In the Name of Allah,


the Most Gracious,


the Most Merciful


20 Arguments regarding the


doctrine of the original sin


THE FACTS ABOUT


THE ORIGINAL SIN


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BACKGROUND


According to the explanation of this


doctrine, Adam sinned when he


disobeyed Allah, the Exalted, by eating


from the forbid-den tree. According to


Christian theology,2 the following eight


doctrines branch off from the principle


of original sin:


01 All of Adam’s descendants


inherit his sin, which means


that all human beings (with the


exception of Mary) are born with


this original sin on their account.


02 For God’s justice to be achieved,


a price must be paid as a penalty


for every sin that has been


committed, in order for that


sin to be wiped out and for the


individual to be forgiven.


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03 The only way to wipe out sin is


to shed blood; according to Paul,


“without the shedding of blood


there is no forgiveness of sins.”


(Hebrews 9:22)


04 This blood must be perfect,


sinless, and incorruptible.


05 Jesus (pbuh) alone can pay the


infinite price of sin because his


blood is perfect, sinless, and


incorruptible, and he is the


(alleged) son of God, the infinite


God.


06 Jesus shed his holy sinless blood,


suffered indescribable agony,


and died to pay for the sins of


people. This concept is known as


‘atonement’.


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07 No one can be saved (attain


salvation) without accepting Jesus


Christ as his or her redeemer.


In other words, salvation is


restricted to those who believe


that Jesus was willingly crucified,


died on the cross, and shed


his blood as a price of that sin.


Acceptance of this doctrine is the


only way to attain ‘salvation’.


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08 Otherwise, everyone is


condemned to suffer eternally in


hell because of his or her sinful


nature and the sin originally


inherited from the father of


humankind, Adam.


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The doctrine of original sin can be


divided into six distinct parts:


01 The existence of original sin.


02 Humanity’s inheritance of the


original sin.


03 God’s justice requires a ‘blood


penalty’ for the original sin.


04 Jesus died on the cross to pay for


the sins of all humankind.


05 The rationality of the “God’s


sacrifice” dogma.


06 Salvation (from original and other


sins) is only for those who believe


in this vicarious sacrifice.


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ANALYSIS


Arguments against the six parts of the


dogma of original sin are as follows:


Argument against the first part: The


existence of original sin.


01 There is no conflict between the


Quranic verses and Christian


theology with reference to the fact


that Adam committed a sin when


he ate from the forbidden tree.


However, Allah has mentioned


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in the Quran that Prophet Adam


repented after that and submitted


himself completely to his Lord;


consequently, Allah forgave him


for the sin he had committed.


This is a tenet of Islamic belief


and has been mentioned in three


different chapters in the Quran (in


verses 2: 37, 7: 24 and 20: 122).


Based on Adam’s repentance


and Allah’s acceptance of his


repentance, the sin of Adam


(pbuh) was not inherited by his


children; hence, it did not require


the suffering and death of Jesus


Christ (or of anyone else) in order


to be forgiven.


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Argument against the second part:


Humanity’s inheritance of the original


sin.


02 The doctrine of inherited sin has


no support from the teachings of


Jesus.


03 The doctrine of inherited sin


has no support in the words of


the prophets who came either


before or after Jesus. If it was


required by God, then they would


have told their people about it


and taught them to believe in it,


because all prophets were sent


to guide people towards paradise


and ward them away from sins


and hellfire. If it were true, why


would they all have hidden this


important concept from their


people?


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04 Indeed, Jesus himself regarded


children as innocent and pure,


not born in sin. This is clear


from his reported saying: Let


the children come to me; do not


hinder them, for to such belongs


the kingdom of God. Truly, I say


to you, whoever does not receive


the kingdom of God like a child


shall not enter it. (Mark 10:14-15)


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05 The doctrine of inherited sin


implies that all the people who


came after Adam but before


Jesus were born with original sin


and died with it on their account;


hence, all of them will be cast into


hellfire because they did not even


know of this dogma, and thus


could not profess it! And if that


were true, what would have been


the purpose of all the prophets


who came before Jesus?


06 All the prophets taught that every


human being is accountable for


his or her own sins, so children


will not be punished for the sins of


their fathers. Allah has mentioned


in the Quran:{That no bearer of


burdens will bear the burden of


another.}(Quran 53: 38) {Every


soul, for what it has earned, will


be retained.} (Quran 74: 38)


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07 Sin is not inherited; it is


something that people acquire for


themselves by doing what they


should not do or by refraining


from doing what they should do.


