THE REALITY of  SIN

Peccati realitas

386 Sin is present in human history; any attempt to ignore it or to give this dark reality other names would be futile. To try to understand what sin is, one must first recognize the profound relation of man to God, for only in this relationship is the evil of sin unmasked in its true identity as humanity’s rejection of God and opposition to him, even as it continues to weigh heavy on human life and history. 

386 Peccatum in historia hominis est praesens: vanum esset conari id ignorare vel huic obscurae realitati alia praebere nomina. Ut quis intelligere enitatur quid peccatum sit, oportet vinculum profundum hominis cum Deo imprimis agnoscere, quia extra hanc relationem malum peccati in sua vera identitate reiectionis Dei et oppositionis ad Illum non detegitur, licet vitam hominis et historiam onerare pergat.

387 Only the light of divine Revelation clarifies the reality of sin and particularly of the sin committed at mankind’s origins. Without the knowledge Revelation gives of God we cannot recognize sin clearly and are tempted to explain it as merely a developmental flaw, a psychological weakness, a mistake, or the necessary consequence of an inadequate social structure, etc. Only in the knowledge of God’s plan for man can we grasp that sin is an abuse of the freedom that God gives to created persons so that they are capable of loving him and loving one another. 

387 Realitas peccati et peculiarius peccati originum solummodo sub Revelationis divinae illustratur luce. Sine cognitione quam illa nobis de Deo praebet, peccatum clare nequit agnosci, et tentatio habetur illud tantum explicandi tamquam defectum in crescendo, tamquam psychologicam debilitatem, errorem, necessariam structurae socialis deficientis consequentiam etc. Solummodo in cognitione consilii Dei de homine intelligitur peccatum abusum esse libertatis quam Deus creatis donat personis ut Illum et se invicem possint amare.

ORIGINAL SIN - AN ESSENTIAL TRUTH
of the FAITH

Peccatum originale – essentialis veritas fidei

388 With the progress of Revelation, the reality of sin is also illuminated. Although to some extent the People of God in the Old Testament had tried to understand the pathos of the human condition in the light of the history of the fall narrated in Genesis, they could not grasp this story’s ultimate meaning, which is revealed only in the light of the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ (Cf. Rom 5:12-21).²⁶¹ We must know Christ as the source of grace in order to know Adam as the source of sin. The Spirit-Paraclete, sent by the risen Christ, came to “convict the world concerning sin” (Jn 16:8), by revealing him who is its Redeemer.

388 Cum Revelationis progressu realitas etiam peccati illustrata est. Licet populus Dei Veteris Testamenti ad dolorem condicionis humanae sub luce historiae lapsus in Genesi narratae accesserit, huius historiae ultimam non poterat assequi significationem quae solummodo sub luce mortis et resurrectionis Iesu Christi manifestatur. ²⁷⁸ Necesse est Christum tamquam gratiae cognoscere fontem ut Adam tamquam peccati fons agnoscatur. Spiritus Paraclitus, a Christo resuscitato missus, venit ut arguat « mundum de peccato » (Io 16,8), Illum revelans qui eius est Redemptor.

389 The doctrine of original sin is, so to speak, the “reverse side” of the Good News that Jesus is the Savior of all men, that all need salvation and that salvation is offered to all through Christ. The Church, which has the mind of Christ (Cf. 1 Cor 2:16), knows very well that we cannot tamper with the revelation of original sin without undermining the mystery of Christ.

389 Peccati originalis doctrina est, ut ita dicatur, « aversa pars » huius Boni Nuntii: Iesum omnium hominum esse Salvatorem, omnes egere salute atque salutem omnibus Christi offerri beneficio. Ecclesia quae sensum habet Christi, ²⁷⁹ scit revelationem peccati originalis attrectari non posse quin Christi laedatur mysterium.

