Cain and Abel

       The story of Cain and Abel has always had this confounding element in it for me. What did Cain actually do wrong? Before we can answer that we must first examine what actually happened in the story. Cain was the first born and an agriculturist like his father, Adam. Abel was a hunter who killed game, i.e. animals, for food. Is there an irony here that the hunter was killed by a farmer? Anyway, Cain and Abel both made an offering of their first fruits before God. God accepted Abel's and not Cain's. See proof God likes meat. I actually had to read those verses twice when I was younger to make certain that God was rejecting the fruit. Also, I had a hard time believing a story about a murderous farmer. So God rejected Cain's fruit and grain offering. God doesn't explain why which would have been helpful in understanding God's reasoning. Cain, furious at both God's rejection of his hard work and perferring Abel's juicy steaks, allows anger into his heart. God comes down to Cain asking him why he is mad. Shouldn't God really know at this point? God also warns Cain that sin is close to his doorstep. If he does not control it it will destroy him. Cain continues to brew upon this perceived injustice. His anger increases until Abel walks up to him at exactly the wrong moment. Cain leaps upon him and kills him. God later came asking Cain what has he done. Again, you figured God would know. Cain worked really hard on growing the food, selecting the best produce (possibly), and hearing God reject it. Then, praise his younger brother Abel and we don't even know how his parents treated him. God says "don't be mad, be glad" and not much else. And then, he is shocked that Abel's blood is crying from the ground. Really? It seems like the warning signs were there from the beginning. So God admonishes Cain, really again. Then, in a twist of fate, Cain begs God not to send him out into the wilderness for he would be killed by those who knew he had betrayed God. Where did these people come from? How many Children did Adam and Eve have? Maybe they were Abel's children and that's why they would want to kill Cain. They certainly would not have been Cain's children. Something tells me that they wouldn't have wanted to kill daddy. So Cain, who just killed his brother, begs God not to exile him. God showing compassion, and his first amount of forethought in this story, gives the Mark of Cain to him. Didn't this used to be called making someone a target? God told him that the mark signifies God's willingness to avenge Cain should anyone try to kill him. So Cain leaves with his wives and children. Didn't this part make anyone else wonder? God would avenge Cain by killing his murderer, who was murdering Cain to avenge Abel. Again foresight, does this teach Cain anything? Well, we don't know because we don't hear about him again except that he begets people.
       In addition, who told Adam and Eve. Did Cain say, "Ya, Dad umm Mom, God is exiling me because I killed my brother, well bye?" Did God say, "Adam, Eve, you should know that your son Cain has killed your son Abel, sorry, oh by the way, he has to leave now?" That's right, there is no evidence that Adam and Eve actually decided to oust Cain. Whatever happened to the consequences of free will that was so paramount in the last story? Yes, Cain does suffer the consequences of his actions. But, Adam and Eve don't get to decide anything about Cain's expulsion. As far as the story goes, it seems like God tells Adam what will be happening. Yeah choices.
       And, why did Cain's wife leave with him? I mean her husband is a muderer. I guess when your only other option is dead and you don't feel like waiting for the next one than you gop with whose left. Still the worry of repeat offender would be going through my mind. In addition, Cain's wives may have stayed with him because he knew how to plant and was a hard worker. If they had left him, they would have had to do the hard work of the field as well as to take care of any remaining children. It may have made more pragmatic sense to stay with Cain. Besides, maybe Cain was more loving to those whom he didn't kill. I figured out who Cain may have been worried about. Since at this period in time, people were stated to be living hundreds of years than he may come across someone who was loyal to God and would want to retaliate against Cain for his departure from God. They could have even attacked Cain when he was old and feeble hence his fear.  And, whatever happened to Abel's wives. Did they stay with Adam and Eve? Did any decide to marry Cain? Yes, he killed their husband but he also had an income. The rest of this story does not address the issue alas.        

Abel and Children

       In this next post I would like to address the following issue. Why do people automatically presume that Abel had no children. He had a wife in a time when having children that could work would be considered important. Abel's been potrayed as a boy but he was really a young man. He was fully capable of reproducing with his wife. At least, as far as we know. It is quite possible and likely that Abel left several children behind after his death. TAhey were most likely taken in by Adam and Eve after his death.  Sometimes I wonder if all the emotionally insecure people in the world aren't desvended from Abel's children. In conclusion, why claim Cain and Seth as the only progenitors, if Abel could have produced children before his death as well?

Adam and Eve: The Fall

       Cain and his wife were siblings yet they were able to conceive. The occurance listed beloe made me realize the importance of different opinions in discovering the truth. There was this person that I knew that believed that since Cain and his wife could reproduce they were not siblings. The issue arose due to the increased risk of malformations in the children. Yet there were no defects known among Cain's children. This made me wonder how could it work when the risk of birth defects could increase. Cain and his wife were the children of Adam and Eve. I believe Adam and Eve possessed the highest level of genetic stability that humanity had been able to reach. Cain and his wife were the children of Adam and Eve and thus there would have been little genetic degradation. This means the the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve could have reproduced without any to very little genetic damage due to the low chance of entropic decay among Adam and Eve's children. This person believed that the wife of Cain came from another tribe, possibly from another couple outside of the Garden. Where would this couple have come from? Why would God have made another couple outside of the Garden? He could not answer these questions. I joked that maybe they evolved hence how God knew how to make humans. He did not seemed amused by that one. But it did make me think. I had discovered my reason why I believed that the wife of Cain was the daughter of Adam and Eve was due to this man's belief in the contrary.It forced me to evaluate my beliefs and make a decision. It was on that day that I could vehementally disagree with someone and that disagreement could lead to discoveries if approached with rationality.