Question: Did procreation exist on the earth before the Fall of Adam?

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Question: Did procreation exist on the earth before the Fall of Adam?

Whether other forms of life passed through procreation and death before the fall is not an issue on which the Church doctrine provides any official stance

The scriptural evidence indicates that Adam and Eve did not have any children or understanding of procreation until after the fall. This is indeed what is taught in church. However, whether other forms of life passed through procreation and death before the fall is not an issue on which the Church doctrine provides any official stance.

There are two primary reasons for questions about procreation before the Fall. One arises from a curiosity about whether or not Adam and Eve had any children in the garden before the Fall. The second reason arises from a hypothesis entertained by some church members about pre-Fall procreation of animals being necessary for organic evolution. (Since evolution requires reproductive success, lack of reproduction rules it out.)

Children before the Fall?

Concerning question source one: The Book of Mormon teaches us that Adam and Eve were innocent, and as long as they were in the Garden, "they would have no children" (2 Nephi 2:23). This is also strengthened in the Bible. Children are not even mentioned until after the fall (see also Genesis 3:16).

Irenaeus said that both Adam and Eve "had no understanding of the procreation of children." He also mentioned that Eve was a virgin in the garden three different times. He went on to say that after the fall, Adam "had lost his natural disposition and child-like mind."

Thus, there is evidence from Biblical, Book of Mormon, and early Christian sources that Adam and Eve did not have children prior to the Fall. The records are silent about whether other living things had offspring.

Life and death of non-human animals before the Fall?

Concerning question aspect two: Although the church has no official position on the occurrence of evolution (other than the creation did not occur ex nihilo), strong opinions have been expressed on both sides of the question. Some have hypothesized that God, being bound by natural laws, used evolution to create what we see now in the fossil record. In order for this to have occurred there logically would have been procreation and death among plants and animals before the fall of Adam.

Some LDS members and leaders have argued that there was no death anywhere on earth prior to the Fall, and such a position also assumes—if only implicitly—that there was likewise no procreation. (See FairMormon Answers article on Death before the Fall.) Other members and leaders have held that, as Elder James E. Talmage said, "life and death have been in existence and operative in this earth for ages prior to [Adam]."

This is a doctrinal or theological topic about which there is no official Church doctrine of which FAIR is aware and/or about which we may learn more "line upon line; precept upon precept" (2 Nephi 28:30; Isaiah 28:10). Leaders and members may have expressed a variety of opinions or positions. Like all material in FAIR Answers, it reflects the best efforts of FAIR volunteers, not an official Church position.

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