Can a SIN be inherited?

Answer 1

Presumeably mankind's sin is inherited from Adam and Eve. This is called the doctrine of Original Sin. But that is speaking of inheritance in a very loose and non-specific manner and again is dealing with mythic reality. Sin, however, is separation from God/life and one certainly inherit's the tendencies of one's forebears to disenfranchisement. If I am a prince then I will inherit a kingdom , not through and action or personal virtue or talent of my own. My father intends for me a kingdom, but I was born in exile. This is seen in such dis-eases as alcoholism, addiction, and child abuse. It is also, unfortunately, seen in material and social standing which posits children in disenfranchised circumstances through no fault of their own. It is our community or lack thereof which bears ultimate responsibility for this sin, but it is the child who suffers.

People tend to get hung up on the mechanics and not to look at the facts. Sin is a condition or state of being rather than an action or set of actions. There are actions which proceed from or contribute to that state of being.
Fundamentalists are fundamentally wrong, they live in a mechanical universe which has little or nothing to do with understanding Scripture or engaging in philosophy. Psalm 51 says, "Behold I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin hath my mother conceived me." There needs be no original state of righteousness for there to be original sin. Nowhere in creation is any fall actually written, this is rather an interpretation of what is written. Saint Paul says, "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made to live."
"The first Adam was of the earth, earthy. The second Adam was the Lord from heaven. As we have born the image of the earthy, even so we shall bear the image of the heavenly." "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation." Deal with the FACTS leave off the mechanics.

C'mon. you literalists, just where in the creation story does it precisely say that Adam and Eve were righteous, originally or otherwise? Where is there any kind of fall? Did Eve fall from the tree reaching for "an apple?"? Or Adam perhaps stumble over a root when he was hiding? LOL, LOVL, LMFAO!

I somehow just noticed the "a" before the word Sin,, The partative changes context somewhat when used in place of the general (VERY Clever enki!). This specifies a particular "sin" which may or may not be open to inheritance, also being particular was most likely resultant to an action or attitude of the sinner. If I say yes it is as I'm saying, "the fathers have eaten sour grapes and the sons' teeth are set on edge", if no I say the child has no responsibility within the family of origin. Quite a conundrum! I'm very hard put in either instance to come up with one substantive choice. Lacking significant data I must entirely suspend judgment!

Answer 2

I have seen behaviors considered sinful repeated in many family lines. whether it is passing them on through learned behavior or something more?

I think the bible speaks of sins being transmitted for x amount of generations because of the forefathers sin. I look at this theory as completely believable in that it is from the parent that a child learns or environmental conditions that imprint the child. then they pass the behavior down. The bible says this is a curse....and that it does end generations down the line. I believe there are conditions in generational evolution that seem to correct non beneficial mind sets.....the bible also suggests that the transmitted sin can be cut off if the 'sinner' does the right thing...(the offspring learns right from the parent?)

So yes I agree sin can be inherited but not necessarily 'genetically'

Answer 3

SINS are what have all of us here again in the first place, so YES, Sins can be inherited. This is most definitely the case in my family tree. Anyway, some people don't think that this is right but it's true, it all began with Eve eating the forbidden fruit whereas she and Adam had to pay for their sins of eating it. Before Eve & Adam ate the fruit, they didn't know anything but afterwards God decided that their punishment was to seek the knowledge of the world and to understand his truth hence their offspring - US, humans have to continue their work since they are long gone. We have to pay for the sins our previous lives did which is why God decided to bring us back here to learn from our past mistakes because we've all been here before although we don't remember it. We have to make the right decisions with the choices that face us today. If we make the same wrong decisions that we made in our past lives, we'll continue to come to this HELL called Earth. We inherit sins from our ancestors, from our grandparents, our parents, and we even inherit sins from ourselves. However, it is truly up to us to break the cycle by seeking knowledge in the choices we face by making the Right Decision!

