Are you scrupulous?

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Are you scrupulous? For those of you who are not sure what that means, here is the definition:

scru·pu·lous**adjective /ˈskro͞opyələs/

    • (of a person or process) Diligent, thorough, and extremely attentive to details
      • the research has been carried out with scrupulous attention to detail
    • Very concerned to avoid doing wrong
      • she’s too scrupulous to have an affair with a married man
    The second definition which I put in bold is the one that applies here. It has to do with being overly concerned about committing a sin. In other words, a person might be scrupulous if they are afraid to not genuflect upon entering their pew even if they have a foot or knee injury. That could be an example of being scrupulous.
 
It comes and goes.

Was worse when I was younger.

If you use the “search” button above, it is useful.

Scrupulosity has been the subject of many discussions here on CAF.

Partly as a result, there is a good reference to a newsletter, which is now on-line, as well as snail mail … by the priests at Ligouri.

Scrupulous Anonymous.

Anyway, check out the search button. Scrupulous Anonymous should pop up.
I checked it out on “search” … fabulous discussions … and a LOT of them.

Here is the Liguori web site on scrupulosity:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupulosity.htm
 
Here’s the NewAdvent.org’s catholic encyclopedia article on “scruple”:

Scruple

(Latin Scrupulus, “a small sharp, or pointed, stone”, hence, in a transferred sense, “uneasiness of mind”)

An unfounded apprehension and consequently unwarranted fear that something is a sin which, as a matter of fact, is not. It is not considered here so much as an isolated act, but rather as an habitual state of mind known to directors of souls as a “scrupulous conscience.” St. Alphonsus describes it as a condition in which one influenced by trifling reasons, and without any solid foundation, is often afraid that sin lies where it really does not.

. . .

newadvent.org/cathen/13640a.htm
 
I’m kind of half and half. I get scrupulous about little things and worry loads about them but then I forget about bigger, more important things. And I’m insanely scrupulous about examination of conscience, I end up missing confession times because I get so worked about it not being good enough.
 
Some people say that scrupulosity is a psychological problem. It CAN be. But not always.

Scrupulous people may simply be worried about something that has not been adequately explained to them about the Catholic Faith. They may have gaps in their understanding of both the Church and its practice, and this can often cause needless difficulty in one’s faith life. When things are unclear, people often get confused. They get worried and upset for nothing.

People who are scrupulous are often terrified of going to Hell over every little thing, even things that are not sins at all. Scrupulosity can often be caused by bad reasoning about Church belief. Such bad reasoning can usually be brought on by reading overly strict Catholic books, or by talking to other people with harsh views on Church teaching.

Some people, for example, worry that every tiny lie will send them straight to Hell, or that working on a Sunday will send them straight to Hell, etc., etc., etc. These things are most certainly NOT mortal sins, according to official Vatican teaching, but you wouldn’t believe how many Catholics worry unnecessarily about little things like this.

The director of the Redemptorist website “Scrupulous Anonymous” points out that people can sometimes develop scrupulosity just by TALKING to someone with harsh ideas about God’s justice. A clear understanding of the Catholic Faith is very useful in dealing with – and preventing - scrupulosity.

As Monte RCMS pointed out above, the website “Scrupulous Anonymous” is an excellent resource for reducing scrupulosity, or eliminating it entirely. The information there on official Church teaching is accurate and precise. The context is deliberately non-threatening, and it has helped thousands of people to leave behind hurtful, needless worries about their salvation.

Again, it can be reached here: mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupanon.htm
 
Modern Catholic Dictionary:

SCRUPULOSITY. The habit of imagining sin where none exists, or grave sin where the matter is venial. To overcome scrupulosity, a person needs to be properly instructed in order to form a right conscience, and in extreme cases the only remedy is absolute obedience (for a time) to a prudent confessor.
 
I would disagree with the definition… we should be concerned about doing wrong, such as the example given: having an affair with a married man :eek: it’s not scrupulosity to consider that a sin… which it is.

Scrupulosity is more like when you see sin everywhere, even where there is no sin, or if you feel like every venial sin is a mortal sin.
 
Simple misunderstandings about what is sin and what is not often lead to fears about one’s salvation (scrupulosity.) It is very easy to be mistaken about the (admittedly complex) rules and regulations of the Roman Catholic Church. Happily, though, correct theological knowledge about official Church teaching is usually enough to make such fears go away.

Here is a short list of several misunderstandings about Church teaching I have had in the past. Do any of these sound familiar to you? I was told these things by several other scrupulous Catholics in recent years. I didn’t know enough about the Church (at the time) to identify many of these things as the mistakes that they are.

I was told:

1.) I must pray the Rosary every day. If I don’t, I am guilty of a lack of Charity in prayer, and will be sent straight to Hell for mortal sin. (I eventually learned that the Rosary is a DEVOTION. And no Roman Catholic has to pray devotions. Ever. They are total extras. It is no sin for a Roman Catholic not to pray the Rosary.)

2.) I cannot work on Sunday. This is an Offence against the Third Commandment. Violating this will send me straight to Hell. (The Vatican actually teaches that you CAN work on Sunday. Just try not to forget to go to Church.)

3.) I cannot lie. Every lie (no matter how harmless) is a mortal sin, and will send me straight to Hell. (This is absolutely NOT true, according to official Vatican teaching.)

4.) I cannot waste anything. Even wasting one square of toilet paper is an Offense against God’s Bounty (Charity,) and will send me straight to Hell. (Okay, this one is just plain bizarre.)

5.) I must tithe (give 10% of my income to the Church.) If I don’t, this is mortal sin. Once again, I will be sent straight to Hell. (I eventually learned that the Roman Catholic Church does not teach tithing. At all. I cover this in detail in several of my other posts. We give whatever we want, according to our conscience (Corinthians 2.) No pressure.)

6.) I can have no rest or relaxation. If I am not out doing enormous penances, charities, and “good works,” serving the Church, volunteering at the soup kitchen, helping the homeless, etc., I will guilty of sloth and laziness, will be in mortal sin, and will be sent – you guessed it – straight to Hell. (This one particularly disturbed me. I am very solitary. I spend almost ALL my time by myself, and have no real inclination to do any of these things. I’m very shy. I was finally shown that all these things are simply there IF WE WISH TO DO THEM. It is most certainly NOT a mortal sin not to do them, according to official Catholic teaching. Millions of Catholics live alone, go nowhere, do no real “good works” to speak of. And the Roman Catholic Church has NEVER declared such people to be on the way to Hell. Apologist Jimmy Akin wrote an excellent article on this, here: jimmyakin.org/2006/01/fear_of_going_t.html ).

This is just a small sampler of the various misunderstandings about sin that make Catholics afraid for their salvation on a daily basis. It is my impression that most scrupulous people worry about things like this – and many, many others.

Often, all that is needed to make such fears go away is correct theological knowledge about the Church and its practice. Such knowledge can be found on the “Scrupulous Anonymous” website. It can also be found by talking with a priest who is knowledgeable in such areas. Now admittedly, it can be difficult to find priests familiar with these worries, but they do exist. It is a true shame that more accurate information on these matters is not always readily available, even over the Internet. It would help many people.
    • We are not drowning from a lack of Grace. We are drowning from a lack of Knowledge.*
 
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