What is sin?

Question

What is sin? What is your definition of sin? Not what is told to you by others and certainly not the Bible’s definition. But what do YOU define as sin? What are your sins? Is it something that you do not agree with? Is it something you fear of becoming? Is it just your fear? Or is it just a projection of our fears?

Who are you to tell me that I am sin? Or that I have sinned? What qualifications do you over me have other than the Bible or the "moral majority?" Why should I subscribe to your definitions of sin? By asking these questions, is it sin? Is sin knowledge or the lack thereof? Is sin about understanding or the lack thereof? Is forgiveness our greatest sin of all?

Look at our definitions sin and maybe we all can learn something new. So now, tell me, what is sin?

I know what the Bible says. What is YOUR definition of sin? Read the question and answer IF you dare.

I am not interested to hear if you agree with the Bible or not. What is YOUR definition of sin and what does it mean to you as a human being. Why is it necessary for you to project your concept of sin onto others?

Answer 1

Sin, to me, is doing something that you feel is wrong. I feel things are wrong when they have a negative impact on myself or someone else, such as smoking, or stealing from someone.

Being gay = not a sin.
Sex before marriage = not a sin
Smoking a cigarette = probably a sin because its harmful to your body
Saying curse words = sooo not a sin (how can a combination of letters be sinful? please)

Answer 2

Without the bible, there is not sin. The Word sin is only used in the biblical arena. Yes, I am straight and I am a Christian just so you know. However, it is a bigger sin to be something you are not than being what you are. The sin is when you publically flaunt your sexuality out in the open and this goes for heterosexuals as well. Example, your picture is not of you in khakis and a pullover, you projected your image with the leather vest open front to show suggest you are gay, and yes, I find that offensive. However, in your bio, you state you are a good husband, which suggest you are straight. Just like, you would find a man grabbing a woman’s boobs in a picture as being offensive. The thing is and I am being as truthful as I can. Gay men and women have a bad image and you will not get anywhere until you correct the image. It is like seeing a black man with his pants midway down his butt. No matter what kind of person he is, the first thing most people think is he is a thug. I have black friends that under race they put “other” As they say, today a black man is a thug and I am not from Africa there for I am not African-American. I see gays on TV and it truly makes me unnerved. It is like "let's see how offensive we can be. Note, I am not saying all gays act this way but the thousands that do make it hard on the rest. I am not talking about the simple holding hands, opening doors; I am talking about the outrageous images, which are presented. I accidently got into a blog and all it was about was anything and everything to do with sex. I do not want to read that about straight men and women. The sin is if you are gay and you marry someone creating children and then decide you must go back to what you truly are. Why is this a sin? The sin is because of all the hurt it causes. Sin is not right, wrong, or what the bible tells you it should be. Sin is not being true to yourself. If we believed in the bible completely, I would treat my wife not as my equal and she is. I do believe the bible is a tool to help you live a good life. I believe the New Testament is much better at showing love than the old. I also believe that the person who is an atheist hates God so much that he cannot see what God truly is.

If you want to be accepted, you must be acceptable. Does this mean fit in, Yes? Does this mean acting in a healthy manor, which would not offend anyone, yes? Does this mean guys should be guys and girls should be girls, yes? I posted a question about why a good portion of gay guys act like girls and a good portion of gay girls act like guys. I simply did not understand. This is why people feel it is a sin, because the actions are totally out of the norm. You hear things like “I like to be with a girl because they understand me better” Or better yet, I have never been attracted to a man, but they are with a girl that looks more like a man then some men. I do not understand. Many gay men do not find women attractive, but they are with someone who acts more like a girl then most girls do.

Stay true to who you are but stay within boundaries. I say within boundaries and do not flaunt me being heterosexual out for everyone to see. I simply am a man who is a man. I would help all that need my help. I try not to offend anyone and why should I.

Answer 3

The Wikipedia defines it as...

