Just a Piece of Fruit?

There are all kinds of explanations for the streak of trouble that cuts its way through humanity - we're lacking education, we're not realizing our potential, we just need to get a little more kindness. It all amounts to the same thing - if we fix ourselves up, we'll be fine. Humanity is like an uncut jewel just waiting for the polisher to arrive. Funny thing, though: After all the centuries of human life, no polisher has been able to fix us.

The Bible presents us as tragic figures, majestic creatures with a fatal flaw. In Genesis 3, we have the encounter between the first humans and the Satan figure:

"You won't die!" the serpent hissed. "God knows that your eyes will be opened when you eat it. You will become just like God, knowing everything, both good and evil."
The woman was convinced. The fruit looked so fresh and delicious, and it would make her so wise! So she ate some of the fruit. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her. Then he ate it, too. At that moment, their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they strung fig leaves together around their hips to cover themselves. (Genesis 3:4-7)

So this explanation says we made a choice; all of humanity has chosen to walk away from the plan God had for us. The result is like a piece of Kryptonite embedded in Superman. We are royally messed up, not because we need to get our heads straight, but because we've chosen a path we weren't made for and, with God on the sidelines, we find ourselves incapable of following it.