Difference between revisions of "Sin"

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Sin (from Old English synn, from either Old Norse synd or German Sünde, from sun(d)jo it is true, from Sanskrit(?) es- it is) is any failure to conform to the letter of a given code of morality, or the state of being of one so failing to conform, or the state of the world that results from such failure.

Meaning of sin

The root meaning of the English word sin is actually, "He is guilty as charged." This in turn implies that the person committing the offense knew, or ought to have known, that his act would be an offense before he committed it. This word actually captures the meaning that many religious traditions ascribe to sin.

The Greek word used in the original New Testament and translated "sin" in English is ἁμαρτία (hamartia) (whence hamartoma a malformation of cells that are within their usual place in the body). This word captures the Christian meaning of sin much better. Hamartia means missing a target. Thus sin does not require bad intentions, but might result from a misunderstanding. This is not to say that the consequences are any less dire, however. It does mean that sin need not be intentional; it can be a knowing (but not intentional), reckless, or negligent act.

Required: a moral context

Sin, which is a moral failure, cannot exist in the absence of a code of morality. Objectivism defines morality as "a code of values accepted by choice." Even a code of morality given by God qualifies as a code "accepted by choice," because human beings choose to abide by such a code, or not.

This is not to say that sin requires a context of divinity. Objectivism, for example, refuses to admit God, while still prescribing a standard of value and a code of morality that follows from it. (Whether such a code can properly stand, by the rules of Objectivism itself, is another matter.) The context in which sin ceases to have meaning is not atheism per se but rather amoralism--the doctrine that says that no person may properly define what is moral for another, because no two people will ever value the same thing to the same degree, or value the same collection of things by the same rank structure.

Whether any man ever lives without some form of moral code--even if that code is, "I denounce as sin any disagreement with myself or any attempt to stand in my way"--is debatable. Nevertheless, without some form of moral context, sin has no meaning.

Differing views of sin

Jewish

In Judaism, and certainly in ancient practice, the preferred method of atonement for sin was blood sacrifice. The Book of Leviticus prescribed multiple animal sacrifices for atonement for various types of sin. But by far the most important atonement--on the Day of Atonement (Yowm Kippur)--was made by the high priest of the Hebrew people (originally Aaron, brother of Moses). This involved making a blood sacrifice, entering the Holy of Holies (in Latin, sanctum sanctorum), and sprinkling some of the blood from the sacrifice on the Ark of the Covenant.

Animal sacrifice has not been part of Jewish practice since the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem by the future Roman Emperor Titus in 70 AD. But the Old Testament did not imply that animal sacrifice was the sole necessary measure for reconciliation. Simple repentance and prayer sufficed numerous times in Bible history.

Today, though animal sacrifices are no longer observed, Jews do observe Yowm Kippur and other festivals related to repentance and reconciliation. But a movement now exists to attempt to regain exclusive control of the Temple Mount area in Jerusalem, rebuild the Temple, and resume the burnt offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings prescribed in the Torah.

Christian views

Roman Catholic

Roman Catholic doctrine distinguishes original sin, or the sin of Adam, from personal sins, which require individual reconciliation with God. A personal sin may be mortal (a particularly grave matter that the perpetrator commits by deliberate intent) or venial (a less grave matter that could result from a misunderstanding). The RCC distinction is: Mortal sins cut a person off from the grace of God; venial sins do not, but still injure one's relationship to God.

The one mortal sin that, to a Catholic, would be unforgivable (because its successful commission leaves no opportunity for reconciliation later), is suicide. Beyond that, a person may receive reconciliation for a mortal sin by making confession to a priest and receiving the ceremony of absolution. One can reconcile from a venial sin by the sacrament of reconciliation, or by receiving communion, or Holy Eucharist.