"Sin is a term used mainly in a religious context to describe an act that violates a moral rule, or the state of having committed such a violation. The English word sin was originally an archery term. The distance from the center of the bullseye to the point where an arrow struck is known as the 'sin of the arrow'. Sin is often used meaning an action thought of as wrong or prohibited however in some religions (most notably Christianity), sin or sinning is something that is an action or a state of mind."

OK, well maybe I might just accept the archery definition, of being "off target" as applied to a life. I believe that we all have both a fate and a destiny. Fate is what gets imposed upon us by outside influences. Destiny is what we are here to accomplish, but it is not a "given". Rather, we need to understand and strive for it in order to be happy. If you get too off-course, sometimes events will happen that will push you back towards that destiny. If you are blind to that destiny however, it might never happen.

So, sin, for me, would be being aware of one's destiny, and making no effort to make it occur.

Answer 4

Sin is simply disorder, I expect you believe in a moral code that permits an orderly environment, if someone does something to upset the order, a sin has been committed, the greatest sin is the denial of sin. Forgiveness is not a sin, it kills the hate and hurt we feel towards those who have upset us.You do not need anyone to tell you that you have sinned, for we all do. This is my feeble attempt to give my definition of sin, I would never ask anyone to subscribe to it, I hope you will get some satisfactory answers, Good luck.

Answer 5

Sin is subjective. It seems to have changed with time. It used to be a sin to wear blended fabrics or planting mixed fields, stuff like that. Then there is the Seven Deadly Sins.

To me sin is harming others through free will, basically. I'm an adult and I know how to conduct myself. I don't really need some specific list to know to do the right thing in public. I don't go around killing people, I save my cussing for the infrequent times I really mean it (then I feel bad after but thats a different question).What I do in private is my business. My body is my temple, I don't abuse myself. All in all I'm really fairly sinless. In my mind, anyhow.

Answer 6

Ugh, I'm so sick of hearing God said this and that. I don't see him standing here saying gay is a sin, or the handwriting expert that says the bible is truly His writing. Since it's generally accepted that many men wrote the Bible.

As for sin...I think it's sinful for people to murder. I think a sin is something done that is hurtful to yourself or others. Being gay? SO not a sin. Saying that entire group of people is going to burn in hell because they're gay? That's a sin.

Answer 7

My definition of sin, (for myself) is: Doing things that go against my own personal morals in any way shape or form.
I generally don't do such things, but when I do I feel terribly guilty and don't like myself for doing it. Although, on a lighter not quite so serious note things like ice cream fall into my incredibly sinful category. Tehehe I don't each much ice cream, and when I do for me it is an indulgence.

Answer 8

My sin is not living by the golden rule..That's just the way I was brought up.....I also have a feeling that sin is sometimes something that is the opposite of altruism. I believe that altruism exists.
This is a very difficult question and I'm not sure that I am giving you an adequate answer, but you sure made me think!!

Answer 9

The definition of "sin" is "to break one of the laws of God". As there are 3,000 known beliefs in deities on Earth (and possibly more), I wouldn't worry too much about it if I were you as it isn't possible to please every damn deity on Earth, now is it?

Btw: why do you care what bible-thumping fundaMENTALists think? Many of them claim that the Earth is only 6,000 years old, which is a real problem for the 50,000 year history of the Australian Aborigines, and pretty much tells you what you need to know about these folks.

Now go party.

Answer 10

I believe sin is that which separates us from God, from one another, and that which is destructive of ourselves, or of others. I like your question because I don't think sin can be simply defined in black and white terms, as in ____ is always wrong. I believe the Church has sinned in their attitudes and teaching about homosexuality, just as they did about slavery and women. To tell someone that God hates them, or to condemn someone, or to ask them to be something other than their true selves, surely those are sinful attitudes? Unfortunately, I think the world today demands complex thinking and people are more interested in simple, quick answers.

Answer 11

Being an atheist I would have to say that a sin is a made up fairytale used by the people in power to control the masses.