Our question for this week is about "original sin". Where does this idea come from? Do newborns have "original sin?" This week's study is led by Rev. Steve Clifton and we reflect together on the doctrine of original sin.
Original Sin
No doctrine inside the precincts of the Christian Church is received with greater reserve and hesitation, even to the point of outright denial, than the doctrine of original sin. Of course in a secular culture like ours, any number of Christian doctrines will be disputed by outsiders, from the existence of God to the resurrection of Jesus. But even in those denominations that pride themselves on their adherence to the orthodox dogmas of the once-universal Church, the doctrine of original sin is met with either embarrassed silence, outright denial, or at a minimum a kind of halfhearted lip service that does not exactly deny the doctrine but… Edward Oakes
…all men, born according to nature, are born with sin, that is, without the fear of God, without confidence towards God and with concupiscence, and that this original disease or flaw is truly a sin, bringing condemnation and also eternal death to those who are not reborn through baptism and the Holy Spirit" (Article II). - Augsburg Confession of Faith (1530)
“Original thought is like original sin: both happened before you were born to people you could not have possibly met.” Fran Liebowitz
“Certain new theologians dispute original sin, which is the only part of Christian theology which can really be proved.” GK Chesterton
Charles Hodges: Original sin is the only rational solution of the undeniable fact of the deep, universal and early manifested sinfulness of men in all ages, of every class, and in every part of the world”
John Calvin: Original sin, therefore, appears to be a hereditary, depravity and corruption of our nature, diffused through all the parts of the soul, rendering us obnoxious to the divine wrath and producing in us those works which the scripture calls 'works of shame.”
Dictionary definition: Original sin (a sin said to be inherited by all descendants of Adam) "Adam and Eve committed the original sin when they ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden"… the Christian teaching that all humans are sinful at birth or are born with a tendency to sin.
What is Sin?
The word sin is used in different ways. Sin is:
· An action: All monotheistic religions agree that sins are actions that violate God's law. By behaving in ways that contradict divine will, a person sins. In Judaism and Islam, sin is always an act, a wrong act, and an immoral or impure act.
· A thought: In Judaism, a thought cannot be a sin, but a thought can lead to a sin. In Christianity, can a thought be a sin?
· A state of being: In some Christian traditions, sin is not only a thought or an act; it is also a state of being, represented in the concept of original sin. Original sin is a condition that humans are born to because of Adam's disobedience (he ate the forbidden fruit) in the Garden of Eden.
The doctrine of original sin does view sin as a condition or state of being rather than as an act.
“Whether sin is an act, a thought, or a condition, it is, at its heart, distance from God.”
Biblical Origins
Genesis 3: The story of Adam and Eve
Questions:
What in this story supports the doctrine of original sin?
Does the text suggest that the sin and punishment of Adam and Eve is to be passed on to future generations?
Do you consider the Creation story of Genesis 3 to a literal/historical story? If it is a theological tale and not a historical account, what difference does this make to the idea of original sin?
We can note that Judaism has no doctrine of original sin.
Romans 5: 12-21
What in this story supports the doctrine of original sin?
“Eastern Christianity, acknowledge that the introduction of ancestral sin into the human race affected the subsequent environment for mankind but never accepted Augustine of Hippo's notions of original sin and hereditary guilt. The act of Adam is not the responsibility of all humanity, but the consequences of that act changed the reality of this present age of the cosmos.” How is this view different from original sin? Does the Romans passage support this Eastern view?
What is Paul arguing in this passage? What is his essential point? (Hint: It has to do with the law and with grace.)
1 Corinthians 15:22: For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive…
How might these words support the doctrine of original sin?
What is Paul’s main point in this passage? Is he talking about sin or something else?
Note: Early theologians and the rabbis of old debate whether Adam and Eve were immortal before their temptation.
Psalm 51:5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
How might these words support the doctrine of original sin?
Looking at the whole Chapter, what do you notice?
There are some texts that would seem to refute the idea of Original Sin. Consider these:
Ezekiel 18:1-4
Ezekiel 18:19-20
"God hath made man upright." Ecclesiastes 7:29
"God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…And God saw everything that he had made, and…it was very good." Gen. 1:26, 31
"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." Genesis 1:27
"Who so ever sheds another’s blood, so shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made God made human beings." Genesis 9:6
"human beings…are the image and glory of God." I Corinthians 11:7
Origins of the Doctrine of Original Sin
There are wide-ranging disagreements among Christian groups as to the exact understanding of the doctrine about a state of sinfulness or absence of holiness affecting all humans, even children, with some Christian groups denying it altogether.
