WJEC/Eduqas RS for A2/Yr2: Religion and Ethics (DRAFT)

WJEC / Eduqas Religious Studies for A Level Year 2 and A2 Religion and Ethics

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned. (Romans 5:12) Augustine further argued that as all human beings are born from sexual intercourse, which is itself a result of concupiscence, then all humanity inherits concupiscence. The exception to this, is Jesus Christ who was not born from sexual intercourse and therefore was born sin free. Doctrine of Original Sin: humanity as ‘a lump of sin’ (massa peccati) As a result of ‘the fall’, all humanity is born ‘ massa peccati ’. Massa peccati is a Latin term meaning a ‘lump of sin’ or ‘mass of sin’. Augustine explained massa peccati by stating that humanity is ‘so hopelessly corrupted that we are absolutely incapable of doing anything good by our own forces; free choice, if it means a choice between good and evil, has been utterly wasted by sin; our will, insofar as it is ours, and not God’s, can merely do evil and desire evil’. Therefore, for Augustine, humanity’s ability to choose freely is infected by sin and incapable of raising itself from spiritual death. Doctrine of Original Sin: liberium abitrium and libertas Augustine still argued that a person has a will and that the will is capable of making choices. For Augustine, free will in human beings is about our capacity to act and choose freely according to our own lights as individual agents. He had no doubt that he was the author of his decision and action and that he himself formed the intention in his action. Augustine argued that fallen human beings have an essential human nature that is liberium arbitrium (a Latin phrase meaning a person has the power of making choices that are free from predestination). In other words, they have a free will, but concupiscence acts as secondary human nature which overrides a person’s essential human nature of liberium arbitrium. As humanity’s free will ‘has been utterly wasted by sin’, people have lost their libertas (Latin phrase meaning liberty). That means that because of the original sin, human beings are unable to refrain from sinning. Baptism was seen to address original sin, but it left untouched concupiscence, the inclination toward sin that original sin had introduced. Therefore, although still able to choose what they desire, their desires are affected by sin. Augustine believed that before conversion, the body obeyed the soul’s lustful cravings more readily than the soul heeded its own moral scruples. Key quotes When I willed or did not will something, I was wholly certain that it was not someone other than I who willed or did not will it. (Augustine) I it was who willed, I it was who was unwilling… I neither willed entirely, nor was I entirely unwilling. Therefore I was at war with myself. (Augustine referring to the time before his conversion)

4.2 What are the two reasons

humanity is born with the defect of concupiscence?

Key term Liberium arbitrium: Latin phrase meaning a person has the power of making choices that are free from predestination Libertas: Latin phrase meaning liberty Massa peccati: Latin term meaning lump or mass of sin Specification content Doctrine of Original Sin: an essentially ‘free’ human nature (liberium abitrium), the loss of human liberty (libertas) to our sinful nature

DRAFT

4.3 Why do people lose their free will?

Augustine believed that every moral agent is predestined to be a sinner and therefore is in danger of eternity in Hell.

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