Concupiscence is an ardent longing, typically one that is sensual. In Christianity, concupiscence is the tendency of humans to sin. There are nine occurrences of concupiscence in the Douay-Rheims Bible and three occurrences in the King James Bible.

Sensuality

Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century described two divisions of "sensuality". The concupiscible describes pursuit, avoidance, and instincts. The irascible describes competition, aggression, defense, and instincts.

Augustine

Involuntary sexual arousal is explained in the Confessions of Augustine. He used the term "concupiscence" to refer to sinful lust. He taught that Adam's sin is transmitted by concupiscence, or "hurtful desire", resulting in humanity becoming a massa damnāta (mass of perdition, condemned crowd), with much enfeebled, though not destroyed, freedom of will. Augustine insisted that concupiscence was not a being but a bad quality, the privation of good or a wound. In Augustine's view (termed "Realism"), all of humanity was really present in Adam when he sinned. Therefore all have sinned. Original sin, according to Augustine, consists of the guilt of Adam which all humans inherit. The main opposition came from a monk named Pelagius (354–420 or 440). His views became known as Pelagianism.

Concupiscence in Catholicism

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that Adam and Eve were constituted in an original "state of holiness and justice" (CCC 375, 376 398), free from concupiscence (CCC 377). The lower or animal nature in man was subject to the control of reason and the will subject to God. As a result of original sin, according to Catholics, human nature has been weakened and wounded, subject to ignorance, suffering, the domination of death, and the inclination to sin and be evil (CCC 405, 418). This inclination toward sin and evil is called "concupiscence" (CCC 405, 418). Baptism, the Catechism teaches, erases original sin and turns a man back towards God. The inclination toward sin and evil persists, however, and he must continue to struggle against concupiscence (CCC 2520). The Catholic Church teaches that while it is highly likely to cause sin, concupiscence is not sin itself.

Concupiscence in Methodism

The Wesleyan–Arminian theology of the Methodist Churches, inclusive of the Wesleyan-Holiness movement, teaches that humans, though being born with original sin, can turn to God as a result of prevenient grace and do good; this prevenient grace convicts humans of the necessity of the new birth, through which he is justified and regenerated. After this, to willfully sin would be to fall from grace, though a person can be restored to fellowship with God through repentance. When the believer is entirely sanctified, their original sin is washed away. Methodist theology firstly distinguishes between original sin and actual sin:

Islam

Al-Ghazali in the 11th century discussed concupiscence from an Islamic perspective in his book Kimiya-yi sa'ādat (The Alchemy of Happiness), and also mentioned it in The Deliverer from Error. In this book, he discusses how to reconcile the concupiscent and the irascible souls, balancing them to achieve happiness.

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