The doctrine of original sin was first developed in second-century Bishop of Lyon Irenaeus's struggle against Gnosticism. The Greek Fathers, the early thinkers of the Church, emphasized the cosmic dimension of the Fall, namely that since Adam human beings are born into a fallen world, but held fast to belief that man, though fallen, is free. It was in the West that precise definition of the doctrine arose.
Augustine of Hippo taught that original sin began with the trespass of Adam and Eve. The sin of Adam and Eve wounded their nature, affecting human intelligence and will, as well as affections and desires, including sexual desire. The consequences of the fall were transmitted to their descendants in the form of concupiscence (having to do with desire), which is a metaphysical term, and not a psychological one. Adam and Eve's "human nature depraved of original holiness and justice" is "transmitted by propagation to all mankind".
Thomas Aquinas explained Augustine's doctrine pointing out that the libido (concupiscence), which makes the original sin pass from parents to children, is not a libido actualis, i.e. sexual lust, but libido habitualis, i.e. a wound of the whole of human nature. Augustine insisted that concupiscence was not a being but bad quality, the privation of good or a wound. The original sin have made humanity a massa damnata (mass of perdition, condemned crowd). In Augustine's view (termed "Realism"), all of humanity was really present in Adam when he sinned, and therefore all have sinned. Original sin, according to Augustine, consists of the guilt of Adam which all humans inherit. As sinners, humans are utterly depraved in nature, lack the freedom to do good, and cannot respond to the will of God without divine grace. Grace is irresistible, results in conversion, and leads to perseverance.
Saint Anselm of Canterbury defined original sin as "privation of the righteousness that every man ought to possess".Reformers Martin Luther and John Calvin equated original sin with concupiscence, affirming that it persisted even after baptism and completely destroyed the human ability to be morally free.
The Council of Trent was home to the first of a series of declarations in the Catholic Church, which stated that baptism was sufficient to remove the concupiscence of the Fall.
From about the 18th century, belief in original sin has tended to become softened.
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy which together make up Eastern Christianity, acknowledge that the introduction of ancestral sin into the human race affected the subsequent environment for mankind but never accepted Augustine of Hippo's notions of original sin and hereditary guilt. The act of Adam is not the responsibility of all humanity, but the consequences of that act changed the reality of this present age of the cosmos. The Greek Fathers emphasized the metaphysical dimension of the Fall of Man, whereby Adam's descendants are born into a fallen world, but at the same time held fast to belief that, in spite of that, humanity remains free.[ Instead of accepting the Lutheran interpretation of Augustine's teaching, Orthodox Churches accept the teaching of John Cassian, which rejects the doctrine of total depravity by teaching that human nature is "fallen", that is, depraved, but not totally unredeemable.
Restoration Movement
Restoration Movement Churches, such as the Churches of Christ, Christian Churches, and the Disciples of Christ, reject the notion of original sin, believing only in the sins for which men and women are personally responsible. Such churches do not object to the idea that Adam and Eve brought sin into the world by introducing disobedience. Disobedience influenced further generations in much the same way other ideas spread, thus making sin likely in any individual above "The Age of Accountability."
In the Old Testament, in the Book of Ezekiel, God's people are rebuked for suggesting that the children would die/suffer for their father's sins:
The word of the Lord came to me: "What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: 'The parents eat sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge'? As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. For everyone belongs to me, the parent as well as the child—both alike belong to me. The one who sins is the one who will die. —Ezek. 18:1-4, TNIV
The Lord then gives examples of a good father with a bad son, of a good son with a bad father, etc. and states:
"Yet you ask, 'Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?' Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them. —Ezek. 18:19-20,
God concludes: "house of Israel, I will judge each of you according to your own ways … Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit" (Ezek. 18:30-31, TNIV).
Celtic Christianity: Pelagianism
Pelagius (AD 354 – ca. AD 420/440) was a British monk trained in law. His concern was the moral laxity he found among Christians and the widespread excuse for moral laxity being that they are not on the same level of spirituality as monks or priests. The excuse was “I can’t help it; this is just the way I am”. Pelagius sought to formulate an understanding of God’s law and salvation that placed moral responsibility on the
shoulders of the average Christian. God being just would not give us laws that we were not capable of fulfilling. God would not demand an ought that we were not able to do. By putting the power of moral/spiritual transformation back in the hands of people, Augustine asserted that Pelagius undermined the biblical understanding of law and made Christ’s atonement an empty work.
