Cain & Abel
Cain's Birth
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Introduction
For someone who's portrayed as such a worthless person, Cain's birth
is nothing short of miraculous.
Eve's Third Punishment
Because Cain had to be portrayed as a wicked man, and a farmer to
boot, the Hebrews couldn't allow him to be the son of their spiritual
forebear, Adam the shepherd.
Therefore, in their version, they again lay the blame squarely on the
shoulders of poor Eve for bringing wickedness into the world. Why are men
like that?
Actually, this was the third time that Eve was punished by either God
or Adam or both.
First Punishment: The Fall
The first time, of course, was when she was punished for eating the
forbidden fruit (see The Fall for
details). Part of this story can be found in the Bible.
Second Punishment: Adam's Anger
Her second punishment cannot be found anywhere in the Bible. After
Adam and Eve had been kicked out of the Garden, they did penance by
standing in a river and fasting and praying. Well, one day as they
stood waist-deep in the river, Satan came to them disguised as an angel
(not too difficult since he is the angel Samael). He told Eve
that God had heard their prayers and supplications ... and that they
had been forgiven.
Thinking that Satan had told the truth, Eve waded out of the
river. Suddenly, Adam got really hot under the collar, yelling at
her and calling her all kinds of names (though none as bad as some
of the names I hear men calling women today). Her only "weakness"
was that she trusted in the goodness of people too much.
Third Punishment: Satan's Son
Needless to say, Eve was heartbroken as a result of Adam's anger.
Because she feared that her very presence might bring Adam even more
pain and misery, she decided to leave him alone. When she journeyed
far to the west, Adam stayed in the east. I guess he was more concerned
about himself than about her feelings.
While alone in the west, Satan entered Eve's life once more. Playing
on her weakness and loneliness, Satan seduced Eve. Of course, Eve gets
pregnant. And thus, the Hebrews conveniently solved the dilemma of
explaining how wickedness came into the world. Just accuse Eve of
feminine weakness.
Can you imagine how terrified Eve must have felt when it came time
to give birth to Cain? I mean, Adam is off doing his thing in the east
somewhere, leaving Eve to deal with everything by herself.
Since she was the first mother, she didn't have a group of midwives
nearby who could tell her what to expect during childbirth. She had no
idea what the labor pains meant.
And when she felt the pain of labor, she prayed to God for help.
But he ignored her cries. And, of course, the father, Satan, doesn't
come to comfort her either. Poor Eve had to face this ordeal all
alone.
Adam Hears Eve's Cries
Somehow, Adam heard Eve's lamentation. But he assumed that her cries
were a result of Satan raping her, not of the pain of childbirth. So he
raced westward to be at her side. Gee, how big of him. He comes not
because he loves her, but because he's jealous.
When he saw her travail, he called upon God to help. Now
God listened and sent twelve angels. If God had been a woman, She
would have been there all along. If He had been a gentleman, He would
have too.
Anyhow, Michael waved his hands over Eve and said, "Be thou blessed,
Eve, for the sake of Adam. Because of his solicitations and his prayers,
I was sent to grant thee our assistance. Make ready to give birth to
thy child!" I don't know about you, but if I had been Eve, I'd have been
ready to punch Michael right in his snobbish nose!
Instead Eve cried out, "I have gotten a man through an angel of the
Lord." But she was speaking of the angel Samael (Satan), not Michael.
An Unusual Infant
Now Cain was NOT your ordinary infant. Not even close!
Just Like Dad
For one thing, Cain inherited his father's looks, appearing like one
of the seraphim. As you may know, the seraphim are angels of Samael's
(Satan's) level. I bet Adam mumbled a few choice words under his breath
when he noticed Cain's resemblance to Samael.
Cain even sported a horn growing out of his forehead, just like his
dad.
Meaning of Name: Cain
But even more surprising, as soon as he was born, Cain hopped to his
feet and ran off. He returned a few minutes later holding a stalk of straw
in his hands, which he gave to his mother. For this reason, he was named
Cain, the Hebrew word for a stalk of straw.
Farmer
Adam took Eve and the young lad back to his home in the east. Once
there, the archangel Michael brought various kinds of seeds to Cain and
taught him how to cultivate the ground so he could sustain himself and
his family. I wonder if Michael knew he was setting up Cain to be the
object of cultural hatred later when shepherds and farmers would battle
for the same ground.
Birth of Abel
I guess Adam and Eve resolved their marital problems since a while
later, Eve bore a second son, whom she named Hebel (Abel) because, she
said, he was born to die.
But we're getting ahead of our story.
What Next?
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