Sin: What's It Good For?
What's the point?
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| Skeptoid #09 November 26, 2006 Podcast transcript | Listen | Subscribe Also available in Japanese |
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This week, I'm going to put on my burgundy velvet robe, fill my martini glass, and observe that bastard stepchild of the value system: Sin.
Sin is an interesting thing. A sin is something you're not supposed to do, according to a given set of religious restrictions. Sins are not necessarily illegal. Sins are not necessarily wrong. Sins don't necessarily harm anyone. In fact, many sins can be completely, entirely harmless, like the thinking of impure thoughts. So what's the problem? Why are sins bad?
I guess that all depends on whose definition of "bad" you use. For example, if you're a Muslim, it's sinful to get urine on yourself. The rest of us follow this commandment pretty strictly too, but we certainly wouldn't consider the odd dribble to be sinful. Buddhists consider skeptical doubt to be a sin (though they call it a hindrance), but doubt certainly isn't a problem for Christians or Muslims. Most Christians consider polygamy to be sinful, but it's the rule for most of Africa and the East. So there's no one clear yardstick for determining what's sinful or not. It depends completely upon the religious context. Outside of a religious context, the word sin is, for all practical purposes, meaningless.
Christians in particular consider everyone to be sinful, regardless of their performance. They call this "original sin", and it's essentially a negative blot on your report card immediately upon birth. Since Adam and Eve had the gall to eat some fruit that was offered to them, you and I and everyone else are considered guilty by association and are thus fundamentally bad people, according to strict Christian doctrine.
Christians also have to deal with "mortal sins." A mortal sin is one that, if left unrepented, sends you to hell when you die. Christians don't maintain a list of what types of sins guarantee you a date with the devil, instead they lay out some general rules. The big sins, like murder and adultery, put you on the fast track. Mortal sins have to be done deliberately. If you simply forget to go to church, accidentally put on a condom, or unintentionally catch a glance of a hot girl out of the corner of your eye, such sins are called venial sins and you can get away with them. But if you do them deliberately — blow off church on purpose in order to saw some extra logs on Sunday morning, wear the condom on purpose, or deliberately stare at the hot girl with impure thoughts — they are mortal sins. If you do things like this regularly, strict Christians consider that you are hellbound for sure. There are probably a lot of human males who needn't bother wearing their jackets for their burial.
Worst of all is the "eternal sin" - to deny God, which cannot be forgiven. Those considering an eternal sin might as well lose a fiddling contest to Satan right now. The punishment for an eternal sin is the same as for a mortal sin; the difference is that there's no opportunity to be forgiven and get out of it. It's sort of like being on death row in a state where the governor doesn't have a telephone.
When you eliminate activities that injure others or are otherwise wrong, there are still items on the sin list: basically a long list of victimless crimes. This is where the fun begins for those of us not hampered by religious restrictions.
Take social relationships, including plural marriages, same sex marriages, and anyone living together or having sex outside of wedlock. It doesn't hurt anyone, everyone involved has a great time, and it's mutually fulfilling for all participants. But those activities are all pretty high on the sin list. Take it out of a religious context, and suddenly there's nothing wrong with it. Polyamory is also a victimless crime that for some reason is considered sinful: wife swapping, swinging, hedonism, group sex parties, and open marriages are things that all the participants enjoy behind closed doors. Where's the harm?
Straight sex between married partners is all right, so long as it never extends to include masturbation, fetishism, lust, or impure thoughts. "Have to stop a minute, Mabel, I started to feel a little lusty."
The list of sins is not static: it's even been updated to include cybersex. Using a computer in some way to enhance sexual stimulation is sinful. This includes a video chat session with your spouse when one of you is traveling. That makes a lot of sense.
Drunkenness and tobacco are big on the sin list. This one's just plain counterproductive. Who among us doesn't appreciate an evening at the club in an overstuffed leather chair, with a martini and a fine cigar, talking politics and blasphemy. Throw in some profanity (which, fortunately, I don't see on the list of sins), and you've got the perfect evening. Drunkenness and tobacco are fundamental to healthy male adulthood. Frankly, I don't even know how I'd be able to conduct a proper board meeting without these accoutrements.
Idolatry is another sin that would be hard for me to live without. Idolatry doesn't necessarily relate to graven images or statues of other gods; idolatry is the practice of loving anything or anyone more than you love God. For me, the brand names Porsche and Jeep are hard to get past. I do attend church every Sunday morning: My temple of worship is a rectangle at the beach measuring 8 meters by 16 meters and involves the hitting of a synthetic leather ball at other worshippers. And since I cannot honestly say that there are any supernatural invisible flying magicians whom I love more than my own family, idolatry is definitely a sin that I need to commit every minute of every day, as much as I need to draw breath.
Hate and anger are sins. I don't really hate anyone and I don't get angry very often. About the only thing that gets me angry is when I hear the worst of the bad news from the world: children being abused or murdered, and genocides. Apparently, the world's major religions think that I should go to hell because those things make me angry. I'd have to say this is one case where the world's major religions can kiss my ass. I respect how the Amish can overlook these crimes and offer loving forgiveness to even these criminals, but I'll save my applause for the inmates who beat Jeffrey Dahmer's head to death against a prison toilet.
