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102. Paradise

1. The name paradise means a garden. Some havethought that the Paradise in which our first parents were placedwas their spiritual state, enriched as it was with supernaturalgraces and gifts. Others maintain that Paradise was a place. St.Augustine thinks that Paradise means both the spiritual conditionand the local habitation of our first parents.

2. Paradise must have been a place perfectly suitable forman, a dwelling place in exquisite accord with his state ofinnocence. It is reasonable to suppose that Paradise was a place ofgreat beauty, a bright place, temperate in climate, and with purestatmosphere.

3. Man was placed in Paradise to work therein and to keepit (Gen. 2:15). Man's labor there would have been a mostpleasing activity, not burdensome nor fatiguing. This task wasgiven to man as a blessing. It was to engage his attention, to keephim from idleness which might engender pride and sin. Laboring inParadise, man would have been increasingly aware of its beauty andprecious character; he would have been moved to love and thank Godfor it, and would thus have tended to continual watchfulness lestby sin he should lose so great a treasure.

4. Adam was placed in Paradise after he had been created(Gen. 2:15). But Eve was created in Paradise itself. Had these tworemained faithful and innocent, their children would have been bornin Paradise.

"Shun too great a desire for knowledge, for in it there is much fretting and delusion. Intellectuals like to appear learned and to be called wise. Yet there are many things the knowledge of which does little or no good to the soul, and he who concerns himself about other things than those which lead to salvation is very unwise. "
Thomas á Kempis

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"O Lord, my God, who will seek you with simple and pure love, and not find that you are all one can desire, for you show yourself first and go out to meet those who seek you? "
St John of the Cross, OCD - Doctor of the Church

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"Obedience is the true holocaust which we sacrifice to God on the altar of our hearts."
St Philip Neri

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