Adam (Hebrew, adam = Man) In the Bible’s Old Testament book of Genesis, Adam is said to be the first human being. He was fashioned from earthly clay and brought to life with the living breath of God.
According to Genesis his female counterpart, Eve, was created from his rib. It is noteworthy, says St. Thomas Aquinas, that Eve was not created from Adam’s head or from some other body part, such as his foot.
Being created from his rib signifies a woman’s traditional role, so Aquinas says, of fulfilling her role in marriage and offering humble service to her husband.
With Eve, Adam is said to represent the ‘first age’ of mankind, this being The Fall and Sin because the original sin of Eve (and shortly after, Adam’s sin) brings evil to the world.
Joachim of Fiore says this introduction of evil necessitated the rule of “the Law”–that is, the Ten Commandments given to Moses.
In Christian theology Jesus, the ‘second Adam,’ is portrayed as God’s perfect redeeming solution to the evil disobedience of Adam. And the Virgin Mary is often regarded as the ‘second Eve,’ the perfect counterpart to Eve’s original sin.
In Genesis 1:27, however, we find another version of the creation story in which God creates male and female in his image. No mention is given of Adam’s rib in this verse. » Evil, Hick (John), Irenaeus
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