A Reflection on the Restlessness of the Human Person from the Story of the First Parents, Adam and Eve
A Reflection on the Restlessness of the Human Person from the Story of the First Parents, Adam and Eve
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54855/csl.266210Keywords:
Restlessness, transcendence, happiness, the longing for unionAbstract
Based on the story of Adam and Eve. The human person, created in the image of God, carries within an inner tension between the longing for union with the Creator and the imperfection that results from the loss of the original order. The "lack"—symbolized by the forbidden fruit—is not merely a material deficiency but also a spiritual emptiness that gives rise to an endless restlessness. The Fall reveals the truth about the human person: weak and imperfect, yet also opened onto a path of return through the grace and love of God. It is precisely through this restlessness that the human person is raised from a state of longing for an "apple" to a state of longing for the Creator himself—even while knowing that this longing will never be stilled until the human person attains final union.
References
Augustine. (2014). Confessions (C. J.-B. Hammond, Trans.; Vols. 26–27). Harvard University Press. (Original work published ca. 397–400)
Catherine of Siena. (2006). Đối thoại [The dialogue] (Vinh Sơn Bùi Đức Sinh, Trans.). NXB Tôn Giáo. (Original work published ca. 1378)
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