Brother kills brother:Evangelium Vitae Daily Meditation
Dear Loreto House Family,
From Evangelium Vitae #8:
8. Cain was “very angry” and his countenance “fell” because “the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering” (Gen 4:4-5). The biblical text does not reveal the reason why God prefers Abel’s sacrifice to Cain’s. It clearly shows however that God, although preferring Abel’s gift, does not interrupt his dialogue with Cain. He admonishes him, reminding him of his freedom in the face of evil: man is in no way predestined to evil. Certainly, like Adam, he is tempted by the malevolent force of sin which, like a wild beast, lies in wait at the door of his heart, ready to leap on its prey. But Cain remains free in the face of sin. He can and must overcome it: “Its desire is for you, but you must master it” (Gen 4:7).
Envy and anger have the upper hand over the Lord’s warning, and so Cain attacks his own brother and kills him. As we read in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “In the account of Abel’s murder by his brother Cain, Scripture reveals the presence of anger and envy in man, consequences of original sin, from the beginning of human history. Man has become the enemy of his fellow man”.10
Brother kills brother. Like the first fratricide, every murder is a violation of the “spiritual” kinship uniting mankind in one great family, 11 in which all share the same fundamental good: equal personal dignity. Not infrequently the kinship “of flesh and blood” is also violated; for example when threats to life arise within the relationship between parents and children, such as happens in abortion or when, in the wider context of family or kinship, euthanasia is encouraged or practised.
10 No. 2259.
11 Saint Ambrose, De Noe, 26:94-96: CSEL 32, 480-481.
John Paul II
You will notice that often with the sin of taking a life, envy and anger are present together. The Lord reminds us in the story of Cain and Abel that although temptation is strong, we have free will, God’s gift to us. Through free will and God’s grace, we can overcome evil. In the story, Cain lets envy and anger overcome him and we have the first instance of man against man…brother kills brother. JPII reminds us that “every murder is a violation of the ‘spiritual’ kinship” that we all share. We are all created equal in dignity, although we are different and unique from each other. He also reminds us of this story playing out through the ages in the form of abortion and euthanasia.
Questions for Meditation:
1. “Where in my life have I experienced the temptations of anger and envy together?”
2. “Are there times when anger and envy overcame me and I sinned?”
3. “Are there times when I overcame anger and envy and chose the good?”
4. “How can anger and envy be tools for healing or tools for alerting me to make choices for good?”
In Christ Our Life,
Katherine
