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The Tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Feb 10, 2021, St Scholastica, Wednesday 5th Week Ordinary Time)
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil. What is this tree? Even many non-Christians have heard about this tree. Did God forbid the man from its fruit because it was poisonous? Then, why did God expose such evil in his paradise? Why did God allow such a danger to exist among his creation? We may continue asking.
But my question is this. Why did God call the tree by that name? A tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
Have you ever regretted? If you have lived a life without any regret, I sincerely admire you. I have many regrets about what I have done. When I have a regret, I now know what is good and what is evil. I now know what I should have chosen and what I should have avoided. But I chose what was evil and what I should have avoided. At the time of my choice, I did not perfectly know what it would be like if I chose what was evil. But it will be a lie if I say I did not know any warning.
We can not regret when we did not have any warning. There is a man with a burn scar. When he was very young, he tipped over a boiling kettle. The baby did not know any warning. It just happened to him. Of course, he is not happy with his scar but does not regret it because he was not responsible for his action. It is his parents who regret it. His parents knew the danger of a boiling kettle and could have prevented the accident.
Although we warn people of the danger of street drugs, some people still choose them. And they regret it later when they know the harm that they have done to themselves. When we know good and evil, most often, it is when we already regret it.
Even in the paradise at the time of creation, man had a limit. And God did not leave him without wisdom. Next to the tree of knowledge of good and evil, God planted the tree of life. The fruit of this tree was not a chemical medication that could extend the man’s biological life. It was wisdom with which the man did not have to live the life of regret. With the wisdom of God, man does not have to suffer evil. But when he wants to know what it is like to be beyond his limit of freedom, he suffers and dies.
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By Fr Swann KimThe tree of the knowledge of good and evil. What is this tree? Even many non-Christians have heard about this tree. Did God forbid the man from its fruit because it was poisonous? Then, why did God expose such evil in his paradise? Why did God allow such a danger to exist among his creation? We may continue asking.
But my question is this. Why did God call the tree by that name? A tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
Have you ever regretted? If you have lived a life without any regret, I sincerely admire you. I have many regrets about what I have done. When I have a regret, I now know what is good and what is evil. I now know what I should have chosen and what I should have avoided. But I chose what was evil and what I should have avoided. At the time of my choice, I did not perfectly know what it would be like if I chose what was evil. But it will be a lie if I say I did not know any warning.
We can not regret when we did not have any warning. There is a man with a burn scar. When he was very young, he tipped over a boiling kettle. The baby did not know any warning. It just happened to him. Of course, he is not happy with his scar but does not regret it because he was not responsible for his action. It is his parents who regret it. His parents knew the danger of a boiling kettle and could have prevented the accident.
Although we warn people of the danger of street drugs, some people still choose them. And they regret it later when they know the harm that they have done to themselves. When we know good and evil, most often, it is when we already regret it.
Even in the paradise at the time of creation, man had a limit. And God did not leave him without wisdom. Next to the tree of knowledge of good and evil, God planted the tree of life. The fruit of this tree was not a chemical medication that could extend the man’s biological life. It was wisdom with which the man did not have to live the life of regret. With the wisdom of God, man does not have to suffer evil. But when he wants to know what it is like to be beyond his limit of freedom, he suffers and dies.