Answer 4

NO. If, by sin you mean--behaviour that is "morally" unacceptable in SOME cultures. Using your word--"sin"--it is not genetic, it is not inherited, (as can be a propensity for physiological weakness or disease). It can certainly be adaptive behaviour, but even then, it's up to the individual to choose their direction. Sin is a concept created by humans. A concept cannot be inherited. (This IS the philosophy section?)

Edit: Oh, the invasion of religion! Is there a question that can be asked anywhere, where Adam & Eve aren't introduced? The original sin? Is it truly impossible to answer with logic in PHILOSOPHY, with civility & focus? Perhaps Trivia would be a better choice?

Edit: THANK YOU shahbarak for a LOGICAL answer..

Answer 5

Genetics and Biblical Mythology aside, the answer is:

YES. Absolutely.

It's the reason that we looked to Cho's family to explain to us why he shot 30+ students at Virginia Tech.
Did they commit a sin?
No.
Will they always feel/ be held accountable?
Yes. Forever.

Also:
Does a racist man have a racist son?
Does an abusive mother have an abusive daughter?
Sadly, this is usually the case.

So sin is inherited both by proximity and by learning.

Answer 6

Yes! Did you ever hear about the sins of the fathers. Why did Jesus Christ die on the cross? Was it not because of our sins? If we did not inherit the bad gene, no sins would be committed.

Answer 7

I don't believe a sin can be genetically inherited. because sin is an act committed. perhaps a person can be born with the predisposition to certain sinfull behavior.for example:there is alot of alcoholism in my family so when i was born there was that chance that alcohol would affect me in the same manner that it affected other members of my family. now at that point I hadn't sinned.later on faced with the choice, I did drink and I drank to excess repeatedly until I could not control my drinking, at this point I was sinning.
i do believe that the consequences of sin can be inherited like incest or child abuse that can go from generation to generation. of course not through the genes but through learned behavior.but i don't believe a person has no choice in the matter, there may be a greater predisposition to such behavior but then there comes a point when one has to give in to that compulsion. if he does ,then it becomes sin.
The bible says we inherited the consequences of Adam and eves sin .and as humans we have a predisposition to sin.and as humans we are also predisposed to giving in to temptation. So God promised a way out in the form of a sacrifice/ which he then fullfilled through the life ,death and Resurrection of Jesus .through belief and dependence upon him we can overcome all forms of sin.
peace ><>

Answer 8

Most religious beliefs believe that each individual is born
with a soul. To state that a sin can be inherited genetically
or through family lineage is to believe in the concept of
a collective soul. Odd as it may sound, perhaps the closest
situation to inheriting a sin in an individual soul paradigm is
to believe that an individual has a choice to be born on
the premise of sinning.

Answer 9

In my religion, we believe that a baby is born clean - white and pure. Like a piece of white cloth, it is up to the people around the baby, say, parents - to decorate or dye it as they see fit.

We believe that what taints that piece of cloth is the neglect and ignorance of those responsible in their duty to produce a piece of cloth that is of high and good quality.

Which is why in the true teachings of my religion, good family values are important, where the adults are responsible in shaping a child's outlook in life. Because when the child is all grown up and mature, he in charge of his own responsibilities and actions. And by then, these good values should have been well ingrained in him to equip him further in life, in how he will relate to the community. And when the time comes, it will be his turn to dye that cloth, and pray that he will do it right, too.

But for us sins are not inherited. We believe that one adult's own sin is his own responsibility. It is between him and his Maker, direct and simple. No one else should have to bear the consequences for his actions but himself. No one and nothing should have to suffer for another's sins.

I apologize if my answer here offended anyone. I'm just saying what I believe and I believe that there is no compulsion in religion. We all believe in what we feel is right, and to each his own...

Answer 10

If you believe in the biblical version of sin, yes.

Two specific biblical instances - You inherit original sin, which is why all the hub-bub since Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden.

Second - God said so, specifically. Read the full text of the ten commandments. It states "...You shall not bow down to them (false gods/idols) or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me..."

If you don't believe in the biblical concept of sin, then no, sin cannot be inherited. This is not to say that you may repeat them because you were raised to do so, or through family loyalty.