LESSON

B The Fall of Man

Content Standard
The learner determines and understands the root, causes, and effects of sin and
remains submissive to God's grace in overcoming temptation and avoiding sin.

Performance Standard
The learner venerates Mary, Mother of Jesus, and
role in recognizes Mama Mary's great
saving humanity from sin.

Methodology
Narration and explanation of the sacred
teachings
Values Integration
The following virtues are intended to be integrated in this lesson: (a) certainty
or conviction in detesting sin; (b) humility in asking for God's grace in times of
temptation; (c) purity of mind, body, and soul; and (d) appreciation of Mama Mary's
role in the salvation of humankind.

Sources
Gen 3:1-24 (also Job 2:3, 4-7; Mt 4:1-11;16:21-23; Lc 1:26-38;
Acts 5:3-5; Rom 5:12-21; Gal 4:4-5; 1 Cor 7:5; 15:22, 45-49; 2 Cor
22:3-4; Jn 3:3-5;
2:10-11; 1 Thes
2:18; Rev 12:9, 12).

Assessment Tool
Determine the meaning or message of the illustration below in relation to the
topic. Write your ideas or insights on a sheet of paper in 5 minutes. Once the lesson
is completed, reinterpret the illustration.

GUIDE
QUESTIONS "*

1. What do you see?

What is in the
picture?
2. What do you think
is being portrayed in
the illustration?
3. How is the picture
connected with the
title of the lesson?
 Lesson 3: The Fall of Man

A. The Story of the Fall of Man

Genesis Chapter 3
The serpent was the shrewdest among all the created creatures in the land
that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God tell you not to
eat from all the trees in the garden?" The woman said to the serpent, "We
can eat the fruits of all the trees in the garden. "But the fruit of the tree in the
midst of the garden is that which God said, You shall
not eat or touch, lest you
die" But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die! "God knows that
the time you eat of it your eyes will be
atknow what is good and what is evil."
opened and you will be like gods who
* ******'*
The woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good to eat. It became
pleasant to her eyes. And it became desirable for her to obtain
wisdom. So she took a fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, and
it. Then suddenly the eyes of the two were opened, and they understood
he ate
their nakedness. So they sewed together fig leaves and made for themselves
a girdle.

Then they heard the sound of the Lord God walking through the garden because
of the breeze of the day. The man and his wife hid themselves from the Lord
God in the midst of the trees of the garden. 'The Lord God called thè man and
said to him, "Where are you?" "And he said, "I heard your voice in the garden.
I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself." "Then God said, "Who told
you that you were naked? Did you eat the fruit from the tree of which I forbade
you to eat?" *The man said, "The woman whom you gave me. She gave me the
fruit from the tree, and I ate it." sThe Lord God then said to the woman, "Why
did you do that?" The woman said, "The serpent tricked me, and I ate it."
4And the Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you did this, you shall be
cursed from all the beasts and from all the living creatures in the land. On your
belly you shall ereep, and dust shall you eat for as long as you live. "I will put
enmity between you and the woman, and between your child and her
child. He shall strike you in the head, while you will strike him at his
heel."To the woman he said, "I will augment the pains of your childbearing,
and in pain you shall beget your children. Yet you will long for your husband,
and he shall rule over you." "And to the man he said, "Because you listened to
the voice of your wife that caused you to eat from the tree of which I told you
not to eat, cursed be the land! In pain you shall work for you to produce what
you shall eat all the days of your life. "Thornbushes and thistles shall sprout
for you, as you eat of the herbage of the field. Through the sweat of your face
shall you produce the food you will eat, until you return to the ground, from
which you were taken. For you are dirt, and to dirt you shall return."
Salvation History: From Eden.to Bethlehem

"The man named his wife Eve, because she became the mother of all who live.
The Lord God made for the man and his wife leather clothes, with which he
put on them. Then the Lord God said, "Behold! The man becomes like
one of us, because he knows now what is good and what is evil! He
must be sent away so as not to put out his hand again on the fruit from the tre
of life, and thus eat of it and live forever."
sThe Lord God sent him off from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from
which he was taken. He cast out the man, and he settled him in the east of the
garden of Eden; and he placed a cherubim with a fiery sword to guard
the way toward the tree of life.

B. The Sacred Teachings on the Narrative

1. The Devil's presence from the beginning

Genesis Chapter 3
The serpent was the shrewdest among all the created creatures in the
land that the Lord God had made. [..] The Lord God then said to the
:woman, "Why did you do that?" The woman said, "The serpent tricked
:me, and I ate it."