How to read the account of the fall

Ad narrationem lapsus legendam

390 The account of the fall in Genesis 3 uses figurative language, but affirms a primeval event, a deed that took place at the beginning of the history of man (Cf. GS 13 § 1). Revelation gives us the certainty of faith that the whole of human history is marked by the original fault freely committed by our first parents. (Cf. Trent: DS 1513; Pius XII: DS 3897; Paul VI: AAS 58 (1966), 654)

390 Lapsus narratio (Gn 3) sermone utitur imaginibus confecto, sed eventum affirmat primordialem, factum quod initio historiae hominis locum habuit. ²⁸⁰ Revelatio nobis praebet fidei certitudinem de eo quod tota humana historia signata est originali culpa libere a nostris protoparentibus commissa. ²⁸¹

II. THE FALL of THE ANGELS

II. Angelorum lapsus

391 Behind the disobedient choice of our first parents lurks a seductive voice, opposed to God, which makes them fall into death out of envy (Cf. Gen 3:1-5; Wis 2:24). Scripture and the Church’s Tradition see in this being a fallen angel, called “Satan” or the “devil” (Cf Jn 8:44; Rev 12:9). The Church teaches that Satan was at first a good angel, made by God: “The devil and the other demons were indeed created naturally good by God, but they became evil by their own doing (Lateran Council IV (1215): DS 800).”

391 Electioni inoboedienti nostrorum protoparentum vox subest seductrix, Deo opposita, ²⁸² quae propter invidiam eos in mortem cadere facit. ²⁸³ Scriptura et Ecclesiae Traditio in hoc ente angelum perspiciunt lapsum, Satanam vel Diabolum appellatum. ²⁸⁴ Ecclesia docet eum primo angelum fuisse bonum, a Deo factum. « Diabolus et alii daemones a Deo quidem natura creati sunt boni, sed ipsi per se facti sunt mali ». ²⁸⁵

392 Scripture speaks of a sin of these angels (Cf. 2 Pet 2:4). This “fall” consists in the free choice of these created spirits, who radically and irrevocably rejected God and his reign. We find a reflection of that rebellion in the tempter’s words to our first parents: “You will be like God (Gen 3:5).” The devil “has sinned from the beginning”; he is “a liar and the father of lies” (1 Jn 3:8; Jn 8:44).

392 Scriptura loquitur de horum angelorum peccato. ²⁸⁶ Hic « lapsus » in libera electione horum creatorum consistit spirituum, qui radicaliter et irrevocabiliter Deum Eiusque reiecerunt Regnum. Huius rebellionis reverberationem in verbis Tentatoris ad protoparentes invenimus nostros: « Eritis sicut Deus » (Gn 3,5). « A principio Diabolus peccat » (1 Io 3,8), « mendax est et pater eius » (Io 8,44).

393 It is the irrevocable character of their choice, and not a defect in the infinite divine mercy, that makes the angels’ sin unforgivable. “There is no repentance for the angels after their fall, just as there is no repentance for men after death (St. John Damascene, De Fide orth. 2,4: PG 94,877).”

393 Irrevocabilis indoles optionis angelorum, et non infinitae misericordiae divinae defectus, facit ut eorum peccatum remitti non possit. « Post lapsum enim nulla ipsis paenitentia est, uti nec hominibus post mortem ». ²⁸⁷

394 Scripture witnesses to the disastrous influence of the one Jesus calls “a murderer from the beginning”, who would even try to divert Jesus from the mission received from his Father (Jn 8:44; cf. Mt 4:1-11). “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil (1 Jn 3:8).” In its consequences the gravest of these works was the mendacious seduction that led man to disobey God.

394 Scriptura nefastum testatur influxum illius qui a Iesu « homicida [...] ab initio » (Io 8,44) appellatur quique etiam Iesum a missione a Patre accepta conatus est deviare. ²⁸⁸ « Propter hoc apparuit Filius Dei, ut dissolvat opera Diaboli » (1 Io 3,8). Horum operum gravissimum propter consequentias mendax fuit seductio quae hominem induxit ut Deo inoboediret.

