NationStates Jolt Archive

What is the societal advantage of promoting the idea that all humans are born sinners?

What is the societal advantage of promoting the idea that all humans are born sinners?

we're all damned prior to our birth, ergo why attempt to be virtuous and beneficient?:p

What is the societal advantage of promoting the idea that all humans are born sinners?
IMHO, it's to promote the idea of humility.

It provides a means of control to the priest caste. If we are born in sin and want to progress beyond that sin, we must subscribe to whatever the ruling religious body tells us to do.

Please note that this was of much more use in the days when people had less exposure to other religions and their points of views. Now, that societal control has been handed to governments who use other fear tactics (the threat of terrorists, for instance) to exercise the same controls.

:(

if we are all sinners from birth the we, in some way, deserve the bad things that happen to us. its not the governments fault, its not rich people's fault, its not society'fs fault. its our own fault for being the imperfect sinners we started out as.

we start out in a hole and have to work hard in order to just get up to "normal". and if we're not careful we'll fall back into that hole and eventually end up in hell.

thats all i can think of. im not sure its accurate but it does reflect alot of things posted by devout christians on this board. the view that "the world would be a paradise if we werent filthy sinnners screwing it up"

An explanation to your question would be that we are not sinners from birth but we sin after birth; every one of us.

It's all about control, making people feel guilty for being human so they will look to the church. That maintains bonds of power over them.

It's all about control, making people feel guilty for being human so they will look to the church. That maintains bonds of power over them.
And money. The church used to be among the richest organisations around, all from contribution, all from people who thought they could/should pay off their sin to avoid hell. Or maybe buy a better place for the pie in the sky.

What is the societal advantage of promoting the idea that all humans are born sinners?
control (church)

What is the societal advantage of promoting the idea that all humans are born sinners?
You get to guilt them into agreeing with you at every turn, making them hope for redemption from a sin they were unaware of.

IMHO, it's to promote the idea of humility.
But can't we be humbled without being humiliated? Isn't the latter ego-damaging?

But can't we be humbled without being humiliated? Isn't the latter ego-damaging?

Good thing though that not all of us are ignorant enough to believe in some book that details a cruel God.

What is the societal advantage of promoting the idea that all humans are born sinners?


In a word? Control! When I was very young still in high school, I took a basic grade 12 law course, one of the first units taught was why in the "free" world was religion allowed to be legal. Basically when common law was being written many moons ago, they came to the conclusion that people of "faith" were basically law abiding citizens and able to be controlled easier than those who exercised free thought.

But can't we be humbled without being humiliated? Isn't the latter ego-damaging?

There's a difference between humility and humiliation.

Just one of many teachings to make people feel small and weak.