Are we really not allowed to call ourselves what we are? Sinners.
In a video clip shared on Christian Media outlet Protestia’s X account, an Episcopal pastor delivered a sermon on the unthinkable: why she believes the term “sinner” is uncomfortable.
She started with the tactic of stating, “You’re all going to hell. Aren’t you glad we don’t go to that church? You’re not, you’re not.”
"I don't think any of us are comfortable anymore with the language of being a 'sinner'…'sinner' is a word I don't use very much because I think it alienates more people from God than it helps."
— Protestia (@Protestia) January 28, 2026
Episcopal church 'pastor' on why no one goes to hell and why 'sin' is eschewed. pic.twitter.com/UNhXK6Ka1M
She then expressed Christianity as having “spectrums” for believing in sin and God’s redemption.
“I don’t think anybody, no matter what tradition you come from…wherever you are on the spectrum, I don’t think any of us are comfortable anymore with the language of being a sinner.”
Since when does Christianity remove the one thing that properly identifies humanity for what we are? We are broken, hopeless, born as sinners. That is exactly why we need the Gospel. That is the whole point of Jesus’ death and resurrection. We are incapable of saving ourselves and can only be saved through the Savior.
“Whether we associate sin with shame and self-punishment or with those creepy sermons about hellfire…sinner is a word I don’t use very much because I think it alienates more people from God than it helps.”
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Christianity is not about hearing what you want to hear: it’s about hearing what you need to hear so we can change and become more like Christ. Scripture does not treat sin as a linguistic inconvenience—it names it as the condition that separates humanity from God. “
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). Jesus did not come to soften the diagnosis; He came because the diagnosis was fatal. He said plainly, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance” (Luke 5:31–32).
To reject the word “sinner” is to reject the very truth that makes the Gospel necessary. Life is found in Christ alone, but it begins with recognizing our sin, repenting of it and turning fully toward Him—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Any message that removes repentance removes the cross, and any gospel without the cross is no gospel at all.
Scripture also warns that such distortions would mark the last days. Paul wrote that a time would come when people would “not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires… will turn their ears away from the truth” (2 Tim. 4:3–4).
We are watching that separation unfold now—the wheat and the chaff being divided (Matt. 3:12), the faithful clinging to truth while others fall away in what Scripture calls the Great Falling Away (2 Thess. 2:3). This is not about cruelty or condemnation; it is about clarity. The Holy Spirit convicts because He gives life (John 16:8).
The call for the Christian has never been comfort without change, but death to self and resurrection into new life. Those who belong to Him hear His voice, follow Him and do not trade eternal truth for temporary comfort.
Abby Trivett is a writer and editor for Charisma Media and has a passion for sharing the gospel through the written word. She holds two degrees from Regent University, a B.A. in Communication with a concentration in Journalism and a Master of Arts in Journalism. She is the author of the upcoming book, The Power of Suddenly: Discover How God Can Change Everything in a Moment.
