Original Sin and Biological Embodiment: An Interdisciplinary Inquiry
The doctrine of Original Sin has occupied a central place in Christian theology for centuries describing a universal human condition characterized by mortality, moral vulnerability, and separation from God. While Scripture and theological tradition consistently affirm that this condition is inherited through Adamic descent, they do not specify the material or biological substrate by which the inherited condition becomes embodied in each new human life. This paper examines that distinction and proposes a speculative but structured interdisciplinary hypothesis: that the condition traditionally described as Original Sin may correspond at least in part to an inherited biological reality expressed through the physiological and neurological structure of the human.
Drawing upon biblical texts, the historic development of the doctrine – particularly the influence of Augustine of Hippo – and contemporary understanding of biological inheritance and behavioral predisposition, the paper argues that theology and biology need not be viewed as competing explanations but as complementary perspectives addressing different dimensions of the same human condition. Theology provides the meaning and interpretation of the Fall while biology may offer insight into the embodied manifestation of the inherited condition.
The paper does not seek to redefine Christian doctrine, reduce sin to biology, or propose a verified scientific model. Rather, it presents a conceptual framework for interdisciplinary inquiry, preserving the moral and spiritual dimensions of sin while suggesting that inherited biological predispositions may contribute to the universal characteristics traditionally associated with Original Sin. The hypothesis is offered as a basis for further dialogue among theology, philosophy, and the biological sciences.