<P> Orthodox Churches accept the teachings of John Cassian, as do Catholic Churches eastern and western, in rejecting the doctrine of total depravity, by teaching that human nature is "fallen", that is, depraved, but not totally . Augustine Casiday states that Cassian "baldly asserts that God's grace, not human free will, is responsible for' everything which pertains to salvation'--even faith". Cassian points out that people still have moral freedom and one has the option to choose to follow God . Colm Luibhéid says that, according to Cassian, there are cases where the soul makes the first little turn, while Augustine Casiday says that, in Cassian's view, any sparks of goodwill that may exist, not directly caused by God, are totally inadequate and only direct divine intervention ensures spiritual progress . and Lauren Pristas says that "for Cassian, salvation is, from beginning to end, the effect of God's grace". </P> <P> Eastern Orthodoxy accepts the doctrine of ancestral sin: "Original sin is hereditary . It did not remain only Adam and Eve's . As life passes from them to all of their descendants, so does original sin ." "As from an infected source there naturally flows an infected stream, so from a father infected with sin, and consequently mortal, there naturally proceeds a posterity infected like him with sin, and like him mortal ." </P> <P> The Orthodox Church in America makes clear the distinction between "fallen nature" and "fallen man" and this is affirmed in the early teaching of the Church whose role it is to act as the catalyst that leads to true or inner redemption . Every human person born on this earth bears the image of God undistorted within themselves . In the Orthodox Christian understanding, they explicitly deny that humanity inherited guilt from anyone . Rather, they maintain that we inherit our fallen nature . While humanity does bear the consequences of the original, or first, sin, humanity does not bear the personal guilt associated with this sin . Adam and Eve are guilty of their willful action; we bear the consequences, chief of which is death ." </P> <P> The view of the Eastern Orthodox Church varies on whether Mary is free of all actual sin or concupiscence . Some Patristic sources imply that she was cleansed from sin at the Annunciation, while the liturgical references are unanimous that she is all - holy from the time of her conception . </P>

Where is original sin mentioned in the bible