Dear Jayb,

Thank You.

Yes I wrote it a few years ago.

Josephus,

The notion of sin rests on the assumption that a god exists. So until the the existence of such a god can be demonstrated, the notion of sin has no value and can be dismissed out of hand.

Even if sin could be shown to be a valid concept, it would still be unreliable as a general guide given the fact that it doesn't even include gullibility.

What is bad is not always a sin, and what is a sin is not always bad. You are conflating two different concepts - that happen to share similarities - in your post to suseonline.

If the notion of sin gets it right on moral issues, then it is largely by chance that it does.

Dear Josephus,

Thank you for answering Suse for me.

I agree in general, however it is not the role of courts and police to eliminate sins - they are there to protect people who could be victims rather than to fix the souls of perpetrators.

Dear Suse,

As Josephus answered for me, I will now answer for Josephus:

<<Where do you stand on the sinning newborns then?>>

One would never need to be born unless they were in sin.

<<Many people find comfort in imagining there are gods, but that is just a personal belief.>>

Indeed many do, but comfort is only a side-effect. Imagining there are gods is a valid method of opening our heart to God. If comfort occurs as well, then why not?

<<I am just saying that one doesn't have to believe in a holy book or in the existence of gods to have a life filled with good deeds for others, or to find peace in their existence.>>

I absolutely agree, but many, perhaps even most, are unable to arrive at the state you describe without this or a similar crutch. By criticising their method you are undermining goodness and peace, which I am confident was not your intention.

<<I have seen that truth many times in my work with the dying.>>

God bless you, Suse.

Sin is a violation of the law. Law is there to protect each other in society. As the scripture says, "he that knows to do good and does it not has sinned." Jesus upped the conditions and said, "those that harbor hate in their heart toward another is as guilty even as a murderer".

To claim that people do not do evil deeds defies the facts of reality. Is shop lifting a sin? it identifies covetousness and theft. The heart of every man has a propensity to evil.

Josephus: The heart of every man (or woman) has a propensity to evil.

First of all let's not be Sexist about this. The Heart of Man, or Woman, is more inclined to do good. I believe.

Dear Foxy,

I also liked your poem, and what, I think, it tries do convey. Thanks for sharing it.