Original Sin: A Cultural History

Who would have thought that a book on original sin would be so delightful? Jacobs makes a case for the unpopular doctrine by exploring the history surrounding its inception and development. Original Sin is filled with stories and personalities - from ancient Greece to modern cinema (Hellboy, for example!). One could almost imagine this book as a documentary, in which the stories and snapshots flow together. "Pelagianism is a creed for heroes, but Augustine's emphasis on original sin and the consequent absolute dependence of every one of us on the grace of God gives hope to the waverer, the backslider, the slacker, the putz, the schlemiel. We're all in the same boat..." (54)

I'll preface by saying that I'm not a Christian (and I'm betting by reading the other 5 customer comments that I'm the only one of my ilk to've so far submitted a review). This is a fantastic overview of the "our intrinsic wickedness" - whether you view it as something bred by natural selection or inborn by rebellion against God. I blew through it in a one day of nursing a cold, and at the end found myself (more thoroughly) unconvinced of Rousseau, et al's assertion of the intrinsic goodness/purely situational behavior of mankind. Jacobs consistently brings up and then answers intriguing lines of thought, and does so in a style both entertaining and enlightening.

Alan Jacob's cultural history of original sin is a huge bucket of rational cold water on the heads of moral relativists. Their comforting concept that original sin is nonsense is demonstrably shown to be nonsense. This is an important book coming at a time when many think that by simply changing words they can change the underlying facts.

This book provides a clearly developed overview of the cultural development of the doctrine of original sin. I found it quick reading and enjoyed Prof. Jacobs' prose style and narrative voice. A good book to read for anyone interested in a clear understanding of this key Christian Doctrine. Deacon Warren Hecht

Three out of the five blurbs on the back cover of Original Sin manage to import some wariness over the book's content into their glowing recommendation of the book's execution. Ron Hansen acknowledges that the "even-tempered" Jacobs gives "even the most disagreeable voices their say." Publishers Weekly gives the "brilliant" book a starred review but manages to damn its subject despite this high praise: "In [Jacobs's] hands these abstruse theological disputes are utterly engrossing." And, my favourite comments, given pride of place as the first lines of the top review, are Alan Wolfe's "I do not believe in original sin. I do believe in Alan Jacobs." These reviewers, particularly the latter two, seem to be saying: any book by Alan Jacobs is worth buying, but that Jacobs's latest book is on original sin is perhaps unfortunate. The top of the back cover seems to agree, trumpeting: "How the World's Most Repugnant Idea Became the Cornerstone of Our Self-Understanding." HarperOne seems to have decided on the marketing ploy: Buy Alan Jacobs, If You Can See Past What He Writes About! Or, If You Hold Your Nose, It'll Be Good For You! We're not entirely sure why you would want to buy (or write) a book about original sin from its inception (St. Paul? Augustine? Further back?) throughout its tendentious and chequered history (the Kabbala, Pascal, John Wesley, Richard Dawkins, etc.) to its current unpopularity, but if you must, it's fortunate that you'll buy a book written by Alan Jacobs, so brilliant and humane a writer that he practically disproves his own thesis. To be fair, Jacobs's own foreword introduces his topic by acknowledging its near-universal vilification. The East has never seen anthropology in these terms, and the West, since the Enlightenment, has attempted to mount a vigorous moral refutation of this particular aspect of its own moral foundation. But Jacobs is not writing merely to enjoy his own prose. He believes that the notion of original sin is useful for us to consider, now, probably one of the reasons that he wrote the book. One of its consistent tactics is provide a biographical context into which we can fit the sometimes repugnant-sounding theorists of human wretchedness, so that when we get to what Augustine of Hippo and Jonathan Edwards actually say, we can hear them, with an ear even for how we might transfer useful insights to our present situation without being immediately impeded by a moral gag reflex. This is a courageous thing to do: to dignify by historiography, and in some cases to stand up for, ideas which everyone seems to think are unpleasant. If you happen to think this book's subject unpleasant, then its author, publisher, and reviewers agree that you are its intended audience. Jacobs has become an excellent writer, cultural critic. Barring some unforeseen change of circumstance, I plan to read every book he writes from here on out. His style is clear. He says smart things simply. This is not a book