Original sin facts for kids
Original Sin is a Christian belief that explains why all humans are born with a tendency to do wrong things, or "sin." This idea comes mainly from the Bible story of Adam and Eve. In that story, found in the Book of Genesis, God gave Adam and Eve only one rule: they must not eat fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But a snake tricked Eve, telling her that eating the fruit would make her wise like God. Eve then convinced Adam to eat the fruit too. Because they broke God's only rule, they were sent out of the beautiful Garden of Eden.
After this, the Bible tells how their oldest son, Cain, killed his brother Abel. Based on this and other parts of the Bible, especially a statement by Paul the Apostle in Romans 5:12, many Christians believe that sin entered the world through Adam's actions. This means that all people are affected by sin.
What is Original Sin?
The term "Original Sin" also refers to the idea that being part of the human family means we are all born into a state where sin is present. This idea was explained in detail by Saint Augustine, an important Christian thinker. He wrote about how this sin is passed down through generations.
Different Christian Views
Not all Christian churches agree on the exact meaning of Original Sin. For example, the Eastern Orthodox Churches have a different understanding. They believe that humans inherit the consequences of Adam and Eve's first sin, like death and a tendency to sin, but they don't believe that everyone is born guilty of that first sin itself. Western Christian churches, like Catholic and Protestant churches, often follow Saint Augustine's view more closely.
Images for kids
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Saint Augustine wrote a lot about Original Sin.
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John Cassian was an early Christian monk who had different ideas about human nature than Saint Augustine.
See also
In Spanish: Pecado original para niños
