A Reflection on The First Reading for June 10: Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Genesis 3:9-15
​9But the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" 10And he said, "I heard the sound of thee in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." 11He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" 12The man said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." 13Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent beguiled me, and I ate." 14The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.15I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."

“She did it!” 

“It’s not my fault! He made me do it!”

“Wasn’t me!!!” 

A familiar conversation for any parent who has more than one child. The “blame game”.  It’s never “my” fault, it’s always the fault of someone else. My mom refereed several similar conversations between my brother and me when we were younger, and probably even up until our teens.  You would think that we would grow out of it, yet we can still play the blame game as adults. 

Like the above conversation, this week’s First Reading is also familiar to us. However, I’m not sure I paid attention to the finger-pointing before. In a way, it’s a comfort of sorts, to see that we’re not the first ones to play the blame game. Adam and Eve were told by God not to do something: do not eat from the Tree of Knowledge, they were told. They did it anyway, and blamed others for their own disobedience. Adam blamed Eve. Eve blamed the snake. The snake blamed… well he’s a snake. This moment in Genesis is THE moment for us as Christians. This is the moment when our relationship with God is broken, and sin and despair enter into our world. If I were Adam or Eve, I’d blame it on someone else too!

As I reflected on times in my life when I have blamed another for my transgression, I realized it’s a really selfish thing to do.  It’s all about me. I blame others so that I don’t appear dumb or uncertain or vulnerable. My focus is on making sure that I still look good. Does it really matter if I make someone else look bad so I can save face? Yes! In doing so, I’ve broken my relationship with that person. On the other hand, there have been times (not often) when I’ve taken the blame for the slip-up of a friend or loved one in an effort to protect them or to prevent them from getting hurt. It’s a small moment of selflessness. We’ve all watched or read a story where the plot twist involves one character taking the “rap” for another character. They sacrifice their own life for the life of the person they love. Hmmm… does that sound familiar? Isn’t that what Jesus did? 

Scripture scholars point to Jesus as the New Adam. Adam broke our relationship with God, then Jesus reconciles our relationship with God. Jesus became a created man like Adam, yet unlike Adam, He was completely obedient. He took the blame for our sins (for no logical human reason!) and made the grandest act of selflessness and love by suffering and dying on a cross so that we would live.  It sounds absolutely bonkers! Who would do that? God would. Despite our disobedience--our blaming of others for our faults--or whatever else we do, God continually seeks a relationship with us. Jesus returned us to that relationship. In recognizing this monumental act of love, I can’t help but be transformed by it, and respond to it. If I don’t, I really only have myself to blame.

​Aurea Sadi

Have you ever had a moment when you've played the blame game?  Conversely, have you ever experienced a time when your dignity was defended by another? Join the conversation, and comment below!