The Doctrine Of Original Sin: The Origin Of Original Sin

In the modern society lived in today, all too often do people justify his or her faults with the famous phrase, “I’m only human.” It is used to imply an idea of an inborn flaw of human character; thus, conveying a human weakness. This imaginary stain on the human condition is what the renowned Saint Augustine states is a product of original sin. The doctrine of original sin can be defined as the belief that “all of humanity is born with a built-in urge to do bad things… stemming from Adam and Eve's disobedience to God” (BBC). The traditional story as imprinted in the Christian Bible claims that original sin emerged in retaliation to Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit despite God’s clear commands, “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die” (New International Version, Genesis 2:4-3:24) This friendship, or covenant, with God was then broken, marking a separation. From a theological standpoint, we are the children of our parents – Adam and Eve – who inherit this submission to sin. Nonetheless, regardless of theological background, original sin is merely a sense of weakness humanity has imbedded to yield to sinful or evil acts. Moreover, this embedded drive in humans to commit evil doings is additionally used to rationalize “the need for police, the collapse of great civilizations, suicide, war, suffering and so on” (CNA).
However, it is our personal sins that cause such extreme needs for police and so on. Due to original sin, humans are tainted and are ethically and morally corrupted. It is Adam and Eve who were accountable for original sin and who directly felt its consequence of guilt. On the other hand, personal sin is the sin that commits where we t...

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...ting the advancement of others. Racism, caste systems, and patriarchy are additional examples of structural sins that West proposes in his article. Furthermore, West reveals the presence of structural sin in the Bible, specifically seen through Marks gospel. West claims how Jesus addressed a lone scribe, who was “an active part of the temple system” – a system that “oppresses” and “exploits.” It is not until Jesus reminds the lone scribe that there is no distinction between loving of a neighbor and God that he suddenly realizes “the structural dimensions of the temple” “of burnt offerings and sacrifices” (New International Version, Mark 12:32-33). West interpreted this as a realization of “mechanisms of religious control and economic exploitation” in the Temple. Even then did such systems influence and even blind society from seeing what was/is morally acceptable.