The Book of Adam

The past two Sundays I was asked to co-lead a discussion for the young adults (twenty-somethings) since their regular discussion leader was away. They wanted to know about the 'lost books' of the Bible; those that didn't make the cut into the Canon, our accepted Bible. One of the books that we discussed was the book of Adam. Turns out, according to this account, that Satan tried several times to kill Adam and Eve; even killed Adam once, but God revived him. This is all a fascinating read, and I recommend it. It does contain some interesting insights. Satan appears several times in various forms to Adam and Eve and leads them astray. He does this at least a dozen times, and they fall for it every time, realize what they had done or were doing, pray for God's intervention, and He does.

A section that I find fascinating is Satan's response to why he was kicked out of Heaven. It was Adam and Eve's fault! The book describes the tribulations following their expulsion. Adam and Eve get separated, and she's lain for two days in the earth and mud. We she finally rises, Satan leads her back to Adam. Adam is hurt, angry and grieving at his losses. Eve is even in worse condition, and Adam is concerned about her. He turns on the devil and asks, "Woe to you who fight against us! What evil have we done to you? For it is because of your calumnies that we went out from paradise. Is it because we have caused you to be expelled that you are angry against us? Or is it because of us that you were despoiled of your glory? Or is it, in some way, by our action that you are in such deficiency? Or are we the only creatures of God that you fight against us alone?"

The devil starts shedding false tears and tells Adam and Eve that it's their fault he was kicked out of Heaven! Adam wants to know what he did to him. Satan replies that Adam did nothing, but the fall from grace was his fault anyway. When God created Man, and breathed into his face, bringing him life, God's likeness and divinity was breathed into Man also. The angel Michael came and God said, ""I have created Adam according to (my) image and my divinity." Then Michael summoned the angelic hosts, and all were to bow down. Satan refused to, saying, "Go away from me, for I shall not bow down to him who is younger than me; indeed, I am master prior to him and it is proper for him to bow down to me." Many other angels heard this and agreed with Satan.

God became angry with them and cast them down to the Earth, and placed Adam in paradise, the Garden of Eden. Satan said to Adam, "When I had realized that I had fallen before you, that I was in distress and you were in rest, then I aimed at hunting you so that I might alienate you from the paradise of Delights, just as I had been alienated because of you."

Responsibility for our actions. Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed the serpent and the serpent blamed Adam. Here are the elements of our existence. The battle between good and evil, and the struggle of our own humanness, often looking elsewhere other than to ourselves, and blaming. We need to look to ourselves, and most importantly look to God. Out of this story, and it's as ancient as any of the manuscripts that made it into the Bible, I found it fascinating that not even Satan accepted responsibility for his actions.