In the narrative on the "Fall of Man," the "serpent" represents

the Devil, Satan. The mission of the Devil was to tempt or to trick. To
"tempt" is to encourage others that bad things are seemingly good.
To "tempt" is to make man rebel against God. It is to push Man not to
follow the norms of God. Thus, "tricks" were used by the Devil to lure
man to sin or to rebel against God. Such are depicted on the reports
found in the other parts of the Sacred Scriptures?
The Devil exists. He existed before the world was created, and he
continues to roam around the towns, cities, and countries to tempt
people to rebel against God. He waits quietly for an opportunity to
"trick" each one of us.
We may be strong to repel him, but are at times not strong
enough to realize that we are already inside his trap. Thus, we should
not rely on our strength or on our intellectual capability. He, as the
Sacred Scriptures reveals, is the most cunning of all.We should not
Cf. Joh 2:3. 4-7; Mt 4:1-11; 16:21-23; LAc 22:3-4; Acts 5:3-5; 1 Cor 7:5; 2 Cor 2:10o-11; 1 Thes 2:18:
Rev 12:9, 12.

20
 lesson 3: The Falil of Man

underestimate his experience. For the past millennia, he has always

been everywhere. He knows what to do for persons like us to fall.

2 Eve, the first defender of the faith

Strange thoughts abound about the first woman. Among them
is the idea that the woman is the cause of the downfall of man. This
is not true. Rather, the woman is the first defender of faith.

Genesis Chapter 3
The woman said to the serpent, "We can eat the fruits of all the trees
in the garden. "But the fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden is that
which God said, You shall not eat or touch, lest you die." But the serpent
said to the woman, "You will not die! God knows that at the time you eat
of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is
good and what is evil."

The woman, who was named Eve, has fought the temptation of
the Serpent, although she failed to stand her ground. She has proven
that humanity is capable of fighting temptation, but humanity still
needs the grace to win over it.
As the Devil tempted the first woman, the latter stood her ground
and explained to the former her thoughts. She believed in the Word
of God. She spoke powerfully and explained her faith. She was the
first to speak about God and her relationship with Him and became
the first theologian. However, the Devil was very cunning. The "trick
played against the woman was about the acquisition of wisdom and
independence from God.
She may be wise, but the Devil is wiser. The Devil locks in on the
woman's pride. The Devil knew how frail the woman was at that point.
In spite of the vast experience of the Devil, the grace of God will
always be there to put the Devil out. God's grace will bring forth in
us the strong capability to repel all the temptations imputed by the
Devil. The latter may be tricky but with the grace of God, we could
overcome his temptations.
Grace should be asked for and should be acquired. We can acquire
grace through the acceptance of the sacraments. Through constant
prayer and promptings to the Holy Spirit, the necessary grace comes
to assist the person in need
Salvation History: From Eden.to Bethlehem

3. Sin

Genesis Chapter 3
The woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good to eat. It became
pleasant to her eyes. And it became desirable for her to obtain wisdom.

Pridehas been the root cause of the downfall of humanity. A sin

has always appeared to be something good for humans. The first
humans thought of being great. They wanted to obtain wisdom to be
like God. Such a temptation appeared "good." They never thought of
rebelling against the will of God as something bad or evil. Evil things
only appear good, but they lead us away from God.
Although deep within us we dislike to commit sin, we oftentimes
view the act of sin as something desirable and good. We do not want
to commit theft, but we desire the acquisition of things which are not
Ours. We realize the need to have a lot of money, but we do not see
the evil of acquiring it through fraudulent means.
This is the trick of the Devil which any man cannot set aside.
The goodness of what we want to acquire mesmerizes us. The evil
of the act is set aside to the point of justifying the act after the illicit
acquisition of the things that are not ours.
Generally, there are two types of sins: the sin of omission, and
the sin of commission. The "sin of omission" is the sin for not acting
on what should be done. For example, one has to forgive an enemy,
but one refuses to. As a Christian, one should follow the command of
Jesus to forgive and let go. If this is not done one commits the "sin of
omission." In not loving an enemy, one does not perform the Christian
duty ofloving
On the other hand, the "sin of commission" is a forbidden act
committed by a person. One example is the act of theft. To get and to
claim possession of something which is not his or hers is prohibited
by God. In committing theft, one does a "sin of commission."
 Lesson 3: The Fall of Man

4. The effects of the fall of man

a. The original sin

Due to the sin of the first couple which is termed as the original
sin, man becomes prone to committing sin. Concupiscence, the
desire to commit sin, becomes part of humanity. The tendency
to rebel against God is in our nature. Such tendencies are those
being pitched by the Devil so that each man and woman would
commit sin.

Romans Chapter 5
Thus, just as on account of one man sin entered the world,
and on account of sin, death, and thus death came to everyone,
inasmuch as everyone sinned [..]
.

To remove original sin, one has to undergo the Sacrament of

Baptism, where one becomes part of the Mystical Body of Christ
so as to be saved from the fires of eternal hell and to gain eternal
life in heaven.

