The taxonomy of sin

There are several classification systems for sin, but the most commonly referenced include the following:

A Biblical taxonomy of sin:

• Overarching definition of sin: rebellion against God - as in doing just as I please
  
• Sin (examples of): abuse, adultery, arrogance, boasting, brutality, conceit, debauchery, deceit, depravity, discord, dissension, disobedience to parents, divorce, drunkenness, envy, evil, fits of rage, God-hating, gossiping, greed, homosexual practice, idolatry, impurity, insolence, jealousy, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, love of money, lust, malice, murder, not lovers of the good, orgies, pride, selfish ambition, sexual immorality, slander, strife, theft, treachery, unforgiving, ungratefulness, unholiness, wickedness, witchcraft, without self-control (taken from Galatians 5v19-21, 2 Timothy 2v2-4, Romans 1v18-32)
• Unforgivable sin: none of the above

Western church taxonomy of sin (there are variations, but generally):

• Not sinful: greed, overwork, pride
• Normal human behaviour: envy, gossiping, half-truths, love of money, selfish ambition, strife
• Regrettable: deceit, divorce, drunkenness, slander, sleeping around, smoking
• Historical, and no longer extant: idolatry, witchcraft
• Sin: marital unfaithfulness
• Unforgivable sin: homosexuality

Western secular taxonomy of sin:

• Not sinful at all, in fact to be celebrated: greed, homosexuality, pride
• Normal human behaviour: drunkenness, envy, gossiping, lack of self-control, lust, pornography, sleeping around, strife
• Clever and to be admired: corruption (so long it is to one's benefit), manipulation, spinning the truth
• Interesting: witchcraft
• Understandable human failings: deceit, unfaithfulness, slander
• Historical, and no longer extant: idolatry
• Sin: paedophilia
• Unforgivable sin: anything which questions my right to do just as I please

The Western church smorgasbord

Setting: Jesus, dressed as a waiter, talks to a new convert to Christianity.

Jesus: "Congratulations on becoming a Christian, sir; an excellent choice if I may say so! Are you ready to order your choice of church?"

New convert: "Yes, I think so. What have you got?"

Jesus: "Well, we have small friendly churches, standard churches, or you could go large and join a mega-church."

New convert: "I think I'll have a small friendly church please."

Jesus: "Now, what style of preacher would you like to go with that? We have pastors, ministers, priests, and bishops, and each is available as a wooly liberal, middle-of-the-road, or a Bible-thumper, and with or without women. We can also prepare them in anything from jeans to cassocks, to your taste."

New convert: “Well what I'd really like is a pastor who explains the Bible, but without too much thumping. I'm not sure about women, though. But I’d like mine with a jacket and trousers, but no tie."

Jesus: “No problem; we can do that, sir; if you decide about the women, just let me know. Now which sauce would you like? We have Evangelical, Catholic, Pentecostal and Middle-of-the-road - and these can come with or without the Spirit."

New convert: “I think I'll have Evangelical, and not too much Spirit, please."

Jesus: "And what kind of music would you like on the side? We have 19th century hymns accompanied by an organ, a gospel choir, a band with all the latest effects, or a choir in purple robes. May I commend the choir, which is particularly good today."

New convert: "A difficult choice. I’m sure the choir is excellent, but I think I'll have the band with a range of effects. But I don't like drums, so can you prepare the music without the drums?"

Jesus: "No problem, sir. And to drink? May I recommend the house Ribena, which will go well with your church, but we do have red wine if you prefer."

New convert: "Well, if you recommend the Ribena, I'll try that. I think that will be all, thank you."

Jesus: "So that will be a small friendly church, with a pastor who explains the Bible, but without too much thumping, in a jacket and trousers but no tie, Evangelical sauce but not too much Spirit, the band with effects but no drums, and the house Ribena. That's an excellent choice, if I may say so, sir." [For all well-trained waiters say your order is ‘an excellent choice’.]

Is this really how we are to think about choosing a church?

We are one: body, soul and spirit

In my last post I focused on the different world-views underlying spiritual faiths and Western psychology, and questioned whether the latter was imposing its assumptions on the many people of faith. In this blog I pursue this line of thinking further, focusing on the increasing overlap between Western therapeutic thinking and Christianity.

