As I was pondering upon the nature of sin and of the fallen nature of man, I have read one thought that caught my attention. This thought posed a question similar to this, “Why must God punish us if He created us this way?”
Indeed, should a righteous God punish a person for being weak and susceptible to sin? And if the Church teaches that our fallen nature is due to the fault of our first parents, Adam and Eve, why should we be punished for sins we did not commit in the first place? Should children be punished for the sins of their parents?
I’m quite sure nobody would agree to being punished for the sin of another, but I guess the truth is that this situation happens.
Suppose you get married, and later on you had children. And suppose you did not become responsible parents but lived like you’re accountable to no one. You spend the night drinking, you didn’t finish your studies, you mess up your work. And then after all of these things, you fight with your husband, and sooner or later, this fight becomes a habit, and your children grow up not knowing what peace is, or what commitment and true love really means.
Surely these children have no fault of their own for the life that they have been given. But are they not affected? Don’t they suffer for sins that are not their own?
I guess the same is true with our first parents. Sure, we weren’t there yet. Sure, we can say it’s quite unfair that we suffer now for the sins they have done.
But then this is what happened, and this is what Jesus’ redemption is all about. God is so good that He went on His way to rescue us where we have been dragged by sin. God is so merciful He gave up His own life so that we can regain the fullness of life we’ve been destined for.
This world may be dark, this life may be full of suffering. Yet we need not stay in the darkness. We need not live in despair anymore. God tells us that there is hope. God tells us that we are loved, and just with that, all sins are banished, and Mercy and Grace prevails over death.
The thing about hope is that it’s a positive force that shines the most when it’s dark. When everything’s going well, we hardly notice it’s there. But when things go against us, when our dreams fade and when we see no immediate reprieve from our troubles, that’s when hope does its best work for us.
"Where Hope Can Be Found"