395 The power of Satan is, nonetheless, not infinite. He is only a creature, powerful from the fact that he is pure spirit, but still a creature. He cannot prevent the building up of God’s reign. Although Satan may act in the world out of hatred for God and his kingdom in Christ Jesus, and although his action may cause grave injuries - of a spiritual nature and, indirectly, even of a physical nature- to each man and to society, the action is permitted by divine providence which with strength and gentleness guides human and cosmic history. It is a great mystery that providence should permit diabolical activity, but “we know that in everything God works for good with those who love him (Rom 8:28).”

395 Potentia tamen Satanae infinita non est. Ille non est nisi creatura, potens propterea quod purus est spiritus, sed semper creatura: aedificationem Regni Dei impedire non potest. Quamquam Satanas ex odio contra Deum Eiusque Regnum in Iesu Christo in mundo agit, et quamquam eius actio gravia causat damna — naturae spiritualis et indirecte etiam naturae physicae — unicuique homini et societati, haec actio a divina permittitur providentia quae fortiter et suaviter historiam hominis regit et mundi. Permissio divina activitatis diabolicae magnum est mysterium, « scimus autem quoniam diligentibus Deum omnia cooperantur in bonum » (Rom 8,28).

III. ORIGINAL SIN

III. Peccatum originale

   Freedom put to the test

Libertatis probatio

396 God created man in his image and established him in his friendship. A spiritual creature, man can live this friendship only in free submission to God. The prohibition against eating “of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” spells this out: “for in the day that you eat of it, you shall die (Gen 2:17).” The “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Gen 2:17) symbolically evokes the insurmountable limits that man, being a creature, must freely recognize and respect with trust. Man is dependent on his Creator, and subject to the laws of creation and to the moral norms that govern the use of freedom.

396 Deus hominem ad Suam creavit imaginem et in amicitia constituit Sua. Homo, creatura spiritualis, in hac amicitia vivere non potest nisi per modum liberae submissionis ad Deum. Hoc exprimit prohibitio homini facta edendi de arbore scientiae boni et mali, « in quocumque enim die comederis ex eo, morte morieris » (Gn 2,17). Lignum « scientiae boni et mali » (Gn 2,17) symbolice limitem suggerit intransgressibilem quem homo, quatenus creatura, libere agnoscere et fidenter observare debet. Homo a Creatore pendet; legibus creationis et normis est submissus moralibus quae libertatis regulant usum.

Man’s first sin

Primum peccatum hominis

397 Man, tempted by the devil, let his trust in his Creator die in his heart and, abusing his freedom, disobeyed God’s command. This is what man’s first sin consisted of (Cf. Gen 3:1-11; Rom 5:19).

All subsequent sin would be disobedience toward God and lack of trust in his goodness.

397 Homo, a Diabolo tentatus, fiduciam erga suum Creatorem in corde mori sivit suo ²⁸⁹ et sua libertate abutens, Dei mandato inoboedivit. In hoc hominis primum constitit peccatum.

²⁹⁰ Omne exinde peccatum inoboedientia erit relate ad Deum et defectus fiduciae in Eius bonitatem.

  Seduced by the devil, he wanted to “be like God”, but “without God, before God, and not in accordance with God” (St. Maximus the Confessor, Ambigua: PG 91,1156C; cf. Gen 3:5).

 Per Diaboli seductionem, voluit « sicut Deus esse », ²⁹¹ sed « extra Deum, et prae Deo, et non secundum Deum ». ²⁹²

ORIGINAL SIN as CONVERSION from FRIENDSHIP to FEAR of A DISTORTED, JEALOUS GOD

399 Scripture portrays the tragic consequences of this first disobedience. Adam and Eve immediately lose the grace of original holiness (Cf. Rom 3:23). They become afraid of the God of whom they have conceived a distorted image - that of a God jealous of his prerogatives (Cf. Gen 3:5-10).

