Two Trees

In the story of Adam and Eve in the Book of Genesis, the J editor offers us an "explanation" for the problem of sin and sinfulness. He offers it to us in the form of an allegory, which of course is upsetting to those who would wish the story to be literally true. However, having said that, there is much truth contained in the story, especially regarding the sin, the famous original sin, which is symbolized by the action of eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Woven into the infamous story of humanity's fall is the obvious theological explanation by the J source of the "problem of sin." However, I submit that the story also foreshadows the end of history. Why would the end be found in a story about the beginning of creation? First, because any good story teller will hint at the climax in the beginning of the story, in order to keep the reader interested. Also, all scripture is prophetic and the famous story of the fall of our first parents offers clues for future generations on the plan that God has for overcoming the problem of sin, and how God plans on saving the human race from complete destruction because of its new found power. Of course, like most scripture, this meaning is "hidden" in the sense that you can only understand it if you are willing to accept it as it is, and not try to justify your own religious beliefs by reading them into the text. As a result, this essay will attempt to show how the eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was obscured so that we could fully understand it only during our time, the time when the "error" of our first parents will run its course, and God would correct the mistake of sin. In doing so, I will compare the two trees, the tree of life, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and show how they are archetypes of the struggle between human reason and human spirit.

Adam and Eve

According to the story, Adam is made from the dust of the earth, (his name literally translated is "earth-person"), that is he has a material or physical body. What makes Adam different from the other physical creatures(animals and plants) is that God breathes into Adam's nostrils, making Adam a "living soul." This implys two things: 1. intimacy(you must get close to someone to breathe in their nose) and 2. Adam is like the "sons of god" (angels) in that Adam has soul or spirit, making Adam both matter and soul, body, mind and spirit. Adam is unique; the point by which the spirit of God makes its way directly into our dimension, the dimension of matter. The sons of god have the ability to dwell in this realm as well, however they are not made "of the dust of the earth;" they are pure energy, pure spirit. Therefore, Adam is "one of a kind." Adam is also close to God, in fact God is the very breath that Adam breathes. Imagine this: every breath you take in is God, flowing through your body, animating every cell you have with life. It is a powerful image, and represents the reality that we share as inheritors of the Adamic life, that God is the ground of our very being.

Adam represents something new, and something new is always exciting and unusual at the same time. It appears that Adam feels a bit overwhelmed by all this, and does not know quite what to do. Adam attempts to find a help mate among the animals(as if to say "someone help me figure this out!"). All are unsuitable because they are not living souls, like him. God decides to surprise Adam by performing an operation, removing one of Adam's ribs, and creating a helpmate. Adam is pleased for the helper is the same as him, bone of Adam's bones, and flesh of Adam's flesh. Adam, being of dual nature, (body and spirit) could never be happy alone. As a result, Adam is given the one who will be called Eve. The two appear to be quite happy and content, living in the paradise of Eden, completely connected to the God who created them. They are complementaries, the yin and yang, one flesh existing in two distinct natures. Creation is in balance.

To Be or Not to Be

The two trees represent the two aspects of the human soul: mind and spirit. Both are very closely related, and they are meant to be complimentary, not exclusive. The tree of life represents unlimited human potential, when mind and spirit are united and working in harmony with truth(in the story truth is identifed with God and God's law). When Adam and Eve are eating only of the tree of life, their mind is in line with their spirit, and there are no conflicts. They are in harmony with nature, and exist in a realm that is truly beyond good and evil. This is represented by the fact that they did not know they were naked(they had no shame, because there was nothing to shame them). In fact, in this realm, good and evil do not exist because there is only one way; the way of life, unity, and completion without end. The tree of life in the story is completely available to Adam and Eve, and God places no warning or limitaiton on it because it represents the perfect union of the human being, body, mind, and soul with the mind and spirit of God. In such a relationship, there can be no limitations, only infinite growth and potential, or life without end.