Lying. This one's tough. I don't know how anyone can claim that they don't practice this sin every day, no matter how religious they are. Have you ever told anyone that you can't go somewhere, or can't do something, when the truth is you simply didn't want to? You're a liar. You ever stop talking about someone when they entered the room, to deceive them into thinking you weren't talking about them? You're a liar. Ever give someone one of those quick fake smiles when you pass them in the hall — as if seeing them makes you happy? You're a liar. Lies don't have to be spoken and they are usually not malicious, but they're still lies. We all do it, all day, every day. Lying is a fundamental of politeness and a pillar of good behavior.
The truth is the concept of sin has no place in the lives of intelligent adults in modern society. Politeness, honesty, industry, and simply being yourself will take you a lot further. I say to the religious people: Keep your arbitrary restrictions, and your hateful belief that I should go to hell, to yourselves.
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© 2006 Skeptoid.com
References & Further Reading
Anderson, Gary A. Sin: a History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009.
de Waal, Frans. Primates and Philosophers: How Morality Evolved. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009.
Feldman, Fred. Pleasure and the Good Life: Concerning the Nature, Varieties, and Plausibility of Hedonism. New York: Oxford University Press, USA, 2006.
Kurtz, Paul (editor). Science and Ethics: Can Science Help Us Make Wise Moral Judgments? Amherst: Prometheus Books, 2007.
Livingstone, E. A. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. New York: Oxford University Press Inc, 2000.
Manning, Henry Edward. Sin and Its Consequences. Charlotte, NC: TAN Books & Publishers, 1986.
Portmann, John (Editor). In Defense of Sin. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.
Thera, Nyanaponika. "The Five Mental Hindrances and Their Conquest." Wheel. 1 Jan. 1993, Volume 26.
Reference this article:
Dunning, Brian.
"Sin: What's It Good For?" Skeptoid Podcast. Skeptoid Media, Inc.,
26 Nov 2006. Web.
9 Feb 2010. <http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4009>
Discuss!
5 most recent comments | Show all 88 comments
Remember, you should always read with skepticism the comments of anyone too lame to put their real name & city.
Adrian, in general and in principle, I agree with you.
But humans (all of us) do at times suffer guilt. I think I mean that we all at times feel that we have done a wrong. Why? Maybe because we have hurt somebody with our foolishness.
Adrian, you should examine yourself and specify what things you are feeling a bit queesy about. Surely you cannot say that you have so far live an exemplary life and have never done a single wrongful deed of any kind, can you?
Above, you mentioned two things: "fundamentalist, dire, unforgivable kill on sight sin" and "stupid little things". Yes, those are not your guilts. But there has to be some guilts in your life - little lies, indescretions, cheatings, temper tantrums, bad language that insults others (a f*** you statement), failing to obey a local law (even a speed limit) etc etc. According to the Bible, sin is disobedience to God or lawlessness or rebelliousness. I can't think of a single person who hasn't behaved like this, including yours truly.
Adrian, if there could be only one God (theoretically) and his rules are broken, what does that mean? If there is no God, why are there still wrongs in the world, and do you think people never should feel guilt for those 'wrongs"? It's a valid argument, don't you thnk? It's one of the main questions (tho formulated in different language sometimes) of the human race.
Joe Boudreault, Hanover, On, Canada
July 23, 2009 12:39pm
No, guilt is still not a valid argument for anything supernatural. Psychopaths who have something wrong with their brains or whose mental development was damaged by life events (combined with a genetic predispostion) don't feel guilt over very horrible things. But this is beside the point. What is the causal connection between a brain process reinforced by my upbringing and life events to a thing that hasn't be shown to exist at all. Most people also feel lust...is this an evolved response to encourage reproduction or satan/god trying to trick us into sinning? I'm going to keep thinking all the perverted, lustful thoughts that I have everyday and not feel bad about it for a second, because it is not a sin harming any god's feelings or harming anyone else at all.
Adrian, Brisbane, Australia
July 25, 2009 3:52pm
Guilt?
Well. A rational, thinking being is going to think back about decisions and actions. Some of these will be not sins, I'm sure, yet the essence is the guilt feeling you refer to...
I exceed the speed limit and don't feel guilt. Why should I?
Joe, you said above:"According to the Bible, sin is disobedience to God or lawlessness or rebelliousness. I can't think of a single person who hasn't behaved like this, including yours truly."
Yes, a rebel, like Jesus, in his day. So Jesus was a sinner.
Thanks!
neil griffiths, Cardiff uk
October 13, 2009 5:43pm
Neil,
Why would you misconstrue something I said?
"...Yes, a rebel, like Jesus, in his day. So Jesus was a sinner..."
I was the rebel, not Jesus. According to the Bible, Jesus was without sin. He fulfilled every 'jot and tittle' of the Law. Of course, you may not believe in the historical Jesus but you also cannot proved he sinned.
If you don't think you have ever had any guilt, for anything, that's your problem or dilemna. It would also mean you believe you are a prefectly moral person, in every way, in every instance. Please inform me how you are able to completely avoid Guilt...
Joe Boudreault, Hanover, Ontario
October 19, 2009 8:18am
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What's guilt go to do with anything? Guilt is an emotion and emotions are expressions of brain function. I feel no guilt over many things that fundamentalists (of all persuasions) would call sin, including dire, unforgivable kill on sight sin. At the same time I feel guilty over stupid little things that aren't even my fault/responsibility. If sin is, by definition, the breaking of a religious rule then it's a pointless useless concept in today's world....until someone gives me credible evidence that their particular set of rules (out of the hundreds/thousands available) are the correct ones.
Adrian, Brisbane, Australia
July 22, 2009 1:57am