Sin Among the Damned
From LanceaSanctum
Originally given in 2006 by Bishop J.W.Ghoren of Delaware.
[edit] Sin Among the Damned, and Purpose
Tonight, Brothers, Sisters and guests, I shall take a moment to talk about sin. I think it obvious that sin cannot be the same for us now as it was for us as mortals. How, for example, could it be a sin for us to do physical harm, when our god-given condition demands it? Is there such an act as "sinning for God" or "killing for God?" Contrary to the teachings of certain radical, evangelist Christian and Muslim mortal groups, for humans it is never acceptable to kill.
Yet death is a part of our purpose. Or, at least, giving the herd a taste of it is. So sin must be something different for us, and here we return to our Divine Purpose.
What is sin among the Damned, Brothers and Sisters? Simply, it is anything that keeps us from serving the purpose God put us here to enact. I know, I must sound as a broken record - purpose, purpose, purpose...
But our purpose is the gift that accompanies our curse, the open window replacing the proverbial closed door. How many mortals agonize over thier own purpose, the so-called "meaning of life?" Well, we KNOW why we are here, Brothers and Sisters. Ours is the blessing of certainty that God IS real and has a plan for us. Even our damnation itself is a gift from Him, for who among us could have passed through mortal death and found our way to heaven? I certainly would not have.
Our damnation here on Earth is an act of mercy on us by a God who has every right and reason to cast us into the fire. To squander our damnation by ignoring its purpose, then, is the greatest - perhaps the only - real sin we can commit. Failing to make efforts to turn wicked mortals back to God is a mockery of the second chance he has given us through the wisdom of Longinus.
Not only does the purpose of our damnation expose its meaning. Brethren, it offers salvation! Just as we are doomed to the oblivion of Hell after final death if we shirk our duty to Him, so shall we be rewarded if we perform that duty well unto the end of days. That is our mission, and we sin whenever the petty concerns of this world keep us from it.
That is our Purpose. May we all endeavor to live it through.
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