Sin
Word Game
Catholicism
In Biblical days, human beings were also heavily propagandized as very sinful to justify the barbaric treatment humans suffered at the hands of their Custodial "God" and "angels." By extending this concept of sinfulness to the human method of procreation, every person conceived through human sexual intercourse was to be considered born in sin and therefore spiritually condemned. What a frightful dilemma this created! Every time a man and woman conceived and gave birth to a child, they had condemned a spiritual being; yet the human drives which produce children are strong. The religious teaching of automatic spiritual condemnation because of human procreation generated a powerful conflict between the drive for spiritual freedom and the physical drive to reproduce. The result was intense anxiety on the subject of sex and an increase in nonprocreative sexual activity such as homosexuality, autoeroticism, nonprocreative forms of intercourse, pornography, voyeurism, and abortion. The irony in this is clear. Those religions which have most strongly condemned the "inherent sin" in all human beings have also been those which have most vocally opposed nonprocreative sex. These teachings had another important effect. They helped reduce human resistance to engaging in war. It is easier for a religious person to kill someone if he believes that the victim is inherently sinful. [1989] Gods of Eden by William Bramley
It is a sin to overeat because that leads to ill health and misery.
It is a sin to over-indulge in sex because that breaks down
one's will power and leads to the habit of drifting.
It is a sin to permit one's mind to be dominated by negative thoughts of envy, greed, fear, hatred, intolerance,
vanity, self-pity, or discouragement, because these states of mind
lead to the habit of drifting.
It is a sin to cheat, lie, and steal, because these habits destroy self-respect, subdue one's conscience, and lead to
unhappiness.
It is a sin to remain in ignorance because that leads to
poverty and loss of self-reliance.
It is a sin to accept from life anything one does not want because that indicates an unpardonable neglect to use
the mind.
Q Is it a sin for one to drift through life, without
definite aim, plan, or purpose?
A Yes, because this habit leads to poverty and destroys the
privilege of self-determination. It also deprives one of
the privilege of using his own mind as a medium of contact with
Infinite Intelligence.
Q Are you the chief inspirer of sin?
A Yes! It is my business to gain control of the minds of
people in every way possible.
Q Can you control the mind of a person who commits no sin?
A I cannot, because that person never permits his mind to
be dominated by any form of negative thought. I cannot enter
the mind of one who never sins, let alone control it.
Q What is the commonest and most destructive of all sins?
A Fear and ignorance.
Q Have you nothing else to add to the list?
A There is nothing else to be added.
[1938] OUTWITTING THE DEVIL by Napoleon Hill