In quest of esotericism…

“ … For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God …” Genesis 3:5-8

 

For a period of time that has not been revealed to us, Adam and Eve lived in accordance with the laws that their Creator had prescribed in order to preserve the harmony of the Garden. Nowhere is it written that they were blind. Adam had even used his eyes to tell the difference between Eve and the animals and to notice that she was a lot more ike him. As for Eve, the Bible says that she saw the tree was good for food; so, she used her eyes as well. 

Besides this, the first thing God did, was to call light into existence: ‘‘Let there be light !’’ And we know that in His light, we see light (Ps 36:9); yet, all this did not stop them from desiring to have their eyes ‘opened.’ Sometimes, the light is so bright that it becomes blinding (like full headlights on the face) and one just wishes to see differently… 

Adam was also far from being stupid; you don’t ask a fool to name every animal of the Creation, do you? Yet, he wished to have his mind, his intelligence opened…

 

Finally, they were created in God’s image and after His likeness. They had something divine in them, they were already partakers of the divinity : they were already like gods. Nevertheless… Let’s quickly note that the Serpent did not even tell them: ‘‘You will be God’’ but just, ‘‘You will be like gods.’’ 

 

For immemorial times, the scene has been repeated over and over again, always with the same baits. 

The thirst for knowledge: People want to know the secrets, know the mysteries, know, know, know. Reality TV shows and People Magazines & tabloids have so much success because of this desire to know… what generally doesn’t concern them. Curiosity is unhealthy and there are so many things that are better not to be known. When a 7 year old child is violently parachuted into the adults’ world after a rape or through pornography, one quickly realizes that there is a knowledge that one could have well done without. 

The quest for light: Many are those who feel they are in darkness and need light to see through their surrounding night. It is as if, though opened, their physical eyes are of no use. They want to see in the invisible, see what others don’t: they wish for other eyes to open… The third eye maybe? Never mind, but sooner or later, they will meet on this path, the bright day-star, the Angel of light: Lucifer… 

The thirst for power: Why do you think the Devil offered to hand down all the kingdoms of this world and their glory to Jesus, if He would only worship him? He knew very well that the secret dream of many people is to wipe-up the adulation of crowds, to become stars, to be answerable to no one, to see the Earth stop turning for them and to be able to buy whatever they want. They want to be ‘gods’ ! Living gods…

 

Those are the means through which esotericism still appeals to so many men and women. All those who have devoted themselves to it or who are tempted to do so, fall into one of those 3 categories. 

Why does it still work this often? Can’t these thirsts be quenched in God? Isn’t it possible at all to go to Him with the same motives? We will look at two biblical characters next week to find answers to these questions.

 

In the meantime, be and remain richly blessed!