Part III – The Classification of Sin

5. Individual and Personal Sin

5.1 Sins of Commission and Omission

Personal sin refers to deliberate human acts that violate God’s revealed will.
Theologians commonly distinguish between sins of commission—the conscious doing of what is forbidden—and sins of omission—the failure to do what is commanded (James 4:17). Both forms express moral irresponsibility: one through active defiance, the other through neglect. Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30–37) illustrates that omission may be as culpable as commission; the priest and Levite sinned by withholding compassion.

5.2 Voluntary and Involuntary Sin

Scripture recognises degrees of awareness. Numbers 15:27–31 differentiates unintentional sin from “sinning with a high hand,” the latter meaning wilful rebellion. Yet both require atonement. Voluntary sin entails deliberate choice against conscience (Hebrews 10:26), whereas involuntary sin arises from ignorance or weakness (Luke 23:34). Augustine (1998) held that ignorance itself stems from the Fall, so even unintended wrong presupposes corrupted nature. Therefore, all transgression, however involuntary, necessitates divine mercy.

5.3 Conscious, Unconscious and Habitual Sin

The Psalms acknowledge hidden faults: “Who can discern his errors? Forgive my secret faults” (Psalm 19:12). Sin may thus dwell beneath awareness, shaping patterns of thought and behaviour. Repetition then produces habitual sin, enslaving the will (John 8:34). Aquinas (1265–1274) explains habit as the formation of moral disposition—either virtue or vice. Habitual sin, once normalised, darkens understanding and desensitises conscience (Ephesians 4:18–19).

6. Corporate and Structural Sin

6.1 Collective Guilt in Scripture

Biblical narratives often portray communities bearing collective responsibility. Israel suffered exile for national idolatry (2 Kings 17:7–23); Nineveh repented corporately (Jonah 3:5–10). The prophet Daniel confesses, “We have sinned and done wrong” (Daniel 9:5), identifying himself with his people’s guilt. Sin therefore transcends individual acts to become a communal reality.

6.2 Social and Institutional Evil

Modern theology has expanded this concept into the idea of structural sin—systems of injustice that perpetuate inequality and oppression. Amos 5:11–12 condemns those who “trample on the poor,” indicating that social structures can embody unrighteousness. Liberation theologians (e.g., Gutierrez, 1973) interpret such texts as calls to transform unjust institutions. While individuals remain responsible, structures themselves require redemption, for they channel and reinforce collective disobedience.

6.3 Sin in Systems: Economic, Political and Cultural

Systemic sin manifests in exploitative economies, corrupt governance, and cultures that normalise immorality (Micah 6:11–12; Romans 1:28–32). John Paul II (1987) described this as the “social dimension of sin” within the global community. Corporate repentance, therefore, involves not only confession but reform of systems that contradict divine justice (Isaiah 1:16–17).

7. Degrees and Effects of Sin

7.1 Mortal and Venial Sin (Historical Views)

The classification into mortal and venial sin originated in patristic and medieval theology. Mortal sin denotes wilful rejection of God that severs spiritual life (1 John 5:16–17), while venial sin weakens but does not destroy charity. Though Protestant theology later rejected the terminology, it retained the recognition that sin varies in gravity according to knowledge and intent (Luke 12:47–48).

7.2 The Equal Guilt Principle

James 2:10–11 declares that “whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at one point is guilty of breaking all.” The principle does not imply all sins are equal in consequence but that all violate the same divine Lawgiver (James 4:12). Thus even a single transgression constitutes rebellion against God’s authority. The Ten Commandments form a unified moral whole; to break one commandment is to affront the unity of the Law and its Giver (Deuteronomy 6:4–5).

7.3 Consequences: Spiritual, Moral, Physical and Eternal

Every sin carries consequence. Spiritually, it separates from God (Isaiah 59:2); morally, it corrupts the conscience (Titus 1:15); physically, it introduces decay and death (Romans 6:23); eternally, it incurs judgement (Hebrews 9:27). The universality of consequence underscores the need for atonement: “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

References

  • Aquinas, T. (1265–1274) Summa Theologiae, trans. Fathers of the English Dominican Province. London: Burns Oates, 1920 edn.
  • Augustine (1998) Confessions, trans. H. Chadwick. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Gutierrez, G. (1973) A Theology of Liberation. Maryknoll: Orbis Books.
  • John Paul II (1987) Sollicitudo Rei Socialis. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
  • The Holy Bible (NRSV, 2011). London: HarperCollins.

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