Just to indulge for a moment, though, there are a few interesting points to note about the genesis story. First off, God tells Adam that if he eats from the Tree of Knowledge, he will die. Satan, on the other hand, tells Adam that that is foolishness. He won’t die, but will instead gain a conscience and the ability to tell good from evil. So, God was lying here and Satan was telling the truth. Who is the real enemy? Why did God want for Adam to remain a mindless robot?
After Adam and Eve eat of the tree, God is so upset that they have now become “as one of us, knowing good from evil” that he banishes Adam to earth, cursing Adam to waste his time toiling for a living and cursing women to endure pain through childbirth. All the while, we are made to believe that satan, the one who selflessly sought to open our eyes, was evil, while God, who lied to us, cursed us, and banished us to this distant planet, was good.
While God orders the destruction of towns, the annihilation of cultures and tribes, and the abandonment of beliefs in other gods and spirits because of his jealousy, Satan encourages us to be ourselves. Which one sounds more evil to you?
This made me think of Al Pacino's little speech about god. Actually, I never appreciated that part of the movie as much as I do now =)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jARp24AJWLk