399 Scriptura tragicas huius primae inoboedientiae ostendit consequentias. Adam et Eva sanctitatis originalis gratiam amittunt illico. ²⁹³ Metum habent Dei, ²⁹⁴ cuius falsam conceperunt imaginem, illam Dei Suarum avidi praerogativarum. ²⁹⁵

the control of the soul’s spiritual faculties over the body is shattered;

the union of man and woman becomes subject to tensions, their relations henceforth marked by lust and domination (Cf. Gen 3:7-16).

Harmony with creation is broken: visible creation has become alien and hostile to man (Cf. Gen 3:17,19).

Because of man, creation is now subject “to its bondage to decay” (Rom 8:21). Finally, the consequence explicitly foretold for this disobedience will come true: man will “return to the ground” (Gen 3:19; cf. 2:17), for out of it he was taken. Death makes its entrance into human history (Cf. Rom 5:12).

 ²⁹⁹ Propter hominem creatio servituti corruptionis subiecta est. ³⁰⁰ Denique consequentia pro inoboedientiae casu explicite nuntiata ³⁰¹ ducetur in rem: homo in pulverem revertetur, unde sumptus est. ³⁰² Mors in historiam ingreditur humanitatis ³⁰³.

401 After that first sin, the world is virtually inundated by sin There is Cain’s murder of his brother Abel and the universal corruption which follows in the wake of sin. Likewise, sin frequently manifests itself in the history of Israel, especially as infidelity to the God of the Covenant and as transgression of the Law of Moses. And even after Christ’s atonement, sin raises its head in countless ways among Christians (Cf. Gen 4:3-15; 6:5,12; Rom 1:18-32; 1 Cor 1-6; Rev 2-3). Scripture and the Church’s Tradition continually recall the presence and universality of sin in man’s history:

401 Post primum peccatum, vera « invasio » peccati mundum replet: fratricidium a Cain commissum in Abelem; ³⁰⁴ universalis corruptio consequenter ad peccatum; ³⁰⁵ etiam in historia Israel peccatum saepe manifestatur praesertim tamquam infidelitas erga Deum Foederis et tamquam transgressio Legis Moysis; etiam post Redemptionem Christi, inter christianos, peccatum multipliciter manifestatur. ³⁰⁶ Scriptura et Traditio Ecclesiae praesentiam et universalitatem peccati in historia hominum memorare non desinunt:

What Revelation makes known to us is confirmed by our own experience. For when man looks into his own heart he finds that he is drawn towards what is wrong and sunk in many evils which cannot come from his good creator. Often refusing to acknowledge God as his source, man has also upset the relationship which should link him to his last end, and at the same time he has broken the right order that should reign within himself as well as between himself and other men and all creatures (GS 13 § 1).

« Quod Revelatione divina nobis innotescit, cum ipsa experientia concordat. Nam homo, cor suum inspiciens, etiam ad malum inclinatum se comperit et in multiplicibus malis demersum, quae a bono suo Creatore provenire non possunt. Deum tamquam principium suum saepe agnoscere renuens, etiam debitum ordinem ad finem suum ultimum, simul ac totam suam sive erga seipsum sive erga alios homines et omnes res creatas ordinationem disrupit ». ³⁰⁷

The consequences of Adam’s sin for humanity

Consequentiae peccati Adami pro humanitate

402 All men are implicated in Adam’s sin, as St. Paul affirms: “By one man’s disobedience many (that is, all men) were made sinners”: “sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned (Rom 5:12,19).” The Apostle contrasts the universality of sin and death with the universality of salvation in Christ. “Then as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to acquittal and life for all men (Rom 5:18).”

402 Omnes homines peccato Adami implicantur. Sanctus Paulus hoc affirmat: « Per inoboeditionem unius hominis peccatores constituti sunt multi » (Rom 5,19), id est omnes homines: « Sicut per unum hominem peccatum in hunc mundum intravit et per peccatum mors, et ita in omnes homines mors pertransiit, eo quod omnes peccaverunt... » (Rom 5,12). Universalitati peccati et mortis, contraponit Apostolus universalitatem salutis in Christo: « Sicut per unius delictum in omnes homines in condemnationem, sic et per unius [Christi] iustitiam in iustificationem vitae » (Rom 5,18).

