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Christian views on sin

In Christianity, sin is an immoral act and transgression of divine law.[1] The doctrine of sin is central to the Christian faith, since its basic message is about redemption in Christ.[2]

"Hamartiology" redirects here. For a general overview of the subject, see Sin.

Hamartiology, a branch of Christian theology which is the study of sin,[3] describes sin as an act of offence against God by despising his persons and Christian biblical law, and by injuring others.[4] Christian hamartiology is closely related to concepts of natural law, moral theology and Christian ethics.


Among some scholars, sin is understood mostly as legal infraction or contract violation of non-binding philosophical frameworks and perspectives of Christian ethics, and so salvation tends to be viewed in legal terms. Other Christian scholars understand sin to be fundamentally relational—a loss of love for the Christian God and an elevation of self-love ("concupiscence", in this sense), as was later propounded by Augustine in his debate with the Pelagians.[5] As with the legal definition of sin, this definition also affects the understanding of Christian grace and salvation, which are thus viewed in relational terms.[6]

Etymology[edit]

Hamartiology (from Greek: ἁμαρτία, hamartia, "a departure fr. either human or divine standards of uprightness"[7] and -λογια, -logia, "study")

In the Bible[edit]

Old Testament[edit]

The first use of sin as a noun in the Old Testament is in Genesis chapter 4, verse seven "sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it"[8] waiting to be mastered by Cain,[9] a form of literary theriomorphism.[10]


The Book of Isaiah announced the consequences of sin: "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken falsely, and your tongue mutters wicked things" — a separation between God and man, and unrequited worshipping.[11]

—Most denominations of Christianity interpret the Garden of Eden account in Genesis in terms of the fall of man. Adam and Eve's disobedience was the first sin man ever committed, and their original sin (or the effects of the sin) is passed on to their descendants (or has become a part of their environment). See also: total depravity.

Original sin

Concupiscence

Venial sin

Mortal sin

Seven deadly sins

—Commonly called the Unforgivable sin (mentioned in Matthew 12:31), this is perhaps the most controversial sin, whereby someone has become an apostate, forever denying themselves a life of faith and experience of salvation; the precise nature of this sin is often disputed.

Eternal sin

Within some branches of Christianity, there are several defined types of sin:

"certain violations of the fundamental rights of human nature, through genetic manipulations [or experiments],"

"drug [abuse], which weakens the mind and obscures intelligence,"

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environmental pollution

"abortion and pedophilia," and

the widening social and economic differences between the rich and the poor, which "cause an unbearable social injustice" (accumulating excessive wealth, inflicting poverty). The revision was aimed at encouraging confession or the .

Sacrament of Penance

Eastern Christian views[edit]

The (Chalcedonian) Eastern Orthodox Church as well as the (non-Chalcedonian) Oriental Orthodox use "sin" both to refer to humanity's fallen condition and to refer to individual sinful acts. In many ways the Eastern Orthodox Christian view of sin is similar to the Jewish, although neither form of Orthodoxy makes formal distinctions among "grades" of sins.


The Eastern Catholic Churches, which derive their theology and spirituality from same sources as the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox, tend not to adhere to the Roman Catholic distinction between mortal and venial sin taught by the Latin Church. Like the Orthodox Churches, however, the Eastern Catholic Churches do make a distinction between sins that are serious enough to bar one from Holy Communion (and must be confessed before receiving once again) and those which are not sufficiently serious to do so. In this respect, the Eastern Tradition is similar to the Western, but the Eastern Churches do not consider death in such a state to automatically mean damnation to "hell."

Jehovah's Witnesses[edit]

Jehovah's Witnesses believe that sin is inherited, like a disease, and has been passed on from generation to generation of humans, beginning with Adam and Eve, whom Witnesses believe are real historical characters.[68] They believe that it began with the Devil, and then with humans wanting to decide for themselves what was good and bad. They believe that at that very moment they lost perfection and began to die. Jehovah's Witnesses consider human beings to be souls, and so when a human dies due to sin, they believe that his soul dies as well.[68] They believe that Jesus is the only human ever to have lived and died sinless.[69]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints[edit]

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe that individuals are only responsible for the sins they personally commit. In their Articles of Faith the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches, "We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam's transgression."[70] Latter-day Saints also believe that sin is the consequence of the Fall of Adam and Eve, and that all sin originates from Satan. They also believe that "little children" (meaning those under the age of 8, or "the age of accountability"), while capable of sinning, are not held accountable for their actions, and their sins are covered by the atonement of Jesus Christ. [71][72]

Barbara Reid, a dissenting Roman Catholic and Dominican nun, argues that commonly conceived atonement theologies are harmful, especially to women and other oppressed minorities.[73] Other liberal and radical theologians have also challenged traditional views of atonement. (see collective salvation)

feminist

a Baptist evangelist, characterized the United States as a most sinful nation and called upon his listeners to repent to Christ while they still had time.[74]

Billy Graham

In Christianity, it is generally understood that the death of Jesus was a sacrifice that relieves believers of the burden of their sins. However, the actual meaning of this precept is very widely debated. The traditional teaching of some churches traces this idea of atonement to blood sacrifices in the ancient Hebraic faith.


Christian theologians have presented different interpretations of atonement:

Biblical law in Christianity

Christian ethics

Heaven (Christianity)

Law of Christ

Moral theology

Reconciliation

Sacraments (Catholic Church)

Cross, Frank L.; Livingstone, Elizabeth A., eds. (2005). Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Oxford: University Press.  978-0-19-280290-3.

ISBN

(2016). "Truth in a Heresy?". The Expository Times. 112 (3): 78–82. doi:10.1177/001452460011200302. S2CID 170152314.

Harrison, Carol

Puchniak, Robert (2008). "Pelagius: Kierkegaard's use of Pelagius and Pelagianism". In (ed.). Kierkegaard and the Patristic and Medieval Traditions. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 978-0-7546-6391-1.

Stewart, Jon Bartley

Vawter, Bruce (1983). "Original Sin". In Richardson, Alan; Bowden, John (eds.). . Westminster John Knox. ISBN 9780664227487.

The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Theology

Visotzky, Burton L. (2009). "Will and Grace: Aspects of Judaising in Pelagianism in Light of Rabbinic and Patristic Exegesis of Genesis". In Grypeou, Emmanouela; Spurling, Helen (eds.). The Exegetical Encounter Between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity. Leiden: Brill. pp. 43–62.  978-90-04-17727-7.

ISBN

Confessions

Augustine of Hippo

Augustine of Hippo,

On Christian Doctrine

Summa Theologica I–II q71: Of Vice and Sin Considered in Themselves

Thomas Aquinas

Hamartiology (Philosophical Theology of Sin)