THE TREE WAS GOOD, PLEASING AND DESIRABLE

PRAYER PAUSE

Friday10 February 2017, Scholastica

THE TREE WAS GOOD, PLEASING AND DESIRABLE

Pause. Enter into the stillness of God within.

Reading: “The tree was good to eat, pleasing to the eye and desirable for the knowledge it would give.” (Genesis 3:2-8)

Reflection. In these few words the Hebrew Scriptures set out the scene for the fall of human kind. It is an unsatisfactory explanation for the origin of evil. The first two chapters tell us of the goodness of creation and then suddenly everything is spoiled. Probably no explanation for “the problem of evil” can be convincing. All we get are hints, like when St Thomas Aquinas says “God did not will evil but he permitted it and that is good.” In other words evil is not God’s doing but the struggle we have against any kind of opposition, and especially evil, is the making of us. We desire what gives us pleasure but it is the work of a life time to purify our desire so that we reach perfect pleasure.

Prayer. Lord, help us to listen to our desires and purify them so that they lead us to the fullness of life. Amen.