403 Following St. Paul, the Church has always taught that the overwhelming misery which oppresses men and their inclination towards evil and death cannot be understood apart from their connection with Adam’s sin and the fact that he has transmitted to us a sin with which we are all born afflicted, a sin which is the “death of the soul” (Cf. Trent: DS 1512). Because of this certainty of faith, the Church baptizes for the remission of sins even tiny infants who have not committed personal sin (Cf. Trent: DS 1514).

403 Ecclesia, sanctum Paulum sequens, semper docuit immensam miseriam, quae homines opprimit, et eorum inclinationem ad malum et ad mortem comprehensibiles non esse sine earum vinculo cum peccato Adami et cum facto quod ille nobis peccatum transmisit, quo omnes affecti nascimur et quod est « mors animae ». ³⁰⁸ Propter hanc fidei certitudinem, Ecclesia Baptismum praebet in remissionem peccatorum etiam infantibus qui peccatum personale non commiserunt. ³⁰⁹

404 How did the sin of Adam become the sin of all his descendants? The whole human race is in Adam “as one body of one man” (St. Thomas Aquinas, De Malo 4,1). By this “unity of the human race” all men are implicated in Adam’s sin, as all are implicated in Christ’s justice. Still, the transmission of original sin is a mystery that we cannot fully understand. But we do know by Revelation that Adam had received original holiness and justice not for himself alone, but for all human nature. By yielding to the tempter, Adam and Eve committed a personal sin, but this sin affected the human nature that they would then transmit in a fallen state (Cf. Trent: DS 1511-1512). It is a sin which will be transmitted by propagation to all mankind, that is, by the transmission of a human nature deprived of original holiness and justice. And that is why original sin is called “sin” only in an analogical sense: it is a sin “contracted” and not “committed” - a state and not an act.

404 Quomodo peccatum Adami est peccatum omnium eius descendentium effectum? Totum genus humanum est in Adamo « sicut unum corpus unius hominis ». ³¹⁰ Propter hanc « generis humani unitatem » omnes homines implicantur peccato Adami, sicut omnes iustitia Christi implicantur. Transmissio tamen peccati originalis est mysterium quod plene comprehendere non possumus. Sed per Revelationem scimus Adamum sanctitatem et iustitiam recepisse originales non pro se tantum, sed pro tota humana natura: Tentatori obsecundantes, Adam et Eva peccatum personale committunt, sed hoc peccatum naturam humanam afficit, quam illi in statu lapso sunt transmissuri. ³¹¹ Est peccatum quod toti humanitati per propagationem transmittetur, id est per transmissionem naturae humanae privatae originalibus sanctitate et iustitia. Hac de causa, peccatum originale appellatur « peccatum » modo analogico: est peccatum « contractum » et non commissum, status et non actus.

405 Although it is proper to each individual (Cf. Trent: DS 1513), original sin does not have the character of a personal fault in any of Adam’s descendants. It is a deprivation of original holiness and justice, but human nature has not been totally corrupted: it is wounded in the natural powers proper to it, subject to ignorance, suffering and the dominion of death, and inclined to sin - an inclination to evil that is called concupiscence”. Baptism, by imparting the life of Christ’s grace, erases original sin and turns a man back towards God, but the consequences for nature, weakened and inclined to evil, persist in man and summon him to spiritual battle.

405 Peccatum originale, licet unicuique proprium, ³¹² in nullo descendente Adami indolem habet culpae personalis. Originalium sanctitatis et iustitiae est privatio, sed natura humana totaliter corrupta non est: ea in propriis viribus naturalibus est vulnerata, ignorantiae, dolori et mortis imperio submissa, et ad peccatum inclinata (haec ad malum inclinatio « concupiscentia » appellatur). Baptismus, vitam gratiae Christi donans, peccatum delet originale et hominem ad Deum convertit, sed consequentiae pro natura, debilitata et ad malum inclinata, permanent in homine eumque ad luctam vocant spiritualem.

