Sins that cry to Heaven for Vengeance explained

In Christian hamartiology, the sins that cry to Heaven for Vengeance (Latin: peccata clamantia,) are four specific sins which are listed by the Bible.

While the Bible only refers to specific acts by Biblical characters as "crying to Heaven for Vengeance", in Western Christianity, these references are expanded upon and treated as establishing a category of particularly serious sins. Along with the seven deadly sins and the eternal sins, the sins that cry to Heaven for Vengeance are the most serious transgressions against the Law of Christ.

Catholic Church

The expression is referenced in the Jewish Bible, particularly in Genesis 4:10^[1] ("The Lord said to Cain[...] the voice of thy brother's blood crieth to me from the earth"), Genesis 18:20–21,^[2] Exodus 22:21–23,^[3] and Deuteronomy 24:14–15.^{[4] [5]} The sins are numbered as being either four or seven; they are listed as follows:

• The "blood of Abel": homicide, infanticide, fratricide, patricide, and matricide^[6]
• The "sin of the Sodomites": non-procreative sexual acts (sodomy). (cf. Jude 1:7).^{[7] [8]}
• The "cry of the people oppressed in Egypt, the cry of the foreigner, the widow, and the orphan": oppression of the poor.^{[9] [10] [11]}
• The "injustice to the wage earner": taking advantage of and defrauding workers (cf. James 5:4).^{[12] [13]}

Laurence Vaux's 1583 work, A Catechisme of Christian Doctrine, explains them as follows:

Tom Hoopes of Benedictine College explicates the sins that cry to heaven for vengeance with respect to modern political thought:^[11]

The sins that cry to Heaven for Vengeance are referenced in the Douay Catholic Catechism of 1649, a compendium of Catholic doctrine.^[14] The concept is present in Catholic moral theology.^[15]

Reformed Churches

Reformed theologian William M'Gavin opined that "the four sins that cry to heaven for vengeance; these are, wilful murder—sin of Sodom—oppression of the poor—to defraud servants of their wages" are greater in gravity than the seven deadly sins.^[16]

Other interpretations

Many churches, particularly ones considered progressive, understand the "sin of Sodom" to be oppression of the poor, in light of Ezekiel 16:49–50^[17] ("This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy").^[18]

See also

• Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost
• Consistent life ethic
• Moloch
• Seven deadly sins
• Salvation in Christianity
• The Sheep and the Goats

Notes and References

1. 4:10 KJV
2. 18:20–21
3. 22:21–23
4. 24:14–15
5. Web site: Mirus. Jeff. 7 September 2004. Crying to Heaven for Vengeance. Catholic Culture. English. The Bible mentions only four sins which cry out to God for vengeance.. 21 May 2019.
6. https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a5.htm#2268 Catechism 2268
7. 1:7
8. https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0839/__PL.HTM Genesis 19:5 - 13
9. Web site: Catechism of the Catholic Church - Paragraph # 1867.
10. https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a7.htm#2448 Catechism 2448
11. Web site: Hoopes . Tom . Jesus Says: Listen to the Church . . 19 May 2019 . English . 10 September 2017. That is quite a list. The first two "sins that cry to heaven" include sins that one brand of politics downplays. First is abortion, which St. John Paul II compared to "the blood of Abel." Second is the "sin of the Sodomites," which the New Testament defines this way: "Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion" (Jude 1:7). The second two sins are those that another brand of politics downplays: First, the plight of refugees, immigrants and those who need social assistance and, second, "injustice to the wage earner." The Catechism cites the New Testament to explain what kind of "wage earner" it means: "Behold, the wages you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields are crying aloud, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts" (James 5:4)..
12. 5:4
13. https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a7.htm#2434 Catechism 2434
14. Book: Tuberville, Henry. The Douay Catechism of 1649. 105.
15. Book: Catechism of the Catholic Church . 2003-03-04 . 1867: The catechetical tradition also recalls that there are "sins that cry to heaven": the blood of Abel, the sin of the Sodomites, the cry of the people oppressed in Egypt, the cry of the foreigner, the widow, and the orphan, injustice to the wage earner. . https://web.archive.org/web/20231218203654/https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6D.HTM . 2023-12-18.
16. Book: . The Protestant: Essays on the Principal Points of Controversy Between the Church of Rome and the Reformed . 1833 . Hutchison and Dwier . 41 . English.
17. 16:49–50 NRSV
18. Dr. Ralph Blair, "The story of Sodom and Lot's duty of hospitality to his guests." Retrieved 24 April 2020. Source: https://ecinc.org/clobber-passages/genesis-19-cf-1820/