Roman Catholic doctrine historically included two other controversial holdings. One is purgatory, a place where the soul must be held to "purge" him of all traces of sin before he can gain entry to heaven. Redemption from purgatory allegedly required the payment of a monetary fee by the deceased's relatives to the Church. The other is the indulgence, a fee paid to the church by the perpetrator in advance. Indulgences have not been sold for centuries, and recently Pope Benedict XVI issued an encyclical casting doubt on the entire concept of purgatory.

Virgin Mary

Roman Catholic doctrine holds that not only was Jesus sinless, but so, also, was His Mother, Mary. This doctrine, called Marianism, is not universally held by all Catholics, however.

Anglican Communion

The Anglican Communion, essentially the breakaway church of the United Kingdom, retains the Roman Catholic tradition of confession and absolution of sin. But instead of an individual process, confession in Anglican churches is a group activity, and absolution is pronounced by a minister to the entire church-going group. Purgatory and indulgences have no place in Anglican doctrine.

Eastern and Oriental Orthodox

The Orthodox churches, including Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox, differ little from Judaism in their holding of what sin is and how to reconcile it--except that animal sacrifices have never been part of Orthodox tradition.

The Reformation

In 1517, Martin Luther led the most serious break from Roman Catholic doctrine and tradition, the Protestant Reformation. This occurred at about the time that King Henry VIII, then of the Kingdom of England, formed the Church of England, the forerunner of the Anglican Communion.

Luther is most famous for his "95 precepts nailed to the church-house door." The most important of these is the principle that he stated in Latin as Sola Scriptura--literally, "Scripture only." Luther rejected out-of-hand most of the various categories of sin, and the elaborate rituals that attended its so-called reconciliation.

To Luther, and to his intellectual heirs in the Lutheran Church and the Dutch Reformed Church, the Bible tells all one needs to know about sin. Sin, according to Luther, is any failure to observe God's commandments or other Godly precepts that one may determine from the actual teachings of Jesus and of His Apostles (especially Paul, the most prolific writer among them). Reconciliation from sin was a private matter between God and any of His followers. A priest or minister was not required, because that would imply that a human being, of whatever office, could stand in the place of God--a thing Luther regarded as an insult to God, which is the definition of blasphemy.

Nor was any animal sacrifice required, because Jesus Himself made the One Total and Complete Sacrifice of His own life for the sin condition of the world (see below) and for the sins of individual people, past, present and future. Salvation was strictly by faith and strictly by grace. Luther drew directly on the letters of Paul that addressed this very subject.

The Anabaptist Tradition

The ancient Anabaptists, and the modern Baptists after them, would generally agree with Luther. Like him, Baptists hold that sin is an act or omission that displeases God, and the state of being that the perpetrator falls into, and remains in until he has confessed this sin.

Baptist churches do not tend to engage in corporate, collective confessions. Rather, Baptist practice depends heavily on Matthew 18:15-20 (KJV), which prescribes this procedure for the handling of sin that gives offense to a fellow believer:

1. The aggrieved person, or the minister if the aggrieved person has asked him to, tries to encourage the perpetrator to repent. Repentance (Greek metanoia) means a change of mind, or a change of heart.
2. Failing that, whoever tried to talk to the perpetrator the first time, tries a second time and brings a witness.
3. If this still does not bring repentance, and a cessation of the behavior, then and only then does the matter come before the entire church. The minister lays out the case, and puts the matter to a vote as to whether the offender ought to be allowed to remain in fellowship.

Not all Baptist churches practice this discipline, however. In such environments, sin is a matter between the offender and God (and the person or persons to whom the offender might have given offense). Some observers suggest that churches suffer when they fail to practice discipline as they should.

Fundamentalists

Main Article: Sin (Fundamentalism)

The above article is a comprehensive theory of sin, and its effects on the offender, on mankind as a whole, and on the entire world.

Islam

In Islam, sin is very simple: anything that runs counter to the will of Allah (Arabic for God). In Islam, sin is simply an act, never a state of being.

