The following is a link to our reading today from Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
http://bit.ly/1lGCQLl
“Then the eyes of both were opened and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.”
I recently witnessed a very heated conversation between two people about whether or not Adam and Eve really existed. Both individuals were becoming increasingly angry, when one of them turned to me and said, “You’re a priest. What do you think? What’s the right answer?” My heart sank. While I do enjoy talking about scripture and theology I do not enjoy arguing about either one. I also know that being a priest does not mean I have a direct line to God that gives me the “right” answer to all questions theological. I tried to buy some time, by saying, “I think it is the conversation you are having and how you are having it that is more important than finding the right answer.” This was not a satisfactory response. The person who asked me the question called my bluff. “Come on Suzannah, tell us what you think.”
So I tried again and my answer went something like this: “I do not know what the “right” answer is and honestly I do not really care whether or not Adam and Eve really existed. Whether they were real people or the story is an allegory made up by our ancestors, the story holds deep theological truths for me, and is one which teaches me new things about life and my relationship with God every time I read it.” In other words, I left both people unsatisfied and unhappy with my answer, but felt satisfied with myself, because for me this is the truth.
The story of Adam and Eve with the serpent in the Garden of Eden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is for me one of the richest and most interesting stories in the whole Bible. Every time I read it, I am struck by some new insight, some new layer of understanding that I hadn’t seen before. This time I was drawn to the line, “Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.” Two words immediately came into my head, “Vulnerability” and “Shame.”
The story of Adam and Eve with the serpent in the Garden of Eden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is for me one of the richest and most interesting stories in the whole Bible. Every time I read it, I am struck by some new insight, some new layer of understanding that I hadn’t seen before. This time I was drawn to the line, “Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.” Two words immediately came into my head, “Vulnerability” and “Shame.”
To be naked is to be vulnerable. Perhaps the most common anxiety dream in existence is the one where you are in a room full of people, all of whom are wearing clothes, and you are naked. Almost everyone has had one of these dreams and almost no one likes them. We wake up feeling ashamed. As I read that line about Adam and Eve’s nakedness I could feel their shame. I understood why they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves. For certainly I have felt shame like that before—not the shame of being literally naked in a crowd, thank God—but I have had the feeling of wanting to cover myself up, of not wanting to be seen, of feeling less than or not enough.
The next thought that came into my head was this: Where did the shame come from? Presumably Adam and Eve were naked before they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. So, it is not their nakedness per se that is causing them to feel shame. Presumably they have been walking around in a state of vulnerable nakedness since they were created. No, something has happened to bring shame into their lives, to make them aware of and afraid of their vulnerability. I think that what has happened is that because of their actions they are feeling disconnected from God and from each other.
The next thought that came into my head was this: Where did the shame come from? Presumably Adam and Eve were naked before they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. So, it is not their nakedness per se that is causing them to feel shame. Presumably they have been walking around in a state of vulnerable nakedness since they were created. No, something has happened to bring shame into their lives, to make them aware of and afraid of their vulnerability. I think that what has happened is that because of their actions they are feeling disconnected from God and from each other.
I recently read a book by social worker and researcher, Brene Brown titled, Daring Greatly. Her life’s research and this book is about shame and vulnerability. In her book Brown argues that we human beings are hardwired for connection with one another. I would add that we are also hardwired for connection with God. When we find ourselves disconnected with each other we feel pain and we feel vulnerable. Often we seek to hide and cover up our vulnerability because we are ashamed of it, but the paradox is this: we can only find true connection with each other and with God when we are willing to be truly vulnerable, (Brown, Brene. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead. Gotham Books: New York, 2012).
