Sinth Generation

[myrthman]

(This could easily fit in the Demons, Monsters, and Last Days category. Maybe someday it will. However, it starts here.)

In my Bible class, students have discovered, by no design of my own, that sin had to enter the world through the very first man. Because of this, each subsequent individual was born with a sin nature and the entire race fell into depravity.

But what if it hadn't?

What if Adam and Eve overcame temptation and avoided eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil? What if Cain had eaten, but Abel had not? Would Seth have been born? Or what if it was later, even much later? Say, Noah's sons or Isaac and Ishmael.

In my view, two entirely different races would result: the Untainted and the Fallen, for lack of better names at this point. These races would constantly be at odds, perhaps going to war over centuries, isolating themselves on different continents, and, eventually, ... who knows?

Myriad questions arise: Would the Garden still be accessible, but only to some? Consider the Flood and the Cross. Would they have even been necessary? Or could God have worked redemption for the Fallen in some way involving the Untainted's faithfulness. Isaac and Ishmael, in reality, have been "at war" since Sarai suggested Hagar. Would the Fallen and the Untainted follow similarly, ultimately wiping out all of humanity?

Discuss. Speculate. Heck, write stories.

[Joel P.]

Interesting. May I point out that second Eden has been done twice (to my knowledge); once by CS Lewis in 'Perelandra' and once by Brian Davis in his Oracles of Fire series.

I have speculated about this before, but it never seemed like something I was supposed to write. I wish the rest of you luck!

[Kessie]

I've thought about this scenario quite a lot. You'd kind of wind up with a humans vs. elves kind of thing, with one people desiring the other race's immortality and powers (like teleportation), and the perfect race trying to get the sinful race to repent. I imagine that eventually the strife between the two races would become so fierce that the perfect race would have to flee the planet. The sinful race would grimly concoct the technology to follow them into space in their quest to utterly wipe them out. Because think about it. If you knew someone who was sinless, you'd hate them from the depths of your being.

I've heard it said that even if only one person on Earth had sinned, Jesus would have still come to die for that person, because His love is that big.

[Bethany J.]

I read an online series which used this premise but was set in a more elven world than our own. Personally I didn't care for the author's take on it, but that's probably because I have a low interest in high fantasy unless it's Tolkien. I probably would have been more interested in a human take on the idea.

Here's the series I saw: apricotpie.com/james

[newburydave]

There was another author who wrote a series similar to that, but I forget his name. Interesting concept.

I kind of deal with that in my Curatorium universe. Adam and man fell and is as we are now (I follow The Book on that, sort of) however the other sentient races that God created in the universe are all unfallen. They are tempted to evil by the Darkest Ones (one guess who they are) and some fall, even some of mans alter ego race the Le'as (red dragons from Mars). The fallen Le'as become the symbol of Satan and the chief enemys of God. One of them ends up as the last great leader of the ApDam, the spirit children of Cain.

However to the point of the thread, much of the Good vs Evil action happens between the ApLohe Le'as (Children of God, God fearing dragons) and the ApDam Le'as (Children of Adam, those who choose the sin of Adam and Cain for natural benefits). They have continual unrelenting war as supporters, proxies and sometimes leaders of their various human factions.

It's an interesting plot paradigm the Draconic races divided by absolute free will with no depraved nature to battle internally, allied with human groups one made up of people actively fighting against their fallen nature and the other of which following their depravity blindly.

There are more races in my universe, some draconic and others... well wholly other. I haven't really explored the sin question with any of them yet.

Now that you bring it up I think the plot possibilities are a very fertile field. Once I do a bit more ground work I may invite other writers to help me write the story of this creation universe.

Write on b-sibs

SGD
dave