Sin is rebellion against God, a violation of His holy will and a corruption of His good creation. It is not merely breaking rules—it is turning away from God Himself. Sin disrupts our relationship with our Creator, distorts our understanding of truth, and disfigures the image of God in which we were made. It is both personal and universal: each person commits sin, and all humanity is under its power apart from Christ.

Anglican teaching emphasizes that sin is not only in our actions, but also in our nature. We are born inclined to self-love over the love of God, and we commit actual sins in thought, word, and deed. Original sin is the inherited corruption passed down from Adam, while actual sin is what we ourselves do in defiance of God’s law. Sin includes both commission (doing what is forbidden) and omission (failing to do what is required).

Article IX of the Thirty-Nine Articles declares: “Original sin… is the fault and corruption of the Nature of every man… whereby man is very far gone from original righteousness… and therefore in every person born into this world, it deserveth God’s wrath and damnation.”

Bishop J.C. Ryle wrote, “The plain truth is that a right view of sin lies at the root of all saving religion. If a man does not realize the extent and vileness of sin, he will never truly appreciate the Gospel” (Holiness, 1877).

Rev. Dr. Stephen Gauthier (Director of Catechesis, Anglican Church in North America) explains, “Sin is not just wrongdoing—it is the deep disorder of the soul that puts self in the place of God. It damages not only our conduct, but our affections, our thinking, and our identity” (Anglican Perspective, 2020, ACNA).

Canon Dr. Ashley Null (Canon Theologian, Diocese of Western Kansas) teaches, “Sin is the heart curved inward. It is not merely law-breaking, but a rupture in love—a love that ought to be directed toward God and others, now bent toward self” (Reformation Anglicanism, Vol. 1, 2016).

Archbishop Ben Kwashi (Anglican Church of Nigeria) affirms, “Sin is what Christ came to save us from. It is the disease that infects every human heart. But in Jesus, there is healing, forgiveness, and the power to live a new life” (Global Anglican Future Conference, 2018).

Canon Dr. Esau McCaulley (ACNA, Wheaton College) adds, “The biblical view of sin is not cynical—it is honest. It names the problem in order to show us our need for grace. Without sin, the cross makes no sense” (Reading While Black, 2020).

To know what sin is, is to understand our need for a Savior. Without the Gospel, we are enslaved, condemned, and spiritually dead. But in Christ, the power and penalty of sin are broken, and we are set free to walk in righteousness and holiness of life.