KES Chapel Reflection, Week of 3 October
Deo Gratias
The story of the Fall in Genesis 3 almost eclipses in its power and influence the intellectual grandeur of the pageant of creation in Genesis 1 and the gentle intimacy of the creation story of Genesis 2 that affirm the essential goodness of everything in creation and establish the dignity of our humanity in its relation to both God and everything else. The story of the Fall connects most clearly to the account of Michael and his angels fighting the dragon, “that old serpent, called the devil and Satan,” and overcoming them. Unde malum? From where does evil come? This is the question to which Genesis 3speaks so powerfully and movingly. But I have set for myself a problem. How to connect this story with the theme of this week, the theme of thanksgiving?
Perhaps through a wonderful 15th century English lyric. “Adam lay ybounden, bounden in a bond, Four thousand winter thoughte he not too long;/ And al was for an apple, an apple that he took,/As clerkes finden writen, writen in their book./ Ne hadde the apple taken been, the apple taken been,/ Ne hadde nevere Oure Lady ybeen hevene Queen./Blessed be the time that apple taken was:/ Therfore we moun singen Deo Gratias.” It is a recounting of the story of the Fall.
There it is. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God for this story, for the Fall of our humanity from an original harmony and unity with God and the created order. What can that mean? O felix culpa, which means O blessed fault or fall. The carol is a commentary on Genesis 3 but is arguing a profound and ancient theological idea well expressed by Augustine to the effect that God wills to bring good out of evil rather than not to have evil at all. A greater good is realized through the pageant of redemption which this chapter inaugurates, pointing us in the Christian understanding to Mary and Christ.