406 The Church’s teaching on the transmission of original sin was articulated more precisely in the fifth century, especially under the impulse of St. Augustine’s reflections against Pelagianism, and in the sixteenth century, in opposition to the Protestant Reformation. Pelagius held that man could, by the natural power of free will and without the necessary help of God’s grace, lead a morally good life; he thus reduced the influence of Adam’s fault to bad example. The first Protestant reformers, on the contrary, taught that original sin has radically perverted man and destroyed his freedom; they identified the sin inherited by each man with the tendency to evil (concupiscentia), which would be insurmountable. The Church pronounced on the meaning of the data of Revelation on original sin especially at the second Council of Orange (529 (DS 371-372)) and at the Council of Trent (1546 Cf. DS 1510-1516).²⁹⁷

406 Doctrina Ecclesiae de peccati originalis transmissione praesertim saeculo V, praecipue sub impulsu considerationis sancti Augustini contra pelagianismum, est determinata, et saeculo XVI in oppositione ad protestantium Reformationem. Pelagius tenebat hominem naturali vi suae liberae voluntatis, sine necessario adiutorio gratiae, posse vitam moraliter ducere bonam; sic culpae Adami reducebat influxum ad illum mali exempli. E contra, priores reformatores protestantes docebant per peccatum originum hominem radicaliter esse perversum et eius libertatem ad nihilum reductam; peccatum hereditate ab unoquoque homine receptum idem putabant ac tendentiam ad malum (concupiscentiam) quae insuperabilis esset. Ecclesia de sensu dati revelati circa peccatum originale specialiter se expressit in Concilio Arausicano II anno 529 ³¹³ et in Concilio Tridentino anno 1546. ³¹⁴

  A hard battle. . .

  Ardua lucta...

407  The doctrine of original sin, closely connected with that of redemption by Christ, provides lucid discernment of man’s situation and activity in the world. By our first parents’ sin, the devil has acquired a certain domination over man, even though man remains free. Original sin entails “captivity under the power of him who thenceforth had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Trent (1546): DS 1511; cf. Heb 2:14). Ignorance of the fact that man has a wounded nature inclined to evil gives rise to serious errors in the areas of education, politics, social action (Cf. John Paul II, CA 25) and morals.

407 Doctrina de peccato originali — conexa cum illa de Redemptione per Christum — intuitum praebet lucidae discretionis circa statum hominis eiusque operationem in mundo. Per protoparentum peccatum Diabolus dominatum quemdam acquisivit super hominem, quamvis hic permaneat liber. Peccatum originale secum fert « captivitatem sub eius potestate, “qui mortis” deinde “habuit imperium”, hoc est Diaboli ». ³¹⁵ Ignorare hominem naturam habere vulneratam, ad malum inclinatam, gravibus erroribus ansam praebet in campo educationis, rei politicae, actionis socialis ³¹⁶ et morum.

408 The consequences of original sin and of all men’s personal sins put the world as a whole in the sinful condition aptly described in St. John’s expression, “the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29). This expression can also refer to the negative influence exerted on people by communal situations and social structures that are the fruit of men’s sins (Cf. John Paul II, RP 16).