Islam recognizes five gradations of sin, in order of severity:

1. Mistakes.
2. Immorality.
3. Transgressions.
4. Wickedness and depravity.
5. Ascribing a partner to God. Thus this one special instance of blasphemy is held worse than any other sin a man can commit.

In Islam, permanent reconciliation cannot come in life. Instead, at death, a person has his "good deeds" measured against his "bad deeds" (sins). If the good outweighs the bad, then the person must walk a tightrope over a lake of fire in order to cross into heaven. Islam, however, offers one important exception: any person who dies in the course of an act that advances the Muslim faith gains automatic entry into heaven, regardless of any prior sins he has committed. The usual, and some Muslims (particularly the Wahabbi sect) say the only, context for such a death is jihad, literally holy war. Furthermore, jihad is a physical war against non-adherents to Islam.

Other Muslims will say that jihad is not physical at all, but refers instead to a personal struggle that every Muslim must engage in continually against sin and the temptations thereto.

Objectivism

Objectivism does not admit to any kind of divinity, but it still has its own code of morality. Though a student of Objectivism does not normally use the word sin, one may best infer what Objectivism considers sinful by examining what it teaches man to value. A basic, but by no means exhaustive, list would include:

1. Failure to be relentlessly rational in everything one does.
2. Coveting the fruits of another's labor without being willing to pay for those fruits.
3. Failure to give value for value received.
4. Violation of another person's right to pursue his life in a non-offensive manner.
5. Initiating the use of force against another person or group of persons.
6. Accepting as real anything one cannot see.
7. Refusing to accept reality.
8. Attempting to create one's own reality.

Reconciliation for sin, beyond restitution to another to whom one has brought material loss by his sin, is not generally required. In the Objectivist model, one pays the consequences of his particular sins in the form of loss of trade, loss of respect, et cetera. Because Objectivism admits no heaven, it admits no hell, either, and therefore all of the consequences of sin must occur in this life.

Cults and cult figures

A cult, properly speaking, is a belief system centered on one person, or the group of persons led by that person. In the context of a cult, sin is any refusal to uphold the decisions or obey the orders of the leader, and anything else that gives offense to the leader. Reconciliation is generally at the leader's own discretion.

Totalitarianism

Totalitarianism is a philosophy of government that holds that the government must have absolute authority over all aspects of life. Communists are totalitarians, just as the Nazis were.

Totalitarian authorities and their apologists have their concept of sin as well: it is anything that works against the government, or tries to thwart its goals. This is true even in a regime that is explicitly atheistic in worldview. Reconciliation generally requires recantation.

Socialism

Socialism, whether as a system of government or as a school of philosophy, has a definite standard of value: "the greatest good for the greatest number of people." Sin under socialism is anything that undermines this. Theoretically, sin also includes conspicuous consumption at a level beyond that attainable by "the average person."

Environmentalism

Environmentalism also has a standard of value: the good of the planet as a wild system. Anything that harms the earth or makes it less wild is sinful in this system. The controversy surrounding global warming is, at root, a controversy about environmentalism as a source of moral values, and the allegation that humans in general, and/or some humans in particular, have transgressed against the environmentalist moral standard.

Summary

Some religious and philosophical traditions consider sin to be a deliberate act; others say that it can be merely a mistake. Some say that reconciliation for sin requires a certain work; others that reconciliation is by the grace of God (or, for some, a cult leader), and still others (most notably the Objectivists) say that reconciliation is not required, except perhaps to any particular affronted person.

As mentioned, atheists do not necessarily lack a concept of sin (though they might not call it by that name). But amoral individuals, if such exist, cannot understand sin, because sin presupposes a moral code that someone might breach.

Yevon

In the religion of Yevon, Sin is an avatar of the misdeeds of man. Yevonites believe that Sin will come in the form of a great beast to strike down civilization for an over-reliance on machines.

References

• Sin by Wikipedia
• Sin by CreationWiki