Ignorance a Sin

    If you don't know you are sinning, and thus don't repent for it, should you be punished for it? Should King Oedipus be punished for his sins he did not know he was committing? I know that ignorance from the law is not a defense in court, due to the simple fact that anyone could simply say "I didn't know it was wrong." However, the judge in a court case is not God, he does not know if you are lying or telling the truth. So, if you honestly did not know that you were committing a sin, should you be punished? And, do you think a fair and just God would punish you?

    As for my answer, I am on the fence. When I think of this, the lines "Forgive them father, for they know not what they have done" comes to mind. I am not well read in verse, but to me that sounds like if we commit a sin that we did not know was a sin, than we are forgiven. However, I don't know if I fully believe that. I believe that with punishment comes questions (why is this happening, what did I do) and with those questions comes the possibility of learning that a specific action is a sin. I don't know if that just made any sense, so I have a wonderful example.

    My friend, who is deeply religious, was pulled over by an officer and ended up going to jail due to a suspended license. (She knew it was suspended, but living on her own she needed to get from place to place) When telling me of this event, she believed that she was being punished but did not know what for. This lead to a conversation with her spiritual mother, in which she confessed that during a sleepover at a friend's house she was deeply upset, cried on her friends shoulder and fell asleep with her friend holding her (I should add that this was a female friend). It was in that moment that she learned that cuddling with a girl was considered a sin in their belief (they believe that it lets an avenue in for the enemy). Thus, a sin she was once ignorant of has now had some light shed on it, because she believed she was being punished.

    With that being said, I do believe that we should be punished for sins, even when we are ignorant of them. This will hopefully help teach us what actions to stay away from, however perhaps not all sins should be punished. In the case of King Oedipus, I feel like if he knew who is parents were, the change of events would not have taken place, thus he would not have sinned. Should he be punished than? He knows incest is a sin, and to his knowledge he thought he was avoiding it. I suppose only God can determine whether to punish or forgive Oedipus.