408 Consequentiae peccati originalis et omnium personalium peccatorum hominum conferunt mundo, in eius complexu, peccatricem condicionem, quae sancti Ioannis potest expressione denotari: « peccatum mundi » (Io 1,29). Per hanc expressionem etiam negativus significatur influxus quem condiciones communitariae et structurae sociales, quae peccatorum hominum sunt fructus, super personas exercent. ³¹⁷

409 This dramatic situation of “the whole world [which] is in the power of the evil one” (1 Jn 5:19; cf. 1 Pet 5:8) makes man’s life a battle:

409 Hic tragicus status mundi, qui « totus in Maligno positus est » (1 Io 5,19), ³¹⁸ vitam hominis reddit luctam:

The whole of man’s history has been the story of dour combat with the powers of evil, stretching, so our Lord tells us, from the very dawn of history until the last day. Finding himself in the midst of the battlefield man has to struggle to do what is right, and it is at great cost to himself, and aided by God’s grace, that he succeeds in achieving his own inner integrity(GS 37 § 2).

« Universam enim hominum historiam ardua colluctatio contra potestates tenebrarum pervadit, quae inde ab origine mundi incepta, usque ad ultimum diem, dicente Domino, perseverabit. In hanc pugnam insertus, homo ut bono adhaereat iugiter certare debet, nec sine magnis laboribus, Dei gratia adiuvante, in seipso unitatem obtinere valet ». ³¹⁹

IV. “YOU DID NOT ABANDON HIM TO THE POWER OF DEATH”

IV. « Non dereliquisti eum in mortis imperio »

410 After his fall, man was not abandoned by God. On the contrary, God calls him and in a mysterious way heralds the coming victory over evil and his restoration from his fall. (Cf. Gen 3:9,15) This passage in Genesis is called the Protoevangelium (“first gospel”): the first announcement of the Messiah and Redeemer, of a battle between the serpent and the Woman, and of the final victory of a descendant of hers.

410 Homo post suum lapsum non est a Deo derelictus. E contra, Deus eum vocat ³²⁰ et ei, modo arcano, victoriam supra malum annuntiat et elevationem de lapsu. ³²¹ Hic locus Genesis est « Protoevangelium » appellatus, quia primus est Messiae Redemptoris nuntius, luctae inter serpentem et Mulierem et finalis victoriae cuiusdam a Muliere descendentis.

411 The Christian tradition sees in this passage an announcement of the “New Adam” who, because he “became obedient unto death, even death on a cross”, makes amends superabundantly for the disobedience, of Ada(Cf. 1 Cor 15:21-22,45; Phil 2:8; Rom 5:19-20). Furthermore many Fathers and Doctors of the Church have seen the woman announced in the Protoevangelium as Mary, the mother of Christ, the “new Eve”. Mary benefited first of all and uniquely from Christ’s victory over sin: she was preserved from all stain of original sin and by a special grace of God committed no sin of any kind during her whole earthly life (Cf. Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus: DS 2803; Trent: DS 1573).

411 Traditio christiana hoc loco nuntium videt « novi Adami », ³²² qui propter suam oboedientiam « usque ad mortem [...] crucis » (Phil 2,8), superabundanter inoboedientiam reparat Adami. ³²³ Ceterum, plures Patres et Ecclesiae doctores in Muliere annuntiata in « Protoevangelio » Matrem Christi agnoscunt Mariam, tamquam « novam Evam ». Illa fuit quae prima, et modo singulari, victoria a Christo de peccato reportata fruita est: illa ab omni labe peccati originalis praeservata est immunis ³²⁴ et per totam suam vitam terrenam, propter gratiam Dei specialem, nullum commisit peccati genus. ³²⁵

412 But why did God not prevent the first man from sinning? St. Leo the Great responds, “Christ’s inexpressible grace gave us blessings better than those the demon’s envy had taken away” (Leo, Sermo 73,4: PL 54,396). And St. Thomas Aquinas wrote, “There is nothing to prevent human nature’s being raised up to something greater, even after sin; God permits evil in order to draw forth some greater good. Thus St. Paul says, ‘Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more’; and the Exsultet sings, ‘O happy fault,. . . which gained for us so great a Redeemer!’“(St. Thomas Aquinas, STh III,1,3, ad 3; cf. Rom 5:20. 589 OCF, Prayer of Commendation)

