Atonement,atoning, ormaking amends is the concept of a person takingaction to correct previouswrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some other expression of feelings ofremorse. Atonement "is closely associated toforgiveness,reconciliation,sorrow,remorse,repentance,reparation, andguilt".^[1] It can be seen as a necessary step on a path toredemption.^[2]Expiation is the related concept of removing guilt, particularly the undoing of sin or other transgressions in religious contexts.

Atonement and atoning both derive from the verbatone, from theMiddle Englishattone oratoon (meaning "agreed" or "at one").^[3] Expiation is related to the verbexpiate, fromLatinexpio meaning "to atone" or "to purge by sacrifice", fromex- ("out") andpio ("to purify", "to make pious").

In thelegal systems, the concept of atonement plays an important role with respect tocriminal justice, where it is considered one of the primary goals of criminalrehabilitation.^[4]

In religion, atonement is "a spiritual concept which has been studied since time immemorial in Biblical andKabbalistic texts",^[1] while "[s]tories of atonement are ubiquitous in religious discourse and the language of atonement fundamentally reveals a redemptive turn".^[5]

Concepts in religion include:

• Atonement in Judaism - the process of causing a transgression to be forgiven or pardoned. InRabbinic Judaism, people achieve atonement throughrepentance, sometimes followed by some combination ofconfession, restitution, tribulations (unpleasant life experiences), the experience of dying, or other factors.
  • Another aspect of atonement is the occurrence ofYom Kippur (the day itself, as distinct from the Temple service performed on it), also known as "the Day of Atonement", which is a biblical/Jewish observance.
• Atonement in Christianity, in westernChristian theology, describes beliefs that human beings can be reconciled toGod throughChrist's sacrificial suffering anddeath.^[6] Atonement refers to the forgiving or pardoning ofsin in general andoriginal sin in particular through the suffering, death andresurrection of Jesus,^[7][8] Throughout the centuries, Christians have used different metaphors and given differing explanations of atonement to express how atonement might work.Churches anddenominations may vary in which metaphor or explanation they consider most accurately fits into their theological perspective; however all Christians emphasize thatJesus is the Saviour of the world and through his death the sins of humanity have been forgiven,^[9] enabling the reconciliation between God andhis creation. Within Christianity there are, historically, three^[10] or four^[11] main theories for how such atonement might work:
  • Ransom theory/Christus Victor (which are different, but generally considered together as Patristic or "classical", to useGustaf Aulén's nomenclature, theories, it being argued that these were the traditional understandings of the earlyChurch Fathers);
  • Satisfaction theory developed byAnselm of Canterbury (called by Aulén the "scholastic" view);
  • Moral influence theory, a concept that had been developed by the time ofEnlightenment, which Aulén called the "subjective" or "humanistic" view and considered to have been anticipated—as a critique of the satisfaction view—byPeter Abelard.
  • Other theories includerecapitulation theory, the "shared atonement" theory^[12] andscapegoat theory.
  • Additional views include thegovernmental view,penal substitution view, andsubstitutionary atonement
• Prāyaścitta, the practice in Hinduism where a person practices rites to undo their sins, such as meditation and pilgrimages.
• Tawba, in Islam where a person has to make up for one's sins against God and anyone they had harmed.
• TheNation of Islam celebrated aDay of Atonement which the Nation established during theMillion Man March inWashington, DC on October 16, 1995. The day involvedblack men swearing to refrain fromcrime,drug addiction,abuse, or any form of violence not in self defence. The oath also involved a promise to support black business and artists and avoid misogynistic language.

Concepts of atonement also exist in other religious views. For example, inNative American andMestizo cultures of the Americas, "[s]ince sin and guilt are among the principal causes of illness and maladjustment... confession, atonement, and absolution are frequent rituals used in treatment. In some cases, atonement is accomplished through prayer or penance; in others, it may involve cleansing the body, accomplished by brushing the body with branches of rosemary or by sprinkling it with holy water".^[13]

Concepts ofuniversal atonement can transcend all religions, as inunlimited atonement, the doctrine that the atonement is unlimited in extent, anduniversal reconciliation, the doctrine that all will eventually come tosalvation.

Twelve-step programs include an atonement or "making amends" phase (steps 8 and 9).

• Absolution
• Propitiation, sometimes conflated with atonement and expiation

Wikiquote has quotations related toAtonement.

• A Critique of Penal Substitution Atonement Theory and Its Influence on the American Death Penalty

• Atonement
• Religious practices

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