It is not necessary to sin

Practically perfect in every way
Image used with permission, CC frangipani photograph

I have another guestpost out today. It's here on Jason Stasyszen's blog.

It follows some others that I've written.

Today's is about sin. If you're not of a theist or spiritual sort of ilk, feel free to call that "making mistakes." The idea still applies.

The question on the table is simple: is it inherently necessary that we sin? The short answer is no. There may have been some point at which the identity of every human was "sinner" by requirement, but this time, if it ever existed, has passed. We are empowered not to sin. The identity may still be there. The requirement is not.

Here's the gist:

• We make mistakes because we make the wrong decisions before we act.



• We wouldn't have made the mistakes if we'd made the right decision.



• We're allowed to make right decisions.



• We have an example of a human being who always made the right decisions (as well as many others who learned to, to varying degrees). We can follow these examples and take them as role models.



• We don't have to make wrong decisions.

In short, it's our responsibility to make right decisions, and to accept the consequence for wrong ones. It's a convenient (and wrong) cop-out to blame our failures on the weaknesses of humanity. It's an individual issue, not a corporate issue.

The good news: Humans can improve. Whether this is with outside intervention or of our own initiative is an issue for moral and social philosophies to debate.

Happy World Humanist Day.

Read Becoming Who You Are
on Jason Stasyszen's blog.