The tree of the knowledge of good and evil represents the separation of mind and spirit, with human reason taking the prominent position. If Adam and Eve eat the fruit of this tree (and we know that they do) then they will place their own capacity to think and reason above any other law, or any god. The only truth they will honor is whatever they decide is true for them, and therefore they will create their own reality. They will in effect become gods who know,( knowledge in this sense is experiential) and decide what is good and evil. Through reason they will emancipate themselves from having to be dependent upon a truth greater than themselves. They will become Nietzschean superhumans.

In Beyond Good and Evil, Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future (Jenseits von Gut und Böse. Vorspiel einer Philosophie der Zukunft, 1886), Nietzsche identified imagination, self-assertion, danger, originality and the "creation of values" as qualities of genuine philosophers, as opposed to incidental characters who engage in dusty scholarship. Nietzsche also took aim at some of the world's great philosophers's key presuppositions, who grounded their outlooks wholeheartedly upon concepts such as "self-consciousness," "free will," and "either/or" bipolar thinking. Alternatively, Nietzsche philosophizes from "the perspective of life" which he regards as "beyond good and evil," and challenges the deeply-entrenched moral idea that exploitation, domination, injury to the weak, destruction and appropriation are universally objectionable behaviors. Above all, Nietzsche believes that living things aim to discharge their strength and express their "will to power" -- a pouring-out of expansive energy which, quite naturally, can entail danger, pain, lies, deception and masks. As he views things from the perspective of life, he further denies that there is a universal morality applicable indiscriminately to all human beings, and instead designates a series of moralities in an order of rank ranging from the noble to the plebeian: some moralities are more appropriate for dominating and leading social roles; some are more suitable for subordinate roles. So what counts as a preferable and legitimate action depends upon the kind of person one is. The deciding factor is whether one is strong, healthy, powerful and overflowing with ascending life, or whether one is weak, sick and on the decline.

How tempting to be free to make the rules that govern one's existence! How liberaitng to be the master of your own destiny! I wonder if Adam and Eve thought that the result of their error would be the emergence of a creature who would (as Nietzche states) discharge their strength and exert their will to power? Unfortunately, that is the very demon that will be born when and if Adam and Eve eat the forbidden fruit.

Apple Anyone?

Those familiar with the story (and who is not?) know that Adam and Eve were tempted by the serpent and ate the fruit they were commanded not to eat; the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Thus sin enters the world. And sin is not simply the breaking of some arbitary divine command. Sin is the desire to want to be like God, because as the story tells us, Adam and Eve were tempted by the serpent with the promise that if they ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree they would be like gods, knowing both good and evil. Adam and Eve were tempted by absolute power. And as explained above, the complete separation of human reason from human spirit, enthrones human reason as the ultimate law in the universe. However, there is a price for the attainment of this new found power. The connection of human reason and spirit, and their further connection to God, symbolized by the tree of life, has been irrevocably broken, and can never be put right again (unless God decides to do it). True, a new creature has been born who proclaims the death of God and the birth of the Nietzschean Superhuman. However, this superhuman is not super at all, but impotent, lost, and full of shame and regret. The Adamic life no longer exists. The garden has been abandoned, and the way back guarded by a flaming sword. In the brave new world of emancipated human reason, it is only those that seek and gain power who matter, for they get to enforce their will to power. The powerless are simply genetic rejects who can be used or abandonded depending on the will and whim of the powerful. God and truth are still there but have gone silent, and can only be heard in the lives and struggles of the powerless, the downtrodden, and the outcast. And it is this struggle, between that din of the powerful and silence of the powerless that God will "fix" our error. And it is here that we see the message for our time as well.

Emancipated Human Reason and the Final Battle Between The Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

Emancipated human reason must be at odds with God, (however one concieves of God), because the concept of a God implies a transcendant force which is greater than, and perhaps even the source of, human reason and will to power. In fact, emancipated human reason cannot exist in the same universe with anything greater than itself, so it is therefore by nature in competition with God. Emancipated human reason is also in competition with all other human beings because each human has enshrined his or her reason as the ultimate judge of right and wrong in the universe. I do not need to detail the problems and conflicts that are caused in human society because of this fact, nor the psychological disorders which arise when people realize their reason is actually quite limited, and they are incapable of answering and coping with difficulties in life. I believe everyone is familiar with many examples. However, even though there are numerous examples of the personal and societal damage caused by the separation of human reason and spirit, the world goes on as it always has, attempting to construct the Tower of Babel and storm heaven, removing God their enemy and rival from the picture, and finishing the work of Adam and Eve. An entire belief system, which goes by many names but is often associated with the occult or Satanism, has developed around the emancipation of the human mind, the denial of divine truth, and the exaltation of man over God. An example of this can be found in the beliefs and practices of the founder of the Church of Satan, Anton LaVey:

