I always just understood the account of Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden as something I would just never quite grasp. And that was ok, cause it was not needful. In particular, it boiled down every time to a word that was misunderstood. That word was beguiled.
I was quite familiar with this story from playing Eve multiple times in the one act play, a rendition of Mark Twain's Diary of Adam and Eve, and from Temple attendance. Still, everytime I would fail to see how the serpent could be blamed for doing anything wrong. I assumed that beguile must have meant a bad, blameable thing.
To me, if Eve could be exonerated when she did such a terrible thing, why did she just not take the blame herself? Further, it seemed always that the adversary was just playing a necessary role, and as such, why did he have to be blamed? But, last night I read a comment that helped me see it in a new light (it is sort of funny that to clarify things I,need to be less merciful).
The comment said to the effect that Eve was lied to and told a truth with a lie, a very subtle tricky tool used to get otherwise good people to align with something wrong.
I finally saw beguiling as being false. In this case it was used out of desperation, like a young child using what tools he has to get what,he wants. Though they are denied a thing they have something and use what they have. To me, though, that makes Eve Sooooo brilliant to recognize in retrospect when asked,that she was lied to. It is still a bit confusing to me though how we praise Eve for choosing correctly, so we all got to live. But we accuse the one who is responsible.
I suppose it is a weighty matter. One that will be a long time in coming into my perception...
