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Question 587

I'd like to know if Orthodox Christians believe The Fall is literal, an allegory/metaphor and if a literal interpretation of Genesis is taken, how much blame/fault is given to both Adam and Eve?      

Answer to Question 587

Do we as Orthodox Christians take the Genesis account of Adam and Eve literally, or are they figurative characters? Was there an Adam or does he just represent mankind in general. If we only had The Old Testament account of the creation of man without nothing else to support it, then it would be very easy to say that Adam was a figurative character, but there is reference to Adam in the New Testament which for me is a solid proof that Adam was a genuine person and not only that, but that he was the son of God. In the Holy Gospel according to St Luke (3:23-38), we find the genealogy of our Lord Jesus Christ which begins: “And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli, Which was the son of Matthat, which was the son of Levi, which was the son of Melchi,…” and ending “Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.” What we have here is a genealogy of Jesus’ ancestry right back to Adam which is proof that Adam was indeed a real person and not a representation of mankind. Adam’s genealogy is of course mentioned in the Old Testament in much more detail as also his children’s generations. As for the fall, more blame is placed on Eve because she listened to the serpent and believed his lies when he slandered God. But Adam is equally responsible for the fall because he disobeyed God’s commandment not to eat of the forbidden fruit.

Another member

I like the explanation but in the New Testament it states that God gave his only begotten son therefore even by tracing Jesus genealogy back to Adam there seems to be a contradiction. Maybe I have misunderstood. Also are we not all sons and daughters of God? I think that perhaps the explanation lies in the word ‘begotten’?

Reply

You said yourself that maybe you misunderstood, the term "Only begotten Son" does not refer to Jesus as a man but to his Godhead as we say in the creed "And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God, Begotten of the Father before all worlds, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made."