From Fig Leaves to Faith

The name for this blog came from a post I wrote a few years back.  It's been a while, but the truth doesn't change and I go back and read it from time to time.  I felt it right to put it here, as I start this blog, to kick off what should be a very well traveled blogging journal.


**August 28, 2008**


Fig leaves. Wow. That has become this huge thing the past few days. Fig leaves. Fear. I mean, honestly, the only thing worse would have been if they'd accidentally grabbed poison ivy.

Adam and Eve. Faith was their natural language from the beginning. No fear. Simple, complete, utter faith. They didn't have faith the size of a mustard seed. They had faith the size of a redwood. Humankind's language to reach God.

The moment the fall happened, that all changed. Even before God pronounced judgment, the two could sense it in the air. Fear. They lost the ability to speak the language of faith. They lost the ability to speak God's language, and so a gap was created at which God called, "Adam, Adam, where are you?"

Instantly; suddenly instinctively, human hands pulled at the closest thing they could to cover their nakedness; their sin: leaves. Fig leaves. And at that moment, with the plucking of the very first leaf; man began his best attempts to please God with his achievement.

It was our sad attempt to cover our sin, to bring ourselves to a measuring place where we could make our way to that place of communion again.

And so time wove its beaded strands throughout a time strewn with men and women tugging at leaves to cover their condition. Ritualistic praise and penance dried, browned and flaked off as we continued to pluck anew to cover our ever worsening nakedness.

The second Adam, Jesus, arrived and in one of his last, most often skimmed over acts, cursed the tree with leaves of service and duty.

Two days before his death; two days before the moment when simple, believing faith would once again be the contextual avenue to reaching the heart of God; the leaf of ritual from the tree of striving was withered from the root.

Three years of training, testing, death and resurrection; and a mighty Holy Spirit baptism a few weeks later and the first words were uttered across the spirit realm from the lips of a man.

Flesh and Spirit is reunited. Communion is restored.

We can speak God's language again.