Considered rationally, it would


be the height of injustice to


condemn the entire human race


for a sin committed thousands


of years ago by the first parents.


Sin is a wilful transgression of the


law of Allah. The responsibility or


blame for it must lie only with the


person committing it, not with


his or her descendants. It is the


height of misanthropy to even


consider such a thing. Imagine


how unreasonable and hardhearted


a person could become


by believing that every baby is


sinful at birth!


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08 Saying that the original sin


committed by our father, Adam


(pbuh), was inherited by all of


humanity goes against the quality


of mercy which Allah attributes to


Himself. It is clear that the creed


of the inheritance of original


sin has no place whatsoever in


Islamic teachings.


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Argument against the third part:


God’s justice requires a ‘blood


penalty’ for the original sin.


The third part of the original sin doctrine


says that God’s justice requires that a


price be paid for the sins of humankind


(original sin and otherwise) and that if


God were to pardon (forgive) a sinner


without punishment, it would be a


denial of His justice.


The response to that has two points:


09 This view reflects complete


ignorance of two of Allah’s


attributes, namely mercy and


forgiveness. To elaborate, if Allah


finds some real good in you


and sees that you are sincerely


repentant, having a genuine urge


to conquer the evil within you,


then Almighty Allah will forgive


your failings and sins, out of His


loving mercy and forgiveness.


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10 The God Whom we worship


(Allah) is the Most Strong and


Most Rich; no one can harm Him.


Consequently, if He prescribes


a law and demands obedience,


then it is not for His own benefit


that we abide by it; it is for the


benefit of humankind. If we


disobey Him, we are the losers,


not Allah. If He punishes a person


before death for his or her faults


and sins, it is not for His own


satisfaction or compensation but


in order to keep evil in check and


to purify/reform the sinner, out of


His mercy. Bearing these facts in


mind, it is not valid to claim that


Allah’s justice requires that a price


be paid for the sins of others.


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Argument against the fourth part:


Jesus died on the cross to pay for the


sins of all humankind.


The fourth part of the original sin


doctrine says that Jesus (pbuh) paid


the penalty for all sins (original sin and


any others) by sacrificing his blood on


the cross of Calvary. The response to


this proposition has ten points (11-20):


11 The Christian concept of salvation


has no basis in the words of Jesus


(pbuh). It is not historically correct


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to say that Jesus (pbuh) had come


to die willingly and deliberately


for the sins of all humanity. In


reality, the present form of the


Bible testifies that he did not wish


to die on the cross.1


12 Indeed, the Bible points to the


fact that God (Allah), not Jesus


(pbuh), is the ultimate saviour:


...That you may know and believe me


and understand that I am he. Before


me no god was formed, nor shall there


be any after me. I, I am the Lord, and


besides Me there is no savior. (Isaiah


43:10-11)


13 To punish an innocent man (Jesus)


for the sins of others is the height


of injustice, harshness, and lack


of mercy, and these traits cannot


be attributed to the Almighty.


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14 Rationally, we cannot accept


that the suffering and death of


one man can wipe out the sins


of others (because there is no


logical connection or relationship


between them). It is similar to a


father, for example, removing


one of his good teeth to relieve


the pain of his child’s bad tooth.


Hence, the idea of the crucifixion


is false and illogical.


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15 Jesus (like all the other prophets)


was sent to convey a message and


to be an example for his followers


during his time on the earth. He


was not sent to deliberately die


for them on the cross or to offer


his blood to absolve their sins.


16 Allah has mentioned in the Quran


that He is the Most Merciful and


Most Compassionate; He forgives


sinners, no matter how many


and how evil their sins, once


they repent. According to His


will, mercy, and favour, He may


even forgive sinners who do not


repent.


17 The concept of atonement is false


because it indirectly encourages


people to sin, assuming that their


sins will be wiped out through


someone else once they believe


in him! Furthermore, if someone


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dies for another person’s sins,


what is the point of adhering to


good and forbidding evil?


Reading through the crucifixion story


dispassionately, an unbiased reader will


surely feel in his or her heart that it is


hard to understand ̶ and consequently


difficult to believe!


Was there no way for Jesus to


achieve salvation for human beings


(assuming that salvation was actually


needed) other than this severe way?


