"Response to Hildegard of Bingen on the Creation of Man and Woman"
             When reading the article the first time through the immediate reaction was...this was written by a woman! I had been under the impression that women of the 12th Century were not noted for having "....established a reputation as a theological and spiritual writer..." The basis for me picking this passage for reflection was for two reasons: the complementary nature of man and woman and the different roles of man and woman when applied to the Son of God.
             Hildegard explains to the reader that man and woman are complementary. That one works through the other; in fact, she even goes as far to say that one cannot exist without the other. There are two possible ways that I would like to explorer using her text. One: since one cannot exist without the other, wouldn't God of known that and created Eve at the same time as Adam and not take one of his ribs after Adam named all the animals? In addition what if Adam and Eve had not sinned and death never entered the world...as the population rises, as it has today, but then add in all the people who are dead because none would ever taste death...How crowed would the earth be? (this is assuming none would eat of the tree and cause death). Second: It is an old joke when pastors say God created Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve...Hildegard's text complements this to the "t." After the fall of man one cannot exist without the other, no reproduction is possible with Adam by himself or with Steve. Also Humanity could not exist with just Eve or with Eve and "a damsel."
             When Hildegard talks of the different roles of man and woman in regards to Christ is something I didn't understand or don't agree with. She states that woman was created in the likeness of Adam just as Adam was created in the likeness of God, that Eve was created as Adam's mirror image, and
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