IN THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE BIBLE LESSON May 3, 2010 Issue

SILENCING SERPENT TALK

BETH CAREY

This week's Christian Science Bible Lesson, titled "Adam and Fallen Man," features a Biblical allegory with three major characters: Adam, Eve, and a very prominent talking serpent (19 references).

Creation myths have sprung up in every civilization. The Genesis account of fallen humans had been compared to Greek tragedy. Pride, fear, and material desire prompt humankind to act against God. The result is sin, guilt, and punishment. Science and Health refers to the Adam account as an "allegory" (p. 533, citation 6), "delusion" (p. 307, cit. 7), "pure delusion" (p. 567, cit. 20), and "metaphor" (p. 529, cit. 5). An allegory is a story where actions and symbolic characters depict generalizations about human experience. In other words, there is no authenticity to the story. So we can conclude that the fall of man was not a historical happening. It was and is a myth.

Paul addresses the same issue in First Corinthians 15:22, which is quoted in Science and Health: "'As in Adam [error] all die, even so in Christ [Truth] shall all be made alive'" (p. 545, cit. 3). The Christ destroys the belief of a fallen human.