Atonement

Atonement, in the general sense, is the state of being reconciled, which implies the reconciled parties are initially estranged. Atonement, in the usual sense, is the means by which reconciliation is achieved. Different religions have different views as to with whom, for what, and how humans reconcile. In the Christian religion, sin (original and actual) estranges humans from God. And Christian atonement refers to Christ's sacrifice that deals with sin so that God and humans may reconcile. There are at least six different theories of the atonement: the mystic, exemplarist, ransom, satisfaction, penal substitutionary, and merit theories. Each faces problems or needs to be further developed.