He could have prayed to Allah to


forgive the people from the sin they


inherited (assuming that the notion


of inherited sin was true). God is the


Most Compassionate; surely if Jesus


was His son, He would have forgiven


them in reply to His son’s prayers! And


if Jesus himself was God, he could have


absolved them himself.


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In fact, it is not appropriate for God to


be crucified. The Old Testament, and


thus the law of Moses, says that a man


who is crucified is “cursed by God”;


it forbids leaving his body overnight


because it would “defile” the land.


How can God be cursed? How can he


curse Himself?


And if a man has committed a crime


punishable by death and he is put to


death, and you hang him on a tree, his


body shall not remain all night on the


tree, but you shall bury him the same


day, for a hanged man is cursed by


God. You shall not defile your land that


the LORD your God is giving you for an


inheritance. (Deuteronomy 21:22-23)1


Paul confirmed this curse but claimed


that Jesus (pbuh) had to be crucified –


and had to bear the curse of God – in


order to redeem human beings from


such a punishment.


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Christ redeemed us from the curse of


the law by becoming a curse for us-for


it is written, “Cursed is everyone who


is hanged on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13)2


In other words, the only way justice


could be carried out was for Jesus to


substitute himself for human beings,


to give his life and be cursed… as if


God could not bring about justice by


any means other than this severe and


harsh way.


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Argument against the fifth part: The


rationality of the “God’s sacrifice”


dogma.


18 Christian doctrine states that


Jesus (pbuh) was crucified by


the administration of the Roman


governor of Jerusalem, Pontius


Pilate, with the cooperation of


certain Jewish leaders.1 However,


the Quran has explained that


Jesus did not die; rather, Allah


raised him when they attempted


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to kill him. Allah replaced him


with another person who


resembled him, and it was this


other person who was killed. To


this day, Christians believe that


Jesus himself was the one who


was killed on the cross, but Allah


has mentioned in the Quran:


{And [for] their saying: Indeed, we


have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the


son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.


And they did not kill him, nor did they


crucify him; but [another] was made


to resemble him to them. And indeed,


those who differ over it are in doubt


about it. They have no knowledge of


it except the following of assumption.


And they did not kill him, for certain.


Rather, Allah raised him to Himself.


And ever is Allah Exalted in Might and


Wise.} (Quran 4: 157-158)


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19 Here is another proof that Jesus


was not killed. Islamic teachings


clearly foretell the second coming


of Jesus before the final hour; this


is an additional and final miracle


for Jesus. He will return not as


God, as the Christians believe,


but as Jesus, Allah’s messenger


and slave, as he has always


been. One of the purposes of


his coming will be to correct the


misconceptions surrounding his


message and mission. Prophet


Muhammad (bpuh) said that he


will stay forty years, and these


will be the happiest years of life


on this earth. During that time,


those who had misconceptions


about him will correct their


understanding and believe in him


as a messenger, not as the son of


God (Allah).


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«It was narrated by Abu Hurayrah (may


Allah be pleased with him) that the


Messenger of Allah (bpuh) said:


By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, it


will not be long before the son of Mary


descends amongst you, a just judge and


ruler. He will break the cross, kill the


swine, and abolish the tax paid by Jews


and Christians. Money will be so plentiful


that no one will accept it. At that time, a


single prostration will be better than this


world and everything in it.


Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased


with him) then said: Read if you wish


(the following verse of the Quran):


{And there is none from the People of


the Scripture but that he will surely


believe in Jesus before his death. And


on the Day of Resurrection he will be


against them a witness.} (Quran 4:


159)» (Recorded by Bukhari)


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This ends the answer of the fifth part


of the doctrine.


Argument against the sixth part:


Salvation (from original and other


sins) is only for those who believe in


this vicarious sacrifice.


20 The Bible itself contradicts the


notion of original sin. In this


regard, the Bible says about the


dispute concerning original sin:


He who plants and he who waters are


one, and each will receive his wages


according to his labor. (I Corinthians 3:8)


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It also says:


The son shall not suffer for the


iniquity of the father, nor the father


suffer for the iniquity of the son. The


righteousness of the righteous shall


be upon himself, and the wickedness


of the wicked shall be upon himself.


(Ezekiel 18:20)


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To download and read the complete book,


click on the cover picture here.


This is an excerpt


of a larger book titled


“IS ORIGINAL SIN A FACT?”


by Majed S. Al-Rassi.


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