Original Sin: A Cultural History Paperback – April 28, 2009

Very understandably, the notion of original sin offends a certain modern sensibility.Isn't it immoral to suggest that everyone alive today bears the guilt of the transgression of a hypothetical Adam, lost to the mists of history? That we're all guilty before a judgmental God of something we didn't do? And isn't it a bit misogynistic, with the stuff about blaming Eve for the Fall of Man?But then again, looking at the rivers of blood that flow through history, and perhaps even looking at our own imperfections, our own failings ("When viewed from the inside, every man's life is a series of failures," George Orwell--no Christian and well-acquainted with worldly success--is reported to have said), don't we find that there seems to be something...broken...at the heart of human nature? Something we all share--something inherited, perhaps--that, in some mysterious way, bends the timber of our humanity?One of the most powerful and important concepts that Western civilization has used to try to make sense of this paradox of human nature has been the idea of original sin. And it's precisely nowadays, when the concept is left to the wayside, that if we want to understand our own culture, we need to know more about it. Alan Jacobs, a distinguished scholar of literature (and a Christian) provides with this excellent book a wonderful overview of, just as it says on the tin, the history of this concept of original sin in our culture.A disclaimer here: Alan is a friend of mine. Despite our friendship, and our shared Christianity, and my knowledge of his talents as a writer and scholar, it took me a long time to pick up this book, because I was afraid it would be mostly dry, academic scholarship. Don't make the same mistake. It is an absolutely engaging, well-written, lucid book, very easy to read. Though Jacobs is a Christian, he writes here first as a lover and scholar of culture, not as an apologist.Jacobs finds precedent for the notion of original sin even outside of Judeo-Christian culture, and then traces the idea's evolution through the ages of history. Throughout, he cites literature and other cultural examples, to show how people have understood the concept and how it has shaped our history. But it is when he gets to the post-Christian era that the book truly shines. As Modern civilization rejects the notion of original sin as outmoded, it finds itself, staring at the horrors of the 20th century, grasping for some concept that could account for the catastrophe of human fallibility (fallenness, even?). Jacobs masterfully describes how many writers, trying to break free of the notion of original sin, end up finding their way back to something very much like it.It seems that as much as we want to let go of original sin, it won't let go of us. Which, of course, is very fitting. If you want an understanding of one of the most important concepts in Western civilization and Christianity, Jacobs' book is the best recommendation.

I purchased this after checking it out of the library because it is truly a book that needs to be reviewed and reread. Having grown up with the notion of original sin--a mainstay of Catholicism--I have frequently harbored concerns about the view of humanity that this presents. Are we all, in fact, tainted by a primal weakness inherited from our first parents and thus in need of redemption? This book is a work of scholarship that addresses the evil that men do and examines the possible explanations: are we, in fact, inclined to sin because of the sin of our parents? Or are we, as some teach, basically good and made evil by circumstances? Does the fault lie in the stars, or in ourselves? This book examines the responses that derive from the various answers to these questions, and makes a convincing case for our essential inclination to evil--whether it's due to some parental flaw that passes on like a case of pre-natal HIV, or whether it's "in our genes." Thought provoking and well worth discussing.

Life's most serious matters are those that have the greatest, longest-lasting impact on ourselves and on others. Our distracted culture, sadly, seems to not quite register that fact. Alan Jacobs deserves great credit in disallowing himself distraction . . . mostly. His tackling of this subject is to be applauded. His research appears to be thorough. His presentation of the results of his study could be more focused. Clearly his knowledge of how societies and cultures address mankind's greatest failing (sin) is towering. As a researcher and writer myself, I had some challenge remaining targeted while reading his work. The content is deep enough for a theologian, broad enough for an historian, and written for the average person, but with substandard clarity. This book and its message are well worth revising toward that end, if for no other reason than its target reader (the average person) should ponder deeply the subject that Alan Jacobs clearly sees as vital.

I'll preface by saying that I'm not a Christian (and I'm betting by reading the other 5 customer comments that I'm the only one of my ilk to've so far submitted a review).This is a fantastic overview of the "our intrinsic wickedness" - whether you view it as something bred by natural selection or inborn by rebellion against God. I blew through it in a one day of nursing a cold, and at the end found myself (more thoroughly) unconvinced of Rousseau, et al's assertion of the intrinsic goodness/purely situational behavior of mankind. Jacobs consistently brings up and then answers intriguing lines of thought, and does so in a style both entertaining and enlightening.

Man is sinful. We need a savior to rescue us. That is Jesus Christ.

Alan Jacob's cultural history of original sin is a huge bucket of rational cold water on the heads of moral relativists. Their comforting concept that original sin is nonsense is demonstrably shown to be nonsense. This is an important book coming at a time when many think that by simply changing words they can change the underlying facts.

Avery interesting book, with a ton of history and history of thought, and all very pertinent to social and mental science. The only failing is a fundamental one - the premise, the idea that good and bad are objectively real things and that we are apparently born with this "bad" in us, the evidence for which is a proposed preponderance of bad things that people do, as opposed to the lesser good that we do. It's as scientific and thorough a treatment of the subject as we could ask for, but it can't mask the artificiality of it's central idea. Jacobs seems so smart and educated that the shaky premise couldn't have escaped him, and so perhaps he intended to show it, perhaps writing for believers and unbelievers alike, in which case, I think he did a good job of it.

I highly recommend the seller. My book came timely and it is as it was announced.