HOLDING UP HOLY HANDS

A New Concept of Sin

Results from a new study released from Ellison Research finds that 13 percent of Americans do not believe at all in the concept of sin. But, a majority of Americans (87%), however, do believe in this concept and they include adultery (81%), racism (74%), use of hard drugs (65%), failing to say anything if they're given too much change by a cashier (63%), having an abortion (56%), cheating on their taxes (52%) and homosexual activity (52%) as sin. "Sin" was defined in the research as "something that is almost always considered wrong, particularly from a religious or moral perspective."

One of the biggest differences in whether people believe in the concept of sin is actually not even religious, but political. Among political conservatives, 94 percent believe there is such a thing as sin. But, only 77 percent of political liberals believe in the concept of sin.

Christians are far more likely to include numerous behaviors under the definition of sin, and the difference between Christians and other Americans is often quite large. For instance, 90 percent of Christians believe getting drunk is sinful behavior, compared to 35 percent of all other Americans, and 92 percent of Christians believe sex before marriage is sinful, versus 39 percent of all other Americans. Still, Christians do not consider all types of behavior sinful — only a minority believe it is a sin to work on Sunday, not attend church, drink alcohol, dance, play the lottery, watch an R-rated movie, or not tithe 10 percent of their income to church.

Women tend to have a longer list of what is sin than do men and are more likely than men to include racism, gossip, use of hard drugs, marijuana, adultery, pornography, not reporting income on taxes, abortion, failing to say anything if given too much change, and swearing as sinful behavior.

People under age 35 are less likely than Americans in other age groups to believe adultery, getting drunk, not reporting income on taxes, homosexual activity, pornography, and gossip are sin. At the same time, younger people are more likely than others to say using tobacco and working on Sunday are sinful.

Ron Sellers, president of Ellison Research, noted how many inconsistencies Americans show in their answers. "We can see numerous inconsistent patterns of thought and belief throughout the responses," Sellers stated. "For instance over a third of all Americans believe failing to take proper care of their bodies is sinful. Yet far fewer believe tobacco or obesity are sins — even though medical science consistently shows using tobacco and being overweight are two of the most harmful things they can do to their bodies."