Atonement
Atonement is the process of "making it right." When you act in a way that causes the suffering of others, when you cross boundaries, violate another's free will, engage in deceit and deception, enrich yourself at the expense of others, pollute, fail to adequately assess your actions, or otherwise cause a "mess" in creation (i.e. when you "sin"), you are held responsible and expected to clean up you own mess. And the more suffering you cause, the more mess you have to clean up.
You may atone for your sins in any way you choose though ideally you will work with (and for) those you have trespassed against. If this is not possible (e.g. if you are atoning for messes you have made in a past life), then actions related to your misuse of energy are best. For example, if you have polluted the environment, clean it up. If you have sexually molested children, work to heal and ensure that this no longer occurs. If you have engaged in the manipulation and centralization of energy (i.e. profit and accumulation), act to redistribute this energy to the people it belongs to. Let your consciousness be your guide here. The closer your actions are to the messes you created, the better you'll feel about the work you are doing. More details on the process of atonement may be found in The Book of Life.
As explained in The Book of Life, atonement is a necessary prerequisite to [[awakening] and activation. Until you have taken steps to clean up the messes you have made, forward movement on The Path will be limited and difficult.
See Also
The Rocket Scientists' Guide to Money and the Economy
Sharp, Michael (2012). Atonement. The SpiritWiki: http://www.thespiritwiki.com/index.php/Atonement [Accessed: May 19, 2012]
