Original Sin

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church understands the consequences of Adam's fall through the Eastern patristic framework of 'ancestral sin' rather than the Western Augustinian doctrine of original guilt. From Adam's transgression, humanity inherited mortality, bodily corruption, and a weakened will prone to sin—but not the personal guilt of Adam's act. Each person bears responsibility for their own sins.

The Ethiopian tradition's practice of circumcising male infants on the eighth day after birth is partly connected to the sense that the body is in a fallen state requiring purification and consecration; however, this practice is cultural-religious rather than a direct theological statement about inherited guilt. Baptism is understood as the sacrament that incorporates the child into Christ's Body, begins the healing of the effects of ancestral sin, and grants the Holy Spirit. The church's intensive fasting and prayer regimen is partly a response to the ongoing struggle against the fallen tendencies of human nature.