Adam and Eve in the garden that day should have been feeling guilt. They did do something that God had asked them not to do. But guilt is different than shame. Guilt tells us when we have done something to harm a connection we have with one another. True vulnerability allows us to make amends and
Adam and Eve in the garden that day should have been feeling guilt. They did do something that God had asked them not to do. But guilt is different than shame. Guilt tells us when we have done something to harm a connection we have with one another. True vulnerability allows us to make amends and
to repair the damage we have done. Guilt says that our actions were wrong but that we are still good and worthy of relationship. Shame tells us that we are wrong, we are bad and that we are not worthy of relationship. Shame leads us to try to protect ourselves by blaming, rationalizing, lying or hiding.
Just look at Adam and Eve. In the verses that follow our reading for today, Adam and Eve act completely out of a shame response. First they hide themselves from God. Then Adam blames Eve, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.” Then Eve blames the serpent, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” They are ashamed. They blame, rationalize and lie because they do not see themselves as worthy of a connection with God. Their shame disconnects them from God and from one another.
And how did they get to that place of disconnection in the first place? Well the serpent introduced another shameful concept into their lives. He introduced to them the idea that who they are is not enough. The serpent introduces the idea that to simply be human is not good enough, instead they need to strive to be like God. One of the most important things that Brown discovered in her research on connection and vulnerability was this: to have connection we must be vulnerable, allow ourselves to be seen. To be vulnerable we must believe that who we are is enough. We must believe that who we are with all our gifts and flaws is enough and that we are worthy of connection and love. We must understand that we can be loved for our vulnerabilities not in spite of them.
Just look at Adam and Eve. In the verses that follow our reading for today, Adam and Eve act completely out of a shame response. First they hide themselves from God. Then Adam blames Eve, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.” Then Eve blames the serpent, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” They are ashamed. They blame, rationalize and lie because they do not see themselves as worthy of a connection with God. Their shame disconnects them from God and from one another.
And how did they get to that place of disconnection in the first place? Well the serpent introduced another shameful concept into their lives. He introduced to them the idea that who they are is not enough. The serpent introduces the idea that to simply be human is not good enough, instead they need to strive to be like God. One of the most important things that Brown discovered in her research on connection and vulnerability was this: to have connection we must be vulnerable, allow ourselves to be seen. To be vulnerable we must believe that who we are is enough. We must believe that who we are with all our gifts and flaws is enough and that we are worthy of connection and love. We must understand that we can be loved for our vulnerabilities not in spite of them.
For me this is what severs Adam and Eve’s connection with God. It is not their sin, their mistake, it is their shame and their attempts to cover up their shame. It is part of the human condition to be imperfect, to mess up and to make mistakes. It is also part of the human condition to desire and need connection with one another and with God. It is not our sin, our imperfections, our mistakes that keep us from connecting with one another and with God. It is our shame, our fear, our unwillingness to be vulnerable that leads to our disconnection.
I was recently visiting a friend of mine who has a daughter who just turned one. There is no shame or fear in this little girl. Mirabelle is full of feelings, experiences, and imperfections. She is not afraid of failing. She is not afraid of being seen. She is not worried about losing connection with those she loves. She was not afraid of connecting with me, a relative stranger. She is open and vulnerable with everyone she meets. She understands that who she is is enough. She is like Adam and Eve before the serpent came into their lives. Some day she will learn about shame and she will learn to protect herself from her vulnerability. This is part of the human condition too. But true life, true connection with each other and with God comes when we adults begin to unlearn the lessons that we learned when we were young. True connection with each other and with God comes when we learn from Mirabelle and all the children out there who have not yet learned to see themselves as not enough.
You are enough. I am enough. God loves you and God loves me as we are. We are not perfect. We make mistakes. We need to make amends from time to time, but at our deepest level we are enough. When we can truly embrace our “enoughness” we will find that we are no longer afraid of our vulnerability and we will find the connections with each other and with God that we so desire.
You are enough. I am enough. God loves you and God loves me as we are. We are not perfect. We make mistakes. We need to make amends from time to time, but at our deepest level we are enough. When we can truly embrace our “enoughness” we will find that we are no longer afraid of our vulnerability and we will find the connections with each other and with God that we so desire.