by cyranorox » March 31st, 2010, 3:28 pm
The Lewis quote is utterly traditional and consistent with the views of most of the ancient Church, but not most Americans and a few British 'low-church' [low as in not-liturgical] denominations. If you respond to that, you are on the right track and in line with the mind of Christianity. I'm not saying you should seek another church, but if the ideas in the quote seem new or revloutionary, remember that the Good News and the Revolution are really news and really revolutionary.
Involuntary sin, the participation in the system and the fraud and falsity of the world, business, politics, or whatever, and the upwelling of base thoughts and motives, is built into us, but not quite a guilt. We ask for forgiveness of sins, voluntary and involuntary, known and unknown, in word and deed and thought. Most of the social transgressions and crimes we cite as sins strike me as the most superficial sin; it's common for the Fathers to say that to see one's own sin is a great gift, but only for those who have developed great strength to bear it. But it's all a kind of disease, ugly enough, but to be bared for the sake of cure.
While you should read the Gospel, and the Epistles, you should also consult with or read some reliable expositors, ie, some of those who accept and understand the ideas expressed in the quote. The Gospel is a "book of riddles", said Chesterton; too often returning truth plentifully adulterated by the reader's preconceptions; you need a guide.
Apocatastasis Now!