http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/satanism/churchof.html
Beliefs
The Church of Satan can best be described as a religion that mixes a hedonistic philosophy with the rituals of black magic. The Church of Satan does not promote the belief of Satan as a supernatural being; rather, it uses Satan as a symbol of defiance and rebellion against a conformist, God-fearing society. However, LaVey felt that it was necessary to build a church in the religious sense because he believed that humans still needed rituals and symbolic worship to reach a deeper level of meaning. In his own words, "People need ritual, with symbols that they may find in baseball games or church services or wars, as vehicles for expending emotions they can't release or even understand on their own" 5 .
There are 9 satanic statements 6 which convey the beliefs of the Church of Satan:
Satan represents indulgence, instead of abstinence!
Satan represents vital existence, instead of spiritual pipe dreams!
Satan represents undefiled wisdom, instead of hypocritical self-deceit!
Satan represents kindness to those that deserve it, instead of love wasted on ingrates!
Satan represents vengeance, instead of turning the other cheek!
Satan represents responsibility to the responsible, instead of concern for psychic vampires!
Satan represents man as just another animal, sometimes better, often worse than those that walk on all fours, who, because of his "divine spiritual and intellectual development," has become the most vicious animal of all!
Satan represents all of the so-called sins, as they all lead to physical, mental, or emotional gratification!
Satan has been the best friend the church has ever had, as he has kept it in business all these years!
The Church of Satan proposes that emotions such as greed, lust, and hatred are natural instincts and the denial of these feelings is utterly incorrect. They point out the hypocrisy that stems from people worshipping laws that they can't possibly follow, then feeling better again once they have confessed their sins and repented. Members would descibe themselves not as beings full of hatred and sin, but normal people who have come to grips with the carnal nature of humanity.
Yet the Church of Satan also uses much spiritual ritual and symbolism in their meetings. There are three main types of magic ritual employed: sexual rituals to aid in attaining physical ecstasy, compassionate rituals to help loved ones, and destructive rituals to release anger and hatred. Some ceremonies include the use of symbolic elements such as music (organs, gongs, vocalizing), costume (hooded robes, masks), candles, pentograms, and female nudity. A much used symbol is the Sigil of Baphomet, which is an point-down pentogram in a circle, with a goat's head inside the pentogram. The Sigil of Baphomet and closely related symbols have long been used in satanic tradition.
The Church makes a point of keeping a clean public image and steering away from unlawful activities. Following the Church's formula of "nine parts respectability to one part outrageousness," the Church of Satan has discouraged illegal activites, and has even banished grottoes associated with unethical or illegal behavior. LaVey also strongly discouraged the use of illegal drugs, not only for legal issues, but because they cause people to lose control over their lives. Church membership consists largely of respectible citizens in their middle ages, as opposed to the wayward teens that are often characterized as Satanists in the media.

The Brave New World of the emanicpated human mind is a world of selfishness, competition, vengence, fear, lust, and the dominance of the weak by the strong. It is the world as a police state. The world of emancipated human freedom means freedom for the few, for the gods among us who can handle the burden of freedom. In the words of the Grand Inquisitor(speaking to Jesus): http://www.tameri.com/csw/exist/dostgi.html