John Chapter 3
Jesus answered and said to Nicodemus, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
no one without being born from above can see the kingdom of God."
Nicodemus said to him, "How can anyone be born again once he grown
old? One cannot reenter his mother's womb and be born again."Jesus
answered, "Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the
kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit."

b. The death of man

Before the fall of the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, they
had been created to be immortal. There was no death.

:Genesis Chapter 3
9"Through the sweat of your face shall you produce the food you will
eat, until you return to the ground, from which you were taken. For
you are dirt, and to dirt you shall return."

23
Salvation History: From Eden..to Bethlehem

After the Fall, the frailty of Man became visible. Man became
mortal, capable of death.
After the Fall, the next generations of human beings became
mortals. Each man and woman dies a certain death. Death comes
to the world.

Romans Chapter 5
Thus, just as on account of one man sin entered the world,
and on account of sin, death, and thus death came to everyone,
inasmuch as everyone sinned. "For until the law, sin was in the world,
but sin is not imputed unless there is no law. 14But death reigned from
Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin in the likeness of the
transgression of Adam, who is the type of the one who is to come.
5But the gift is not like the transgression. Because if by one's
transgression many died, how much more would the grace
of God and the gracious gift ofthe one, Jesus Christ, abound
for the many. "And the gift is not like through the one sinning.
For from the one toward condemnation, there was the judgment;
but the gift led from many transgressions to righteous deeds, "For if
through the transgression of one, death reigned on account
of the one, how much more will those who receive the abundance
of grace and of the gift of righteousness come to reign in
life through the one Jesus Christ. "Therefore, just as
one transgression condemnation came to all men, so also through
through
one righteous deed, justification of life came to all men. "Forjust as
through the disobedience of one man, many were constituted
sinners, thus, through the obedience ofone the many will be
constituted righteous., oThe law came in order that transgression
might bound, but, where sin abound, grace overflowed, "in order
that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through
righteousness for eternal life through our Lord, Jesus

Christ.

1 Corinthians Chapter 15
For just as in Adam everyone dies, so too in Christ shall
everyone be made alive, [...] 48Thus it is written, "The first
man, Adam, became a living being," the last Adam a life-

giving spirit. "But the first was not spiritual; rather natural and
then spiritual. "The first man was from the earthly dust; the
second man, from heaven. "As was the earthly one, so also are
the earthly, and as is the heavenly one, so also are the heavenly. Just
as we bore the image of the earthly one, we shall also bear the image
of the heavenly one.
 Lesson 3: Ihe fall of Man

Eternal life shall be relived in the coming of the Savior

5. The "proto-evangelium," the first "good news"

Genesis Chapter 3
5"I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your child
and her child. He shall strike you in the head, while you will strike him
at his heel."

of the Fall, there was a "blessing" in the midst

Despite the pain
of the curse. God made a promise. It was about the promise of the
coming of the Savior and the woman who shall bear Him in her womb
the Virgin Mary.
In the midst of God's curse against the serpent, a blessing was
proclaimed. A woman shall come to bear a child. This child shall be
the one to crush the head of the Devil.
The promised woman shall be filled with grace; she will never
be tricked nor be under the spell of the Devil to commit any mistake
or sin. From the moment of her conception, she shall be freed from

original sin, and untilher death she will maintain the purity of heart
and soul, for she will be part of the eternal plan of God to bear the
Savior of the world.

Galatians Chapter 4
And when the fullness of time came, God sent his Son, born of a
woman, born under the law, sin order to
redeem those under the law, in
order that we might receive adoption.

Luke Chapter 1
a0In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee
called Nazareth, "to a virgin betrothed to named Joseph from the
a man

house of David, and the name of the virgin was Mary. a"And coming
toward her, he said, "Hail, highly blessed! The Lord is with you."
29 But she was greatly perplexed over the word and thought of what sort of

greeting this might be. 30Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God. 3"And behold! You will conceive
in your womb and will give birth to a son, and you will call him
with the name, Jesus, 3He will be great and will be called Son of the
Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
3and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom
Salvation History: From Eden...o Bethiehem

there will have no end."34And Mary said to the angel, "Howcan this be, since
I have not known any man?" 3And the angel replied to her, saying, "The
Most High ill
holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power ofthe
overshadow you. And therefore, the begotten child will be called holy Son
of God. 3"And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, also has conceived a son in
her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called sterile. "For
nothing is impossible to the word of God." 3And Mary said, "Behold,
I am the slave ofthe Lord. May it be done to me according to your
word." Andthe angel left her.

C. The Original Sin

Activity

Group yourselves into five. Go to a parish priest for an interview. Ask

your parish priest about his understanding on the original sin and the
exemption of the Virgin Mary from it. Aside from careful note taking, you
may use camcorders or voice recorders for this activity.