Are we the cause of our own sins?

If you were to ask someone if he is the cause of his own sins, you would think that the answer might seem obvious. Unfortunately, in an age where associating a person with any form of sin would be considered harsh, judgmental, or worse hateful, he may argue on the contrary due to his personal interpretation of what sin means to him. As outlandish as this scenario may sound, it has become more commonplace amongst those who identify as Catholic but may not see the value in actively engaging a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

An important point to make about the nature of sin is its value in relation to the gift of grace from God. If the person recognizes himself as a penitent before Christ and seeks to amend his sinful ways, then the desire for grace especially through the sacrament of reconciliation becomes the spiritual balm the person so desperately craves to sin no more and avoid the near occasion of sin. The value in recognizing the danger of sinful acts is that you realize that the act, e.g., fornication, adultery, saying the Lord’s name in vain, is sinful and you have an immediate desire to seek healing from these sinful acts.

I once encountered a young man preparing for marriage, who told me that he saw nothing wrong with pre-marital sex because he loved his fiancé. As he continued to reason his position to fornicate, I asked him if he admired his fiancé and if he would be happy simply being in her presence without any sexual pretext. He could not answer the question. It became apparent that this gentleman’s sense of reason had become illusory, convincing himself that any sexual encounter before marriage was acceptable based on the distorted understanding of the virtue of love. It is important to note that there is no outside force that can force us to sin, even the devil himself has no power or authority.

In the temptation discourse described in St. Luke’s Gospel[1], Jesus entered the desert filled with the Holy Spirit and prepared to engage the futile propositions of the Devil to renounce, recant, and reject his mission as Messiah, Redeemer, and Lord. What is telling about the temptation discourse is how Christ chooses to engage the Devil. All three temptations had a specific purpose to disrupt or destroy the filial relationship between Jesus and God. As the demonic antagonist, the Devil sought to confirm with Jesus what he did with Adam and Eve, convince Jesus to reject his trust and obedience to God. What Adam was unwilling to do when confronted with his rejection against God, he sought to blame someone else for his act of disobedience. The relationship and progression between the temptation of Adam versus the temptation of Jesus ends with Christ reminding Satan that he cannot tempt the Lord God, and that he has no authority over Him.

The typology of temptation between Adam and Jesus Christ reveals the importance of the will and the desire to seek good and avoid evil or vice versa. Any initiative to do evil rests with the will of man. St. Paul reminds us of his own personal battle with sin,   

Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, working death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. We know that the law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. So then it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.[2]

The spiritual battle St. Paul encounters reflects the battle every single person encounters when presented with the proposition to act in accordance with the will of the Father or reject him as Adam and Eve did. Either man chooses to assent to God or he chooses the path of evil, which amounts to a spiritual destruction of the soul. Let’s not forget that God made us in his image and likeness, a body and soul composite graced with free will and an intellect. This means that we are naturally inclined toward an ordered good. Sin was not created by God; man is responsible for his sins. Are we the cause of our own sins, yes, do we have the opportunity to walk away from our sins as a humble penitent, yes, if we choose the path God has offered us through his son Jesus Christ. The Catechism reminds us that,

Jesus invites sinners to the table of the kingdom: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners. He invites them to that conversion without which one cannot enter the kingdom, but shows them in word and deed his Father’s boundless mercy for them and the vast joy in heaven over one sinner who repents. The supreme proof of his love will be the sacrifice of his own life “for the forgiveness of sins.^[3]

In conclusion, the Prayer of Abandonment by St. Charles De Foucauld serves as a spiritual reminder that our abandonment to God serves as a great antidote to avoid the near occasion of sin,  

Father, I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will. Whatever you may do, I thank you: I am ready for all, I accept all.

Let only your will be done in me, and in all your creatures -I wish no more than this, O Lord.

Into your hands I commend my soul: I offer it to you with all the love of my heart, for I love you, Lord, and so need to give myself, to surrender myself into your hands without reserve, 
and with boundless confidence, for you are my Father.

St.  Charles de Foucauld