Mortal and Venial Sin?Help!

[Surrexit Dominus]

I want to start by saying that I'm not trying to cause division or trouble and I'm a real live 15 yr old Catholic I have just recently(about 5 months ago) stopped smoking weed and came back to the church. I'm not extremely well taught on Catholic dogma but I read the bible alot and I am very well versed in scripture.


First of all, I would like to start by saying that mortal and venial sin is completely logical. BUT lots of times scripture is not logical by human wisdom it reaches far beyond what we can grasp so just because it's logical doesn't neccesarily mean it's scriptural. I'm not professing to know all the answers by bringing a tiny bit of scripture that makes me wonder. I do not profess to know 100% wether it is or is not true.

I need some help from fellow Catholics. I really can't seem to find it in the scripture, in fact I can only find scriptures that state the opposite- That ALL sin is the same in God's eyes and ALL sins can be washed by the blood of Jesus when you initially accept salvation(or if after you have salvation you repent and atone for them). The only sin that cannot be forgiven is blasphemy against the holy spirit(Matthew 12:31-32, Luke 12:10). Luke 12:10 actually states that he who speaks against Jesus himself can be forgiven but not blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Now Matthew says that ALL sins can be forgiven except for blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. I was tought that Mortal and Venial sin are different in comparison but I just don't know what is completely taught. I know it must be a serious subject because it relates to sin.


I know a couple of scriptures that kind of disagree with it but I sure don't know the entire bible and I can't profess to have the answers. I just wanna keep asking,seeking,knocking until I can understand some more. Afterall how am I supposed to explain to a non-Catholic what I believe if I don't FULLY understand it myself. Here is what I know in the bible and if you could please answer me with some scripture and church teachings that would kind of sum it up for me I'd be very happy.-



(Matthew 5:21-22)This verse Jesus says that being angry with your brother WITHOUT CAUSE is just as bad as murdering some one because it is murder in the heart.(Matthew 5:27-28). In this verse Jesus says that whoever looks at a woman with lust has already commited adultery. So I can clearly see that Jesus is saying that being angry at your brother without cause I just as bad as MURDER. And lustful looks are just as bad as ADULTERY. This is scary but it IS what he says.(1 John 1:7-8) Verse 8 says that all of us have sin and if we say we have none then the truth is not in us.Verse seven says that that is why Jesus blood cleanses us of all sin. I really need answers pleeease help me!!!

 

[ProCommunioneFacior]

As for scriptural proof of mortal and venial sin here is one passage of scripture:

1 John 5:

16 If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly, he should pray to God and he will give him life. This is only for those whose sin is not deadly. There is such a thing as deadly sin, about which I do not say that you should pray. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly.

In regards to your comment about the words of Jesus about lusting after women in the heart as being adultery. Pope John Paul II actually talks about this in his Theology of the Body. He talks about how this life is a battle between love and lust in our hearts. And whenever we look upon a woman in a way that we use her for our pleasure (even our wife) then we are lusting and we are reducing that woman to an object to be used. We need to look at woman with a pure heart. If you would like here is a link to some resources where you can learn about Theology of Body.

http://www.theologyofthebody.net

 

[4Jesus4ever]

There are many scriptural verses that the Catechism provides to back up the severety of sins. Some of these you can read are Galatians 5:19-21, Romans 1:28-32, 1Corinthians 6:9-10, Ephesians 5:3-5, Colossians 3:5-9, 1 Timothy 1:9-10, 2Timothy 3:2-5, Mathew 15:19-20, 1 John 5:16-17, Mark 10:19, Mark 3:5-6, Saint Thomas Aquinas STh I-II, 88, 2 corp.art.

Since you are new in The Church again, what you have to do is listen to others in The Church that are a little older or perhaps talk to the Priest in your local Parish for guidance. I am really happy that you have such a thirst for knowledge. That is a good sign for someone of your age.

One thing you have to realize, mankind has been searching for the Truth for over two millenia. That Truth is found in Jesus! The Greek Orthodox Church teaches that sin is anything that falls short of Christ's perfection. The Greek word for this is "amatia", which means "Miss the Bullseye". There is no distinction made whether your sins are Venial or Mortal. The only sin that can not be forgiven is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Therefore as St. Paul stated in Romans 3:9-18 , "There is no one righteous, not one!" We are all sinners and fall short of God's glory.

What is more important, than what sin is venial or mortal, or whether you spend time in Purgatory or not, is that you have to accept the fact that you as well as everyone else is a sinner. What you have to do about this is what's important. You have to as in the word's of John the Baptist, "Repent", make confession to a priest any pray for forgiveness. That is the only way that your sins can be washed away through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Hope that helped!

 

[Christy4Christ]

I have always been a little confused on this issue as well. I myself have been trying to figure out how we came to the conclusion for mortal and venial sin. I am Catholic but I am still learning the faith. I haven't been able to find much on this in the bible either. I am glad you started this thread, maybe both of us can learn a little something.

 

[Rosa Mystica]

Okay all, here are the three conditions for a mortal sin:

1) Grave/serious matter is involved.

2) Full consent of the will is given on the part of the sinner.

3) There is sufficient reflection on the part of the sinner (i.e. the individual knows prior to committing the sin that it is seriously wrong).


If any of these conditions is missing, it is not a mortal sin. Mind you, a sin can be grave w/o being mortal (like when someone does something seriously wrong, but doesn't have knowledge of this). I can see why doubts can arise in this area (resident scrupulant, here). Sometimes, it is best to ask someone who is knowledgeable in this area if one has doubts (like a priest, nun, devout Catholic friend/family member, etc).

 

[Benedicta00]

Okay all, here are the three conditions for a mortal sin:

1) Grave/serious matter is involved.

2) Full consent of the will is given on the part of the sinner.

3) There is sufficient reflection on the part of the sinner (i.e. the individual knows prior to committing the sin that it is seriously wrong).


If any of these conditions is missing, it is not a mortal sin. Mind you, a sin can be grave w/o being mortal (like when someone does something seriously wrong, but doesn't have knowledge of this). I can see why doubts can arise in this area (resident scrupulant, here). Sometimes, it is best to ask someone who is knowledgeable in this area if one has doubts (like a priest, nun, devout Catholic friend/family member, etc).

This is correct and if there is any doubt then you should bring it to confession.

 

[chilehed]

Read this:

http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect1chpt1art8.htm

 

[KennySe]

SD,
this is off topic, but you might consider printing pages 2-6 of this Apologetics Concordance.

http://www.campbellcounty.com/~ourl...Support For Catholic Doctrines large text.pdf


Peace.

 

[Papist]

And whenever we look upon a woman in a way that we use her for our pleasure (even our wife) then we are lusting and we are reducing that woman to an object to be used. We need to look at woman with a pure heart.

Given that, how can our detractors keep on with the myth that we are misogynist?!
Rob