Whatever Became of Sin?

by Karl A. Menninger

Book by Karl Menninger

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Theology, Religion, Christianity, Counselling, Psychiatry

242 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Karl Augustus Menninger (July 22, 1893 – July 18, 1990) was an American psychiatrist and a member of the Menninger family of psychiatrists who founded the Menninger Foundation and the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas.

Reviews

[Randy Corn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those books that sat on my shelf unread for a number of years. I wrote the acquisition date 11/22/85 on the front cover, a little over three decades later I finally got around to reading this book. I had heard of this volume sometime in my college years used as a sermon illustration and was intrigued by the title. At first glance I assumed it would be something of a call for a return to traditional morality and view of right and wrong. This book is hardly that. Menninger was a psychiatrist who decried the way that society had moved away from calling sin, sin. He documents how many things which would have been called sin by an earlier generation are now called a symptom, a sickness, or a crime. Further, some things which have only been considered bad policy or governmental ineptitude should be considered sin.

I found Menninger’s approach interesting but impractical. He speaks of sin only in terms of the impact of actions on our fellow human beings. There is no discussion of an ultimate morality, a law giver whose will can be violated. Still, he calls upon clergy to preach a prophetic message of denunciation of war, ecological harm, and an unjust penal system. What’s more, he says at least twice that there is little difference between the great world religions. All, at heart, are preaching against egocentrism and all say the only solution is love. Apparently, Menninger believed that if we love our fellowman enough we would not sin against him. I agree that a lack of love can lead to a multitude of sins, but there needs to be a transcending reason for that love. The Christian answer to that is understanding that all of mankind are made in the image of God. To sin against our fellow man is ultimately to sin against God.

I found Menninger’s book a good representation of the sort of old school liberalism that was popular in the 1960’s. He hit all the hot button issues of that day, Vietnam, prison reform, racism, poverty, and ecology. He is probably right in his assessment that these are sins against humanity, but his only solution seems to be to increase our love. The only way I think that is possible is through an acknowledgement of humanity’s sinful nature and a spiritual dynamic to change it, the new birth.

[Les Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

In our permissive society, even through our own silence, we are all guilty of sin by not speaking out against it. We fail to reprove, correct, instruct, object. In other words, we fail to speak out, to be ambassadors for the will of God. In failing to do so, we participate in the folly of modern society.
The title of this book may suggest a narrative that is stodgy, stifling, uptight or preachy. But it is not. The book was encouraging, uplifting, hopeful and challenging. Dr. Menninger has put his finger on the pulse of the nation and correctly ascertained it's needs, wants, propensities and defects. Thought-provoking and passionate, a modern classic.

[LeahBethany · Rating 1 out of 5]

Whatever Became of Sin was just a very long litany of all the things that people do that are "wrong." The title is deceiving as this book has nothing to do with a biblical view of sin.

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book desciption from Amazon:
"WHATEVER BECAME OF SIN?" BY KARL MENNINGER, M.D. For many years the name Karl Menninger has been almost synonymous in America with the science and the practice of psychiatry. His book THE HUMAN MIND introduced that branch of medicine to the American public in 1930. In the present book Dr. Menninger attempts to apply psychiatry to a world-wide affliction, the depression, gloom, discouragement and apprehensiveness which are so prevalent. The word "sin" has almost disappeared from our vocabulary, but the sense of guilt remains in our hearts and minds. The prisoners punished in our jails are a small minority of all the offenders; "all we like sheep have gone astray." While a few deplore their guilt, many remain blandly indifferent or vaguely depressed or bitterly accusatory of others. Are these states of illness? Not until the EPILOGUE, which he calls a deferred preface, does the author tell us how he came to write this book and how he has come from from many years of experience to consider moral values an essential aspect of psychiatry. If, as he believes, mental health and moral health are identical, the recognition of the reality of sin offers to the suffering struggling, anxious world a real hope not of belated treatment but of prevention. This task enlists the physician, the psychiatrist, the minister, the lawyer, the editor, the teacher, and the mother in a common army- an army against self-destruction and world destruction. About the author: DR. KARL MENNINGER , along with his father and brother- later his son and nephews- developed a psychiatric center in Topeka, Kansas, known now all over the world. He has written a dozen books and belongs to a score of national psychiatric organizations, several of which he founded."

[Arnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful, if somewhat dated book, that suggests that our hesitation to call things "wrong" or "sins" has resulted in our loss of a moral compass. Impactful.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was written about 50 years ago, however we are still facing eerily similar realities. How should a society respond to collective sin? Who is responsible for leading the moral charge? Menninger shares his thoughts through the perspective of a psychiatrist. It is thought provoking and angering.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, the most remarkable part of the book is the fact that his positions, which would have seemed liberal when the book was written in the 70s, are still considered liberal, and possibly even more extreme than they did when the book was first written. However, as far as the main point, that not all behavior can be treated as crime or symptom, was generally helpful. Menninger helpfully points out the importance of the moral category of sin, which is distinct from crime and symptom. He does not fully draw out the ramifications of this, and the book is not nearly as controversial as Menninger made it sound, but overall this book has provided a helpful different perspective for morality.

[Eugene Bolton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book many, many years ago. It has always been a book that has been in the forefront of my mind. As a student of both psychology and theology, this book has been most impactful to my work and teaching/preaching.
Explaining away what has traditionally been known as sin to some psychological issue removes both personal responsibility, and awareness of one's need for repentance and biblical concepts. While certainly some psychological issues affect mankind, the root of most, if not all, of them is sin, and until sin is dealt with, the psychological problems will never be resolved.

[Peter Sprigg · Rating 2 out of 5]

In my view, this book has a great title, but does not deliver on its promise. If you want to read a book from the 1970s that deals with mental health (the author, Menninger, was a psychiatrist) and spirituality, I recommend M. Scott Peck's "The Road Less Travelled." This one has not aged well.

[Laura Fabrycky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dated but not invaluable. Belongs to a genre of earlier authoritative voices exploring ways of making sense of the human condition, scientists/practitioners dipping into theology for the purposes of psychology

[Greg Kerr · Rating 1 out of 5]

Outdated and biased in it's secular worldview of psychology. Presuppositions of sin and wrath are so far off base from biblical Christianity that ant conclusions he drew were wanting at best.

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Could not finish this book. It is far from a biblically correct. I could only stomach the book for 16 pages before I couldn’t in good conscience finish reading it.