“The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper fit for him.” (Genesis 2:20)
According to rabbinic tradition, in order to impress upon Adam the need for human companionship, God brought him all the animals so that he might notice that each one had a partner. This parade of God’s creatures was intended to lead to a deepening of Adam’s own consciousness and personal reflectivity. Adam thought to himself: “The world may be ‘very good’ from YHWH’s perspective, but from my perspective something is missing.” Now, for the first time in the creation story, Adam discovers something that is not “good” in Eden—human aloneness. The nature of Adam’s loneliness is not just physical; it is also existential. He wonders, “Am I destined to journey throughout my existence all alone?”
In the biblical narrative that is told about Adam, Adam has no personal narrative to speak of. As a solitary being, Adam exists as a two-dimensional individual. Bewildered by his loneliness, Adam does not understand why God made him alone. Rabbinic tradition teaches that Eve’s creation accentuates a very important point that is pivotal to the theme of love and to all interpersonal relations: A person must not exist as an isolated entity living solely for oneself. No human individual is complete in oneself. The quest for human fulfillment can come only once a person reaches out beyond the walls of the individual self by entering into a relationship with a significant Other. As Buber and Lévinas have noted, by encountering the Other as thou, one comes to know the Eternal Thou. Once he meets Eve, Adam finally finds the remedy to his loneliness.
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Author: Michael Leo Samuel
Keywords: Women superior to men, Women men, Women vs men, Women versus men, Women are closer to God, Women are closer to God than men, Oppression of women, Women priests, Women pastors, Women bishops, Women evangelists, Women in the church, Serving women, Women, Feminism, Anti feminism, misogynist, misogyny, Women to be in subjection, Sexist, Women of prominence, Chauvinism, Male chauvinism, Chauvinist, Male chauvinist, Helpmeet, Help meet, Helper, Woman helper, Helper against, Helper opposite, Helpmate, Help mate, Woman help mate, Woman helpmeet, Equality of women, Gender equality, Equality of the sexes, Men superior to women, Adam and Eve, Role of the woman, Role of women, Woman's role
Bible reference(s): Genesis 2:18, Genesis 2:20, Genesis 3:16, 1 Corinthians 11:3, 1 Timothy 2:13-14, 1 Peter 3:1-6
Source: Birth and Rebirth Through Genesis: A Timeless Theological Commentary.
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