Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die.
Read Chapter 25
John Chrysostom
AD 407
"How is it," one could say, "that Scripture calls a helper she who was a hindrance? In fact it says, "Let us make a helper like him." " And I would ask you: how can she be a helper who deprived the man of such security and drove him out of that wonderful existence in paradise, casting him into the tumult of the present life? A schemer does this, not a helper! "Woman," it says, "was the beginning of sin, and because of her we all die." And blessed Paul says, "Adam was not deceived. It was the woman who, being deceived, transgressed." How, then, can she be a helper who put the man at the mercy of death? How could she be a helper who brought it about that the children of God, which is to say all of the inhabitants of the earth, are submerged in death together with the beasts, the birds and all the other animals? Would not the woman have caused the ruin of righteous Job, if he had not been truly a man? Was it not the woman who brought about Sampson"s ruin? Was it not a woman who did her best that the whole Hebrew people take up the worship of Baal of Peor and was slaughtered at the hands of her brothers? And who more than anyone else consigned Ahab to the devil, and before him Solomon, despite his wisdom and fame? Even now, do not women often lead their husbands to offend God? Did not the wise man say, perhaps for this reason, "Any kind of evil is small, compared with the evil of a woman"? "How is it then," you ask me, "that God said, "Let us make a helper like him"? God does not lie." Nor do I say so"never! She was made for that purpose and reason, but like her companion, she did not want to remain in the dignity that was hers. The man was created by God in his image and likeness. Indeed, God said, "Let us make the man in our image and likeness," just as he said, "Let us make him a helper." Once created however, the man immediately lost both of these prerogatives. He knew how to keep neither the image nor the likeness (and how could he have, if he gave himself over to absurd desire, was prey to deception and was unable to overcome pleasure?). To his disgrace, the image was taken from him for all time to come. - "On Virginity 46.1–3"
