Over a year ago I had an opportunity to go deeper into my “spiritual closet,” looking for greater understanding of what it means to be wholly spiritual. A rash had developed in an area on my skin that was visible to me, as well as others. The praying I engaged in was more wishful thinking that it would go away, rather than deeper declarations of my innocence and purity. With a greater commitment to understanding my unblemished nature as a child of God, I found that the condition began to improve. Then it stopped improving, grew worse, and covered a larger area.
I now admitted to myself that I recognized this condition as something that had occurred over a long period of time when I was a child and a teenager, causing me much torment and embarrassment among my peers. I remembered feelings of helplessness and shame, and the concept of banishment now came to thought. Though I certainly wanted this condition banished from my experience, perhaps there was a larger lesson to be learned.
I began to consider the fable in Genesis 2 and 3, involving banishment from paradise, or harmony—which I realized is impossible for any of God’s loved children. In this allegorical story of creation, Adam was cursed by God for being disobedient, as both he and Eve had been fooled, or beguiled, by the serpent. Consequently they were banished from the garden of Eden. I knew the serpent here represents mortal mind, which promotes material sense over spiritual sense.
