Thinking about sin, sex, and marriage

I haven’t had a chance to read Sin: The Early History of an Idea by Paula Fredriksen *79 (Alumni Scene, July 11), but it’s high on my list. Although a chemist and not a religion scholar, I’m a lifelong Lutheran and have come to view the Augustinian concept of sin, especially “original sin,” as theologically unsound. It should come as no surprise that Augustine’s “shadow” continues to be cast and has resurfaced in current politics and religion. Another downside is the philosophy that the only reason for sex, and therefore marriage, is procreation. This denigrates humankind to mere animals and “disenfranchises” those couples who can’t have biological children. Marriage is so much more than having “sanctioned” sex. To not glorify the sex act as one of love, one of the crowning glories of being human, is misanthropic, anti-God, and anti-Christian.