Today we commemorate the expulsion of Adam & Eve from Paradise – in preparation for the beginning of Lent tomorrow (Monday), and Cyril & Methodius Enlighteners of the Slavs. Notice something missing (ha ha ha)?

The expulsion from Paradise cannot, must not be seen as “history” in the strictest sense of the word. Rather it can only be appreciated as mythology – and there is nothing wrong with that – indeed it is through the imagery of mythology that some of our most nuanced perceptions of the divine-human relationship can be communicated, reflected upon, and even acted upon.

Adam & Eve’s exile is not about a petulant divinity having a bad hair day and giving the first humans a very long time out in the cosmic no no corner. This overly simplistic view of the opening narratives of scripture only leads to some very bad theology – such as the abominable belief that humans are intrinsically evil, naturally bad, or loathsome. To be sure we often act that way towards one another but it is certainly not the natural state of play.

The exile from paradise is about a loss of trust, a breakdown in confidence, and its consequences. Eve was persuaded by the slick presentation style of the Serpent and in a momentary lapse of good judgement, reason, and trust in God – she lost everything. Eve was not evil, nor was she treacherous, or deceitful, rather she heard the argument, and made a choice, thinking that the grass just might be greener on the other side.

What she and Adam soon discovered however, was that there was nothing but dust and rocks on the other side and now they were very much alone.

There is another piece of the puzzle here. When we loose confidence in another, and the intimacy once shared dissipates, or is held in suspension, our sense of who we are shifts, our identity is altered. Adam & Eve were created out of an expression of love. As such the finite nature of created things was intolerable to God, and so he infused them with the image of the Logos. When Adam & Eve instead chose a relationship with Death (through the deception of the Serpent) their identity shifted, and that infusion of divine reason, of Life itself, was lost. Thus, Adam laments his nakedness: “before the gates of Paradise, bewailing his nakedness and crying out – “Woe to me the loser who have listened to wicked deceit and have been driven away from glory!”