Monday, November 23, 2009

What is Sin, Evil...

What is sin, does it exit or is it simply a social construct used to justify punishment of that which defies the social structure?

Is sin evil?
Is sin the lack of foresight living/reacting to the now rather than that which is yet to come?
Is sin self harm? Damaging ones self or others?
Is sin the failure to follow the golden rule?
Is sin freewill, not sticking to the script or the pupet masters desires?

As I'm not entirely sure I believe sin exists these days, I'm certain it's not some sort of metaphysical smut though it seems a lot of people believe that.

I was wondering though if a lot of what is called sin is simply a lack of foresight the inability to see past ones current desires, and doing what satisfies the now rather than the future.

Often I've thought that that which is human or sentience, is acting in ways beyond the now, controlling and channeling our emotions, and reactions. Channeling those immediate evolutionary triggers fight/flee, feed/reproduce in manners that are beneficial over the long term.
In ways that show no short term benefit and fufill no evolutionary need, but instead do or become part of something greater, progress, knowledge, science etc.

If we are to be human we must recognise that we are and will always be animal (evolutionary constructs) as well. And our ability to overcome our genetic/evolutionary programing is what distinguishes us from our fellow animals, sometimes for better but often for worse. And that as an individual it should be our goal to overcome our natures for the better, as much as is possible.

1 comment:

Matt said...

Matthew 6:24-25:

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

"For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on."

Foresight is maybe not quite as important as you think.

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My personal take on sin is related to "the fall," which I read as consciousness/sentience/self-awareness. We, out of all the animals, actually have the ability to form a moral/ethical framework, and thus to have some concept of right and wrong.

Sin, then, is simply not fulfilling the standards of your own moral framework. That is, we are the only animals to be able to judge right and wrong, therefore we are the only ones able to act wrongly in any way.

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I have some further theories on what actually *is* right and wrong, but I think those sit outside the concept of sin itself.