"Thou wouldst go into the world, and art going with empty hands, with some promise of freedom which men in their simplicity and their natural unruliness cannot even understand, which they fear and dread -- for nothing has ever been more insupportable for a man and a human society than freedom. But seest Thou these stones in this parched and barren wilderness? Turn them into bread, and mankind will run after Thee like a flock of sheep, grateful and obedient, though for ever trembling, lest Thou withdraw Thy hand and deny them Thy bread." But Thou wouldst not deprive man of freedom and didst reject the offer, thinking, what is that freedom worth if obedience is bought with bread? Thou didst reply that man lives not by bread alone. But dost Thou know that for the sake of that earthly bread the spirit of the earth will rise up against Thee and will strive with Thee and overcome Thee, and all will follow him, crying, "Who can compare with this beast? He has given us fire from heaven!" Dost Thou know that the ages will pass, and humanity will proclaim by the lips of their sages that there is no crime, and therefore no sin; there is only hunger? "Feed men, and then ask of them virtue!" that's what they'll write on the banner, which they will raise against Thee, and with which they will destroy Thy temple. Where Thy temple stood will rise a new building; the terrible tower of Babel will be built again, and though, like the one of old, it will not be finished, yet Thou mightest have prevented that new tower and have cut short the sufferings of men for a thousand years; for they will come back to us after a thousand years of agony with their tower. They will seek us again, hidden underground in the catacombs, for we shall be again persecuted and tortured. They will find us and cry to us, "Feed us, for those who have promised us fire from heaven haven't given it!" And then we shall finish building their tower, for he finishes the building who feeds them. And we alone shall feed them in Thy name, declaring falsely that it is in Thy name. Oh, never, never can they feed themselves without us! No science will give them bread so long as they remain free. In the end they will lay their freedom at our feet, and say to us, "Make us your slaves, but feed us." They will understand themselves, at last, that freedom and bread enough for all are inconceivable together, for never, never will they be able to share between them! They will be convinced, too, that they can never be free, for they are weak, vicious, worthless, and rebellious. Thou didst promise them the bread of Heaven, but, I repeat again, can it compare with earthly bread in the eyes of the weak, ever sinful and ignoble race of man? And if for the sake of the bread of Heaven thousands shall follow Thee, what is to become of the millions and tens of thousands of millions of creatures who will not have the strength to forego the earthly bread for the sake of the heavenly? Or dost Thou care only for the tens of thousands of the great and strong, while the millions, numerous as the sands of the sea, who are weak but love Thee, must exist only for the sake of the great and strong? No, we care for the weak too. They are sinful and rebellious, but in the end they too will become obedient. They will marvel at us and look on us as gods, because we are ready to endure the freedom which they have found so dreadful and to rule over them -- so awful it will seem to them to be free. But we shall tell them that we are Thy servants and rule them in Thy name. We shall deceive them again, for we will not let Thee come to us again. That deception will be our suffering, for we shall be forced to lie.

Opposed to this hell on earth is the concept of the Kingdom of God. Jesus said that it would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter God's Kingdom. And we can see why. Riches and power only serve to "feed" the disunity caused by the emancipation and enshrinment of human reason above spirit and truth. Riches, wealth, and power divide humans into the camps of "worthy" and "unworthy" because the new human created at the fall must put people into categories so that the gods of wealth and power can keep their position in life. In response, Jesus commands the rich young man to sell all he has and give it to the poor. Why? Because the strength of this world is really weakness: competition, will to power, riches, fame, empires, etc. are all a manifestaiton of the impotence of fallen humanity. Since the world created is built not on truth, but instead on rebellion, it can only end in disaster, and with the destruciton of all human life. This is the paradox of the nuclear bomb: all nations want it to protect themselves, but to use these weapons would mean destruciton on such a scale that no one would survive. God offers us truth, the truth that perceived weakness (such as poverty, being unpopular, mercy and compassion, non-violence) are actually strengths because they are roads to returning humanity to the garden, and access to the tree of life. However, humanity is incapable of accepting the truth of God and denying the falshood of emanicapted reason. Human reason is fundamentally unreasonable. As a result, the destruciton of this man made hell on earth will only come through struggle. The new tree of life is the cross, and it is only through crucifixion that we can experience the reurrection to new life in the Kingdom of God.

We see the beginning of this final struggle today between those who want to establish world peace through violence, increased state and church authority, and mind control with the truth of God which asks us to freely trust in His Word that God will be victorious. Since the garden this struggle has been on going. Today, we may be begining to see it culmination.