Eve and the Serpent

Is it what I fear, or what I am not afraid of that is more dangerous?

My prayer

Truth, help me not to fool myself into believing what I know isn’t right.

Biblical touchstones

God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.” Genesis 2:15-16

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate… Genesis 3:1-6

Invitation to prayer

Make a face inspired by the serpent’s. Really feel it.
What prayers are emerging from your heart, mind, and body?

Photos
Eve and the serpent at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil as depicted by thirteenth century sculptors. The outer left voussoir of the central bay of the north porch at the Chartres Cathedral in France.

Related posts on the creation sculptures at the Chartres Cathedral

God, the Creator: God Holding the Book of Knowledge; God Creating the Garden of Eden; God Creating the Animals (Day 6 of Creation at Chartres); God Imagining Humanity (Day 5 of Creation at Chartres); Envisioning Creation; Deep Consideration, In the beginning, God created…; The God of Creation; Inspiration

The Creation of Humanity: The Creation of Eve; God Creates Humanity (Day 6 of Creation at Chartres); Adam, Safe and Securely Created (Day 6 of Creation at Chartres); God Loving Adam into Being (Day 6 of Creation at Chartres); Loved

Adam and Eve, Drama in the Garden of Eden: The Heart of Naming: Adam in the Garden of Eden;  Adam at Home  in the Garden of Eden; Animal Connections (Day 6 of Creation at Chartres); The Fall of Humanity

The Creation of the Natural World:  Imagining Humanity and Creating the Bird and Fish (Day 5 of Creation at Chartres); The Sun and the Moon (Day 4 of Creation at Chartres); Vegetation (Day 3 of Creation at Chartres); Creation Plants and Trees; The Firmament; Night and Day; Heaven and Earth; Creation: Part 2

The Garden of Eden: Trouble in the Garden; The Rivers of Eden, The Animals, Fish, and Birds of the Garden of Eden; The Animals, Fish, and Birds of the Garden of Eden; The Garden of Eden; The Animals Created by God (Day 6 of Creation at Chartres)