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Sin and Reconciliation
In accordance with their reading of the Bible,
Christians believe that human beings were
originally created in the image of God, meaning
that they were completely good. However, people
used their free will to turn away from God,
following their own desires rather than God’s will.
This gave rise to a universal human tendency
toward evil that Christians call “original sin”;
individual sinful acts are believed to be rooted in
this condition. Despite their sinfulness, Christians
believe humans are still the image of God;
Catholics hold a more optimistic view than
Protestants about the extent to which the image
remains present. Although humans retain a
tremendous capacity for good, the tendency
towards sin often outweighs the impulse towards
good. This leads to a universal human need for
salvation from sin and reconciliation with God.
Christians understand reconciliation with God as
something accomplished by Jesus and accepted by
the Christian in faith. As noted in the section on
Jesus, his life, death, and resurrection reveal God’s
love and mercy. And as the Reformations stressed,
forgiveness of sins (also called justification) also
comes from God as a gift; it has nothing to do with
human achievements. Catholics and Protestants
share this view of justification as a free gift offered
through Jesus and accepted in faith. While all
Christians also agree that faith should lead to
living a Christian life, or performing “good
works,” they sometimes disagree about the
relationship of faith and works. In particular,
Catholics and evangelical Protestants have
emphasized the need to grow in faith by doing
good works, while other Christians such as
Lutherans have stressed the distinction between
faith and works. However, recent documents such
as the “Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of
Justification,” which was published by the
Lutheran and Catholic churches, show that this
particular difference is being resolved.
Sacraments
In Christian worship, sacraments are ritual
practices that are believed to bring people into
tangible union with God. Sacraments are
understood as visible signs of God’s grace. When a
sacrament is performed, prayers are said and
elements such as water, wine, bread, and oil may
be used. Protestants usually celebrate two
sacraments, while Catholics, in accordance with
their greater emphasis on God’s immanence,
celebrate seven. Almost all Christians observe the
sacraments of baptism and Eucharist. For
Catholics, the other five are confession,
confirmation, matrimony, holy orders, and
anointing of the sick. Thus, sacraments often
mark important epochs in a Christian’s life. This
section describes the sacraments of baptism and
Eucharist.
Baptism celebrates a person’s entrance into the
Christian family. In some denominations, such as
Catholicism and Lutheranism, people are
baptized as infants; in others, baptism is
performed when the person requests it. According
to the Christian Scriptures, the tradition of
baptism began with Jesus, who, following a Jewish
custom, was baptized with water at the start of his
ministry. Since then, Christians have been
baptized to symbolize their new identity as God’s
children as they commence lives as Christians. At
a baptism, the person being baptized—or, if an
infant, the person’s parents—affirms his or her
belief in the Trinitarian God. Water is then
sprinkled on the person’s head, or the person may