A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise

First form of confession for all lost and condemned creatures:

"O almighty God, merciful Father, I, a poor, miserable sinner, confess unto Thee all my sins and iniquities with which I have ever offended Thee, and justly deserved Thy temporal and eternal punishment. But I am heartily sorry for them, and sincerely repent of them, and I pray Thee, of Thy boundless mercy and for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter sufferings and death of Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to be gracious and merciful to me, a poor, sinful being. Amen."

God has no delight in animal sacrifice

For thou hast no delight in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, thou wouldst not be pleased. The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

-- Psalm 51:16f.

Neither a ram, a lamb, or a man: If there is no sacrifice, there will be nothing for the parasites to eat at dinner

And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him. -- Leviticus 19:22

And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin. And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath committed, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, unto the LORD; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering. -- Leviticus 5:6f.

The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. -- John 1:29

But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; -- Hebrews 10:12

Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. -- Psalm 51:14ff.

For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. -- Hosea 6:6

But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. -- Matthew 9:13

But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. -- Matthew 12:7

All Men Are Created Evil

Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

-- Psalm 51:5f.

How To Know When You're In The Wrong Church

When the pastor asks for proof texts teaching the doctrine of original sin, you mention Psalm 51:5, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me," and everyone laughs.

Babies Know The Difference Between Good And Evil

So says the headline to the story, here.

An astonishing series of experiments is challenging the views of many psychologists and social scientists that human beings are born as 'blank slates'--and that our morality is shaped by our parents and experiences. . . . [T]hey suggest that the difference between good and bad may be hardwired into the brain at birth, 

says the article for the UK Daily Mail by David Derbyshire.

Neither conclusion is inconsistent with the Bible's understanding of the human predicament, however, that notwithstanding our first ancestors' willingly made affirmative answer to the invitation of evil (Genesis 3:5), evil has been ever after "biologically" transmitted to their progeny:

Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

 -- Psalm 51:5

The Bible holds these antonyms together in tension. Those who cut one or the other loose inevitably veer off into utopianism of one kind or another or into assorted determinisms as the case may be. In its way, the Bible is a pragmatic, realistic, dare we say conservative, reflection on human experience which people with much of it continue to find compelling for these reasons.