A
Sistine Chapel fresco depicts the expulsion of
Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden for their sin of eating from the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
is a term used mainly in a
religious context to describe an act that violates a
moral rule, or the state of having committed such a violation. Commonly, the moral
code of conduct is decreed by a divine entity, i.e.
Divine law.
Sin is often used to mean an action that is prohibited or considered wrong; in some religions (notably some sects of
Christianity), sin can refer to
thoughtcrime. Colloquially, any thought, word, or act considered immoral,
shameful, harmful, or alienating might be termed "sinful".
Common ideas surrounding sin in various religions include:
- Punishment for sins, from other people, from God either in life or in afterlife, or from the Universe in general.
- The question of whether an act must be intentional to be sinful.
- The idea that one's conscience should produce guilt for a conscious act of sin.
- A scheme for determining the seriousness of the sin.
- Repentance from (expressing regret for and determining not to commit) sin, and atonement (repayment) for past deeds.
Crime and
justice are related
secular concepts.
Etymology
The word
sin derives from
Old English synn, recorded in use as early as the 9th century. The same root appears in several other Germanic languages, e.g.
Old Norse synd, or
German Sünde. There is presumably a Germanic root *sun(d)jō (literally "
it is true").
But in the biblical Hebrew, the generic word for sin is
het. It means to err, to miss the mark. It does not mean to do evil.
The
Greek word
hamartia (ἁμαρτία) is usually translated as
sin in the
New Testament. In
Classical Greek, it means "
to miss the mark" or "
to miss the target" which was also used in Old English archery. In
Koine Greek, which was spoken in the time of the New Testament, however, this translation is not adequate.
Jewish views of sin
Judaism regards the violation of any of the
divine commandments to be a sin. Judaism teaches that sin is an act, and not a state of being.
Christian views of sin
In
Western Christianity, "sin is
lawlessness" (1 John 3:4) and so salvation tends to be understood in legal terms, similar to Jewish law. As in
Eastern Christianity, sin is also viewed as a relational problem. Sin alienates the sinner from God. It has damaged, and completely severed, the relationship of humanity to God. That relationship can only be restored through acceptance of
Jesus Christ and his death on the cross as a sacrifice for mankind's sin (see
Salvation and
Substitutionary atonement)
In
Eastern Christianity, sin is viewed in terms of its effects on relationships, both among people and between people and God. Sin is seen as the refusal to follow God's plan, and the desire to be like God and thus in direct opposition to him (see the account of
Adam and Eve in the
Book of Genesis). To sin is to want control of one's destiny in opposition to the will of God.
Islamic views of sin
Islam sees sin ("khati'a") as anything that goes against the will of
Allah (
God).
Islam teaches that sin is an act and not a state of being. The
Qur'an teaches that "the (human) soul is certainly prone to
evil, unless the Lord does bestow His Mercy" and that even the
prophets do not
absolve themselves of the
blame (
Qur'an ).
Bahá'í views of sin
In the
Bahá'í Faith, humans are considered to be naturally good (perfect), fundamentally spiritual beings. Human beings were created because of God's immeasurable love for us. However, the Bahá'í teachings compare the human heart to a mirror, which, if turned away from the light of the sun (i.e. God), is incapable of receiving God's love.
Hindu views of sin
In
Hinduism, although the term
sin (
in
Sanskrit) is often used to describe actions that create negative
karma by violating moral and ethical codes it is different from other religions like Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the sense that sin is against the will of God. It is against the
Dharma.
Buddhist views of sin
Buddhism does not recognize the idea behind sin because in Buddhism, instead, there is a "Cause-Effect Theory", known as
Karma, or action-reaction.
Shinto views of sin
Within
Shinto there is no doctrine of sin, rather good and evil are conceived of in "aesthetic terms, likening them to straight and curved lines". Matagatsubi, the curved spirit, causes "evil deeds and any misfortune or disasters" by creating imbalance, distorting the "straight and clear". Evil deeds fall into two categories in Shinto:
amatsu tsumi, "the most pernicious crimes of all", and
kunitsu tsumi, "or more commonly called misdemeanors".
Atheist views of sin
Atheism often draws a distinction between sin and an ethical
code of conduct. Sin is a term generally associated with a theological belief system (which is antithetical to atheism), and is separate from the concept of "right or wrong." Atheists typically do not use the term "sinful" to refer to actions that violate their particular moral system (particularly if "sinful" is taken to mean "acting against the wishes or commands of a deity"), preferring terms such as "wrong" or "unethical," which do not carry religious connotations. Most atheists hold that moral codes derive from societal mores or innate human characteristics, rather than religious authority. Atheists may still adhere to a strong ethical code, even if they do not use the concept of sin.
See also
- Eternal sin (also known as Unforgivable sin or Unpardonable sin)
- Original sin (also known as Ancestral sin, Hereditary sin, Birth sin or First sin)
Notes and references
Bibliography
- Hein, David. "Regrets Only: A Theology of Remorse." The Anglican 33, no. 4 (October 2004): 5-6
- Schumacher, Meinolf. Sündenschmutz und Herzensreinheit: Studien zur Metaphorik der Sünde in lateinischer und deutscher Literatur des Mittelalters. Munich: Fink, 1996
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