◄ Paper 88
  Part 3 ▲
Paper 90 ►
Paper 89

Sin, Sacrifice, and Atonement

The Taboo  •  The Concept of Sin  •  Renunciation and Humiliation  •  Origins of Sacrifice  •  Sacrifices and Cannibalism  •  Evolution of Human Sacrifice  •  Modifications of Human Sacrifice  •  Redemption and Covenants  •  Sacrifices and Sacraments  •  Forgiveness of Sin

PRIMITIVE man regarded himself as being in debt to the spirits, as standing in need of redemption. As the savages looked at it, in justice the spirits might have visited much more bad luck upon them. As time passed, this concept developed into the doctrine of sin and salvation. The soul was looked upon as coming into the world under forfeit—original sin. The soul must be ransomed; a scapegoat must be provided. The head-hunter, in addition to practicing the cult of skull worship, was able to provide a substitute for his own life, a scapeman.

89:0.2

The savage was early possessed with the notion that spirits derive supreme satisfaction from the sight of human misery, suffering, and humiliation. At first, man was only concerned with sins of commission, but later he became exercised over sins of omission. And the whole subsequent sacrificial system grew up around these two ideas. This new ritual had to do with the observance of the propitiation ceremonies of sacrifice. Primitive man believed that something special must be done to win the favor of the gods; only advanced civilization recognizes a consistently even-tempered and benevolent God. Propitiation was insurance against immediate ill luck rather than investment in future bliss. And the rituals of avoidance, exorcism, coercion, and propitiation all merge into one another.


 
 
89:1 ►
The Urantia Book