"Who is there to remind me of the sin of my infancy (for there was: no one is free from sin in your sight, not even an infant whose span of earthly life is but a single day); who can remind me of it?" (7,11.)
In book one of Confessions, Augustine makes the claim that all human, even at birth, have the capacity for sin. He argues this claim with examples of greed for a mother's milk, an infant's tantrums, and jealous glares of "livid fury." It is hard to believe that humans during infancy can be held to the same level of responsibility for their sins as adults. Infants do not have the same sort of moral compass or conscience developed as adults, adolescences, and even children. Thus, how is it that Augustine justifies that infants can be held to the same level of responsibility for their sins as those who are more mature? Sin in my opinion require some sort of awareness of one's surrounding and some sort knowledge of what is perceived as "right or wrong." If one is lacking such awareness how can they be held to the responsibility of their sins? I think making the accusation Augustine is trying to make is a bit far fetched. Sinning without knowledge of what sin even is... My question to you my fellow classmates is if you agree with Augustine's assertion that no one is free from sin, even from the moment in which you are born?
I agree with you. I think that the accusation that infants are capable of sinning is a bit much. Babies have no sense of right and wrong, and are mostly driven purely out of their biological needs. Augustine seems to be really hard on himself and all humans in terms of sinning. We can see this throughout Confessions, in his depictions of his childhood and adolescent sins, such as stealing the pears.
ReplyDeleteWell, if we assume that sin can be unconscious such as a man coveting his neighbor's land, then I can see Augustine's argument as valid. Since the infant has the capacity to covet and desire, he also has the capacity to sin as Augustine described it, and so I agree with Augustine. If we have the capacity to covet, then we also have the capacity to sin. Even more so, if we look at the commandments literally, then we also see that infants lack the ability to properly honor their mother and father, which is technically another sin according to the Christian faith.
ReplyDeleteI agree, there is no basis for claiming that an infant, who is at this point driven by pure instinct for survival and completely dependent on the mother's milk(which he claims is a sin) or something similar, is sinning in doing this. Without other means to communicate, the tantrums are the babies way of letting its caregiver know what is wrong. This is akin to speaking being a sin in adults. Augustine has some ideas I will take time to consider, but this idea does not make any sense to me.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Taylor. It is impossible to judge a infant for his or her sins before the child is capable of their own actions. Babies have no other way to communicate than by throwing fits or crying; it is simply their way of letting someone they are hungry, tired, or a number of other possibilities. I think this is where the idea of infant baptism came to be about, as more and more Christians believe that infants are incapable or making their own decisions.
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