Some think that Christianity and psychology have nothing to do with each other: they are different realms and there is no reason for Christians to be any more interested in psychology than in any other '-ology'. There are others who see Christianity and psychology as so overlapping that they almost merge into one, and use 'pop psychology' in the church context with great relish, and seem to almost equate therapy with sanctification!

One of the very first things I learnt as a therapist was that it is difficult to tell psychological problems apart from spiritual problems. There are mental health issues that may have their roots in spiritual problems, and spiritual problems that may be presented as mental health ones. [I'm not interested here in those who suffer from serious delusions - such as thinking that they are Jesus Christ - but rather in the interplay of our ordinary everyday psychological and spiritual experience in life's ups and downs.]

Physicians and psychotherapists increasingly acknowledge that physical and mental health affect each other greatly. We are, after all, one person - our mind is part of our body! So, when people think about being in 'good health' or a state of 'well-being', they generally mean being in good physical and mental health.

But this is not sufficient. We also need to include the link between the physical and mental with our spiritual being. We are indeed one person - body, mind (or soul) and spirit; they each affect the other. So I do not see how one may truly be in good health without the spirit also being healthy. And how can the spirit be healthy when we ignore it, starve it, even deny its existence? We end up with people who look healthy on the outside but who are empty on the inside, hollow shells - or as Jesus put it more plainly, "whitewashed tombs".

Moreover, I do not think Jesus subscribed to the current ideology which sees spiritual issues alone as being the concern of the church, while we leave physical health to doctors and mental health to counsellors and the like. Jesus dealt with whole people - body, soul and spirit - and his healing was total - physical, mental and spiritual. He gave bread to hungry people, hope to hopeless people, enabled lame people to walk and the blind to see, and forgiveness and new life to those who were spiritually broken.

Counsellors must engage with the spiritual realities of their clients, not with any aim for salvation, but merely to understand their clients properly. And the church needs to follow Jesus' example and deal with whole people. Too often both have fallen for the same deceit: that the spirit can be separated from the body and mind.

Nevertheless, the church and counsellors are aiming at different things. It is not the role of counsellors to pass comment on their clients' spiritual frame of reference, merely to understand and engage with the whole person in front of them. But the church will not be relevant to people if it confines itself just to the spiritual; the 'average person in the street', as well as those in the pew, will see the irrelevance of preaching that doesn't deal with the physical and emotional realities of our lives. The gospel is not just about forgiveness for personal sins and being right with God, but about restoring relationships and the natural world - it's about making all things new.

Seeking the good

Our natural inclination is to drawn distinctions - in what ways are you and I different? what is it that marks this group out from that group? etc. We do this all the time quite naturally. For example, when buying a mobile phone we want to know the difference in features and costs between this model or price plan, and that one.

Our western society holds choice as a mark of freedom, to the extent that (I hear today) there are over 300 price plans for gas or electricity currently available in the UK. (I suppose this must prove that we are a very 'free' society!). So we have become totally used to navigating choices when it comes to buying gizmos, utilities or even frozen peas.

But as the choices become wider and wider, we often need to look for help in understanding the finer and finer distinctions between this and that, and turn to a whole industry to help us choose - expert reviews, consumer reviews, comparison websites, etc.

And, when it comes to churches, this materialistic attitude (for that is what it is) naturally comes along too. So I've just typed "which church" into Google, and now have over 300,000,000 results to help me!

Except that maybe it's not the differences between churches that matter.

The more we focus on differences, the more we splinter into fragments until, eventually, we come down to the individual level, for God made us each one of us different. But if we focus on the similarities, the common ground, we may find that we are all human, all made in God's image, all sinners, and all living on Earth together.

It's easy to be critical and find fault (except in ourselves!), but can we seek and find the good? Whatever you focus on will grow. Focus on the differences and faults and you'll find plenty. But Jesus looked at poor people, rich people, women, sick people and outcasts such as lepers, Samaritans (also outcasts), centurions, etc - all with an eye of love. I don't mean he turned a blind eye to their sins, but his attitude was always seeking their good, looking to draw them close to himself.

Can we earnestly seek his forgiveness for our critical spirit which sees only distinction and difference, and ask for his loving eyes, which see all Christians, in fact all humankind, as loved by him?

Then, perhaps, just perhaps, we will be less interested in the distinctions between churches and theological viewpoints, and more interested in getting on with doing his work of redemption - Christians united in one family. Now that would be force to be reckoned with! And the foundation for a fantastic witness (John 17v23).