The Language of Sin

In an e-mail post from Terry Meuller on the gtng@yahoogroups.com, Terry makes reference to "the doctrine of sin and of the universal need for redemption." I am bothered by this language and it's implications in my personal religion and spirituality.

My first objection comes from the way the doctrine is used. I have never benefited from being called a sinner. This tactic may be considered as missionary work or as "conversion". I consider it a bad mix of Christianity and Nietzsche's maxim 'That which does not kill me makes me stronger." The approach is usually an attack designed to make me rethink the sin, but what is labeled a sin is a behavior, opinion, or musing of mine that I don't consider to be a sin.

My second objection is that sin is described as our natural state. I reject the notion that I am a "sinner from my mothers womb." I will admit that I because I am a human being I am not mentally, physically, or pyschology able to live up to any standards that some Christian's assert God has for us. I like the anology that God is like the Sun. I can't look at the Sun because my eyes can't absorb the Sun's rays without doing damage to themselves. I think that the movie Dogma has it right when Metraton says "Human beings have neither the aural nor the psychological capacity to withstand the awesome power of God's true voice. Were you to hear it, you're mind would cave in and your heart would explode within your chest." We are finite beings and cannot have "full contact" with an infinite God.

The sin doctrine leads to the notion that God (and therefore Christians should) "hate the sin, love the sinner." This kind of philosophy builds a wall in life that separates the "unworthy" from the "worthy" and it offers this very small crack that the "unworthy" can try to push through, but whether or not they become "worthy" always seems to be decided by human beings who are no closer to God than I am.

Of course "sin" is a heavy word and most people have their own notion of what sin is. There are few definitions that I find satisfactory and it appears that most people can only describe sin by citing examples of it. I can't think of a foggier way to define any idea. Is eating meat on a Friday a sin? Is listening to rock and roll music a sin? Is homosexuality a sin? The definitions of sin that I have on hand are "an offense especially against God," "a weakened state of human nature in which the self is estranged from God," and "sin is the seeking of our own will instead of the will of God, thus distorting our relationship with God, with other people, and will all creation." The first two are from my Mirriam-Webster dictionary, and the last isn't really a definition. It is an answer designed to spark conversation in the Catechism in the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer. None of them are clear cut answers. The thrid one opens up several doors and should prompt more questions to clarify the specifics.

Does all this mean that I reject the notion of sin? No. Terry goes on to say that "we are responsible, each of us, for the sin we commit. We ourselves must admit to God that we are sinners." I can only agree with the first half. I recognize sin as a behavior on my part. I understand that when I sin I have intentionally or unintenionally done the Wrong Thing. I did not find the Right Answer to the problem. Those uppercase letters are important here, they signify abstractions of absolutes, not any one particular ideal. For example, a good friend of mine has a sister-in-law who I have considered to be a kind of 'kid sister.' (I feel that my being a youngest child wasted some of my 'big brother' potential.) We were talking one night and was very rude to her and dismissed her ideas completely. I don't even remember what she said or what I said, but I do know that the next day I realized that I had sinned, so I called an apologized to her. She said that she hadn't been offended. I sinned, and asked for forgiveness, and I was forgiven.

The rest of my sinful acts are all aimed towards other people, so I can't think of any practical example of sinning against God. I have not followed God's call in a forthright manner. I do believe that God has called me to teach, and I decided to start down the path that would put me in the classroom. I haven't made as many steps as I should have. I am finding it difficult to answer the call and I resist it. Is this really a sin against God? I just can't put my resistance into that category.

So how does sin control me? Sin isn't personified, and I reject the notion that there is some personified being called Lucifer or Satan that causes sin. Sin cannot control me because it isn't a control issue for me. It is a failure on my part, but it isn't because any other person or being made me fail. I don't like having the possibility of a scapegoat.

Is there a substitution for the 'sin' doctrine? Yes. The short answer is that God calls us to be fully Human, and Jesus showed a group of people how to be fully Human, and as Christians we are supposed to follow the example of Jesus as best we can. I hope to have a more complete answer available soon.