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

In the case of adults, Baptism saves from both original and actual sin, both birth sin and life sin.

From The Church: Her Books and Her Sacraments by Holmes, E. E.

The root and the fuel of my sickness is my sin, my actual sin; but even that sin hath another root, another fuel, original sin; and can I divest that?

From Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions Together with Death's Duel by Donne, John

Conscience is not merely the faculty of reproving and approving one's own conduct when brought into relation with actual sin.

From Christianity and Ethics A Handbook of Christian Ethics by Alexander, Archibald B. C.