Family

1. God God God True Love Ideal Person Body Things Mind True Love True Love Ideal Husband Ideal Wife Ideal Person Ideal Creation Child Multiply Have Dominion Be ‘Fruitful’ Family Society Purpose of Life – Three Blessings Nation One World Family

2. The Human FallPart 1 What is the origin of evil ?

3. Our Contradictory Nature “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is in my flesh. I can will what is right but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” Romans 7:15-19

4. What kind of being am I? Evil mind Original mind Evil Good Mind Misfortune Happiness Desire Body Evil deeds Good deeds Sadness Joy A being of contradiction conflicting purposes Individual World

5. God Would Not Create Us With Opposing Purposes Evil Good 2 conflicting purposes No lasting value

6. The mystery of Satan and evil If everything God created was good, where does Satan and evil come from? Why is God’s purpose of creation not fulfilled? – the world of the 3 Blessings – joy for God and Humanity If God is good, almighty and knows what is going on, why does He allow people to suffer?

7. The Story of ‘The Fall’Our First Human Ancestors “Cast out of the Garden”“Loss of Innocence”Why evil? Why suffering? Ancient Myths– present in most cultures

8. The Genesis Story of the Human Fall Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil Tree of Life Fruit Serpent Adam Eve “Eat” “Die” Commandment Genesis 2:17

9. The Human Fall In the Garden of Eden they were both naked and they felt no shame. The woman said to the Serpent, “God said, ‘You must not eat the fruit from the tree, and you must not touch it, or you will die’” “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. She took some and ate it. She also gave some to the man and he ate it. So they made coverings for themselves. Genesis 2:15-3:23

10. “Trees” = Symbol 2 Trees – Center of the Garden 2 People – Center of God’s Ideal = Adam & Eve

11. People Represented as Trees “I am the vine, you are the branches.” John 15:5 Jesus as an olive tree Romans 11:17 “The man who trusts in [God]…will be like a tree planted by the water…” Jeremiah 17:8

12. “Tree of Life” – Human Desire Tree of Life Way blocked Access restored Genesis 3:24 Revelations 22:14 “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life” Proverbs 13:12

13. “Tree of Life” = Perfection “After he drove man out, He placed… a flaming sword…to guard the way to the tree of life.” Genesis 3:24 “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life.” Proverbs 11:30 “Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have the right to the tree of life…” Revelations 22:14

14. “Tree of Life” = Perfected man • Adam’s greatest desire • Lost after the Fall

15. “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil” = Perfected woman • Stands next to the Tree of Life • Potential for both good and evil

16. “Serpent” = Symbol 1. Able to communicate with man 2. Knew God’s Commandment 3. A good being who became corrupted ? =

17. Serpent = Devil = Angel Lucifer “And that great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world; he and his angels were thrown down with him. Revelation 12:9

18. Rebellion in Heaven “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low. You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; . . . I will make myself like the Most High.” Isaiah 14:12-14

19. “Serpent” = Archangel Lucifer

20. Satan – Not Created by God • God creates only good • Satan did not exist from time of creation • Satan is a perversion of a good angel created by God

21. What Crime Did the Archangel Commit? “And the angels who did not keep their proper positions... he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.” Jude 6-7 - an Illicit Sexual Relationship

22. What Crime Did Adam and Eve Commit? After their crimes – ashamed of their sexual parts – made aprons from fig leaves “Naked…and unashamed” Genesis 2:25 Covered their nakedness Genesis 3:7 • Crime of Adam and Eve - illicit sexual love

23. “Fruit” = Symbol • ‘Fruit’ - more desirable than life itself • God of love – not a test - necessary for the ideal Jesus said, ‘What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him “unclean”, but what comes out of his mouth.’ ? Matthew 15:10-11

24. “Fruit” = Sexual love • Trees reproduce by their fruit • People have children through their sexual love

25. “Fruit” = Sexual love • To ‘know’ is to have sexual relations • Euphemisms – understood by people of the time • “To know good and bad” - promiscuity

26. “This is the way of the adulteress, she eats, and wipes her mouth and says, ‘I have done no wrong.’” Proverbs 30:20

