of the Church have seen the woman announced in the ‘Protoevangelium’ as Mary, the mother of Christ, the ‘new Eve’. Mary benefited first of all and uniquely from Christ’s victory over sin: she was preserved from all stain of original sin and by a special 491 grace of God committed no sin of any kind during her whole earthly life.~°6 412 But why did God not prevent the first man from sinning? St Leo 310 the Great responds, ‘Christ’s inexpressible grace gave us blessings better than those the demon’s envy had taken away.’307 And St 395 Thomas Aquinas wrote, ‘There is nothing to prevent human nature’s being raised up to something greater, even after sin; God permits evil in order to draw forth some greater good. Thus St 272 Paul says, “Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more”; and the Exsultet sings, “O happy fault,... which gained for us so great a Redeemer!” ‘308 1994 IN BRIEF 413 ‘God did not make death, and he does not delight in the death of the living. .. It was through the devil’s envy that death entered the world’ (Wis 1:13; 2:24). 414 Satan or the devil and the other demons arefallen angels who have freely refused to serve God and his plan. Their choice against God is definitive. They try to associate man in their revolt against God. 415 ‘Although set by God in a state of rectitude man, enticed by the evil one, abused his freedom at the very start of history. He l~Jied himself up against God, and sought to attain his goal apart from him’ (CS 13 § i). 416 By his sin Adam, as theJirst man, lost the original holiness andjustice he had received from God, not only for himself butfor all human beings. 417 Adam and Eve transmitted to their descendants human nature wounded by their own first sin and hence deprived of original holiness and justice; this deprivation is called ‘original sin’. 418 As a result of original sin, human nature is u’eakened in its powers, subject to ignorance, suffering and the domination of death, and inclined to sin (this inclination is called ‘concupiscence’).