actual sin

American  

noun

Theology.

1. any sin committed by an individual of their own free will, as contrasted with original sin.

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actual sin British  

noun

1. Christianity any sin that a person commits of his own free will and for which he is personally responsible Compare original sin

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Etymology

Origin of actual sin

First recorded in 1450–1500

Example Sentences

Between 1983 and 2013, Felton published more than a dozen books, with the collective message that clutter was, if not an actual sin, at least a failure of self-understanding.

From The New Yorker • Dec. 8, 2014

By the dogma of the immaculate conception, Roman Catholics regard the Virgin Mary as a unique human person, by virtue of being without original or actual sin.

From Time Magazine Archive

But the application of the phrase by St. Paul is to describe rather the state of actual sin in which Jew and Gentile alike 'naturally' lived.

From St. Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians A Practical Exposition by Gore, Charles

It is not the actual sin of gluttony that we shall find in operation here but certain inevitable effects of it, What is the effect of gluttony on the soul of man?

From Our Lady Saint Mary by Barry, J. G. H.

The result had been what might have been anticipated in a nature so averse to emotional excitement and possessing so little consciousness of actual sin.

From Life of Father Hecker by Elliott, Walter