The Burden of Sin

Lent is upon us; the time in the liturgical year when we as Christians feel called to “give something up.” An often-popular practice, depriving yourself of something for the 40 days leading up to Easter has gained traction in not just the Catholic church, but also many Protestant churches.

But where does this practice come from and why do we do it?

We first must appreciate the scriptural context in which this practice is based. In Matthew 4: 1-11, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness soon after he was baptized, where he fasted for 40 days. In the desert, Jesus was tempted by the devil three different times, each of which he resisted, strengthened by the word of God.

Lent was established as a distinct liturgical season lasting forty days by the time of the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. It began as a fast for one to two days, but by the 4th and 5th centuries, Lent had become marked by strict fasting rules, including abstinence from meat, dairy, and other animal products. During 20th-century reforms following the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic church simplified its fasting requirements, taking a closer observance to personal spiritual growth.

Lent serves as a time for Christians to reflect on Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness, his death, and his subsequent resurrection. Following Shrove Tuesday, the season of Lent officially begins on Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday gets its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of individuals in the shape of a cross. It is accompanied by one of the two blessings:

Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

— Genesis 3:19

Repent and believe in the Gospel

— Mark 1:15

Interestingly, the ashes that are used are often made by burning the palm branches from the previous year’s Palm Sunday. This is meant to symbolize Jesus’s journey from triumph to penitence. This stark reminder helps us to be in the right mindset for the recognition of Jesus’s suffering and death. As detailed in the scripture associated with Ash Wednesday, ashes are symbols of our mortality and repentance. Repentance is incredibly important for us to respect as we prepare for the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He suffered and died on the cross so that our sins are washed clean.

Just as Lent is a time of spiritual reflection and preparation, unresolved guilt and shame weigh on us not just spiritually, but physically and mentally as well. Understanding how our bodies respond to guilt can help us better appreciate why confession and repentance are so important in this season. Let’s begin this journey by looking at the neuroscience mechanisms underlying the experience of guilt and shame. Guilt and shame are theoretically different emotional responses but involve similar parts of the brain. The study of the neuro mechanisms and locations underlying these emotions is complex and constantly evolving, but some regions of the brain have been implicated in research. These specific regions of the brain include:

  • Anterior Insula: Involved in processing your subjective feelings and the experience of self-awareness.

  • Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC): Associated with monitoring conflicts and regulating emotions.

  • Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex (vmPFC): Implicated in processing your own thoughts and moral reasoning.

  • Temporo-Parietal Junction (TPJ): Involved in the theory of mind and contributing to your perspective.

  • Precuneus: Associated with self-reflection and is important for the cognitive aspect of guilt and shame.

  • Amygdala: Important for modulating emotion, memory, and the fight-or-flight response.

Research studies have performed fMRI and PET to highlight the regions of the brain that are involved in guilt and shame.

Guilt and shame have been demonstrated to be accompanied by an autonomic response, with a mixed pattern of response in your sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. Your sympathetic nervous system is what kicks into action during a fight-or-flight response. Your parasympathetic response focuses more on resting and digesting. Your body balances the interaction between these two responses to be able to quickly respond during dangerous situations but also to be able to maximize restful conditions. The physiologic response of guilt and shame can lead to various responses in the body, including but not limited to:

  • Elevated heart rate

  • Sweating

  • Decreased salivation

  • Fluctuations in blood pressure

  • Fluctuations in respiratory rate

  • Decreased gastric motility and digestion

Guilt and shame have also been shown to affect the regulation of hormones in the body as well. It has been shown to activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which results in increased cortisol levels. Cortisol is your stress hormone that is released in response to feelings of shame and guilt that induce stress. Increased cortisol can result in an increased physiological stress response, including elevated heart rate and blood pressure.

Now that you better understand the mechanisms and physiological manifestations of guilt and shame, it should be easier to imagine the effect that unresolved guilt will have on your body. Chronic guilt and rumination are linked to:

  • Increased risk of anxiety disorders and depression

  • Higher levels of chronic inflammation and cardiovascular issues.

  • Impaired immune function

  • Sleep disturbances and muscle tension

Not only is this seen in modern medicine, but also in the Bible. In Psalm 32, David shares his experience with carrying unresolved sin.

When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.

— Psalm 32: 3-4

Just like David, you may be holding onto guilt and shame that is making you both physically and mentally exhausted. Take rest in giving these concerns up to the Lord, as David did, because he will forgive you – over and over again.

Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.

— Psalm 32:5

David’s guilt went away when he confessed his sins to the Lord. He was forgiven and the wasting away that was occurring in his body came to a stop. Confession studies have shown that verbalizing guilt lowers amygdala activation and reduces stress markers. It also decreases cortisol and allows you to regulate your emotions with much better control. Your autonomic nervous system begins to bring your heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate back within normal ranges.

Forgiveness can also improve your health and make you feel better overall. It reduces your blood pressure and heart rate, enhances your immune response, reduces chronic pain, and even increases your dopamine and serotonin, improving overall mood.

I hope that this has provided a better understanding of what is happening inside your body when you are holding onto unresolved guilt and how this can improve by confessing your sins and giving your concerns to the Lord. Let us not forget that Lent is a time of preparation for the passion, death, and resurrection of Christ. To best be prepared for our sins to be washed clean, we need to offer up to God the sins that we are currently holding on to. Just as you would not serve a fine meal on a dirty plate, we should prepare our hearts to be clean vessels for Christ, who bore our burdens on the cross. However, we are able to find comfort in the fact that God will meet us wherever we are at. He washes us clean and makes us into a new creation.

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

— 1 Johnn 1:9

I hope that you can find peace and comfort during this Lent season. If you gave something up for Lent, don’t lose sight of the reason you are making this sacrifice; we are striving to follow the example that Jesus laid out for us. Choose to focus your energy not on what you are depriving yourself of, but more on the pursuit of unity and closeness with God. You are made for this!

If you would like to share any feedback, personal experiences, or thoughts with the author, please email coleton.evans@tcu.edu.