Sin is not an Abstraction

There is an argument proposed by Christ in the story of the Parable of the Lost Sheep about a man who tended to one hundred sheep, but lost one, would he be compelled to leave the ninety-nine to rescue the lost sheep?[1] It is a compelling argument because it proposes the acts of mercy towards sinners. The irony of this parable is that the Pharisees and Scribes were murmuring against Jesus for eating with sinners and Tax Collectors. Interestingly, Luke does not appear to identify tax collectors as sinners. The parable of the Lost Sheep introduces us to the objective concept of sin and mercy that leads to redemption and a conversion of heart. From the moment the angel spoke to Joseph and told him that he would call the Messiah, Jesus, Joseph was told that the Son of God would save people from their sins.[2]

If Jesus chose to eat with sinners, and Joseph was told that a central reason for the birth of Christ, the Incarnate Word, was to save humanity from their sins, then it is reasonable to argue that man was in a constant state of sin. Objectively speaking, man had strayed from God again and engaged in a sinful way of life. Hence, sin appears to be a reality and not an abstract in the lives of both the Jews and Gentiles. This may explain why the Prophets, the messengers of God before Jesus was born, were met with outward hostility when they challenged the sinful behaviors of the people of God.

In the world of abstract versus concrete, it is reasonable to propose from an abstract point of view that sin is subjective and does not possess an actual identity, or worse, is not associated with the fall of man as written in Scripture about the original sin. The practice of not recognizing our admitting fault in anything or redefining an evil act as a normal part of one’s personally developed condition as a human being, the thought of anything being sinful is easily dismissed or attributed to something or someone else, other than yourself. And here lies the beauty and drama of the battle between sin, mercy, and the conversion of the soul. St. John reminds us of this battle in his epistle as follows,

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth; but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.[3]

St. John cautions his fellow disciples about the trap of professing Christ but choosing instead to behave like the anti-Christ. When sin is believed to be an abstraction that has no real identity, then the naturally human course is to believe that you or I do not need mercy, forgiveness, or repentance. The appeal of this human view is very tempting because it ushers in a carte blanche attitude that there is no limit to satisfy all personal human desires. The notion that human actions are associated with right and wrong, morality and immorality, sin, and virtue, all directed toward the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, who came to destroy sin, and direct us away from sin through the Church, is a problem for the abstract believer.

Now, the battle to recognize sin for what it really is, a reality man inherited (concupiscence) because of the original sin, must be addressed. The imperative here lies in convincing the person that he does sin, and that his actions, objectively contrary to the Gospel, are not abstract behaviors but are a direct violation of God’s love and mercy that Jesus came to address and abolish. The development and formation of the conscience, and recognizing the reality of Jesus Christ, who came to restore us in our relationship with Christ, reflects the urgency to repent for our sins.

If sin is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience that constitutes a failure to love God and neighbor due to perverse attachments as defined in the Catechism,[4] then sin must be addressed for what it is, an offense against God.[5] How would someone guide a person away from the view of sin or certain sins as abstract thoughts or behaviors? St. John provides us with a possible entryway in his first epistle:

My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments. . . Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world passes away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.[6]