The Seat of Sin

Why do people do wrong?

The simple answer is because they are bad. For one reason or another, they choose immoral activity. Where then does the responsibility lay? On them.

But look a little closer. An astute observer starts seeing environmental trends. It seems social forces have a powerful impact on the way people live. It seems responsibility is a trickier subject in light of sociological factors.

Now, some people choose a strong side on this issue, defending either the idea of personal responsibility or social factors. Truth is, in almost all situations both are playing a role. Sure, there are some cases so heinous and without provocation that it is clearly the sin of the person, and some environments so caustic that it is clearly the sin of the situation. But most situations rest in the realm of both.

This duality of the seat of sin teaches us important things. On the one hand, don't be quick to judge, for you know not the pressures on the person who has fallen. But on the other, do not eliminate the role of the individual in the outcome of their actions. There has always been a struggle between that which comes down upon us and that which flows up out of us.

This dual truth also bifurcates our constructive actions. We must strive to eliminate the systematic, environmental, economic, social, political, cultural and community mechanisms that strain the harmony of goods. But we must also inspire individual people to take responsibility for their actions, bring them into a clarity of being that can get beyond the immoral implications of their surroundings.