Opus 2022-098: A Good, Flawed Idea

I recently finished Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas.  About the same time I was watching a video from Prager U with Dennis in discussion with Jordan Peterson.  It was a good combination but I always get a little testy in the way some people interpret the Bible and theology.

The topic came up involving Adam and Eve and the Fall.  Christian Theology teaches sin entered the world at that point and refers to Jesus as the Second Adam because He had victory over sin.  Then they started waxing philosophical.  I can’t remember which one brought up the idea but they agreed that sin did not come from eating the apple.  They claimed that sin already existed in Adam and Eve or they would not have had the ability to disobey God.  

This is the kind of topic I would really enjoy examining over dinner or coffee.  It is not something that can be resolved by two people who are not a part of the Christian family.  They have a point but they miss the point.  One of the aspects of being created in the image of God is the idea of free will.  If you have free will you have the ability to disobey God, to sin.  If you do not have a real choice then you cannot exercise free will.  When I go to a Mexican restaurant I usually don’t have to decide if I am going to over indulge in Cheez-Its.  It isn’t a choice.  Not pigging out on Cheez-Its is not a matter of free will.  There is a difference between ability to sin and the act.  Sin did not become a reality until the action gave birth to it just as I don’t gain weight until I eat those delightful little crackers.

I like both Peterson and Prager.  Both are men of great depth but I have the feeling they can have conversations with normal people like myself without being patronizing or insulting.  I will continue to explore what they have to say but I will continue to refuse to accept what they say as the final word.

That comes from the Bible.

homo unius libri