Celtic World View: There is good along with the bad
In the bible, Matthew 13:24, Jesus tells a parable of a property owner who sowed wheat in his fields. An enemy of the property owner, at night, scattered the seeds of Tares, (a weed) to mix in with the wheat. While growing, both the wheat and the Tares look alike. When the Tares were discovered by one of owner's servant, they offered to take the weeds up so that it wouldn't choke the wheat. The owner, using sound judgment, didn't panic. He knew that if the servants weeded too soon, they may also pull up the wheat. He instructed them to wait until the wheat was full grown. They could then tell the difference between the wheat and Tares. The weeds were to be pulled up, bundled and burned, and then the wheat would be harvested. The owner knew that he had put in true hard work. Although someone else may have come to hurt or destroy his work, there still was some good to be had. If the owner acted foolishly, and just worried about what looked like wheat, he would have lost that which was good too.
Extraterrestrial Original Sin?
Quoted in the Vatican newspaper, Father Gabriel Funes, director of the Vatican Observatory, stated: "In my opinion this possibility (of life on other planets) exists"; "intelligent beings, created by God may exist in outer space" and "some aliens could even be free from original sin" concluding "there could be (other beings) who remained in full friendship with their Creator".
Unbaptized infants
Augustine believed that the only definitive destinations of souls are heaven and hell. He concluded that unbaptized infants go to hell as a consequence of original sin. The Latin Church Fathers who followed Augustine adopted his position, which became a point of reference for Latin theologians in the Middle Ages. In the later mediaeval period, some theologians continued to hold Augustine's view, others held that unbaptized infants suffered no pain at all: unaware of being deprived of the beatific vision, they enjoyed a state of natural, not supernatural happiness. Starting around 1300, unbaptized infants were often said to inhabit the "infants”. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1261 declares: "As regards children who have died without Baptism, the Church can only entrust them to the mercy of God, as she does in her funeral rites for them. Indeed, the great mercy of God who desires that all men should be saved, and Jesus' tenderness toward children which caused him to say: 'Let the children come to me, do not hinder them,'[ allow us to hope that there is a way of salvation for children who have died without Baptism. All the more urgent is the Church's call not to prevent little children coming to Christ through the gift of holy Baptism." But the theory of Limbo, while it "never entered into the dogmatic definitions of the Magisterium ... remains ... a possible theological hypothesis". (It is interesting to note that the current Pope Benedict XVI recently demoted the idea of limbo, putting it outside the official teaching of the Catholic Church)
Some Final Reflections
A number of social forces impact on any discussion of original sin.
Evolution- As modern people we tend to think that things are ever moving, progressing and improving. Original sin speaks of a static and inescapable circumstance.
Individualism – Our society encourages us to think that we are self actualized individuals. The idea of original sin, that we are part of a great collective and that our individual actions are of lesser significance is a challenging one for us.
Liberalism – In our western society we tend to believe that education, programming, activism and intervention can lead to redemption. This model of reality tends to have trouble with the ideas of evil and depravity.
Encounters with human evil – What do events like the Holocaust, the Somme, Hiroshima and Rwanda say to us about the nature of humanity? Where we are in the world and in history may impact on our views of human depravity and on our understanding of the human capacity for evil:
In the twentieth century, when human beings have already killed well over one hundred million of their kind, disenchantment [with an optimistic view of human nature] has set in. Two world wars, the Gulags, the Holocaust, Korea, Vietnam, the nuclear and ecological threats form a somber litany that makes the optimism of the liberals ring hollow and naïve. Despite technological progress, evil, far from vanishing, has only become more powerful and more fiendish. . . . And artists like Conrad, Camus, Beckett, Golding, and Murdoch contend that because of our hearts of darkness there may be countless nice men and women but few if any genuinely good ones. In all these perspectives evil is held to be inherent, somehow structural, ingrained. And it’s terrible power defies explanation and solution. paradoxically, the silver wings of science and technology, on which soared the hopes of the industrialized societies, carry the ultimate menace to the human prospect. Steven Duffy
Final Note: While “Original Sin” seems to project a dark view of humanity it is intended to project a positive view of God. The God of this doctrine is a God of grace. We cannot save ourselves. Our own actions are always inadequate; we are saved through unmerited love. God in Christ dies for our fallen world. God saves us as we cannot save ourselves.
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