412 Sed cur Deus primum hominem peccare non impedivit? Sanctus Leo Magnus respondet: sumus « ampliora adepti per ineffabilem Christi gratiam quam per Diaboli amiseramus invidiam ». ³²⁶ Et sanctus Thomas Aquinas: « Nihil autem prohibet ad aliquid maius humanam naturam productam esse post peccatum: Deus enim permittit mala fieri ut inde aliquid melius eliciat. Unde dicitur Rom 5,20: “Ubi abundavit iniquitas, superabundavit et gratia”. Unde et in benedictione Cerei Paschalis dicitur: “O felix culpa, quae talem ac tantum meruit habere Redemptorem!” ». ³²⁷

  IN BRIEF

Compendium

413 “God did not make death, and he does not delight in the death of the living. . . It was through the devil’s envy that death entered the world” (Wis 1:13; 2:24).

413 « Deus mortem non fecit nec laetatur in perditione vivorum [...]. Invidia autem Diaboli mors introivit in orbem terrarum » (Sap 1,13; 2,24).

414 Satan or the devil and the other demons are fallen angels who have freely refused to serve God and his plan. Their choice against God is definitive. They try to associate man in their revolt against God.

414 Satan seu Diabolus ceteraque demonia angeli sunt lapsi quia libere renuerunt Deo Eiusque servire consilio. Eorum contra Deum optio definitiva est. Hominem eorum rebellioni contra Deum sociare conantur.

415 “Although set by God in a state of rectitude man, enticed by the evil one, abused his freedom at the very start of history. He lifted himself up against God, and sought to attain his goal apart from him” (GS 13 § 1).

415 « In iustitia a Deo constitutus, homo tamen, suadente Maligno, inde ab exordio historiae, libertate sua abusus est, seipsum contra Deum erigens et finem suum extra Deum attingere cupiens ». ³²⁸

416 By his sin Adam, as the first man, lost the original holiness and justice he had received from God, not only for himself but for all human beings.

416 Adam, quatenus primus homo, per peccatum suum, sanctitatem et iustitiam amisit originales quas a Deo receperat, non solum sibi, sed omnibus hominibus.

417 Adam and Eve transmitted to their descendants human nature wounded by their own first sin and hence deprived of original holiness and justice; this deprivation is called “original sin”.

417 Adam et Eva posteritati suae naturam humanam per suum primum peccatum transmiserunt vulneratam, et ideo sanctitate et iustitia privatam originalibus. Haec privatio « peccatum originale » appellatur.

418 As a result of original sin, human nature is weakened in its powers, subject to ignorance, suffering and the domination of death, and inclined to sin (this inclination is called “concupiscence”).

418 Consequenter ad peccatum originale, natura humana est in suis viribus debilitata, ignorantiae, dolori et mortis dominatui submissa, atque ad peccatum inclinata (haec inclinatio appellatur « concupiscentia »).

419 “We therefore hold, with the Council of Trent, that original sin is transmitted with human nature, “by propagation, not by imitation” and that it is. . . ‘proper to each’“ (Paul VI, CPG § 16).

419 « Tenemus igitur, Concilium Tridentinum secuti, peccatum originale, una cum natura humana, transfundi “propagatione, non imitatione”, idque “inesse unicuique proprium” ». ³²⁹

420 The victory that Christ won over sin has given us greater blessings than those which sin had taken from us: “where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Rom 5:20).

420 Victoria de peccato a Christo reportata nobis bona donavit meliora illis quae peccatum nobis abstulerat: « Ubi autem abundavit peccatum, superabundavit gratia » (Rom 5,20).

421 Christians believe that “the world has been established and kept in being by the Creator’s love; has fallen into slavery to sin but has been set free by Christ, crucified and risen to break the power of the evil one. . .” (GS 2 § 2).

421 « Mundum [...] christifideles credunt ex amore Creatoris conditum et conservatum, sub peccati quidem servitute positum, sed a Christo crucifixo et resurgente, fracta potestate Maligni, liberatum... ». ³³⁰