The forbidden tree and a troubling picture of God
March 3, 2026
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The first Sunday in Lent gave us the creation story from the Book of Genesis as our first reading at Mass.
Due to advances in knowledge, we now know that the real story of creation is much more ancient, complex, and continues to this day.
The story we heard at Mass is mythological, and, treated as such, it can open up for us some pathways into the mystery of creation and the creator.
I wonder how many Eucharistic celebrants began their homily by telling the people that this story is not historical and speaking about it in terms of myth. I suspect few did.
Taking it as a literal account of what happened, as the Church has done for centuries, raises many questions.
Myth versus literal history
It states that humanity originated some 4,000 years ago in a state of paradise, which we know was far from reality. We developed over billions of years through evolution.
It explains the presence of evil in the world by the sin of Adam and Eve, who ate the forbidden fruit in the centre of the Garden of Eden, and we have all inherited the consequences of their sin.
Evil is a reality in the world, but explaining its presence calls for a much more profound analysis than our mythical first parents eating an apple. But again, as an image, it can be helpful.
Blaming women
It blames the woman, Eve, for tempting Adam to sin.
There is no need to spell out the enormous damage that depiction has done to women; even to this day, our Church seems unable to recognise the female as equal to the male of our species.
The woman is weak and a temptress.
A troubling image of the divine
Maybe the biggest damage the literal interpretation of the creation story does is how it depicts the Divine.
If he/she had created our first parents out of love, what possible motive could there be in placing a forbidden tree in the middle of the garden? It seems deliberately planted there to catch them out, so that they could be expelled.
And then, a really vindictive side of the Divine, closing the gates of heaven to all humanity. So that effectively meant that humanity was immediately condemned to Hell until such time as Jesus died a cruel death to appease Divinity.
What an act for a loving God!
Scripture needs new understanding
Now, thanks to advances in science and cosmology, we know so much more about the universe and humanity’s place within it.
It is no longer credible to present all Bible stories as literal, historical accounts of the word of God.
There is an urgent need for a proper understanding of Scripture for all the believers.
But it won’t be easy. As we introduce the notion of many parts of the Bible as myth, story and imagery, we open up a ‘can of worms’ in the sense that many more questions, about Church beliefs and teachings, will present themselves.
- Tony Flannery (www.tonyflannery.com) is a native of Galway, Ireland. He joined the Redemptorists and was ordained in 1974. In 2010, he co-founded the Association of Catholic Priests, and two years later was sanctioned by the Vatican for writings it considered heretical. Since then, he has been forbidden to minister publicly as a priest.
