The whole concept, conceit rather, of a Sin Poll is both preposterous and fun. In America we do tend to stretch democracy as if it were made from solid Lycra. As if evil were a political hack you could stuff the ballot box for or against. Imagine Moses trudging down from Mount Sinai to announce, “My fellow Israelites, I have this heavy stone questionnaire . . .” Preposterous, yet understandable here. After all, in America abortion became “moral” by a 5 to 4 or 6 to 3 vote, I forget which. Sin, however, was never meant for national referendum or direct-mail canvass. By definition it entails a trespass against divine law. Not against popular will. God, we presume, can call in an awful lot of upstate votes.
I wrote that last winter to introduce the People Magazine Sin Poll result. I worked mostly with pigeon entrails and a table rapper—my piece was due before this great moral plebiscite had been rung up at the register. I went on to predict that, yes, sin—some sin at least—has upshifted since 1950 or even 1970. I thought the change, nonetheless, would be more sensational than profound. Of those 51 People sin categories, 19 were implicated in lust. And it is around lust that our most conspicuous ethical left turn has been taken. Medieval theologians anticipated this, so to speak: they made a distinction between Cold Sin and Warm Sin. Sin of perverted love and sin of excessive love.
Comments