The Doctrine of Original Sin

We believe that by the disobedience of Adam original sin has been spread through the whole human race.¹ It is a corruption of all nature—an inherited depravity which even infects small infants in their mother's womb,² and the root which produces in humanity every sort of sin. It is therefore so vile and abominable in God's sight that it is enough to condemn the human race,³ and it is not abolished or wholly uprooted even by baptism, seeing that sin always boils forth as though from a contaminated spring, even though it is not counted against the children of God for their condemnation but is forgiven by his grace and mercy.⁴ This is not to put them to sleep but so that the awareness of this corruption might make them often groan as they eagerly wait to be set free from the "body of this death."⁵

Therefore we reject the error of the Pelagians, who say that this sin is nothing else than a matter of imitation.