Even their children remember their altars and Asherah poles beside the spreading trees and on the high hills. – Jeremiah 17:2

Today's Scripture Reading (May 29, 2023): Jeremiah 17

American author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was a big believer in generational sin. The most common belief of generational sin is found in the Christian doctrine of Original Sin. According to this philosophy, the sin of Adam and Eve is an indelible mark on the race. Somehow, Adam and Eve's sin is shared with the rest of humanity, giving each of us a desire, or a bent, to sin. According to the doctrine, we do not share our first parents' guilt, but we do share a tendency toward sin. We all tend to sin, and we all give in to that tendency at least once in a while, and so, we all sin. Therefore, sin has become our reality. Paul repeats this belief when he wrote to the Roman Church, "there is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:22b-23).

But Hawthorne took this idea of sin a step further. As mentioned above, the doctrine of Original Sin does not include the concept of guilt. I am a recipient of the tendency to sin because of Original Sin, but I am not guilty of that sin. I am only culpable for the sin that I commit. Hawthorne believed in a more personal version of generational sin. Specifically, Nathaniel Hawthorne felt guilt because of the action of two of his ancestors, William Hathorne and his son John. William Hathorne was known for his harsh persecution of the Quakers, especially the public whipping he demanded for Ann Coleman, a Quaker missionary. Coleman and her fellow missionaries, Mary Tomkins and Alice Ambrose, were condemned to be tied to a cart, stripped to the waist, and then whipped, receiving not more than ten stripes. The punishment was carried out in the dead of winter and repeated in each of the small towns in the area. The public whipping and humiliation of these women were intended as a warning to other missionaries who might want to spread their beliefs in the area.

John Hathorne, William's son, was one of the leading judges during the Salem Witch Trials. Hathorne was vocal in his opposition against those accused of witchcraft, and unlike Samuel Sewall, Hathorne never repented or apologized for his role in the trials and executions.

Nathaniel Hawthorne felt the family guilt of these two ancestors so intensely that he changed the spelling of his last name, adding a "w" to Hathorne, making it Hawthorne. (I know, you thought the spelling mistake was mine.) It was one way that Nathaniel dealt with his family's guilt. But the knowledge of the sins of his patrilinear ancestors was something of which Nathaniel Hawthorne felt painfully aware all of his life.

Jeremiah looks at Judah and argues that they are suffering under a form of generational sin. But this time, the sin was written down, engraved on tablets that would be read throughout the generations. But even more importantly, the children would remember seeing the altars and the Asherah poles at which their ancestors had worshiped. They would remember the example and would carry that guilt throughout the rest of their lives.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 18