Can we commit mortal sins in our dreams?

[ntisawesome]

I know some times dreams seem more vivid than others. Sometimes I feel like I have a will of my own, at least for a short segment. Sometimes I have no control over my dreams at all. In the case where I do have control, and break a commandment in my dream, is it still a sin?

Would your answer to the question change if I said I KNEW I was dreaming at the time?

 

[shoewindow3000]

No, it is not a sin.

You are not sinning, because you do not have full consent of the will.

The best thing you can do is forget about it and move on!

 

[cyberwolf001]

No, it is not a sin.

You are not sinning, because you do not have full consent of the will.

The best thing you can do is forget about it and move on!

Well of it’s lucid dreaming where you know it is a dream and have full control of the events would that have an effect?

 

[shoewindow3000]

Short answer, no.

Long answer…well, I am too lazy to type. Use the Search option.

 

[drforjc]

Well of it’s lucid dreaming where you know it is a dream and have full control of the events would that have an effect?

No. You are not in “full control.”

A) You are asleep and interacting with imaginary events. Also, even in our more lucid dreams, usually we have some control of our own dream actions but the results of those “actions” on others in the dream or the “environment” (which doesn’t usually behave as it does in reality) plus all the morphs and shifts in characters, places etc. clearly show that we are not in “full control.”

B) We do not have access to all the full powers of our conscience, memory, inhibitions, etc. which are suppressed in a dream state (even “lucid” dreams) which would in waking life prevent us from doing the actions in question. Since these are involuntary suppressed it makes sense that we would not be responsible for our thoughts when we are dreaming.

 

[cyberwolf001]

No. You are not in “full control.”

Yes, yes you are. I’ve done full and total access to all memories and total control of the dreamscape, it does happen and with a little work can be every dream.

 

[RosaryCrusader]

I’m not a moral theologian but I’ve stayed at a Holiday Inn Express before. According to a moral theology manual I have you commit no sin at all if you’re completely asleep and only venially if partially awake. The manual goes on to say that deliberately wanting to have a sinful dream prior to it taking place would make it sinful.

 

[RoryMcKenzie56]

Yes, yes you are. I’ve done full and total access to all memories and total control of the dreamscape, it does happen and with a little work can be every dream.

The good God of the Catholic faith leads His Church to teach that you have to be fully awake to fully sin. It is interesting that in this respect, the rigors of the law are apparently intensified for those who opt for neo-paganism. It seems completely unreasonable to this Catholic to be held accountable for actions that we do not really take while we are unconscious.

 

[Pray4Life]

The difficulty is that the very same judgment you are using to gauge that you are in “complete control” during a presumably lucid dream is impaired by the fact that you’re unconscious, whether you realize it at the time or not. I have seen it compared to a person who has drunk enough alcohol to have impaired judgment, reflexes, etc., but not sufficiently trashed to realize that they’ve had one too many or that there’s any reason they should not be driving. The impairment is there, but the nature of the impairment is as such that they are not aware of it. Just another idea for you.

 

[m134e5]

I know some times dreams seem more vivid than others. Sometimes I feel like I have a will of my own, at least for a short segment. Sometimes I have no control over my dreams at all. In the case where I do have control, and break a commandment in my dream, is it still a sin?

Would your answer to the question change if I said I KNEW I was dreaming at the time?

No, it is not a sin- no more than shooting bad guys on video games is murder.