what is sin?

i have a vague definition- Sin is anything that is 'God-eclipsing'. Any comments?

Originally posted by karoly aczel
i have a vague definition- Sin is anything that is 'God-eclipsing'. Any comments?

Sin is something relative.

What was a sin hundred years ago might not be a sin today. What is a sin today may not be a sin hundred years ago.
What is a sin for some christians may very well be okay for other christians.
What is a sin in one situation may very well not be a sin in another situation.

Conclusion - there cannot be any universal definition of 'sin'.

Originally posted by FabianFnas
Sin is something relative.

What was a sin hundred years ago might not be a sin today. What is a sin today may not be a sin hundred years ago.
What is a sin for some christians may very well be okay for other christians.
What is a sin in one situation may very well not be a sin in another situation.

Conclusion - there cannot be any universal definition of 'sin'.

nice answer-obviously you will not be taken in by linguistic differentials.however do you believe in something like 'origional sin'?

A lot of people, Christians maybe even especially, aren't clear on what 'original sin' means.

In fact (no offense) I'm not sure you realize what you are asking when you say, "Do you believe in original sin."

Many think that the concept of "original sin" is just the initial sin committed by Adam and Eve when they partook from the tree of knowledge.

Actually the concept of original sin is a little deeper. It goes that because of that initial sin, all mankind... in fact all creation... fell into sin. That sin is transferred to the rest of humanity and thus, we are all, rather than born 'innocent', born sinners.

Adam and Eve were the God-fashioned, literally perfect examples and representatives of the human race. Because they willingly sinned against God, their sin is imputed to the rest of us.


I think I might have gone too far, sorry.

Basically the concept of "original sin" is not the act itself, but the result of that act.

Originally posted by sumydid
A lot of people, Christians maybe even especially, aren't clear on what 'original sin' means.

In fact (no offense) I'm not sure you realize what you are asking when you say, "Do you believe in original sin."

Many think that the concept of "original sin" is just the initial sin committed by Adam and Eve when they partook from the tree of knowledge.

A ...[text shortened]... lly the concept of "original sin" is not the act itself, but the result of that act.

nah man, i'm thinking along the same track(thats if we have the linguistic interpertations right). Like our parents are all passing some amount of "sin" onto us without there meaning to. Like sin is just ignorance of our true nature

Originally posted by karoly aczel
nice answer-obviously you will not be taken in by linguistic differentials.however do you believe in something like 'origional sin'?

You ask the wrong person here.

In my opinion, the original sin was invented by those wanting power over people. There is no original sin, nor sin in general.

Some says it's a sin to work on sundays (though preast are).
Some says it's a sin to work on saturdays (though rabbis are).
Some says it's a sin to work on fridays (though imams are).
Conclusion: Sin is relative thing.

I don't think it's possible to define sin in a universal way.

But this is just my opinion as being non-christian. If anyone is happier to think they are sinners, then please do. I'm not.

Originally posted by FabianFnas
You ask the wrong person here.

In my opinion, the original sin was invented by those wanting power over people. There is no original sin, nor sin in general.

Some says it's a sin to work on sundays (though preast are).
Some says it's a sin to work on saturdays (though rabbis are).
Some says it's a sin to work on fridays (though imams are).
Concl ...[text shortened]... ng non-christian. If anyone is happier to think they are sinners, then please do. I'm not.

ok , see this is what i was trying to hit upon. To determine the difference between 'sin' as an act against 'god' and 'sin' as a state of mind SEPARATED from God

Originally posted by karoly aczel
ok , see this is what i was trying to hit upon. To determine the difference between 'sin' as an act against 'god' and 'sin' as a state of mind SEPARATED from God

This division sounds good.
(1) Sin against god. But opinions over all christianity differs a lot.
(2) Sin in your mind. You feel ashamed if you sin.

In this case, I too feel like I 'sinned' when I make someone else feel bad. But shame is a better word.

Originally posted by FabianFnas
This division sounds good.
(1) Sin against god. But opinions over all christianity differs a lot.
(2) Sin in your mind. You feel ashamed if you sin.

In this case, I too feel like I 'sinned' when I make someone else feel bad. But shame is a better word.

Yeah...your right. The word 'sin' is too much steeped in christian connotaions. In the future I will try not to use such "suggestive" words

Originally posted by karoly aczel
i have a vague definition- Sin is anything that is 'God-eclipsing'. Any comments?

I'm sure you'll be fascinated to know that (as Margaret Atwood points out in her book 'Payback'😉 sin actually means debt: being out of kilter.

Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
I'm sure you'll be fascinated to know that (as Margaret Atwood points out in her book 'Payback'😉 sin actually means debt: being out of kilter.

so is that 'owing a debt' or being' out of kilter'?(or a bit of both..)

Originally posted by karoly aczel
so is that 'owing a debt' or being' out of kilter'?(or a bit of both..)

Trace the idea of debt back to the Egyptians -- after death your soul is weighed in a balance against the feather of Ma'at (goddess of truth, balance, order, law, morality, and justice); if it's out of kilter -- if you owe the universe a spiritual debt -- it gets eaten by a nasty crocodile demon.

Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
Trace the idea of debt back to the Egyptians -- after death your soul is weighed in a balance against the feather of Ma'at (goddess of truth, balance, order, law, morality, and justice); if it's out of kilter -- if you owe the universe a spiritual debt -- it gets eaten by a nasty crocodile demon.

Yep,right thanks for the info. Obviously there are a lot of linguistic problems here. But to me 'debt ' means something to be payed back where as 'out of kilter' is something that can be jerked back suddenly (via an act of will possibly).
They aren't mutually exclusive but ' debt' seems like something gradual that needs to be worked on whereas 'out of kilter' can be wrenched back suddenly

Originally posted by karoly aczel
Yep,right thanks for the info. Obviously there are a lot of linguistic problems here. But to me 'debt ' means something to be payed back where as 'out of kilter' is something that can be jerked back suddenly (via an act of will possibly).
They aren't mutually exclusive but ' debt' seems like something gradual that needs to be worked on whereas 'out of kilter' can be wrenched back suddenly

Well, just use 'debt'. The point is that being indebted means being in an imbalanced state.

"sin" is actually an old archery term meaning; missing the mark.