27. The Four Great Loves GOD M F GOD Parent’s Love Spouse’s Love Sibling’s Love Child’s Love Wife Husband Parents Sister Brother CHILD M F Daughter Son

28. God’s Dominion over Humankind God Perfected Adam PerfectedEve True Love Children True Life True Lineage

29. G A E C Spiritual Maturity (Perfection) Free to “eat” Adam Eve Fall Do not “eat” Adam Eve

30. Satan’s Dominion over Humankind Satan Fallen Adam Fallen Eve False Love FallenChildren False Life False Lineage

31. Evidence That the Origin of Evil Was Illicit Sexual Love • Considered worst sin by major religions • Adultery – ‘spiritual murder’ • Circumcision – mark of separation from evil • Celibacy – high spiritual path

32. The impact of sexual immorality It is better to die than to indulge in partaking of forbidden lustful pleasure. Uttarangasutram 22.42 The man who goes to the wife of another …digs up the very roots of life. Dhammapada 18.247 Do not come near adultery: for it is a shameful deed and evil, opening the road to other evils. Qur’an 17.32 Flee from sexual immorality. … he who sins sexually sins against his own body. I Corinthians 6.18

33. Evidence That the Origin of Evil Was Illicit Sexual Love 2. Passed on through generations • Satan – Father of humankind “You belong to your father, the devil…” John 8:44 • Our lineage needs to be purified “You must be born again.” John 3:7

34. Evidence That the Origin of Evil was Illicit Sexual Love Strong Family and Morality Weak 3. Rise and fall of civilizations Nation Prospers Nation Declines

35. The process of the Falland the motivation behind it

36. Our Position in the Cosmos Physical World Spiritual World Animal Angel • Microcosm • Ruler • Mediator

37. Before Creation of Man God Closest to God Archangel (servant) Lucifer Angels

38. After Creation of Man God Adam Eve Lucifer Lack of love Jealousy Closest to God Lucifer, feeling as though he were receiving less love than he deserved, wanted to grasp the same central position in human society as he enjoyed in the angelic world.

39. Archangel Tempts Eve God Eve Lucifer Adam Desire for unprincipled love This was the motivation of the spiritual fall, Lucifer left his proper position and seduced Eve

40. The Archangel’s Lie “ ‘You will not surely die’, the serpent said to the woman. ‘When you eat it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God…’ ” Genesis 3:4

41. The Spiritual Fall Illicit Sexual Relationship Eve before the Fallwas able to sense the spiritual dimension Spiritual Only Eve Lucifer

42. The Fall: Quran 18.50 “Behold! We said to the angels, "Bow down to Adam": They bowed down except Iblis. He was one of the Jinns, and he broke the Command of his Lord. Will ye then take him and his progeny(seed, offspring) as protectors rather than Me?.”

43. Encounters of Angels and Humans Men wanted to seduce angels. Genesis 19:5 Jacob wrestles with the angel. Genesis 32:24 An angel frees Peter from prison. Acts 5:19

44. Eve Tempts Adam God Fallen Eve then seduced Adam with the hope that by Lucifer uniting with him, she could rid herself of fear and once again stand before God. Adam Eve Desire for unprincipled love

45. Physical Fall God Adam responded and they began give and take action with each other, which brought them together in an illicit physical relationship of sexual love. Lucifer Adam Fear & Guilt Premature knowledge Eve

46. Physical Fall Illicit Sexual Relationship Both Spiritual and Physical Adam Eve Lucifer

47. The Fall: Quran 7.19-27 Satan tempted them (Adam & Eve), so that he might reveal to them their nakedness, which they had never seen before. Thus Satan did cunningly seduced them. Let not Satan deceive you, as he deceived your parents out of paradise. He stripped them of their garments to reveal to them their nakedness.

48. The Fall: Quran 20.121 In the result, they both ate of the tree, and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey his Lord, and allow himself to be seduced. 

49. The Purpose of Life Violated Mind Body Personal Conflict & Destruction Family & Social Conflict & Destruction Man Woman Environmental Conflict & Destruction People Creation