those with Him fed and able to face the challenge of life. Let us go to Jesus Christ to obtain grace to live above the consequences of our first parents' disobedience and to live above sin.
Lord God, we are sorry for the many times we have sinned against you, we acknowledge our sinfulness; we ask You for mercy and forgiveness. Amen.
Fr. Andrew Olowomuke
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