Bao Nguyen

English 1A

Professor Vora

May 08, 2008

Sin and Redemption

The past cannot be changed. Sometimes we wish there is a time machine that will allow

us to travel back in time and fix the past mistakes that haunt us. Of course this is an unrealistic

expectation and the only option anyone ever has to redeem himself/herself means confronting the

problem head on. Some people are given a second chance to rectify the problem while other may

have to carry their shame into their grave. This is one of the themes that the book Kite Runner

written by Khaled Houssine touches upon. The main character Amir made a mistake as a youth

that gnaws at him for almost twenty-six years until he was given the opportunity to redeem

himself. Although the story, the Kite Runner is a fiction, the underlying theme of the characters

has its root in humanity. Countless people have had to go through the same distressing situation

throughout history, trying to atone sins of their past.

The theme of sin and redemption goes back to the beginning of mankind. If you believe

the account of creation then you would understand that our whole existence is based upon the

original sin committed by Adam in the Garden of Eden. The original sin according to the Bible

states that because Adam fell into temptation and took a bite from the poisoned tree, that we,

who are his descendant are also born into sin. The sin that humanity must atone for collectively

is called the original sin. In Romans verse 12 it says

 "As by one man [Adam] sin entered the world, and death by sin, and so death passed

upon all men, for all sinned [in Adam]." Verses 13 to 17 are in parentheses; verse 18, following

verse 12, states: "Therefore, as by the offense of one [Adam] judgment came upon all men to

condemnation.

It is also the chief reason for baptism ritual in Christianity. The child born into sin can

only hope for salvation when he cleanses his sinful soul with the holy water of God. Without

baptism the child would be condemn to hell even if he goes to church and pray. Although there is

no direct verse within the Bible advocating infant baptism, the connection could be reach

through the concept of original sin and from the Gospel of John. In the Gospel of John, Jesus

says, “ Unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God”(John 3:3). This belief

however only applies to those who are religious and Christian in the first place. For those of us,

who do not believe in Creationism, much can be obtain from history.

In the modern world there are still many tales of sin and redemption that goes untold.

From the smallest thing such as a person finding his/her abandoned children after many years, to

the person who turns himself for murder because his/her conscience was eating him. These often

untold tales of personal tribulation is a testament to an ever occurring theme of sin and

redemption in humanity. A whole field of work has been established to help modern day people

cope with their own guilty conscience. That field is the field of counseling. Whether it is

personal counseling, marriage counseling, or grief counseling; these types of services had sprung

up in modern time to satisfy the unmet needs of many individuals whose conscience keep

tugging at them to fix their wrongs. It has also recently been popular on T.V to bring guests on

shows such as Jerry Springer or Maury to allow them to redeem their sins in front of millions of
television viewers. The most typical case is about cheating spouses admitting their wrongdoing,

abandoned children uniting with their parents, and criminals asking the victim or victim’s

relative for forgiveness. For people with a hardcore guilt conscience, psychologist and

psychiatrist are people who specialized in treating such problems.

Modern day, scientist in the field of psychology has got the guilty conscience that drives

a person to redemption down to a science, not an exact one, but close enough. It has been

discovered that human are hard-wired with a desire to commit sin and redeeming it at the same

time. There are two part of the brain involved in the different desire. The basal instinct to

dominate and cause havoc to other belongs to the older part of our being called “the reptilian

brain”. The ability to reason and fix past wrongs belong to a fairly new part of our brain called

the neo-cortex. G. Richard Jansen wrote in the article “A Neurophysiological Perspective on the

Origin of Sin” that

“Research on the hypothalamus indicates that humans have a physiological

proclivity to perform acts that religious doctrines consider evil. Primarily geared

toward self-preservation, the hypothalamus controls aggression, lust, territoriality

and violence. These drives are counterbalanced, however, by the activity of the

neocortex, which controls inhibitory influences such as conscious thought and

reasoning.”

This ties directly well the idea of original sin in which we are born naturally sinful. The lust for

power, sex, and territory has been hardwired to us at the beginning of our existence just as the

original sin had been with us since Adam sinned. Only recently have the development of the neo-

cortex in the brain that allows us to be civilize and restrain our basal desires through reason.
 Sin and redemption, is something that we as human being must come to experience one

time or another in our life. Whether the sin is as great and the consequences are as severe as

Amir depends on the situation and individual. Most stories however tragic are rarely publicized

and known only by those few individuals who are directly involved. Stories that does get

publicity are only a fraction on the scale and magnitude of what been going on in the world since

the beginning of time. The Kite Runner catches the attention of millions of audiences because for

it because you can read for yourself what the person is going through first hand. Everything that

can happen in life has already happen some place and somewhere. As individual, stories like

Amir might intrigue and get our sympathy, but on a grand scale it is not something unexpected

considering the amount of human living on Earth since the existence of the specie.

References:

1. Miles, Stanford. “The Tragedy of Romans 5:12” “WithChrist.ORG” 1996.

<http://www.withchrist.org/mjs/512.htm>

2. JANSEN, G. RICHARD. "A NEUROPHYSIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE ON

ORIGINAL SIN." Perspectives in Biology and Medicine 42.2 (Wntr

1999): 262(1). Expanded Academic ASAP. Gale. CCL Evergreen Valley College. 14

May2008 <http://0-find.galegroup.com.library.sjeccd.org:80/itx/start.do?prodId=EAIM>.
3.