In the old testament, the Jewish people had to sacrifice pigeons or barnyard animals to God before their sins could be forgiven. How does an innocent unblemished animal dying make up for me stealing something? Wouldn't it be better to return the stolen item, or pay for it and apologize? I've heard the argument that God's perfect justice requires all sins to be punished and that the penalty of sin is death, so death is necessary for the sin to be atoned for. How does the death something else make up for MY particular sin though? I asked this question of Chrisitans because this belief is a central part of Christianity...Jesus, playing the role of the innocent perfect sacrifice, dies to take the punishment for all of our sins once and for all. But how does Jesus' dying allow me to be forgiven? Personally I think this idea of substitutional atonement is akin to the Aztec idea of killing people to appease the sun god. This belief was one of the reasons I decided to not be Christian.
2006-12-13 18:46:41 · 7 answers · asked by Link 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Suppose you have committed a serious crime. You are brought to trial and are found guilty. Your sentence: $100,000 or 5 years in prison. You have no money, and just as you are being hauled off to prison, someone comes into the courtroom and offers to pay the $100,000 fine for you. the law is not concerned where the money came from. Once the fine has been paid, justice has been served, and the law has no more demand upon you.
The soul that sins shall die. That means we are all under the death sentence. But God, in His love, became a man and died in our place. The Bible says that Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us:
We broke God's law, Jesus paid the fine.
How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?
2006-12-13 19:03:12 · answer #1 · answered by revulayshun 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You don't always have to give something up to atone for sin, God gives grace sometimes. I know that it might seem a lot like the Mayans, but they sacrificed to the Sun God. which is mythical. Sacraficing doesn't always mean that it has to be a PHYSICAL sacrifice It can also be something that has been more important to you then God.
I hope that helped?
2006-12-14 18:46:26 · answer #2 · answered by Anna 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why is a 'ground' necesary for non-atmospheric electricity flow?
Why do you need to put water and soap and water on your hands in order to clean them off?
Water cleans hands, blood cleans souls.
There are rituals that can trasfer the innocence from the soul of the animal to be sacrificed to your soul and your sin to its, whereupon it must die before it corrupts other animals.
None of that is required any more, you have never been in the presence of anyone whose sins made them corruptively destructive or you wouldn't have asked this question. The Aztecs are a great example of that, a purposeful perverting of the righteous activity in order to make it seem less righteous.
It seems it worked on you!
2006-12-14 03:13:53 · answer #3 · answered by raxivar 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The shedding of blood was the shadow of things to come in the scripture, the shedding of blood for the remission of sin, it was the foreshadow of the coming of Christ and his blood atonement to cover our sin.
If you read your bible you will find out that it says that Christs shed blood is the only atonement for sin. In animals and humans the blood is our life line, so Christ poured out his blood that we may have eternal life.
Even if you stole something and returned it you still committed a sin and with out the shed blood of Christ there is no forgiveness.
Read Revelation 21:8.
2006-12-14 03:46:54 · answer #4 · answered by judy_derr38565 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Forgiveness does not depend on penance.
When you ask God for forgiveness, with or without a priest, your sins are forgiven.
However, raised up from sin, the sinner must still recover his (or her) own full spiritual health. One way to help restore your spiritual health is to do penance.
Penance can consist of prayer, an offering, works of mercy, service of neighbor, voluntary self-denial, sacrifices, and above all the patient acceptance of the cross we must bear.
Such penances help us be more like Christ, who alone makes amends our sins once for all.
With love in Christ.
2006-12-16 02:38:19 · answer #5 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
it did not even atone for the Jews.
atonement can only come though repentance. A dead animal is just a way to get one to that state.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repentance#The_view_of_the_Biblical_prophets
2006-12-14 02:58:41 · answer #6 · answered by Gamla Joe 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'd look more into the reasons that He gave His life for us.
There were a LOT of different reasons.
2006-12-14 02:58:03 · answer #7 · answered by Jaded 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