Catholic

Castle Federation wrote:

I err on the side of yes, but there is debate about this among priests. Culpability might be lessened but one still has to ascent to the act which still keeps it in mortal territory, in my view. Besides, it's best to confess it before receiving communion instead of taking a gamble and assuming that it isn't mortal.

Alright. Now a person who has rid themselves of masturbation and is trying to rid certain things that lead him there but on occasion he gets an uncontrollable urge to go to a website that could lead him down that path. He’s trying to get them out of his life forever, but he still slips up for a minute before his conscience kicks in and he gets out. These aren’t pornography, but still not great. Is that mortal?

The Orion Islands wrote:

So if masturbation became a habitual sin but you were trying to rid yourself of it is it still mortal?

The only way for a sin to be mortal is if you commit the sin with full knowledge it is a sin, in a clear state of mind, completely willingly rejecting God's grace and also it being a grievous matter.

If you are trying your best to stop a sin because you want to be pleasing to God but fail because of your weakness in the flesh there is no way for that sin to be mortal, period. God sees your struggle and loves you for it. You should however not give up in your battle with the sin because sin separates us from God. Always repent and always try to become more holy. Never give up, never surrender. God wins in the end.

"[1862] One commits venial sin when, in a less serious matter, he does not observe the standard prescribed by the moral law, or when he disobeys the moral law in a grave matter, but without full knowledge or complete consent."

Castle Federation wrote:

I err on the side of yes, but there is debate about this among priests. Culpability might be lessened but one still has to ascent to the act which still keeps it in mortal territory, in my view. Besides, it's best to confess it before receiving communion instead of taking a gamble and assuming that it isn't mortal.

I agree that it is always the best spiritual practice to confess both mortal and venial sins. That being said, I'm in the camp that argues that addictive behaviour (lack of full assent of the will) seems like it would not fulfil all three criteria for mortal sin. However, I would strongly caution against thinking that because it's not a mortal sin that it is no longer serious (the gravity of the action can never be diminished even if the culpability can in certain circumstances). When sin becomes habitual to the point where it diminishes the full assent of the will, it thus also diminishes the freedom to cooperate with the graces of the sacraments. The most helpful example I've come across is Matthew 13. God gives the same graces to everyone who receives the sacraments. To those for whom masturbation is a mortal sin, when one repents, the seeds of sacramental grace are given to fertile soil. To those for whom the culpability for masturbation is diminished due to addiction, the seeds of grace are given to rocky ground. Having accompanied teenage boys, college men, and older men, I can say that the legalist approach (is it a mortal sin or not) belies the beauty of discipleship while masking the darkness of addiction. We need to remember that God called us at our baptisms to respond freely to His love. Anything that diminishes that gift of freedom is deadly, regardless of whether the sin itself is mortal or venial.

Castle Federation wrote:

I err on the side of yes, but there is debate about this among priests. Culpability might be lessened but one still has to ascent to the act which still keeps it in mortal territory, in my view. Besides, it's best to confess it before receiving communion instead of taking a gamble and assuming that it isn't mortal.

You’re right. Absolutely. However, if grave matter, full awareness and deliberate consent to the sin still remains, it is a mortal sin for sure.

Cretoia-Slrathria wrote:

God the Father of All Mankind - 08042022

by The Diocese of The National Shrine of Our Lady of China

I will be away for a long time, since school is starting.

But I want to share with you two ikons of God the Father

I just had a kind of reunion with the latter image. It's like I forgot that it is God the Father, but it is God the Father, and the drawing of the latter was shown after some visions from a Nun.

The first one I just thought it is kinda cool, since it is God the Father through our imaginations. And interesting about it is the colour white.

I think both images are really cool and I want to remind that life is not sad or boring or hell. Because we have a Father who made us, He who is All Good, Almighty, and is Our Father through Jesus Christ whom he begot. And the love that we see and cannot see, and feel and cannot feel; and the beauty of creation and it's complexity and intricacy; is just something that we should always remember, because it is good and joyful. God would want us to be happy.

A reading, Galatians 4:6, NRSVACE

And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!'

What father would not want us to call him affectionately as "Father," or "Papa," or whatever it is in our native tongue? What more is Our Father who Art in Heaven?

Read dispatch

Very nice, I love my icons of God the Father.