At what point in life is inocence concidered to be lost .?

Question

Are we all guilty

Answer 1

Hi there,

These are two different questions altogether - "At what point in life is innocence considered to be lost?", and "Are we all guilty?" I will address the first question.

As a counsellor who deals with people of all ages - from tiny tots to aged people, I have come to see "innocence" in all its hues. To my mind, innocence is not like an "on / off" switch which is flicked off the moment some event happens. It is rather like a bulb of onion, with its multiple layers; and with each incident that brings understanding and knowledge, a layer is peeled away and innocence is further lost.

A foetus who has just emerged from the womb has 100% innocence. From that point on, different layers of innocence keep getting shed away. The child automatically intuits that to get the attention of its care-giver (mother or nurse), it has to wail - and this intuition removes the outermost layer of innocence. When this child grows up and realizes that there are a hundred ways in which the school teacher / parents can be cheated, a further hundred layers of innocence wither away. As a teen when this child understands that one's genitalia has myriad other uses, yet another piece of innocence is lost. So on and so forth ...

On the deathbed, when the entire life flashes past your eyes, you get a deeper understanding of all that has happened with you, and some more of that innocence goes away.

It's an ongoing process, really.

Answer 2

Well, I think I am looking at this question a bit differently than the previous answers.

I believe that innocence (naivety?) is lost when you witness or partake in a traumatic event. i.e. a death, a violation (rape, burglary,etc). You no longer feel innocent and see the world in a whole new light. You suddenly are aware of the bad side of the world. Doesn't really matter what age you are. Bad things can happen to anyone at any age.

Answer 3

When one first realizes how painful and sometimes evil the world can be. Depends on the individual and their experiences. As for all being guilty, guilty of what? Nowhere does it say we are born in sin. That is just a very broad and literal miss- interpretation by narrow minded men. Remember Jesus presumably died to free everyone of their sins. So how then can one be born in sin if he died to remove those sins?

Answer 4

>>"We are all concieved in sin so we are hopelessly evil from the moment of conception. Even the tiniest, newborn baby is hopelessly awash in the most evil sin, and condemned by our just and loving God to eternal hellfire. Unless we accept Jesus as our personal savior. "<<

that is a joke, right? ... please?

because rather obviously thats the least just thing possibly conceivable.

in fact the whole idea of original sin is one of the most evil things, and evil-promoting things in existance IMO.

to the actual question, doesn't that depend on what you define innocense to be? personally I can't think of a way to define it that isn't at best, extremely incomplete, or at worst, simply absurd.

age? ha! I've talked to people in their 40's that are phenomenally immature. and I've talked to young people who are more mature than the AVERAGE adult.

its a very good philosophical question though.

Answer 5

We are all concieved in sin so we are hopelessly evil from the moment of conception. Even the tiniest, newborn baby is hopelessly awash in the most evil sin, and condemned by our just and loving God to eternal hellfire. Unless we accept Jesus as our personal savior.

Answer 6

when one reaches the age of reason.

Answer 7

Sorry dude, it's hard to take you seriously when your spellin's all off!!

Answer 8

at the age that you know right from wrong.
yes we are.

Answer 9

after thirteen?

Answer 10

when we are able to discern sin.