La riflessione teologica ortodossa sul mistero del peccato

Abstract

This article tackles the concept of sin in its current sense from a theological and sociological standpoint, while attempting to ferret out the true meaning of sin, according to the contemporary man. Based on this point of view, the study attempts to analyse not only the legal implications of sin, but also its mystical facet as a spiritual, metaphysical phenomenon. Today, sin is mostly compared to or equated with its guilt component, while the mystical facet is left out. Another neglected issue is that above all, man is not responsible for his sins - he is a victim, he is ailing and he is not a sinner. The plausible cause for this shift in perspective is nothing but than the great temptation that man has always faced, namely the temptation to become God. This temptation has brought man to the point where he has lost the true meaning of his dialogue with God as well as his true freedom. Therefore, man has also lost his grasp of the true meaning of sin. Unlike the current understanding of this notion, patristic literature does not view sin in the philosophical, sociological or psychological meaning, but as a mystical phenomenon. Sin is committed first within man’s mystical self and the worse form of sin is a perpetuated sin. The Church Fathers have named this persistency in sin passion ( . To the Church Fathers, the origin of passion lies in man’s misguided natural powers. Once man has yielded to it, passion breaks all man’s spiritual ties with God and his immediate society and overrides all else. The consequences of passion reflect not only on the man himself, but also on his environment, especially considering that today more than ever, a man’s deed is social. From this standpoint, sin may display a social and collective nature as well and sometimes the responsibility for an evil deed is cast upon society or the man or group’s environment. For all the reasons abovementioned, it is necessary to unravel the true meaning of sin – a deed that is found within man’s psycho-physical self – so as to emphasise the particular importance of the Sacrament of Confession.