The first “chapters” of the Adam and Eve unit were very familiar to me. I was raised in church and have heard this story dozens of times. The following passages were not familiar and would most likely cause a heated debate in a Southern Baptist church. I really enjoyed how it filled in the blanks of the original story from the Bible, however. The first thing I noticed was how highly Adam was thought of by God. He praised Adam and made his other creations (angels, plants, animals, etc) praise him as well. The Bible doesn’t hold Adam to this high regard. At least not that I ever noticed…
Lilith was also a favorite of mine. She was the world’s first feminist! I had never thought of women standing up for themselves this early in time. She was created in the same fashion as Adam (from the dust) and therefore thought that she should have the same rights as him, not only to exist to serve man. This mindset, of course, made her unwelcome and not respected in Eden anymore. She left of her own free will.
The last thing I found interesting was that the other animals and creatures of the earth were punished alongside Adam and Eve. They were treated as though they had a free will and made the wrong choice. Very few passages that deal with the theme of morality give plants or animals any credit. They are thought to not make conscious decisions, which is not always the case. Discussing this issue might need its own blog. It might get messy.
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