Can one go to hell for masturbation?

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mwardan

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I am a fourteen year old girl that has trouble with masturbation. I once discovered it as a child and did not know it to be a mortal sin. As I grew up I found out that others have also experienced it. I still did not know it was a mortal sin, but continued the act knowing it was frowned upon. As of today I found that it was a mortal sin and am wondering if I will go to hell for having committed the act. If this is the case, must I confess this? And how do I do it? I am very nervous and my confessions must be face to face. I do not know my priest very well and am not comfortable confessing. How do I get over this fear?
 
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Welcome to CAF. Please employ the search feature as your question has been asked and answered hundreds of times already.
 
Thank you. I have searched already and haven’t found a question that fits my situation specifically.
 
You’ll find general answers. Yes it’s a grave matter, if committed with full consent and knowledge it is a mortal sin. You must confess it if it is mortal. Your priest will not care, he will not judge you.
 
Masturbation is considered grave matter, but you are young and it sounds like you were not catechized well. I would still recommend going to Confession and then try to be done with it. A few things I will * add:
  • It’s something many people struggle with. The purpose of Confession and the Good News of Christ is that God is forgiving.
  • I know it’s awkward, but whatever priest you speak to will no doubt have heard this confessed many times, and far worse things besides. I’m only trying to say you’re not going to shock the priest, and you don’t need to be ashamed. You’re there to reconcile.
 
It is not the place to any human to tell someone they will go to hell. We are not God, and only him know and decided.

In catholic theology we don’t have to wait to feel that we are going to hell to confess in order to avoid damnation. We can confess any sin we are remember even if that is not “mortal”.

It does not make it more easier, nad many Catholics avoid confession, or confessing sexual sins because of their shame.

To have a mortal sin, one of the criteria is to have deliberate knwoledge. No one can commit a mortal sin if he didn’t know that it was sinfull. That does not make the act for wrong.

You probably have some lacks in your moral education as a child. Try to do better for any future children you may have.
 
Welcome to CAF. As you are a minor, you need to discuss this with your priest. We can’t discuss sexual topics with minors on here.

Rest assured that the priest has heard it all and is not going to be put off by anything you might say in this regard. As for fear of confessing, I used to have it myself and the best way to get over it is to just make yourself go to confession once a month (Or more often if you have a grave sin to confess) and tell the priest everything. Good luck.
 
You joined 52 minutes ago, and posted 44 minutes ago.

There is no way you read all those threads. I and anyone that has been here even a month knows your question has been asked and answered countless times. Your question is not new.
 
Anybody can make a search in the forum archive even without having create a profile…

But I agree with the rest, the OP would find more than she thinks if she explore carefully all the posts.
 
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That is true. But there is no way the answer is not already there…
 
As someone who has gone through similar things at that age (except I’m 20 now and male) I can say that going to confession is always worth it; afterwards you can be sure you’re forgiven. I struggled about going to confession with this for years but when I finally did it it was such a relief.

The scariest part for me was always waiting in line thinking about what I was going to say. Perhaps try taking a note on your phone or a piece of paper and taking that in with you. Remember God is merciful and loves you to go and confess to him! And no sin is bigger than His mercy. I’ll be praying for you!
 
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