I've been reading snippets of the Catechism each day as part of the Catholic Church's Year of Faith. Yesterday, I came across the following:
The reality of sin
386 Sin is present in human history; any attempt to ignore it or to give this dark reality other names would be futile. To try to understand what sin is, one must first recognize the profound relation of man to God, for only in this relationship is the evil of sin unmasked in its true identity as humanity's rejection of God and opposition to him, even as it continues to weigh heavy on human life and history.
387 Only the light of divine Revelation clarifies the reality of sin and particularly of the sin committed at mankind's origins. Without the knowledge Revelation gives of God we cannot recognize sin clearly and are tempted to explain it as merely a developmental flaw, a psychological weakness, a mistake, or the necessary consequence of an inadequate social structure, etc. Only in the knowledge of God's plan for man can we grasp that sin is an abuse of the freedom that God gives to created persons so that they are capable of loving him and loving one another.
Bold emphasis is mine.
How many times have we seen behaviors excused by that which is bolded? How many times have we used those excuses ourselves? I'm guilty.
Developmental flaws, psychological weakness, mistakes, the consequence of an inadequate social structure, etc.
Far too often do we deny the reality of sin. For too often we blame our behaviors on that which in the end is inconsequential and ineffective. We're not about to change by denying reality.
Yesterday's snippet includes:
389 The doctrine of original sin is, so to speak, the "reverse side" of the Good News that Jesus is the Savior of all men, that all need salvation and that salvation is offered to all through Christ. The Church, which has the mind of Christ, knows very well that we cannot tamper with the revelation of original sin without undermining the mystery of Christ.
It's not too late to overcome that undermining but... we need to get busy.
Lord have mercy. Lord grant us wisdom. Lord lead us.
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